PAPAS ATION §

5

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

THE NEW PENNSYLVANIA STATE CAPITOL BUILDING (as proposed).
 

 

 

 

A HISTORY OF
"PENNSYLVANIA

 

 

 

BY

L. S. SHIMMELL, PH.D.

Teacher of United States History and Civil Government, High School,
Harrisburg, Pa. Author of “The Pennsylvania Citizen”

 

: Darrisburg, Pa.
BR. L. MYERS & COMPANY

1900

 
COPYRIGHT, 1900
By R.L. MYERS & CO.

Set up and electrotyped
January, 1900

PRESS' OF THE STAR-INDEPENDENT,
Shimmell’s Pa. Hist. : HARRISBURG, PA.

GL - Hall
PREFACE

When historical societies for study and research in
Pennsylvania history — local and general — are multi-
plying all over the State, no apology is needed for
writing a book on the subject. Pennsylvania has a
history of more than two centuries. It consists, like
that of the other States which separated from Great
Britiain to form the American Union, of a Colonial, a
Revolutionary, and a Constitutional period. It has
always been a part of another history: first of Eng-
land, and then of the United States. This is true,
not alone in a nominal, but in a real sense. United
States history, whether its political, social, or indus-
trial side, is of a composite nature. Every State
helps to make it. The contribution of the thirteen
original States is the greatest, because they have a
Colonial and a Revolutionary history. In Pennsyl-
vania these periods are especially interesting and im-
portant, though they have been sadly neglected.

But independent of the relation to United States
history, State history has a claim on us for study and
investigation. Pennsylvania ranks second among the
States in wealth and population, and has the proud
distinction of being the Keystone of the Union. If
we would maintain this preéminence we must not be
indifferent to our history, else neither we nor our de-
scendants will attain to greater heights. Anything
that is worthy of a future has a past that ought to be

(iii)

640117
iv : Preface

studied. Then, too, a patriotic duty and a pardonable
pride should move us to study the history of the
State in which we live. It is the history of our fore-
fathers, and we might as well neglect their graves as
their deeds.

There is also a pedagogical reason for the study of
State history. American history, in all its phases, is
receiving increased attention in ‘colleges and univer-
sities. The Association of Colleges and Preparatory
Schools has advocated the adoption of better methods
for teaching the subject. The Committee of Ten of
the National Educational Association recommended its
introduction in two places in the public school course
— in the grammar and the high school. But to ac-
complish all this with the greatest possible degree of
success, there must be a deep and abiding interest
aroused in American history. Such an interest can
be created by the teaching of State history. Its per-
sons, places and events are near in point of place,
and have a great fascination for the mind. To stand
by an historic grave, to set foot upon historic ground,
and to receive history from the lips or the pen of one
who helped to make it, are powerful adjuncts to
teachers and books.

As to its plan and contents, the book may speak
for itself. However, the author desires to call atten-
tion to the chapter of biographical sketches. With
few exceptions the biography of every person named
in the book can be found in that chapter. The chro-
nological arrangement of the Governors’ biographies
and the alphahetical arrangement of all others make
it easy to find them. Whenever the name of a person
is met for the first time, his biography should be read.
Preface v

In writing “A Pennsylvania History,” the author
performed the part of a pioneer. In the plan and
scope of this work, there was no book to imitate and
none to modify; consequently much original research
in official reports and documents was necessary, and
constant visits to the best libraries in the State had
to be made. This explanation is made to soften criti-
cism amd make it charitable. However, the author
will be greatly obliged for the communication of any
error, and for suggestions by which he can improve

the book.
L.S.8,

HARRISBURG, PA., January 2, 1900.
 
CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE
1. ThE INDIANS OFF PENNSYLVANIA . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1. Their Geographical Distribution . . . . . . . . 1
9 heir Native Charaeter . . . . .°. . cL. 0. 8
3. Their Mode of Life... . - «.. « «wo, : . 11
II. THE SETTLEMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA . . . . . . . . . 14
1 Mhe Dutch, i «vais be aan ns gh, 14
9 Mhe Swedes . . . « +: cv vine dies ors 17
3. The English... . . .: <. . «voi. L00 21
4. The Germans... - + a «ovis ow J. 0 0 +539
5. The Welsh, . .--. .-o ss «0h va vs eins 52
6, The Seoteh-Irish. . . . . . . . v. . v.00. . 53
7. The Prench Huguenots. . . . . . 7. i... . 57
III. THE GROWTH OF POPULATION AND THE ADJUSTMENT
OF BOUNDARIES . . . . « . =» = vii «siorein i, 59
TV. Tne Form or GOVERNMENY . . . . . . =. an 98
V. THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE GOVERNMENT . . . . . 112
1. The Colonial Period... . ... +... ooh, 112
9. The Revolutionary Period . . . - . . . .. .. 139
3. The Constitutional Period . . . . . ... . . ... 184
VI "me Inpusreiar History. . . . . . . ©. vio oi, 250
Yl, EDUCATION IN PENNSYLVANIA . . . . . + is. «oo. 277
VII]. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES = . . . « v die sive 289
1. The Governors of Pennsylvania . . . . . . . 989
9. Other Historical Persons. .... . . . . ... . 303
PPENDLY. ree a a a a 339
Principal Officers of the United States Government
from Pennsylvania, 1783 to 1900 . . . . . . . +339
INDE, a ar hy ars pn a 341
 
A History of Pennsylvania

CHAPTER 1
THE INDIANS OF PENNSYLVANIA
THEIR GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION

The Indians who occupied the territory of Pennsyl-
vania at the time of its settlement belonged Two Great
to two great families— the Algonquins and Families
the Iroquois. These occupied a part of North America
which was triangular in form, the base extending
from Cape Fear to the coast of Labrador, and the
sides terminating in Lake Superior. The Iroquois,
or Five Nations, were in the center of this triangle,
in the lake region of New York, from Albany to
Niagara Falls. Surrounding these dwelt the numer-
ous nations and tribes of the Algonquins. It was in
the language of the Algonquins that Raleigh’s colo-
nists were greeted at Roanoke, the Pilgrims at Ply-
mouth, and the Quakers at Shackamaxon.

Both these groups had traditions of a western ori-
gin. Of the Algonquins, the Lenni-Lenape,
or the Delawares, as they were called by
the English, were the most important. Their Indian
name signifies “the original people;” and nearly forty
tribes acknowledged them as “great grandfathers.” A
legend was current among the Lenni-Lenape that in

Their Origin
9 A History of Pennsylvania -

the dim past they and the Iroquois were one people,
living beyond the Mississippi. After a time they mi-
grated eastward and came to the Mississippi, where
their passage across was disputed by a nation of fierce
warriors on the eastern bank. The Lenni-Lenape tried
to pass over in the face of the enemy on the other
side. The Iroquois crossed higher up the stream, out-
flanked the enemy, and so enabled their friends to get
over. The fierce nation on the east bank were the
Allegewi, who were driven back until they reached
the mountains. Thence they made their way south-
ward, never to return, leaving no trace except the
names Allegheny and Youghiogheny. The Lenni-
Lenape crossed the mountains and reached the ocean ;
while the Iroquois went up the Allegheny and thence
into central New York. But this is only a legend.
It bears some resemblance to the crossing of the Jor-
dan by the Israelites, the story of which the Delawares
had heard from the missionaries. Still, it accounts
for the geographical distribution of the Algonquins
and the Iroquois over the triangular part of North
America known to have been occupied by them at
the time of its exploration and settlement.

When Penn arrived on the banks of the Delaware,
The Delawares he met there the Lenni - Lenape tribe
and Subtribes = and jts. subtribes. They had made the
Delaware river the center of their possessions.
They consisted of three tribes; viz., the Turtle,
the Turkey, and the Wolf. The first two lived
along the coast from the Hudson to the Potomae,
between the sea and the Blue mountains. The third,
whom the English called Monseys, occupied the moun-
tainous country between the Blue mountains and
The Indians of Pennsylvania 3

the sources of the Delaware and Susquehanna rivers ;
and they kindled their great council fires at the Mini-
sink Flats. These three tribes were divided into nu-
merous subtribes, named, according to Indian custom,
after the rivers, creeks, or other noted places at which
they lived.

According to the tradition of Penn’s treaty, he met
another tribe — the Susquehannocks, or The
Audastes —under the elm tree at Shacka- Susauebannocks
maxon. While the Delawares inhabited New Jersey

   

Penn’s Treaty at Shackamaxon. (See page 23.)

and eastern Pennsylvania, the Susquehannocks occu-
pied the country on the Susquehanna and Allegheny
rivers. The Iroquois, having been supplied with fire-
arms by the Dutch in New York, made war upon
the upper Susquehannocks, and almost exterminated
them. Driven down the Susquehanna valley, the few
4 A History of Pennsylvania

that survived were allowed to establish themselves
along the Conestoga creek, and were afterwards known
as Conestogas. It was this remnant of Susquehan-
nocks with whom Penn treated, jointly with the Dela-
wares, under the Shackamaxon Elm.

The hunting grounds made vacant by the extermi-
TEs rautisies nation of the Susquehannocks were given

to various tribes by the Iroquois. The
upper parts of the Susquehanna valley were allotted to
the Nanticokes, a tribe from the eastern shore of Mary-
land, claiming relationship to the Lenni-Lenape. Some
of this tribe settled on the lower Susquehanna, not far
from where John Harris afterwards established a ferry,
at the present site of Harrisburg. The Nanticokes
had the singular custom of disinterring the bones of
their ancestors and carrying them to their new abode.
They used to go from Wyoming and Shenango to the
.eastern shore of Maryland to get the bones of their
dead.

After disposing of the Susquehannocks, the
The Delawares 1roquois made war on the Delawares.
2s Woren According to the account of the latter,
the Iroquois would have been exterminated had it
not been for the peaceful disposition of the Dela-
wares. Among the Indians, the women are the peace-
makers; the men, though never so weary of the
contest, hold it cowardly to offer the olive branch.
The Iroquois, fearing total extinction, proposed that
the Delawares should assume the character of the
woman among the Indians. “One nation,” said they,
“shall be the woman,” who was not to go to war,
but keep the peace with all, and the men were to hear
and obev the woman. The Delawares were thence-
The Indians of Pennsylvania 5

forth to dress in woman’s long costume, to carry a
calabash filled with oil and medicines, and to engage
in the cultivation of Indian corn.

The Iroquois, though agreeing in the details of this
account, denied that the Delawares chose to play the
woman. They claimed to have conquered the Dela-
wares and forced them to adopt the defenseless state
and name of woman. Whichever account is true, the
fact remains that the Delaware nation was ever after-
wards looked to for the preservation of the peace.
It was entrusted with the great belt of peace and the
chain of friendship, the middle of which was said to
rest on the shoulders of the Delawares, the other
Indian nations holding one end and the Europeans
the other.

The Iroquois, whether by strategy or by force it
matters not, were now in a position t0 Iroquois Rule
assume the rights of protection and com- the Delawares
mand over the Delawares, who, though permitted to
stay in their old homes, were but
little better than serfs. Their con-
querors wandered over their lands
at pleasure. The Senecas and Cayu-
gas frequently came into the valleys
of the Susquehanna, roaming about
at will and using the waters and for-
ests for fishing and hunting. Resi-
dent deputy-governors were appointed
by the grand council of the Iroquois.
Shikellimy, the noted chief residing
at Shamokin in the first half of the
last century, was one of the vice-

 

kings. i ; Shikellimy.
A History of Pennsylvania

The Iroquois were always considered by the Dela-

The wares as only one nation. The name of Five
Five Nations Ngtions (and later Siz Nations) was given
them by their English ally, to magnify their impor-
tance. Their own name—Aquonoschioni— signifies one
house, one family, which consisted originally of the
Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and Senecas.
The alliance of the five tribes was proposed by the

 

MAP
SHOWING THE VARIOUS PURCHASES

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MADE FROM THE INDIANS &C.
§ NN,
na Me KEAY POTTER | TIOGA 78% PD |
NAYS ORD N / E 0 oe & \YNE
- ) —s =
, EL s Oo
2, Hy i. % cunguN(\ LYconine Sens bs
sence) O° 0 luz ENE $5
os “a, ao o ON; 0 ¥
% ha ¥ s/%, 4
4
4 £ % gv 7 UsoN 3 0,
IY 'gurir | 2 C > & a= : i ow
> on 9 PX = 5 of ® A)
< A SS oF PER B ERE :
ue ios > g= J eEnRY oy ¥ ~~ 2
£ 4 TERNS
WASIENGTOY *s i of CHESTER
SOMERSET $ & 5 5 L
: 4 3)
FAYE Q 2
GREENE 8 2 ci Youn

 

 

 

 

Mohawks; hence they rank as the eldest brother in
the family.

The Tuscaroras, the sixth and last tribe in the
league, joined it about one hundred years
after its formation. In 1713, they were
driven out of the upper country of the Neuse and Tar
rivers, in North Carolina, by the whites. They so-
journed in the Juniata valley for some ten years, and
gave their name to a chain of mountains in that see-
tion of the State. In fact, some of them had a village

The
Tuscaroras
The Indians of Pennsylvania 7

in the vailey, which bore their name until after the
purchase of 1758. On the supposition that they were
originally of the same stock with the Five Nations,
the Tuscaroras were adopted into the Iroquois Con-
federacy, which was afterwards known as the Six
Nations.

There was still another nation of Iroquois in Penn-
sylvania ; but they were not connected with
the Five Nations of New York. They were
the Eries, known also as the Cat Nation, by reason
of their cats, a sort of small wolf, from whose skin
robes ornamented with tails were made. These Indians
occupied the western shore of Lake Erie, from Buffalo
to Toledo. Captain John Smith fell in with a party
of them at the head of the Chesapeake bay, whither
they had come to make war on the Susquehannocks.
They had come down by way of the Potomae, and
filled seven canoes, whose construction gave evidence
of experience on some large body of water. The Eries
were overthrown by the Iroquois about the year 1655.
After that time there is no mention of their existence.

A tribe of Indians prominent in the history of
Pennsylvania was the Shawanese. They , =
were the Bedouins of North America, for
as wanderers they were without rivals among their
race. They were Algonquins; but their original home
is not known to a certainty. They have been traced
to the valley of the Cumberland river. Thence, their
principal band moved to the Atlantic slope, in South
Carolina. About the year 1698, some three or four
score families, by leave of the Susquehannocks, planted
themselves on the Conestoga. A few, at the request
of the Monseys, were allowed to settle about the forks

The Eries
8 A History of Pennsylvania

of the Delaware. Other straggling parties joined their
brethren, until, finally, they were a numerous and
powerful tribe in the province. Some historians assign
an earlier date for the migration of the Shawanese, and
claim that they, too, were present when the celebrated
treaty was made at Shackamaxon. It is said that at
a conference held with one of Penn’s successors, this
nation produced the treaty on parchment.

THEIR NATIVE CHARACTER

In delineating the character of the Indians of Penn-

The sylvania, happily for them, we can go back
Good Side {4 3 time when it had not yet become greatly
changed by association with the Europeans. Hecke-
weldew, the great Moravian apostle to the Indians, gives
us an example of how we should judge the red man:

“Often I have listened to these descriptions of their hard
sufferings, until I felt ashamed of being a white man.”

The Indian known to the missionaries of Pennsyl-
vania was a religious being. An old Delaware once
said that it had ever been the custom of his fathers
to climb upon a high mountain to thank the Great
- Manitou (spirit) for all his benefits, and to ask for
a continuance of the same, feeling sure that their
prayers were heard by him. They were very hospi-
table, and expected hospitality in return. Some trav-
eling Delawares once put their horses in a meadow
of fine grass without permission, and, when taken to
account replied, “Can you make the grass grow? The
Great Manitou makes it grow, both for your horses
. and for ours.” Civility was a marked trait in their
The Indians of Pennsylvania 9

character. A “good morning, father,” “grandfather,”
“uncle,” and so on, down to a small grandchild, was
the common form of address. Even the children
saluted one another affectionately and respectfully.
Quarrels were avoided. Fighting, they said, is only
for dogs and other beasts. It was a rare thing to
hear of murders among them in the days before the
settlement of Pennsylvania. This we know from
the testimony of reliable and well-informed Indians
who helped to build the first houses in Philadelphia.
The sense of wit was rare among them, yet there were
occasional instances of it. The Delawares compared
the European nations in America to a pair of SCISsors,
which cut what comes between them. “The Europeans
do not want to destroy themselves in their wars, but
us poor Indians that are between them.” In their
aboriginal state, they were not vain; but they pos-
sessed a high-minded pride that was truly heroic at
times. A white prisoner taken at Fort Melntosh, now
Beaver, and carried into Ohio, was condemned to die
at the stake. Two English traders, acquainted with
the Indian’s personal pride, said to the chief:
“Among all the chiefs there is none to equal you in
greatness.” “Do you really believe what you say ?”
asked the chief, in childish simplicity. “Indeed we
do.” Then the chief rushed through the crowd, cut the
cords around the prisoner, and set him free. Before the
astonishment was over, the prisoner was out of sight.
The Indian, like every other savage race, had a
dark side to his character. His name be- ne
came a synonym for revenge and cruelty, Dark Side
But are we in a position to “east the first stone?”
Our estimate of his character was prepared by the
10 A History of Pennsylvania

white man. “If lions had painters,” illustrates the
Indian’s position in history. Few men outside of
the missionaries told his side of a long, cruel story.
Columbus, the first white man to know the red men,
pays them the high compliment that “they love their
neighbors as themselves.” The original Indians were
not beasts of prey; they became such by exasperation.

Another instance of the deterioration of Indian
character is his drunkenness. When Henry Hudson
and his sailors first offered the cup to the Mohicans
on Manhattan, it was passed around the circle as if
they had been taught the lesson—*touch not, taste
not, handle not.” But one was tempted, and he be-
came the Adam of a long line of Indian drunkards.
The thoughtful Indians of a century or two ago well
knew whom to blame for their drunkenness. A mis-
sionary once asked an Indian at Pittsburg who he
was. He answered: “My name is Black Fish; when
at home with my people, I am a clever fellow, but
when here I am a hog.” William Penn, in his letter
to the Free Society of Traders, in London, says: “Since
the Europeans came into these parts, the Indians are
grown great lovers of strong liquors, rum especially,
and for it exchange the richest of their skins and
furs.” Surprise was often expressed by these simple
children of the forest that a people who believe in a
religion of the Great Spirit, who claim to have his
own word in their houses, could think of making a
liquor to bewitch and to destroy one another. When
the English traders, soon after Penn’s death, had gone
among them in the valleys of the Juniata and the Sus-
quehanna, they had constant complaints to make about
the sale of rum to their people.
The Indians of Pennsylvania 1H

THEIR MODE OF LIFY

The Indians had no code of laws, except a few
unwritten rules of justice and courtesy,
which were enforced by the chiefs and their
counsellors. The wampum, or Indian money, neces-
sary to carry an order of the chief into effect, was
freely given. Important transactions were ratified
by strings and belts of wampum. Black wampum
signified war; white, peace, friendship, good-will.
The pipe of peace, which was made of black or red
stone, had to be whitened before it was used for
such a purpose. To keep treaties fresh in the memory,
the chiefs met occasionally at some chosen spot in
the forest and rehearsed them. Thus, between the
years 1770 and 1780, the Delawares could relate very
minutely what had passed between William Penn and
their forefathers. On such occasions, the Indians sat
around a chest, took out one string or belt after
another, handed it to every person present, and re-
peated the words spoken at its delivery.

The Indians had no schools. The parents taught
the children. The first lessons were about
the Great Spirit and about the duties to
parents and elders. Reading and writing were un-
known arts to them. The Iroquois and Delawares
understood a little counting. The position of the sun
served to show the time of day; and the stages of
the corn, the season of the year. The marriage tie
was weak, and polygamy was permitted. The children
followed the mother in case of separation. The name,
as a rule, was given by the father, who generally
selected that of some animal. Other names were fre-

Few Laws

No Schools
12 A History of Pennsylvania

quently added. Thus, one who wore torn or patched
shoes was called Bad Shoes; one who had large eyes,
Great Eye. To the white men the Indians gave sug-
gestive names of their own. When the Delawares had
learned the meaning of Penn’s name, they at once
called him Miquon, feather or quill. The Iroquois
called him Onas, for the same reason. Ingenious com-
pounds were invented. Thus, the name for Philadel-
phia was Quequenaku, “the grove of the long pine
trees.”

Hunting was considered the most honorable occu-
pation. The Delawares early trained their
boys to run so fast as to overtake a deer,
and to shoot small fishes with their bows and arrows.

Occupations

Bf
Nh

 

Neshaminy Creek, Bucks county.

The oyster, the land-tortoise and the locust were also
in demand for food. Vegetables of various kinds were
raised; but maize, aside from meat and fish, was the
The Indians of Pennsylvania 13

chief food. They planted it after the hazelnut was in
bloom, as a precaution against frost. The shoulder-
blade of a deer or a tortoise shell was used to hoe—
a work that fell to the women.

Dancing and singing were the Indian’s amusement,
though he indulged in them for other pur-
poses. This grotesque performance ended
in a disagreeable yell, which resembled the mewing
of the cat-bird at the close of its pretty song. The
war dance was to terrify, not to please. It was per-
formed around a painted post, and the dancers went
through all the motions and actions of the battle.
After a victory, a dance of thanksgiving was in order.
It was religious in its nature.

