USA > Pennsylvania > Luzerne County > Wilkes-Barre > A history of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania : from its first beginnings to the present time, including chapters of newly-discovered early Wyoming Valley history, together with many biographical sketches and much genealogical material. Volume V > Part 26
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The beginning of the town was the beginning of the hard times of 1857. This was the beginning also of real mercantile effort in Shickshinny. This effort steadily grew until now there are many flourishing stores. A small store was already active for the few inhabitants of this village at the time of its plotting in 1858. This store was thrust upon N. B. Crary. It was located in the upper part of Union Street on the site of Freeman Robbins' residence. In 1861 Mr. Crary built at the corner of Main and Union a store building and established a mercantile business there in which he continued until 1906.
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Eventually, Mr. Crary's daughters sold this site and buildings to Mr. Wal- ter Garrison, president of the Shickshinny First National Bank. The bank has erected a beautiful building here.
In 1877, a turnpike was built along the Shiekshinny Creek Gap, six miles, and crossed to Huntington Mills. The promoters of the Union Turnpike Company were: N. B. Crary, J. W. Stackhouse, B. D. Coons, William A. Campbell, F. A. B. Koons, S. F. Monroe, and D. G. Larned. The officers were : N. B Crary, president ; B. D. Koons, secretary, and D. G. Larned, treasurer. The Shiekshinny Tube Works were organized with Millard Tubbs president, N. B. Crary vice-president. In 1884, the Shiekshinny Water Company was organized with the following officers: President, G. W. Search; secretary, M. B. Hughes ; treasurer, Jesse Beadle.
Shickshinny has advanced far since the one-room, one-teacher for all grades period. In 1926, the borough schools enrolled seven hundred and eight pupils, including one hundred and seventy-five in its high school. Nineteen teachers were employed. Mr. Dengler is the efficient superintendent. A building is devoted to occupational work with a directing principal. Shiek- shinny has always been intensely patriotic, responding with eagerness to all appeals. In the Civil War and the Great War, Shickshinny's men, women and children gave of their time, strength and means.
Sugar Notch was made a borough in the 'sixties also, its charter being date of April 3, 1867. Warrior Run, although a separate community two miles west of Sugar Notch, was included in the boundaries of the latter ; neverthe- less, they have to all intents remained independent. Both are mining towns. Warrior Run taking entity as such in 1837, when mines were opened on the Crocker estate by Holland and Hillman. The Sugar Notch Shaft was sunk in 1866, and a new breaker erected. The Germania Company opened a mine in 1864 about half a mile east of the Hartford mine of the Lehigh and Wilkes- Barre Coal Company. With the Lehigh Valley and the Jersey Central rail- roads passing through the town and three or four mines and breakers in operation, Sugar Notch, with its counterpart, Warrior Run, was a busy min- ing center. There was strife as to the post office. This was known as Peely. and for years was kept at Sugar Notch, Warrior Run residents having to get their mail from that end of the town; but when Peter T. Riley was appointed postmaster in 1885, he moved it to Warrior Run, where it remained as long as that place remained with Sugar Notch. Both are now separate boroughs, and both are steadily growing, Sugar Notch having 1,887 inhabitants in 1900 and 2,612 in 1920. During that period Warrior Run (Peely Post Office) grew from 965 inhabitants to a population of 1,387.
The burgess of Sugar Notch in 1926 was Michael Gaughan, the taxables numbered 1,291, and assessed valuation aggregated $2,729,642. Anthony Durkin was president of school board, and A. L. Lenahan was school prin- cipal, heading a teaching corps of twenty-two.
Swoyersville, which borders on the boroughs of Forty Fort, West Wyom- ing and Luzerne, and also the township of Kingston, was first chartered as a borough on December 17, 1888, but was unable to function as stich until the courts finally ruled in its favor, confirming the charter on December 12, 1899. In 1900 the population of Swoyersville was 2,264; in 1910 it was 5,396, and in 1920 the Federal census was 6,876.
