USA > Pennsylvania > Berks County > The story of Berks County (Pennsylvania) > Part 15
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Rehrersburg is the largest town. It was laid out about 1803. Lots were disposed of by lottery and for a long time were subject to ground rent. The post office was established in 1818.
-Mt. Etna was so called when the post office was established in 1810. It is located on high ground in the southwestern section of the township.
Host lies in the southeastern section and Wintersville in the southwestern part.
UPPER TULPEHOCKEN.
The name was derived from an Indian word which means turtle. A petition for the division of Tulpehocken was presented to the court in 1820. The name of Perry was suggested. This name was not satisfactory to a large number of the people. Several more petitions, suggesting other names, were presented to the court. The Court confirmed the proceedings and named the new township Upper Tulpehocken. This ended the controversy. Its location determined the name.
Forts. About two miles east of Strausstown on the Northkill was built Fort Northkill in 1754. It stood in a very thick wood on a small rising ground. It was thirty-two feet square, built of logs placed upright in the ground, and within was a log house.
Along the road leading from Strausstown to Pottsville, on top of the Blue Mountains, and about two miles north of Fort North- kill stood Fort Deitrich Snyder. It served more as a watch house
208
THE STORY OF BERKS COUNTY
than a fort, for from it could be detected the presence of Indians for a radius of many miles.
Farming always has been the leading industry. Various kinds of mills have flourished for many years. The mills and forges of Joseph Seyfert were on the Northkill. There are some mills now in operation that have the latest improved machinery.
The only town in the township is Strausstown, about nine miles west from Hamburg. The post office was established in 1847. It is quite a busy town, having different business and manufacturing places.
UNION.
Two portions of land were joined in forming this township and so the name Union was selected. One portion was taken from Chester County and another from Lancaster when the county was organized in 1752. The first tract of land was taken up in 1684 by Hans Monson, but it was soon transferred to Peter Yocum. The first settlement was made in 1705.
The chief business of the township is farming. The water-power of the streams has been used for many years to turn fulling mills, oil mills and feed mills. Distilleries were not lacking. The Hope- well and Monocacy furnaces were prominent in the very early colo- nial days. The Hopewell furnace was built in 1765. It was in the hands of the Buckley family for more than eighty years.
Unionville (Brower) is the oldest village in the township. The post office was established in 1828. Candlesticks, lamps and coffee mills were at one time manufactured here. About 1830 the place also contained a foundry.
Mount Airy is near Birdsboro and has not grown extensively. Monocacy lies between Mount Airy and Unionville.
Geigertown is a station on the Wilmington & Northern Rail- road.
Geiger's Mills is about one mile distant from Geigertown.
WASHINGTON.
This township was cut out of Colebrookdale and Hereford. It was named in honor of George Washington. In 1681 Penn granted a tract of more than one thousand acres to a Philadelphia
209
THE TOWNSHIPS
+
merchant named Powel. In 1724 much of this tract got into the possession of Jacob Stauffer, a shoemaker of Skippack. Some of the land is still in the possession of his descendants.
A number of Schwenkfelders settled in this district about 1837. These thrifty settlers felled the trees, sawed them into usable lumber and built houses ; they made wagon wheels out of their oak trees; they plaited horse-collars out of straw; twisted traces out of hemp. and raised flax and wool which they spun into thread and wove into cloth for their own wearing apparel.
Some Mennonites settled in the vicinity of Bally, and a Jesuit missionary founded a church there as early as 1743.
Early Industries. Dale Forge was operated successfully for many years. The West Branch of the Perkiomen in a distance of about three miles operated as many as twelve water wheels at one time. Two of them were forges and three were furnaces. Swamp Creek has propelled oil and clover mills.
At Barto a valuable mine of iron ore was in successful operation for many years. Iron ore exists in various spots, but not in sufficient quantities to make mining a paying business.
