USA > Pennsylvania > Northumberland County > History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania > 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 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120 | Part 121 | Part 122 | Part 123 | Part 124 | Part 125 | Part 126 | Part 127 | Part 128 | Part 129 | Part 130 | Part 131 | Part 132
135
THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD.
been traversed to a distance of forty miles from Northumberland, and an officer with five men had ascended the West Branch more than a hundred miles. Regarding his own excursions he said: "I often reconnoiter my outposts ;...... five or six gentlemen in this town and two of my officers are commonly my escorts ...... It is highly discouraging for a man who has always been generous in his own house, and now when he serves his country with every nerve in his body, must, after a fatigue of two or three days, and those gentlemen who suffered the same, must then go home without any refreshment from me, as this place has not afforded a drop of good liquor since the beginning of March last." It does not appear that his command was engaged in any important movements during the summer, and in August, 1780, it was withdrawn.
The enemy made frequent incursions during this period. On the 27th of November, 1779, Colonel Hunter wrote that a deep snow had fallen, which he hoped would prevent their inroads during the winter, and while this seems to have been the case, William Maclay stated in a letter written on the 2d of April, 1780, "They are with us before that snow is quite gone." The county was, he said, a "divided quarter," in which "Whig, Tory, Yankee, Pennamite, Dutch, Irish, and English influence " were strangely blended. On the 31st of March seven or eight prisoners were taken near Fort Jenkins. Three Indians attacked the house of a widow on the 8th of April, killed two of her children, and took her prisoner, but she escaped. On the 13th, although three parties of the inhabitants were out scouting at the time and a detachment of militia was stationed two miles away, twenty Indians killed one man and wounded three at Peter Swartz's plantation on the West Branch twelve miles from Sunbury. Four men were killed at Grozong's mill in Buffalo Valley May 16th. On the 12th of June Emanuel Lewis, second lieutenant in Captain Mull's company of the Third battalion, was killed at his house on the Reading road seven miles from Sunbury, and on the same day an Indian was taken prisoner at Thomas Bowyer's on the North Branch ten miles from Northumberland. In the same vicinity and about the same time Robert Curry was killed while riding horseback and his wife taken prisoner, but she escaped. Two inroads were made on the 15th of August, in one of which the Middle creek settlement, eight miles from Sunbury, was attacked.
After the withdrawal of the German regiment Colonel Hunter ordered the frontier companies of militia to embody and kept one fourth of the men constantly reconnoitering. Fort Jenkins, Fort Rice, and Fort Swartz were each garrisoned with twenty men; Captain McCay took position in Buffalo valley with thirty volunteers from Cumberland county, which also con- tributed two companies of militia numbering seventy or eighty men who arrived on the 10th of September. The re-enforcement was timely. A large body of the enemy appeared before Fort Rice about sundown on the 6th of
136
HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
September, killed one man, and wounded another, but the garrison returned the fire with such spirit that they withdrew and set fire to a number of houses and grain stacks during the night. The militia was immediately ordered out, and one hundred men under Colonel John Kelly reached the fort on the following day, but, having been informed that the enemy num- bered two hundred fifty, it was not deemed prudent to pursue. Colonel Hunter at once ordered the evacuation of Fort Jenkins (which was subse- quently burned) and sent an express to Colonel Purdy on the Juniata, who brought one hundred ten militia and eighty volunteers. General James Potter arrived at Sunbury on the 11th of September and took command; as the local militia had collected and the number of the enemy was found to be less than had been reported, he dismissed the volunteers; on the 12th he marched with one hundred seventy men to Fort Swartz on the West Branch. Leaving his command at that point he crossed the river to the mouth of White Deer creek, where Colonel Kelly was encamped with eighty men, waiting for the return of three spies. It was decided to join forces and advance eastward along Muncy Hill, but, as the spies had not yet returned on the following morning and their continued absence strongly indicated that they had been killed or captured, it was deemed advisable to proceed up the West Branch; General Potter marched on the east side and Colonel Kelly on the west side. At Muncy Hill they met the spies, who gave posi- tive assurance that the enemy had not retreated in that direction; Colonel Kelly thereupon crossed the river with his command and the combined forces set out for Huntington creek, the east branch of Fishing creek. On the night of the 13th, an express having arrived with intelligence of the enemy's appearance at Middle creek, Colonels Kelly and Purdy returned with one hundred fifty men; General Potter proceeded with the remainder, numbering one hundred ten, but, finding it impossible to overtake the attack- ing party, he returned to Sunbury on the 17th. On the following day he transmitted an account of the expedition to President Reed, with the request that militia might be sent to the frontier; the letter was considered by Council on the 29th instant: one class of the Lancaster county militia was ordered to Northumberland, where it remained until December.