In 1926 Swoyersville had 3,621 taxables; its valuation was $3,079,344; Patrick J. Hayden was burgess, Michael A. Lavin was president of school board, and Joseph H. Finn was supervising principal over the borough schools. which employed five high school and thirty-eight graded school teachers.
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Warrior Run-The connection of Warrior Run with Sugar Notch Borough has been referred to in the sketch of the latter. Warrior Run became a sepa- rate borough on January 25, 1895, under that name, with Peely as the post office address. In 1900 the population of Warrior Run was 965; in 1910 it was 1,251, and in 1920 the borough has 1,387 inhabitants.
In 1926, Warrior Run had 747 taxables. Its assessed valuation then was $1,687,071. Enoch Thomas was burgess, Charles Wagner was president of school board, and Edward S. Williams was school principal over ten teachers.
West Hazleton-The borough of West Hazleton dates from 1889, and as its name infers, it is to all intents the westerly section of the city of Hazleton. It is, of course, separately governed, but its prosperity and growth depends largely upon that of the city.
West Hazleton was founded by William Kisner of that family that settled in Hazleton in 1840. Its growth has been rapid during the present century. West Hazleton's population in 1900 was 2,516; in 1910 it was 4,715; in 1920 it was 5,854; and in a survey made in 1926 its population was then estimated at 7,224.
Borough officials in 1926 were: Anthony Kubitsky, burgess; Thomas Koch, president of council of six; Austin Quinn, chief of police; George Wen- ner, president of school board of seven; E. A. Encke, supervising school prin- cipal, heading a teaching staff of thirty-two. Number of taxables in 1926: 3,022. Assessed valuation : $2,010,563.
West Pittston, the beautiful suburb of Pittston, became a borough in 1857, and began to function as such with the election of Armhurst Wisner as bur- gess, and A. J. Griffith, William Apple, Cornelius Stark, Bradley Downing, and Theodore Strong as councilmen. The first election was held on January 7, 1858, at the Vine Street Schoolhouse.
The early history of West Pittston is part of that of Pittston. Jenkins and Exeter townships. Fort Jenkins stood within the bounds of the borough, fifty yards above the west end of the bridge, on ground long since, however, washed away. This fortified place was the first to feel the force of the blood- thirsty marauders from the north, as they swept into the valley; and some human bones found while excavating in a West Pittston street more than a century later were supposed to be those of one of the Hardings, of Pittston, who lost their lives during this savage onslaught in 1778. Benjamin and Stukely Harding were buried "in the little graveyard" that was so long known as the Harding-Jenkins graveyard.
Statistics of population indicate that the growth of West Pittston has been steady. In 1900, its inhabitants numbered 5,846; in 1910 the census showed 6,848 residents ; and in 1920 the population was 6,968. County records credit West Pittston with 6,097 taxables in 1926, and assess its property at $4,448,- 260. William H. Klinger was burgess in 1926. The most recent outstanding feature of West Pittston history is the building of a $400,000 high school.
West Wyoming, which is bounded by the boroughs of Wyoming, Exeter, and Swoyersville, and by the townships of Exeter and Kingston, was incor- porated on June 23, 1898. Its history may be traced in that of Wyoming, also that of Kingston and Exeter townships. In 1900, the population of West Wyoming was 1,344; in 1910, 1,621 ; in 1920, 1,938.
In 1926, West Wyoming had 1,535 taxables; its assessed valuation was $1,844,424; David Lawson was burgess; Samuel VanScoy was president of school board, and Walter E. Roberts was supervising principal of schools, with a staff of sixteen teachers.
