History of the city of Washington and Washington County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens 20th century, Part 53

Author: McFarland, Joseph Fulton; Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1474

USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > Washington > History of the city of Washington and Washington County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens 20th century > Part 53

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Across the railroad from the station house is an aban- doned coal mine. The mine was opened up by the Provi- dent Mining Company and ran a year or so when it was purchased in 1903 by the Pennsylvania Mining Company (afterwards the Pittsburg Coal Company). It has not been worked since that date.

The old Pittsburg and Steubenville Railway was built between Pittsburg to Steubenville in 1865. In 1868 it was consolidated with, and used as part of the main lines of the P., C., C. & St. L. R. R. Company. This railway runs along the northwestern border of Cecil Township for two miles.

The Chartiers Valley (branch of the P., C., C. & St. L. R. R.) was completed along the southeastern boun- dary line of this township in 1870. Work on the con- struction of the Wabash Railroad in Washington Coun- ty was started in September, 1903, and soon afterwards it was constructed through Venice, Bishop and Cecil.

The branch line of the P., C., C. & St. L. R. R. was constructed between Bridgeville and Reissing about 1885. The extension from Cecil to Bishop was not built until 1892.

The P., C., C. & St. L. R. R. Company has surveyed an extension of the Miller's Run branch from a point near Venice by way of the Cherry Valley to the middle

branch of Raccoon Creek and down that branch to a connection with the Western Washington branch of the P., C., C. & St. L. R. R. for extension at Burgettstown, connecting there with the main lines of the P., C., C. & St. L. R. R. The new line would shorten the distance for hauling the coal and greatly relieve the tracks of the Chartiers Valley, Panhandle and Fort Wayne roads. A branch of the Chartiers Valley branch of the P., C., C. & St. L. R. R. has also been projected from a point near Greer Station westward up McPherson's Run, cross- ing the old Pittsburg and Washington Turnpike. This is to reach a large coal field owned by the Verner Coal Company.

A trolley line has been surveyed from MeDonald to Canonsburg. This proposed line runs through Cecil Township.

Cecil Township passed the cash road tax law in the place of the work road tax in 1906. The millage for 1908 is 4 mills and the total amount of road tax col- lected is $10,220.56. In 1903 Cecil Township had 18 miles of public highway. A county road from Mc- Donald to Venice has been approved by the grand jury, but the contract has not yet been let. This road will be one mile long and the estimated cost is $10,598.72. The old road was very much used as the way to reach Pittsburg for five years after the close of the Civil War. Washington and Canonsburg travelers were accommo- dated by a hack line between Canonsburg and McDonald to reach the Panhandle Railroad before the Chartiers Valley branch line was built to Mansfield (Carnegie).

The Standard Tin Plate Company has one of the finest equipped plants in America, located in Cecil Township a half mile northeast of Canonsburg. It em- ploys 600 to 1,000 men with a monthly payroll of $30,- 000. It has been in operation for the last five years and has orders on its books to insure steady run. The de- mand for this company's product is steadily increasing and the capacity of the plant is being enlarged to meet the requirements of the increasing business. This plant occupies a commanding position on the property of the Cecil Improvement Company, East Canonsburg.

The Standard Lumber Company is located in Cecil Township close to the Borough of Canonsburg. This company handles all kinds of rough lumber, builder's supplies, finished lumber, mill work, etc.

Murdock's Greenhouses-James B. and William B. Murdock purchased 185 acres of surface land from Mary J. Greer, et al., in 1902, at a cost of $37,200. Six hothouses have been erected. A large florist business is carried on, the trade being with Pittsburg prin- cipally.

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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY

S. L. Tone, vice president of the Pittsburg Railways Company, purchased from Cornelius E. Rumsey in 1906 64 acres, formerly the Samuel Van Eman homestead at Van Eman Station. Rumsey had used the land as a fine stock or cattle farm since his purchase 17 years before. The property near this station is improved much by changes made and soon to be made.

