USA > Pennsylvania > Carbon County > History of Carbon County, Pennsylvania; also containing a separate account of the several boroughs and townships in the county, with biographical sketches > Part 13
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The early growth and prosperity of Beaver Meadow resulted from the operations of the Beaver Meadow
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
Railroad and Coal Company, the Beaver Meadow Mines, where coal was first produced in Banks town- ship, being situated about a mile west of the town. The railroad to the mines was finished and opened for transportation in the fall of 1836. The machine, blacksmith and car shops of the company were located at Beaver Meadow. The first master mechanic of the shops was Hopkin Thomas, a Welsh immigrant, and one of the pioneer inventors of the Lehigh Valley. Through one of his inventions anthracite coal was first made avail- able as fuel for the use of locomotives. He also in- vented and successfully used the chilled cast-iron car wheel, as well as the most improved and successful mine pumps and machinery of the day.
Under the supervision of Mr. Thomas, a ten-wheel locomotive, said to have been the first of its kind built in this country, and named the "Nonpareil," was con- structed at Beaver Meadow. The shops were removed to Weatherly in 1842.
In 1848, N. R. Penrose erected a foundry here, which he conducted for a short time, then disposing of the property to S. W. and B. W. Hudson. In 1859, B. W. Hudson purchased the interest of his brother and con- tinued the business until 1865. Much of the iron work used in constructing the Mahanoy division of the Le- high Valley Railroad was turned out from this foundry. After the retirement of B. W. Hudson, the shops passed into the ownership of the Spring Mountain Coal Company, and were torn down in 1868 and re- moved to Jeanesville. These shops formed the nucleus of the Jeanesville Iron Works, since established at Hazleton, constituting one of the largest industries of that city. Beaver Meadow was already quite a vil-
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
lage before Hazleton was born, and the people of the last named place once did their trading here.
The only coal operation within the borough limits is the Number 4 slope of Coxe Brothers & Company, which was sunk by Jonah Rees, about 1867. It was for a time abandoned, but during the eighties it was sunk to the basin by Coxe Brothers & Company. It is from the foot of this slope that the drainage tunnel through the Spring mountain to Quakake Valley is driven.
A postoffice was established here in 1830, with Wil- liam H. Wilson in charge. The second postmaster was A. G. Brodhead, who, in turn, was succeeded by Mr. Wilson. The present incumbent is Robert Trezise.
The first school in the place was kept by Miss Lydia Bidlack, and was opened about the year 1835. A later teacher who served for many years was Thomas Mc- Curly. There are now five graded schools in the town, all being housed in one building.
A Presbyterian church was here organized about 1838, largely through the influence of A. H. VanCleve, who was then superintendent of the Beaver Meadow shops. The edifice in which this congregation wor- shiped occupied the site on which the hall of the Pa- triotic Order of Sons of America now stands. The re- moval of the shops to Weatherly affected the congrega- tion, and it declined. The Methodists subsequently conducted services in the church, and upon the erec- tion of a new building by that denomination, in 1874, the adherents of the German Reformed faith found a meeting place in the old edifice for a time.
St. Mary's Roman Catholic church was founded in 1841. The original church building stood on the ceme- tery of the parish, a short distance beyond the town on the road to Hazleton. St. Nicholas' church, of Weatherly, and St. Joseph's, of Laurytown, were for-
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
merly missions of this church. During the pastorate of Rev. Francis Brady, the old church was removed to the site of the present building, which was erected during the pastorate of Rev. John J. McEnroe. The cornerstone of the new building was laid in 1904, while the church, which cost about $15,000, was dedicated by the Rt. Rev. Edmund F. Prendergast. Formerly St. Mary's was the only Catholic church in this part of the coal region, and the people of Hazleton, Audenried, Weatherly, Buck Mountain, and other places journeyed hither to worship.
St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran church was built in 1897. Rev. J. O. Schlenker, formerly pastor of Christ church, Hazleton, and Rev. D. G. Gerberich, of Weath- erly, were the leading spirits in the organization of this congregation.
St. Peter's and St. Paul's Greek Catholic church was erected in 1895, the cornerstone being laid during the month of May.
The town is supplied with water by the Citizens' Water Company, organized at about the time of the erection of the borough.
