History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 70

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.)
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago : S. B. Nelson
Number of Pages: 1532

USA > Pennsylvania > Luzerne County > History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections > Part 70

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One of the most important industries of this township is the manufacture of maple sugar and syrup. The harvest is usually abundant, and lasts about six weeks each year. Most of the timber in the township is sugar maple. There are several large sugar orchards containing from 500 to 5,000 trees each.

Jacob Long is supposed to have been one of the first settlers. if not the first. Some of his descendants are still on the old homestead in the south part of the township. He came here in 1792, journeying from the Delaware river with an ox team, and brought with him quite a large family and a stock of provisions, which was expected to last until more could be raised. As often happens in a new country the provisions would not last unless served out in rations. The old mortar and pestle constituted the only gristmill until one was built at Wapwallopen, and then there was no road to it, and the old pioneer had to take his grist on his shoulder and his rifle in hand and march, marking the route as he went through the woods that he might not go astray as he returned.

Joseph Potter, a soldier of the Revolutionary war, was the first settler at Fair- mount Springs. He located here long before the old Tioga turnpike was built.

Charles Fritz is one of the early settlers in the south part of the township. He was a soldier of the War of 1812, and lived to a great age.

George Gearhart, another pioneer and also a soldier of the War of 1812, located in the southwest part of the township. He lived to bestow his blessing upon twelve children, eighty-two grandchildren and fifty-three great-grandchildren.

Peter Boston, another early settler, located on Maple run, near the center of the south half of the township. He owned and operated a saw-mill, doing most of the work himself. He came here in 1820, and was one of the most successful hunters of his day.

Joseph Moss located at what is now known as Maple run, south of Boston's, in the Maple run valley. At this crossing are the Moss Methodist church and the Moss schoohouse.

The pioneer tavern was kept by Gad Seward, in 1818, at Fairmount Springs. It was a favorite resort for all inclined to mirth, as Gad was always ready with a sharp repartee or a side-splitting story, and for a mug of hot " flip " he could not be beaten. His larder was always supplied with the best game and fish of the season, and the traveler, wearied with stage coaching on the Tioga turnpike, was sure to leave Gad's hostlery refreshed as with old wine.

About the same time Andrew Horn opened a popular tavern at Red Rock, at the foot of North mountain.

The pioneer foundry of Fairmount was built by Shadrach Lacock in 1830, in the southeast corner of the township, on Huntington creek. The Lacock plow, quite celebrated in its day, was made here. In 1874 D. E. Rittenhouse built his foundry.

The first postoffice was established in 1835, with J. C. Pennington as post- master. He was succeeded by Jeremiah Britton. The office was that now called Fairmount Springs. It was first named " Fairmount Township" postoffice. The next office was established at Red Rock, and the first postmaster there was Truman D. Taylor.

As in other newly settled portions of our country, the pioneer of Fairmount traveled from place to place guided only by marked trees. Next would come the underbrushing and cutting out, to make room for the ox team and sled, and then other improvements followed until roads were made. The first of these were in the

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

southeast part of the township, and from there they ran westerly and northwesterly along Maple run.

The Susquehanna and Tioga turnpike runs along and nearly parallel with the west border of the township, from its south line near S. White's place, northerly through Fairmount Springs and Red Rock, to a point south of Dodson's pond, where it turns into Sullivan county. It was commenced in 1811; work was suspended during the War of 1812, but resumed in 1816, and the road was com- pleted through this township in 1818. It was built by a stock company, and paid a good dividend till travel was diverted to the steam channel. In 1845 it was abandoned by the company and surrendered to the township.

The first stage-drivers and mail-carriers over this line were Joshua Dodson, Timothy H. Tubbs and S. F. Headley.

Red Rock is near the foot of North mountain, and was once a popular hunter's resort. There is a store, blacksmith shop, and the place is served with a mail three times a week that comes up from Harveyville.

Patterson's Grove is one of the well-known places in the county. This is the great Methodist camp-ground. On an island near the junction of the two creeks is a maple grove of about twenty-seven acres, and is a most inviting place. Their annual meetings here are notable events, and from all over the county the people come. To many a pious soul it is a retreat, a religious feast, and an annual outing that renews both soul and body. It was first prepared and opened as a- camp-ground in 1867. Just across the creek from the "camp" is quite a little hamlet that has sprung up partly in connection with the grove; has a mill and store.