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Whitehaven, the second village of Luzerne County to be granted munici- pal powers, assumed borough status on a false start in 1843. An Act of the Pennsylvania Assembly of that year incorporated the village of Whitehaven as a borough, and authorized the holding of the first election, at "the house of Isaac Ripple," on the first Monday of September, 1843, and annually thereafter on the third Friday in March. The polling, however, was taken on March 17, 1843. The officers then elected were: Joseph Yardley, burgess; Abinthar Tuttle, John Shefferstine, Jacob Zink, Samuel Hunter, Jonathan Brock, and David Dean, councilmen.
Subsequently, it was ruled that this election was unauthorized, and, there- fore, was annulled by the court. The Legislature did not act promptly in the matter, and it was not until 1848 that authorization was granted for the holding of a special election to give the borough regular status. The election was held on the third Monday of May, 1848, "at the house of Samuel House." Joseph Yardley was again elected burgess. The councilmen were: David H. Taylor, Edward Lockwood, Horatio G. Hoven, David Dean, Daniel Wasser, and I. Cowley Past. The last named was also clerk.
Some of the outstanding events in the history of Whitehaven are here given briefly. The first settler was John Lines, who "squatted . . . . just over the hill back of Whitehaven," in 1824. The community that grew in that vicinity was known as Linesville. His log cabin was destroyed by fire. and he then built "the first hewed-log house and the first tavern." First indus- try was lumbering. First coal company, the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, began to construct its canal from Whitehaven to Mauch Chunk in 1835. Joseph White made the operation of canal possible by building the "bear trap" locks in the Lehigh River. Whitehaven was so named in honor of this capable leading citizen. First sawmill erected in 1826 or 1827 by John Lines ; next. in 1835, by Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company ; lumbering expanded until, in 1860, Whitehaven had ten sawmills and was cutting as much as 20,000,000 board feet of lumber in a year. It was one of the busiest lumber depots in the State. Canal locks and dams swept away in 1862 by freshet ; canal service superseded by two lines of railway. First plank house built in 1837, by John Fordsman ; first schoolhouse, of rough logs, in 1838; iron foundry and machine shops in 1859. The first storekeeper was A. O. Chahoon, whose log store was built in 1835. First physician was Dr. Boyd ; first lawyer was Gaius Halsey ; first postmaster, William Hoven, in 1835; first brick build- ing, Odd Fellows' Hall, built in 1851 ; last raft of logs floated down Lehigh River from Whitehaven District, ending its lumber industry, was in 1892. In its heyday as a logging center, Whitehaven "was the headquarters of a thou- sand hardy lumbermen," the annual cutting reaching as high as 35,000,000 feet. Whitehaven waterworks were commenced in 1856, piping from two springs. Fire department organized in 1872. Electric light plant installed in 1892.
In 1900, the population of Whitehaven was 1,517; in 1910 it was 1,438, and in 1920 it was 1,402. Its taxables in 1926 numbered 1, 112, and then its assessed valuation was $677,863.
Frank Schatzle was burgess in 1926, M. J. Hess was president of school board, T. G. Gardner was supervising school principal over nine teachers.
Wyoming, the most historic spot in northeastern Pennsylvania, entered upon a more prosaic phase of its history in 1885, when it carried through the details that made it a borough. The municipal charter was secured in June, 1885, and the first election was held on the 15th of the next month. The first borough officers were: William Hancock, burgess; John P. Smith, president of council ; John A. Hutchins, John Sharp, J. I. Shoemaker, Dr. C. P. Knapp, and John Daugher, councilmen ; H. C. Edwards, secretary.
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Wyoming's historic past enriches the pages of the preceding volumes ; and the Wyoming Monument, perpetuating the valiant stand made by those heroic men of 1778 who gave their lives to save their women and children from the ferocity of the savage marauders, will ever connect Wyoming with the noble past and surround the place with an atmosphere of heroic Americanism. How- ever, this phase of the history of Wyoming has been reviewed elsewhere ; here, the review must be of municipal and industrial history.
