Tri-Counties Genealogy & History by Joyce M. Tice 1877 Tioga County History

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1787 Our County Our Commonwealth Our Country 1877  OLD TIOGA AND Ninety Years of its Existence _________________ A DESCRIPTIVE, STATISTICAL, AND CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF TIOGA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA, FROM IT’S EARLIEST SETTLEMENT TO  THE PRESENT TIME, TOGETHER WITH A HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA AND  NUMEROUS STATISTICAL TABLES, EXHIBITING ITS GROWTH AND INCREASE IN WEALTH AND POPULATION. _________________ I L L U S T R A T E D _________________ TO WHICH IS  ADDED MUCH VALUABLE INFORMATION CONCERNING THE HISTORY AND STATISTICS OF THE UNITED STATE AND THE  WORLD, AND MANY ITEMS OF PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE ____________________ Written and compiled from Official and Authentic Sources By M A R O O. R O L F E. ___________________ S O L D O N L Y T O S U B S C R I B E R S . ___________________ Tioga, Penn. BUNNELL & ROLFE, Publishers 1877.

The preparation of this work has involved an amount of careful research and pains-taking labor entirely disproportionate to the size of the volume, which can be appreciated only by those who are familiar with the details of similar compilations; and the public are reminded that no work, of what-ever kind, has over been published entirely free from errors. Especially in gathering the materials for such a work as this is there is a liability to error encountered in the preparation of a publication of no other kind. In going back to the past, where comparatively little has been written upon the sub-jects under consideration, and endeavoring to search out dates and deeds of days that are gone, many statements have been found from equally reliable and credible sources which were at variance with each other and between which it has been a somewhat difficult task to choose. It is possible that, to some, the conclusions herein recorded may appear erroneous, if not hasty and ill-judged. Every available source of information has been consulted, all conflicting statements have been weighed carefully and honestly, and that only has been put on record which has been conceived to be the truth. No absurd claim to infallibility is entertained, yet it is hoped that the time and labor employed in compiling this book have resulted in what will be re-garded as a convenient exhibit of the history and statistics of Tioga County which will be found valuable to intelligent citizens of all classes and occupations. The statistical tables relative to the State of Pennsylvania have been carefully compiled and attractively arranged with a view to their usefulness and their adaptability to answer such general inquiries concerning the history and resources of our Commonwealth as arise almost hourly. The information under the caption of "Questions Answered" will be appreciated by all who from time to time feel the need of a convenient Reference upon the subjects treated, and it has been the aim of the compiler to make this department especially interesting and valuable.

Acknowledging his indebtedness to the many citizens of the county who have furnished data for the chronology of their respective localities and to those who published writings have been freely consulted in the preparation of this work, the author leaves the fruits of his labor and his research with an indulgent and appreciative public, with the assurance that no reasonable pains and expense have been spared to render this volume both attractive and valuable, and worthy alike of approbation and patronage.

M. O. B.

Lawrenceville, PA, May 1^st, 1877

THE ELEMENTS OF IT’S PROSPERITY—ITS FERTILE HILLS AND VALLEYS—ITS HIDDEN TREASURES—ITS MINERAL AND AGRI-CULTURAL WEALTH—THE MINER AND THE HUSBANDMAN—ITS RAILWAYS—ITS LUMBER AND MANUFACTURING ENTER-PRISES—ITS STREAMS—ITS IMPORTANT TOWNS—ITS FRE-QUENT AND SWEEPING FIRES—ITS EDUCATIONAL ADVAN-TAGES.

The word "Tioga" is of Indian origin, and signifies the "source" or "head of the waters."

Geographically, Tioga County is situated on the boundary line between Pennsylvania and New York, about Equi- distant from Lake Erie and the Delaware river, and forming one of the "Northern-Tier" of counties. It is bounded on the north by Steuben and Chemung Counties, N.Y.; on the east by Bradford County; on the south by Lycoming County, and on the west by Potter County.

