USA > Pennsylvania > Indiana County > Green > History of Commodore and Green Township, Indiana County, Pa. > Part 1
USA > Pennsylvania > Indiana County > History of Commodore and Green Township, Indiana County, Pa. > Part 1
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Jane E. Elling Box 22, R.D. 2 Mahaffey, PA 15757
History of
COMMODORE and GREEN TOWNSHIP Indiana County, Pa.
REVO
LUTION
AMERICAN R $
BICENTENNIAL
1776-1976
Dedicated to the men and women who served their country; to those who made the supreme sacrifice, and to the forefathers of Commodore and Green Township.
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center
https://archive.org/details/historyofcommodo00howo
Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation
( Reprint from New York Central Lines Magazine of May, 1922 )
GENERAL OFFICE BUILDING, INDIANA, PENNSYLVANIA
F. E. HERRIMAN
President
JOHN S. FISHER Vice-President
H. B. DOUGLAS Assistant to the President
A. J. MUSSER
General Manager
H. J. HINTERLEITNER General Superintendent
M. S. MITCHELL Auditor of Disbursements
1
K 1
Commodore, the Town the New York Central Built
Two-Year-Old Coal Center of Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation is Growing Apace - Some Facts About This Big Fuel Company
The Tipple at Commodore, Pa. It is equipped with all modern time-savi. " devices. By H. B. DOUGLAS
C OMPARATIVELY few em- ployes of the New York Cen- tral Lines are familiar with the ex- tensive coal holdings and activities of the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation; and doubtless fewer still realize the great economic value of this sturdy subsidiary to the parent railroad company. The New York Central is indeed for- tunate, not only in the possession of so vast a field of high-grade coal, but also in the fact that the greater portion of it is located on its own line of railroad.
Mines Opened in 1860
The Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation had its inception in the old McIntyre Coal Co., operat- · ing at McIntye in the northeast corner of Lycoming County, Penn- sylvania. C. J. Langdon of Elmira, New York. was president of this company and George H. Platt, sup- erintendent. The mines were opened in the '60; the tattered map bearing the date 1873. We know little of this company. Tradition informs us, however, that the coal was three feet in thickness, of good quality, and found a ready market in New York and Canada. Today you will seek in vain for the vil- lage of McIntyre. An ancient cemetery is all that remains: for it was one of those ephemeral towns that follow the pick and dis- appear with the coal.
The McIntyre Coal Company's property was nearing exhaustion in the early '80s, and President Lang- don cast about for additional acre- age. Associated with him in this new enterprise were such men as W. K. Vanderbilt and Cornelius Vanderbilt of New York; Joseph
M. Gazzam and John G. Reading of Philadelphia; General George J. Magee of Watkins, New York: S. R. Peale of Lock Haven, Pa., and William A. Wallace of Clearfield,. Pa., all of whom appear as direc- tors in the new company formed. This company was known as the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Com- pany, and received its Charter and
Commodore Stark, the first baby born in Commodore, Pa.
Letters Patent December 27, 1882. In 1882 the company acquired 22,450 acres of land in Rush and Snowshoe townships, Centre Coun- ty, and Cooper Township, Clear- field County, Pennsylvania. In 1883 the coal was opened and the village of Peale, named for S. R. Peale, laid out. Located in a wooded sec- tion of great natural beauty. at the confluence of Moravian Run. a small trout stream, and Moshannon
Creek, Peale was considered in its day, and undoubtedly was, a model mining town.
The western terminus of the Beech Creek, Clearfield, and South Western Railroad was, at this time, at Snow Shoe, Pa., some ten miles away; so that in the beginning all material had to be hauled in by team from that point. It was not until 1884 that the railroad was ex- tended to Viaduct, two miles west of Peale and rail shipments began. In 1885 the Clearfield Company purchased 11,720 acres of coal in Jordan, Ferguson, Knox and Green- wood townships. Clearfield County. In the year following, the coal was opened and the town of Gazzam established.
Pioneers Worked Well
The development of a large coal property, viewed from any angle, is a mighty serious affair. In no other field of endeavor are initial mistakes so costly, and so hard to correct; and so it is most refresh- ing to record here that the pioneers of the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation did their work faith- fully and well.
