History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Part 76

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829-
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1424

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Dodge & Company's Steam Saw Mills at Chillisquaque were operated quite extensively for a short time some years since, but the timber in that locality having been exhausted, the plant was removed elsewhere.

Cold Spring Creamery, situated one mile south of Montandon near the Philadelphia and Erie railroad, was built by C. F. Butler and opened on the 14th of April, 1890. It is a three-story building twenty-four by thirty-six feet with several projections and a basement, and is fitted with machinery capable of making eight hundred pounds of butter per day. In connection with the creamery Mr. Butler has a chopping mill, spoke and handle factory, and a hydraulic cider press. The power is derived from a twenty-five horse- power engine.

POTTSGROVE.

This village is situated four miles southeast of Milton, where the road leading from Milton to Danville is crossed by that leading from Northum- berland to Washingtonville. It is also located near the Catawissa branch of the Philadelphia and Reading railroad. Two churches, a public school build- ing, several stores, the shops of several mechanics, and a population of about a hundred people constitute the town at present. The land on which it stands was first owned by William Reed, who came to this section during the Revolutionary war and erected the first house in this locality, about a quarter of a mile south of Pottsgrove on the Northumberland and Washingtonville road. He was the first justice of the peace in this part of the county, having been commissioned by Governor Mifflin.

The first house in the village was erected by James Reed, a son of Will- iam Reed, in 1784, with Alexander Reed as carpenter. In this house James Reed established the first hotel in 1818, known as "Travelers' Inn." Here the first postoffice was also established, in 1821, with James Reed as first postmaster. The old hotel building is still standing, and is at present occu- pied by William Reed, a son of James Reed, who is the oldest resident of this part of the county.

The first industry was a tannery, built near the present limit of the vil- lage by a Mr. Shoemaker, who immigrated from Berks county in 1810. This

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

tannery was in operation until some five years ago, when it was destroyed by fire. In 1820 the first blacksmith shop was opened by David Perry, who was for many years the "village blacksmith" of Pottsgrove. The first weaver was Hans Potts, from whom the place derives its name.

The first store was established in 1832 by the firm of Sproll & Park, who did business five years, when they dissolved partnership and James Reed started a store in connection with his hotel and postoffice. After his death the business of storekeeping was not conducted for some years. In 1881 L. J. Beaver built the present store room on the southwest corner of the cross- roads, and established therein a general mercantile trade. In 1880 B. M. Beaver established a coal and grain market in connection with a steam grist mill, which business he conducted for some time. His successor was a Mr. Blue, who did a successful business until May, 1890, when the establishment burned and operations ceased.

Pottsgrove Lodge, No. 623, I. O. O. F., was chartered on the 21st of March, 1890.

MONTANDON.

The ground upon which this village stands was first owned by an English pioneer, Foresman by name; the first house in the immediate vicinity was erected in 1825 at the place where the road leading from Lewisburg to Dan- ville is crossed by that from Milton to Sunbury by Benjamin Foresman, a grandson of the first settler. This structure is still standing, just without the limits of the town plat, and is occupied by Hugh Martin, one of the old- est citizens of the place. It was in this house that the first hotel was estab- lished by Joseph Foresman in 1832 and continued by him until 1855; it was known as "Foresman's Hotel" or "The Sodom Tavern." The house was kept open for the accommodation of the public until the property was pur- chased by Mr. Martin.

Between the years 1828 and 1834 the ground upon which the town stands was used for a race course by the Foresman brothers, who were great horse- men. Horses were brought from adjoining counties, and the inhabitants from far and near would congregate at this place to witness the races.

In 1846 Peter Waldron, a blacksmith from Lancaster county, located a short distance to the south of the Foresman building on the Sunbury and Milton road. The next improvement was a shoemaker shop, which was estab- lished by a Mr. Colby in 1848. The first justice of the peace in the com- munity was Thomas Pardoe, who filled that office for many years.

The first effort to establish a town was made by Francis and Jeremiah Church about the time the Pennsylvania canal was completed. The plan, which is on record in the county archives at Sunbury, exhibits a town plat between the canal and river, south of the Lewisburg crosscut, with Front street, Cherry alley, Jackson street, Montgomery, Church, Sarah's, Locust,

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CHILLISQUAQUE TOWNSHIP.

and Dusky alleys and Wilson street parallel with the canal and river, inter- sected by Market and Green streets. The width of Market is given as seventy-five feet, of Front and Jackson as sixty feet, and of Green, fifty-five feet. One hundred sixty lots are represented as having been laid out. This effort to establish a town no doubt indicated considerable enterprise on the part of the projectors, but the place failed to materialize, owing in all probability to the fact that the country was not so thickly settled at that time as to require an intermediate trading point between Milton and North- umberland.

