USA > Pennsylvania > Northumberland County > History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania > Part 35
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322
HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
A. M. Eastwick, of Philadelphia, a member of the firm that built the first locomotive used on the Danville and Pottsville railroad twenty-two years previously. This excursion gave rise to a variety of newspaper discussion, in which the possibility of a through line to Erie via Sunbury, composed of the Philadelphia and Reading, Mine Hill and Schuylkill Haven, Shamokin Valley and Pottsville, and Sunbury and Erie, was regarded as a highly prob- able consummation. The Mine Hill and Schuylkill Haven railroad was leased by the Reading on the 12th of May, 1864, for a period of nine hun- dred ninety-nine years, but beyond this the apparent indications of railroad consolidation in 1860 have not been realized.
The Mahanoy and Shamokin Railroad, formed by the merger and consoli- dation of the Mahanoy and Broad Mountain, the Mahanoy Valley, the Enter- prise, the Shamokin and Trevorton, and the Zerbe Valley railroads, was merged into the Philadelphia and Reading system on the 25th of March, 1871, in pursuance of an act of Assembly passed on the 18th of February previously. Of these various roads the Enterprise, the Shamokin and Tre- vorton, and Zerbe Valley are in this county.
The Enterprise Railroad Company was incorporated, March 21, 1865, for the construction of a road not to exceed nine miles in length, with its termini equal distances east and west of the lands of the Fulton Coal Com- pany, intersecting with the Locust Gap, or the Mahanoy and Broad Mountain, or any other railroad on the east, and the Carbon Run railroad on the west. The corporators were Thomas Baumgardner, John B. Douty, John W. Hub- ley, Henry Baumgardner, David M. Lebkichler, Benjamin F. Shenk, and William H. Douty. Construction was begun in 1866; on the 3d of August, 1868, the road was opened for passenger travel from Locust Gap Junction to Greenback colliery, and thence to Shamokin later in the same year. It is now operated as part of the Williamsport division of the Reading system, with stations at Locust Gap, Alaska, Enterprise, Excelsior, Greenback, and Shamokin, and a branch from Alaska to Mt. Carmel.
The Shamokin and Trevorton Railroad, extending from Shamokin to Trevorton, a distance of eight miles, was opened to travel on the 2d of Au- gust, 1869, when the running of through trains from Shamokin to Herndon was inaugurated. It is now operated as part of the Herndon branch of the Williamsport division, with stations at Shamokin, Water Station, Kulp's, and Trevorton.
The Trevorton, Mahanoy, and Susquehanna Railroad Company was in- corporated on the 22d of March, 1850, by act of Assembly, for the construc- tion of a railroad from the mouth of Zerbe's run, in Northumberland county, to the Susquehanna river at the mouth of Mahanoy creek. The corporators were Felix Lerch, William Deppen, Jacob Raker, D. M. Boyd, Alexander Jordan, Joseph W. Cake, Robert M. Ludlow, John P. Hobart, Henry Donnel, Bertram H. Howell, Charles W. Hegins, Simon Cameron, William L. Helf-
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INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS.
enstein, and Kimber Cleaver. On the 30th of April, 1850, Christian Albert, Peter Bixler, Edward Y. Bright, Alexander Jordan, Jacob Raker, D. M. Boyd, William H. Marshall, William L. Dewart, John B. Trevor, William L. Helfenstein, and Bertram H. Howell were authorized to organize the Sus- quehanna and Union Bridge Company, with a capital of two hundred thou- sand dollars, for the erection of a bridge across the Susquehanna river at any point within five miles below the mouth of Mahanoy creek. These two com- panies -- the Trevorton, Mahanoy, and Susquehanna Railroad Company and the Susquehanna and Union Bridge Company-were consolidated under the name of the Trevorton and Susquehanna Railroad Company on the 25th of April, 1854. A railroad fourteen and one half miles in length was con- structed from Trevorton to the Susquehanna river; a wooden bridge thirty- six hundred feet in length, with approaches fourteen hundred feet in length, connected the terminus of the railroad with the Pennsylvania canal on the opposite side of the river, where extensive wharves, a basin sufficient to ac- commodate the canal boats used in transportation to distant points, and other necessary appliances and facilities were provided. This was the nucleus of a village of some proportions, to which the name of Port Trevorton was applied.