There was one stockholder of record, however. who, it is safe to assume, did not take the mining game seriously. He was none other than Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain), a brother-in-law of Presi- dent Langdon, and owned all of six shares. "Old Timers,"-a few of them are still with this Corpora- tion .- delight to tell of a week this great man spent at Peale; and of how he put in his days prone upon the office floor. his back against an overturned chair, smoking and reading. It is easy to visualize the
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NEW YORK CENTRAL LINES MAGAZINE
A general view of the town of Commodore, Pa., the town that supplies much of the coal for the New York Central.
gentle humorist in his favorite read- ing posture; and one can readily believe that his active mind en- joyed to the full whatever of hu- man interest went on about him, and stored it away for future "copy."
But all this is ancient history. Gazzam has disappeared; the pic- turesque village of Peale is but a memory: and the trout leap no more in the contaminated waters of Moravian Run. The men who in- spired and engineered the project have long since passed on, and their passing indeed marks the end of an era. Machinery, in its appli- cation to the mining industry was coming into its own, and in its progress gradually crowding out the old skilled pick miner. And with these latter departed whatever romance there was in the mining of bituminous coal.
In 1886 the Clearfield Company was taken over by a new organiza- tion chartered under the name "Clearfield Bituminous Coal Cor- poration." In the year 1889 the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad Co. leased the Beech Creek. Clearfield and South West- ern Railroad and operated with the title "Beech Creek Railroad, N. Y. C. & H. R. R. R. Co., Lessee." In 1899 the Central took over the Fall Brook Railroad and the Beech Creek Railroad and consolidated them into the "Pennsylvania Divi- sion." It is of special interest to note that President F. E. Herri- man of the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Corporation, was an official of the old Beech Creek Railroad. and that he was appointed, at this time. Division Coal Agent of the Penn- sylvania Division, with headquar- ters in New York. He was sub- sequently made Coal Traffic Mana- ger of the New York Central and resigned this position in 1917 to become an attache of the office of President A. H. Smith, his task being the co-ordination of the rail- road's coal properties.
Prior to 1898 the Clearfield Cor-
poration, in connection with the min- ing and selling of coal from its own mines, was actively engaged in the commercial coal business as well as the manufacture and sale of coke. About 1898 it ceased its commercial activities, and became what it is today, strictly a railroad fuel propo- sition. Aside from a small portion of the tonnage consumed in the Corporation's power plants, and sold locally to employes for do- mestic use, the entire output goes to the New York Central Railroad for supply.
Large Area Acquired
The New York Central execu- tives early saw the advantages to be derived from coal land owner- ship, and wisely encouraged in their subsidiary a rapid and healthy ex- pansion. From 1902 to 1916 the Clearfield Corporation had acquired 127,123 additional acres in Cambria and Indiana Counties, bringing the total acreage up to 161,293. In ac- quiring so large an area it was found necessary to take over con- siderable acreage tributary to other roads; and also many comparatively small isolated tracts of no oper- ating value to the corporation, but of considerable importance in mak- ing exchanges for the purpose of straightening boundary lines and enhancing property value.
It is the policy of the Corpora- tion to sell or lease such territory as it cannot economically exploit and in this way derive a revenue to pay in part the carrying charges on the entire property. This policy has resulted in the sale of approxi- mately 11,000 acres, and a lease of 49,380 acres, leaving about 100.000 acres to be developed, sold or leased as conditions warrant.
The coals of Central Pennsyl- vania occur in what is geologically known as the Allegheny or Lower Productive measures. Resting on the Homewood sandstone, a mas- sive conglomerate, as a base, and capped by the Mahoning sandstone this formation, averaging about 300
feet in thickness, carries seven seams of coal. Enumerating from the bottom they are: Brookville or Bed A; Clarion or Bed A prime; Lower Kittanning or Bed B; Middle Kittanning or Bed C; Upper Kittan- ning or Bed C prime; Lower Free- port or Bed D; and Upper Free- port or Bed E. They are all classed as semi-bituminous coals in this region, and, as a rule, are of ex- cellent quality. It is rare, how- ever, to find more than two seams in any given area of sufficient thick- ness to present an economic mining proposition under present day mar- ket conditions.
The Clearfield Corporation is de- veloping and mining five fields viz., Cooper in Clearfield County; West Branch in Cambria County; and Rossiter, Clymer, and Purchase Line, in Indiana County, Pa. Cooper Colliery is producing Low- er Kittanning coal; the four mines at Rossiter and the two mines at Commodore in the Purchase Line field are operating on the Upper Freeport seam; while Barr Slope and Sample Run Collieries in the Clymer field and the West Branch operation are mining the Lower Freeport. These coals all possess high fuel values. The Cooper coal is especially notable, not only as a strong steamer, but as a fuel so low in volatile matter as to be prac- tically smokeless. It is in great demand for use in yards and sta- tionary plants located in cities.