Van Eman Station of the Pittsburg Railways Com- pany, the trolley line from Washington, is in North Strabane Township directly across the creek from the railroad station. An overhead bridge has been erected across the railroad east of the station, and by recent road changes, the road from this bridge will run direct- ly across the creek to the Pittsburg and Washington State Highways Road now being straightened and con- structed.

This will give an easy roadway direct from the rail- road station at the Murdock and Tone farms to the trolley station on the adjoining land of James J. Van Eman's heirs. These improvements here will greatly advantage shippers and travelers present and those which will come when the branch railroad line is built as recently surveyed from Van Eman Station up the east branch of Chartiers Creek southward, crossing the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad at Eighty-Fourth Station.

OIL AND GAS.

While a large amount of oil has been - pumped from the wells in what was called, during the oil development of the late eighties and early nineties, the Canonsburg pool, the field never was a phenomenal one; no great gushers, such as were struck in the upper oil country or at McDonald or in other sections of Washington County, were obtained hereabouts. However, many good pumpers were drilled in the country north of Canons- burg, and now, after a score or more of years, some of these wells are still pumped and produce a few barrels a day-enough to make the pumping worth while at the present high price of the greasy fluid.

Development reached its highest stage in 1888 and 1889, and derricks were located in every valley and on every hill-indeed in almost every field. But while the field proved exceedingly productive in natural gas it never, as has been stated, became a great oil field. How- ever, while the development was going on there was great excitement; the country all around was dotted with derricks, and the sound of the dinkey engine filled the day and the creaking of the walking beam made weird noises by night.

The first oil obtained in the Canonsburg pool was struck in a well on the farm of John Conner, Sr., in Cecil Township, a mile and a half north of Canons- burg, in June, 1886. This well when completed, pumped only two barrels a day, this rate of production being

maintained for three or four years. Later the hole was drilled deeper and a strong flow of gas obtained. The Conner well was drilled by the Manufacturers Gas Company, and the find induced the company to drill two more wells in the vicinity.

One of these was on the farm of David R. Bebout and the other on the J. W. Mckown farm. These wells came in late in the autumn of 1886. The Bebout well pumped, at the start, at the rate of about ten barrels a day, and the Mckown, about 60 barrels. These strikes convinced operators that there was a pool somewhere in the Canonsburg field, and the leasing of farms and erection of derricks went forward with a rush.

Fisher Bros. about this time leased the John Bu- chanan farm and put down a well on it which, when completed, proved a pumper of from 30 to 40 barrels a day. The same operators leased 50 acres from John C. Phillips, paying a bonus of $5,000 for it and agree- ing to give the land owner a one-eighth royalty. A well drilled soon afterward proved a duster. Both Flinn and Magee, of Pittsburg, leased the Pennsylvania Reform School farm, agreeing in the lease to give the State all the gas found and one-eighth of the oil. Six or eight wells were sunk on the Reform School lands, and all of them proved to be fair pumpers.

The Hugh Sterling farm at Venice had 40 producing wells. At the present time seven of them are pumpers. When the Wabash Railroad was surveyed the large mill at Venice was purchased and destroyed to keep the rail- road line straight. An oil well still remains at the rail- road line because not so easily purchased and destroyed as the mill.

At the time the wildcat development was on east of Canonsburg, Borscher & Co. began to drill on the W. W. Gladden farm, a mile northeast of Canonsburg. August 17 the drill tapped the 50-foot sand, and the well at once began flowing at the rate of 25 barrels an hour. A week later the well was drilled deeper into the 50- foot, when it responded at the rate of 60 barrels an hour. This was the greatest strike in the history of the Canonsburg oil field, and although other wells were drilled in close proximity to this one, they either proved to be light producers or dusters.

