East Petersburg

By -


EAST PETERSBURG - Founded 1800. Founded by Daniel Wolf, pioneer settler. East Petersburg Borough was formed in 1946 to fill a need to establish a municipal water system due to a typhoid fever epidemic, but the community’s roots date nearly to the time of the American Revolution. In fact, a farmhouse near the eastern end of the borough was built before the war, and a nearby mill was already producing grain.

In 1789, Peter Gotshall inherited 50 acres of land in the area from his father, Peter Gotshall the elder. Two years later the younger Peter Gotshall sold off his land in about five pieces. One of the buyers of Peter Gotshall’s parcels was John Wolf, who in 1806 sold land to his nephew, Daniel Wolf, who founded East Petersburg. Also in the early 1790s, Benjamin Hershey II, a Mennonite farmer, donated land at the northwest corner of present day Lemon and State Streets and a community meetinghouse was built there.

At that point the area of present-day East Petersburg was known as Heckel Stettle, with "stettle" being the German word for settlement and "heckel" being the German word for hemp or flax processing. In honor of the original property owner Peter Gotshall, Daniel Wold called his new development Petersburg. Later, when the postal service made efforts to become more efficient, it was discovered that another Petersburg existed in Pennsylvania. The Petersburg in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania was established in 1795, making it older than the Petersburg that Wolf developed in Lancaster County. The easiest way to solve the duplication was to add "East" to Petersburg, as it was the most eastern of the two Petersburgs.


How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
Lancaster Online - 5 Key Moments in East Petersburg's History
Uncharted Lancaster - How did ‘Heckel Stettle’ become East Petersburg? 
East Petersburg Borough - About

Location: East Petersburg, PA, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Inwood Iron Bridge - Lebanon County, Pennsylvania

By -
Image
  While the number of historic iron truss and metal truss bridges has been dwindling over the years due to several factors, occasionally a bridge will be preserved for its historical value. Such is the case of the Inwood Iron Bridge, which was built in 1899 and located near Lickdale, Pennsylvania. The Inwood Iron Bridge was fabricated by the Pittsburgh Bridge Company and erected by Nelson and Buchanan of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. It is historically significant as one of the oldest surviving Pennsylvania thru truss highway bridges in Pennsylvania. Early examples of Pennsylvania (Petit) thru-truss highway bridges from before the 20th Century were not common as the design was more often used for railroad bridges. Only a handful of such roadway bridges have been identified around Pennsylvania, making the Inwood Iron Bridge more historically significant. The 151-foot-long Inwood Iron Bridge crossed Swatara Creek and was located not far from Swatara State Park in Lebanon County, Pennsylvan
Read more

Warden Mine - Elizabeth Township

By -
Image
Throughout Pennsylvania, there are numerous abandoned coal mines.  In fact, if you live in Southwestern Pennsylvania, it is quite likely that one once ran underneath your home . With the abundance of former coal mines in the area, you're bound to come across an old shaft entrance or other leftover example.  With varying degrees of difficulty, you can find these relics of an earlier industrial era.  One such remnant can be found at the intersection of Douglas Run Road and Round Hill Road in Elizabeth Township.  The entrance to the former Warden Mine sits hidden behind fill, trees, and vegetation which makes the old brick entrance best seen in winter. Entrance to the former Warden Mine on a frigid December 2008 afternoon (Adam Prince) The Warden Mine opened in 1925 and operated until July 1954.  The bituminous coal mine was owned by the Pittsburgh Consolidated Coal Company.  In addition, the mine also centralized numerous local mines.  The nearby community of Victory (Mustard
Read more

Quarryville

By -
Image
  QUARRYVILLE - Founded 1791. Named for noted quarries located here. Abram Barr is said to be the first to take limestone from the area in 1820 and the settlement of what is today Quarryville was due largely to the development of limestone quarries. By 1858, over 600,000 bushels of limestone were hauled from more than 12 quarries in the area, which employed over 100 people. Johnny Weir , a figure skater who competed for the United States Olympic teams in 2006 and 2010, grew up in Quarryville. How to Get There: Sources and Links: Quarryville Borough - Brief History of Quarryville
Read more