These mines are all located on the Pennsylvania Division, New York Central Railroad; produce an- nually a million and a half net tons: and have a developed capacity of approximately two million tons. The fields are being developed along scientific lines, and the mines worked in accord with the best min- ing practice, having always in mind conservation and economy. Electric power, supplied by central plants located at Rossiter and Clymer, is used throughout for hauling, min- ing. pumping, ventilating and light- ing. These two plants, in the interest
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NEW YORK CENTRAL LINES MAGAZINE
This and the picture on the opposite page show the beautiful rolling region in Pennsylvania in which Com- modore lies.
of economy, are now being consoli- dated and within the near future the power requirements of the Corpora- tion will be supplied from its mod- ernly equipped and efficient Clymer Plant. The mines are in first class physical condition and splendidly equipped.
Two outstanding factors make the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Cor- poration of paramount value as a railroad subsidiary. The first has to do with the constant care and attention given to preparation re- sulting in a high grade locomotive fuel; and the second relates to the Corporation's wonderful reserves. In each of the five fields above mentioned only the seam, which in that particular locality is above water level. is being worked. The mines are developed by drifts. or by slopes of such light grades as to permit motor haulage. The seams below water level will be de- veloped in due course by shaft or slope.
In the Cooper and Rossiter fields the underlying seams are not at- tractive: but splendid bodies of Lower Kittanning coal await de- velopment in the West Branch. Clymer and Purchase Line fields. The available coal remaining in these fields alone, including all workable seams. amounts to 32.000 acres, which, on a conservative estimate should yield 138,000,000 net tons. In addition to the above the Cor- poration owns four other fields, which, while not now located on the New York Central Railroad. may be reached by extensions, and should yield 84.000,000 net tons. Thus it will be seen that the re- serves of the Corporation, based on the present output of 1.500.000 net tons annually, have a life of con- siderably more than one hundred years. And this, it must be under- stood. applies only to the workable seams of the present. The thin seams underlying the property have a potential value which will prove attractive only to posterity.
The Corporation has always been keenly interested in the physical.
mental and spiritual welfare of its employes. Thoughtful and careful consideration is at all times given to housing and sanitation problems; generous aid furnished schools and churches; and recreational facilities provided. All this is not merely altruism; it is predicated on sound economics. Given a town attrac- tively laid out; furnished with com- fortable houses: provided with ed- ucational, religious and recreational facilities, and you are sure to find contented dwellers therein. And contentment is the very essence of a successful mining operation. Commodore, the newest of the Cor- poration's group of towns, is a case in point.
A Model Coal Town
Commodore is located on Two Lick Creek, in Pleasant Valley. Green Township, Indiana Co., Pa .. and near the old abandoned town of Lovejoy. The name itself is suggestive of Commodore Vander- bilt, founder of the New York Cen- tral Railroad, and leading figure in the history of American transpor- tation. Admirably planned, on gently sloping ground, electrically lighted, with comfortable and sub- stantial houses, it is indeed a model in its way and attracts wide and favorable attention.
Although only two years old it boasts a bank. a public garage and a high school building; while a community house, plans for which have been prepared, is contemplated in the near future. Pure water has been impounded and brought to the houses; and an effective sewer- age system installed. The mining equipment is up-to-date from the machine shop to the steel tipple which has a capacity of 1500 tons per day. And when it is added that the coal at this point is of good average thickness we present a combination hard to beat. and the management is placed in that for- tunate position of being able to nick and choose and to fill the houses with high-grade mine labor. which, at its best, is none too plen-
tiful. At present the mines are pro- ducing over 1,100 tons per day, and the output will be increased as rapidly as careful, conservative min- ing permits. As a matter of in- terest it may be stated in pass- ing that Commodore's first-born arrived May 28, 1920. The parents, Mr. and Mrs. James Stark, named the boy "Commodore," and the Cor- poration, in recognition of an event so significant, presented to the in- fant citizen a handsome silver cup, suitably engraved.