An affiliated corporation, the Mahanoy and Shamokin Improvement Com- pany, was incorporated on the 25th of February, 1850; the original con- stituent members were Kimber Cleaver, D. M. Boyd, David Thompson, William L. Helfenstein, and William H. Marshall. This company and the Trevorton and Susquehanna Railroad Company were consolidated in pursu- ance of an act of the legislature which became a law on the 24th of March, 1856, and the resulting corporation received the name of the Trevorton Coal and Railroad Company. For several years its affairs were prosperous, and the development of the Trevorton coal region effected through its agency was justly regarded as most beneficial to the county. But like many other enter- prises of this character it had been floated principally on credit, and on the 8th of December, 1860, the property was sold under foreclosure of mortgage at sheriff's sale.
Litigation enters largely into the history of the railroad from this time until it became part of the Reading system. The purchasers in 1860 were Hezron A. Johnson, Matthew Morgan, and James I. Day, who were consti- tuted the Trevorton Coal Company by act of the legislature approved on the 28th of March, 1860. May 7, 1861, a mortgage for nine hundred thousand dollars was executed by the company in favor of William C. Pickersgill, an Englishman. Suit was brought by Robert G. Reiman in 1867 on unpaid coupons of bonds secured by this mortgage under an act of Assembly then in force; judgment was obtained, and on the 3d of August, 1867, the railroad, coal lands, and other property of the company were sold at sheriff's sale to John B. Packer and W. I. Greenough for one thousand dollars. A con-
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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
test was had in the Supreme court over the validity of this sale, ultimately resulting in a compromise. Messrs. Packer and Greenough conveyed to Robert G. Reiman, John W. Hall, and Henry Thomas; they conveyed to the Zerbe Valley Railroad Company, the organization of which was con- firmed by the legislature, April 13, 1868. It was at this time that the Phila- delphia and Reading Railroad Company acquired control, and began its administration by the erection of new bridges along the entire line. It was the original idea of the Reading management to construct a line from Port Trevorton through Snyder county to the bituminous coal regions of Clear- field county, and had this project materialized the Trevorton railroad would have become a link in a through line from that locality to Philadelphia. It was relinquished, however, and the importance of the line is principally of a local character. The Zerbe Valley Railroad Company was merged into the Mahanoy and Shamokin Railroad Company, September 7, 1870, and, with the latter company, was formally consolidated with the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company, March 25, 1871. What was originally the Trevorton, Mahanoy and Susquehanna railroad thus became an integral part of the great Reading system, and forms part of the Herndon branch, with its western terminus at Herndon, on the line of the Northern, Central rail- way, and stations at Trevorton, Zerbe, Dunkelberger's, Hunter, Dornsife, Otto, Kneass, and Herndon. The river bridge, which was adapted to wagon traffic as well as railway uses, became unsafe for travel through decay and was removed about ten years ago.
The Catawissa Railroad Company was originally incorporated on the 21st of March, 1831, under the name of the Little Schuylkill and Susque- hanna Railroad Company, with authority to construct a road from the termina- tion of the Little Schuylkill Navigation Railroad and Coal Company's rail- road to the North Branch of the Susquehanna at Catawissa. Portions of the road were constructed within a few years thereafter, but financial embarrassments ensued and operations were abandoned. The project was at length revived, however, and on the 20th of March, 1849, legislative authority having been granted for an extension to Williamsport, the name was changed to the Catawissa, Williamsport and Erie railroad. It was opened to Milton in 1834. The company having defaulted in the payment of interest on its bonds, its property was sold at judicial sale, and the pur- chasers reorganized with the name of the Catawissa Railroad Company under legislative authority secured on the 21st of March, 1860. The line enters Chillisquaque township a short distance east of Pottsgrove and passes through the county to Milton, where the West Branch is crossed; thence the route continues through Union and Lycoming counties to Williamsport, to which it was opened in 1871. This road has been operated by the Phila- delphia and Reading Railroad Company since the 1st of November, 1872.
The Shamokin, Sunbury and Lewisburg Railroad Company was
Ing. by James A. Fece & Sons, Phila.
Dand Hewellyn
.
