USA > Pennsylvania > Franklin County > Chambersburg > Historical sketch of Franklin County, Pennsylvania : prepared for the centennial celebration held at Chambersburg, Penn'a, July 4th, 1876, and subsequently enlarged by I. H. M'Cauley John M. Pomeroy, publisher. To which is added a valuable appendix by J. L. Suesserott, D. M. Kennedy and others, and embellished by over one hundred lithographic illustrations, drawn by W. W. Denslow > Part 15
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34
DRY RUN (P. O ) is situated in Path Valley, Fannett township, eight miles north of Fannettsburg. The first house was built by John Holliday, in the year 1833. James Stark built the second one about the year 1836. In 1838 Stephen Skinner laid out the town and called it "Morrowstown," ( Morrow, being the maiden name of his wife). By this name it was known for many years. It had been called "Dry Run" before the town was laid out, from the fact that the stream which passes through the town frequently ceased to flow. The older name was preferred to that of Morrowstown, and has now come into general use. The population numbers one hun- dred and eighty persons.
FAIRVIEW is situated in Southampton township, at the point where the road from Shippensburg to Roxbury crosses the Conodo- guinet creek. It was laid out by the late William G. M'Lellan, Esq., of Strasburg, about twenty-five years ago. Its population numbers ninety persons.
FANNETTSBURG (P. O.) is situated in Metal township, on the old " Tuscarora Path," twelve miles north of Loudon. Settlements were made at this point as early as 1787, but the town was laid out by William M'Intyre, on the 25th July, in the year 1790, and took its name from the township of Fannett, of which it then formed a part. The lots were sold at the price of four to six pounds, subject to a quit rent of seven shillings and six pence each. A number of these quit rents yet exist. There is one church (Methodist) and a public hall in the town, and two churches, one Presbyterian and one Reformed, near the town. The population numbers about three lindred.
FAYETTEVILLE (P. O.) is situated in Greene township, on the turnpike road leading from Chambersburg to Gettysburg, six miles east of the former place. Settlements were made in this neighbor- hood at a very early day. Edward Crawford owned a very large traet of land-a thousand acres or more-but a short distance south of where the village stands. In the year 1768 a petition was pre-
144
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
sented to the Court of Quarter Sessions of Cumberland county, from citizens of Peters, Hamilton and Guilford townships, for a public road leading from James Campbell's, near Loudon, through Cham- bersburg, to the county line in Black's Gap. Edward Crawford, Josiah Cook, George Brown, William M'Brier, William Holliday and Nathan M'Dowell were appointed viewers, who reported favor- ably, and at January term, 1772, the road was granted. Its route was nearly that of the present turnpike. Samuel Beightal bought the property now known as the " Renfrew Mill" estate from John Penn the elder and John Penn the younger, proprietaries, in the year 1792. Jacob Burkholder owned the land that Greenwood now stands upon, about the same time. In the year 1810 David Eby built the merchant mill, saw mill and several dwelling houses, and called the place " Milton Mills." In 1824 a school house was built. In 1826 John and Benjamin Darby bought the mill property, dwel- ling houses, &c., from the Bank of Chambersburg. Shortly after the Darbys purchased they laid off lots fronting the pike and began to build houses. The "arcade" was built by John Darby, Jacob Koontz and Miss Whitmore. They then applied for a post office, to be called " Milton Mills," but their application was denied, unless they would agree to change the name of the village. A family council was held, lots were cast, and the name of " Fayetteville " selected, in honor of General La Fayette.
Findlayville, about a half mile west of Fayetteville, and now in- corporated in it, was laid out by Colonel John Findlay, of Cham- bersburg, about the year 1830. He sold a number of lots, and some buildings were put up, but the name never took. The places are now united under the one name-Fayetteville. There are five churches in the place-one Lutheran, one Covenanter, one United Brethren, one Winebrenmarian and one Presbyterian. There are also two hotels, one town hall, three dry goods stores, one grocery store and two drug stores, and two schools, one of which is graded. The population is about six hundred.
FUNKSTOWN (P. O. name MONT ALTO) is situated in Quincy township, on the road leading from Fayetteville to Quincy, five miles south of the former place. John Funk was the first settler, and built the first house in the town in the year 1817. The town was called after him, though of late years an effort has been made to change the name to Alto Dale, but it does not take with the peo- ple of the neighborhood. There are three churches in the town, viz. : one Reformed, one Methodist and one Brethren in Christ. The population of the village is about three hundred and sixty-five.