Early in the spring of 1781 hostilities were again reported. On the 12th of April General Potter wrote that five distinct attacks had been made since the 22d of March (one not more than five miles from Sunbury), and distress was widely prevalent among the people; Captain Thomas Robinson* had enlisted forty men, but there was not a blanket among them. On the 15th of June Captain Robinson reported fifty-two men enlisted for the war and fourteen for seven months; Lieutenants Peter Grove and Samuel McGrady
*Captain Robinson's correspondence relating to affairs in Northumberland county during the Revolutionary period is published in the Pennsylvania Archives, as follows :- 1781-Vol. 1X. pp. 208-209, 237-238, 392; 1782-Vol. IX. p. 659.
137
THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD.
were also recruiting. The former had seventeen men and the latter twenty, all for seven months. Council experienced great difficulty in furnishing sup- plies, owing to the straitened condition of State finances, and it was not until the 1st of July that clothing and ammunition were forwarded from Philadel- phia. The wagon reached Lancaster on the 23d instant and Captain John Hambright sent it to Middletown the same day in care of Captain Abraham Scott; the receipt of its contents was acknowledged by Captain Robinson on the 8th of September. Referring to the Indians in a letter of that date he said: "The savages have been a long time quiet this summer. They have done no harm in this county since I have been able with men to go to the woods to scout. They made their appearance in harvest twice, but did no hurt."
Robinson's company, which was withdrawn early in the winter of 1781, was again stationed on the frontier in 1782 and rebuilt Fort Muncy, which proved of material advantage as a rendezvous for scouting parties. Notwith- standing this the Indians succeeded in penetrating to the interior of the county, and several tragedies were reported during the year. Major John Lee and family were killed at Winfield, three miles above Sunbury, in August; on the 14th of October John Martin and wife were killed at their house on Chillisquaque near Colonel James Murray's and three persons were taken prisoners; and on the 24th of the same month Sergeant Edward Lee of Captain Robinson's company was killed two miles from Fort Rice and Robert Carothers was taken prisoner. Happily for the distressed frontier, the independence of the United States was acknowledged by Great Britain, November 30, 1782, and on the 20th of January, 1783, a preliminary treaty of peace was signed. Thus assured of immunity from the harassing experiences of the preceding years the former inhabitants of Northumber- land county began to return, and the arts of peaceful industry were again resumed after the long interruption of the Revolutionary period.
Colonel Hunter was appointed as county lieutenant, March 21, 1777, and reappointed on the 6th of April, 1780, with William Murray, Walter Clark, and John Wolf as sub-lieutenants. Thomas Jordan was appointed paymas- ter of the militia, March 15, 1777, and William Gray, June 23, 1781; John Kelly and Thomas Hewitt, commissioners to seize the personal effects of trai- tors, October 21, 1777; James McMahan, wagonmaster, January 9, 1778; William Gray and John Lytle, purchasers of provisions, February 20, 1778; John Kelly and Thomas Hewitt, agents for forfeited estates, May 6, 1778; William Cooke, assistant forage master, April 5, 1780; John Weitzel, issuing commissary, July 7, 1780.
The following statement, showing Colonel Hunter's receipts and disburse- ments for the support of the militia of Northumberland county during the Revolution, has been transcribed from the original, now in the possession of Captain John Buyers, of Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. An asterisk (*) indi-
138
HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
cates State currency; a dagger (+), specie; sums to which no distinguishing mark is affixed were paid in Continental money.