Upon the completion of the Philadelphia and Erie and the Lewisburg and Tyrone railroads the attempt to found a town was repeated under more favorable auspices. Up to this time the country was a farming district ex- clusively, with no other industries than the blacksmith and shoemaker shops mentioned in connection with the early settlement. In 1861 P. Hackenberg bought of Cameron & Wall a lot lying to the east of the railroad and south of the Lewisburg and Danville road, upon which he erected a house and es- tablished therein the first store of the place in connection with the hotel busi- ness. In the same year, through the influence of Mr. Hackenberg, the first postoffice of the town was established with himself as postmaster. It was named Cameronia in honor of the Cameron family.

At this time the north side of the Lewisburg and Danville road belonged to the John Caul estate, and that to the south to Edward and Benjamin Hummel. In 1865 Lewis O. Hunner purchased a portion of the John Caul estate lying on the east side of the Philadelphia and Erie railroad. In the same year the land belonging to Edward and Benjamin Hummel was pur- chased by John A. J. and Robert M. Cummings. Under the joint auspices of Messrs. Cummings and Hunner a town plat was surveyed in March, 1866, by David Rockefeller. The streets running east and west beginning at the northern extremity of the plat are Center, Main, the Lewisburg and Danville road, Cummings, and Chillisquaque. Those intersecting these and running north and south are Railroad and Northumberland, Railroad being the far- ther west.

There were two houses here at that time. The first, built by Edward and Benjamin Hummel for use as a farm house, was purchased by John A. J. and Robert M. Cummings with the land they bought in 1865, and stands in relation to the above mentioned plan on the south side of Main near Rail- road street. The second house erected is the hotel built by P. Hackenberg in 1861 on the southeast corner of Main and Railroad streets. In 1865 this building came into the possession of C. E. Hartman, who extended it to its present size and continued the hotel business for some time. This house has been used for the accommodation of the public since 1861, and is the only hotel in the town. The first house built after the survey of the town plat 41

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

was that erected by Dr. N. C. Purdy, on the north side of Main street mid- way between Railroad and Northumberland streets.

Owing to the inconvenience caused by mail and express matter addressed to Cameronia going to Cameron county, the postoffice designation' was changed to Montandon in 1867 through the influence of John A. J. and Robert M. Cummings, the name being suggested by the former. Circumstances have not favored the rapid expansion of the town, but by gradual growth it has attained a population of three hundred fifty, with three stores, one hotel, two churches, and shops of the various mechanics.

SODOM.

Sodom consists of a small group of houses situated one mile east of Montandon where the Montandon and Lewisburg road is crossed by that leading from Northumberland to Milton. The first person to locate here was in all probability Lot Carson, from whom the place received its name; he kept a hotel at the crossroads for the accommodation of the stage coaches, and lost his life by falling into a well while under the influence of liquor. A quaint old school house of peculiar' shape is situated in the vicinity; it was erected in 1814 as a place of worship.

CHILLISQUAQUE.

The post-village of this name is situated in the extreme southwestern part of Chillisquaque township. At the earliest period in its history it was a trading point on the old Northumberland and Milton road; later it became a shipping point on the canal, and at the present time, Otlinger's mill, the store of J. E. K. Schwenk, and the shops and residences of various local mechanics constitute the village. Kapp's station, on the Philadelphia and Erie railroad, is located in the vicinity, and affords convenient access.

SCHOOLS.

The public school system was adopted in 1834, and has been creditably sustained to the present time.

The Pottsgrove Academy was established in 1875 by a local stock com- pany; it has been successfully conducted, affording good facilities for the pursuit of studies beyond the grade of the public school curriculum.

CHURCHES.