The principal streams of Tioga County are the Tioga River, from which the county derives its name, the Cowanesque River and Crooked Creek and Pine Creek. The Tioga River rises in Armenia Township, in Bradford County, and flowing through the townships of Ward, Union, Bloss, Covington, Richmond, Tioga and Lawrence, it is joined by the Cowanes-que and the Canisteo beyond the state line and, with the Conhocton River, forms the Chemung, near Corning, N. Y. the Cowanesque River is formed by the Confluence of several small streams in some of the nor-eastern towns of Potter County, and passing across the township of Westfield, has its course through Deerfield, Osceola, Elkland, Nelson, and Lawrence, emptying into the Tioga River in the edge of New York, just north of the state line, and but a little below the borough of Lawrenceville. Crooked Creek rises in Chatham township, and flowing through Middlebury, loses itself in the Tioga River at the western boundary of Tioga Borough. Pike Creek, West Branch, and other small streams combine to form Pine Creek in Eastern Potter County. This stream flows through Gaines, Shippen, Delmar and Morris, and Empties into the West Branch of the Susquehanna at Jersey Shore, in Lycoming County.

The scenery in the Tioga and Cowanesque valleys is picturesque and attractive, and is not surpassed by that of any other county in the Northern Tier. Viewed from a distance, most of the villages along the Tioga River present the appearance of towns embowered in woody groves, and the fine landscape to be seen in the Cowanesque valley is lovely beyond comparison.

The most important places in the county are Wellsboro, the seat of justice, Tioga, Blossburg, Mansfield, Covington, Lawrenceville, Westfield, Elkland, Osceola, Knoxville, Nelson, Mainsburg, Roseville, Millerton and the mining towns. The greatest drawback to the advancement of the business interests of the principal towns has been the frequent occurrence of heavy and disastrous fires. Blossburg, Wellsboro, Tioga, Westfield and Lawrenceville have suffered extensively from this source.

The railroads of Tioga County are the Tioga Railroad, finished in 1840; the Lawrenceville and Wellsboro Railroad, finished in 1872; the Cowanesque Valley Railroad, finished in 1873, and the Elmira State Line Railroad, completed in the autumn of 1876. Since their construction, these roads have been combined under the titles, Corning, Cowanesque and Antrim Railway, and Tioga and Elmira State Line Railroad. The old Tioga Railroad, known as the Blossburg and Corning Railroad for many years, connects the Blossburg Coal Regions with the markets of New York and the West. The Cowanesque Railroad from Elkland, and the Wellsboro road from the mines at Antrim, join this old route at Lawrenceville, the railroad center of the county. Three miles south of that place, at a station called "Tioga Junction," the recently constructed line from Elmira intersects with the Tioga Railroad, affording a ready exit to all points east and south, and added market facilities to all classes of producers.

What is true in regard to the resources of the State of Pennsylvania is true, in a more restricted sense, of Tioga, the "Banner county." Here the farmer and the miner have gone hand in hand from the beginning; and to-day the click of the pick and shovel from the bowels of the earth, and the clatter of the reaper in the fields of waving grain are the heralds of the prosperity of her people.

It has been said "that country is the most prosperous where labor commands the greatest reward." Tioga County gives lavishly to the honest and persistent worker. There are few richer interests in the state than the mining interests of "Old Tioga," and her farming population is basking in the sunshine of happiness and prosperity.

The agricultural resources of Tioga county are unsurpassed. Her valleys are uncommonly prolific, and the soil of her hill farms is rich, fertile, and productive. All parts of the county yield good crops of cereals, and fruits and grasses flourish on the high lands and in the valleys

Noted as are Bradford, on the east, and Steuben, on the north, for their dairy productions, they are no more favorably regarded in this respect than Tioga County. It produces much butter and cheese, and both find a ready demand in the market.