Maple Run (old Mossville) is a postoffice and one of the best business places in the township, being immediately surrounded with well-to-do farmers. Here is Grange hall, a lumber mill, store, church and school.

Rittenhouse is a postoffice.

Kyttle is a postoffice north of Rittenhouse.

Fairmount Springs is also surrounded with a rich farming country, and keeps up a considerable trade-a postoffice, store and blacksmith shop. The old stone house was once a licensed tavern, but is not now.

FAIRVIEW TOWNSHIP,

The youngest and fairest (in name at least) of the sisterhood of townships of Luzerne county. September 24, 1888, the court appointed Ira Hartwell, S. B. Sturdevant and Anning Dilley commissioners to examine and report the advisability of dividing Wright township. W. H. Sturdevant was substituted for Ira Hartwell as commissioner.

The commissioners reported in favor of the division on the line dividing the school districts. The court, February 9, 1889, approved the report, and an election was ordered to be held March 26 following for a vote on the question, and May 6 the court in accordance with the affirmative vote ordered the division, and that the new township be called Fairview. Immediately after the boundary line was changed so as to include in the new township the properties of L. C. Constantine and H. Weiss; these properties being a part of a tract of land in the warrantee name of Benjamin Mifflin, containing forty acres.

The boundary line, without the change just mentioned, is as follows: Beginning on the Denison township line at the corner of lands in the warrantees' names of Kearny, Wharton and Richard Gardner on the line of the Rosanna Van Camp tract; thence north 307 perches to a stone corner of land in the warrantee's name of Daniel Van Camp; thence along the same west 140 perches to a stone corner in line of land in warrantee's name of John Brink, thence along the same north 36 perches to stone; thence by another line of said Brink tract west 336 perches to stone corner; thence by another line of said tract west 120 perches to a stone corner on land on E. Lowen- steine and L. C. Paine; thence along said line and line of B. Mifflin and Roland

S. W. Trimmer, Ma

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

Perry warrants north 35 perches to a maple corner; thence by another line of Ben- jamin Mifflin warrant west 60 perches to a stone corner; thence by a line of land in warrantees' names of Susanna Heller, Roland Perry and Eleanor Hollenback north 223 perches to a stone corner on line of the certified township of Hanover; thence along said certified line, north sixty-eight degrees, forty-five minutes, east 105 perches, to a stone corner; thence along line between lots twenty and twenty-one in the second division of certified Hanover township, north twenty-two and a half degrees, west about 165 perches to the Hanover township line. The part of the township lying easterly of the described line and adjoining the townships of Hanover, Bear Creek and Denison, be erected, etc.

This is certainly description enough to bound Alaska, applied to the lines of Fairview.

Going south from Wilkes-Barre, on reaching the top of the mountain after the long going over the ox-bow that winds up the mountain side, then you can look to the right out of the car window and your eyes will tell you how this came to be called Fairview. For miles and miles the flat mountain top is spread before you and in the blue distance the hazy hills again rise above the wide depression. The two main lines of railroad parallel each other all the way from Mauch Chunk, going north to Mountain Top-Fairview-the head of the "planes," where the coal is hauled up the mountain by stationary power, and then the long trains descend toward the south. These coal roads up the mountain sides, ending at the top of the mountain at Fairview, and the converging of the two lines of the railroads in their long respective ox-bows, make of this quite a noted point. By either road in going south as your train winds along the mountain side, the greater part of the time you may look out upon as beautiful scenery as the eye can rest upon. The deep gorge on either hand often gives the car, in looking out of the train, the semblance of rushing along in mid air, and in the distance is the valley, Wilkes- Barre, Ashley, Plymouth, Kingston, Dorrance, Bennett, Luzerne, Wyoming, Forty Fort and the great coal breakers and their ever ascending columns of steam and the villages, hamlets, farms and residences and shade trees, wide roads and winding avenues and walks that are as beautiful as a dream.

Fairview is certainly properly named. It is the centering point of as lovely scenery as can be found in the world. The township name of Fairview is but an extension to the new township of the name of Fairview station on the Lehigh Valley railroad.