Chillisquaque Presbyterian Church was organized about the year 1773. The burial ground, one of the oldest in central Pennsylvania, is situated a mile and a half northeast of Pottsgrove in Montour county. Three church buildings have been erected at that point. The first, a wooden structure, was burned by the Indians during the Revolutionary period. The second was likewise a log structure as originally built, but in 1789-90 it was exten-

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sively altered and plastered within and given a "pebble-dash" without. The present brick building was erected in 1853. The removal of the place of worship to Pottsgrove was decided upon in 1889, and in 1889-91 the church edifice at that point, a two-story stone structure fifty feet square, was built under the supervision of a committee composed of Joseph K. Murray, William McMahan, Gilbert Voris, William Voris, and H. M. Emerick, M. D. The pastoral succession has been as follows: Rev. John Bryson, 1790-1840; Daniel M. Barber, 1840-59; Charles H. Park, 1859-75; H. G. Finney, 1875 -87; J. O. George, 1887-89, and Abbott L. R. Waite, the present incumbent, who was installed on the 27th of February, 1890.

Montandon Baptist Church .- The first meeting for the organization of a Baptist congregation at this place was held in the house of Mrs. McGinley some time during the year 1864. A Sunday school was organized and held in the Philadelphia and Erie railroad depot for some time, after which wor- ship was successively conducted in the school house, in a small room above the brick store room now occupied by Connor & Company, and in an old store room which stood along the railroad. The lot upon which the church building stands was purchased October 17, 1868; Rev. George J. Brensinger, a student at Lewisburg, was pastor at the time of its erection in 1870. Pre- vious to 1882 the congregation was a mission, but during that year it was organized as a regular Baptist church, with L. W. Frymire, J. H. Winghert, Abraham Fairchild, Peter H. Beaver, John Garber, Edward Hummel, and Joseph Keyser as the first trustees. A charter was obtained, December 23, 1885, and a deed for the church property, previously held by the Lewisburg Baptist church, was transferred to the Montandon organization, March 23, 1886. The following is a list of pastors who have served the congregation since its organization in 1882: Reverends Thomas Howard, J. Watres, J. A. Kouroldon, Mr. Bagshaw, Mr. Farlie, Mr. Hanson, J. Sagebeer, R. B. Mc- Daniel, and Mr. Fields.

Montandon Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1869 with John Andrews as its first class leader. Among the first families connected with the congregation were the Andrews, Cummings, Butlers, Autens, Parks, Kingsburys, and Bakers. Until 1874 they worshiped in private houses, in the school building, and in the Baptist church. In 1873, under the ministration of Rev. A. P. Wharton, the question of erecting a church edifice was agitated. In 1874 the building was begun with W. M. Auten, John A. J. Cummings, T. T. Baker, H. S. Park, and W. H, Cool as building committee. The corner-stone was laid, June 26, 1874, and the building was dedicated on the 22d of November in the same year. The following is a list of pastors who have served the congregation in chronological order: Rev. A. P. Wharton, 1873-76; John Vrooman, 1876-78; H. F. Caves, 1878 -79; B. H. Crever, 1879-81; A. E. Taylor, 1881-83; D. H. Shields, 1883- 85; J. H. Mortimer, 1885-87; J. W. Feight, 1887-90.

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

The Evangelical Association is represented by one organization in Chillis- quaque township, formed in December, 1871. A Methodist church build- ing at Sodom was purchased, rebuilt in the northwestern part of the town- ship, and dedicated in 1872 during the administration of Rev. A. H. Irvin. Among his successors as pastor have been Reverends Henry B. Hertzler, Adam W. Schenberger, S. P. Remer, Henry A. Stoke, J. A. Irvin, and C. W. Finkbinder. -

Pottsgrove Evangelical Lutheran Church was formed in 1882 from a membership formerly connected with the Center Lutheran church of Mon- tour county. The first council consisted of the following laymen: Jonathan Rishel and M. Mull, elders; Isaiah C. Rishel, J. A. Kremer, S. Miller Boyer, and D. W. Messersmith, deacons. The corner-stone of the church edifice was laid on the 9th of October, 1881, Rev. J. A. Flickinger officiat- ing. It is a plain brick structure about forty-four by sixty feet in dimen- sions, surmounted by a belfry, and is situated upon the most commanding site in the village. The present pastor, Rev. G. E. Faber, assumed charge, March 1, 1889, and was installed on the 14th of July following, Rever- ends E. H. Leisenring and M. L. Shindel officiating. The origin of the Sunday school was contemporaneous with that of the church; J. B. Kremer was the first superintendent.

Chillisquaque Union Chapel, a frame building erected on land given by Mrs. Charles S, Wolfe, was completed in 1890, and is the place of worship for a flourishing union Sunday school conducted by theological students from Bucknell University, Lewisburg. It is situated on the road leading from Milton to Montandon.

CHAPTER XXVII.

SHAMOKIN TOWNSHIP.