However, the Gladden well caused much excitement, and land was leased in every direction. The Robert Me- Nary farm, almost adjoining the borough of Canons- burg, was leased by the MeKeown interests at a cash bonus of $10,000, while the James Tannehill farm, ad- joining the MeNary tract, brought a bonus of $12,000. Many other farms were leased at $100 per acre bonus and one-eighth of the oil.

After several years the development practically ceased, and only an occasional fair-producing well was ob- tained. No other well was brought in that rivaled

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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY

the Gladden gusher. From files of the Canonsburg Notes for October, 1889, when the field was about at its best, it is seen that the 39 wells in the Canonsburg district were producing 315 barrels per day. Since that or the fol- lowing year the production steadily dwindled, and the operators turned their attention to more prolific fields.

In 1900 the Pittsburg Coal Company owned 517 acres of coal in Cecil Township. Its valuation was $46,228.

In 1909 it owns 7,822 acres, valued at $1,173,300.

In 1900 the Provident Coal Company owned 115 acres of coal, valued at $8,945.

The Creedmore Coal Company (formerly the Ohio & Pennsylvania Coal Company) owned 135 acres, valued at $15,800 in the year 1900.

The National Mining Company owned 860 acres of coal, with real estate lands worth $33,319; at the same time The J. D. Santer's Coal Company had mines in the township valued at $37,982 also.

The W. P. Rend Coal Company owned 1,825 acres of coal, which, together with the mines, was valued at $140,648.

The Ridgeway & Bishop Coal Company owned 1,900 acres of coal, which, together with other real estate, was valued at $117,041.

The Pittsburg Consolidated Coal Company owned 113 acres of coal with mines, valued at $30,573.

The Jumbo Mine, of the Pittsburg Coal Company, is located on the south side of the main lines of the P., C., C. & St. L. Railroad, about half a mile west of Mc- Donald. T. B. Robbins opened up the Jumbo mine about 1884. It was purchased by the Pittsburg Coal Com- . pany some time after 1900, shortly after that company was formed, about 1899. At that time the Pittsburg Coal Company bought all its mines in this region.

It has been said that the coal of the Jumbo mine is a better grade than any other coal in the county. The coal from this mine sells at a premium of 10 cents on a ton in the Cleveland market. A large block of coal from this mine, weighing several tons, was put on ex- hibition at the World's Fair at Chicago. The output for 1908 was 165,252 tons, and number of men em- ployed is 252. This Pittsburg Coal Company owns 22 houses at this mine.

The Briar Hill Mines are part in McDonald Bor- ough and part in Cecil Township, across the P., C., C. & St. L. Railroad from McDonald. The Pennsylvania Mining Company (Pittsburg Coal Company) purchased these mines from J. D. Santers, September 6, 1899. The value of the mine real estate is $17,450. During the year 1908 there were 211 men employed and 169,237 tons of coal mined. The coal is shipped on the P., C., C. & St. L. Railroad.

Where stands the present town of Reissing W. P. Rend purchased land from the John B. Kelso farm in

1881 and opened up a mine soon afterwards. The mine was called the Reissing No. 1 mine. This mine was purchased by the Pennsylvania Mining Company (Pitts- burg Coal Company) in the year 1900. Mining opera- tions ceased in 1907.

There are fifty-two miners' houses and a Federal sup- ply store at Reissing at the present time.

Miller's Run branch of the P., C., C. & St. L. Rail- road is in operation between Reissing and the town of Cecil. This mine is connected by a tunnel with one of the operating mines of the Pittsburg Coal Company on the Pan Handle Railroad, near McDonald ..

At Reissing still stands the old log house in which David Sprowls was murdered in 1862 or 1863. Char- lotte Jones, William Jones and one named Fife were convicted in Allegheny County. The county line ran between the Sprowls house and his barn.