The Norway Furnace at Bechtelsville was operated by various parties. for many years. The Weiss and Elsie forges were erected near Dale in the early part of the century. It was the iron which was found in the vicinity of Barto that led to the building of the Colebrookdale Railroad. Agricultural products are the chief wealth of the district.
Bechtelsville and Bally, situated in this township, are now bor- oughs.
Eshbach, Barto, Churchville, Dale and Passmore are the other towns located in this district.
WINDSOR.
It was settled in 1740 and established into a township in 1752. It was so named after a place in England, whence some of the early settlers had come.
There is a reputed Indian burying-ground a few hundred yards west of the Blue Rocks, about five miles east of Hamburg, at the base of the Blue Mountains. In 1879, D. B. Brunner examined one
210
THE STORY OF BERKS COUNTY
of these graves, and found nothing; so he decided there were no Indians buried there, but he could not determine what caused the mounds.
The Windsor Furnace was built soon after the township was settled. It was located near the base of the Blue Mountains in the northeastern part of the township. A forge for the manufacture of bar-iron, a saw mill and a grist mill were early made a part of the furnace property. The Delaplane Furnace, near Windsor Castle, was operated for nearly a hundred years from the time of the Revolu- tion. The Keim Furnace was situated a short distance north of Hamburg. There are still several mills in the district.
The borough of Hamburg lies in this township.
Windsor Castle is three miles southeast of Hamburg. The post office was established in 1856. The creamery at this place was at one time one of the most important in the county.
5-3 2325 222 20 :- 4
.
60128
2000
36 /
4500
521
211
THE TOWNSHIPS
IMPORTANT STATIS- TICS OF THE TOWN-
SHIPS. 1912.
Settled.
Erected.
Area in Sq. Mi.
Population.
Schools.
Churches.
Miles of Road.
Registered Voters.
Mercantile Licenses
Liquor Licenses.
Precincts.
Property Valuation.