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INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS.
chartered, February 16, 1882; the corporators were S. P. Wolverton, H. E. Davis, Ira T. Clement, John Haas, Levi Rook, A. H. Dill, and John Smith, of whom S. P. Wolverton was the first president and has filled that position continuously from the organization of the company. On the 4th of Febru- ary, 1882, an agreement was entered into between the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad Company, the Fall Brook Coal Company, the Jersey Shore, Pine Creek and Buffalo Railroad Company, and other com- panies, on the one part, and the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Com- pany on the other, to build a railroad from Shamokin to some point on the Catawissa railroad at or near Danville. April 1, 1882, through the influence of S. P. Wolverton, a supplemental contract was made by the companies at interest, by which West Milton, on the line of the Catawissa railroad, was substituted for Danville as the northern or western terminus. The route was surveyed in the spring of 1882, construction was immediately begun, and in July, 1883, the line was opened. Its course coincides in general with that of Shamokin creek from Shamokin to Sunbury; at the latter point the Susquehanna is crossed by a substantial iron bridge, and from its western terminus to West Milton the west bank of the Susquehanna through Union and Snyder counties is followed, Lewisburg being the principal intermediate point. The entire length is thirty-one and one tenth miles, of which dis- tance nearly two thirds are in Northumberland county, with stations at Arter's, Snydertown, Deibler's, Vastine, Reed, Paxinos and Weigh Scales between Sunbury and Shamokin. The road was leased to the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company for nine hundred ninety-nine years from July 2, 1883, and is operated by that company as part of its Williamsport division, which extends from Newberry Junction to Port Clinton, the Cata- wissa railroad forming its western section, from West Milton to Newberry, and the Mine Hill and Schuylkill Haven and Mahanoy and Shamokin the eastern section, from Shamokin to Port Clinton. It is thus apparent that the construction of the Shamokin, Sunbury and Lewisburg railroad supplies an important link in the Reading system, placing the mines and railroads of that company in the Mahanoy and Shamokin regions in direct communication with its northern and western connections. It also forms part of the Read- ing's line to the bituminous coal regions of Clearfield county, through its connection with the Beech Creek road. This branch of the Reading gives to a large part of Northumberland county the advantage of a competing line to the seaboard, and has therefore been productive of great local benefit.
The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad was formed, De- cember 10, 1853, by the consolidation of the Lackawanna and Western (char- tered, March 14, 1849) and the Delaware and Cobb's Gap (chartered, De- cember 22, 1850), and has since, by lease and consolidation, become one of the great trunk lines of the country. What is known as the Bloomsburg branch extends from Scranton to Northumberland, Pennsylvania, a distance
19
328
HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
of eighty miles, and was originally chartered as the Lackawanna and Blooms- burg railroad, April 5, 1852. It was the design of the projectors to estab- lish a line from the Wyoming and Lackawanna coal fields to Philadelphia by connecting this road with the Catawissa, Williamsport and Erie, and this object was satisfactorily accomplished by its construction from Scranton to Rupert. March 3, 1853, the company was authorized to extend its road to a connection with the Sunbury and Erie or Northern Central, with a wide latitude in the choice of routes. The north bank of the North Branch was finally selected, and on the 31st of May, 1860, the formal opening of the road to passenger travel from Danville to Northumberland occurred. The consolidation of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western and Lackawanna and Bloomsburg railroad companies was effected in 1873. The line in this county passes through Point township a distance of about nine miles.
The Lehigh Valley Railroad Company was chartered as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad Company, September 20, 1847, and under existing title, January 7, 1853. The main line in Pennsyl- vania was completed in October, 1855. The Mahanoy branch, extending from Black Creek Junction to Mt. Carmel, Pennsylvania, and originally known as the Lehigh and Mahanoy railroad, was acquired in June, 1866. Under traffic agreement with the Northern Central Railway Company, the passenger trains of the Lehigh Valley enter Shamokin over the tracks of the Shamokin Valley and Pottsville railroad.
The Wilkesbarre and Western Railway Company was chartered, Jan- uary 22, 1886; the Milton and North Mountain Railroad Company, chartered in November, 1885, and the Millville and North Mountain Railroad Com- pany, chartered in January, 1886, were merged into this company, Decem- ber 25, 1886. The projected road extends from Watsontown to Shick- shinny, Pennsylvania, a distance of forty-six miles. The main line is con- structed as far as Eyer's Grove, a distance of twenty-one and one tenth miles, and from that point a branch extends to Millville, one and one tenth miles. Twenty-two miles of this road were opened to travel, December 13, 1886; the Millville extension was opened, April 7, 1887. Seven and six tenths miles are in this county, with stations at Watsontown, McEwensville, Warrior Run, and Turbutville. The road passes through a rich agricultural region in the northern part of Northumberland, Montour, and Columbia counties.
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AGRICULTURE.
CHAPTER IX.
AGRICULTURE.