The Creedmore Mine, of the Pittsburg Coal Company, is on the Miller's Run branch of the P., C., C. & St. L. Railroad at the town of Cecil. It is located north of Cecil and north of the railroad. It was opened up about 1893 or '94 by the Ohio & Pennsylvania Coal Company on the Robert Chambers farm. The output for 1908 was 171,790 tons of coal; 266 men were em- ployed. There are eleven houses and a Federal supply store in connection with this mine. The mine was pur- chased by the present owner from the Ohio & Pennsyl- vanial Coal Company about the year 1903.

The Ridgeway Mines, of the Pittsburg Coal Com- pany, are situated at the town of Bishop on the Miller's Run branch of the P., C., C. & St. L. Railroad west of Bishop and south of the railroad. There are twenty- five houses, together with a Federal supply company store, connected with this works. The output for 1908 was 79,556 tons, and 202 men were employed.

This coal works started to operate soon after the year 1891 as the Ridgeway & Bishop Coal Company. They purchased their coal in that year from M. H. Borland and his brothers, A. C. and J. K. Borland, now of Wash- ington. The mine was sold to the Pennsylvania Mining Company (Pittsburg Coal Company) on the 7th of Jan- uary, 1902. Besides the mines and miners' houses there is a butcher shop at the Town of Bishop.

The National Mining Company holds 4,606 acres of coal in Cecil Township, with real estate value of $586,- 550.

The Verner Coal & Coke Company holds 697 acres, valued at $88,425.

The public school law went into operation in Cecil Township in the year 1840. There were in 1908 in Ce- cil Township: Schools, 21; teachers, 23 (males 4, fe- males 19) ; average number of months taught, 8; aver-

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age salary of teachers per month, males $67.50, females $51.19; cost of each pupil per month, $1.97; number of mills on the dollar levied for school purposes, 3; estimated value of school property, $24,825; average number attending school, 541. In 1859 Cecil had seven schools and 250 scholars.

United Presbyterian Church of Venice .- In 1849 the Associate Congregation of Miller's Run was organ- ized by Rev. Thomas Hanna. In the following year Rev. James Greer organized the Associate Reformed Con- gregation of Venice, the people being from the same district. The Associate Congregation was served joint- ly by the pastors, Rev. A. Anderson and Rev. Thomas Beveridge, until the year 1855, after which this con- gregation remained without a pastor the rest of its sep- arate existence. The first and only pastor of the Asso- ciate Reformed Congregation was Rev. J. L. Fairley, who served from 1853 to 1855.

When the Associate and Associate Reformed Churches united in 1858, the Associate Congregation of Miller's Run and the Associate Reformed Congregation of Venice consolidated and formed the United Presbyterian Con- gregation of Venice. The following pastors have served Rev. A. R. Anderson 1860-1907, Rev. Theodore Littell, 1908-present time. The present membership is 131. During Rev. Dr. Anderson's pastorate in 1897 a new brick church was built.

Miller's Run Presbyterian Church .- This church is situated on the Allegheny County line, five miles north of Canonsburg. It was organized about 1800 and lasted nearly 100 years, the congregation disorganizing about 1899. This was a very important church in early years. It was the home of the Hays family, of which Smith, Isaac N. and George P. became noted Presbyterian ministers. The first meeting-house was a log struc- ture, built about the year 1790, before the congrega- tion was organized. A brick church was erected about 1835. The deed for the lot of about eight acres had been made to the trustees of the Chartiers Presbyte- rian Church (McMillen's) in 1802. The title to the land was sold in 1890 and is now held by the Miller's Run Cemetery Association.

This company was formed at the suggestion of Rev. George P. Hays, D. D., and others, who were incorpo- rated August 20, 1888) I. Y. Hamilton, Esq., acting as their attorney), to protect the remains of their an- cestors.

The company has about $3,500 invested, and looks carefully after the grounds.