1. Albany
1740|1752|39|1,224|12|
2|$ 599,667
2. Alsace
1718 1745:11
762
61
3
32
321|
190| 3
2
1 254,903
3. Lower Alsace ..
1888 5
758
5
1
18
401
255 30 6
1
448,440
4. Amity
1701|1719 18 1,356 10
4
56
507
390 32 5
2
799,260
5. Bern
1733 |1738 20
1,682|13
3
68
918
445 23 41
3 1,091,185
6. Upper Bern ..
1789|18
801
6
1
36
298
200|17|
2
1 421,657
7. Bethel
1733|1739 38 1,775 14
3
85
764
477|30
6
4
878,505
8. Brecknock
1729|1741|16
840
6
2
49
327
238|14
1
2
372,265
9. Caernarvon
1720|1729|12
845
7
4
35
300
244|19
2
1
420,428
10. Centre
1843 20 1,280
2
67
427
327.17 2
1 714,933
11. Colebrookdale
1720|1741
8 1,394
9
1
37
520
400|19 2
638,466
12. Cumru
1732;1737|23 4,422|22 4 1759|10
541
36
207
139/15
2
1
1
49
383
276|14
3
2
407,284
15. Earl
1781|13
874
6
58
382
242 4
2
2
232,582
16. Exeter
1718 1741|26 2,745 16
5
66
885
730 49|10
3
1,473,086
17. Greenwich
1740 28 1,359|11
2 110
469|
375 24
4
649,704
18. Heidelberg
1732 1734|14|1,891 11 1845|13 626
46
201
169|12
1
1
1,971,723
20. L. Heidelberg.
1842 28 4,006 22 2
99 1,157
940 48 10
450,745
21. - Hereford
1732 1753 15 1,066 1851 16 745
8
521
384
288 24
3
2
22. Jefferson
1734 1761 22 2,271 16
3
93
744
631 34
9
3 867,403
24. Maidencreek
1732|1746 13|1,941|11
4
655
516 32
5
1
1,142,930
25. Marion
|1843|16|1,007
3
39
427
315 14
3
1
887,766
26. Maxatawny
1732|1742|30|1,914|15
5
84
760
750 26
8
3
1,426,132
27. Muhlenberg
1851|16|3,200 15
3
40|1,516
992 63
9
2
1,697,500
28. Oley
1712|1740|22|2,028|14 6 65
703
539 41
4
2
1,375,059
29. Ontelaunee
1849| 8|1,243 7
3
38 400
292|18
5
1
665,472
30. Penn
1841|19|1,010 9
3
58
403
285 16 4
2
624,937
31. Perry
1821|18|1,737|12
5
65
576
432 22
3
1
821,710
32. Pike
1812|13
738
6
2
49
290
191'13
3
1
1
1,056,205
34. Robeson
1720|1729|32|2,459|19
3
79
818
631 31!
6
3
865,946
35. Rockland
1758 16 1,100
8
2
55
415
299|13 2
1
394,480
36. Ruscombmnr
1749|1752|14 1,059
9
2
42
496
307 27 3
1 357,579
37. Spring
1850|21|2,796 19 |1887|13|1,000| 7
2
47
348
254
9
2
2 495,027
39. Tulpehocken
.1723|1729 23 1,520 14
6
58
568
442 26
7
2 893,006
40. U. Tulpehckn
|1820|20 1,010
8
2
43
390
259 13
3
1
453,440
41. Union
1715|1752|21|1,280
9
3
55
536
382|17! 1
2
495,869
42. Washington
1839|13|1,674 8
4
68
552
433 31| 71
2
641,740
43. Windsor
1740|1752 23| 581| 5|
1
48
261|
146| 5 1
1 399,768
5|
84
488|
319|22|
4|
1
5
70 1,652 1,054|33
8
1,804,615 5
13. District
1720 1752 12|1,123
8
5
1
4 38
646
478 25
4
1
1,225,356
19. N. Heidelberg.
3
7
2
41
275
190| 8
2
1
467,726
23. Longswamp
245,022
33. Richmond
1732|1752 21|1,678 |14
5
85
623
465|19
6
3
1,804,040
5
66
818
872 44 7
38. Tilden
198,965
14. Douglass
2
542,766
3
7
9
Taxables.
CHAPTER XII.
BERKS BOROUGHS.
BALLY.
The borough of Bally is located in the eastern section of the county in Washington Township. It was incorporated in 1912.
Within its borders is included the historic Catholic Church of the Most Blessed Sacrament, established by a Jesuit missionary in 1743. It was the first Catholic church in the county. The Men- nonites have two churches in the borough.
Connected with the Catholic church is a parochial school. The borough also has a two-roomed public school building.
Among the industries of the town are a planing mill, hosiery mill, silk mill and pantaloon factory.
The First National Bank of Bally furnishes a place of security for the money of the community.
BECHTELSVILLE.
In 1890 an area of about one hundred and ninety-four acres was taken from Washington Township and incorporated into a borough. It was named after the Bechtel family that was prominent in the locality when the county was organized. It is three miles from Boy- ertown on the Colebrookdale Railroad. The erection of a large iron furnace in 1875, added much to the growth of the town. The post office was established in 1852. The Patriotic Sons of America have a fine three-story cement-block building which contains their hall.
Industries. The three-story stone grist mill is the largest in- dustrial establishment in the place. It is equipped with the modern roller process. A mill has been operated at this point for about seventy years. A chopping mill and planing mill is operated in the southern end of the town. A creamery is located near the latter mill.
The town contains a cabinet-making shop, carriage factory, bakery, marble yard and cigar factory. The knitting mill is large and furnishes employment for about fifty people.
213
BERKS BOROUGHS
The large blast furnace, which was operated for a number of years has been abandoned. The cinder is now being used in cement work. A large crusher is in operation and the slag shipped from it is a valuable product.
BERNVILLE.