State of the Accounts of Samuel Hunter, Lieutenant of Northumberland County, from March, 1777, to March, 1784. Samuel Hunter, Dr. to Sundries.
John W. Nesbit, Treasurer Council of Safety :-
£ s. d. Received per Colonel William Cooke for paying the militia of North- umberland County, January 3, 1777. 187 10 0 Paid Colonel Philip Cole the balance of his account, January 9, 1777. . 45 5 0
Paid Colonel Murray for a like sum he paid to Colonel Hunter, Janu- ary 13, 1777. Council of Safety :-
25 2 6
Received per George Calhoon, December 29, 1776.
783 15 6 David Rittenhouse, Treasurer :-
300 0 0
Per Joseph Green, January 1, 1778.
1600 0 0
Per Thomas Hewitt, September 23, 1777. 750 0 0
Per Matthias Slough, to be delivered to John Hambright and for- warded to said Hunter for purchasing provisions, January 21, 1778 .. 937 10 0 Per Jacob Reighard, to be forwarded as above, July 4, 1778. 562 10 0
By order of Council, April 14, 1779
1809 0 0 Per Joseph Hart, May 3, 1779
3750 0 C
Per John Hambright, on account, for raising a company of rangers, June 9, 1780
10000 0 0
For raising a company of rangers for defense of the frontiers, Feb- ruary, 1781
*100 0 0
For recruiting Captain Robinson's ranging company, December 8, 1781 +120 0 0
John Hambright :-
Received of him, which had been sent from the treasury, April 19, 1779 3750 0 0
Matthew Smith :-
Received of Daniel Reese, supposed to be a part of the moneys paid to said Smith for the defense of the frontiers, June 8, 1779.
1875 0 0
George Wolf, sub-Lieutenant :-
Received of him, being fiues collected, March 6, 1778, £150 15s .; Janu- ary 29, 1779, £397 10s. 548 5 0
William Murray, sub-Lieutenant :-
Received of him, beiug fines collected, April 15, 1778. Militia Fines :-
302 0 0
Received of Robert Martin, fines collected, April 30, 1778.
226 15 0
Received of Jonathan Lodge, sheriff
80 0 0
Received the fine of Charles Gough.
22 10 0
Received the fine of John Parker.
20
0 0
Received of Sheriff Lodge Livingston's fine, April, 1779
50
0 0
Received of Thomas Hewitt the fines of James McNeill and Thomas Barry
57
2 6
Balance due to Colonel Hunter
3830
0 9
1246 18 8
Total-Continental money.
31512
5 9
State currency.
*100 0 0
Specie
+366 18 8
Received upon an order of Council per Francis Allison, July 12, 1777
139
THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD.
to Samuel Hunter.
Sundries, Dr.
United States :-
For the following sums paid by Colonel Hunter out of a part of the $35,000 borrowed of Congress, December 26, 1776, advanced for the militia of Northumberland county aud afterwards credited by them at settlement with the United States, viz .: Colonel Philip Cole, December 14, 1776, £108; December 19th, £76 10s., per John M. Nesbit, January 9, 1777, £45 5s .; to Captain John Lee, December 13, 1776, £108, December 19th, £25, December 20th, £40 15s., Decem- ber 24th, £34 10s .; to Colonel Benjamin Weiser, December 22, 1776, £52 10s .; Colonel James Potter, £261.
£ s. d.
706 5 0
Joseph Green, quartermaster, for provisions furnished the militia on their march, July 21, 1777
61 19 3
Joseph Green, for nine days' pay as quartermaster to Colonel Kelly's battalion, July 21, 1777.
300
Captain John Forster, for his own and the pay of his company of militia, July 28, 1777
37 6 0 0 14 6
Doctor Bennett, for forage, July 28, 1777.
Captain Thomas Gaskins, for his own and the pay of his company of militia, July 8, 1777.
22 19 0
Colonel Cookson Long, pay of Captain Wilson and his company, July 29,1777
45 7 0
George Keiser, wagon hire carrying baggage, July 30, 1777 6 0 0
Dr. Benjamin Allison, his pay as surgeon six days, August 1, 1777.