FORMATION OF RALPHO TOWNSHIP AND DESCRIPTION OF ITS ORIGINAL BOUNDARIES- CHANGE OF NAME TO SHAMOKIN-PHYSICAL FEATURES PIONEERS-TAXABLES IN 1788-INDUSTRIES-EARLY SETTLEMENT, PRESENT BUSINESS, AND MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT OF THE BOROUGH OF SNYDERTOWN - VILLAGES - SCHOOLS - CHURCHES.

T THE present line of division between Shamokin and Rockefeller town- ships has, with the exception of Line mountain, possessed geographical significance longer than any other of the interior township lines of Northum- berland county. It was part of the original western boundary of Catawissa, which was thus described at the erection of that township in 1785 :-

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To begin at the mouth of Gravel run, where it empties into the Northeast Branch of the Susquehanna, and to extend up said run to the first large fork; thence up the east branch of said run a direct course till Shamokin creek between the plantations of William Clark and Andrew Gregg; from thence a direct course to a large deer-lick on the north side of Mahanoy hill, till it joins the line that divides the townships of Augusta and Mahanoy.

Augusta township at that date is represented as extending from Sunbury nearly to "the plains of Wyoming;" and at April sessions, 1785, a number of the inhabitants presented a petition setting forth its unwieldy proportions, which they "conceived after a division would be large enough and sufficient for two townships." Commissioners were accordingly appointed, and at the following August term a division was ordered by the line just described, that part of the original township east of it "to be called and known as Catawissa forever."

The township thus formed was soon found to be too large for the con- venience of its population, and at August sessions, 1788, a division was ordered by a line,-

Beginning at the mouth of Little Roaring creek; thence up said creek to the head thereof; thence on the ridge to the south branch of Big Roaring creek; from thence up the said creek to Yarnall's path; thence a southeasterly course to the county line.

That part of the former area of Catawissa west of this line received the name of Ralpho. It was bounded on the south by Line mountain and Schuylkill county; on the west by the present western line of Rush and Shamokin, extended to Line mountain; on the north by the Susquehanna river, and on the east by a line coinciding very nearly with the present eastern boundary of the county, except that Yarnall's path passes in Mt. Carmel township through the borough of Mt. Carmel and not at its eastern extremity. But, unfortunately for the perpetuity of the name, its selection did not meet the approbation of the inhabitants, and within a year several petitions were presented to the court, praying for a change. The reasons for this are thus set forth in one of these petitions :-

The name and word Shamokin is known throughout the greater part of this and adjacent States; and it is very common, where new townships are laid out, to call such township or townships by and after the name of such creek or principal stream of water as is or are running through the same; and many of us having moved and come a considerable distance and settled upon the waters of said Shamokin creek, and strangers remote from this place not knowing whether the word Shamokin is the name of the county, a township, or town, and it is often the case that many of us send or receive letters, etc., and it may often happen that letters coming into a second hand may be miscarried if there is not a proper direction upon the face of the letter, etc .: your petitioners therefore humbly pray that your Honors may be pleased to strike out the strange and unknown name of Ralpho* lately given to the township newly laid out and taken off the township of Catawissa, and to grant it its known and natural name, Shamokin.

*Rapho township, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, was organized in 1741, and so named from the parish of Rapho in County Donegal, Ireland. The letter I does not occur in the name in some of the old records of this county. Perhaps the name of the parish in Ireland or the township in Lan- caster county was not unknown to the justices who selected it in 1788.

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

Accordingly, "upon a second petition of the inhabitants up Shamokin creek " (the petition quoted), the name was changed to Shamokin at August sessions, 1789.

Little Mahanoy was formed from Augusta and Shamokin in 1813; Rush, from Shamokin, in 1819; Coal, from Shamokin and Little Mahanoy, in 1837; Snydertown borough, in 1871; and Ralpho, from Shamokin, in 1883, thus reducing the latter to its present limits.

The valley of Shamokin creek forms the northern part of the township, and Irish valley its southern part, while the intervening territory is distin- guished by a very diversified topography. The Northern Central and Phila- delphia and Reading railroads pass through the valley of the creek, with sev- eral stations in this township, while public highways traverse its extent in all directions.

PIONEERS.