Both the Anthracite and the Bell Telephone Com- pany have lines connecting with this place. A rural line connecting with the system of the latter company at Hazleton was built in 1908, Robert Trezise being the local agent.
The streets of the borough were allowed to remain unlighted until 1911, when the Harwood Electric Light and Power Company extended its lines to this point. The town has a fire company, but its equipment is meagre. Thomas Grenfell is the present chief burgess.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
EAST MAUCH CHUNK BOROUGH.
The principal cause which operated to bring the town of East Mauch Chunk into existence was the scarcity of land available for building purposes in Mauch Chunk proper, of which it originally formed a part. It is situated on the eastern bank of the Lehigh river, opposite to its sister borough, and is a town of homes rather than of industries and business estah- lishments.
The locality was known during the early years of its settlement and growth as "The Kettle," a designa- tion that had a certain degree of appropriateness in view of the great bowl formed by the surrounding mountains.
John Burns took up his residence here in 1824, while John Ruddle came at a later period.
The spot being favorable for the location of a town, affording a large tract of comparatively smooth land, gently sloping towards the river, the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, in 1850, laid out about sixty acres in lots, which were soon disposed of at one hun- dred dollars each.
The place grew rapidly, and additions to the original plot were made from time to time.
Isaac Butz was the first merchant in the town; at the expiration of five years he, in 1864, disposed of his business to Elwin Baner, who, after nearly fifty years still retains it. Others, who later established themselves in various lines of business were, Samuel Kennedy, John Muth, Robert Bauchspies, John Dick- man and Hoover Brothers.
The Centre House, built by Solomon Dreisbach, a native of Northampton county, who came to this local- ity in 1850, was the first hotel. It was kept by him for many years.
CENTER STREET, EAST MAAUCH CHUNK.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
The wharf of the Beaver Meadow Railroad and the Honeybrook Coal Company was the town's initial in- dustry. After the freshet of 1862, it came under the control of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, being abandoned in 1887.
In response to a petition of its people, East Mauch Chunk was incorporated as a borough on January 1, 1854.
John Ruddle, who has already been mentioned as one of the earliest settlers, was chosen as the first chief burgess. The original members of town council were: Jacob S. Wallace, Lucas Ashley, Thomas L. Foster, David Mummey, J. R. Twining and John Beighe.
A frame school house, built in the woods, where Fourth and North streets now intersect, was erected in 1851. It was occupied in November of that year. Ellen Thompson was the teacher in charge, while there were twenty pupils in attendance. This was the first school in the town. Mrs. George Barker succeeded Ellen Thompson as teacher. In 1856, another frame building was erected on the same lot as the first, while still another was opened at the weigh lock.
The old building now in use was erected in 1871, when the schools were first regularly graded. R. W. Young was the first principal. In 1900, the present high school building, which is a handsome, well- equipped structure, was built.
During the past twenty years, the educational inter- ests of the borough have been under the supervision of P. H. McCabe, a man of practical ideas and general efficiency. The parochial schools of the town were es- tablished under the auspices of St. Joseph's Roman Catholic church, in 1874. They were first kept by Sisters of Christian charity, who had been exiled by the Prussian government.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
The postoffice was here opened in May, 1870, with J. M. Dreisbach, now president of the Mauch Chunk Trust Company, as the postmaster. His deputy was Elwin Bauer, who attended to the duties of the office.
Six churches now supply the means of grace to the people of East Mauch Chunk :
St. John's Episcopal church was started as a mis- sion of St. Mark's, of Mauch Chunk. This was during the rectorship of Rev. Peter Russell. On August 16, 1867, the cornerstone of the present church edifice was laid by the Rt. Rev. William Bacon Stevens, D.D., Bishop of Pennsylvania. The building was conse- crated on December 23, 1875, by the Rt. Rev. M. A. DeWolfe Howe, D.D., Bishop of Central Pennsylvania. St. John's was organized as an independent parish on October 12, 1891, Rev. A. A. Bresee, now of Lehighton, being the first rector. The rectory was completed two years later.