4 10 0
Lieutenant Colonel Hugh White, of militia, six days' pay, September 27,1777 4 10
Colonel John Kelly, six days' pay, October 10, 1777. 5 12 6
John Buyers, quartermaster, for provisions furnished the militia, October 3, 1777
10 6 0
William Bonham, for 291 lbs. of beef furnished the militia, November 4,1777
14 11 0
William Bailey, quartermaster, in part of his account of provisions furnished, November 10, 1777, £66; November 11th, £45. 111 0 0
Dr. Benjamin Allison, surgeon first class Colonel Kelly's battalion, two months' pay, November 18, 1777.
41 5 0
John Ream, for 64 lbs. of beef for the militia, December 11, 1777. . . Captain Thomas Gaskins, for his own and the pay of his company of . Northumberland county militia from September 14 to November 8, 1777; [paid,] January 12, 1778 315 15 8
Colonel John Kelly, for his pay, September 14 to November 8, 1777; [paid,] January 10, 1778.
50 12 0
Captain Casper Reed, for himself and company, September 14 to No- vember 8, 1777; [paid,] January 21, 1778.
242 9 0
Joseph Green, for his pay as quartermaster, September 14 to Novem- ber 8, 1777; [paid,] January 23, 1778 17 5 0
Major Jonas Yocum, his pay for two months, February 17, 1778 37 10 0
Captain John Mull, for military services, March 18, 1778 30 0
John McMullin, surgeon's mate, his pay from September 14 to No- vember 8, 1777. 27 0 0 Captain Thomas Wilson, for his own and the pay of his company for said time, April 13, 1778.
293 17 0
0
3 4 0
140
HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
Captain John Chattam, pay of a party after disaffected persons, July £ s. d.
16, 1778. Robert Martin, for ferriage of the militia, January 25, 1779. 3 7 6 11 00 9 John Weitzel, for services as commissary of stores at Sunbury, May 30, 1778.
47 10 0
William Simms, for riding express, July 10, 1778, £11 5s .; April 25, 1779, £7 10s. 18 15 0
John Eason, for pay of three persons employed as spies between Northumberland-Town and Wyoming, August 16, 1779.
33 15 0
John McMahan, for pay as spy between Muncy Hill and Lycoming, August 28, 1779 5 0 0'
John Eason, for reconnoitering between Muncy Hill and Lycoming, August 28, 1779, £45; September 6th, £26 5s.
71 5 0
William King, for reconnoitering between Muncy Hill and Lycoming, September 6, 1779.
30 0 0
Thomas Ferguson, for reconnoitering between Muncy Hill and Ly- coming, September 6, 1779.
71 5 0
John Weitzel, in part pay as superintendent of the magazine at Sun- bury, October 14, 1779.
285 0 0 135 0 0
James Murray, for services reconnoitering, October 19, 1779
Dr. Benjamin Allison, for six months' pay as surgeon from April 1, 1779; [paid,] October 23, 1779
202 10 0 135 0 0
Walter Clark, for services of three men as spies, November 25, 1779. Peter Gabriel, for baking three hundred-weight of biscuit for a secret expedition against the Indians, July 21, 1780.
33 15 0
John Weitzel, in part pay as superintendent, September 11, 1780 ..
187 10 0
William Campbell, for his services as pilot on the Indian expedition, October 2, 1780
78 15 0
James Hepburn, for purchasing provisions, being in part of his accounts settled, and the balance paid, December 7, 1779. 112 10 0 Lieutenant Jacob Creamer, of the Rangers :-
Paid him for the recruiting service and pay, March 8, 1781. *18 15 0 Colonel James Murray :-
Paid him out of the moneys sent by the Council of Safety, December 10, 1776
261 0 0
Paid him as captain for recruiting his company, July 14, 1778. 90 0 0
Paid him for arms furnished his company of six months' men, May 6,1779 1809 0 0 Andrew Culbertson :-
Paid him for the use of purchasing provisions, October 9, 1777 81 15 0 Major Robert Arthur :-
Paid him towards the pay of the militia on their march, November 11, 1777 22 10 0
Joseph Green, Quartermaster :-
Paid him towards providing provisions for the first class on the fron- tiers, January 10, 1778
967 5 6
Colonel William Cooke:
Paid him to purchase provisions for the militia, June 2, 1778.