Thomas Umbenhouer's father lived in Bern, Switzerland. When he laid out this borough in 1819, he named it Bern after his father's native town. The Union Canal was built along the Tulpe- hocken Creek in 1828 and passed near the borough. This helped the growth of the town. For a long time it was an important ship- ping point. . When the Lebanon Valley Railroad was built the traffic of the Canal declined and it was later abandoned entirely. This was injurious to the town. The nearest station is Robesonia, seven miles to the south. A branch of the South Mountain Railroad was pro- jected from Reading to Strausstown through Bernville. The people of the locality subscribed liberally, but the road was never built. The projected road-way is still visible but the money subscribed was a total loss.
The town was incorporated in 1851.
GRAIN HOUSE, BERNVILLE.
Military Encampment. A military encampment was held in this borough in 1841. William H. Keim was the principal officer in
214
THE STORY OF BERKS COUNTY
command, and Berks County was represented by seventeen of the twenty-three companies in the county. Governor David Porter re- viewed the companies on dress parade. The encampment was a great success.
The Bernville Cornet Band served as a part of the twenty-sixth regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, for nearly a year during the Civil War. It consisted of thirteen musicians. They were mustered out of service by an act of Congress in 1862.
Rural free delivery routes have been established from Bern- ville. Stage routes from Reading by way of Bernville to Millers- burg and from Robesonia to Bernville have existed for many years.
With the building of the Union Canal, industries sprang 11p. Tanneries and foundries were successfully conducted while the Canal furnished a means of shipping. The principal industries or places of business now existing are the following :- several stores, a creamery, an electric light plant, a saddlery, a hosiery mill, a drug store, two hotels, two bakeries and a bank.
The two churches are in Penn Township just outside the bor- ough limits. The first church was established by the Lutherans in 1745.
BIRDSBORO.
William Bird established at this place one of the first iron in- dustries of the State. The first forge was erected in 1740, and others later. Mr. Bird took up several thousand acres of land along Hay Creek, where he erected a grist mill and a saw mill. During Revolu- tionary times, his son was one of the largest producers of iron in America. Birdsboro was already a considerable town at the time of the erection of the county.
The Brooke family became identified with the town about 1800, and no small part of its growth is due to their influences. It was in- corporated into a borough in 1872. The water is supplied from a reservoir which was improved and enlarged by the Birdsboro Water Company in 1900., Electric lights were installed in 1896, and the protection against fire was much improved in 1905.
The three steam railroads and the trolley lines increased the growth and importance of the town.
215
BERKS BOROUGHS
Industries. The Brooke Iron Company has the largest in- dustrial establishment in the town. When the Brookes obtained possession, they called it the Birdsboro Foundry and Machine Com- pany. They now employ about four hundred hands.
The Bird mill has been rebuilt a number of times. It was equipped with rollers for making flour in 1879, but since 1898 it was used almost exclusively as a chopping mill. The town also contains a glove factory, a creamery, a hosiery mill and two shoe factories.
A weekly newspaper is published. Several bands practice regu- larly. The Birdsboro Cornet Band served in the Civil War.
Freshets. The most important freshets of the Schuylkill oc- curred in 1786, 1839, 1850 and 1902. In the freshet of 1850, the water rose twenty-five feet above it's ordinary level and swept away the bridge over the Schuylkill, which had been erected only five. years before. It was rebuilt and is still in use. A ford was reported at this place as early as 1778, when it is said the water was less than one foot deep. In the flood of 1902 the water was seven feet deep on Main street.
BOYERTOWN.
David Powel secured a patent in 1718 for much of the land that is now included in this borough. Iron ore was discovered shortly after- ward and a furnace was built in 1720. This furnace was called Cole- brookdale, after a town in England. It was the first industry of its kind established in Pennsylvania.
When the township was erected in 1741 it was named after the furnace. In 1835 the town was regularly laid out and in 1866 it was incorporated into a borough. Henry Boyer was one of the first settlers. He secured his land from Henry Stauffer in 1769. Mr. Boyer started a hotel and a general store and in time the place re- ceived the name it now bears. An attempt to establish a borough was made in 1851, but this did not succeed.