Benjamin Carpenter came from Connecticut in 1780-81, and settled "on Abrams Creek, at the lower end of the gorge, where the creek breaks through the Kingston mountains." There he erected a gristmill, a mill-site that was being used for its original purpose more than a century after Carpenter's time. He also built a woolen mill, the latter passing eventually to Jacob Shoemaker. At one time the hamlet was known as "New Troy," later as "Carpenter's Mills" and "Carpenter Town," even after 1807, when Mr. Carpenter sold his gristmill and other interests to Isaac C. Shoemaker and moved away. Jacob I. Shoemaker rebuilt the gristmill in 1840.
The first blacksmith at Wyoming was John Jones, who came in 1820. The pioneer physician was Dr. Thomas J. Halsey ; the first school mistress was Mrs. Gordon, who, in 1802 or 1803, taught in a schoolhouse that stood on the corner where the Wyoming House was later built. The first postmaster was William Swetland, in 1830. He was also one of the first merchants. John Gardner was the first cabinet-maker at Carpenter Town, settling in 1820. At about the same time Charles Tuttle occupied the "old storehouse," which stood opposite where the Pollock House was later erected.
Wyoming has always been a "foundry town," or at least an important iron working center. In the first decade of the nineteenth century, an ax factory was operated, above Carpenter's Mills, on Abram's Creek. Below the grist- mill was a small foundry. The Wyoming Shovel Works, whose products go all over the continent, and also to foreign parts, dates back to 1872; the iron fence works of the Wilde Fence Company, was established in 1876 by John Wilde. And for many decades coal mining has been steadily pursued. Also, the historic old gristmill, modernized-in fact, rebuilt-is still in use. James Fowler and Sons have been the millers for several decades. Altogether, Wyoming is an historic old place, even apart from the great event of 1778, which will forever give it unique place in Wyoming Valley history.
In 1900 the population of Wyoming was 1,909; in 1910 it was 3,010; in 1920 the census-taking showed Wyoming to have 3,582; and in 1926 the county assessors found 2,508 taxables in the borough, with assessed property valuation of $2,954,403. John Masel was burgess in 1926, F. B. Kleintob was president of school board, and John E. Piatt supervising principal of teaching corps of thirty-one.
Yatesville-Formerly a village of Jenkins Township, Yatesville was made a borough on May 20, 1878. First officers were: T. T. Hale, burgess ; George Faircloth, president of council ; Thomas Nattrass, secretary; John Shields, William Learch, Alexander Frazer and Alfred Day, councilmen. The bor- ough took its name from the association an Englishman, Francis Yates, had with the place. It seems that Yates bought from Theophilus Brooks ninety acres of land in the vicinity. For some time he lived with his wife in the log cabin that was upon his land. Yates, in association with Joel and William D. Hale, was the first to mine coal in the place. They stripped a vein near where it outcropped, and after quarrying the coal, dragged it away by sled and ox-team. Eventually, the Pennsylvania Coal Company became the operators, and Yatesville became literally a mining town.
The pioneer settlers were Joel and William D. Hale, H. Frederick, George Day, David Reese, James Cooper, Isaac and George Naphus, Joseph and John
TXICT
VAMA STATE POLICE B
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HEADQUARTERS, TROOP B, PENNSYLVANIA STATE POLICE, WYOMING
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Stout and James Thompson, who all settled in 1809 or 1810. Joel Hale erected the first frame house: his brother was the first tavern-keeper. The place. however, remained a very small hamlet until the 'fifties, when coal operators began to sink shafts in the anthracite coalfields. The first schoolhouse was built in 1851; the first store opened in 1855.
The population of Yatesville in 1900 was 433; in 1910 it was 573, in 1920 it was 709; and in 1926 the borough had 333 taxables. Its assessed valuation then was $514,198. Carl De Snee was burgess in 1926, Nicholas Vidzzar was president of school board.
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Benj Raznoli,
John Smith
William Chegado
Autograph of William Reynolds, original member of the Reynolds family to settle in Wyoming Valley.