937 10 0 Captain Thomas Kemplen :-
Paid him for recruiting a camp of rangers, May 7, 1779, £75; May 12th, £450; June 15th, £339 7s. 6d. 864 7 6
Paid him for the pay of his company, August 13, 1779 82 10 0
141
THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD.
Paid him for John Carmady, sergeant, to pay for making shirts for s. d. Captain Kemplen's company, September 22, 1779. 13 10 0 Paid himself, October 8, 1779 82 10 0
Paid him for Thomas Moore for his company, November 19, 1779, £225; May 3, 1780, £112 10s. 337 10
Captain George Grant, of the Ninth regiment :-
Paid him for the recruiting service, March 27, 1778, £157 2s. 6d .; April 21st, £52 10s. 209 12 6
Captain William Wilson, of the First regiment :-
Paid him for the recruiting service, April 16, 1778, £150; April 30th, £204 7s. 6d. 354 7 6
Captain John Boyd, of the Twelfth regiment :-
Paid him for the recruiting service, April 16, 1778, £150; May 7th, £75 225 0 0
Captain Thomas Robinson, of the Rangers :-
Paid him for raising his company, July 11, 1780. 2878 17 6
Paid him for the recruiting service, January 7, 1781, £815 12s. 6d .; January 16th, £811 10s.
1627 2 6
Paid him for raising his company, October 3, 1781, £37 10s .; October 15th, £18 15s
*56 5 0
Paid him for raising his company, December 21, 1781, £18; February 23, 1782, £6; May 20th, £23 10s. +47 10 0
Paid him per Lieutenant Samuel McGrady for six-months men, May 20,1782 Military stores :-
+13 2 6
Paid sundry persons at sundry times for four rifles, one musket and bayonet, 23612 lbs. of powder, 40414 lbs. of lead, 574 flints, 2 powder kegs, and for repairing arms and for transporting same and ammuni- tion
[On the same account].
914 10 10 +5 11 2 Militia expenses :-
Paid sundry expenses on public business for the defense of the county, the families of poor militia men in the service, captains for making re- turns of male whites, ferriages, drummers and fifers, stationery, £15 for a substitute, expenses of conveying distressed families from Fort Freeland, and other contingent expenses, 1777-84. 1551 8 9 4 10 0
William Murray, for his services as sub-lieutenant.
William Watson, for his services as sub-lieutenant. 33 4 0
For his own pay as sub-lieutenant from March 22, 1777, to April 5, 1779-667 days, at 22s. 6d .; from April 5, 1779, to October 10th-160 days, at 37s. 6d .; from October 10, 1779, to March 20, 1780-118 days, at £6-in all 1758 7 6 For his own pay as sub-lieutenant from March 20, 1780, to June 21, 1781-employed 375 days at £30 per day.
11250 0 0 For his own pay as sub-lieutenant from June 21, 1781, to March, 1784 403 days, of which 387 at 15s. and 16 at 12s. 6d. specie. +300 5 0 Jobn Hambright :-
For a deficiency of $423333 in the £10000 he received at the treasury, June 9, 1780, to be sent to Colonel Hunter, and of which the sum of only $22433 only was delivered per voucher
1587 12 6 *25 0 0 Balance due the State.
142
HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
Total-Continental money. State currency. Specie
£ s. d.
31512 5 9
*100 0 0
+366 18 8
Colonel Samuel Hunter, Dr.
To balance of the foregoing account due to the State
*25 0 0
To funded debt, for sundry certificates issued agreeably to act passed, April 1, 1784. +278 14 3
Contra Cr.
By balance of the foregoing account in favor of Colonel Hunter, £3830 9d. Continental money, equal to
*25 0 0
+278 14 3
Examined and settled,
JOHN NICHOLSON.
Comptroller General's Office,
April 6, 1784.
CHAPTER IV.
ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION.