The prodigality of the American race with respect to the country's natural resources has become pro- verbial. The tendency to live smugly in the present; to follow the line of least resistance; to tell pos- terity to go hang has been char- acteristic of the race since the be- ginning. And now at last awake, comes a mad scramble for pad- locks, only to find in many in- stances the door agape, the stable empty. Happily in the coal indus- try, at least as concerns the mining of the product. it is not too late, and conservation has become the order of the day. Timber. how- ever, to employ a popular idiom, is something else again. It has gone the way of the bison and the wild pigeon -- and yet while it is too late to protect the old nag, we still have the blessed privilege of buying a colt, locking it securely in the pad- dock, and helping it to sturdy ma- turity. And this is just what the Corporation is attempting with its recently established Forestry De- partment.
The Corporation owns approxi- mately 25,000 acres of surface. A small part of this is cleared land of indifferent farm value. The bal- ance is generally covered with some kind of forest growth, which, under proper care and attention, will in time prove of inestimable value. not only in the manufacture of lum- ber, but as offering a solution to the mine timber problem. which is year- ly becoming more difficult.
The largest single tract of sur- face consists of 13.000 acres. in
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NEW YORK CENTRAL LINES MAGAZINE
Vanderbilt Avenue a typical thoroughfare in Commodore. Note the concrete block houses.
Clearfield and Centre Counties, and is a part of the old Peale pur- chase. It is almost entirely cov- ered with forest growth. Some 40 years ago it was cut over, but a considerable amount of virgin tim- ber was left standing in places more or less remote and inaccessible. The second growth has been periodically dam- aged and retard- ed by destructive fires, and it was quite right that this promising field should re- ceive first aid and attention. Fire lanes have been cut, an observa- tion tower built, and a camp estab- lished near Peale station. The New York Central Railroad, whose line traverses the entire tract, and the Central Penn- sylvania Forest Fire Protective Association are actively co-opera- ting in this work. The next lar- gest single block of surface is located in Cambria County and contains 4600 acres. It is covered with some virgin, and considerable second growth. tim- ber. The Gazzam surface in Clear- field County, comprising about 1700 acres, and covered with sporadic stands of second growth. offers in the way of soil and topography the most attractive field for under planting. The balance of the sur- face consists of smaller parcels in Indiana County, which are covered one-third to one-half by second growth timber, and some scattered virgin hard wood.
In 1920 seedlings to the amount of sixty thousand were planted on the Sample Run watershed. and dur- ing 1921 eighty thousand were set out in the Gazzam field. It is planned to plant 230,000 seedlings during 1922. A saw mill installed on Moshannon Creek in the Peale
Mildred A. (Brown) Gromley First Baby Girl born in Commodore
field, has so far manufactured 1,500,000 feet of lumber for use in construction work at Commodore and other collieries.
The Department has barely made a beginning, but under the able supervision of Forester Tonkin. the future looks most promising., His plan contemplates the fostering and protection of natural growth: under planting thin forests; replanting barren areas; and a system of blocking and cutting by rotation. It is a tremendous undertaking, but well worth all the cost, the care,
and the patient toil necessary to make the project a success.
In the early days, and until quite recently, the general office of the Corporation was located at Clear- field. Pa. With the purchase of lands in Cambria and Indiana Coun- ties, followed by rapid develop- ment, it became more apparent each year that Clearfield was too remote from the center of production. In 1919 the mines located in Indi- ana County were producing 71 per cent of the en- tire output, and it was finally de- cided. in the in- terest of econ- omy and effi- ciency. to move general head - quarters to that county. During the year a suit- able office build- ing was erected in the town of Indiana, and early in 1920 the change was made. The officers of the Corporation are: F. E. Herriman, President ; John S. Fisher, Vice-President ; A. J. Musser, General Manager, and H. J. Hinterleitner, General Superinten- dent. Around these officials is built up an organization such as is rarely found in any industry. Dominated by an esprit de corps so essential to success; and inspired by loyalty and zeal, this wonderfully compact group carries on with splendid efficiency. having ever in mind the interests of that corporate body which they have the privilege and honor to serve.
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Indiana Evening Gazette
INDIANA, PENNSYLVANIA, TUESDAY, JANUARY i, 1921.
COMMODORE BUSIEST TOWN IN THE COUNTY
Correspondent Writes Interesting Communica tion Relative to Growth of C. B. C. Holding in Green Township.
DEVELOPMENTS
Commodore, the new Clearfield Bi- tuminous Coal Corporation town, lo- cated in the center of Green town- ship, Indiana county, is gradually coming into its own and making a place on the map worthy of mention. The new coal tipple is one of the best and most up-to-date in the county . and worked perfectly on its try-out. The new coal openings, power house tracking, electric installation, cars and all equipment is the best the market can produce.
