USA > Pennsylvania > Bucks County > Bristol > A history of Bristol borough in the county of Bucks, state of Pennsylvania, anciently known as "Buckingham"; being the third oldest town and second chartered borough in Pennsylvania, from its earliest times to the present year 1911 > Part 20
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
"In all of the problems which effect our future develop- ment, our local government is deeply interested. The question of our future water supply, a question of great importance to every industrial town, is being solved in the direction of municipal control of this important utility. A complete sewer system for the better sanita- tion of the borough will shortly be installed. Never was there a brighter horizon for our people than that which at this day confronts them.
"In all ages the valor and bravery of men who have borne arms in the defence of their country has been the subject of grateful appreciation by their fellow man. If this is true in a general sense, when applied to those who fought on the side of the Union in the Civil War, it should have a double significance, for did not the bravery and patriotism of these men preserve our national in- tegrity, deliver unto freedom millions of men who had previously been held in bondage; but unknown even to themselves evolved and developed in the minds of our patriotic statesmen of that day, out of the necessity and circumstances of the war, what has since been known as the American Protective Tariff System. The advantages and benefits of this system are directly evidenced by the development and prosperity of the community and our entire country during the past fifty years, and the ex- ample set has led to the adoption of this system as part of the fiscal policy of every civilized nation in the world but one. Surely can it be said of the patriotic soldiers of '60 to '64, 'they built more wisely than they knew.' "
Supplemental .- The Livingstone Mills were built by Messrs. Charles W. and Joshua Peirce, in 1868, for the manufacture of printed felt druggets and floor cloths, but the character of the product was changed from year to year to meet the demands of a changing market. The coming of the Peirces to Bristol marked the beginning of an era of industrial activity which has continued ever since. A large part of the product of the firm during the first few years of its existence, consisted of ladies' felt skirts, of which 2,000 per day were regularly produced. The exhibit of the firm at the Centennial Exposition,
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
held in Philadelphia in 1876, was attractive and varied in character. The manufacture of felt cloths ceased in 1882 in favor of medium and fine woolen cassimeres. Charles W. Peirce withdrew from the management in January, 1883, and the business was conducted under the firm name of Joshua Peirce & Co. Mr. Peirce failed in 1887. Subsequently the plant was purchased by Edward T. Steel & Co., the present owners, and fitted out for the manufacture of men's worsted fabrics.
MILLS OF EDWARD T. STEEL & CO.
The Bristol Foundry, operated by T. B. Harkins Foundry Company, was established in 1871, for the manu- facture of stove plate and fire castings. Though limited in extent, this enterprise has been successful and pros- perous, and has acquired an extended reputation for superiority of workmanship.
The sash and planing mill of Joseph Sherman was built in 1873, was later operated under the firm name of Sherman & Peirce, and since the death of the former · partner, has been known as the Bristol Woodworking Mill, operated by Peirce & Williams. In 1891 a disas-
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trous fire burned the buildings to the ground, after which the splendidly equipped factory of today was erected.
The Bristol Rolling Mill was built by Messrs. Neve- gold, Schiede & Co., in 1875, for the manufacture of hoop, scale and band iron from scrap and muck bar. After the withdrawal of Frederick Nevegold, in September, 1886, the proprietorship was vested in the Bristol Rolling Mill Company, which was incorporated in 1881, with Charles E. Schiede president and Gifford L. Lewis, secretary and treasurer. Subsequent to the failure of the Bristol Rolling Mill Company, the mill has been operated at intervals by the Bristol Iron and Steel Company. The mill is now idle with very little prospects of an early resumption.
The Bristol Improvement Company was incorporated in 1876, with a capital of $60,000, mainly through the efforts of Joshua Peirce, to whom much credit is due for the establishment and successful operation of the enter- prise. The purpose of the corporation was to offer facili- ties to manufacturers desiring to locate here by erecting a building for their accommodation, thus encouraging the growth of manufacturing industries in the borough.