The names of the incorporators of the Miller's Run

Cemetery Association are as follows: James Reed, Robert M. Morgan, I. B. Hays, M. J. Hays, J. C. John- ston, Elizabeth Cockins, Canonsburg, Pa .; Samuel Grif- fith, Vincent C. Harvison, S. B. Phillips, Mrs. Robert C. Hamilton, Elizabeth B. Smith, Robert D. Hamilton, Chartiers Township; William M. Herritt, William S. Thompson, John M. Herriott, Mt. Pleasant Township; George P. Hays, D. D., Cincinnati, Ohio; Mary A. Mc- Night, James G. Moore, Cecil Township; I. N. Hays, D. D., Allegheny City; W. B. Morehead, McDonald, Vincent Miller, Allegheny County; Jacob Miller, Pitts- burg; Fannie Johnson and Henderson Hays.

More than two-thirds of the above-named persons are now dead, many of whom are buried in this cemetery.

Fawcett Church (Methodist Episcopal) .- The Faw- cett Church is located one mile northeast of Hill's Sta- tion. The lot for the Fawcett Church was donated by Andrew Fawcett in 1812, and a log meeting-house was afterwards built. In 1833 a brick church building was erected. Up to 1880 it had always been a station, and was supplied with ministers from other congregations. It was first the Canonsburg charge until the Canonsburg congregation cut off from the Fawcett congregation. It then became the Bridgeville charge until the Fawcett church severed its connection in April, 1909, at which time there were 214 members in the charge. Since the separation the membership of the Fawcett church is about fifty. The present pastor is Rev. R. H. Little.

Avella Grange, No. 1371, was organized just recently. J. E. Vance is master and W. H. Buchanan lecturer.

On the opposite side of the farm from that in which David Cranch was murdered for money, another murder was committed four decades later. On a part of the farm of the Burnside heirs, Mrs. Pierce and her little children were cruelly murdered by a colored youth with- out any apparent reason. The murderer had spent the Sabbath Day where he obtained intoxicating drinks, and upon his return home in the evening had some filled bottles and a revolver.

The dreadful deed, which aroused the whole commu- nity, was discovered by smoke issuing from the dwell- ing, which apparently had been set on fire to conceal the crime.

In Cecil Township the valuation of real estate amounts to $3,200,875. The value of personal prop- erty is $13,706; number of taxables, 862.

The population in 1850 was 1,008; in 1860, was 959; in 1890, 2,285, and in 1900, 3,771.

The number of voters in this township in 1850 was 237; in 1904, 673, and in 1908, 724.

CHAPTER XXVII.

History of Chartiers and Cross Creek Townships.

CHARTIERS TOWNSHIP.

Chartiers Township was erected from a part of Cecil Township, March 23, 1790. It originally included the southeastern part of Mount Pleasant and the northern portion of Canton Townships, besides the territory with- in its present limits. It was bounded on the north by Robinson Township, on the east and south by Strabane Township, and on the west by Cecil Township. The bounds of the township were reduced by the erection of Canton Township in 1791 and of Mount Pleasant Township in 1808. On the 6th of October, 1831, the line of the township was changed and a portion given to Mount Pleasant Township, and in August, 1863, the boundary lines between Chartiers and Canton Town- ships were altered. Both Canonsburg and Houston have decreased the area of Chartiers Township by their or- ganizations into boroughs February 22, 1802, and May 13, 1901, respectively. Chartiers Township is at present bounded by Mount Pleasant and Cecil Townships on the north, Cecil, North Strabane Townships, Canonsburg and Houston Boroughs on the east, South Strabane Township on the south, and Canton and Mount Pleasant Townships on the west. The southeastern boundary line of Char- tiers Township is marked by the Chartiers Creek. The township is also drained by its tributaries, Plum Run (not to be confused with the Plum Run of Deemster Borough, a tributary of Ten-Mile Creek,) and the north branch of Chartiers Creek. The soil of the township is fertile and conducive to the raising of bountiful crops and stock. The Pittsburg vein of coal is mined in the township by numerous companies.

The real estate valuation of Chartiers Township amounts to $2,981,107; value of personal property, $207,530; taxables, 1,366.