The following is a list of the taxables of Ralpho (Shamokin) township, in 1788: William Becker, William Becker, Jr., William Brewer, Peter Bucklin, Dewalt Billman, Jr., Christian Barger, David Bennett, Peter Barger, William Billman, William Clark, Alexander Campbell, James Cherry, George Daugh- erty, George Dwilar, Abraham Dewitt, Alexander Ewing, Joseph Fisher, William Goodhart, Thomas Giles, Robert Giles, Stephen Harsh, John Irwin, Andrew Irwin, Jonathan Jones, Abraham Jones, William Jones, M. Jones, Daniel Jackson, Peter Kessler, Benjamin Kelley, Ishmael Kess, John Kelley, John Kerr, Robert Kennedy, John Kerr, Jr., Griffith Kerr, Lawrence Lam- erson, James McLees, John Miller, Nicholas Miller, Hester Mckay, John Mc- Kenzie, John Maurer, John Moore, Mordecai Morrison, Samuel Moore, John Pensyl, George Persing, Richard Robinson, Samuel Reeder, Jacob Reed, Casper Reed, Henry Ripley, Richard Robinson, Richard Robinson, Jr., Will- iam Search, John Teitsworth, William Teitsworth, Michael Thompson, David Thurston, William Taylor, Edward Wilkerson, Allen Wilkerson, John Wil- kerson, Michael Weaver, Alexander Wallace, Andrew Wagner, James Wal- lace, Morgan Young.

INDUSTRIES.

The Shipman mill site is one of the oldest on Shamokin creek, as George Hughes built a mill thereon as early as 1780. It had an overshot wheel and two sets of buhrs. Charles Hughes, his son, built the three-story frame structure now owned by W. A. Reed. It has four sets of buhrs. In 1815 Jacob Reed built a saw mill at the site of a similar establishment now owned by William Reed.

Several tanneries were once in operation. That of Daniel Campbell was located upon land now owned by Mrs. Jane Reed; Hughes & Teats had one at Snufftown, while those of Joseph Haupt and Furman Farnsworth were in Irish valley. Samuel and Joseph Hoover had a tannery three fourths of

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a mile from Snydertown on the main road to Sunbury. Joseph M. Wolver- ton, who learned his trade with them, established a tannery at Snydertown and conducted it until his death several years since. At the present time there is no establishment of this nature in operation in the township.

The Paxinos iron furnace was built in 1848 by Anthony Dengler and successively operated by Dengler & Haas and Taggart, Furman & Barton; after the suspension of the last mentioned firm the works were abandoned. They were situated upon the William Reed farm.

A distillery was operated by Jacob Haas on the land now owned by W. A. Reed some years ago, but the time when it was established has not been ascertained. Valentine Klase had a distillery on the road between Ston- ington and Snydertown at an early date.

The Paxinos powder mill was originally established by George W. Raver and successively operated by a Mr. Kline and the firm of Boughner & Fred- erick until its purchase by H. A. Weldy & Company, the present proprietors. Mining powder is exclusively manufactured to the extent of fifty kegs per day. J. A. Weaver has been the superintendent since 1885.

BOROUGH OF SNYDERTOWN.

Snydertown is situated in the northern part of the township in the val- ley of Shamokin creek and on the lines of the Northern Central and Phila- delphia and Reading railways. The land upon which the town proper is situated was first owned by Godfrey Rockefeller, from Sussex county, New Jersey; he gave to each of his sons, viz., Jacob, Godfrey, Henry, and Peter, one hundred acres of land within the present borough limits. Godfrey built the frame tavern that stood upon the site of the present brick hotel; it was inher- ited by his daughter Charity, whose husband, William Farrow, became landlord in 1796 and continued as such sixty years. He was succeeded by his son, William Farrow, who built the present hotel. Among other pioneers of the borough were the Lewis family, Jacob Holsman, Andrew Gonsar, John Jones, Andrew Smith, William Waters, John Moore, John Evert, and Will- iam Martz. Michael Klase arrived in 1815 from Berks county, Pennsylvania; in 1821 he built a distillery upon land now owned by Charles Snyder and operated it many years.

The village of Snydertown, which comprises but a small part of the terri- tory included in the borough limits, was laid out by Jacob Snyder, a native of New Jersey. From its position in the fertile Shamokin valley, midway between Sunbury and Shamokin, it enjoys good business advantages. Two general stores, a hotel, a planing mill, and a grist mill comprise the present commercial and industrial interests. The grist mill, of which J. H. Gonsar is the present proprietor, was originally built by Samuel Gonsar on the main road leading from Snydertown to the Centre turnpike a quarter of a mile from the present location.

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History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Part 76

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829- Publication date: 1891 Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk Number of Pages: 1424

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829-
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1424