To afford the reader some idea of the dairy production of Tioga County, we insert the following exhibit of the amount of butter shipped at Elkland station from January, 1874, to August, 1876:

When it is remembered that the above figures represent only a portion of the production of the Cowanesque Valley alone (some of it being carried to Addison, N.Y.), and that large shipments are made from the stations on the Wellsboro; and the Tioga and Elmira State Line railroads, while thousands of pounds from the south-eastern townships are taken to Troy and Canton, Bradford County, some just conception of the immensity of the agricultural resources of this section may be formed.

The coal of Tioga county is used in almost every city, village, and settlement in the east and west, and it furnished fuel to many of the ocean vessels that ply between our ports and those of foreign lands. "One of the most important advantages of Tioga County," wrote James Macfarlane, Ph. D., author of "The Coal Fields of America," "consists of the coal basin which extends through it’s southern townships. The surface rocks of this part of Pennsylvania, when traced for some distance, are found not to lie in a horizontal position, but their dip shows the existence of flexures of the strata forming three basins, running in a north-east and south-west direction. The first, and the only one of importance, is the third coal basin, as described by the State geologists, extending through Ward, Hamilton, Bloss, Duncan, and pars of the adjoining townships. The fourth basin runs through Jackson, Tioga, Shippen, and Gaines townships, and is shown by the red colored rocks which prevail through this district. Just before it runs out of the county, some patches of the conglomerate rock which lies below the coal are found, and probably a little coal, but there is not enough of it to be considered of importance. In the northwest corner of the county is a similar empty coal basin. These are the top ends of two basins which, further south in the State, are very important coal districts, but as the stratas rise towards the north-ease, the valuable coal deposits had run out before reaching Tioga County."

The first corporation formed for the purpose of operating and developing the mining interests of the Blossburg coal region was organized in 1838. It was called the Arbor Coal Company. Since that date the business of mining has been prosecuted at different times in Tioga county by William M. Mallory, D. S. Magee, the Tioga Improvement Company, the Salt Company of Onondaga, the Morris Run Coal Company, the Fall Brook Coal company, and the Blossburg Coal Company. Mines have been opened and operations carried on at Blossburg, Morris Run, Arnot, Fall Brook, and Antrim.

Iron ore has been found in goodly quantities in various portions of the county. At one time it was mined quite extensively in Richmond township, west of Mansfield, and a furnace was erected at that place. This establishment is known as the Tioga Iron Works, Messrs, Johnson & Shauber, proprietors. There are many indications of the presence of iron in the hills bordering the little stream flowing through the eastern part of the county, known by the name of Mill Creek. Specimens of ore taken from this section have been tested by competent persons with very flattering results. There are deposits of ore in that region near the intersection of Babb’s Creek with Pine Creek; but a practical development of these deposits, as well as of those in other parts of they county, I necessary to determine their value, and it is not probably that they will be opened to any extent until they are brought into more direct communication with the markets of the outside world by the construction of railroads through the sections mentioned.

The "Hathaway Ore," the discover of Dr. G. W. Hathaway, of Tioga, in a hillside owned by him about a mile from that place, is a new metal which

at the present time is attracting the careful attention of metallurgists and scientific men. It is being subjected to the nicest testa known to workers in the metals; and should the ultimate decision as to its qualities prove favorable to the claims of its discoverer, it will work many marked changes in the manner of manufacturing iron and steel.