The Methodist Episcopal church was also founded as a mission of that denomination in Mauch Chunk. General Charles Albright and R. Q. Butler purchased the lot on which, in 1868, a chapel was erected, while Rev. Charles Bickley was appointed as pastor. The chapel, which has since been replaced by a larger and more modern building, was dedicated on the evening of December 16, 1868. A flourishing Sunday school was at once established, constituting one of the principal sources of the congregation's strength. C. A. Rex, the well-known Mauch Chunk merchant, has been the su- perintendent of this school for nearly forty years.
St. Joseph's Roman Catholic church was founded in 1871, the first pastor being Rev. G. Frende, who was then stationed at Lehighton. During the following year he was succeeded by Rev. William Heinan, one of the ablest and best-known members of the priesthood in
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
this section of Pennsylvania. He was particularly suc- cessful as a church builder, having been instrumental in the erection of churches in various localities. It was under his leadership that the massive and costly temple in which St. Joseph's congregation now wor- ships was erected in 1897.
On September 5, 1878, the Reformed and Lutheran people of the borough organized a union church. Prior to this religious services had been conducted in the public school house at Fourth and North streets at occasional intervals for many years. The cornerstone of the union church was laid in September, 1878. In 1893, the Lutherans purchased the interest of the Re- formed people, since which time the two congregations have been independent of each other. The original building is still in use, although it was remodeled in 1905.
After the separation, the Reformed element, under the leadership of Rev. Morgan Peters, now of Palmer- ton, built a new church. This was erected during the same year in which the division took place
The Memorial Presbyterian church was the out- growth of a mission started here by the First Presby- terian church of Mauch Chunk. The congregation has been on a self-sustaining basis since February 14, 1903. Its house of worship was erected twenty years previ- ous to that time. Rev. A. J. Wright was the first pas- tor in charge. The church now has an active member- ship of about one hundred and forty.
The plant of the Dery Silk Mill constitutes the largest industry of East Mauch Chunk, affording em- ployment to more than four hundred operatives. The mill has been in operation for more than twenty-five years. A. W. Leisenring was prominent among those who secured its establishment.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
Charles Neast & Company have also operated a large planing mill here for years.
The Eagle Brewery was built by Easton capitalists about the time of the Civil War. Since 1879 it has been owned and operated by Pius H. Schweibinz, who re- built and enlarged the original plant.
There are several smaller establishments giving em- ployment to labor within the limits of the borough, among the number being a facing mill, located in the Narrows, and owned by the Lehigh Coal and Naviga- tion Company. The power plants of the Mauch Chunk Heat, Power and Electric Light Company and the Carbon Transit Company are also situated in the bor- ough.
East Mauch Chunk has two fire companies. The first to be organized was the Onoko Hose Company, the building of which was erected in 1890. This also is the meeting place of town council.
Edward Armbruster, son of Charles Armbruster, the present burgess of the town, was the leading spirit in the organiganization of the Fairview Hose Company, in 1907. Both companies have fine buildings and good equipments.
The town has been supplied with water by the Mauch Chunk Water Company since the beginning, deriving its light from the Manch Chunk Heat, Power and Elec- tric Light Company.
Since 1892 it has been connected with its sister bor- ough by means of an electric railway, now operated by the Carbon Transit Company. During the same year the Progressive Building and Loan Association was organized. This institution has been a distinct and material benefit to the town. Many of the substantial, and beautiful homes in the place were erected through its agency. Charles Neast is the president of the as- sociation, while Philip Swank is its secretary.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
Prior to 1906 the town depended for banking facili- ties upon Mauch Chunk. But on the twenty-eighth of November of that year the Citizens' National Bank of East Mauch Chunk was chartered. Quentin Stemler and J. H. Leibenguth have served as president and cashier, respectively, since the opening of the institu- tion, which declared its first dividend in July, 1910. The capital of the bank is fifty thousand dollars.
East Mauch Chunk has two burying grounds, that of the Evergreen Cemetery Association, started in 1876, and that of St. Joseph's Catholic church.
The first census of the borough, taken in 1860, showed the population to be 833. In 1910, the number had risen to 3,548. The place is divided into three wards, of which the Third is the least populous.
East Mauch Chunk is primarily a railroad town, the majority of its people depending directly or indirectly, on the Lehigh Valley Railroad and the Central Rail- road of New Jersey.
EAST PENN TOWNSHIP.
The township of Penn, embracing that portion of the territory of Carbon county lying between the Blue mountain and the western bank of the Lehigh river, together with a part of Schuylkill county, was set off from Towamensing in the year 1768.