Conrad Wickeiser was the pioneer settler. He cut out .his road for his oxteam to this place at the close of the last century, 1798. He was followed by James Wright, who built the first tavern stand, also the first sawmill in 1820. When this was Wright township the place became a noted lumbering point, and many saw- mills dotted its length and breadth. James Wright built three sawmills, long since gone to decay. The next settler was Harvey Holcomb, from Connecticut. He located a short distance down the creek from Wright's. Samuel B. Stivers and William Vandermark soon afterward located in the northwest part of the township, a little south of Triangle pond. They were natives of this county, and their fam- ilies still live where they first located. John Hoffman, about the same time as the last two named, located near Stivers' place. Elias Carey, from the Wyoming val- ley, in 1833 bought the Holcomb improvements.

The first road was the Wilkes-Barre & Hazleton turnpike, running diagonally across the township from Solomon's gap to N. Hildebrand's; the surveyor was Harry Colt, of Wilkes-Barre.

The first schoolhouse was built of logs, in 1840, and stood near S. B. Stivers', in the northwest part of the township. The first teacher was Charles Fine. The first store was kept by Stephen Lee, near S. B. Stivers'. James Wright kept the first tavern, where he first located. Another was kept by a Mr. Willis, where R. Conedy lived. Almost every one kept liquors to stimulate the weary traveler.

The pioneer blacksmith, Stephen Lee, worked in connection with his store, near Samuel B. Stivers' place.

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

Fairview is quite a railroad point. Bear Creek Junction is the point where branches off from the Lehigh Valley road their line to Meadow run, about sixteen miles. In addition to the already-mentioned incline coal road from Wyoming valley to the Mountain Top, the converging at this point of the two main lines of railroad, the New Jersey Central railroad, commencing at that point, have built a coal road to Pittston, the cut-off. By this line they carry their coal and freight up the mountain. Thus, the trains, and they are many, from either direction here stop their extra engines that are used in the steep hauls up the mountain, every loaded train requiring two of these monster engines, and many three of them. This makes the stations of Mountain Top, Fairview and Penobscot all practically one, strung along the different tracks, quite a railroad rendezvous, and engine houses and small shops are numerous, and railroad employes have homes in the vicinity. Fairview is on the Lehigh Valley railroad, and Penobscot is on the New Jersey Central- practically all one. -

Glen Summit is quite an institution in the way of a summer hotel and resort. It is an immense hostlery, and the hot weather drives people from the close cities to this place for the refreshing mountain air. It was built in its present form in 1887. The place commenced by Mr. Patterson building, some years ago, a summer cottage there; then the people of Wilkes-Barre joined and built a small hotel, and finally, the railroad, realizing its importance as a summer resort, replaced it with the present improvement. A number of summer cottages have been built near by, and more are in contemplation.

Fairview township has 1,008 inhabitants, and of these 961 are in Mountain Top village.

FORTY FORT BOROUGH

Was carved from the territory of Kingston township. It is one of the beautiful suburban towns supplied by two railroads, having each a station, and by electric street cars, passing entirely through the place and on to Pittston and Scranton. But a few years ago this was all a rich and prosperous farming section. Forty fort, built by the first "forty" of the Connecticut settlers, was their place of safety and defence from the marauds of the savages and the invasions of the more terrible white enemies. Here was the central hub, around which revolved tremen- dous events of the colonial days. From this old historic fort the patriots went out to the slaughter upon the fatal field of Wyoming. There is nothing now to mark the spot of the old historic fort; the ground has been plowed and now it is a part of a street in the borough.

Forty Fort was organized a borough in 1887; bounded by the Delaware, Lacka- wanna & Western railroad on the west, by Wyoming borough on the north, the Susquehanna river on the east and Dorranceton on the south. First officers: Bur- gess, Abram Live; council: George Shoemaker, president; Crandall Major, secre- tary; L. A. Barber, treasurer; J. Shook, Adam Heisz and A. C. Stout; second burgess, David Culver; third, W. J. Stroh, the present incumbent. Present offi- cers: W. J. Stroh, burgess; council: George Shoemaker, president; Fred L. Space, secretary; Culver Perrin, Joseph C. Tyrrel, John Clark and John Donachie; treasurer, A. D. Thomas; superiniendent of streets, John S. Pettebone.