Amusements

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Stone’s Life and. Times of Red-Jacket, Ch. i ; Heckewelder’s
Indian Nations; Parkman’s Conspiracy of Pontiac, Ch.i; School-
craft’s Notes on the Iroquois, Chs. iii and iv; Doddridge’s Notes,
passim ; “Loskiel’s Indian Mission, Part 1.
CHAPTER 11

THE SETTLEMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA
THE DUTCH

Penn’s settlers were not the first Europeans to dwell
on the banks of the Delaware. Henry
Hudson, the English explorer, after two
failures under his native flag to discover a short pas-
sage to Asia, got the consent of Holland to try the
same experiment under the Dutch flag. In 1609,
this daring adventurer, with some Netherlanders and
Englishmen, set sail in the Half Moon for China by
way of the northeast. Fogs and ice, and the recollec-
tion of what Frobisher, Drake, Raleigh and other Eng-
lishmen had done in America, made him change his
course. After stopping at various points along the
Atlantic coast, he touched the mouth of “a great bay,”
which was afterwards named Delaware bay, in honor
of Lord Delaware, who entered it the next year.
Hudson spent one day on its waters, and then sailed
north, discovering the river which bears his name.
On this brief visit to Delaware bay the Dutch based
their claim to the country of the Zuydt (south) bay
and river. After Hudson had reported his discoveries
to Holland, five vessels were sent from Amsterdam
to America in 1614. Four of them made explorations
around Manhattan and to the eastward. The other,
under command of Cornelis Jacobson Mey, went south

(14)

Henry Hudson
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 15

and reached Delaware bay, where the Captain left
his name on the southern cape of New Jersey.

The vessels all returned to Holland except the Un-
rest, Captain Cornelis Hendrickson, which Captain
had been built on the Hudson to take the Hendrickson
place of one“that had been burned. The Unrest was
accordingly the first vessel constructed in this country
by Europeans. With it Captain Hendrickson, in 1616,
explored the Delaware more minutely, ascending it as
far north as the mouth of the Schuylkill, which river
he discovered. By a singular coincidence, he met three
Netherlanders near the site of Philadelphia; they had
come there from Fort Nassau (Albany) by way of the
Mohawk and the Delaware. On his arrival home he
gave a glowing account of the land of the Delaware,
describing it as a vast forest, abounding in bucks and
does, turkeys and partridges; the climate temperate,
and the trees mantled by the vine.

The application of the Puritans to settle in America
under the protection of Holland, and the rirst settlement
intimation that the English were disposed on the Delaware
to colonize the lands claimed by the Dutch, led, finally,
to the chartering of the Dutch West India Company,
1621. This corporation at once turned its attention
to its two objects — traffic and eolonization. Its posses-
sions extended from the Delaware to the Hudson, and
were named “The New Netherlands.” In the spring of
1623, Captain Mey sailed for the Delaware bay with
a number of colonists. Passing the cape bearing his
name, he ascended the river for a distance of fifty miles,
and on the eastern shore erected Fort Nassau, near
the present site of Gloucester. This was the first
European settlement on the banks of the Delaware.
16 A History of Pennsylvania

On the west side of the river, an association of
patroons resident in Amsterdam, in 1630
bought an estate from the Indians. A settle-
ment of some thirty people, the first in Delaware, and
older than any in Pennsylvania, was made the next
year on Lewes creek. It was named Swaanendael, but
-its settlers, on account of a petty quarrel between the
commander of the fort and the Indians about a piece
of tin, were all murdered by the savages. Not even
the faithful watchdog escaped. However, the ruins
of Swaanendael and the bones of its Dutch inhabitants
gave Delaware a separate existence. The English rec-
ognized occupancy as a title to the wilderness. Lord
Baltimore’s grant, which he received the year follow-
ing the destruction of Swaanendael, extended over
Delaware. Had it not been occupied before by the
Dutch, the State would likely have been included in
Maryland. .

There is some evidence, too, of a very early Dutch
A Ditth settlement on the soil of Pennsylvania.
Settlementin ~~ Tradition has it that a company of miners
Pennsylvania from Holland made their way from Esopus
(now Kingston), on the Hudson, to the Delaware below
Milford, and settled within the present limits of Mon-
roe and Pike counties, principally on the site of
Shawnee. There are accounts of * mine-holes” near
the Blue mountains, and of a * mine-road” a hundred
miles long. On this road, it is said, the Hollanders
of the Minisink Flats took their wheat and cider
to Esopus on the Hudson as late as 1730, without
knowing anything about Philadelphia. Large orchards
of “apple trees far beyond the size of any near Phila-
delphia” were reported to have been seen by some

Swaanendael
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 17

‘public surveyors about fifty years after the settlement.
of the state.

THE SWEDES

Before the Dutch could recover the soil of Delaware.
from the Indians, a European competitor Gusti
appeared. As early’ as 1624, application Adolphus and
was made to Gustavus Adolphus, King of ORsnistisn
Sweden, by a dissatisfied member of the Dutch West
India Company, for a Swedish West
India Company. - The charter was
granted in 1626. It was a paper
that breathed much love for hu-
manity. All oppressed Christendom
was to have an asylum in the New
World. The colony was to be “the
jewel of the kingdom.” But alas!
the battle of Lutzen put an end to all ag Ne
of this good King’s dreams. Fortu-  gustavus Adolphus,
nately, Oxenstiern, his Premier, be-
came the executor of the plans of the dead master.
Through this wise and good statesman the first per-
manent settlement was made on the Delaware.

Peter Minuit, a German of Wesel, the first gov-
ernor of New Netherlands, was obliged to The Dutch
resign in 1633, on account of factional Purchase
strife. He then offered his services to the Swedes, and
took out the first colony. He arrived in 1638, and
landed his little company of Swedes and Finns near
Lewes, Delaware. A fort was erected near the mouth
of the creek, and both fort and creek were named
Christina, in honor of the little girl who had succeeded

    
18 A History of Pennsylvania

her father to the throne. All the lands from Cape
Henlopen to the Falls of Trenton were purchased
from the Indians, and stakes and marks put up.
The Dutch protested, but without effect. The en-
thusiastic Scandinavians extended their plantations
and their trade with the Indians, and exported thou-
sands of skins the first year.

Seeing their protests defied, the Dutch stationed
The Dutch Some twenty men at Fort Nassau, which
Settlers in had been abandoned with the destruction
Pennsylvania ¢  Qwaanendael. So when Printz, the
third governor of New Sweden, arrived, in 1643, he
selected the island of Tinicum, now Tinicum town-
ship, Delaware county, a few miles below Phila-
delphia, for a place of residence and defense, and
called it New Gottenberg. A strong fort was built
as a protection against attacks from Fort Nassau.

The governor also erected a handsome mansion
with bricks from Sweden. This, it is said, stood for
more than one hundred and fifty years, when
its history was ended by a fire. New Gottenberg
was the first European settlement in Pennsylvania
of which there is positive knowledge. The few English
families, Londoners, who had found the soil of Con-
necticut too stubborn for their easy habits, and had
settled on the Schuylkill, either left or submitted to
Swedish jurisdiction.

It now became evident to the Dutch on the
The Swedes Hudson that the Swedes on the Delaware
Surrender  wepe becoming dangerous rivals. Fort
Nassau, “being too far up and out of the way,” was
broken up, and Fort Casimir erected in 1651, near
the present town of New Castle, and about five
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 19

miles from Fort Christina. It was agreed to be neigh-
borly, but that was impossible. The Swedes soon
took the offensive, gained entrance to Fort Casimir
under pretense of friendship, and overpowered the
garrison. This was a
fatal step. Stuyvesant,
the governor of New
Netherlands, was ordered
to “avenge: the wrong
and to drive the Swedes
from the Delaware or
compel their submis-’

pelled both Fort Casimir
and - Fort Christina
to surrender to him.
Then ended the Swedish power on the Delaware. The
whole territory, from Cape Henlopen to the Falls of
Trenton, passed under the rule of the Dutch, which
remained undisputed, except by Lord Baltimore, until
1664, when all of New Netherlands was taken by the
Duke of York, to whom the King of England had
granted it.

The Dutch were grouped around New Castle and
Leweston ; while the Swedes and Finns { otation
dwelt at Christina creek, at Upland, and of Dutch and
about the present site of Philadelphia. Bvades
With the exception of the brief reversion to the
Dutech—1673 to 1674—these settlements remained in
possession of the Duke of York until he granted them
to William Penn, when those now in Delaware be-
came known as “the three lower counties,” or “the
territories of Pennsylvania.”

 

Swedish houses in Philadelphia.
20 A History of Pennsylvania

The Swedes left some interesting footprints in the
Swedish history of the State. Though they were
Footprints hlended with other nationalities, yet the
modicum of their blood now in the veins of Pennsyl-
vanians is worth examining. It is true that among
the first arrivals there were many bandits. Criminals
were sent over in such numbers that during Printz’s
administration the abuse was forbidden, “lest Almighty
God should let his vengeance fall on the ships and
goods and the virtuous people that were on board.”
However, the Swedes who settled in Pennsylvania are
not remembered by the unworthy ones; these left no
impress on its history. The virtuous and industrious
Swedes are proudly remembered in Bucks, Montgomery,
Delaware and Philadelphia counties, as the first white

   

fail

The Church at Wicaco.

men to woo the virgin soil. They were a religious
people. Their first church was built on Tinicum island,
and was dedicated in 1646. There, too, the first
marriage between Europeans in Pennsylvania is sup-
posed to have been solemnized—that of Governor
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 21

Printz’s daughter, in 1644. In Philadelphia, the Gloria
Dei, or Swedes’ Church, stands as a monument to the
historic church at Wicaco, which was built for the
use of the inhabitants of Passyunk and beyond, about
the year 1669, not far from the site of the navy yard.
It had loopholes, that it might be used as a place of
safety against the Indians or other enemies.

“As once, for fear of Indian beating,
Our grandsires bore their guns to meeting,
Each man equipped, on Sunday morn,
With psalm-book, shot and powder horn.”

Through the Swedes’ court at Upland, Delaware
county has the dictinction of furnishing the first
case of conjugal disagreement in Pennsylvania (1661),
of having first whipped and branded a criminal
(1669), of having laid out the first highway (1677),
of having made the first appointment of a guardian,
and the first commitment of a lunatic (1678), and
of having empaneled the first jury (1678).

THE ENGLISH.

After the lands on the Delaware had finally passed
into the hands of the English, 1674, Governor Andros,
the Duke of York’s deputy in America, made
numerous grants of lands in the territory soon to
become “Penn’s Woods.” The first permanent English
settlement in Pennsylvania was made at this period.
Some Quakers having come from England with fourteen
of their brethren who colonized West Jersey, settled near
the Lower Falls, on land afterwards in Bucks county.
They had become so well established by the time Penn
22 A History of Pennsylvania

founded his colony that he thought of locating his
capital at Pennsbury or Bristol. Some time before
obtaining his charter and sailing for America, he be-
came assignee of one of the Quaker proprietors of
West Jersey and part owner of East Jersey. Through
the correspondence which he had on this account, he

 

William Penn.

learned that “the Indian country on the west side
of the Delaware is most beautiful to look upon, that
it only wanteth a wise people to render it, like the
ancient Canaan, ‘the glory of the earth.’ ”

Three things moved Penn to plant a colony in the New
World : First, he would get payment for
the debt of 16,000 pounds due his father
as an officer of the British navy; secondly, he would
find a place for his brethren, the Quakers, or Friends,
where they would not be openly insulted in the streets,

Penn’s Motives
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 23

dragged from their meeting-houses to loathsome jails,
and robbed of the last bed or cow to pay the fines
for not attending the established church; and thirdly,
he would satisfy the desire which the glowing accounts
of the brethren in West Jersey had created in him.
The second of these motives was by far the strongest.
Penn himself had been tried for preaching to “an un-
lawful, seditious and riotous assembly.” The first
verdict was, “Guilty of speaking in Grace-church
street.” This verdict was brought in repeatedly, in
spite of threats from the judge that he would starve
the jury if they did not say “Guilty,” or “Not Guilty.”
Finally the verdict of “Not Guilty” was rendered,
whereupon the judge fined each of the jurors forty
marks and imprisonment till paid, because they had
followed their “own judgment” rather than the “good
advice ” given them by him. Penn also was fined for
having his hat on in the presence of the court. In
this trial the following words were exchanged :

Lord- Mayor — Stop his mouth ; gaoler, bring fetters and
stake him to the ground. :

William Penn— Do your pleasure; I matter not your fetters.

The Judge — Till now I never understood the reason of the
policy and prudence of the Spaniards in suffering the Inquisition
among them ; and certainly it will never be well with us till
something like the Spanish Inquisition be in England.

From this trial it is seen that William Penn and
his people enjoyed neither religious nor Religious
civil liberty in England. In Europe, church Conditions in
and state, as a rule, are not separate. In Europe
most countries, a certain church—called the estab-
lished church, or state church—is a part of the
government. In the seventeenth century, when all
24 A History of Pennsylvania

but one of the thirteen colonies were planted, there
was a great democratic uprising in England, Holland,
Germany and France; the common people, espe-
cially the owners of small freeholds, began to claim
a share in the government under which they lived.
This desire for greater liberty showed itself most
strongly in religious matters ; for the established
churches in those days interfered very much with
freedom of conscience. As a result, numerous sects
—religious bodies outside of the state church—sprang
up among the common people. As these sects had
everything to gain and nothing to lose, they grew
rapidly, and became very much hated by the govern-
ment. When it was found that they could not be
suppressed, to get rid of them they were allowed to
settle in America. Of these, the one founded by
George Fox—the Quakers, or Friends—was a very.
active one, and, on coming here, they opened wide
the gates of Pennsylvania for the sects of Europe.
As a universal father, Penn opened his arms to all
mankind, without distinction of sect or party. Here
are his own words concerning his purposes:

“And, because I have been somewhat exercised, at times,
about the nature and end of government, it is reasonable to
expect, that I should endeavor to establish a just and righteous
one, that others may take example by it ;—truly, this my heart
desires. * * * T do, therefore, desire the Lord’s wisdom to
guide me, and those that may be concerned with me, that we do
the thing that is truly wise and just.”

With this exalted object in view, Penn, in 1680,
Application’ petitioned King Charles II for a grant of
fora Charter 13nd in America. The king himself was
willing at once, because he could thus pay the debt
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 25

he owed Penn. Some of his counsellors objected,
saying, that it would be ridiculous to suppose that
the interests of the British nation were to be pro-
moted by sending a colony of peo-
ple that would not fight, that would
have nothing to do with gin and
gunpowder in dealing with the
Indians. Had it not been for one
member of the Privy Council, Penn-
sylvania might not exist today.
The nature of his speech, which
won the day for Penn, is seen in
the closing words :

* Surely, then, my lords, you will
agree with me that it is high time for
William Penn and his Quakers to be
off. Yes, my lords, I repeat it; they
must be off, or this excellent government of kings, priests

and nobles is gone forever; and chaos and wild uproar is
come again.”

 

On the fourth day of March, 1681, William Penn
was made, by charter, proprietor and gov- Nama at
ernor of the province of Pennsylvania. His Province and
choice of a name was New Wales; but the Boundaries
king insisted on Pennsylvania. Penn next proposed
Sylvania, on the ground that the prefix Penn would
appear like vanity on his part, and not as a mark of
respect for his father; but no amendment was ae-
cepted. The extent of the province was three degrees
of latitude by five degrees of longitude ; the eastern
boundary being the Delaware river, the northern,
“ the beginning of the three and fortieth degree of
northern latitude, and on the south a circle drawn at
26 A History of Pennsylvania

twelve miles distance from New Castle, northward and
westward into the beginning of the fortieth degree of
northern latitude, and then by a straight line west-
ward to the limits of longitude above mentioned.”
The * three lower counties on the Delaware”’—Kent,
Sussex and the New Castle district—were not included
in the charter. Penn, seeing the importance of con-
trolling this vestibule to his province, secured a grant
for it from the Duke of York the following year.
Penn’s charter hangs in a frame in the State Library at
‘Harrisburg. It consists of three pieces of parchment.
The writing is all underscored in red ink, and a well-
executed likeness of his majesty, the king, is at the
top of the first page.
After publishing an address to the Quakers and to
: others, concerning his new state, Penn drew
First Settlers
up a form of government and a code of
laws, and sent his cousin, William Markham, to take
possession of the country and act as deputy governor.
Markham arrived in the Delaware about July 1, 1681.
Later in the year, three ships sailed for Pennsylvania,
two from London and one from Bristol. Several ses-
sions of court were held at Upland under Markham’s
rule. The first entry was dated September 13, 1681.
It was a case of assault and battery, notwithstanding
that it occurred in the peaceful land of Penn. The
deputy governor was joined by three commissioners
soon after his arrival, to confer with the Indians
about the sale of land and to make a league of peace
with them. The first purchase was made July 15,
1682. The tract extended along the Delaware from
the mouth of the Neshaminy to the Blue mountains.
Markham paid for it as follows :
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 27

* 350 ffathoms of Wampum, 20 white Blankits, 20 ffathoms
of Strawed waters, 60 ffathoms of Duffields, 20 Kettles, 4 whereof
large, 20 gunns, 20 Coates, 40 Shirts, 40 payre of Stockings, 40
Howes, 40 Axes, 2 Barrels of Powder, 200 Barres of Lead, 200
Knives, 200 small Glasses, 12 Payre of Shoes, 40 Copper Boxes,
40 Tobacco Tonngs, 2 small Barrels of Pipes, 40 payre of Scissors,
40 Combs, 24 pounds Red Lead, 100 Aules, 2 handfulls of ffish-
hooks, 2 handfulls of Needles, 40 pounds of Shott, 10 Bundles of
Beads, 10 small Saws, 12 Drawing Knives, 4 anchers of Tobacco,
2 anchers of Rumme, 2 anchers of Syder, 2 anchers of Beere and
300 Gilders.”

Markham also held some conferences with the
Indians, simply to cultivate peace and friendship.
On these occasions he would read to them a letter
from Penn, in which he said:

“I have great love and regard for you, and desire to win and
gain your love and friendship by a kind, just and peaceable life;
and the people I send are of the same mind, and shall in all
things behave themselves accordingly.”

Having made every arrangement for his own de-
parture, Penn took an affectionate leave
of his wife and children and went on
board the good ship Welcome, September 1, 1682. The
number of passengers was about one hundred, mostly
Quakers who had been his neighbors in Sussex,
England. Some thirty died of small-pox, and were
buried in the sea. Otherwise the voyage was un-
eventful. Penn greatly endeared himself to the com-
pany by his kind and untiring ministrations to the
sick and dying. After six weeks, land was sighted on
the coast of New Jersey, about Egg Harbor. In
passing up the Delaware, the Dutch and Swedes, now
his subjects, received him with great joy. He landed
at New Castle, October 27. Here, the next day, he

Penn’s Arrival
28 A History of Pennsylvania

called the people together in the Dutch court house

“and took legal possession of the country, assuring
the inhabitants of liberty of conscience and of civil
freedom.

Two days later Penn went to Upland to call the
First General Jirst gemeral assembly. He changed the
Assembly name of Upland to Chester, in honor of
his friend Pearson, a companion on the Welcome, who
had lived in Chester, England. Upland was the home
of most of the immigrants from England who had
preceded the Welcome, and their hospitality knew no
bounds except their scanty means.

From Chester, Penn, with a few others, traveled
up the Delaware in an open boat, in the
early days of November, when the banks of
the river had been freshly painted with colors mixed
by Autumn’s hands. His mission was to meet the
Indians and publicly ratify the Treaty of Eternal
Friendship, which Markham and his associates had
previously made. When he arrived at Shackamaxon,
the Indians had already filled the woods as far as
the eye could see. After the chiefs had arranged
themselves in the form of a half-moon, Penn, with no
mark of power save a blue sash around his waist,
addressed them in the name of the Great Spirit, who
made and rules all mankind:

Penn’s Treaty

“We meet on the broad pathway of good faith and good will;
no advantage shall be taken on either side, but all shall be open-
ness and love. I will not call you children, for parents chide
their children too severely ; nor brothers only, for brothers differ.
The friendship between me and you I will not compare to a chain;
for that the rains might rust or the falling tree might break. We
are the same as if one man’s body were to be divided into two
parts; we are all one flesh and blood.”
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 29

After receiving some presents from Penn, the Indians
gave the belt of wampum and solemnly pledged them-
selves to live in love with him and his children as
long as the sun and moon should endure. “This,” says
Voltaire, “was the only treaty between these people
and the Christians that was made without an oath,
and that was never broken.” Penn had many other
conferences of this kind with the Indians, and he was
kindly remembered by them for years. At a meeting
between Governor Keith and the Five Nations, held
at Conestoga in 1721, the spokesman of the Indians
said: “We shall never forget the counsel that William
Penn gave us; though we cannot write, as the English,
yet we can keep in the memory what was said in
our councils.” So faithful were they to him that
not a drop of Quaker blood was shed by them
while he lived.

The Elm Tree under which the treaty was made
afterwards became celebrated. The British
General Simcoe, who was once quartered
near it in the Revolutionary War, so respected it that
when his soldiers were cutting down trees for fire-
wood, he placed a guard under it. A storm blew it
down in 1810, and it was found to have been two
hundred and eighty-three years old. Its site, marked
by a monument erected in 1827, is now surrounded by
a beautiful park. The statue of William Penn on the
tower of City Hall, Philadelphia, faces in the direction
of the Elm in Kensington, and silently admonishes the
people of Pennsylvania to be true to the principles of
its founder.