In 1808, East Penn, West Penn and Lausanne were formed from Penn township. East Penn embraced the present township of Mahoning and the greater part of Mauch Chunk. West Penn became a part of Schuylkill county in 1811.
In 1827 the territory of East Penn was reduced by the setting off of Mauch Chunk township, the major portion of which was taken from this district. Fifteen years later, Mahoning was carved from East Penn,
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
since which time there have been no changes in its boundaries.
It is bounded on the north by Mahoning township, on the east by the Lehigh river, on the south by the Blue mountain, which separates it from Lehigh county, and on the west by the Schuylkill.
Lizard creek flowing eastwardly through the town- ship to the Lehigh, is the principal stream. The valley drained by this stream is devoted principally to agri- culture, containing many fine farms and comfortable homes. The Lizard Creek branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, which was opened in 1890, and an extension of the Lehigh and New England Railroad completed in 1912, pass through the township.
The first settlers of East Penn were English people, bearing the family names of Tipple, Pearsoll, Rhoads, Johnson, Meyers, Washburn, Thomas, Custard and others. They received the grants for their lands about the year 1750.
Subsequent to the Revolution, most of them emi- grated to Canada, being succeeded here by Palatinates with whom the remaining families became intermar- ried, and, in time, by them entirely absorbed.
It was formerly believed that the Indian missionary village of Wechquetank, established by the Moravians soon after the destruction of Gnadenhütten, was situ- ated in the Lizard Creek Valley; but recent research has demonstrated that this village was located in the present township of Polk, Monroe county.
The eastern section of the township, especially along the Lehigh, was not permanently settled until after 1800. The western portion was settled by English and Germans, who came in soon after the close of the war of Independence. The locality about Ben Salem church was the center of the settlement.
دهـ
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
Among the best known of the German pioneers of the township was Conrad Rehrig, whose father came to America at an early day, locating at or near Phila- delphia. Conrad served in the Revolution, after which he married and built his home in the Lizard Creek Valley. He was one of the founders of Ben Salem church, in the graveyard of which repose his remains. His descendants in this portion of the state are quite numerous.
The father of the Andreas family in East Penn bore the Christian name of Martin. He emigrated from Alsace, on the Rhine, on board the ship "Leslie," ar- riving in Philadelphia in 1749. He, too, served as a soldier in the Revolution.
Jacob and Peter, his sons, jointly purchased and oc- cupied, in 1793, what is now commonly known as the Nimson farm, at Ashfield. Their brother, William, came to the township in 1807, locating in the western portion.
Jacob Dinkey, who in 1810 purchased the property first occupied by Jacob and Peter Andreas, was a na- tive of Whitehall township, Lehigh county. Removing to East Penn, he opened a tavern, store and black- smith shop.
Upon his farm was built the first school house in the eastern part of the township. He served for many years as a justice of the peace, and was in 1843 elected as one of the first associate judges of Carbon county.
Reuben, one of his six children, succeeded his father in the conduct of the tavern and as justice of the peace. He was the father of Eurana Dinkey, who be- came the wife of Charles M. Schwab, the millionaire steel manufacturer.
Her brother, Alva, is the president of the Carnegie Steel Company, and another brother, Charles, is the head of the Edgar Thompson steel works.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
It appears that Andrew and Charles Steigerwalt were the first representatives of that family in the township.
A. B. Nimson came here in 1824 as a school teacher, afterwards taking a prominent part in the political affairs of the county, being thrice elected to the office of register and recorder.
Stephen Balliet and Samuel Helffrich, in 1828, erected Penn Forge and Furnace, near the present vil- lage of Ashfield, which was then called Pennsville. The last-named of the partners died in 1830, after which Balliet became the sole owner. In 1837, he es- tablished his home in the locality and, purchasing sev- eral thousand acres of land, started a furnace about three-quarters of a mile farther down the mountain, employing charcoal as fuel.
Following the death of Mr. Balliet, in 1854, the fur- nace was successively operated by Solomon Boyer, C. H. Nimson, and John Balliet, a son of Stephen. It was abandoned years ago.