David Reynolds
Autograph of David Reynolds, who served in the Continental Army.
Sheldon Reynaldo
BIOGRAPHICAL
DORRANCE REYNOLDS-One of the historic families of Wyoming Valley is that of the Reynolds', the records of this section showing that William Reyn- olds and his family settled here in 1769, since which time all of that name have been prominent in public and community affairs in and around Wilkes-Barre. The rep- resentative of the clan today, a direct descendant of William Reynolds, the first of the name to land on Ameri- can soil, about 1629, is Dorrance Reynolds, president of the Wyoming National Bank, at Wilkes-Barre, and one of the prominent citizens of the valley.
Dorrance Reynolds was born in Wilkes-Barre, Septem- ber 9, 1877, the son of Sheldon and Annie Buckingham ( Dorrance) Reynolds, the former a son of Hon. William Champion and Jane Holberton (Smith) Reynolds.
It is most interesting to trace the family from the original pioneer adventurer, William Reynolds, who came from Gloucestershire, England, to Bermuda, whence he immigrated about 1629 to Salem in the new Puritan Colony of Massachusetts Bay. He was associated with Roger Williams in the settlement and foundation of the colony of Providence Plantations, now Providence, Rhode Island. In July, 1640, William Reynolds and twelve others, "Desirous to inhabit in the town of Providence," signed a compact in which they promised to subject them- selves "in active and passive obedience to all such orders and agreements" as should be made for the public good of their community. He died about 1650, at a home he had built at what is now North Kingston, Wash- ington County, Rhode Island. He was survived by sev- eral children, among them being James Reynolds, who was born about 1625. James Reynolds took an active part in the struggle of that day and held a number of public offices, such as constable, overseer of the poor and conservator of the peace of the town of Kingston, for which office he was selected by the Colonial Assembly. He married a girl whose last name is not given in the records, but who is simply mentioned as "Deborah." He died in Kingstown in 1702, leaving seven children, of whom the second was James, born October 28, 1650.
James Reynolds, the son of James and Deborah Reyn- olds, was one of the signers of a petition to the King of England in 1679, praying that he would put an end to the difficulties then existing between Rhode Island and Connecticut. On February 19, 1685, he married Mary, daughter of James and Deliverance (Potter ) Greene. They had two sons and one daughter, the second son, William, being born about 1698, at Kingstown. This William Reynolds was the original member of the Reyn- olds family to settle in the Wyoming Valley. In 1759 he disposed of an estate he had purchased in Coventry, Rhode Island, selling it for one thousand pounds, and removed to Eastern New York. In 1753 the Snsque- hanna Company had been organized in Connecticut, and in July, 1754, it purchased from the Six Nations Indians the. Wyoming lands on the Susquehanna River. Many of the inhabitants of Dutchess and Orange counties in New York bought interests in the "Susquehanna Purchase," among them being Benjamin Reynolds, the fifth child of William and Deborah (Greene) Reynolds. William Reynolds had married Deborah Greene, September 18, 1729. She was the daughter of Benjamin and Humility (Coggeshall) Greene. Benjamin Reynolds was one of the one hundred and sixty-nine signers of a petition, dated at Wilkes-Barre, August 20. 1769, to the general assembly of Connecticut, praying that body to erect and establish a county out of the Wyoming region. The fol- lowing month William Reynolds, who had joined his son, Benjamin, at Wilkes-Barre with twenty-five other New Yorkers, signed a petition to the general assembly pray- ing that a township of six square miles of land be granted to them lying westward of the Susquehanna lands. Shortly afterwards, David Reynolds, the third child of William and Deborah (Greene) Reynolds, joined his father and brother at Wilkes-Barre. This David Reyn- olds was born in West Greenwich, Rhode Island, June 17, 1734. He served in the Continental Army in regiments of the Connecticut line from May, 1777, to August, 1782, having enlisted for the duration of the war. He was in the Battle of Wyoming. He escaped from the Valley after the surrender of Forty Fort, returning there late in the autumn of 1778. In 1770 he married a second time. his wife being Mrs. Hannah (.Andrus) Gaylord, born in