After the treaty was made, Penn proceeded up the
Delaware to see the mansion which Markham was

The Treaty Elm
30 A History of Pennsylvania

building for him at Pennsbury, Bucks county. It was
erected at great expense, and remained the marvel of
the neighborhood for many years, but Penn and his
family lived in it only a short time, from 1700 to
1701. It was afterwards neglected, and just before
the Revolution its crumbling walls were removed and
the ground on which it stood passed out of the Penn
family.

When the time for the first meeting of the General
The Province Assembly had arrived, Penn returned to
Formed Chester. During a three days’ session, the
machinery of government was set up and put into
operation ; the Dutch, Swedes, and foreigners of all
description, were naturalized; and the Province of
Pennsylvania was a complete fact. The “holy experi-
ment,” as Penn called his new state, had been begun.
Having fairly purchased some land from the natives,
he made a survey of it, and divided it into three
counties — Philadelphia, Bucks, and Chester. The first
was named after the city then building; the second,
after Buckinghamshire, the land of Penn’s ances-
tors; and the third after his friend Pearson’s native

city.
Bucks and Chester had definite boundaries; but
The Three Philadelphia embraced the whole province

Original Counties hetween them,— north, northwest, and
northeast,—to an indefinite extent. The northern
boundary of Bucks extended to the Kittatinny (Blue)
mountains, “or as far as the land might be purchased
from the Indians.” Chester included the territory
southwest of the Schuylkill to the extreme limits of
the province. By the formation of Berks, in 1752,
the northern boundary of Philadelphia was limited ;
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 31

and when, in 1784, Montgomery was erected, the
largest county became the smallest.

“The great town” in Pennsylvania was to be near
the. junction of the Delaware and ‘the  iocationof
Schuylkill. The navigability of both rivers, Philadelphia
especially of the Delaware, the abundance of brick-
earth and building-stone, the beauty of the location,—
these and other circumstances put Philadelphia near
the Indian village of Quequenaku, “the grove of the
long pine trees.” The ground was in the possession of
a few Swedes, who were readily induced to exchange
it for land elsewhere.

The plan of Philadelphia was so well conceived that
there is no other city in the United States Its Plan
in which a stranger can so easily find his and Name
way. With few exceptions, the streets cross each
other at right angles. Those originally running east
and west—mnine in number — were all named after the
various kinds of trees in the forest around, as, Vine,
Spruce, Pine, Sassafras, Willow, Chestnut, Walnut,
ete.; those running north and south — twenty-three
altogether — were numbered from the Delaware, Front
street to Broad street, and from the Schuylkill, Front
street to Broad street. In the center of the city was
to be a square of ten acres, each corner of which was
to be reserved for public offices. In each quarter of
the city, there was to be another square of eight
acres, to be used by the people like the Moorfields in
London. These public squares, though not located as
planned, are all in Philadelphia today, and con-
stitute pleasant oases in the center of a vast extent:
of brick and stone. The city was named after a
town in Lydia, Asia Minor, the seat of one of the
32 A History of Pennsylvania

seven early Christian churches. Philadelphia iia
“brotherly love.”

Few of the settlers of Philadelphia had the time or
the means to build houses before the win-
ter of 1682-83 set in; hence many of them
lived like conies, in caves dug under the high bluff
on the river-front between Vine and Walnut streets.
The next year nearly one hundred houses were built,
sheltering more than five hun-
dred inhabitants; and two
years afterwards six hundred
houses had displaced the trees
and thickets of the forest.
The Swedes and Indians were
very kind to the infant colony,
the former sharing their shel-
ter and the latter their game.
Some well-to-do settlers had brought with them houses
in frame, tools, implements, and furniture, as well as
food and raiment to last them for some time after
their arrival. The poorer classes had to put up mere
huts, made from timber freshly cut in the forest.
Penn furnished a general plan for their construction,—
30 x 18 feet, partitioned in the middle, covered and
lined with clapboards and the intervening space filled
with earth, the ground floor of clay and the upper of
wood, and the roof of clapboard also. Philadelphia in
a few years gained more in population than New York
did in half a century. Penn was so happy over his
success that he congratulated himself in these words :

Its Houses

 

An Old House, 1685.

“I must without vanity, say, that I have led the greatest col-
ony into America that ever any man did upon private credit,
and the most prosperous beginnings that ever were made any-
where are to be found among us.”
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 33

Not all of Penn’s brethren settled in Philadelphia.
Many, as they landed, distributed themselves through
the country. They were thinly scattered from the
Falls of Trenton to Chester. The leading settlements
were at Byberry, a noted suburb of Philadelphia in
colonial times ; at Bristol, the second chartered borough
in Pennsylvania; at Pennsbury, the site of Penn’s
country residence ; at Chester, the first seat of gov-
ernment ; at Birmingham, the township in which the
battle of Brandywine was fought; at Kennett, which,
as Letitia’s Manor, had originally been surveyed for
Penn’s daughter Letitia ; and at Marcus Hook, where
the first Friends’ meeting was established. Fortu-
nately for those who arrived in the first ships, the
winter was mild and open, and they all cleared enough
land to plant a crop of Indian corn in the spring.
The following extract from a letter of Richard Town-
send, who went out with William Penn, shows how
the rural settlers fared:

“After our arrival we found the country a wilderness. The in-
habitants were Indians and Swedes, who received us in a friendly
manner and brought us provisions at very reasonable rates. After
some time, I set up a mill on Chester ereek, which I brought
ready framed from London, which served for grinding of corn and
sawing of boards. Besides, I made a net and caught great quan-
tities of fish, which supplied ourselves and many others; so that,
notwithstanding, it was thought that nearly three thousand
persons came in the first year, we were so providentially pro-
vided for that we could buy a deer for two shillings, and a large
turkey for one shilling, and Indian corn for two shillings and six-
pence a bushel.”

The government having been organized, peace with
the natives confirmed, the fundamental law Penn's
established, and courts of justice instituted, Departure
Penn, in August, 1684, sailed for England, with this

C
34 A History of Pennsylvania

parting prayer upon his lips: “And thou, Philadelphia,
the virgin settlement of this province, my soul prays
to God for thee, that thou aves stand in the day of
trial, and that thy
children may be
blessed.” His family,
his estate, and certain
matters pertaining to
his colony, especially
the boundary be-
tween it and Mary-
land, made his return
| necessary. These
William Penn House. affairs kept him in
In Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. England till 1699.
When he returned, Philadelphia had more than two
thousand houses; and he walked the streets almost a
stranger. He found that his influence
was not what it had been when he left,
fifteen years before. However, he was
warmly welcomed by the Indians. He
made two journeys at this time to the
interior of the province. He sailed for
England in October, 1701, where a riot-
ous son and an unfaithful steward had
plunged him so deeply into debt that he
had to mortgage his province for 6,600
pounds and suffer imprisonment besides. :
Penn negotiated to sell his right in “Sg
the government to the Crown, but Penn's Clock.
wai stricken with paralysly, in 1712, B20 isin
He died six years later ; but his name will live as long
as Father Time remembers the history of Pennsylvania.

 

 
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 35

The Friends originally differed little in dress from
the other non-conformists to the Church characteristics
of England. They all opposed the display of the Friends
then so much made by the upper classes. When the
Friends started as a sect, broad-brimmed hats were com-
mon, and so were coats with straight collars. The drab
they chose as their color because it differed least from the
uncolored state of cloth. They respected all honorable
occupations alike. William Penn wanted his children
to become husbandmen and housewives, and one of
his sons learned the trade of a linen draper. Laborers
were not looked upon as drudges, though it must be
admitted that some of them were slaves. However,
the Friends, as early as 1693, advised that none
should “buy except to free.” Not far from Frankford
was an old tombstone, the inscription on which says
that the occupant of the grave, Friend Sandiford,
“bore testimony against the Negro trade.”

The Friends have always been noted for intelligence.
Within three years of Penn’s landing, a Marks of
printing press was running in Philadelphia. Intelligence
One of its earliest publications was an almanac, printed
in the year 1685. William Bradford brought with him
from England type, a press, printing paper, and ink,
to set up the trade of printing Friends’ books. The
first newspaper, “The American Weekly Murcury,” was
started in Philadelphia December 22, 1719, at which
time there were only two others in the colonies,
namely, in Boston. Penn established a post office in
1683; and in 1717, there was a settled route from Vir-
ginia and Maryland to Philadelphia and to all the
northern colonies. Pennsylvania was even then the
Keystone Province. The botanic garden of John
36 A History of Pennsylvania

Bartram, whom Linnaeus called “the greatest natural
botanist in the world,” became a Mecca for scientists,
and many a visitor to Philadelphia inquired his way
to Bartram’s garden,
on the Schuylkill. As
to schools, the Friends
favored an elementary
education for all alike
— the rich and the
poor; but they were
opposed to great
scholarship; yet now
they have a Bryn
Mawr, a Haverford
and a Swarthmore Col-
lege. Art and poetry
were also under the
ban of their doctrine ;
yet there arose among
them a West and a
Taylor.

The chief immigration of the Friends took place

Other before the year 1700. Up to that time
English Settlers they were the most numerous class of
people in the province. Other English settlers, how-
ever, had found their way to Pennsylvania, but in
much smaller numbers. Chief among these were the
Episcopalians, or people of the Church of England,
some of whom arrived soon after Penn. By the
charter of the province they had the right to establish
a parish whenever twenty or more petitioned for one.
This was done in 1695, and Christ church, with its
first bell hung in the crotch of a tree, was built on

 

 

Old Cypress in Bartram’s Garden.
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 37

Second street, north of Market. The present brick

building, so full of historic interest, was begun in
1727 and completed in 1755. Benjamin Franklin was

one of the managers of the lottery (s method quite

dd

:

      

ot

ER Lai
Christ Church.

common in those days for raising church funds) by
which money was secured for the steeple and the
chimes. On July 4, 1776, these chimes, the second
in America, joined the old bell on Independence Hall
in proclaiming “liberty throughout the land unto all

the inhabitants thereof.”
38 A History of Pennsylvania

Washington worshipped in this church frequently,
and the pew in which he sat was presented to Inde-
pendence Hall. In the chancel were buried the remains
of John Penn (afterwards removed to England), Bishop
White, Robert Morris, General Forbes, and other dis-
tinguished men. In the graveyard at Fifth and Arch,
Franklin and his wife Deborah, General James Irvine,
Peyton Randolph, president of the first Continental
Congress, Francis Hopkinson, Commodore Bainbridge,
and others noted in their country’s history, lie at
rest. The first regular minister of Christ church was
Rev. Thomas Clayton, under whose ministrations the
membership increased to seven hundred in two years.
Rev. Jacob Duché, who opened the first Continental
Congress with that remarkable prayer (see p. 146),
officiated at the time of the Revolution. His successor,
Rev. William White, served as rector till 1836.

At first the Episcopalians spread rapidly over the
Their province, but most of them lived in Phila-
Settlements (e]phia, where they became very prominent
in political and social life. Some of the Quaker
families joined them,
among whom were the
sons of Penn. They
y also absorbed most of
&% the Swedish popula-
tion, and the Gloria
Dei at Wicaco, as
well as other Swedish
churches, became their
property. Around
Philadelphia, they quite early organized several
congregations. At Radnor, St. David’s church is to

   

St. David’s, at Radnor.
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 39

this day a most interesting relic of colonial his-
tory, for it is well-nigh two hundred years old.
Other places where the Episcopalians were in suffi-
cient numbers to have church organizations were
Chester, Bristol, Perkiomen, Pequea and Lancaster.

THE GERMANS

As William Penn offered impartial liberty of con-
science to all who were under religious Teavele
oppression, Pennsylvania was “an asylum in Holland
to the good and oppressed of every na-  2°¢ Germany
tion.” The Germans, after the Friends, were the first
to become interested in his ‘* holy experiment.” Penn,
whose mother was a Dutch woman, had twice been
traveling in Holland and Germany, preaching the
doctrine of the “inner light,” first in the year 1671,
and again in 1677, when he was accompanied by George
Fox and several others. Their preaching made them
many devoted friends in various denominations; but
they were most kindly received by the Mennonites.
These people, like the Friends, took not the sword,
swore not at all, were non-resistant, and in dress and
speech were plain and in manners simple. The tran-
sition between the two sects was easy. Quakers in
some instances became Mennonites, and Mennonites
became Quakers. Having thus become associates in
religion while still in Europe, it was natural that the
two sects should become neighbors in the wilds of
America. The Mennonites had been driven up and
down the Rhine by persecution for a century and a
half, and they now gladly braved the dangers of the
sea to find a haven of rest beyond it.
40 A History of Pennsylvania

Before Penn had come to America, one Jacob
Some Mennon-.. Loluier, of Crefeld, a town on the Rhine
ites here just outside of Holland, had made a
before Penn voyage to America some time between
1678 and 1681. This was the first step in the settle-
ment of Germantown by the Mennonites. Furthermore,
twenty years before Penn’s arrival, in 1662, a small
company of about twenty-five Dutch Mennonites had
settled on Delaware bay. They were scattered and
destroyed by the English when that country was taken
from the Dutch. The leader and his wife escaped ;
and after wandering in the wilderness many years,
they came to Germantown, where they were cared for
by their brethren.

Telner, early in 1682, organized a company among
Germantown his neighbors and bought a large tract of
Settisd land near Philadelphia. Another company in
Germany, the Frankfort Company, had also made large
purchases ; but none of these from Frankfort, except
Francis Daniel Pastorius, Whittier’s “Pennsylvania
Pilgrim,” settled here. This distinguished man came
to Philadelphia August 20, 1683, and, like many of the
settlers, dwelt for a time in a cave. He was a great
scholar, having mastered seven or eight languages
and being well read in science and philosophy. He
was the American representative of both German com-
panies, and with thirteen families of Crefelders, com-
prising thirty-three persons, founded Germantown.
The Crefelders arrived six weeks after Pastorius,
October 6, on the ship Concord, with passports written
on parchment in golden ink. A few days afterwards,
fourteen divisions of land were measured off, and
the German pioneers repaired to the cave of Pastorius
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 41

to draw lots for the choice of location. Cellars were
at once dug and huts built over them. William Penn
was present when the first two-story house was erected,
and helped to eat the raising dinner. Other immigrants
began to arrive in the little town soon afterwards.
Peter Schumacher was the first to come from Kris-
heim, in the Palatinate, where the fruits of Penn’s
early preaching were more bountiful than anywhere
else in Germany or Holland.

The early dwellers of Germantown had a hard
struggle with poverty. Pastorius tells us
that the settlement was so poor that it
became the subject of a pun, and was called * Armen-
town.” He said that it would not be believed by com-
ing generations in what want and need, and with what
Christian contentment and persistent industry, German-
town started. He himself had to use oiled paper to
let the light into his house, and over the door he
had written: “Parva domus, amica bonis, procul este
profani.” At the end of the first year, the settlers had
improved their condition materially: they had har-
vested a good crop of Indian corn and buckwheat,
and had added a few comforts to their houses.

However, Germantown was not a settlement of farm-
ers, but of weavers. Pastorius selected for Germantown
the town seal a clover, with a vine on one Industries
of its leaves, a stalk of flax on another, and a spool
of thread on the third ; the motto on it was —* Vinum,
Linum, et Textrinum.” It was a place—

Early Struggles

“Where lives High German and Low Dutch,
Whose trade in weaving linen cloth is much.
There grows the flax, as also you may know
That from the same they do divide the tow.”
42 A History of Pennsylvania

So many of the Mennonites in Europe had been weavers,
that certain woven.and knit fabrics were known as Men-
nonite goods. Other manufactures sprung up in and
around Germantown, for the settlers were nearly all
skilled workmen. William Rittinghuysen, a minister from
Holland, in 1690 built the first paper mill in America,
on a branch of the Wissahickon. In it was made the
paper used by the earliest printer in the middle colo-
nies, William Bradford. Then there were lace makers,
silversmiths, printers, and other artisans. The settlers
of Germantown contributed not a little toward making
Philadelphia the leading manufacturing city of the
American continent.

The Mennonites of Germantown enjoy one proud
First Slavery distinction. They were the first people in
Protest America to suggest the abolition of slavery.
In 1688, under the auspices of Pastorius, they sent a
petition to the yearly meeting
of the Friends, saying, in
effect, that it was not Chris-
tian-like to buy and keep
negroes ; but mno positive
judgment was then given by
the meeting. The petition
was a quaint and curious
paper.

Germantown was the hub
of the German set- :
tlement in Penn- House in which Slavery Protest
sylvania for many years. In wos vigned:

1694 the Pietists, for whom Pastorius had formed
a warm attachment in Germany, settled on the Wissa-
hickon. They were noted for their piety, learning

 

The Pietists
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 43

and mysticism. They spent much time in ‘prayer
and pious meditation, for which purpose they had
caves in the rugged ravine of the Wissahickon.
They put up a building, designed for religious and
educational purposes, on the highest point of their land.
It was surmounted with an observatory, the first in the
province. On top of this was raised the mystic symbol
—a cross within a ecircle—in such a position that
the rays of the rising sun would flood it with a roseate
hue. Later, in 1734, a massive stone structure was
built farther up the stream; it is still known as the
“monastery on the Wissahickon.” One of their asso-
ciates, Christoph Saur, published a newspaper which
circulated among all the Germans in the colonies,
from New York to Georgia. He printed the German
bible as early as 1743, about forty years before the
English bible was printed in America, and he was
among the first to print a magazine on this side
of the Atlantic. He made his type, paper and ink,
and bound his own books. He also issued an almanac,
which, together with his paper, made him a great
power among the Germans in America, especially
among those in Pennsylvania.

Germantown also became the original home of the
Tunkers, or German Baptists, in America;
but they did not arrive until 1719. Chris-
toph Saur, son of Christoph, the publisher, became
an elder in this denomination. As the successor to
his father’s business, he was a prominent man in the
province. With others of his sect, he took an active
part in the establishment of the Germantown Academy.
Through his almanacs and other publications, he
too, was widely known outside of Pennsylvania.

The Tunkers
44 A History of Pennsylvania

After 1700, German immigration to Pennsylvania
Gettuan was no longer confined to those who had
Immigration been influenced by Penn’s visit to the con-
Increases tinent. The English government now en-
couraged the Germans to come to America to add
strength to its population for competition with the
French. The Golden Book of Queen Anne, which
gave glowing accounts of the colonies, was circulated
far and wide in the German states.

In 1708 and 1709, large numbers crossed to Eng-
land and were temporarily sheltered in tents on the
commons of London while waiting for transportation
to America. Pennsylvania was the favorite colony
with the Germans, and by the year 1725 fifty thou-
sand had made their way hither. “We shall soon
have a German colony,” wrote James Logan, the
Provincial Secretary in 1726, “so many thousands
of Germans are already in the country.” Fears were
entertained that the province might not remain loyal
to the English government. Immigrants came from
the German side of Switzerland and Holland, from
Swabia, Alsace, and Saxony, but most from the Palati-
nate. There the ruler was now of one church, then
~ of another, and with every change the people had to
conform or suffer. So many German immigrants were
from the Palatinate that the name Palatine was given
to all of them. Thus Whittier’s poem about the ship
that was wrecked on Block Island, in 1738, was named
“The Palatine.”

As many of the so-called Palatines were too poor
German to pay for the passage across the sea, they
Redemptioners ways hired out for a term of years to
pay for their transportation. Such were called
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 45

“redemptioners.” In many cases parents pledged
their children in this manner.

These later German settlers pressed out into the
wilderness, and left Philadelphia and the The Germans
country around it to the English and  °p the Frontier
to the Germans in and about Germantown. They
filled the Lehigh and
Schuylkill valleys,
settling in - Easton,
Northamptontown
(Allentown), Read-
ing, Lebanon, and
Lancaster. Thence
they pushed on to
the Susquehanna,
down into the Cum-

 

A Colonial Homestead near
berland valley and up Feitiantown.

into the Juniata and

Susquehanna valleys. By 1750, the Germans consti-
tuted one-third of the entire colony, which numbered
about 270,000 people. Today they form the bulk
of the population in many counties, and there is
“no section of the State in which scattered German
families may not be found.

The Germans who thus pushed into the wilderness
were of various religious denominations. Varnsus
The Schwenkfelders, who, like the Friends, Religious
Mennonites and Tunkers, opposed war, CcPeminations
oaths and display, settled on contiguous lands in Mont-
gomery, Lehigh and Berks, in 1734, where they live
today, numbering all told less than a thousand. They
still celebrate the anniversary of their arrival as a day
of thanksgiving. They had been the victims of perse-
46 A History of Pennsylvania

cution in Europe for more than three hundred years,
and had to worship in secret to prevent detection.
Hence they became accustomed to worship in private
houses, and for fifty years after their arrival in Penn-
sylvania they had few public meeting-houses. There
was no ringing of bells and chanting of hymns.
The Moravians settled in Northampton county, at
Nazareth, in 1739, and at Bethlehem in
1741. They had first gone to Georgia,
but that province wanted them to do military duty,
which their conscience forbade. Their leader was
Count Zinzendorf, a man well known in Europe and
America. They were communists, and carried on about
thirty trades for the benefit of the church. They even
sailed several ships on the sea. Bethlehem lay along
the line of travel from New England to the South,
: and its Moravian
= AR inns were famous
throughout the land
for their hospitality.
The “Sun” - enter-
tained under its roof
most of the leading
men of the country
as long as they trav-
eled by stage. The
great work of the
Moravians for the
province was the
conversion of Indi-
ans, the fruits of which were largely destroyed by
the French and Indian war. Much of what we know
of Indian life in Pennsylvania was recorded by the

The Moravians

 

Moravian Sun Inn.
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 47

Moravian missionaries, notably by Heckewelder. The
schools of this pious sect were also widely known,
and many young ladies and gentlemen from far and
wide received their education in them.