ERECTION OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY-DISINTEGRATION OF IT'S TERRITORY- PRESENT BOUNDARIES-INTERNAL SUBDIVISION-ORIGINAL TOWNSHIPS-FORMA- TION OF PRESENT SUBDIVISIONS-STATISTICS OF POPULATION-PUBLIC BUILD- INGS-EARLY FISCAL AFFAIRS-INAUGURATION OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM- ROSTER OF COUNTY OFFICERS-REPRESENTATION IN CONSTITUTIONAL CONVEN- TIONS, ETC .- LEGISLATIVE REPRESENTATION-EARLY TOWNSHIP OFFICERS.
T THE three orginal counties of Pennsylvania were Chester, Philadelphia, and Bucks, formed in 1682 at the founding of the Province. Lancas- ter was erected in 1729 from the western part of Chester, York in 1749 from that part of Lancaster west of the Susquehanna, and Cumberland in 1750 from the northwestern part of York. Northampton and Berks were formed in 1752, the former from the northern part of Bucks, the latter from the cor- responding portions of Philadelphia, Chester, and Lancaster. At that time the lines separating Berks from Northampton and Lancaster were run only so far as the settlements then extended, and in 1769 William Maclay, Will- iam Scull, and John Biddle, Jr., were appointed to continue them "as far as the lands lately purchased by the Honorable the Proprietaries of this Prov- ince from the Indians do extend." The western boundary of Berks county was accordingly surveyed beyond the Susquehanna, crossing that river near the mouth of Mahanoy creek and extending as far as the West Branch. That part of the present area of Northumberland county inclosed by this
143
ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION.
line, the Susquehanna river, and Mahantango creek thus remained in Lancas- ter county; west of the Susquehanna the western line of Berks separated its territory from that of Cumberland.
The purchase of 1768 was followed by a rapid influx of population into the region about the confluence of the North and West Branches of the Sus- quehanna, and, with the seats of justice of Berks, Lancaster, and Cumber- land counties at Reading, Lancaster, and Carlisle, respectively, the conven- ience of the inhabitants early demanded better facilities of civil administra- tion. This desirable result was finally attained, March 21, 1772, by the pas- sage of an act erecting Northumberland county, with boundaries described as follows :-
Beginning at the mouth of Mahantango creek, on the west side of the river Sus- quehanna; thence up the south side of said creek, by the several courses thereof, to the head at Robert Meteer's spring; thence west by north to the top of Tussey's mount- ain; thence south westerly along the summit of the mountain to Little Juniata; thence up the northeasterly side of the main branch of Little Juniata to the head thereof; thence north to the line of Berks county; thence northwest along the said line to the extremity of the Province; thence east along the north boundary to that part thereof which is due north from the most northern part of the great swamp; thence south to the most northern part of the swamp aforesaid; thence with a straight line to the head of the Lehigh or Middle creek; thence down the said creek so far that a line run west- southwest will strike the forks of Mahantango creek where Pine creek falls into the same, at the place called Spread Eagle, on the east side of Susquehanna; thence down the southerly side of said creek to the river aforesaid; thence down and across the river to the place of beginning.
In order to render this intelligible to the general reader some explanation may be necessary. There are two streams known by the name of Mahan- tango: the one first mentioned flows into the Susquehanna from the west, form- ing the present boundary of Juniata and Snyder counties; the other sustains the same relation to Northumberland and Dauphin. It is probable the county line struck the Little Juniata no great distance above its confluence with the Raystown branch, and the West 'Branch near the mouth of Bald Eagle creek. The northwestern boundary of the county was the line of the purchase of 1768. The "great swamp" is identified as the southwestern part of Wayne county and the adjoining part of Lackawanna; the line from the northern boundary of the State south to the "great swamp" and thence to the Lehigh is the present western boundary of Wayne county. Part of the southeast line between the Lehigh river and Mahantango creek still possesses geographical significance as the line of division between the counties of Carbon and Luzerne, Schylkill and Columbia, and Northumberland and Schylkill, respectively.
On the 21st of March, 1772, the Assembly passed an act defining the boundaries of Bedford county, which was erected in 1771 and adjoined Northumberland on the southwest; this act and the act passed the same day erecting Northumberland assigned to those counties different and incon-
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.