The Bristol Worsted Mills, the first erected by the Bristol Improvement Company, were established in 1876, by Messrs. Grundy Bros. & Campion. The senior part- ner, Mr. Edmund Grundy, died in 1884, but the firm name remained unchanged for two years longer. In 1886 the firm was reorganized under the name of Wm. H. Grundy & Co., Mr. Campion retiring. The new firm consisted of Wm. H. Grundy, George A. Shoemaker and Joseph R. Grundy. After the death of the elder Mr. Grundy, in 1893, the partnership was continued between the other two members of the firm, under the same title. Mr. Shoemaker retired in December, 1900, since which time the business has been conducted by Mr. Joseph R. Grundy, who is the sole owner. The firm manufactures wool tops and worsted yarns for men's wear, dress goods and hosiery trade, both in grey and mixtures. During the year 1910, the firm erected a seven-story reinforced concrete storehouse, the first building of its character to be constructed in this vicinity. The first three stories of the new structure, which is parallel with the canal, are
·· WORSTED- MILL- OF- ·WM-H·GRUNDY-AND:CO. · DRU/TOL- PENNA
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
· an extension to the main mill and when equipped with machinery will increase the working force from 800, the present number, to 1,000 hands. The plans for the build- ing were drawn by the architectural firm of Messrs. Hea- cock & Hokinson, of Philadelphia, which firm also super- intended its construction.
The building is surmounted by a clock tower, the heighth of which (from the ground to the top of the tower), is 168 feet, 4 inches. The height of base above the ground is 89 feet; from the base to centre of dial is 58 feet, 4 inches, and the distance from the centre of dial to the base of flag pole is 21 feet. The length of flag pole above the roof is 35 feet, making the total distance from the ground to the top of the pole 203 feet, 4 inches. The tower contains four clock dials, each of which has a diameter of 14 feet. The tower is 19 feet square and has four observation balconies, one on each side, 134 feet above the ground. It also contains four observation windows, 158 feet above the ground. The estimated weight of the tower is 225,000 pounds. The dials are of glass, and being illuminated at night, can be seen dis- tinctly from all parts of the town.
The year following the erection of the Bristol Worsted Mills (1877), the Keystone Mill was built by the Bristol Improvement Company and leased to Messrs. L. M. Har- ned & Co., fringe manufacturers. They occupied it but a few years, and in 1885 it was leased to the Bristol Worsted Mills as a storehouse for wool and was con- tinuously rented by them from year to year, until the building was purchased by Messrs. Edward T. Steel & Co.
The Star Mill was the third mill erected by the Bristol Improvement Company. It was originally occupied by the Star Woolen Mill Company, and later by Joshua Peirce & Co., as a cloth weaving mill. When the latter company failed in 1887, the mill was used as a storehouse by Wm. H. Grundy & Co. This mill was annexed to the Paper Mill in July, 1891.
Previous to the erection of the Star Mill, the Bristol Improvement Company had built a small one-story build- ing, 32 by 50 feet, for Woods & Killinger, to be used as
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a keg factory. This building was torn down to make room for the new structure, and the keg factory was removed to a two-story frame building, which had been erected along the canal basin at the foot of the Cedar Street hill, on ground owned by Dr. Howard Pursell. The factory was only in operation a short time, when it caught fire one afternoon, and was burned to the ground. During the conflagration the boiler exploded, but no one was injured.
After the completion of the Star Mill, the large wall paper mill was erected by the Bristol Improvement Com-
Phas
PAPER MILL OPERATED BY GLEDHILL WALL PAPER CO.
pany and leased to Messrs. Wilson & Fenimore. This industry involved the exercise of high artistic and mechanical talent. The firm sold out its interest several years ago to the wall paper trust, and were succeeded by Kayser & Allman and later by the Lewis Chase Wall Paper Company. The mill today is operated by the Glad- hill Wall Paper Company.
The last mill erected by the Bristol Improvement Com- pany (1877), was the Bristol Carpet Mills, now owned by
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
The Thomas L. Leedom Company. This firm removed from Philadelphia and manufactures rugs and carpets. Of later years close attention has been given to the develop- ment of the "Wilton Rug" industry, and by a number of improvements in its manufacture, the firm has become the foremost producer in the country.
Of later years the Bristol Improvement Company has been disposing of its mills to its tenants. Joseph R. Grundy has purchased the Bristol Worsted Mills; the
CARPET MILLS OF THOS. L. LEEDOM CO.
Keystone Mill was sold to Edward T. Steel & Co .; and the large carpet mill was bought by The Thomas L. Leedom Company. The only properties now held by the Bristol Improvement Company are the Wall Paper Mill and the Harkin's Foundry.
During the year 1879, Clara Appleton erected a hosiery mill on Buckley Street, near Beaver Dam Road. It was destroyed by fire, but later rebuilt on a smaller scale and is now occupied by Wm. Henderson for the manufacture of carpets.