Another equally unique settlement was made at
Ephrata, Lancaster county, by a branch of
the Tunkers of Germantown, known as the
Seventh Day Baptists. Their leader was Conrad Beisel,
a Pietist. His settlement became known as the Mon-
astery of Ephrata, on
the Cocalico creek, and
some of its strange
buildings are still
standing. There was
a house for the broth-
ers and a house for
the sisters. Among
the numerous manu-
facturing industries was a printing house. Some forty
books of a religious and educational character were
printed in it, besides many tracts and hymns. Just
before the battle of Germantown, three wagon loads
- of books in sheets were seized there for cartridges.
While the Continental Congress sat at York, this print-
ing house struck off paper money for the government.
There was a school in the place that attracted pupils as
far away as Philadelphia and Baltimore. Its rooms
were used as a hospital for American soldiers after the
battle of the Brandywine. Peter Miller, second prior
of the monastery, was one of the most learned men
in America. He translated the Declaration of In-
dependence into seven languages by order of Con-
gress.

Ephrata

 

Brothers’ and Sisters’ Houses at Ephrata.
48 “A History of Pennsylvania

The Mennonites that came to Pennsylvania after
Other 1700, settled in upper Bucks, Montgomery,
German Sects (Jhester, and Lancaster counties. Numer-
ous other German sects came to Pennsylvania which
it is not essential to describe. It was said that every
sect in the world had followers in Pennsylvania.

The Germans remaining to be considered were
The Reformers (N€ church people — the Reformed and the
and the Lutherans. They did not arrive in large
Lutherans numbers until about 1725. Some four hun-
dred Reformed settled along the Skippack, in Mont-
gomery county, in 1727. Others followed, and in 1747
Rev. Michael Schlatter organized the Reformed Church
of Pennsylvania as a part of the Synod of Holland.
The Lutherans, who began to arrive soon after the
Reformed, were much more numerous. Their leader was
Henry Melchoir Muhlenberg. He was the father of
Peter, the general of the Revolution; of Frederick, the
first Speaker of the House of Representatives; and of
Gotthilf, the botanist. Muhlenberg came to America
in 1742, and, with the two churches at New Hanover
and New Providence, in Montgomery county, as a nu-
cleus, he organized the Lutheran Church of America.
The congregation at the former place is supposed to
be the oldest of this denomination in the United
States. Muhlenberg and his son Peter are buried in
the graveyard of this church. As larger numbers of
Reformed and Lutherans had come to America before
their leaders, and scattered through half a dozen coun-
ties in search of a place to work and live, their organi-
zation into congregations was a tedious and difficult
task. However, it was a good work, for the sound of
church bells reminded the settlers of their higher duties.
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 49

The followers of Schlatter and Muhlenberg were
always quite friendly with each other; in Their Relation
rural distriets, they commonly worshipped to Each Other
in the same church. The school house was generally

 

To Church on Horseback.

the companion of the church. Having been established
churches in Germany, the Reformed and the Lutherans
“had an educated and paid ministry; hence colleges to
educate the ministry were founded as soon as the means
were at hand. Frequently those who looked forward to
the ministry were sent to Germany to be educated. The
Reformed and Lutherans also made an effort to spread
the English language among the Germans. Muhlenberg
himself taught English; and was careful to have his
sons educated in it before sending them to Germany.
Schlatter raised a fund in England, Holland aud Ger-
many for teaching the Pennsylvania Germans Eng-
lish. Under the direction of a board of trustees
composed of members of the provincial government, he
established schools in Reading, York, Easton, Lan-
caster, New Hanover and Skippack. These began their -
existence in 1754, but died out in 1763 for want of
support.

D
50 A History of Pennsylvania

In colonial days, agriculture was the chief oceupa-
The Germans tion. Then governors, lawmakers, and
as Farmers magistrates were farmers. Even in the
early history of the Republic, presidents, congressmen,
and framers of constitutions were followers of the
plow. In this occupation, the Pennsylvania Germans
excelled, and they therefore clung to the soil and to
rural life with great tenacity. They were good judges
of land ; they worked hard, and practiced severe econ-
omy. They cleared the land that had the heaviest
timber, for they knew it would produce the heaviest
crops ; and they often grew rich where others had be-

 

A Lebanon Valley Farm.

come poor. They contributed much to the material
wealth of the State. Their farms are not surpassed
anywhere in the world.
Coming here in numbers large enough to form a
The German COlony of their. own, sequestering them-
. Language in selves in the country, and settling entire
Pennsylvania oounties exclusively, the Germans naturally
kept their own language, literature and customs. Be-
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 51

fore the postal system, the newspaper, the railroad,
the telegraph, and other means of swift communica-
tion, had enabled the people of distant parts to know
one another, a settlement so large as that of the Ger-
mans yielded very slowly to changes from the outside.
In our day such isolation is no longer possible, and
they are fast acquiring the use of the English lan-
guage for all purposes —the home, the school, and
the church. :

Though the Pennsylvania Germans in some re-
spects remained Germans outwardly for two centuries,
they are Americans at heart. They help to administer
the local government, and hundreds have sat in the
General Assembly. Eight have occupied the guber-
natorial chair, and many have written their names oh
the national roll of honor. They have been in both
houses of Congress, in the Speaker’s chair, and in
the President’s Cabinet. Through their industry and
frugality, they have contributed a large share to the
material resources of the State. In time of war they
have likewise done their duty. In 1775, they shared
the honor with their Scotch-Irish neighbors on the
frontier of being among the first troops called by the
Continental Congress — expert riflemen raised in Penn-
sylvania, Maryland and Virginia. The rifle, which
was then unknown in New England, had been brought
to Pennsylvania by the Swiss and Palatines, about
1700. Nor should it be forgotten that the Moravian
missionaries, both in the French and in the Revolu-
tionary wars, warded off many a fatal blow from the
tomahawk ; and that Conrad Weiser, interpreter and
agent of Indian affairs in the province, was a host
in himself in the management of the savages.
52 A History of Pennsylvania

THE WELSH

The Welsh began to come in 1682, soon after the

The colony had been planted; but their immi-
Welsh Tract opgtion practically ceased with the close
of the century. Dr. Thomas Wynne, Penn’s friend
and physician, and a few others, came in the Welcome.
These people settled on a large tract of land along
the ridge extending back from the Schuylkill as far
as Paoli. Their settlement was called the Welsh
Barony; it has since been known as the Welsh Tract.
The three townships in the tract were Merion, Haver-
ford and Radnor. As their number increased
they spread out into other townships. Some went as
far west as Lancaster county, and gave their name
to the Welsh mountains there ; others located as far
east as Gwynedd and Penllyn, north of Philadelphia.
In passing along the Pennsylvania railroad, beginning
with Berwyn, various stations commemorate Welsh
names of two hundred years ago. Bryn Mawr—the
great hill—was the home of Minister Rowland. Wynne-
wood honors the name of Doctor Wynne, whose pro-
fession reminds us of the fact that nearly all the
early physicians of the colony were Welshmen. George
Washington’s physician was the great-grandson of
Dr. Wynne. The father of our State and the “father
of our country” entrusted their lives to the care of
Welsh physicians. The name of Montgomery county
was brought from Wales, and Blue Ball tells of the
numerous inns along the Lancaster pike—a great
historic highway that had its beginning in the trail
made through the forest by the first wandering
Welshman.
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 53

The Welsh, like the settlers of Germantown, came
to Pennsylvania to form a settlement in
which they could regulate their own affairs.
Being the descendants of the ancient Britons, dwelling
in a separate corner of England, and speaking a
distinet language, their purpose was very natural.
Most of them were Friends, and had known William
Penn in England. Though at first they could not
understand the English language, they soon absorbed it,
and lost their outward identity. Several things helped
to bring this about. One was the schism made among
them by Friend George Keith, who seems to have had
a special hatred for the Welsh Brethren. Another
trouble was the division of their barony. In the
absence of Penn, it was divided between Philadelphia
and Chester counties. Later on, when the Welsh
objected to the quit-rents on their unoccupied lands,
the Welsh Tract was thrown open to everybody.

‘Most names of the Welsh settlers have likewise
become Anglicized. Thus, ap John (ap
meaning son of) became John’s (son) or
Jones; ap Edward, Edwards ; ap William; Williams ;
ap Robert, Roberis; others, as ap Hugh, became
Pugh, ap Howell, Powell, etc. Thomas Lloyd, deputy-
governor of the province, was a Welshman, and so
were the Cadwaladers, Merediths and Owenses.

Their Purpose

Welsh Names

THE SCOTCH-IRISH

The Scotch-Irish were people from Scotland who
had gone to Ireland to occupy the lands Their Origin
taken frome Irish rebels by Queen Eliza- 2nd Settlements
beth and James I. In religion they were Presbyteri-
54 A History of Pennsylvania

ans, and by occupation, farmers. They were drawn to
Pennsylvania by its fame for religious liberty and
fertility of soil. They began to arrive soon after
1700, the earliest ones settling in the lower part of
Chester and Lancaster counties. About 1720, the set-
tlement containing the famous Log College was made
on the Neshaminy, in Bucks county. Another body
located at the Forks of the Delaware, in Northampton
county ; these had first gone to New Hampshire, but
found the climate too cold. Donegal, Lancaster county,
and Paxtang, Derry, and Hanover, Dauphin county,
were Scotch-Irish localities at one time; but the Cum-
berland valley received the greatest number.

Being an aggressive people, collisions with the Ger-

As mans frequently occurred. The officials of
Frontiersmen the province therefore encouraged the Ger-
mans to locate in the eastern parts and the Secotch-
Irish to go westward. This arrangement was agree-
able; for the Scotch-Irish were the very men to face
the wilderness and resist the attacks of wild beasts
and savage men. When, in 1768, the land beyond
the Alleghenies was thrown open for settlement, they
welcomed the opportunity thus presented of planting
the standard of progress a few hundred miles further
into the pathless forest.

Acting thus as pioneers, their conduct towards the
Relations with Indians was as warlike as that of the
the Indians Quakers had been peaceful. The expe-
rience of their forefathers in Ireland was a school
for frontier life of a more aggressive kind than had
existed while the Quakers and Germans faced the Red
Man. The Indians had now been driven #arther and
farther west by the tidal wave of immigration, and
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 55

peace was hard to maintain. When the French and
Indian war broke out, the Scotch-Irish settlers on the
frontier had to face many a fatal attack, for some of
which they had themselves to blame. Their disturb-
ance of the peace policy of the province caused the
Quakers to form a dislike for them. Hence we find
that these two classes of people at one time waged a
bitter war of words.

When, in 1763, Pontiac’s war broke out along the
frontier of Pennsylvania and Virginia, the The
Rev. John Elder, of the Paxtang church, Paxtang Boys"
by authority of the province, organized several com-
panies of rangers—volunteer bands of frontiersmen—
to protect the settlers against Indian atrocities. They
did duty as far north as Wyoming; but their main
service was performed along the Susquehanna south
of the Blue mountains. Here some Indians committed
deed after deed of bloody violence; but where they
came from was a mystery. Suspicion was awakened
that they were harbored by the Christian Indians—
the refuse of various tribes— who lived on the Manor,
a tract of land near Columbia, belonging to the Penns.
Colonel Elder, John Harris, the founder of Harrisburg,
and others, asked John Penn, the Governor, to remove
these Indians, whose character, it was claimed, did not
put them above suspicion. The Governor declined to
do this, on the ground that they were “innocent, help-
less, and dependent on the government for support.”
The “Paxtang Boys” then resolved to take the law
into their own hands, but not without the protest of
Colonel Elder. They went to the settlement at night,
but their presence was prematurely announced by the
dogs. The dwellers of the Manor rushed out of their
56 A History of P-nunsylvania

wigwams and wildly brandished their tomahawks. = The
rangers leveled their guns and quickly killed the
Indians. But not all of them were at home, and when
those absent learned of the fate of their brethren, they
hastened to Lancaster and sought safety in the jail.
A few made their way to Philadelphia. Chagrined at
the escape of some of the Indians, the rangers resolved
to complete their work. They went to Lancaster, broke
into the jail, and shot the fugitive Conestogas. After
that, the settlers south of the Blue mountains had
little annoyance from the Indians.

However, the end of the excitement had not yet
APanicin come. The Governor and the Assembly con-
Philadelphia demned the action of the “Paxtang Boys”
so severely that the frontiersmen sent a delegation to
explain their grievances. This was interpreted to
mean a show of force. The authorities in Philadelphia
put the Indian refugees under guard in the garri-
son, and sent an armed force to Germantown to meet
the delegation. The latter made known their griev-
ances, and were then conducted to Philadelphia.
Among other things, the “Paxtang Boys” objected
to being tried in Philadelphia, Bucks or Chester,
which the government proposed to do. Though the
Assembly did not yield this point, yet no econvie-
tion for ‘the killing of the Conestoga Indians was
ever had. :

It is true, the Scotch-Irish allowed their rough,
vigorous and independent qualities to lead
them into excesses at times; yet these
qualities made them a power in the land. The hard-
ships and dangers which they braved on the frontier
gave them grit and strength; and, now that time has

Characteristics
The Settlement of Pennsylvania 57

polished the exterior, they are strong and shining
pillars in the structure of the state and nation. In
colonial times, they were in a formative period; when
the Revolution came, they were ready and eager for
the struggle that tried men’s souls and sinews. The
French war was an excellent school for drilling the
Continental soldiers; but none were better drilled than
the Scotch-Irish of Pennsylvania—a fact well known
to the Continental Congress, in 1775.

»

THE FRENCH HUGUENOTS

Pennsylvania also became a refuge for sundry
French families of the persecuted Hugue-
nots. They bore the names of Dubois,
Boileau, Laroux, Lefevre, De Turk, De-llér, Dox,
Ferree, and others. They came here, under the influ-
ence of William Penn, to plant vineyards and cultivate
grapes “up the Schuylkill.” Not succeeding there,
they removed to the Pequea valley, then in Chester
county, now in Lancaster. The removal was brought
about by the arrival in 1712 of Madame Ferree, a
widow who had lost her husband in the massacres in
France which followed the revocation of the Ediet of
Nantes. She had fled to England, and was there aided
in her immigration to Pennsylvania by William Penn.
He gave her a grant of two thousand acres of land
in Pequea valley, and she bought two thousand more.
To this place all the French people went for settle-
ment. They were heartily welcomed by some Delaware
Indians there, and when the Indian chief died, the
Huguenots attended the burial. His grave, on Lafayette
Hill, near Paradise, was marked with a pile of stones,

Their Settlement
58 A History of Pennsylvania

which long remained to mark the spot. The descendants
of these French families are found chiefly in Berks,
Lancaster and Dauphin counties.

Though the settlers of Pennsylvania were of various
Nationalities Sects, churches, and nationalities, which at
Disappear times had quarrels more or less serious,
we, their heirs and descendants, know no such differ-
ences in the discharge of our duties to the govern-
ment. We are all Pennsylvanians now; and the
question whether a citizen is English, German, Welsh,
Scotch-Irish, or French, ‘happily never enters our
mind. Nor do we inquire into his religious prefer-
ences. With us today it is— .

“The union of hearts, the union of hands,
And the flag of our Union forever.”

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Egle’s History of Pennsylvania, pp. 28-52, 438-453, 517-546,
612-682, 814-854, 863-879, 950-960, 965-996, 1015-1048, and
1169-1180; Bancroft’s History of the United States, Vol. II, pp.
78-130; Walton and Brumbaugh’s Stories of Pennsylvania, pp.
9-79 and 297-300; Sypher’s History of Pennsylvania, pp. 9-46;
Fisher's Making of Pennsylvania, pp. 7-236 ; Stoughton’s William
Penn, passim; Sache’s The Fatherland, passim; Diffenderfer’s
German Erodus; Bowden's History of The Friends, Part II, pp.
1-221; Glenn’s Merion in the Welsh Tract, pp. 1-55; The Eighth
Congress of the Scotch-Irish in America, pp. T1-82.
CHAPTER III

THE GROWTH OF POPULATION AND THE
ADJUSTMENT OF BOUNDARIES

In the settlement of Pennsylvania we noticed a
double wave of population sweeping in A Double
from the southeast; the Scotch-Irish, with Movement
their daring energy and restlessness, in advance, and
the Germans, with their plodding industry and stead-
fastness, following and permanently occupying the
soil. This movement is most plainly recorded in the
Kittatinny valley. Throughout its length — from
Easton to Maryland — are found places and grave-
stones bearing Scotch-Irish
names. These people entered
the Kittatinny valley at va-
rious points, about the year
1730. Between 1745 and
1750, they passed through
the gaps west of the Susque-
hanna. Thence they rapidly
followed the main streams
toward the north and west. er
The Germans began to ar- Demy Church (1729), Dauphin
rive in greatest numbers Conny:
about the year 1740, the time when the Scotch-Irish
immigration had reached its height. In many places
the Germans succeeded to the lands formerly occu-
pied by the Scotch-Irish. It was the onward flew

 

(59)
60 A History of Pennsylvania

of these two classes of people that caused a demand
for land, and made the Indian purchases from 1736
to 1758 necessary (see map, p. 6). Easton, Allentown
(called Northamptontown till about 1800), Reading,
Lebanon, Harrisburg, York (called Yorktown and Little
York), Carlisle, and Shippensburg (except York, the
oldest town west of the Susquehanna), were all founded
within these years.

Under Penn and his sons, there were three divisions
Divisions of their land in the province: first, the
of the Land common lands, constituting the bulk of it,
and selling at a uniform price, which up to 1713 was
five pounds per hundred acres, and one shilling quit-
rent, but later, double and triple this amount; second,
the Proprietary tenths, or manors, reserved and held
by the Proprietary; third, the private estates of the
individual members of the Proprietary, purchased
from one another or from other persons. The quit-
rents were paid by the tenant to be “quit and free”
from all feudal service; and they were used to pay
the expenses of the government. They ranged in
value from a pepper-corn, a red rose, an Indian arrow,
a buck’s foot, a bear skin, or a bushel of wheat, to
several shillings per hundred aeres. From the Dbe-
ginning there was difficulty with the payment of
quit-rents ; some refused to pay them, while others
neglected to pay them, or, paying them, did not get
a proper credit. Thousands of persons settled without
any titles to their lands. Many of these afterwards
secured titles, but some did not. In 1797 a law
was passed requiring the present owners of such
unpatented lands to satisfy the State’s claims; but
the law was allowed to go by default.
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 61

After the Declaration of Independence the State,
in 1779, annulled the Royal Charter, and State gets the
paid the Penns 130,000 pounds sterling for Common Lands
their rights in the common lands. They retained, how-
ever, their manors and their private property, and so
were still the largest landowners in the State. The
larger part of what remains of the old Penn manors
. 1s in and around Wilkes-Barre — in the Sunbury manor,
in Plymouth, Salem and Jackson townships. The Penn
estate also owns about three dozen ground-rents in
northern Philadelphia, in what was the Manor of
Springettsbury, and one irredeemable ground-rent on
property in Race street near Twenty-first. This,
with some reversionary rights in ground granted by
Penn for public buildings, is the sum total of posses-
sions in Pennsylvania now belonging to the heirs of
Penn. They had also, until within a few years,
received from the British government an annuity of
4,000 pounds for their losses in the Revolution.

Penn’s policy in purchasing lands from the Indians
was always an honest one. His sons, though Pehn's
in the main carrying out their father’s Land Policy
policy, had to deal with a greater and more difficult
problem. * They had to satisfy the Red Man when
it became evident that the white man would eventually
have the last foot of soil in Pennsylvania. Hence,
some of the later land dealings were not free from
injustice. This was the case with the historic walking
purchase.”

It was the custom of the Indians to measure land
by walking or riding on horseback. In The * Walking
1686, William Penn bought a tract of land Purchase’:
along the Delaware, extending “back into the woods
62 3 A History of Pennsylvania

as far as man can go in one day and a half.” When
the white settlers reached the Lehigh hills, below
Easton, the Indians became uneasy, and wanted the
walk performed. The time fixed for it was September
19, 1737; and the starting point, a tree near Wrights-
town, Bucks county. The Proprietary had employed
three men— Marshall, Yeates and Jennings —all fleet
on foot; and the Delaware Indians, three men. The
walkers were under the supervision of the sheriff of
Bucks county and the surveyor-general of Pennsyl-
vania, and were accompanied by a number of spectators,
some of whom carried refreshments. The walkers kept
a northerly course on the Durham road to Durham
creek, thence, a northwesterly course; they forded the
Lehigh at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, and reached the
Hockendauqua at sunset. Jennings and two of the
Indians had given out the first day; hence the others
resumed the walk alone the next morning. Having
passed through the Lehigh Water Gap, Marshall, the
only one who finished the walk, reached a spur of the
Broad mountain at 12 o’clock. The distance gone over
in the day and a-half was about sixty miles.