GERMANTOWN is a small village in Greene township, sitnate on the public road leading from Scotland to Fayetteville, about mid- way between the two places. It contains a population of about fifty persons.
?
Page 3/6.
RES. & MILL PROPERTY OF D. L. RENFREW, GREEN TP, NEAR FAYETTEVILLE.
O'MM
Page 246
RESIDENCE OF MRS. NANCY RENFREW.GUILFORD TOWNSHIP.
145
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
GREENCASTLE (P. O.) is situated in Antrim township, at the in- tersection of the Cumberland Valley railroad and the Waynesburg, Greencastle and Mercersburg turnpike road. The land on which the town stands was taken up on a warrant issued to Samuel Smith, September 7th, 1750. He conveyed to John Smith, 4th November, 1761. John Smith conveyed to John Davison, 6th November, 1762, and he sold to William Allison, 25th April, 1763. A patent was issued to William Allison, 26th July, 1766, and by his deed, dated 3d May, 1769, he conveyed the tract (three hundred acres) to his son, Colonel John Allison, who laid out the town in 1782. He named it "Green-Castle," some think in honor of Major General Nathaniel Greene, of revolutionary fame; but it is more likely that it was called after Green-Castle, a large fishing station, where there is a fort and harbor, in the county of Donegal, Province of Ulster, Ireland.
Colonel Allison divided his town plot into two hundred and fifty- six lots, of equal size, and numbered them from one to two hundred and fifty-six, inclusive, and put the price of each lot at three pounds, or eight dollars. He then made a lottery, and every person who purchased a tieket was entitled to a lot somewhere in the new town, and the drawing or lottery was held to determine what lots the ticket-holders should get. There were no blanks. Every ticket was bound to draw a lot; the only chance or uncertainty being whether it should be located on the public square or on a back street. Whatever number a ticket-holder drew he got the lot bearing the same number on the plot of the town, and received a deed therefor from Colonel Allison, subject to an annual quit rent of ten shillings specie.
There are six churches in the town, viz. : one Presbyterian, organized in 1737 or 1738, one Reformed, one Lutheran, one United Brethren, one Methodist Episcopal and one African Methodist. The edifices of the first three churches named are of the most com- modious and tasteful character, whilst the others named are sulli- cient for all their wants There is also a fine town hall in the place, for the holding of lectures, concerts, &c. The town was made a borough by an Act of Assembly passed March 25th, 1805, and has now a population of seventeen hundred.
GREENVILLAGE (P. O.) is situated in Greene township, on the Harrisburg turnpike, five miles from Chambersburg. It was laid out by Samuel Nicholson in 1793. He purchased of Reuben Gilles- pie forty-five acres of land at fifty dollars per acre, "at the intersee- tion of the Chambersburg and Strasburg roads." This land, and others around, was located as early as 1748. Jonathan Hirst built the first house where the town now stands, on the north-east corner of the intersection of the present turnpike and the Scotland road. It stood until the year 1844. The " village" takes its name from the 19
146
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
township, which was called after General Nathaniel Greene, of the revolutionary army. There is one hotel, two churches and two stores in the place, and the population numbers three hundred persons.
GREENWOOD (P. O., BLACK'S GAP) is situated in Greene township, on the Chambersburg and Gettysburg turnpike, eight miles cast of Chambersburg, at the entrance of Black's Gap, in the South moun- tain. Settlements were made in the neighborhood at a very early day. The Black's Gap road was laid out in 1750, and was made by Robert Black, the great-grandfather of Robert Black, Esq., of Green- wood. Conrad Brown made the first improvement at this point about the year 1814.
JACKSON HALL (P. O.) is situated in Guilford township, on the road leading from Chambersburg to Mount Hope and Waynesboro, five miles distant from the former place. It was commenced by Jacob Snyder, in the year 1812. It is called after President Jackson, and contains one store and about twenty-right inhabitants.
LENNHERVILLE is situated on the Warm Spring road, in Hamil- ton township, just south of Cashtown, of which it may be consid- ered as a part. It was started by and named after Henry Lennher, who resides and keeps a store there.