The borough is supplied with elegant water, brought from Spring brook, above Pittston, by the Spring Brook Water company. The mains were extended to this place in 1891. The result is no town in this section is more fortunate in its water supply. There are no coal breakers within the borough, while there are many in the near vicinity, but little of the coal has been mined under the town. It has a popu- lation of 1,000 and is rapidly increasing. The elegant suburban residences are being added to by others still more expensive.

One of the first merchants, if not the first in what is now the borough, was Robert Shoemaker. His store building stood where is now the corner of River and

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

Wyoming streets. The old building was taken away and the ground is now the newly added part of the cemetery grounds. The next merchant following Shoe- maker was Samuel Pugh, whose store and trading place was on the river bank, a little below the cemetery. Here the river-men made a stopping point, tied up their floating crafts and received freight and took in supplies. The little old house he used is still standing and is the residence of his son. The next was Crandall Major, who was a successful merchant many years. In the borough at this time are five general stores and one drug store. No licensed tavern in the place and no liquor sold.

Henry Stroh was an early settler in Luzerne borough. Years ago he removed to Forty Fort and bought and ran the old Forty Fort tavern, the noted old hotel of the place that stood on the river bank. It was a familiar place to the old-time river men. Burgess, W. J. Stroh is his descendant.

Tuttlestown was a settlement made by a family of that name. An old school- house was known for years by that name. Among the old settlers who were farmers here is recalled: R. McD. Shoemaker, Isaac Tripp, Col. Denison, Jr., James Hughes, Hiram Boothe, Adam Heisz, Berdon Shook and Noah Pettebone, Jr.

Soon after the first settlers built Forty fort the fort at Wilkes-Barre was built. In time this became Montgomery county, Conn., and then sprang up a terrible rivalry between the two places for the county seat. The people on the two sides of the river carried on the rivalry sometimes with considerable spirit, notwithstand- ing that for years there was hardly a day that all were not expecting an attack from the common outside enemy, when all division would instantly vanish and all would huddle in the fort for mutual .protection. When the alarm gun would fire then every one fled to the nearest fort. Had there been in the days of settling the county question only the piping times of peace, what a county-seat contention there would have been. The people had no time for serious controversy with each other over minor matters, and, judging from recent experiences in the West, this had its advantages and the question was decided in favor of Wilkes-Barre, and if there was ill blood generated in the rivalry it soon had gone and left no trace behind.

The Forty Fort Foundry .- The Cauldwell Iron works that are being moved from Owego, N. Y., to this place will be a great addition to this part of the country. The work on the buildings was commenced in July, 1892. The main building is to be 40x180 feet with an L 20x60 feet. The surrounding shops will be one-story-all of brick and all modern improvements in machinery. The works will start running about the 1st of December, 1892. And now the iron industry has a foothold here and such are the advantages in fuel and water and in cheapness in living of employes that there is every probability that in a few years the iron and coal industries of Luzerne county may be running in parallel lines. The officers of the Forty Fort Iron works were elected in July, 1892, as follows: George Shoe- maker, president; H. A. Jacoby, secretary and treasurer; J. A. Cauldwell, man- ager; George Shoemaker, Dr. D. A. Thomas, Calvin Perrin, Liddon Flick, H. A. Jacoby, J. A. Cauldwell and H. H. Welles, Jr., directors.

The new works will manufacture engines, boilers, castings and mill work gener- ally, but they make a specialty of steel and boiler-iron jail cells. Several county jails have been built by them already, among them being the following in New York state: Tioga county, Grange county, Delaware county, Cayuga county, Living- stone county, and Pike county in this state.

They will also manufacture Cauldwell's patent iron boot and shoe lasts, which are already marketable all over the world, over ten tons of them having been shipped to Brazil last year. Mr. Cauldwell, who is to have charge of the works, is a practi- cal worker in iron and steel and an inventor of no mean ability. He will live with his family on Maple street in Kingston.

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

FOSTER TOWNSHIP

Is named for Asa L. Foster, one of a company consisting of himself, Richard Sharp, George Belford, Francis Weiss, William Reed and John Leisenring, who came here in 1854 on an exploring expedition for coal on the lands of the estate of Tench Coxe, with a view of opening mines. Their examination was entirely satis- factory and they opened the place that is now Eckley-at first called Fillmore, where they erected, at a cost of 7,000, a sawmill and mining works, and opened a mine and the next year shipped 2,000 tons of coal to market. When they came this was an unbroken mountainous wilderness.