Though the immense quantities of timber which, in its earlier days, gave Tioga County celebrity as a lumber county are by no means exhausted, the manufacture of lumber is not so important an element as it as in former years, yet this branch of industry contributes no inconsiderable amount to the public prosperity at the present time. From the date of the general settlement of the Tioga and Cowanesque valleys to the time of the civil war, saw mills were erected at convenient distances along the two rivers, and the manufacture of lumber was one of the most important industries of this section, affording employment to large numbers of men who were variously engaged in cutting and hauling the logs to the mills, sawing it into boards, planks, and timber suitable for building purposes, or rafting it down the Susquehanna to markets of Southern Pennsylvania and Baltimore. But with the depletion of the pine, once a source of so much profit to the lumbermen of Tioga County, and the depression in this branch of trade consequent upon the general financial stringency of the times, lumbering has been gradually taking a lower rank among the business interests of "Old Tioga," The mills along the two rivers are many of them abandoned to the destruction of the elements, and their ruins remain, here and there, to attest mutely but eloquently to that change which is altering the face of our whole broad land. But miles away from the valleys, in the somber shadows of the hemlock timber, by swiftly rushing creeks, or at the outskirts of some

of the remote hamlets, new mills have been erected within a few years, and the process of "clearing up the country" has begun.

But while the lumber interest has been waning, another no less important has grown apace, and at the present time stands foremost among the manufacturing enterprises of Tioga county. The almost unlimited quantity of hemlock growing along the hillsides in every part of the county has contributed to render the tanning interest secondary only to the mining and agricultural interests. It has been impossible to obtain correct data from which to note the rise and progress of this important branch of industry, but some idea of its value as an element of general prosperity may be obtained when it is remembered that there are in the county twelve large tanneries, which turn out on an average from 20,000 to over 130,000 sides of sole leather a year, employ from twenty to fifty men each, and purchase for cash from five hundred to one thousand cords of hemlock bark each, or an aggregate of not less than 100,000 cords.

Of the other important manufacturing enterprises of Tioga County, the following stand forth conspicuously as among the most prominent: The Covington Glass Works, the glass works of Messrs, Hirsch, Ely & co., Blossburg, the Wellsboro Iron Works, the furniture manufactory of M. King, at Mansfield, the Tioga Lock company, the manufactory of the "Farmers Favorite Fanning Mill," at Lawrenceville, and Ingham Brothers Woollen Mill, Academy Corners.

In no part of the commonwealth are the interests of education more carefully guarded or more thoroughly and systematically advanced. There are, within the county limits according to the Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the year ending June 1, 1876, 294 schools,

employing 446 teachers at an aggregate salary of 43,355.52, and affording instruction to an average attendance of 6,867 scholars, at an expense to the taxable citizens of the county of $67,757.64. the total number of children of the school age in the county is 15,128. The schools in most of the boroughs are graded, the best available talent and experience is secured in the teachers of their different departments, and they offer advantages for obtaining a practical education which, a few years ago, were to be found only in pretentious and expensive academies and high schools.

The Mansfield State Normal School (of the fifth district), located in Mansfield Borough, Richmond Township, Tioga County, is deserving of especial mention as one of the most thorough educational institutions in the State. From the recent report of the principal, Prof. Chas. H. Verrill, we learn that this school "has graduated eleven classes, as follows:--Class of 1866, 15 members; class of 1867, 21 members; class of 1868, 30 members; class of 1869, 19 members; class of 1870, 19 members; class of 1871, 31 members, and six instrumental music; class of 1872, 12 members; class of 1873, 16 members; class of 1874, 18 members; class of 1875, 31 members; class of 1876, 21 members. Total 239." In proportion to the whole number of students enrolled, no other school in the State is able to show so large a list of graduates, and but one other has graduated a larger number. Notwithstanding the stringency of the times, the last year was a very successful one, and great progress was made.

Throughout the length and breadth of the county, those twin messengers of enlightenment and civilization, the Church and the Press, are sustained with a flattering and honorable liberality. The people as a class, are thrifty and intelligent, and in nearly e very town and village, societies for professional or intellectual advancement hold their sessions. The most exacting cannot fail to rejoice at the progress and prosperity of the past, and the gloomiest and most fearful can see nothing but brilliant promise for the future—for as Benjamin Franklin said, "a BIBLE and a newspaper in every house, a good school in every district—all studied and appreciated as they merit—are the principal supports of virtue, morality, and civil liberty."

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