LOUDON (P. O.) is situated on the Chambersburg and Bedford turnpike, in Peters township, near the base of the Cove mountain, fourteen miles west of Chambersburg. It is a very old place, and was the scene of many a stirring incident in old Colonial times. It is mentioned in history as " Loudon town," as early as 1756. In that year " Fort Loudon " was built by the Colonial government, for the protection of the frontier settlers against the incursions of the Indians. It stood about a mile south-east of the present town, and was frequently garrisoned by British and Provincial troops. Before the making of wagon roads over the mountains it was a great point of departure for paek-horse trains for Bedford, Fort Cumberland and Pittsburg. The present town was laid out by Johnston Elliott, in the year 1804. For half a century, and partienlarly from the completion of the Pittsburg turnpike, in the year 1819, it was a great place for the manufacture of wagons, wagon gears and whips; but after the opening of the Pennsylvania railroad to the Ohio its business rapidly fell away. It now has one hotel, two graded schools and three churches, and a population of three hundred and fifty. The Southern Pennsylvania railroad passes by the town, and affords the citizens much greater facilities for all purposes than they formerly had.
MAINSVILLE (formerly Smoketown) is situated in Southampton township, on the road leading from Shippensburg to the old South- ampton iron works, and about two miles south of the former town. It was laid out by Wm. Mains, Esq., about ten years ago, and eon-
--
1
1
147
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
tains a church, store and blacksmith shop, and a population of about forty persons.
MARION (P. O.) is situated in Guilford township, on the great road from Chambersburg to Greencastle, six miles south of the former place. Settlements were made in the neighborhood as early as 1748, and a tavern was kept near the south end of the town long years ago. The village was commenced about the year 1810. It was first called Independence ; but when a post office was estab- lished there, it was called Marion, no doubt after General Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox of the Carolinas," so dreaded by the British and Tories of the South in revolutionary days. The first store opened in the place was in the year 1822, by Major Cook. The present population is one hundred and twenty-three.
MARION STATION is situated in Guilford township, on the Cum- berland Valley railroad, six miles south of Chambersburg, and about half a mile cast of the town of Marion. A new village is springing up there. A warehouse now owned and conducted by Diehl & Co., was built there in the year 1862, since which seven or eight new and ele- gant dwellings have been put up, a German Reformed church is also being built, and Andrew A. Statler is building a large dwelling and store near the station, on land purchased from Jacob Myers, at the rate of $900 per acre. A sale of lots has also recently been had, and a number of dwelling houses are now under contract. It is a very desirable point for a private residence.
MASON AND DIXON (P. O.) is situated on the Cumberland Valley railroad, in Antrim township, immediately at the State line, where . the public road from Middleburg to Welsh Run crosses the railroad. There are a warehouse, a store and several dwellings at this point. Population about thirty persons.
MERCERSBURG (P. O.) is situated on the Waynesburg, Greencastle and Mercersburg turnpike, at the northern line of Montgomery township. Much the larger part of the town is in Montgomery township, and a small part of it is in Peters township. It is a very old settlement. Locations were made in the neighborhood as early as 1730, and it is stated that a man named James Black, built a mill at or near where the town now stands, about the year 1730. His improvement was at first called "Black's town." The settlers around were nearly all Scotch-Irish, and by the year 1738 a Presby- terian church was organized under the name of "The West Conoco- cheague Church." Subsequently William Smith bought out Mr. Black ; the date of that purchase I have not been able to ascer- tain, but it was as early as 1750. The property subsequently passed into the hands of William Smith, Jr., a son of William Smith, by inheritance from his father, and was known during the troublesome times from 1750 to 1764 as "Squire Smith's town," the proprietor, William Smith, then being one of the Justices of the Peace for Cum-
1
148
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
berland county. An extensive trade was carried on with the Indians and first settlers on the western frontiers from this point during those years. It was nothing uncommon to see from fifty to one hundred pack horses there at one time, loaded with merchandise, salt, iron, and other commodities ready to be transported over the mountains to the Monongahela country. As is usual in frontier set- tlements, there were many unruly spirits to be found about the place, and on more than one occasion they became participants in riotous and illegal proceedings that led to trouble with the Colonial authorities, and with the British troops stationed at Fort Loudon.
The town was laid out in 1780 by William Smith, Jr., the lots being subject to an annual quit rent of ten shillings. He called it Mercersburg, in honor of General Hugh Mercer, of the revolutionary army, who fell mortally wounded at the battle of Princeton, Janu- ary 3, 1777, and died a few days afterwards. General Mereer was an eminent physician, and resided for a number of years in the neighborhood of Davis' Fort, south of Mercersburg, near the Mary- land line, where he practiced his profession.