The number of inhabitants of Chartiers Township has been increasing steadily.

In 1850 the population in this township was 1,677; in 1860, 1,795; in 1890, 1,941, and in 1900, 2,141.

The voters in 1850 numbered 492; in 1904, 634, and in 1908, 938. These increases do not include that of the borough of Houston, which was erected from Chartiers' area.

The Chartiers Railway, operated by the P., C., C. &

. St. L. Railroad, and the Washington & Canonsburg Rail- way Company, operated by the Pittsburg Railways Company, follow the Chartiers Creek along the south- east border of the township. The Western Washington branch of the Chartiers Railway runs from Houston to Westland up Little Chartiers Creek, and a spur branches off from this road and runs up Plum Run to Midland. A branch leaves Meadowlands and runs southward to Manifold in South Strabane Township. Another branch has been run from the Chartiers Rail- way at the County Home to the No. 2 mine of the Mead- owlands Coal Company, a short distance northeast.

The old Washington-Pittsburg Turnpike runs through the southern part of the township. The number of miles of public highway in the township in 1904 was 100. This township accepted the cash road tax in place of the work road tax in 1906. The road tax for 1908 was 41% mills, and $11,400.61 was collected.

In 1908 the county built a fine piece of Telford pike on the Houston-Westland Road. The road is 7,600 feet in length, 12 feet in width of stone, and 24 feet in width of grading. The cost of construction was $18,- 308.74; cost of engineering, $925.44; total, $19,234.18.

The grand jury has approved the construction by the county of 2,640 feet of the Canonsburg-Westland Road. The cost is estimated at $4,958.16.

That section of the old Pittsburg turnpike between Canonsburg and Houston-about one-half mile in length -has been awarded to the Hallam Construction Com- pany, of Washington, and will probably be built this year, although it is possible that it may be delayed for some little time in order to allow the commissioners to change their plans and build the road of brick instead of stone, and of a greater width than was contemplated at the time the plans and specifications were prepared.

COAL.

While coal was mined in the Canonsburg district more than 100 years ago, it was not until after the completion of the Chartiers Railway that there was an opportunity for shipping coal from the region. Con- sequently, the first railroad mine was not put in oper- ation until 1872. This mine was owned and operated by the Hon. Jonathan Allison, on the Allison farm,

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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY

near McGovern. On this same tract of land Mr. Alli- son's grandfather had opened the first coal bank of any kind in this region. This was in the year 1802. Mr. Allison did a profitable, but not a large, business with his railroad mine. He shipped to Canonsburg and Washington; but principally to the latter place. After conducting the mine for a number of years he sold out to J. V. H. Cook & Sons, who enlarged the mine and shipped on an extensive scale. When the boom in coal came in the late nineties the Messrs. Cook sold the mine and their unmined coal, a considerable tract, to the Pittsburg Coal Company.

The second railroad mine in the Upper Chartiers Val- ley was opened close to Canonsburg. This was the Boone mine.

The coal was purchased from Nancy Boone et al., in 1882, and opened up shortly by Albert Shupe, H. H. Stoner and J. W. Stoner. The opening and tipple were on the south branch of the Chartiers Creek, above the Canonsburg Steel & Iron Company 's plant. At this point William Maggs had for many years conducted a country bank. In 1885 the Stoner & Company, Limited, was organized, composed of William J. Hitchman, Jacob F. Stoner, Joseph W. Stoner, Harrison H. Stoner, Al- bert Shupe and E. A. Upstill, who succeeded the former owners of the mine. Afterwards Hitchman and Upstill purchased the mine, and ran it for a number of years, and then, on the crest of the coal boom in 1899, sold out to the Pittsburg Coal Company. The mine was aban- doned some years ago because the coal owned by the company at that point was exhausted.

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History of the city of Washington and Washington County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens 20th century, Part 53

Author: McFarland, Joseph Fulton; Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1910 Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1474

Author: McFarland, Joseph Fulton; Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1474