Connecticut, in 1746; the widow of Charles Gaylord, formerly of Plymouth, who died in July, 1777, while a soldier in the Continental Army. There is no record of the first wife of David Reynolds, and the probabilities are that she perished in the Wyoming massacre. David and Hannah ( Andrus) Reynolds had one child, Ben- jamin, born February 4, 1780. He was brought by his parents to Plymouth, Luzerne County, about 1785, and there spent the subsequent years of his life. He carried on a general merchandise business, and in January, 1832, was appointed sheriff of Luzerne County by the Governor of the Commonwealth: At a time when Masonry was so unpopular that it was almost dangerous to belong to a Masonic organization, he was a member of Lodge No. 61, Free and Accepted Masons, having been initiated at Wilkes-Barre, January 4, 1819. He was for many years the justice of the peace in and for the township of Plymouth, was captain and then major of the militia, and for nearly half a century was one of the representa- tive and substantial citizens of Plymouth, doing much for the promotion of religion and education in his com- munity. He marricd, March 22, 1801, Lydia Fuller, daughter of Joshua and Sybil ( Champion) Fuller, born in Kent, Connecticut, November 5, 1779. She died in Plymouth, August 29, 1828, and on February 23, 1830, Benjamin Reynolds married Ruey Hoyt, daughter of Daniel and Anne (Gunn) Hoyt. Mrs. Ruey Hoyt Rey- nolds died August 26, 1835, and Mr. Reynolds was mar- ricd February 16, 1837, to Olivia M. (Frost) Porter, daughter of Samuel Frost and widow of Major Orlando Porter. Benjamin Reynolds died in Plymouth, February 22, 1854. Mr. and Mrs. Lydia (Fuller) Reynolds had nine children, of whom William Champion Reynolds was the first-born.
William Champion Reynolds was born in Plymouth, December 9, 1801. He worked on his father's farm in the summer months and attended the local schools in the winter. In 1819 he entered the Wilkes-Barre Academy, and had prepared for Princeton College, but was not financially able to go and was forced to abandon that purpose. He taught school for a time and then became a business partner of Henderson Gaylord, his cousin. Under the firm names of Gaylord and Reynolds, and Henderson Gaylord and Company, they carried on an extensive and profitable mercantile business, having one store at Plym- outh and another at Kingston. The partnership was dis- solved by mutual consent in 1835, and for almost a score of years Mr. Reynolds was engaged in mining and ship- ping coal and in operating farms in Plymouth and King- ston townships. In October, 1836, and again in 1837, he was elected one of the two representatives from Luzerne County to the State Legislature. He was appointed and commissioned by Governor Porter on March 15, 1841, one of the associate judges of the courts of Luzerne County for a term of five years. 1.1 1840, and for several years thereafter, Judge Reynolds served, by the appoint- ment of the Auditor General of Pennsylvania, as a mem- ber of the Board of Managers of the Wilkes-Barre Bridge Company, the owners of the Market Street Bridge, to represent the interests of the Commonwealth in that corporation. He was chosen a trustee of the Wyoming Seminary, at Kingston in 1845, although not a Methodist, and was continued in office for thirteen years. In 1852, with Henderson Gaylord, Hon. George W. Woodward, William Swetland, Samuel Hoyt, and others, he secured the charter for and built the Lacka- wanna and Bloomsburg Railroad, which now forms part of the extensive Lackawanna system. He was president of the company during the construction of the road. He declined reelection to the presidency in 1860, but con- tinued a director of the company until 1865. He was a director of the Wyoming National Bank of Wilkes- Barre. He was an original member of the Wyoming Historical and Geological Society of Wilkes-Barre.
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