Instead of running the shortest line from the end
of the walk to the Delaware, the surveyor
went northeast and struck the mouth of
the Lackawaxen, thus securing for the Proprietary the
Forks of the Delaware, on the south side of the Blue
mountains, and the Minisink Flats, on the north side
—both rich and desirable tracts of land (see map, p.
6). The entire “walking purchase” included the up-
per portion of Bucks, nearly all of Northampton, and
parts of Carbon, Monroe and Pike —an area of not
less than 1,200 square miles.

Its Extent
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 63

The Delawares complained that the walk was not
fair—that instead of by the compass across
the country, it should have been up the
Delaware by the nearest path, as was done by William
Penn and their fathers when they tramped leisurely
together for a day and a half to determine the north-
ern limit of Markham’s purchase of 1682. The In-
dians in the party also objected to the pace of the
white walkers, frequently calling to the latter to walk
not to run. One of them said afterwards: “ No sit
down to smoke, no shoot a squirrel, but lun, lun lun,
all day long.” It is stated that it took the surveyor-
general afterwards four days to walk over the same
ground. Jennings and Yeates both were supposed to
have died from the effects of the walk. Marshall
alone was none the worse, for he died at the ripe old
age of ninety.

At the time of the “ walking purchase,” the Dela-
ware Indians held their council fires at the
Minisink Flats. Here, on the Pocono, was
born the celebrated chief, Tedyuscung, called * Honest
John” by the English. “When his lands had been
wrested from him by the walk,” more especially by
the line to the Lackawaxen, the Six Nations, urged
by the Governor of Pennsylvania, in 1742 ordered the
Delawares to remove to Wyoming and Shamokin, on
the Susquehanna. The Six Nations characterized the
Delawares as “ women,” and not empowered to sell
lands. Tedyuscung protested; but the Iroquois said,
“Don’t deliberate, but remove away.” The wrong
rankled in the hearts of the Delawares like a smoth-
ered fire; and when the French and Indian war"
broke out, they openly took sides with the French, and

Its Unfairness

Tedyuscung
64 A History of Pennsylvania

helped to desolate the frontier. By the time of the
Revolution, they, together with the Shawanese, who
had dwelt opposite Wyoming, had all been driven to
the Ohio river.

Tedyuscung, at a council held at Easton in 1758,
A Restoration Dy the help of the Quakers established

Mads the fact that the Indians had been wronged
by the “walking purchase” and other land transactions.
He showed that the Six Nations had given land to the
Delawares, and then “sold it from under their feet” to -
the whites. As a result of this conference, a large
tract of land on the Susquehanna, Juniata, Allegheny,
and Ohio rivers, which had been purchased from the
Six Nations under a misapprehension, at Albany in
1754 (see p. 66), was restored to the Indians, and
many causes of misunderstanding were removed (see
map, p. 6). Had these wrongs been righted sooner,
or, better still, never been committed, “the blood of
Braddock’s soldiers would not have been added to the
price of the land.”

While Pennsylvanians were thus pressing forward
The Claim and occupying the virgin soil from the
of Connecticut gontheast through the Delaware and Le-
high valleys, New Englanders advanced from the north-
east. The charter of Connecticut, like that of Massa-
chusetts, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and
Georgia, defined its western boundary to be the Paeci-
fic ocean. Its southern boundary was to be a straight
line beginning at the mouth of Narragansett bay. This,
extended west, would have entered Pennsylvania near
Stroudsburg and crossed the Susquehanna at Blooms-
burg. Penn’s charter fixed the northern boundary of
his province at the forty-second degree of latitude.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

  

 

 

 

 

 

*Brudforst
WARR MeEEAN, POTHE. TIOEA BRADFORD SUSQUEHANNA |
CRAWRORD 7800 780% 8r0 = 7870" 7799
OMeaductle So. 7804 7804 WAYNE
7 500 A Carbomga)
oi RE Ce, NG Y Hopes
Zionestis SULLIVAN i 857 pre
Fr pi %» ote 5%. 2 Sly or :
Senos R 78 860 ar — 2, PIKE
Orne | 7 LL sia % _ Rp a t| {we ®
7800 Ri pid
J ol ; 7836
78 <® 7599 or Cleared), o,\ MONROE
304 1 Shoudsburg @
55% | BUTLER g % Z
ea 7800 780 2 >
700 | 7800  |AmMSrRONG od Okey worry © Rona Loran
SCHUYgKI op
" KS LEHIG, \ iy
WA Aliernfoms
872
ERES , .
108 \ Sen
acres 3 ONT, 7052.
Upp
Pooniille F
LANCASTER CHESTER PHIA
re Wrz (nt AE
YORK 7652 D: ARE =

 

 

 

County Map of Pennsylvania.
66 A History of Pennsylvania

A large strip of territory was thus granted to both
Connecticut and Pennsylvania. :
In 1753, an association of New Englanders, mostly
The Albany from Connecticut, called the Susquehanna
Purchase Company, was formed to make a settlement
in the territory of Pennsylvania claimed by Connecti-
cut. The beautiful valley upon the Susquehanna,
where eleven years before Tedyuscung and his tribe
had built the town of Wyoming, was selected for the
purpose. The next year, at the general congress at
Albany, the Susquehanna Company purchased from the
Six Nations the lands upon the Susquehanna north of
the Blue mountains. Pennsylvania protested against
the purchase, claiming that it had not been made in
open council, but had been effected by making the
Indian chiefs drunk. As the congress had been called
to form a union of the colonies with the Six Nations
as allies against the French, the purchase was not
then seriously opposed. Besides, Pennsylvania bought
a large tract of land from the Six Nations at the same
time, and in a way not satisfactory to the Indians.
About the close of the French and Indian war, a
Connecticat _COmpany of Connecticut settlers arrived in
Settles the Wyoming valley ; and, before winter set
Wyoming iy) extensive fields of wheat had been sown
upon lands covered with forest trees in August. But
owing to the scantiness of provisions, the settlers
returned to Connecticut for the winter. Early the next
year, in 1763, they returned, accompanied by many
others. Notwithstanding the remonstrances of North-
ampton county, to which the Wyoming valley then
belonged, séttlements were made at Wilkes-Barre,
Kingston, Plymouth and Hanover. The summer passed
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 67

with nothing to mar the peace and contentment of
the New Englanders; but in October, the Indians fell
upon them like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, and
killed about twenty of their number. The others fled —
some back to Connecticut, some to New York. This
1s known in history as the first massacre of Wyoming.
It was the work of the Delawares, whom the wily
Iroquois had made believe that Tedyuscung had been
assassinated by the whites.

The flow of immigration, so violently and suddenly
checked, did not begin again till 1768. That year,
at Fort - Stanwix, New York, a large tract of land,
including Wyoming, was bought from the Six Nations
by the Proprietary, to strengthen its claim to the
disputed territory (see map, p. 6). Pennsylvania
settlers now arrived and laid out two manors, one on
each side of the Susquehanna, and extending over the
farms abandoned by the New Englanders. Early the
next year, a party of forty Connecticut men came to
resume the settlement made before. They located at
Kingston, and after battling with departing winter,
enjoyed a peaceful and prosperous summer. The
“forty” were under the direction of three men, one
of whom was Zebulon Butler; and their fort was
known as the “Forty Fort.” In October, the sheriff
of Northampton county appeared, arrested them and
marched them to Easton, where they were lodged in
jail. And now the southern and northern waves of
population had met in a fierce conflict, known as the
“Pennamite and Yankee war.” Forts and blockhouses
were constructed, and many sieges and skirmishes fol-
lowed. Both parties led men to prison, drove women
and children away, and committed other outrages.
68 A History of Pennsylvania

The Connecticut men on the whole were the more
Westmoreland Successful in this civil strife. They organ-

Town ized a government, made laws, and appointed
judges and other officers. Their intention was to form
an independent state; but they could not maintain
themselves alone against the Pennamites. So in 1774,
they attached themselves to Connecticut, as the town
(township) of Westmoreland, in the county of Litch-
field. Zebulon Butler was one of the judges.

With the outbreak of the Revolution there came
a lull in the strife in Wyoming. It was
resolved at a public meeting, “That we will
unanimously join our brethren of America in the
common cause of defending our liberty.” Two com-
panies of troops raised in Wyoming joined the Conti-
nental army,as a part of the Connecticut Line. How-
ever, as soon as independence had been achieved, the
old feud broke out in all its former fury. All attacks
from the Indians being at an end, swarms of new
settlers arrived and added fuel to the fire. Pennsyl-
vania having in 1779, by an act of assembly, succeeded
the heirs of Penn in the possession of all vacant terri-
tory, now appealed to Congress to settle the dispute.
By virtue of the Articles of Confederation, that body
appointed a commission for the purpose. It met at
Trenton in 1782, and after five weeks of deliberation
decided, without giving any reasons, that Connecticut
had no right to the land, and that the jurisdiction and
preémption of the same belonged to Pennsylvania.

The settlers were all satisfied with the change of
jurisdiction; but when Pennsylvania sought
to enforce her preémption rights another
civil struggle ensued, causing such serious trouble

A Lull

At War Again
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 69

that the militia had to be called out. Colonel
Timothy Pickering was deputized to use his influence
for the restoration of order. At length, in 1799,
after nearly forty years of unparalleled suffering, to
which a destructive ice-flood in 1794 had contributed
not a little, affairs were amicably arranged by con-
firming to the Connecticut settlers the titles to their
lands on payment of a small price per acre. The
Pennsylvania claimants were satisfied by paying them
for the farms they had to give up, or by giving them
land elsewhere in exchange.

After the settlement of the land difficulties in
Wyoming, the valley, which is twenty-one wyoming
miles long and three miles wide, enjoyed Brospers
the tranquility of peace. Its rich acres blossomed
as the rose. The county of Luzerne, named after
the Chevalier de Luzerne, at that time minister from
France, had been erected in 1786. Its territory
then included parts of Bradford (Ontario originally),
Sullivan, Carbon, and all of Susquehanna and
Wyoming. Wilkes-Barre, so called in honor of John
Wilkes and Colonel Barre, members of the British
Parliament and warm friends of the American colonies
in the Revolution, was laid out in 1773.

“Delightful Wyoming ! beneath thy skies
The happy shepherd swains had naught to do
But feed their flocks on green declivities,
Or skim, perchance, thy lake with light canoe.”

With the exception of the Dutch on the Minisink
Flats, the Moravian mission station at Gna- Tne Upper
denhiitten, near the Lehigh, and a few scat-  Schuylkil
tered farms near Orwigsburg, on the Schuylkill, there
70 A History of Pennsylvania

were no settlements, before the Revolution, between
the Wyoming valley and the Blue mountains (see
Purchase of 1749, map, p. 6). This tract was not
much inhabited until after the discovery of anthracite
coal.
The settlement of the Susquehanna valley was be-
es gun by John Harris, father of John Harris,
Susgrghenea the founder of Harrisburg, and the first
white child known to have been born in
Pennsylvania west of the Conewago hills. The elder
Harris came from England quite early, and in 1705 got
permission as a li-
censed trader “to seat
himself on the Sus-
quehanna” and to
trade with the Indians
of the Conois creek.
The lands of the Sus-
quehanna northward
to the Blue mountains
were finally deeded to
the Proprietors by the
Indians, in 1736. Penn had first leased this region from
the governor of New York, who had secured it from
the Five Nations. The lease was for a thousand years
at an annual rental of a * pepper-corn.” Soon after
the transaction of 1736, a highway, extending from the
Delaware to the Susquehanna, was laid out at the
request of numerous settlers of Paxtang township,
then in Lancaster, now in Dauphin county. In 1749,
another purchase was made (see map, p. 6); it opened
the Susquehanna valley for settlement some distance
beyond the Blue mountains.

 

Grave of John Harris, Sr., Harrisburg.
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 71

Before the white man came to this portion of the
province, it had been occupied by the Dela-  shamokin,
wares and Shawanese, under the control of or Sunbury
the Five Nations. They had a town of some fifty
houses at the fork of the two branches of the Sus-
quehanna, then Shamokin, now Sunbury. It was the
residence of Shikellimy, the celebrated Oneida chief,
who was the vice-king of the Six Nations in Pennsyl-
vania (see p. 5). Conrad Weiser visited the place as
early as 1737, and in 1742 Count Zinzendorf and one
or two others made their way thither and received a
hearty welcome from Shikellimy. The Indians there
were rough, drunken, mischievous fellows, among
whom, © Satan seems to have had his seat.” The Six
Nations asked the governor to send a blacksmith to
Shamokin. One was sent by the Moravians at Beth-
lehem, and he opened the way for a Moravian mission.
Soon afterwards white settlers located in the valley
below, on both sides of the river. At the outbreak of
the French and Indian war these became exposed to
Indian attacks, and Fort Augusta was erected at Sha-
mokin to protect them.

Fort Augusta was a very important place of defense
in the French and Indian war and in the The Popula-
Revolution. During the former, few settlers tion Grows
ventured beyond it, for it was then the most northern
place of defense in the Susquehanna valley beyond
the Blue mountains. Northumberland had its begin-
nings in a public house put up to accommodate
those who came to see the land in the new purchase,
made at Fort Stanwix, 1768 (see map, p. 6). This
was the last purchase under the Proprietaries, and
it extended the limits of settlement beyond the forks
72 A History of Pennsylvania

of the Susquehanna, both along the West and the
North branches. But the North Branch beyond Blooms-
burg lay in the disputed territory claimed by Con-
necticut, and was settled from the north. Fort
McClure, near Bloomsburg, was built by the famous
Indian fighter, Van Campen, and named after the
first settler, James MeClure, who got a patent for
his land in 1772. The settlers at the lower end
of the North branch viewed with jealousy the occu-
pation of the neighboring lands of Wyoming by the
Yankees. Dr. William Plunket, as magistrate and
colonel, in 1775, by authority of the governor, led an
expedition against them; but at the Nanticoke Nar-
rows he was met by the enemy and forced to return
without accomplishing anything.

Along the West Branch, the stream of population
“The FairPlay” flowing north was much stronger; for
Settlement there were few New Englanders ahead
to block its way. Quakers from the lower counties
settled Pennsborough, now Muncy, named after the
Monsey Indians, who inhabited that section of the
valley. Fort Muncy was erected near by in 1778;
in faet, from Sunbury to Lock Haven, there was a
line of forts, and each of them became the scene of
many a legend of border warfare. Many Germans
and Scotch-Irish also found their way into the pine-
clad mountains of this region. There was an un-
certainty, for some years after the purchase of 1768,
about its exact boundaries. The Proprietaries had
forbidden settlement in this doubtful tract; but their
proclamation was not heeded. Adventurers took pos-
session of the land and organized a local government.
They annually elected in rotation three of their num-
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 73

ber, whom they called *fair-play” men, to act as judges
in all controversies. From their decisions there was
no appeal. Every newcomer had to apply to the “fair-
play” men for his land. Any person resisting the
enforcement of the “fair-play” code was placed in a
canoe, rowed to the mouth of Lycoming creek, and
there set adrift. The acts of this unique court were
afterwards allowed as evidence in the established courts,
and the bona-fide settlers between Lycoming and Pine
creeks each got three hundred acres of land. A most
singular coincidence occurred in the history of these
“fair-play” men on July 4, 1776. Early in the sum-
mer they had heard that Congress contemplated inde-
pendence from Great Britain. Accordingly, on the
above date, far from the sound of the Liberty Bell,
they assembled on Pine creek, and, after some patri-
otic discussion, passed a set of resolutions declaring
themselves free and independent.

Northumberland county was erected, in 1772, out
of Lancaster, Cumberland, Berks, North-
ampton and Bedford. It was reduced to
its present size by the successive erection of Luzerne,
Mifflin, Lycoming, Centre, Columbia and Union coun-
ties. Fort Augusta (Sunbury) was made the seat of
Justice. Lycoming county was not formed until 1795,
eleven years after the last purchase from the Indians
(see map, p. 89). It comprised originally all of the
northwestern part of the State. Williamsport, named
probably after William, a son of Michael Ross, upon
whose land the county seat was located, was laid out
soon after the formation of the county. It is one of
the most beautiful towns in Pennsylvania, and. is lo-
cated in a valley of surpassing grandeur and loveliness.

Counties Erected
74 "A History of Pennsylvania

The Juniata valley was settled largely by Scotch-
The Juniata Irish, who made their way from the Cumber-
Valley land valley through the gaps in the Blue
mountains. A good many Germans also located within
its borders; but they were not encouraged to do so.
In 1755, the Proprietaries instructed their agents to
induce the Scotch-Irish to settle in Cumberland county
and the Germans in York, in order to prevent collisions
between them. Cumberland county at that time ex-
tended “westward of the Susquehanna, and northward
and westward of the county of York.” It included the
Juniata valley, and was afterwards called “Mother
Cumberland,” because so many counties had been
formed from it. The first settlements in the Juniata
valley were made a decade or more before 1750. They
were established in Sherman’s valley, now Perry
county, in Tuscarora valley, now Juniata county, and
in -Aughwick valley, now Fulton county, by pioneers
from Carlisle and the Conococheague. But as the
lands north of the Blue mountains had not yet been
bought from the Indians, the latter complained; and
the provincial government ordered the intruders to be
driven out and their cabins burned. To this event,
“Burnt Cabins,” a village in Fulton county, owes its
name. Many of the squatters returned, and aroused
animosities among the savages, that burned with un-
quenchable fury during the war that soon broke out.
The government, being unable to keep the intruders
out, made the Albany purchase in 1754 (see map, p. 6).
However, the Indians were still not satisfied. The
purchase, contrary to their understanding, included the
West Branch of the Susquehanna. Nevertheless, a
land office was at once opened for the sale of lands
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 75

in the Juniata valley. Small and scattered settle-
ments were made around Lewistown, Huntingdon and
Bedford.

The first settlers about Lewistown came from the
Conococheague by way of the Aughwick. settiement of
They built Fort Granville, which wag Juniata Valley
destroyed by western Indians in 1756, who forced its
occupants — soldiers, and some settlers with their fami-
lies—to make a forced march to Kittanning, whence
they never returned. The white man, however, had a
strong Indian friend on the Juniata in the person of
Logan, the Mingo chief. Huntingdon, long known as
Standing Stone, was likewise settled by way of the
Aughwick, and is located on the site of the *“Stand-
ing Stone,” whose name may be regarded as a trans-
lation of Onojutta-Haga, or the Juniata people, a
name found on maps as early as 1659. Conrad Weiser
mentioned “Standing Stone” as a curiosity, and John
Harris described it as being fourteen feet high and
six inches square and containing Indian hieroglyphics.
The Indians venerated the “Standing Stone,” and
probably carried it with them, after the sale of the
valley, in 1754. Jack’s Narrows, below Huntingdon,
is also a place suggestive of interesting history. It
is named after Captain Jack Armstrong, who was a
friend in need to the people of the Juniata valley on
many occasions, and a terror to the Indians. Bedford
had its origin in the “Fort at Raystown,” to which the
settlers could flee for protection against Indian incur-
sions. In 1755, the provincial authorities sent 300
men out to cut a road from Fort Loudon to Bedford,
to join Braddock’s road west of the Alleghenies. It
was completed by General Forbes in 1758, to enable
76 A History of Pennsylvania

him to reach Fort Duquesne. Bedford was for many
years a military station and a stopping place for adven-
turers between Carlisle and Fort Pitt. An interesting
spot in what is now Blair county is the Sinking
Spring valley. It contained lead mines, which were
probably known to the French as early as 1750. The
Indians of this region were always supplied with an
abundance of lead, but where they obtained it
was long a secret. In the Revolution, some of the
bullets fired at the Redeoats were made from the
Sinking Spring lead.

After Braddock’s defeat, the Indians fell with
laden Rav: merciless fury upon the infant settlements
ages in the in the Juniata valley, and although the
Juniata Valley  (,eaty of 1758 (see map, p. 6) had re-
moved the objections to the purchase of 1754, yet
savage vengeance reveled in blood till 1764. Carlisle,
Shippensburg and Chambersburg were frequently
crowded with settlers from the Juniata valley, who
had fled with their families, flocks, and furniture to
escape the tomahawk and the firebrand. Crops were
harvested under the protection of the militia. On one
occasion, an entire school in Franklin county — Master
Brown and his ten pupils—were murdered while at
their books. It was not until Colonel Bouquet had
driven the western Indians beyond the Ohio, and made
them sue for peace (see p. 137), that the settlers of the
Juniata valley could plow their fields, gather their
harvests, and eat their bread, without fear of the
scalping-knife. From that time until the Revolution,
the population grew uninterruptedly. Many Germans
from Lancaster county and from Maryland were now
attracted by the richness of the limestone valleys.
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 77

But during the Revolution there was a return move-
ment. British marauders, with Indian allies, caused
many families to remove to eastern counties for safety.