Messrs. D. E. Baker & Co., in 1899, purchased the old rubberoid works on Beaver Street, and began the manu-
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
facture of patent kid and colt leather. The firm was reorganized in 1900 and incorporated as a stock company under the name of the Corona Kid Company. The Bris- tol Patent Leather Company moved its plant from Cam- den, N. J., to Bristol in 1906, since which time it has rapidly developed. Both companies are in a flourishing condition and are a valuable addition to the industrial life of the borough.
The Standard Cast Iron & Foundry Company, spoken of in Mr. Grundy's paper, is located just east of the bor- ough limits. It is gradually increasing its output and al- though most of its employees occupy houses erected by the company in the vicinity of its works, yet its influence is felt by the merchants of Bristol, and it is claimed as one of the town's most flourishing industries.
Joseph Ridgway Grundy .- Proprietor of the Bristol Worsted Mills, and one of the most prominent manufac- turers and business men of Bucks County, was born in Camden, New Jersey, January 13, 1863, and is a son of the late William Hulme and Mary (Ridgway) Grundy, and a grandson of Edmund and Rebecca (Hulme) Grundy, and is a descendant on the maternal side from the earliest English settlers on the Delaware.
Edmund Grundy, grandfather of Joseph R., was a native of England, came to this country when a young man and located in Philadelphia, where he became a prominent merchant. He retired from business in 1856, at the same time moving to Walnut Grove Farm, Bristol Township, where he resided until his death in 1878. He married Rebecca Hulme, daughter of William and Rachel (Knight) Hulme, of Hulmeville, Bucks County, and they were the parents of five children.
William Hulme Grundy, the father of the subject of this sketch, was the second child of Edmund and Rebecca (Hulme) Grundy, and was born in Philadelphia in De- cember, 1836. He was educated at a select school in that city and at an early age became a clerk in a mercantile establishment. Later he entered into the mercantile trade for himself in that city. In 1870 he began the manufac- ture of worsted yarns, moving his plant to Bristol, Bucks
WILLIAM H. GRUNDY.
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
County, in 1876, establishing the Bristol Worsted Mills, so long and successfully conducted by the firm of Wm. H. Grundy & Co., of which firm he was the senior mem- ber. It proved to be one of the important industries of the county, and gave employment to several hundred hands. William H. Grundy was a public-spirited and broad-minded business man, and did much to advance the interests of his town. He was president of the Bristol Improvement Company, and filled the office of chief bur- gess of the town for two terms. He was always active in all that pertained to the best interests of the town and won and held the respect and esteem of all with whom he came in contact. He was one of the first members of the Union League of Philadelphia, and a prominent mem- ber of the Manufacturers' Club of that city. He was also a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity. His career of extraordinary business activity and usefulness was terminated by his sudden death on October 26, 1893, of heart disease.
Mr. Grundy married in 1861, Mary Ridgway, of New Jersey, a lineal descendant of Richard Ridgway, of Wel- ford, County of Bucks, England, who arrived in the River Delaware, in the ship "Jacob and Mary," of Lon- don, in September, 1679, and settled near the Falls of the Delaware in what is now Falls Township, Bucks County, where he was a considerable land holder. The first court- house of Bucks County was erected on land belonging to Richard Ridgway. Mr. Ridgway was accompanied to America by his wife Elizabeth and son Thomas, and another son, Richard, was born a few months after their arrival. His wife died in Bucks County, and in 1699 he married Abigail Stockton, of New Jersey, and thereafter made his residence in Burlington County, New Jersey, where he became a very prominent man and left numer- ous descendants.
The maternal ancestors of William Hulme Grundy were also among the earliest English settlers of Bucks County. George Hulme and his son George Hulme, Jr., came from England prior to 1700, and settled in Middle- town Township. George, Jr. married, in 1708, Naomi Palmer, daughter of John and Christian Palmer, who
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came to Bucks County from Cleveland, Yorkshire, arriv- ing in the Delaware, September 10, 1863. Naomi only survived her marriage a short time. George Jr. married (second), her sister, Ruth Palmer, contrary to the rules of Middletown Friends' Meeting, which forbid marriage with a deceased wife's sister, and he was disowned by the Meeting. John Hulme, son of George and Ruth, married Mary Pearson, daughter of Enoch and Margaret (Smith) Pearson, of Buckingham, and their son John was the founder of Hulmeville, which still bears his name. He married Rebecca Milnor, daughter of William Milnor, of Penn's Manor, and lived for a number of years in the Manor. In 1796 he exchanged his manor farm with Joshua Woolston for the Milford Mills, as Hulmeville was at that time known, and subsequently purchased several hundred acres of land adjoining, and with his sons William, John, Joseph, George and Samuel, established several new industries there and laid out and developed the town.