The town is located on the Colebrookdale Railroad eight miles from Pottstown. A trolley line from Reading to Philadelphia passes through the borough. A line connecting Boyertown with Pottstown by way of Ringing Rocks was completed in 1908.
-
.
216
THE STORY OF BERKS COUNTY
0
BOYERTOWN MINES.
The Mennonites in 1710 built the first church on land donated by Henry Stauffer.
A Great Catastrophe. A great catastrophe occurred in Boyer- town, January 13, 1908. An entertainment under the auspices of one of the sunday Schools was in progress in Rhoads' Opera House. A calcium light was used. Something went wrong with one of the tanks, there was an explosion, and the place caught fire. One hundred and seventy-one persons lost their lives.
Industries. Iron ore has been mined for one hundred and fifty years. It is of superior quality. Four shafts have been sunk, measur- ing, respectively, five hundred, five hundred and fifteen, six hun- dred and fifteen and seven hundred and twenty feet. Powerful engines are used to hoist the ore and pump the water. It is one of the largest iron ore mines in Pennsylvania.
There are two large cigar factories, which employ many hands. One factory annually produces twenty million cigars. A cigar box factory is also operated.
217
BERKS BOROUGHS
The largest industrial plant of the town is that of the Boyer- town Burial Casket Company. It consists of four large four-story buildings. More than three hundred hands are employed. About one hundred caskets are shipped daily.
Other industries are as follows: A machine shop, two bakeries, furniture company, carriage factory, foundry, knitting mill, paper box factory, marble yard, butcher shop, printing offices, livery sta- bles, tinsmith shops, different kinds of stores, several hotels and two banks.
The first newspaper published here was issued in 1858, and the Berks County Democrat is still one of the leading weekly papers of the county. The town is well supplied with light and water and has excellent protection against fire, having two organized fire com- panies.
CENTREPORT.
Centreport was organized into a borough in 1884. The first public house was erected in 1818, and with it was conducted a general store. In 1857 the tavern was separated from the store, and when the borough was erected, it remained in the township. The post office was established in 1868.
A creamery, established in 1891, is still conducted. The knitting mill established in 1895 was destroyed by fire in 1901. A shirt factory was started in 1908. The manufacture of cigars was dis- continued some years ago. A saddler shop is still conducted. The furniture factory is an important industry, and the general store the leading business place. A confectionery and ice cream store is con- nected with the post office.
The granite works, wagon works, implement house and black- smith shop are just outside the borough limits.
Centreport has been the business place for Centre and adjoining townships for many years. The railroad station, Mohrsville, is two miles away.
FLEETWOOD.
Fleetwood is a thriving borough twelve miles northeast of Reading, along the East Penn Railroad. One of the early settlers was a man by the name of Cox, who built a log house along what
218°
THE STORY OF BERKS COUNTY
is now Franklin street, and the town was called Coxtown. A stone building, the Eastern part of the present Fleetwood House, was erected in 1775. It is the oldest building in the town. It is said it contained the sign of a crow, and so the place was sometimes called Crowtown. Upon the completion of the East Penn Railroad in
D
OLDEST LOG HOUSE IN FLEETWOOD, OVER 100 YEARS OLD. LATELY RAZED.
1859, the town was named Fleetwood after two surveyors, Fleet and Wood. Its growth was slow. It had only about thirty houses in 1860, but since then it increased rapidly, and became the center · of trade for the farmers of the north and south. A town plan was laid out in 1868, and the town incorporated into a borough in 1873. The post office was established in 1852.
Industries. The first important industry was the Fleetwood . Foundry in 1864 for the manufacture of farming machinery. It was successfully conducted for many years, but in the winter of 1903 the plant was destroyed by fire.
The largest industry is the Fleetwood Metal Body Works, em- ploying many hands. The other industries are the following: A silk mill, three hosiery mills, granite works, implement shops, two roller mills, one bakery, one creamery, three coal and lumber yards, tool works, pick works, printing office, paper box factory, different kinds of stores and four hotels.