Ben Salem Lutheran and Reformed church, the first to be organized in the township, was founded about 1790. The first house of worship was of logs, hav- ing galleries on the sides. It was completed in 1797 and stood until the erection of the present brick building, in 1855. In the burial ground adjoining the church sleep many of the forefathers of this region, among the number Rev. Johannes Schwarbach, the first Lutheran pastor of the congregation, who died before the completion of the church.
The Lutheran and Reformed church at Ashfield was erected in 1851, being rebuilt thirty years later.
The earliest schools of the township were conducted under the auspices of Ben Salem church, and only the German language was taught. In 1840, the district ac- cepted the free school law.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
A postoffice was established at Ashfield about 1828, Jacob Dinkey being the first postmaster.
After many years it was abandoned, but was re- opened in 1883, with Penrose George in charge. W. A. Balliet is the present postmaster. A rural delivery route, starting at Bowmanstown, passes through the township.
Building sand of good quality is found in this dis- triet, and there are now several quarries in operation.
CHAPTER XIV.
EAST SIDE BOROUGH.
East Side borough enjoys the distinction of being the smallest incorporated town in Pennsylvania. It was formerly known as East Haven, lying directly op- posite White Haven on the east bank of the Lehigh river.
It is bounded on all sides excepting the west by Kidder township, of which it formed a part until Janu- ary 22, 1892, when the borough was incorporated con- formably to a decree of court. The western boundary is marked by the Lehigh. In 1900, the year when its first census was taken, the town had a population of 210. During the succeeding decade, this number was augmented by but ten. There are less than forty voters in the place.
Almost without exception the men of the village are employed as railroaders. The Wyoming division of the Lehigh Valley road passes through the town, while the Lehigh and Susquehanna division of the Central Railroad of New Jersey is on the opposite bank of the river. The place is pleasantly situated and practically all of the people own the homes which they occupy. A single school is maintained, but there is no church, the inhabitants worshiping at White Haven.
In common with White Haven, the borough is noted as a health resort. Sunnyrest Sanatorium, the first private institution to be opened in Pennsylvania for the treatment of tuberculosis, is here located.
The free hospital for poor consumptives was opened at White Haven in July, 1901, the location being chosen for its pure, bracing air, its dry soil, and its accessibil-
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
ity. The success of the treatment at the free sana- torium was so gratifying that at once there was a de- mand for a private sanatorium.
It was to meet this demand that Sunnyrest Sana- torium was opened by Elwell Stockdale, in November, 1901. Previous to this time Mr. Stockdale had been the superintendent in charge of the free hospital.
The institution is situated in an attractive park, among beautiful trees and shrubbery, and consists of an administration building, a central dining hall, cot- tages, bungalows, and tent houses, a nurses' home and quarters for other employes. A dairy and a poultry farm of more than fifty acres are conducted in connec- tion with the sanitorium.
The institution has been successful and prosperous from the start, its prestige drawing patients from all parts of North and South America, and even from the islands of the Pacific ocean. The place has an eleva- tion of twelve hundred feet above sea level.
FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP.
As Virginia once claimed the proud title, "Mother of the Presidents," so Franklin township is coming to be known as the "Mother of the Sheriffs" of Carbon county. Certain it is that most of those who have been called to fill this office during a long period of years have come from this division of the county.
Originally Franklin township formed a part of old Towamensing, and in 1841, when a division was made, it became a part of Upper Towamensing, or, as it is known to-day, Towamensing. It so remained until the year 1851, when it was separately organized and the new township named "Franklin" by the court. This designation was deemed appropriate because it was on the borders of its territory that Benjamin
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
Franklin erected Fort Allen as a measure of protection for the white settlers after the Indian massacre at Gnadenhütten.
The Poho Poco creek, crossing Towamensing town- ship, flows westwardly through Franklin, and at a point southeast of Weissport turns abruptly and runs nearly parallel with the river, its waters mingling with those of the Lehigh at Parryville. The township is uneven, but is well adapted to agricultural pursuits. Many of its people, especially those of East Weissport, Rickertsville and Phifer's Corner are employed in the repair shops of the Lehigh Valley Railroad at Packer- ton. The old state road leading from Lehighton to Stroudsburg extends through the district. The stretch running from Weissport to Harrity, a distance of about two miles, has recently been rebuilt and placed in excellent condition.
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