The family were the originators of the Farmers' Bank of Bucks County, which had its inception at Hulmeville. John Hulme was one of the most prominent business men of Bucks County and a pioneer in the rapid development that began in the first quarter of a century after the Revolution. His eldest son, William, was a carpenter and cabinet maker and was associated with his father in the varied interests of the town, and assisted materially in its development. He married, April 17, 1794, Rachel Knight, and died in 1809, leaving one son, Joseph K., and two daughters, Susanna and Rebecca. The latter was born in 1803 and became the wife of Edmund Grundy. She outlived all of her generation, dying at her country residence in Bristol Township, October 26, 1895, at the advanced age of 92 years. Of her five children, only one survived her, Mrs. Susan G. Harrison. William Hulme and Mary (Ridgway) Grundy were the parents of two children, Joseph R., and Margaret R. Mrs. Grundy, who is still living, resides at Walnut Grove, in Bristol Town- ship, though much of her time is spent in traveling in Europe and elsewhere. (Davis' History of Bucks County:)
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
Bud Doble, the World-Renowned Horse Trainer and Jockey .- Bud Doble, the greatest horse trainer and jockey America has ever known, lived in Bristol during the early years of his famous career. About 1867, he erected a large stable on the west side of Otter street, near Bath, and made it the winter quarters for his re- nowned trotting horses. In January, 1868, this stable caught fire and burned to the ground, but the horses were saved. A new stable was subsequently built at the corner of Otter and Maple Streets. In this stable were wintered many of the most famous horses known to the world in that day. Among the number may be men- tioned Goldsmith Maid, Dexter, Lucy, Lady Thorn, Snow Ball, Dot, Jay Gould and Flora Temple. Some- times ,as many as one hundred and fifty horses were wintered here at one time. Mr. Doble would allow the small boys of the town to take out the famous trotters for exercise, and many of our older men of today hold in their memory fond remembrances of having ridden, during their boyhood, upon the back of some of the fast- est horses in the world.
The famous Dexter, a brown gelding, foaled 1858, was the first of the great trotters that was bred in conformity with later-day ideas. The track career of this champion covered but three years, from 1864, to 1867, and in that time he performed in harness, under saddle and to wagon, winning forty-six contested races at various hitches and distances, one to three miles, and was defeated but four times. His essay against time was October, 1865, to beat 2.19 under saddle, and he went the distance in 2.1814. His next time trial was in 1866, to beat his saddle record and he failed. The third was to beat the harness record of Flora Temple, starting August 14, 1867, at Buffalo, and in the second trial he trotted in 2.1714, thus making the world's record. This record maintained until 1869, when it was passed over to Yankee Sam, who reduced the time to 2.161/2.
The incomparable Goldsmith Maid, a bay, foaled 1857, started on her brilliant career in 1865, taking a record of 2.36. All told, in the twelve years she was on the turf, she trotted 135 races, winning 91. She also won nine-
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
teen contests in which the three heats were in 2.20 or better. Her total of heats in races and against time was 332. The first time she beat the 2.1714 of Dexter and placed herself at the head of American trotters was Sep- tember 6, 1871, at the Cold Spring Track, Milwaukee, where she defeated Lucy in a match, the second heat in 2.17 flat. Her greatest races were against Lucy, they meeting many times, Lucy defeating her but three times. Her next reduction of the record was June 29, 1872, at Mystic Park, Boston, again defeating Lucy, who forced her out in the second heat in 2.1634. July 16, 1874, at East Saginaw, Mich., she cut the record to 2.16, in the last heat of a match with Judge Fullerton. August 7, the same year, she started at Buffalo to beat her record, and trotted in 2.1512, and the next week, at Rochester, won the second heat of a race with Fullerton and Ameri- can Girl in 2.1434. September 2, 1874, found her at Mystic Park, where she started against 2.1434, and cut the mark to 2.14, a record which stood for four years. Her only approach to this record was 2.1412, in 1877, in a race with Rarus, who was destined to succeed her. The only famous trotter of the day that the Maid failed to defeat was Lady Thorn. Goldsmith Maid was retired to the breeding ranks at Fashion Stud, Trenton, N. J. The last public appearance of the Maid was at the first National Horse Show, in 1884, at Madison Square Gar- den, when she was paraded in the ring with the ex-cham- pion stallion, Smuggler, 2.1514, who defeated her in 1876, at Cleveland, in one of the greatest old-time races in the Grand Circuit. She died September, 1885, at Fashion Stud, in her twenty-eighth year. She and Lucy, 2.1814, were inseparable at the farm. They were always to- gether in pasture and had adjoining boxes in the big barn. When the Maid was dying, Lucy raged in her stall like a mad creature and was inconsolable for days. They were buried side by side.