جامد جدا ...
219
BERKS BOROUGHS
In 1841 Saint Paul's Union Church was erected. It is a stone building and is situated a short distance outside the borough. There ' are three other churches in the town. The bank was established in 1907.
Water works were established in 1889, and when the trolley line was built in 1904, electric light was introduced.
HAMBURG.
This borough was organized in 1837 and divided into two wards in 1886. The town was laid out in 1779, when it was called "Kaercher- town" after its founder. The turnpike from Reading to Pottsville was constructed in 1812, and the canal in 1824. These greatly aided the growth of the town. Stages ran over this pike in 1842. Boat building for many years was one of the leading industries of the town. The Reading Railroad was opened in 1842, and the Pennsylvania in 18S5. The post office was established in 1798. Telegraph connection was made in 1847, and the telephone introduced in 1881.
A severe rainstorm caused a flood in the town in 1906. Some of the streets were flooded to a depth of three feet. One man was drowned and others narrowly escaped with their lives. The wells became contaminated resulting in an epidemic of typhoid fever, which caused the death of a number of people.
Industries. Many industrial plants such as distilleries, brewer- ies, boat building, tanneries, brick yards, wool factories and the like have existed at various times, but most of them have been abandoned.
The grist mill was the first industry in the town. It has been in operation for about a century and a quarter.
The following are the principal manufacturing establishments :- Hamburg Plow Works, Bleaching Works, Boiler Works, Bottling Works, Broom Factories, Carriage Factories, Cigar Fac- tory, Creamery, Electric Light and Power Plant, Engine Works, Flour Mills, Foundries, Gas Works, Greenhouse, Hosiery Mill, Ice Cream Factories, Knitting Mills, Silk Mill, Piano Factory, Stove Foundry and various stores and lumber and coal yards.
The following newspapers have been published :- The Schnell- post, The Advertiser, The Rural Press and The Berichter. The Ham- burg Weekly Item has been issued since 1875. and since 1SSS it has met with increasing success.
(
220
THE STORY OF BERKS COUNTY
A State Tuberculosis Sanitarium is now being built near Ham- burg. This will be a very large institution and capable of accom- modating four hundred patients. The building will be located on a hill, a mile beyond the town in Windsor Township.
KUTZTOWN.
The borough of Kutztown was incorporated in 1815. It was the second borough of the county, Reading having been the first. George Kutz laid out the town in 1771. The first dwellings were built soon thereafter. The borough now contains seven hundred and forty-two acres. Being an inland town its growth was slow. The East Penn Railroad was opened for travel in 1859 and in 1870 the branch was built from Topton to Kutztown. This gave the place new life and its growth has since been steady. The electric railway from Reading to Allentown passes through the borough.
Henry Deisher has a collection of Indian relics that is one of the finest in the country. It contains about twenty-two thousand specimens consisting of arrow-heads, spear-heads, knives, scrapers,. axes and the like. He also has a collection of various kinds of baskets made by the Indians.
With the coming of the railroads, manufacturing establishments increased. Almost four hundred hands are employed. The following is a list of the places of business: Shirt factory, knitting mill, creamery, marble works, carriage factory, silk mill, shoe factories, flour mill, foundry machine works, paper box factory, brick yards, cigar factories, black- smith shops, wheelwright shops, tailoring e s t a b lishments, about twenty
PIONEER HOUSE, KUTZTOWN, PA.
221
BERKS BOROUGHS
stores, eight hotels, law office, two printing plants, and a few smaller industries or business places.
Banks and Newspapers. The First National Bank was organized in 1871. This was removed to Reading. The Kutztown National Bank was organized in 1897, and in 1909 the Farmers' Bank of Kutztown was established. The borough is well supplied with water and a municipal electric lighting plant was installed in 1905. There is a well equipped Fair Ground which has one of the best half-mile racing tracks in the State. The Kutztown Park is the pride of the borough. During the summer Sunday School picnics and family reunions are held there almost daily.
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