The township contains fifty square miles of territory, and was erected into a township in 1855, of territory taken from the original Denison township. It has so little arable land that outside of its timber and coal, it would never have been able to support even a sparse population. But of these two articles it was immeas- ureably rich; the timber is now mostly cut away but new coal developments will go on for many years. Standing on any of the prominent points you can see the great towering black breakers or the white steam rising therefrom on nearly every hillside. Sandy Run creek flows east to the Lehigh river through the township and its narrow valley has about all the good farming land it possesses.

John Lines was the pioneer settler, at what is now White Haven, in 1824. He cleared a "patch " near Terrapin pond. All the evidence shows that this was the oldest settled point off the river in the township. Terrapin pond is in Pond creek, the other stream besides Sandy run that rises near Upper Lehigh village, and is joined by Sandy run in the southeast part of the township. The nearest neighbors Lines had for a long time were at Lawreytown, now Rockport, seven miles down the River Lehigh. About 1840 Thomas Morrison came and located on Pond creek about three miles southeast of White Haven. Since White Haven is a separated borough this would make Morrison the first settler of the township in its present form. Morrison was a man of great enterprise and considerable means. He built two saw- mills and a gristmill and to operate these mills and cut and haul the logs and then the lumber required quite a force of men and the place was soon a noted spot in the wilderness and roads were made over the hills to the river. So important was the Morrison settlement that it was granted a postoffice and Mr. Morrison kept it. Mrs. William Johnson (a Birkbeck), who lived with the Morrisons when she was young, thinks they settled at their place in 1838. She says Thomas Morrison was an Irish gentleman, a widower with two children-Sarah and James. A Mrs. Lytle was his housekeeper. She had two daughters-Mary and Catharine. Mr. Morrison mar- ried one of the girls and his son married the other. Mr. Morrison's valuable mills were burned and this crippled him financially, but after some time he rebuilt further up the pond. A schoolhouse was built and there were probably a hundred souls in the Morrison settlement.

The next pioneer in Foster was Joseph Birkbeck, who came in 1844 and settled at what was for a long time called South Heberton, in the valley between Freeland and Upper Lehigh. He purchased a large tract of land of Edward Lynch, a part of which is now in the borough of Freeland. He built first a log house, and then a frame which stands a short distance north of the Freeland north borough line. The next settler was Nathan Howes (Howey), who purchased the west part of the Birkbeck tract and built his house to the west a short distance from Birkbeck's. Mr. Birkbeck, after the opening of the collieries at Upper Lehigh, laid off a village and called it South Heberton.

Mr. Birkbeck's was the first clearing in this then forest; in it were raised the first crops, and here the first orchard was set out.

The first child born at South Heberton was Elizabeth, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth Birkbeck, born in 1845. The first death at this place was that of William, son of Joseph and Elizabeth Birkbeck, which occurred February 11, 1846, aged four years.

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

In 1845 and 1846 Mr. Joseph Birkbeck cut the road through the woods from South Heberton through Eckley to Buck mountain. Eckley was then known as Shingletown, as no business was done there except by two or three parties whose occupation was making shingles, carting them to either White Haven or Hazleton and trading them for the necessaries of life, such as whisky, pork and tobacco.

The first store at South Heberton was kept by a man named Feist, a little west of Birkbeck's. Soon afterward a Mr. Minig kept a little store near Feist's.

The first tavern was kept by N. Howes, where Joseph Jamison now lives a little west of Birkbeck's. Previous, however, to the opening of Howes' tavern, Mr. Birkbeck accommodated parties who were prospecting in this region for anthracite deposits, with the best the house afforded.

The first schoolhouse at this place was built in 1878, and is a frame building.

When Mr. and Mrs. Birkbeck moved into this then wilderness they were far from any settlement. At Morrison, near White Haven, was the nearest store, and Straw's, over in Butler, was the nearest gristmill.

South Heberton has long since lost its identity and is now simply a cluster of houses midway between Freeland and Upper Lehigh along the wagon road.

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History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 70

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.) Publication date: 1893 Publisher: Chicago : S. B. Nelson Number of Pages: 1532

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.)
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago : S. B. Nelson
Number of Pages: 1532