PREPARATION OF SOILS THE RESULT OF REMOTE RATHER TIIAN IMMEDIATE AGENCY -- GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE-ANTICLINALS AND SYNCLINALS-SUBDIVISIONS OF THE PALEOZOIC SYSTEM-LOCATION AND CHARACTERISTICS OF EACH STRATUM-DE- VELOPMENT OF THE FARMING INDUSTRY-CONDITION OF THE FARMING INTERESTS IN 1845-AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES.
A LTHOUGH agriculture is pre-eminently a calling in which results rep- resent the labor of hand and brain, the preparation and fertilization of the soil, and therefore the success with which this avocation is attended, are dependent far more upon remote than immediate agency. No amount of care and skill in tilling the soil can compensate entirely for lack of natural fertility and adaptiveness; the fair presentation of a county's agricultural resources involves, therefore, the consideration of its
GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE .*
The external relief of the greater part of the country is caused by the erosive action of the elements and the slow chemical influence of the atmos- phere upon a series of vast parallel undulations in the strata that form the earth's outer crust. In geological nomenclature, these strata are defined as anticlinal, synclinal, and monoclinal-anticlinal, when the strata are bent convexly upward; synclinal, when the strata are bent concavely upward; and monoclinal, when the strata dip in one direction only. Many interesting examples occur in Northumberland county, where the rocks are thrown so high as to expose the Medina sandstone, the base of the Upper Silurian sys- tem, and into troughs deep enough to preserve nearly the highest coal meas- ures. In passing across the county from north to south, the following anti- clinals and synclinals succeed each other :-
The White Deer (Watsontown) anticlinal has its origin in the mountains of western Union and Snyder counties; it crosses the West Branch in the vicinity of Watsontown and passes through the southern part of Delaware and Lewis townships.
The Milton anticlinal, another of the great Buffalo mountain anticlinals of Union and Clinton counties, crosses the West Branch at the town of Mil- ton and passes eastward through Washingtonville, Montour county, just west
*The facts presented in the treatment of this topic have been derived from Report G7 of the Second Geological Survey of Pennsylvania, by I. C. White.
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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
of which it elevates the Oriskany sandstone and Lower Helderberg limestone into the long, regular elevation known as Limestone ridge, which begins at Chillisquaque creek in Montour county and extends through Northumber- land to the West Branch below Milton.
The Lackawanna synclinal, which, at its maximum development in the vicinity of Wilkesbarre, retains the entire coal measure series, changes in extent and geological character to the westward, and, about the center of Liberty township, Montour county, the Hamilton beds appear, occupying the trough from that point westward through Pottsgrove to the West Branch about one mile above Montandon. The westward ascent of this synclinal axis may be appreciated when it is stated that a shaft in the vicinity of Wilkesbarre would have to be sunk ten thousand feet to reach the Lower Hamilton rocks exposed at Montandon.
The Berwick (Montour) anticlinal, virtually a prolongation eastward of that of Jack's mountain in Mifflin and Huntingdon counties, follows closely the northern line of Point township through Northumberland county under the local name of Montour ridge. The axis crosses the North Branch about midway between Big and Little Wapwallopen creeks; Fishing creek, one half mile above Bloomsburg; Mahoning, just north of Danville, and the West Branch, at the mouth of Chillisquaque creek. Its structure is very nearly symmetrical. Bordered on either side by materials which yield read- ily to attrition, the low valleys thus formed increase the height of the ridge by contrast. Between Mahoning creek and the West Branch it reaches an altitude of one thousand feet above tide.
The Northumberland synclinal is one of the most remarkable basins which traverse Pennsylvania; it extends from Bedford county through Hunt- ingdon, Juniata, Snyder, Northumberland, Columbia, and Luzerne counties nearly to the Lehigh river, a total length of one hundred fifty miles. Part of this distance it forms the valley of the Juniata; Middleburg is on its southern border and New Berlin on the northern. As it approaches the Sus- quehanna from the west it begins to widen and deepen gradually. Crossing at the confluence of the North and West Branches, the general center line of the trough through Northumberland county may be said to run near Klines- grove and Rushtown.
The Shade Mountain (Selinsgrove) anticlinal crosses the Susquehanna two miles below Selinsgrove, one hundred fifty yards south from the one hundred thirty-fifth mile post of the Northern Central railway. Traced east- ward, the main arch enters Shamokin township, continuing about a mile south of Shamokin creek; it crosses that stream about half-way between Reed's and Paxinos stations and passes through Ralpho under the village of Elys- burg. Several subordinate folds occur on its northern slope and one on the southern.