Along the southern border counties east of the
mountains, numerous settlers were from The Maryland
Maryland. The reason for this was that Boundary
the Baltimores laid claim to a part of Pennsylvania
north of the present line, and encouraged their people
to occupy it. According to his charter, Penn’s prov-
ince was to be bounded on the south by the circum-
ference of a circle whose center was New Castle and
whose radius was twelve miles in length, to be drawn
from north to west till it reached “the beginning of
the fortieth degree.” From this point of contact, the
boundary line was to extend directly westward five
degrees of longitude. Lord Baltimore’s charter made
the northern boundary of Maryland extend west from °
that part of Delaware bay “which lieth under the
fortieth degree of latitude.” The Baltimores contended
that the words, “lieth under,” were to be taken liter-
ally, as if a huge figure 40 lay over sixty geographical
miles ; that their grant extended over the land between
the 39th and 40th parallels. The Penns held that the
words, “beginning of the fortieth degree,” in their
charter, likewise had reference to the entire space
between the 39th and 40th parallels; that the 40th
degree began at the 39th, just as the first degree may
be said to begin at the equator. The width of a
degree, therefore, was in dispute, on account of the
unfortunate expressions in the two charters. Lord
Baitimore, by virtue of his charter, also laid claim to
the whole peninsula between the Chesapeake bay and
the Atlantic ocean north of a line drawn across from
78 A History of Pennsylvania

Watkins’ Point. But the phrase, “hactenus incultas”—
meaning “hitherto uncultivated”—excluded Delaware,
because it had been cultivated by the Swedes and
Dutch. However, as there were no exact boundaries,
the Marylanders were continually encroaching upon
“the three lower counties” (Delaware), as well as on
the southern border of Pennsylvania.

The dispute dragged its weary length through more
than eighty years. Three English sove-
reigns had to do witl. the vexatious
question. The Proprietors had a few interviews in
America, but parted as secret enemies, especially after
they had discovered that the 40th parallel did not pass
through New Castle, as had been supposed, but much
farther north. With Lord Baltimore it was territory;
with William Penn it was water frontage on Chesa-
peake bay. The latter once offered to buy sufficient
territory of Baltimore to get a port on the bay, but
met with a refusal. The claims were asserted with
violence and occasional bloodshed. Settlers refused
to pay taxes, because they did not know to whom to

Years of Dispute

pay them.
These conflicts occurred chiefly in “the three lower
Scene of counties” and in York county, then Lan-

the Conflict caster, In 1730, Lord Baltimore sent a bold
but pliant adventurer, named Thomas Cresap, to settle
in the Conejohela valley, where a number of others
had previously located under Maryland grants. Com-
missioned as a justice of the peace, Cresap came to
Wright’s ferry and began to build boats and erect a
house. He came in conflict with Pennsylvanians across
the river, and even sent one to the Annapolis jail. He
also attacked John Wright, the foremost Quaker in
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 79

Lancaster county, while the latter was reaping grain
on the west side of the Susquehanna. Not being able
to cope with Wright, Cresap had the governor of
Maryland send the militia to his assistance ; but the
Quaker farmer and his Scotch-Irish neighbors were
more than a match for the Marylanders. Nevertheless,
Cresap was a disturbing element for some time. Finally, .
in 1736, the sheriff of Lancaster county captured the
disturber of the peace by firing his house. He was taken
to Philadelphia in triumph and lodged in jail. Maryland
then sent an armed force of three hundred men into
the Susquehanna valley. After more bloodshed, these
were driven back, and all efforts to colonize that
part of Pennsylvania with Marylanders were abandoned
in 1738.

Soon after these quarrels in York county had begun,
mutual agreements were made, in 1732, t0 settlement
settle the boundaries as follows (see any Proposed
map of the Middle States): That a semicircle should
be drawn at twelve miles from New Castle, obedient
to the charter of Pennsylvania; that a line should
be run from Cape Henlopen directly west to the exact
center of the peninsula, and a perpendicular be drawn
northward from the western end of said line till it
touched the extreme point of the circumference, thus
making a tangent; that from this point again a line
be traced due north till it reached a point fifteen
statute miles south of the most southerly point of
Philadelphia ; that, starting at the northern end of
this line, another be drawn directly west five degrees,
the western limit of Pennsylvania. As the western
lands were then unsettled, it was agreed to run the
last-named line only twenty-five miles beyond the
80 A History of Pennsylvania

Susquehanna at that time. When everything was in
readiness, a dispute arose as to the length of the ecir-
cumference, and the matter hung fire till 1739, when
what is known as the “temporary line” was run
westward of the Susquehanna as far as the Kitta-
tinny hills. The dispute then got into the Court of
Chancery, and was not decided until 1750, when the
Lord Chancellor ordered the agreement of 1732 to be
carried out. The commissioners met and agreed to
make the court house at New Castle the center of the
circle. But Maryland insisted on a surface measure-
ment of the radius, instead of an astronomical and
geometrical measurement. The Penns would not agree
to this, and the work was once more put off.
Finally, in 1761, after Chancery had decided in
Mason and favor of a horizontal measurement, two
Dixon's Line oxpert English surveyors, Charles Mason
and Jeremiah Dixon, were appointed to run the lines.
It took them several years to draw the circle, fix the
tangent, and locate the beginning of the southern
boundary of Pennsylvania. This boundary, known
as Mason and Dixon’s line, was extended westward
in latitude 39° 44’, for a distance of 230 miles, in
the year 1767. At intervals of five miles, the survey-
ors placed stones marked on the north with the arms
of Thomas and Richard Penn, and on the south with
the arms of Lord Baltimore. Smaller stones were
placed at the end of every mile. Where transporta-
tion was no longer possible—beyond the foot of Side-
ling hill to the summit of the Alleghenies — heaps of
stones marked the line; and thence to the end, posts
surrounded with stones and earth. The stones used
as far as Sideling hill were imported from England.
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 81

The Indians being feared, the remainder of the southern
boundary of the State was run by other surveyors, in
1782. Mason and Dixon returned to England, but their
names became household words in America. Mason
and Dixon’s line became famous as the division Dbe-
tween the free States and the slave States. The little
triangular piece of land between the tangent and the
semicirele, extending down from the eastern terminus
of Mason and Dixon’s line, known as the “flat iron,”
was recently transferred by Pennsylvania to Delaware ;
but the transaction has not yet been completed by
Delaware and Congress.

Virginia, by virtue of her “sea to sea” charter, made
an indefinite claim to all lands west and Western
northwest of her coast line. She therefore Pennsylvania
held that the region about the forks of the Ohio
belonged to her. Accordingly, in 1749, the Ohio Land
Company, most of whose members were Virginians,
two of them being brothers of General Washington,
secured from George II a grant of half a million acres
on the branches of the Ohio. Its object was to form
a barrier against the French, and to establish trade
with the Indians. Under its auspices, Christopher Gist,
afterwards the companion of Washington on his journey
to Fort Le Bceeuf, explored the country. With eleven
other families, he settled within the present limits of
Fayette county. To check the encroachments of the
French, a fort was begun in 1754, on the site of
Pittsburg ; but the enemy captured the Virginians while
engaged in its erection, finished it, and named it Fort
Duquesne. In the year following its capture by General
Forbes (see p.133) it was rebuilt, and named Fort Pitt,
in honor of Pitt, the distinguished English statesman.

F
82 A History of Pennsylvania

Before 1758, the western part of Pennsylvania could
Forbes’ Road be approached from the east, only by the
and Pittsburg poyute of the Juniata and the Kiskiminitas.
In that year, Forbes finished as far as the Loyalhanna
the road previously begun from Fort Loudon by way
of Bedford. This opened the way for numerous set-
tlers from the eastern counties, notably the Secotch-
Irish. They located in the Ligonier valley, at Hannas-
town, and about the forks of the Ohio. With settlers
from Maryland and Virginia, they possessed the land
in comparative quiet till Pontiac’s war. Pittsburg was
begun in 1760, and the next year had 104 houses,
sheltering 332 persons. But when Pontiac’s conspi-
racy had been hatched, the infant town was cut off
from all communication; and had it not been for
Colonel Bouquet’s victory over the savages at Bushy
run, in 1764 (see p. 136), it might have been wiped out
of existence. He forced the Indians to withdraw from
western Pennsylvania and retire beyond the Ohio.
Colonel John Campbell, in 1765, laid out Torly
squares ; but the town was a poor affair then. Nor
did it make much progress until after the Revolution.
The “proclamation line,” by which England, after the
French and Indian war, forbade the colonists to settle
west of the headwaters of the rivers in the Atlantic
basin, interfered with the growth of Pittsburg and
the country around it. The settlers of Redstone creek
and Cheat river were at one time driven away in pur-
suance of the proclamation. A law was passed by the
Assembly imposing the death penalty, without benefit
of clergy, for trespassing upon lands not purchased
from the Indians. But nothing daunted the trespassers;
they returned again and again. To avoid these recur-
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 83

ring difficulties, the purchase at Fort Stanwix was made
(see map, p. 6). It opened the country around the
Ohio for legitimate settlement. A land office was
opened, and a rapid increase of population followed.
In 1769, the Penns surveyed a manor ef 5,000 acres at
Pittsburg and in the country east of it and south of
the Monongahela. But the Manor of Pittsburg — as
it was called —was not laid out into lots as long as
Virginia claimed the land.

A new difficulty arose just before the Revolution.
In 1773 the county of Westmoreland, in-
cluding all of the southwestern portion of
the province west of Laurel Hill, was formed. Hannas-
town, on the old Forbes road, near the present site of
Greensburg, was made the county seat. It was the
first place in the Mississippi valley where justice was
administered by virtue of judicial authority. It was
the only collection of houses—about thirty in number—
worthy the name of town between Bedford and Pitts-
burg. When Virginia saw that Pennsylvania was ex-
tending jurisdiction over the forks of the Ohio, she
renewed her claims to that country. Before the land
had been purchased from the Indians, the settlers
were so few that no collisions occurred. Now it was
otherwise. Lord Dunmore, Governor of Virginia,
asserted that Pittsburg was outside of the limits of
Pennsylvania. He placed in command Dr. John Con-
nelly, a Pennsylvanian, but a willing tool, who took
possession of Fort Pitt and changed its name to Fort
Dunmore. Connelly defied the Pennsylvania magis-
trates and other officers of the State, and commanded
the people of Westmoreland county to recognize the
authority of Lord Dunmore. Arthur St. Clair, a Penn-

Collisions
84 A History of Pennsylvania

sylvania magistrate, had Connelly arrested and bound
over to keep the peace. This the Doctor did not do.
He got a commission from Virginia to act as justice of
the peace in Augusta
county, which extended
over the disputed ter-
ritory in Pennsylvania.
He then appeared at
Hannastown with 150
men, all armed and
with colors flying,

: placed sentinels at the
House of Arthur St. Clair. door of the court house,
and kept the magistrates from entering. Lord Dun-
more now established a court at Fort Pitt, and de-
manded obedience to its decrees.

The matter next got into Congress, where such men
as Jefferson and Henry, of Virginia, and
Franklin, of Pennsylvania, advised that
the troops be withdrawn. Though this was not done
at once, yet the Revolution brought about a more
brotherly feeling ; and by 1779 the Virginians and
Pennsylvanians agreed to a settlement. A com-
mission, on which served the celebrated astronomer,
Rittenhouse, was appointed to run the boundary
by extending Mason and Dixon’s line to its western
limit of five degrees. There a meridian was
drawn as far north as the Ohio. Wide vistas were
cut through the forests over the high hills, and trees
were deadened or felled in the valleys. Stones were
set up at irregular intervals and marked on the east
side with the letter P, and on the west side with the
letter V. Ceding her western lands north of the Ohio to

 

The Settlement
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 85

Congress in 1784, Virginia had no further interest
in the boundary, and next year Pennsylvania alone
extended the meridian to Lake Erie.

After the Revolution, affairs in western Pennsylvania
were generally peaceful. The old State road southwestern
was opened along the trail of Forbes, and Pennsylvania
numerous villages sprang up along its way. Greens-
burg was founded on the site of a blockhouse of the
Revolution. Hannastown had been wiped off the map
of Westmoreland county, July 13, 1782, by one of
the most cruel Indian attacks on record. The Indians,
under the famous Seneca chief, Kyashuta, arrived from
across the Allegheny river early in the morning,
applied the torch to the historic village, and carried
some of its defenceless inhabitants into captivity.
Washington county, which at first included Greene,
was cut off from Westmoreland soon after Virginia's
claim had been abandoned.
Its original southern popu-
lation had gained many ac-
cessions from Pennsylvania—
Scotch-Irish and Germans.
Dunkard creek, in Greene
county, bears evidence of a
German sect that found its
way out there from the east-
ern counties. Fayette county
was erected soon after Wash-
ington, and it now has within i
its borders the historic spots Braddock’s Grave.
of Great Meadows, Fort Necessity, and Braddock’s
grave. Allegheny, which at first included all the terri-
tory north and west of the Ohio and Allegheny rivers,

 
86 A History of Pennsylvania

was also formed from the mother county of southwestern
Pennsylvania— Westmoreland. The town lots in the
Manor of Pittsburg now had a ready sale. Previous to
this time, there were few buildings outside the fort,
except those occupied by Indian traders and soldiers’
families. In 1790 the town contained 200 houses, 2,000
people, one newspaper, and a few manufacturing
establishments. But a movement of population then
began in the United States that made it grow more.
rapidly. New Englanders and Virginians, as well as
Pennsylvanians, flocked into the Ohio valley because
the Northwest Territory had been organized and
opened for settlement. Pittsburg became a place
of trade with these new and ever-increasing settle-
ments and its future greatness was assured.

The northwestern part of the State, known as the
The Indians | 1Ddian country” after the French war,
Disappear from constituted the purchase of 1784 (see
Pennsylvania ap, p. 6), by which the Indian title to
the last foot of soil in Pennsylvania was extin-
guished. However, the Indians continued to infest
this section until Wayne's treaty at Ft. Greenville,
1795. This put an end to their hostility, and only
one chief exercised dominion thereafter within the
State. His: reservation remains intact today. Gyant-
wochia, “the cornplanter,” became the friend of the
settlers after the Revolution, and the State gave him
permission to select 1,500 acres of land for himself and
his descendants. He chose 640 acres on the west
branch of the Allegheny, about fifteen miles above
Warren, together with two large islands adjoining.
There he located permanently with his family, about
1791; and there his desendants live at the present
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 87

day — the last remnant of the Red Man in Pennsyl-
vania. They farm their land and have a school, which
is supported by the State.

The “Indian country” was entered Yy the white
settlers by way of the west branch of the Northwestern
Allegheny and the border of New York. Pennsylvania
Erie, the oldest and most historic place in it, can boast
of the footprints of La Salle, and of the fort of
Presque Isle, the first of a number of posts established
by the French to make good
their “leaden” claims to the
Ohio valley (see p. 124). At
Ft. Le Beeuf, Washington, at .
the age of 21, performed his §
first public service. These
points are in the triangle
along “ the shore of Lake
Erie. The northern boun-
dary of the State was the
subject of mild dispute between the Penns and New
York for nearly fifty years, on account of the.vague
knowledge of the 42d degree. The charter stated
that Pennsylvania should. be bounded on_the north by
the beginning of the 43d degree, which was accepted
to mean the 42d degree. Occasionally grants of land
within territory claimed by the Penns were made by
the governor of New York. To avoid such mistakes,
a stone, from which the northern boundary was to be
determined, was erected in 1775 on an island in the
Delaware river. From this point the northern boun-
dary was run in 1787; but it terminated a few miles
south of Lake Erie, greatly to the dissatisfaction of
Pennsylvania. The ime was finally fixed at 42°, and

 

Blockhouse at Erie.
88 A History of Pennsylvania

was ratified by both States in 1789. It terminated in
Lake Erie four miles east of where the western boun-
dary terminated, thus giving Pennsylvania only four
miles of water frontage. The triangle cut off was
included in the cessions made by New York and Massa-
chusetts to the United States. In 1792, Pennsyl-
vania bought it from the Federal government for the
sum of $151,640.50. Three years later, Erie was laid
out on Presque Isle; and within a short time afterward
the prince, Louis Philippe, heir to the throne which
once had jurisdiction of the soil where Erie stands,
was entertained in the town.

Kittanning, another place familiar in the annals of
northwestern Pennsylvania, was originally
an Indian village. It marked the western
terminus of the Indian path across the mountains
from Standing Stone and other points in the Juniata
valley. It was destroyed in 1756 by Colonel Arm-
“strong (see p. 131), after whom the county is named.
The country around it afterwards became the scene
of many of Captain Samuel Brady’s encounters with
the Indians.

A noted point on the Kittanning path was Cherry
Tree, at the present juncture of Cambria, Clearfield,
and Indiana counties. It was the head of canoe navi-
gation on the Susquehanna. The Indians would take.
their canoes out of the stream at Cherry Tree and
strike the trail through northern Indiana to Kittan-
ning. It also obtained celebrity as the northern
boundary of the Stanwix purchase, and is frequently
referred to in old land warrants. A monument has
been erected at the place to commemorate its historic
associations,

Kittanning
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 89

In the Ohio valley, west of Pittsburg, the Moravian
missionaries were the first white men to lay The
the foundations of settlement. Zeisberger Ohio Valley
and Senseman established a mission, called Friedenstadt,
at the junction of the Shenango and Mahoning, in
Lawrence county. These pious men had followed
their Indian wards all the way from Wyalusing on the
Susquehanna, sojourning for awhile among the Monseys
in Forest county. Neshannock, Mahoning, and other
names of streams in this locality were brought by the
Indians from the Delaware valley, where they had
known streams of the same name.

After the victory of Wayne, the “Indian country”
rapidly became the white man’s country. Eight New
In 1800, “the great new county act” was Countle
passed in the Legislature, by which Beaver, Butler,

 

ERIE
a Tg
LUZERNE

 

7 LYCOMING
Sv wana
IRECER
BUTLER CENTRE NORTRY) D
NO) Li »
BERVER
; HUNTINGDON MITFLIS BERKS
v =) .
JO
Pl id DAUPHIN BUCKS
CUMBI do,
WASHINGTON ERLAND ung
80) ET, LANCASTER -
CHESTER
BEDFORD
TATETTE
ORRENE amin | pays \ TORE Wark

 

County Map in 1800.

Mercer, Crawford, Erie, Warren, Venango and Arm-
strong counties were created. Pennsylvania was now
90 A History of Pennsylvania

practically settled and conveniently organized under
thirty-five county governments.

In 1790 the population of Pennsylvania was 434,373.
Growth of The increase from that year to 1800 was 39
Population pap cent, and for each decade thereafter to
1890, respectively, as follows: 34 per cent, 29 per
cent, 29 per cent, 28 per cent, 34 per cent, 25 per
cent, 21 per cent, 22 per cent, 23 per cent. Owing to
the French and Indian war, the Revolution, and the
wars in Europe after the Revolution, foreign immi-
gration did not add much to the population of any
of the States from 1750 tu 1820. Hence the pioneers
west of the Alleghenies during those years were mainly
of the native stock. However, the movement across the
mountains did not amount to much until the decade
of financial distress after the Revolution. Then
the people on the seaboard flocked westward in
such numbers as to threaten the depopulation of the
Atlantic States. But the French Revolution checked
this movement ; for the Americans enjoyed good times
then, furnishing supplies of every sort to the nations
at war, and carrying them in their own ships, manned
by their own sailors. In Pennsylvania, the Dela-
ware and Susquehanna valleys were favored by their
easy access to the sea. The State was also the
highway to the west for all New Englanders, and
Pittsburg was the gateway. A part of the .great per-
centage of increase was due to the emigrant business
that sprang up along the route.

From 1800 to 1820, the percentage of increase fell

From considerably. There was a loss of popula-
1800 to 1820 tion then, due to the opening of the North-
west Territory for settlement on a credit system, and
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 91

to the hard times caused by the incidents of the War
of 1812. Both conditions sent endless processions of
wagons and foot parties to Ohio and Indiana. Pennsyl-
vania, lying next to this land of promise, would natu-
rally lose heavily in population. Nevertheless, conditions
had arisen during these years that made for an in-
crease. The Embargo and Non-Intercourse acts made it
necessary for the States to engage in manufacturing.
Pennsylvania, with her iron and coal, began to build
furnaces and operate mines. Philadelphia and Pitts-
burg became centers for the manufacture of all kinds
of articles needed by the people of the United States.
As the native Americans were not skilled in manu-
facturing, many Europeans came here to help launch
the new industries. After the Napoleonic wars had
ceased, armies were disbanded, enormous taxes were
laid, and a general depression in trade and agriculture
ensued in Europe. This caused a great influx of
immigrants between 1815 and 1820, particularly from
Great Britian and Ireland. It was at this time that
the English, Welsh, Scotch, and Irish, from whom the
coal miners were recruited for so many years, began
to come to Pennsylvania. So many immigrants from
Ireland landed in Philadelphia that the Society of
United Irishmen was formed to secure employment
for such as wanted to remain in eastern Pennsylvania,
and to furnish transportation to those who wanted
to go westward.