Having enjoyed some military training and experience in Europe, and having a taste for military life, he was early in 1756 appointed a captain in the Provincial service, in which he continued for some years, rising to the rank of colonel. On the 13th of July, 1757, he was appointed and commissioned by the Supreme Executive Council, one of the Justices of the Peace for Cumberland county. He was inti- mately acquainted with General Washington, who had a high re- gard for him, and upon the breaking out of the revolutionary war, Congress, in 1776, upon the recommendation of General Washington, who had served with him in Forbes' campaign in 1758, appointed Dr. Mercer a brigadier in the army of the United States. Whilst the army was eneamped near New Brunswick, New Jersey, General Mereer had shown great kindness to the father of Mr. Smith, or to Mr. William Smith himself, it is not known which, but in remem- branee of that kindness, Mr. Smith named his new town Mercers- burg.
The town now contains seven churches, viz. : one Presbyterian, one United Presbyterian, (formerly Associated Presbyterian), one Reformed, one Lutheran, one Methodist Episcopal, one United Brethren and one Bethel. Mercersburg College, under the care of the Reformed church, is located there, the President of which is Rev. E. E. Higbee, D. D. There is also a Female Seminary there, under the care of Rev. Jacob Hassler. "The Farmers' Bank of Mercersburg" was established in 1874, Mr. George Steiger is its President, and William M. Marshall, Esq., its Cashier. Fairview Cemetery was laid out in 1866. The population of the town at the present time is about twelve hundred.
MIDDLEBURG (P. O., STATE LINE) is situated in Antrim township;
149
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
immediately at the Maryland State line, on the great road leading from Greencastle to Hagerstown, Maryland. It was laid out by Jacob Strickler, about the year 1812, and takes its name from the fact of its location midway between the towns named. The town is regularly laid out, and at present has two churches, one Reformed and one United Brethren, two stores and a town hall in it. The population is about two hundred.
The town was originally called "Spiglersburg." A man named Jack Wolgamot, built the first house in the place. He was a reckless, rollicking fellow, and often had the constables after him, with a warrant for his arrest for the non payment of his debts, contracted in Marylandand in Pennsylvania. For the purpose of escaping the offi- cers of the law. he built his house, which is still standing, across the State line, as he thought, one-half in Maryland, and the other half in Pennsylvania, so that when an officer came, all he had to do to put him at defiance was to slip across the line into the other State, take his seat and laugh at the baffled officer. He, however, made a mistake as to the true location of the State line, and built all of the house in the State of Maryland, except the chimney, which is in Pennsylvania. But as this error was not discovered for many years after the house was put up, his ruse served his purposes on many an occasion, when he did not wish to have the company of those officers who had warrants against him.
MONT ALTO (P. O). See Funkstown.
MOUNT HOPE (P. O. name FIVE FORKS) is a small village situated in Quincy township, on the road from Chambersburg to Waynes- boro, four miles north-west of the latter place. There is a store, grist mill, and a blacksmith shop, and a population of about eighty persons in the place.
MOWERSVILLE (P. O.) is a small village in Langan township, about three and a half miles east of Roxbury. It was started by Jo- seph Mowers, Esq., fifteen or more years ago, and contains a store, blacksmith shop, carriage manufactory, &c., with a population of about forty persons.
NEW FRANKLIN is situated in Guilford township, on the road leading from Chambersburg to Waynesboro, four miles south-east of the former place. It was commenced by Balthazar Kountz, in 1795, and John Himes, Sr., built the next house in 1827. It now contains one store and seventy-seven inhabitants.
NEW GUILFORD is situated in Guilford township, three miles east of New Franklin. It contains a population of about sixty persons.
ORRSTOWN (P. (.) is situated in Southampton township, on the old State road from Shippensburg to Strasburg, five miles west of the former place. Settlements were made in that neighborhood as early as the year 1738, and for many years prior to the completion of the Pennsylvania railroad, down to within a very few years past, a very
150
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
large number of horses and cattle were annually passed along the State road from the great west to the markets of the east. The town, which is one of the most beautiful in the county, was laid out in 1833, by John and William Orr. They called it at first South- ampton, after the township; but in 1835, when application was made for a post office to be called Southampton, the Post Office Depart- ment refused the grant for the reason that there was already an office of that name. Hon. George Chambers, who was then in Con- gress, named the office "Orrstown," and the name has since attached to the town. It was incorporated as a borough in the year 1847, and now contains one hotel, two stores, one carriage factory, and four churches, viz. : one Lutheran, one Presbyterian, one United Breth- ren, and one Winebrennarian. The population is three hundred and twenty-five.