Commodore has forty-five families more than 60 per cent American, while the foreign-speaking families are good, Americanized citizens. Houses are being built daily with eag- er demand for them before they are ready for occupation. A new, eighty- foot garage is nearing completion. There is a planing mill, a good store, four American and five foreign board- ing houses, a post office and a rail- road station with New York Central and Pennsylvania trains.
The new bank is under roof and is being rushed to completion. The People's Bank of Commodore is a bank owned and controlled by the citizens of the town and surround- ing neighborhood. The town is sur- munded by fine farms and worthy farmers who are up and doing. Today there is not a more thrifty township in the county.
The new town is in old "Pleasant Valley". The land is fertile and fine for all sorts of farm purposes, he- sides the upper land is very good for fruit-growing as well as grain. 0-0
of apples, besides other fruit, will. give you an idea of the land's pro- duetiveness.
The town is showing a splendid beginning, for the worthy farmers and their wives send butter, eggs, meats and all sorts of provisions to the residents and best of all the prices are right. Just for example, « good,
juicy round steak at 20 cents per pound!
Co-operation is the keynote of this ; orderprsing town. A community like that needed a bank. So they got. busy, organized it, financed it, built the building, and now it is about ready to function. Two years ago the dis- triet school was too large. Now there are three rooms for school, and the directors are using the first story of two company houses for grades one and two. The schools had a nice Christmas tree for the pupils, their teachers giving a treat. Old St. Nicholas arrived astride a large, polar bear to take in the exercises. He led the kiddies down to the cen- ter of the town and then distributed apples and candies. He then called from house to house placing toys un- der the trees and helped the little ones, leaving something at every home. The children sang Christmas songs on the streets and had the time of their lives.
In the near future Commodore will be known to everyone. The daily ques- tion-"Where is Commodore ?" -will go into oblivion, and Commodore will be on the map, a real up -- to-date coal town in a fine neighborhood.
6
HE DAILY DEMOCRAT, JOHNSTOWN, PA., SATURDAY, AUGUST 13, 1921
COMMODORE, IN INDIANA COUNTY, CITED AS MODEL OF MINING COMMUNITY
Unique New Town Is Be- ing Built by Bitumin- ous Corporation
SPLENDID HOMES AT $14 PER MONTH
In the new "model town" of Com- modore, Indiana county, miners will be able to get very convenient, anni- tary homes for $14 per month. This atntemont was mado to a Democrat reporter by Sherman A. Forroll, head of the W. O. W. organization In this region. Mr. Ferrell, during his re- cent trips to Sinrford and Clymer, had occasion to visit Commodore, and his description of what he found there is most interesting.
The Clearfeld Bituminous corpora- tion, a steadily-growing concern and, controlled largely hy New York Con- trai capital. Is building the new town,. which is located on the New York Central branch running through that' section of Indiana county. The namo Commodore is suggestive of the fam- ous Commodore Vanderbilt, founder. of the New York family bearing his name, pioneer in the ferry boat buel -! ness of New York harbor and lounger: of the New York Central Itself.
Commodore Is lald out mathematic-' ally. The strcets represent provision for drainage and sewerg. Amusement and recreation facilities will be ample for the demand. The houses being bullt by the company contain five rooms each. They are built of either brick or cement blocks and represent, latest sanitary ideas. They have electric lights, toilets and other con -! veniences, and, Mr. Ferrell states! will rent for only $14 per month.
"The kind of houses being built," Mr. Ferrell continucd, "and the gen- eral style of the town indicate to me' that the company will take consider-' able pains to get the most desirable imen to locate there. This will benefit in two ways. First, It will give them a class of minera showing high pro- ductive efficiency as workers. Next, AR tenants. these men are more likely to be careful and thrifty. The whole tning at Commodore looks very good to me, I must say."
COMMORORE IN BOOM PERIOD
The new town of Commodore, where the Clearfield Bituminous Coal Cor- poration has opened up mines, is booming and it is planned to make it one of the largest operations in the county. The town is located in Green township, on the site of Pleasant Val- ley, near Love Joy. It now has about one hundred houses and plans are he- ing made for the erection of at least four hundred more. All the structures will be of concrete and of the best class. Among the improvements on the program is a large public school, 1 high school and a community hall. A national bank has already been or- ganized and a banking building is now in course of erection. Other improve- ments are on the list and announce- ment of them.will be awaited with in- terent.
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