From 1820 to 1840, internal improvements and the
tariff for protection were inaugurated by Lumberg
the United States. This was the era of and Mining
canal building, steamboat construction, and  FePuiation
grading of horse-power railroads. Pennsylvania now
92 A History of Pennsylvania

became inhabited by the lumberman. Wood-choppers,
sawyers, and raftsmen were added to the population.
Lock Haven and Williamsport became known as
lumbering towns in this period. Lock Haven received
its name in 1833 from two locks in the canal passing
through it, ‘and a haven in the river. “Big Water
Mill,” the first saw mill at Williamsport, was erected
in 1839. The protective tariff acts of 1824 and 1828
stimulated manufacturing and created an increased
demand for coal and iron. Many more English,
Welsh, Scotch, and Irish came to work in the mines
and furnaces, especially in the anthracite regions,
which had been made accessible by means of canals.
The increase of population in Pottsville, in the year
1830, was spoken of in the Miners’ Journal as “almost
unprecedented.” Mauch Chunk and the county of
Carbon became justly famous through the “black
diamond ” of the Lehigh valley. Wilkes-Barre became
known as the center of the Wyoming coal fields.
Scranton, now the fourth city in Pennsylvania, sprang,
in 1840, from an abandoned village of five houses. It
bore for some time the name of Lackawanna Iron
Works.

From 1840 to 1850, the population in Pennsyl-
vania increased much more rapidly than it
had in any decade since 1800. Foreign
immigration to the United States in 1820 amounted to
8,000 ; this number increased gradually till 1842,
when it took a sudden leap, and reached the grand
total of 105,000. In 1846, when the potato famine
raged in Ireland, the number was 155,000. As this
was the era of railroad building, Pennsylvania, with
its great trunk line to build over the mountains

Railroads Built
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 93

and into the coal regions, absorbed an unusually large
number, especially of the Irish. The iron and lumber
districts, too, added great numbers to their population,
both foreigners and Americans, on acconnt of the
demand for iron and lumber.

From 1850 to 1860, the percentage of increase fell
from 34 to 25. Foreign immigrants now
had quick and easy access to the West
by means of railroads, and they no longer settled in
the Atlantic States. For the same reason many people
in the East sold out and went West; while the panic
of 1857 forced still others to sell out and make a
new start in life on the prairies of the Mississippi
valley.

Between 1860 and 1880, there was another great
decline in the percentage of increase. This The War
was due to the war for the Union in the and the Panic
sixties and the business stagnation in the seventies.
The former kept the people from coming into the
State, while the latter drove them out of it. However,
during these years, the petroleum industry sprang up
in the Allegheny valley. Commencing with Titusville
in 1859, an indescribable activity and speculation
spread over northwestern Pennsylvania. Adventurers
flocked thither from all parts of the country. What
is now known as the “oil region” was transformed
from an almost unbroken forest into camps and towns
in a few short years. Pithole city, now the site of
a farm, was, in 1865, next to Philadelphia, the largest
post office in the State. Titusville, Oil City, Franklin,
Tidioute, Bradford, Parker City, and Corry are all
towns wholly or mostly made since the sixties by
the petroleum industry.

A Great Drop
94 ; A History of Pennsylvania

Since 1880, Pennsylvania has received thousands of
Hininant immigrants from southern Europe—Poles,
from Southern [jithuanians, Hungarians and Italians.
Eurore Down to that time the growth of the
mining population was mainly through additions from
the English, Welsh, Scotch, Irish, and Germans, either
by native increase or by immigration. During the

a war for the Union, miners’
wages were high; but as soon
as capital was set free from
providing for the armies, large
sums were invested in coal
fields, and over-production was
the consequence. Then wages
* were reduced. To resist the
" operators in the reduction of
wages, the miners organized in
1868 and 1869, and during the
next decade resorted to fre-
quent strikes, either for higher
wages or shorter hours. Un-
able to work for lower wages on account of their improved
condition of life, the nationalities that had worked
in the coal mines for sixty years gave their places to
a class of people whose mode of living is much inferior.
Many of these were at first brought to America under
contract to work for a specified amount; but the
alien contract-labor law of 1885 prohibited such a pro-
cedure. Nevertheless the Poles, Lithuanians, Hungarians
and Italians came into Pennsylvania, and they are
found here in large numbers, not alone in the coal
flelds, but at all sorts of cheap labor in various sections
of the State. The census of 1890 showed the number

 

A Native Miner's Home.
Population and Adjustment of Boundaries 95

of these nationalities in the five anthracite counties
to have been 28,216, and in 1897 the number in the
same region was estimated at 50,000.

There was a large increase in urban population in
the State outside of Philadelphia from 1880
to 1890 ; but the rural population was less in
some sections, and in many others only slightly greater.
While Philadelphia and the State increased only 23 per
cent, Pittsburg increased 52 per cent, and the following
places more fom 100 per cent: Johnstown, MeBeospors,

After 1880

 

Pittsburg and Alloghety.

Pottstown, South Bethlehem, Nanticoke, Steelton, But-
ler, Braddock, Mount Carmel, Homestead, Du Bois,
Milton, - Wilkinsburg, and Tarentum.

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Shepherd’s Proprietary Government in Pennsylvania, Part I ;
Fisher’s Making of Pennsylvania, Chs. x and xi; Craig’s Olden
Time, Vol. I, pp. 529-552 (Mason and Dixon’s Line); Miner’s
History of Wyoming, passim; MecGinness’ History of the West
Branch Valley, Vol. I, passim; Jones’ History of the Juniatw
Valley, passim; Albert’s History of Westmoreland County, Chs.
i-xxxix; Craig’s History of Pittsburg, passim; Warner & Co.’s
History of Allegheny County, Part 1, Chs. i-vii.
CHAPTER IV

THE FORM OF GOVERNMENT

The English colonial governments were of three
Fons of kinds : first, provincial, under which the
Colonial Crown established the government, ap-
Government pointed the governors, and instructed
them how to rule; secondly, proprietary, according .
to which the Crown granted a tract of land to
some individual, called the proprietary, and em-
powered him to establish the government, appoint the
governors, and instruet them how to rule; thirdly,
charter, through which the Crown gave the colonists
the power to organize a government, elect the governor,
and hold him responsible for his acts. All the colonies
had a legislature elected by the people, but the laws
passed could be vetoed by the governor; or, if
approved by him, could be vetoed by the Crown
within a period of a few years. The laws were to
conform as nearly as possible with the laws of Eng-
land. The judges were appointed by the governors.

Pennsylvania’s government was of the proprietary
Pennsylvania's form. This form had its origin in the feudal

Porm system. Pennsylvania was a huge fief
bestowed on William Penn by the Crown, granting him
the land and giving him jurisdiction, both civil and
military. Theoretically,” the proprietary and his sue-
cessors were in possession of many of the ancient

(96)
The Government of Pennsylvania 97

rights of a count palatine; but practically, they were
the executors of a democracy.

The preamble of Penn’s charter stated his desire
to enlarge the British empire, to promote Provisions
its trade and commerce, and to educate ©°f the Charter
the Indians in the principles of Christianity. Then
followed his request for territory in which to form
a colony, and for powers of government. To this
end the Proprietary was given power to make and
publish laws approved by a majority of the freemen,
or of their representatives. In case anything should
have to be remedied before the first Assembly could
meet, the Proprietary alone had power to issue ordi-
nances. To insure loyalty, the charter provided that
neither the Proprietary nor the freemen should cor-
respond with any power at war with England, nor
should they offend any power at peace with England.
Duplicates of all laws should be sent to the Privy
Council in England within five years after their en-
actment ; and if not annulled within six months after
their reception, they were to remain in force. An
agent of the province should reside in London to
answer for offenses against England on the part of
the Proprietary, and to render satisfaction therefor.
Until such satisfaction was rendered the Crown might
seize the government.

The charter next provided for the establishment of
courts and the appointment of judges by the Further
Proprietary; but the Crown reserved the right Frovisions
to hear appeals. Privileges of commerce and trans-
portation, and the assessment and collection of customs
were granted to the Proprietary and the inhabitants
of the province. Parliament could levy a tax on

G
98 - A History of Pennsylvania

the province without the consent of the “Proprietary
or chief governor and assembly.” The Proprietary
could erect counties and townships and incorporate
boroughs and cities ; and, as captain-general, he could
form a militia and wage war, even beyond the limits
of his province. In the event of any misunderstanding
about the charter, any word or clause was to be
interpreted most favorably to the Proprietary.

Pursuant to the charter, what is known as the
The Frame of Frame of Government” was drawn up
Government by William Penn in England. It was
the constitution under which the province of Penn-
sylvania was organized. He drew it up before the
first company of colonists under Markham, the
Deputy-Governor, sailed for America. This small
party, who were to take possession of Penn’s grant
of land and prepare for his own coming the next
year, signed the Frame of Government before depart-
ing, and before Penn himself signed it.

The spirit of Penn’s Frame of Government was
thoroughly republican. “I will put the
power with the people,” he said. In the
preface are these words :

Its Spirit

“I know some say, ‘Let us have good laws, and no matter about
the men that execute them.” But let them consider that, though
good laws do well, good men do better; for good laws want [be
in need of ] good men; but good men will never want good laws
nor suffer [allow] ill ones.”

At another place are found these words—they have
been inscribed on the walls of the corridor in Inde-
pendence Hall, side by side with the Declaration of
Independence :

“Any government is free to the people under it, whatever be
The Government of Pennsylvania 99

the form, where the laws rule, and the people are a party to those
laws; and more than this is tyranny, oligarchy and confusion.”

In speaking of the end of all government, Penn
once made use of these words :

“To support power in reverence with the people, and to secure
the people from the abuse of power; that they may be free by
their just obedience, and the magistrates honorable for their just
administration ; for liberty without obedience is confusion, and
obedience without liberty is slavery. To carry this evenness is
partly owing to the constitution, and partly to the magistracy ;
where either of these fail, government will be subject to eonvul-
gion ; but where both are wanting, it must be totally subverted ;
then where both meet, the government is like to endure. Which
I humbly pray and hope God will please to make the lot of
Pennsylvania.”

The highest purpose of government, according to
Penn’s “Frame,” is to secure to every person the “free
enjoyment of his religious opinions and worship, so
long as it does not extend to licentiousness or the

   

” Sa TLS

Pennsylvania's €oat of Arms. Originally engraved by Caleb Lownes, 1778,
100 A History of Pennsylvania

destruction of others; that is, to speak loosely or
profanely of God, Christ, and the scriptures or religion,
or to commit any moral evil or injury against others”
Summing up the principles of government as expressed
by Penn, we find that they are about all included
in the words—* Virtue, Liberty and Independence’—
written on Pennsylvania’s coat of arms.

In 1682, Penn had the Frame of Government pub-
The Frame lished ; but it was not identical with the
Published one signed by the colonists who had gone
to Pennsylvania under Markham. It consisted of
twenty-four articles and forty laws. The govern-
ment was vested in the Governor and freemen
of the province. The freemen were to elect a
Provincial Council and a General Assembly. The
former was to consist of seventy-two members, to
serve for three years; the latter, of all the freemen
the first year, when the Frame was to be accepted,
and of two hundred of them the next year—the num-
ber to be increased as the population increased, but
not to exceed five hundred. The Governor, or his
deputy, was to be the perpetual president of the
Provincial Council, and was to have a treble vote.

The duty of the Provincial Council was (a) to
The Provincial originate bills, which were to be published
Couneil thirty days before the Assembly met—a
provision based on a principle of the referendum of
modern times; (b) to see that the laws were exe-
cuted; (¢) to take care of the peace and safety of
the province; (d) to settle the location of ports,
cities, market towns, roads, and other public places ;
(e) to inspect the public treasury; (f) to erect courts
of justice; (g) to institute schools; (2) to reward
The Government of Pennsylvania 101

authors of useful discoveries; and (4) to summon and
dissolve the General Assembly.

The General Assembly had no power to legislate
and no privilege to debate. The bills The Genera:

originated and passed by the Council were Assembly
presented to the Assembly for approval or rejection
with a plain “Yes” or “No.” It could name persons

for sheriffs and justices of the peace for the Governor
to select from, being obliged to name twice as many
as were to be appointed.

The Frame of Government could not be amended
- without the consent of the Proprietary,
or his heirs or assigns, and six-sevenths
of the freemen in both the Council and Assembly.

There was not much done in the way of estab-
lishing a government by Deputy- Governor
Markham. He administered the affairs
of the infant colony at Upland according to instrue-
tions. But when Penn himself had arrived, he called
the first General Assembly to meet at Upland, Decem-
ber 6th next. No Council having yet been chosen,
the Assembly met alone, with Dr. Nicholas More as
chairman. Penn presented the “Laws agreed upon
in England,” and ninety others. Sixty-one of the
latter were embodied in the “great law or body of
laws of the province of Pennsylvania.” Though more
than two hundred years have passed since the “Great
Law” was enacted at Chester, it still remains, modi-
fied to some extent, but not greatly, as a part of the
government of our Commonwealth. It allowed free-
dom of worship to all who acknowledged one God.
All members of the government, as well as the voters,
had to be qualified in the belief that Jesus Christ is

Amendment

The Great Law
102 A History of Pennsylvania

the son of God and the Saviour of the world. Swear-
ing, cursing, drunkenness, health-drinking, card-play-
ing, scolding, and lying were all prohibited in the
Great Law.

In February, 1683, Penn ordered an election for
The Government the members of the Provincial Couneil,
in Philadelphia a1 directed that when the Council should
meet at Philadelphia, all the freemen should meet in
General Assembly. The object of the session was to
consider, amend, and accept the Frame of Govern-
ment. Aside from a number of other changes, the
following ones were made: The Council was made to
consist of not less than eighteen members, three from
each county, nor more than seventy-two ; the Assembly,
of not less than thirty-six, six from each county,
nor more than two hundred. The treble vote of the
Governor was abolished and the veto power granted
instead ; but he could perform no public act without
the consent and advice of the Council, except that
Penn had during his lifetime the sole power of
appointing officers. Out of fifteen fundamental laws
made at this session, nine had been suggested to
Penn by his friend, Benjamin Furly, of Holland,
the promoter of the first German immigration to Penn-
sylvania. Furly had greatly preferred the draft signed
by Markham’s colonists. Said he to Penn: “I prefer
thy first draft to the last, as being the most equal,
most fair, and most agreeing with the just, wise,
and prudent institutions of our ancestors. * * °*
Indeed, I wonder who should put thee upon alter-
ing that for this, and as much how thou couldst
ever yield to such a thing.” Furley had also suggested
an anti-slavery clause.
The Government of Pennsylvania 103

The Assembly met only once under the new Frame
of Government before Penn’s return to Changes in
England. Immediately after his departure, the Government
signs of serious trouble between the Council and the
Assembly appeared, owing to the greater power of
the former in the enactment of laws. The contentions
and misunderstandings that arose created prejudices
against Penn himself, both here and in London.
These were deepened by a religious quarrel, started
in Pennsylvania by George Keith, and carried by
him to England. The consequence was that Penn
was suspected of disloyalty to the Crown. The gov-
ernment of the province was taken from him, 1693,
and given to Governor Fletcher, of New York. Penn
was unable to ward off this blow, because he was not
in favor with the Court of England after James II,
his intimate friend, had been driven from the throne.
Besides, all the colonies experienced a change in the
policy of the British government about this time.
A royal governor was sent to Maryland, and Massa-
chusetts had to accept a governor appointed by the
King. Pennsylvania was now under the direct con-
trol of the Crown, the Frame of Government was
disregarded, and the Assembly modeled after that of
New York. Fortunately, this state of affairs lasted
only about one year in Pennsylvania. The charges
against Penn having been disproved, his government
was restored to him and he again became Governor,
administering affairs through Markham as Deputy.

When Penn returned to Philadelphia, in 1699,
he found his colonists rather indifferent A New Form
to him. Ruling them at so great a dis- °f Government
tance for a period of fifteen years, had caused mis-
104 A History of Pennsylvania

understandings. He soon learned that he must give
them a new form of government. So the old Frame
was abandoned and the “Charter of Privileges” given
in its place. He signed this in 1701. The new
document, granted in response to a demand from the
people, provided for a General Assembly with much
greater powers; namely, to propose matters for legis-
lation, to meet annually, to adjourn itself, to be judge
of the election and qualifications of its own members,
to redress grievances, and to impeach for misdemeanor
in office. It also gave the people the power to elect
some of the county officers; and contained a strong
plea for liberty of conscience. By it, too, the three
lower counties were to have a separate Assembly.
The Charter of Privileges was: indeed the envy of
neighboring colonies, so republican was it in its
nature. Philadelphia, on the same day, October 25,
1701, became an incorporated city, with the right to
elect its officers, which before had been appointed by
the Governor. Through the liberality of Penn, there-
fore, Philadelphia is the oldest incorporated city in
the United States.

Since the Revolution of 1688, it had been a favor-
Penn Offers to ite project of the Crown to change the
Sell Pennsylvania 1ypgppietary governments to royal ones.
During Penn’s absence in America, a bill was intro-
duced in Parliament to effect the change. Hence he
hastened home. Before leaving he appointed Andrew
Hamilton Governor, and James Logan Secretary of
the province. On his return to England, Penn
stopped in Parliament the bill which was to change
the proprietorships to royal colonies. But the legal
fees required to end this movement, the litigations
The Government of Pennsylvania 105

with Lord Baltimore, the dishonesty of Philip Ford,
his steward, and the expenses of his family and his
province, involved him financially. So he agreed, in
1712, with Queen Anne, to sell Pennsylvania and
Delaware for $60,000. Before the
papers could be made out, he was
stricken with apoplexy. After his
death, there was much litigation over
the will. An agreement was finally
effected, 1731, by which the three
surviving sons of Penn by his sec-
ond wife, John, Thomas and Richard,
became the Proprietors. John died
in 1746, Richard in 1771, when the latter’s son,
John, together with Thomas, became sole Proprietors.
Penn’s heirs did not manage the estate so well as he
had done. They occupied his place, but did not fill
it. They were more interested in the revenues of the
province than in its welfare. This, however, was
natural ; for they were comparatively poor, and had
heavy debts to pay; moreover, they were Englishmen,
and not interested in Pennsylvania’s government, as
their father had been. They quarreled with the
colonists-about the taxes and rents; and the Governors
had numerous disputes with the General Assembly.
On one occasion, 1765, Franklin was sent to England
to induce the King to take the province of Pennsyl-
vania as his own, so dissatisfied had the colonists
become with the proprietary governors. They pre-
ferred to be an “appenage to the Crown rather than
a fief of the Penns.” But the wrath against the
Stamp Act quieted the feeling against the Proprietors,
and the movement failed. Besides, the Penns won

 

James Logan.
106 A History of Pennsylvania

back much of the loyalty and affection of the peo-
ple by an amicable adjustment of disputes.

In 1775 Pennsylvania, in common with the other
The Council C€Olonies, made a change in the executive
of Safety department of its government. By order of
the Assembly, Governor Penn, in June, was super-
seded by the Council of Safety. Such a body of men
exercised the executive functions in all
the colonies until constitutions were
adopted the next year; and it received
its authority generally from popular con-
ventions, called the provincial congress.
In Pennsylvania, however, it acted by
authority of the Assembly. Its chairman
was Franklin, and it consisted of twenty-
five, afterwards thirty, men, appointed
from the various counties in the province.
Among the men on this committee were
Benjamin Franklin, Robert Morris, John Dickinson,
Anthony Wayne, George Ross, George Clymer, David
Rittenhouse and Joseph Reed. It held almost daily
sessions, and its duties were many and arduous. It
promptly raised the troops requested by Congress,
and constructed the Pennsylvania State Navy three
months before Congress proposed a Continental Navy.
It was the moving power of the province until July
22. 1776.

When there was no further hope that the King
The Provincial Would redress the grievances of the
Convention colonies, Congress, May 15, 1776, recom-
mended the formation of state governments, that
would, “in the opinion of the representatives of
the people, best conduce to the happiness and

 

Penn’s Chair.
The Government of Pennsylvania 107

safety of their constituents in particular and America
in general.” The Assembly of Pennsylvania, being
composed mainly of adherents to the King, paid
no attention to this recommendation. The people
then disregarded the Assembly, and called a. provincial
convention, composed of one hundred and eight mem-
bers, to meet at Carpenter’s Hall, Philadelphia, June
18. This convention approved the recommendation
of Congress, and resolved that a constitutional con-
vention of eight representatives from each county
should be called to form a new government. This:
body met July 15, and chose Benjamin Franklin
president, and George Ross vice-president. After a
session of two months, a constitution was completed,
September 28. It was not submitted to the people
for ratification, but went into effect at once.

During its session, the constitutional convention
assumed supreme authority in the State. The Old
It appointed a Council of Safety, to per- Assembly Dies
form the executive duties; it approved the Declara-
tion of Independence, levied heavy taxes on such as
refused to bear arms, ordered the courts to proceed
against criminals, and appointed justices of the peace.
The old Assembly met for the last time September
23, to make one more feeble protest against these
proceedings, but it soon died without a struggle.
Then Penn’s words in the preface to the Frame of
Government,—"I will put the power with the people,”
—became a complete reality.

Under the first constitution, the General Assembly
consisted of only one house. Its members The First
were elected yearly. Its acts were called Constitution
the “Acts of Assembly,” a name still applied to our
108 A History of Pennsylvania

laws. The executive power was vested in a President,
chosen annually by the Assembly and the Supreme
Executive Council. The latter body was composed of
twelve members, elected for a term of three years,
and it was advisory to the President. Another body

 

OBVERSE REVERSE

The Seal of the State of Pennsylvania. Engraved in Paris, 1780.

was provided for,—the Council of Censors, consisting
of two persons from each city and county,—whose
duty it was, at the end of every seven years, to see
whether the constitution had been violated. A Dec-
laration of Rights, a constitutional provision first made
in America by Virginia in 1776, and in substance the
same as the English Bill of Rights of 1688, was a
sacred thing in the first constitution of Pennsylvania,
and remains in our organic. law to this day. The
forms of township and county government remained
as Penn instituted them. The right to vote was
given to every resident taxpayer.