PIKESVILLE. See Rouzersville.
PLEASANT HALL is situated in Letterkenny township, on the old State road, abont two and a half miles east of Strasburg. It was laid out by Joseph Burkhart abont the year 1840. It contains one ยท store, one wagon-maker's shop and a blacksmith shop, and several dwellings. The population is about thirty persons.
QUINCY (P. O.) is situated in Quincy township, about four miles directly north of Waynesboro, on the road leading to Fayetteville. Many of the earlier settlers in this section of our county were Ger- mans, as is shown by their family names, As it had been the poliey and practice of the agents of the proprietaries, in the early years of the past century, to send the German emigrants into York county, (which then included what is now Adams county), it is very likely that many of those Germans came over the mountains from York county, and settled down in the eastern part of our county, instead of coming up through Lancaster county by way of Harris' Ferry, (now Harrisburg), as all the other early settlers of the Cumberland Valley did. They made settlements in what is now Quiney township as early as 1737, and many of their descendants are to be found there yet,
RICHMOND (P. O., " RICHMOND FURNACE ") is situated in Metal township, at the termination of the Southern Pennsylvania Rail- road and Iron Company's railway, four miles north of Loudon. The locality was formerly better known as " Mount Pleasant Fur- nace," the oldest furnace in the county. The furnace has been re- built by the present owners, and it and the village is now called "Richmond," after Richmond L. Jones, who was president of the company at the time their railroad was built. There is a large warehouse, a store, a number of dwellings, and a population of about sixty persons in the place.
ROUZERSVILLE (P. O.) or PIKESVILLE is a small village in Wash- ington township, on the turnpike leading from Waynesboro to Em-
W.W.D
RES. OF J.M.RIPPLE, M.D. WAYNESBORO, FRANKLIN CO. PA.
Page.264
-
CHAMBERSBURG, PA. RESIDENCE OF MRS. LOUISE LUDWIG.
97. 200ET
151
Historical Sketch of Franklin County.
mittsburg, Maryland, three miles east of Waynesboro. It contains a church and store, and a population of about thirty persons.
ROXBURY (P. O.) is situated in Lurgan township, upon the banks of the Conodoguinet creek, at the base of the Kitatinny mountains. It was commenced by William Leephar, about the year 1778. He built a grist mill about the year 1783. "Sound-well Forge" was built at Roxbury by Leephar, Crotzer & Co., in 1798, and " Roxbury Furnace" by Samuel Cole, in the year 1815. The Hughes' ran these works at one time, and the last persons who carried them on were Messrs. Fleming & Shefffer, in 1857. In the old " pack horse " times there was a considerable amount of business done at Roxbury. For many years past, however, the town has not improved much. There are two churches in the place-the " Union church," built in 1815, and the "Methodist Protestant," built in 1873. Population abont two hundred.
ST. THOMAS (P. O.) is situated in St. Thomas township, on the Chambersburg and Bedford turnpike, eight miles west of Cham- bersburg. Settlements were made in the neighborhood of where the town stands as early as 1737. Thomas Campbell laid out the town about the year 1790, and for many years afterwards it was known by the name of " Campbellstown." It is only, however, with- in the past thirty or thirty-five years that the town began to be gen- erally called " St. Thomas." Within the recollection of the writer it was frequently called by its old name-" Campbellstown." There are two hotels, three stores and two groceries in the town. There are also four church edifices, occupied by five denominations, viz. : one Reformed, one Methodist, one Brethren, and one used by the Pres- byterians and Lutherans jointly. The population numbers about four hundred.
SCOTLAND (P. O.) is situated on the Conococheague creek, in Greene township, about five miles north-east of Chambersburg, and a short distance south of Scotland station, on the Cumberland Val- ley railroad. It contains two churches, (one Covenanter and one United Brethren), three stores, a grist and saw mill, a planing mill, and a population of about two hundred and twenty-five persons.
.
SHADY GROVE (P. O.) is situated in Antrim township, on the Waynesburg, Greencastle and Mercersburg turnpike, two miles east of Greencastle. A warrant for the land on which it stands was granted to Thomas Minnock in 1752. The town was started by Melchi Snively, Esq., in 1848. There are now one store, twenty- four dwellings and one hundred and twenty inhabitants in the place.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.