The Shamokin synclinal reaches its fullest development in the great
1
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AGRICULTURE.
Shamokin coal basin. The center of this trough crosses the Susquehanna two miles above Herndon, five miles in an air line from the crest of the main Selinsgrove anticlinal. The basal members of the Pocono beds make the sum- mit of the mountain which is formed by the united rims of that formation, and, from an abrupt beginning at the river, continue eastward as the Little and Line mountains.
The Tuscarora Mountain (Georgetown) anticlinal has a double crest, there being a sharp, narrow, synclinal fold running along the center of the main arch from Georgetown eastward to the western line of Jordan township, where it flattens out. A subordinate fold of considerable extent, crossing the measures two miles and a half below Georgetown, completes the succes- "sion of anticlinals and synclinals in Northumberland county.
The Paleozoic system and its three general subdivisions-the Silurian, Devonian, and Carboniferous-embrace the various strata of this region. Pennsylvania geologists recognize thirteen distinct formations in this system, numbered from I to XIII in order from the lowest. Nos. I, II, and III are included in the Lower Silurian. The lowest bed exposed in this county is the Medina sandstone (No. IV), which occurs in the Upper Silurian, of which the remaining portions open to observation are the Clinton Shales (No. V); Lower Helderberg limestone (No. VI), and Oriskany sandstone (No. VII). Above these in order occur the rocks of the Devonian system- the Hamilton and Chemung slates (No. VIII), and the Catskill group (No. IX); and the basal formations of the Carboniferous system-the Pocono sandstone (No. X) and Mauch Chunk red shale (No. XI). As this chapter relates only to the agricultural portion of the county, the rocks of the Car- boniferous system are here treated only incidentally.
The Medina sandstone (No. IV) is exposed to view but once in North- umberland county. This occurs in the extreme eastern part of Point town- ship, about two miles below Danville, where the North Branch, veering northward, cuts a great hole from the southern face of Montour ridge, expos- ing a massive sandstone, greenish-gray and red in color, and filled with small quartz pebbles.
The Clinton shales (No. V) make a single belt across the county, being thrown into a great arch along the line of the Berwick anticlinal (Montour ridge).
The Lower Helderberg limestone (No. VI), though not among the geolog- ical factors of greatest prominence in the county, occurs at various points and almost invariably denotes exceptional fertility. This formation is ele- vated in Delaware township by the Watsontown anticlinal; the line of its basal outcrop is just north from the east and west road which runs from the mouth of Delaware run to the Warrior Run Presbyterian church at the east- ern line of the township. Southward from Delaware run it is obscured by boulders and surface debris, and passes into the air unobserved. Its course
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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.
through Lewis is somewhat irregular, the line of outcrop passing just south of Turbutville and crossing the eastern boundary of the county near the southeastern corner of the township. Quarries show their streaks of calcite, probably representing the Bossardville beds. The dark shales of the Storm- ville beds also occur.
Limestone ridge, the boundary of Turbut and Chillisquaque, begins at Chillisquaque creek, just west of Washingtonville, Montour county, and extends westward to the West Branch. This elevation is produced by the Milton anticlinal. The Lower Helderberg, which forms the summit of the ridge, reaches an altitude of six hundred fifty or seven hundred feet above tide. It is the massive upper portion or Stormville limestone that makes the crest of the ridge, while the Bossardville limestone makes the steep northern slope in Turbut. The latter has been quarried and burned at several localities.
Limestone appears at two other localities in that part of Northumberland county above the North Branch. Lower Helderberg crops out in Chillisqua- que township along the east and west road leading through Montandon and Sodom; it has been quarried to some extent, and presents many characteris- tics of the Bossardville beds. A Stromatopora bed (so called from the nature of its fossils), is exposed in the vicinity of this outcrop. The other outcrop of Lower Helderberg referred to crosses Point township from east to west at the base of Montour ridge. Both the Bossardville and Bastard varieties are here represented.
Limestone valley, on the Susquehanna river in Upper Augusta township, derives its name from the predominating feature of its geological composi- tion, the Lower Helderberg strata of the Selinsgrove anticlinal. These incline at an angle of forty degrees on the northern slope and twenty degrees on the southern. What is here denominated Selinsgrove limestone is a light gray rock, with dull, irregular fracture, interstratified with much shale. The corresponding shales are represented in this section by a series of light gray beds. The Stormville shale contains some impure, cherty limestone. The Lower Helderberg begins with a bed of bluish-gray, impure limestone. The Bossardville is most valuable for commercial purposes.
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