Mr. Doble removed from Bristol to California during the 70's of the last century, where he married a daughter of "Lucky" Baldwin, the famous ranchman of Southern California. Mr. Doble is still living, spending his declin- ing years in quiet luxury, at Los Angeles, Cal. He was
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truly the greatest turfman of his day, and since then there have been none greater.
Bristol Water Company .- The Bristol Water Company was incorporated August 31, 1874. The first standpipe erected was 140 feet high. Pipes were laid through the principal streets of the town, and extended with the growth and development of the municipality. The com- pany was successful from the start and for many years has paid a 10 per cent. annual dividend. In 1895 the old standpipe was removed and a new one, 152 feet high, erected in its place.
In 1906 the company entered into a contract with the New York Continental Jewelt Filter Company for a filter plant with a capacity of 2,000,000 gallons per day, at a cost of $25,000. This filter contains two coagulating tanks and four sand filters, occupying a space of 40 by 80 feet, with a concrete storage basin, 40 by 80 by 9 feet in depth, being similar in all respects to the Norristown Filtering Plant except in size.
It was during this year (1906) that Borough Council began the agitation for a municipal waterworks. The charter of the borough was changed by an act of the State Legislature, giving to the borough greater borrow- ing powers. A bitter controversy ensued between the managers and stockholders of the company and those interested in the establishment of a municipal plant. Tuesday, July 10, 1906, was decided upon as the time when an election should be held by the citizens to decide upon the expenditure of $100,000 for a municipal water and filtration plant. In the midst of the controversy the water company began the installation of its filtration plant, but the citizens voted at the election in July, by a large majority, in favor of a municipal plant. Litigation followed in the courts, but all decisions favored the bor- ough's right to maintain a municipal plant. Last year (1910), the question was revived, and Borough Council endeavored to purchase the Bristol Water Works, but without success. Plans for a new municipal plant have been drawn, approved by the State Board of Health and
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A HISTORY OF BRISTOL BOROUGH.
accepted by the Borough Council, and work on the new plant will begin soon.
The Buckley Street Mission Sunday School .- The . Buckley Street Mission Sunday School was instituted in a small one-story building on Buckley Street, at the end of the mill yard of Thomas Hughes & Co., manufac- turers of hosiery and underwear, by Mr. and Mrs. James M. Slack, January 3, 1875, with sixteen scholars and four teachers. James M. Slack was its first superintendent and held the position continuously until his death. The building was erected by the firm for the accommodation of the school, and later enlarged as it increased its mem- bership. So rapidly did the school grow, that two years after its institution, 200 scholars and eighteen teachers were enrolled.
This increase in membership necessitated larger ac- commodations, so the firm remodeled the building, adding another story and increasing its dimensions. This en- abled the primary department, under the charge of Mrs. Henry Bailey, to meet in the lower story, and the senior scholars to have the use of the upstairs' room. Mr. Slack continued as superintendent until his death, which oc- curred in January, 1888. Mrs. Slack succeeded her hus- band as Superintendent, and gave personal and financial support to the mission.
The Christmas festival each year was made particu- larly enjoyable to the scholars. Gifts were presented to all, and special prizes were awarded for attendance dur- ing the past year. Mrs. Slack always bore the expenses herself and never allowed a collection to be taken for that purpose. She also devoted her time and spared no trouble in looking after the personal welfare of the scholars. On the occasion of one of the Christmas festivals, a large fountain was placed in the centre of the room and allowed to remain during the year. An interesting feature of the school was a Bible Class of twenty-five or thirty men, both old and young, in charge of Mrs. E. J. Groom, who was always present, as she said, "to look after her boys."
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