The average life of a constitution in the United
Life of a States has been about a third of a century.
Constitution The forty-five States now in the Union
have enforced nearly one hundred and twenty con-
The Government of Pennsylvania 109

stitutions in that many years. New constitutions
become necessary to keep up with the progress of the
times. Lord Macaulay once said that “the cause of all
revolutions is that while nations move onward con-
stitutions stand still.” There are numerous interests
now that did not exist in 1776; all these, as they
came into prominence, needed the fostering care of
a constitution. From 1776 to 1800, there were twenty-
six constitutions in force among sixteen States; hence
ten of the original constitutions were changed in
twenty-five years. Most of these changes were made
to secure conformity with the Federal Constitution.

Pennsylvania changed her first constitution in
1790. An upper house was created, and The Consti-
the Assembly deprived of the sole right tution of 1790
to make laws. The Supreme Executive Council was
abolished and a single executive established, who was
to be elected by the people. The judges of the higher
courts were to serve during good behavior, instead of
for seven years. The Council of Censors was discon-
tinued and the veto power given to the Governor.
This body, with Frederick A. Muhlenberg as president,
had met but once, in 1783. It then got itself into
such a snarl with the Assembly that it became very
unpopular. A Declaration of Rights was again incor-
porated, in 1790. Office-holders still had to believe
in God and in a future state of rewards and punish-
ments, but the divine inspirations of the scriptures
was not included in their qualifications.

Beginning with the new century, there was a lull
in the original States in the making of
new constitutions, which lasted until about
1825. During this period a number of new States

A Lull
110 A History of Pennsylvania

came into the Union; and as rank, station and prefer-
ment are unknown in pioneer life, their constitutions
greatly extended the rights of the individual. The
West thus taught the East a lesson in government
which resulted in constitutional changes along the
Atlantic coast. Certain economic conditions, too, pre-
vailed about the year 1825 that led to the making
of new constitutions on a large scale between that
time and 1850. The rapid movements of population
into the West, at intervals after 1800, gave rise to the
great system of internal improvements, of which the
turnpikes and canals are the silent evidences. To
raise money for these purposes, numerous banks
were organized, paper money was issued, and great
financial distress was produced.

Pennsylvania made an effort in 1825 to revise
The Consti- the constitution of 1790, but failed; and
tution of 1838 thirteen years elapsed before the work was
undertaken. The constitution of 1838 allowed the Gov-
ernor but two terms of three years each in any nine
vears; in general, the powers of the Legislature were
enlarged ; nearly all the officers appointed by the
Governor were made elective by the people or their
representatives ; his nominations of judges were to
be confirmed in the senate with open doors; all life
offices were abolished ; the terms of judges were limited
to a certain number of years, and were conditioned
by good behavior; the power of the Legislature to
grant banking privileges was abridged and regulated ;
and the right of suffrage was extended to all white free-
men having paid a state or county tax. In the con-
stitution of 1790, the colored man could vote, but now
he could not. The revision was ratified by the people.
The Government of Pennsylvania 11

The constitution of 1838 remained in force till
1873. The principal reform then necessary The Constle
was the prohibition of special and local tution of 1873
legislation, which had become pernicious. and alarm-
ing. By referring to Article III, Section 7, of the
constitution of 1873, it may be seen what the nature
of this legislation was. Large corporations, such as
railroad, trust, insurance, mining and manufacturing
companies, had been formed under legislative grants
of special and exclusive privileges. Hence we find
a long article in our present constitution on private
corporations. The XVth Amendment of the Federal
Constitution made a change necessary in the suffrage
clause, which now no longer reads “white freemen,”
but “every male citizen,” having paid a state or county
tax. Other vital reforms made were: an increase in
the number of senators and representatives, the
creation of a Lieutenant-Governor, biennial sessions
of the Legislature, minority representation, and the
election by the people of all judges and certain other
officers.

Having traced the form of government in Pennsyl-
vania from Penn’s Frame to the constitution of 1873
—through a period of two centuries—we find that the
changes which it underwent were demanded by the
people and made in their interest.

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Shepherd’s Proprietary Government in Pennsylvania, Part II;
Proud’s History of Pennsylvania, Chs. i and ii; Fisher’s Evolution
of the Constitution of the United States, Chs. i-iii; Sharpless’ Quaker
Experiment in Government, passim; Franklin’s Historical Review of
the Constitution and Government of Pennsylvania ; Thorpe’s Con-
stitutional History of the American People, Vol. I, Chs. ii and iii.
CHAPTER V

THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE GOV-
ERNMENT

THE COLONIAL PERIOD

The Frame of Government having been accepted
Political and the Great Law enacted, the adminis-
History Begins tration of the government began,— and
with it the political history of the Province and State
of Pennsylvania. The Assembly had no power to
originate bills ; and the first political struggle of any
consequence arose from this defect in the Frame of
Government. Bills originated by the Council were
frequently rejected by the Assembly, for no good reason
except to assert what power it had. The deadlocks
thus produced caused great annoyance to the Pro-
prietor. So, in 1688, he sent an entire stranger,
Captain John Blackwell, once an officer in Cromwell’s
army, to act as Governor. But a soldier Governor
was not acceptable to the Quakers, and his adminis-
tration made matters no better. Blackwell had to be
recalled ; and the whole Council—eighteen in number
—with Thomas Lloyd as president, again became
Deputy - Governors.

In 1691, six of the councillors from the “three
Difficulties lower counties,” or Delaware, formed them-
in Delaware golyes into a separate Council and made
laws. Their acts were declared illegal; but Penn

(112)
The Administration of the Government 113

temporarily satisfied them by appointing William Mark-
ham, who sympathized with them, to administer the
government of Delaware. Lloyd was made Deputy-
Governor of Pennsylvania. Penn yielded to this
division of the executive power with great reluctance ;
for he knew it would help his enemies in their effort
to deprive him of the government. :

When Fletcher assumed control of Pennsylvania (see
p. 103), Lloyd refused to serve under him,
and Markham again became Deputy-Gov-
ernor. Fletcher also displaced the Council with a new
one and he got into a conflict with the Assembly about
supplies to assist New York in King William’s war,
and about taxes for the support of the government.
This was a new political problem in Pennsylvania ; but,
as in all the other colonies, it became the problem to
be solved by the Revolution. In dealing with it, Penn-
sylvania employed the same tactics as the other colo-
nies did ; namely, to grant the requests of the Gov-
ernor on condition that he would agree to the laws
they wanted. Fletcher's demands finally encroached
so much on the Assembly’s right to grant its money as
it saw fit, that he met with a flat refusal, and had to
send the law-makers home.

As soon as Penn had finally departed for England,
Delaware began to insist on its right to Sarcrsis
a separate Assembly. Governor Hamilton’s Assembly for
administration (1701-1703) was almost Delaware
wholly taken up with attempts to prevent a separa-
tion, but Delaware was unyielding. Its first General
Assembly met in 1703, and from that time until the
~ Revolution, it had a separate Legislature, but was

under the same Governor with Pennsylvania.
H

Fletcher’s Rule
114 A History of Pennsylvanic

Hamilton's successor was John Evans (1704-1709).

Co artn Ps He tried to restore the union between

Pennsylvania and Delaware, but sided
too much with Delaware to please Pennsylvania. He
made himself still more unpopular by denying the
right of the Assembly to adjourn at its own pleasure.
He was Governor while Queen Anne’s war was in
progress, and it was feared at one time that French
men-of-war would enter the Delaware. Evans knew
the doctrine of the Quakers about war, but thought
they would fight if they were attacked. So he planned
a sham attack. He had a messenger arrive in great
haste, with the news that the French were coming
up the river. He himself then rode through the
streets, entreating the people to arm themselves.
Some people became badly scared,—valuables were
thrown into wells, vessels sent up the river, and boats
secreted in creeks; but most of the Quakers went
about their duties as usual.

To the feeling of disgust which this piece of folly
Numerous provoked, was added bitter resentment when
Complaints the (Fovernor refused to let the Assembly
establish a judiciary. Logan, the Secretary of the
Province, came in for a share of the blame, and
articles of impeachment were drawn up against him.
An appeal was made to Penn that if he did not put
an end to the evil practices of his Governor and Sec-
retary, the matter would be carried to the Crown.
Complaints were also made by the Quakers because
their magistrates had to administer oaths or resign
their offices. An order to this effect had been issued
by Queen Anne, because it was represented to her
that a man might be tried in Pennsylvania for his
 

The Administration of the Government 115

life by a judge, jury and witnesses, none of whom had
been sworn.

Evans, having lost the respect and confidence of
the Quakers, could not cope with all these Governor
difficulties. Penn therefore recalled him Gooldin
and appointed Charles Gookin Governor, who served
from 1709 to 1717. Gookin’s first request was for
men and money for the expedition against Canada, in
Queen Anne’s war. The Assembly objected on the
ground of conscientious scruples, but voted to make
the Queen a present of 500 pounds, and added 200
pounds for the Governor’s own use, in case he should
redress their grievances. The chief grievance they
had was against Logan, whom they blamed for all
the evils of Evans’ administration. Logan demanded
a trial, but it was refused. He then went to London
and explained the controversy to Penn, who acquitted
him of all blame.

The new Assembly chosen soon afterwards was
more friendly to the Proprietary and in Perms
harmony with the Governor. Gookin Rule Ends
agreed to a system of courts, and to the right of the
Assembly to adjourn at pleasure. In return a liberal
sum of money was voted for the war against France.
Gookin, In 1715, also signed a bill substituting
affirmations for oaths, and it was in force for five
years. Then, according to the Charter, it had to be
presented to the Crown for approval, which it failed
to get. The law was reénacted at once; but to pre-
vent the colonists from living under it for another
five years, Parliament passed an act making an old
law of England, which prohibited Quakers from giv-
ing evidence in criminal cases, sitting on juries, or
116 A History of Pennsylvania

holding any office, apply to all the colonies and so to
Pennsylvania. Governor Gookin now sided with those
in the province who were
anxious to cripple Quaker
rule. He held that the act
of Parliament had repealed
the recent act of the prov-
ince. This was too much
to be endured, and his re-
call was demanded. Penn
having become too feeble-
minded to attend to such
matters, Mrs. Penn requested
the Governor’s resignation.
And now neither the voice
nor the pen of the founder

Pols Dak of Pennsylvania ever again

In the Philadelphia Library. took part in the counsels of

his province.

Mrs. Penn appointed Sir William Keith to succeed
Governor (rookin. Keith’s administration (1717-1726)
Reith was very popular with the people but not
with the Proprietary. He addressed the Crown on the
vexed question of allowing persons to affirm who re--
fused to take an oath. He urged that their seruples
should be respected. The King. then ratified an act of
Parliament to that effect. The Assembly in return
agreed to a voluntary militia. Foreign immigration next
demanded attention. The Germans and the Scotch-Irish
came in such large numbers about this time that their
naturalization was not looked upon with favor. A
bill brought in provided that applicants must produce
a certificate from a justice of the peace certifying to

 
The Administration of the Government 117

the amount of property they had and to the nature of
their religious faith. The Governor objected to these
serutinies, and the Assembly granted citizenship with-
out them, but laid a duty on all imported foreigners
coming to reside in the province. There were many
servants among the immigrants. Some of these were
poor but respectable, and were willing to serve for a
time in order that they might become free afterwards;
others were vagrants and felons, sent here as well as to
the other colonies, by England. A duty of five pounds
was imposed upon the importer of convicted felons.
Commerce and finance also engaged the attention
of the government about this time. There Commerce
was not a sufficient demand for the pro- and Finance
ducts of the province, consisting chiefly of flour,
meats, butter and eggs. So laws were passed to
create a home consumption. Brewers and distillers
were required to use nothing but home products, and
some of these were made a legal tender. Rigid
inspection of exports was enforced to improve théir
demand abroad, especially in the West Indies, where
Pennsylvania flour and salt meats sold well. But
these remedies did not create a market for all that
grew on the fertile farms so rapidly multiplying. Had
England allowed her colonies to engage in manufac-
ture, Pennsylvania might have created a home market.
As it was, her imports of manufactured articles far
exceeded her exports, and the specie was drawn off to
pay balances abroad, money became scarce, and finan-
cial embarrassment followed. Governor Keith now
came forward with a proposition to issue paper
money. The Assembly, having full knowledge of the
disastrous effects of this kind of currency in other
118 A History of Pennsylvania

colonies, acted with great caution, and issued just so
much as would supply the place of the specie sent
abroad. The issue under Keith amounted to 45,000
pounds, secured on silver plate or land.

Governor Keith was now the idol of the people,
Governor but not of Logan and Mrs. Penn, and so
Gordon he was recalled. His successor was Patrick
Gordon, whose wise and successful administration ex-
tended from 1726 to his death, in 1736. The five
years for which the paper money law could be in
operation, without submitting it to the King for ap-
proval or rejection, had now expired. The King
approved it, but warned the province against an ex-
cess of such money. However, more paper was
issued. The Assembly had convinced Gordon of its
usefulness by reminding him of the fact that while in
the other colonies the notes were secured only on the
credit of the government, in Pennsylvania they had
the additional security of the silver plate or land of
the individual to whom they were issued. Other
measures of advantage were adopted during Gordon’s
administration. One was the appointment of a per-
manent agent to represent the Assembly in London.
He was to explain the laws passed, that they might
not be vetoed without due consideration. The rapid
increase of Swiss and German immigration again de-
manded attention, even England fearing that Pennsyl-
vania would become a colony of foreigners. A duty
of forty shillings per head was laid on all foreign
immigrants. But when the Scotch-Irish poured into
the province, the Quakers felt the need of the Ger-
mans, who generally sided with them in political
matters, and the odious law was repealed.
.

The Administration of the Government 119

In 1729, the Assembly resolved to build a State
House. It had been meeting in a Quaker The State
meeting-house, in a school-house, and in House Built
private houses. Work was not commenced until 1732.
The building was completed in 1741, though the
finishing touches were not put on it till 1745. A par

 

 

Independence Hall.

of it was occupied by the Assembly in October, 1735.
In 1750 an addition was ordered “on the south side,
to contain the staircase, with a place therein for
hanging a bell.” ‘The bell used before was probably
brought over by Penn. It had hung on a small
belfry in front of the buildings in which the Assembly
met. Members of the Assembly who were not present
within half an hour after the bell had rung were to
120 A History of Pennsylvania

pay “a tenpenny bit.” The bell which has come to
be known as the Liberty Bell was originally made in
London. It was twice recast here, in 1753, on aec-
count of a crack it received when "hung up to try
the sound.” It was then that the words “Proclaim
liberty throughout the land, unto all the inhabitants

 

The Liberty Bell.

thereof,” were added. It was again cracked in 1835,
while being tolled in memory of Chief Justice
Marshall, and it now hangs over the hallway of the
old State House.

Little did the Assembly of 1729 dream of the his-
Historic toric scenes that were to be enacted in the
Associations Pennsylvania State House. ~ Here, June 28,
1774, resolutions were passed, making common cause
#

The Administration of the Government 121

with Boston, denouncing the “port bill,” and recom-
mending a congress of all the colonies; here the second
Continental Congress met in 1775, and remained, ex-
cept when the city was held by the British, till 1783;
here the Declaration of Independence was passed July
4, 1776, and first publicly read, July 8; here the
Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union were
signed July 9, 1778, and finally ratified March 1, 1781 ;
here the Constitution was framed, May 25 to September
17, 1787; here the State convention ratified the Con-
stitution of the United States, December 12, 1787;
and here, in the city building on the corner of Sixth
and Chestnut streets, Congress sat between 1790 and
1800, and Washington was inaugurated in 1793 and
Adams in 1797.

Mrs. Penn having died in 1733, the government
became vested in her three surviving sons, The Heirs
John, Thomas and Richard. John and of Penn-
Thomas both came to Pennsylvania. John could
not remain long, on account of the boundary dispute
with Maryland ; but Thomas remained in the province
nine years. Governor Gordon died while Thomas Penn
was still here; and for two years Logan, who had
become president of the Council, acted as Governor.

From 1738 to 1747, the governorship was held by
George Thomas, a wealthy planter from the Governor
island of Antiqua. War having been de- Thomas
clared between England and Spain, in 1739, Governor
Thomas passed through the same experiences that
Evans and Gookin had concerning measures of defense.
To his request for aid, the Assembly replied that their
conscience forbade them to extend it, but that he, as
Governor, might organize a voluntary militia without
122 A History of Pennsylvania

consulting them. With the aid of Franklin, he soon
had more troops than the quota called for; but unfortu-
nately so many of them were redemptioners, anxious to
escape from servitude, that the Assembly refused to vote
any money unless these were returned to their masters.
Thomas was stubborn, and raised funds on the credit
of the British government. Then the Assembly had to
indemnify the masters for the loss of their servants.
It also gave 3,000 pounds to the Crown in aid of the
war, but nothing to Thomas. Political divisions now
sprang up. Those who sided with Thomas were called
the “gentlemen’s party;” while those who supported
the Assembly were known as the “country party.” At
an election for the Assembly, in 1742, the “gentlemen’s
party” was completely routed. Thomas then made
peace with the Assembly. He signed the laws passed,
and in return got all arrears of salary.

In 1744, King George’s war commenced, and Penn-
Peace at sylvania ceased to be a colony of peace.
gn End France threatened the province from with-
out, in the effort to take possession of the Ohio .
valley, and the Indians threatened it from within
because they had been unjustly deprived of some of
their lands. A battery was erected below Philadel-
phia by means of funds raised by lottery. Conrad
Weiser, the provincial interpreter, was sent among the
Indians to propose a treaty. The Iroquois promised
to prevent the French and their Indian allies — the
Delawares and the Shawanese—from marching through
Iroquois territory to attack the English settlements.
However, the lavishness of French presents and the
memories of the * Walking Purchase” made the set-
tlers on the frontier feel very uneasy.
 

 

The Administration of the Government 123

Governor Thomas, assisted by Franklin and Logan,
had no difficulty in raising a volunteer
militia. The men who volunteered were
.called Associators, a name applied for many years to
the militia. They carried for the first time the so-
called provincial flag of Pennsylvania. It was de-
sioned by Franklin, and consisted of a lion holding a
cimeter and the shield of the prov-
ince. The true provincial flag
(argent, on a fesse sable, three
plates), the banner of the Penns, was
never unfurled in Pennsylvania. But
its bearings are set up and displayed
on the shield of arms in the great
seal and on the official acts and
proclamations issued by the State’s

3 . Penngylvania’s
authority. ©The Assembly, In sup- Provindal Flog
port of the expedition against Louis-
burg, voted 4,000 pounds “to be expended for bread,
beef, pork, flour, wheat and other grain.” Fortunately,
Pennsylvania was not molested in King George’s war,
except to be badly frightened.

When Thomas resigned, on account of poor health,
Anthony Palmer, president of the Council, Governor
became acting Governor. The successor was Hamilton
James Hamilton, whose administration extended to the
year 1754. He ruled the province at a time when a
great storm was gathering. The Indians, incited by
French presents and promises of lost hunting grounds,
now showed open contempt for the white man of
Pennsylvania. The Senecas, on a visit to Philadelphia,
killed cattle and robbed orchards, not even sparing
the property of Conrad Weiser. Such acts were com-

The Associators

 
124 A History of Pennsylvania

mitted to extort presents from the province. In this
the wily Indians were successful. The Assembly voted
large sums of money on several occasions to quiet
them. Nor was this the only expense. The settlers
had to be reimbursed for their losses.

Heretofore the Proprietors had borne their share of
Germs of the the expense incurred by Indian conferences
Revolution and treaties, because quiet on the frontier
helped the sale of land. But now, when peace had to
be kept by an expensive system of presents, they refused
to contribute. They claimed to have given too much
already for public defense. Franklin, who was in the
Assembly in 1751, drew up the reply to the Proprie-
tors, and warned them that the province might be
turned into a royal one. In this dispute were formed
the germs of revolution which matured twenty-five
years later. A powerful popular party was organized
to oppose the Proprietors. Logan, the provincial
Secretary for half a century, was dead, and his place
was filled by Richard Peters, a man whose sympathies
were not with the Quakers. This change made it
possible for the breach to grow rapidly wider.

The treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle was simply a truce
The French  Detween the English and the French.
in the While it lasted, the English slept and
Ohio Valley the French were wide awake. The Brit-
ish government was blind to the designs of the
enemy, which had been for fifty years, and still were,
to get possession of the Mississippi valley. During
the years of peace after 1748, the French explored the
valleys of the Allegheny and Ohio rivers, burying
leaden plates at the mouths of a number of tributa-
ries, and nailing pieces of tin to trees standing near
The Administration of the Government 125

by, as evidences of claims to the land drained by these
rivers. They then erected forts at various places along
the route of exploration, and stationed troops therein.
One—Presque Isle—was located at the present site of
Erie; another—Le Beeuf—at that of Waterford; and
still another—Machault—at that of Franklin.

To resist the progress of the French, the Assem-
bly was asked to build a fort at the june-  g.miton
tion of the Ohio and Allegheny rivers; but and the
the French had so long confined their hos-  A%™®Y
tilities against New York and New England, that
Pennsylvania felt at ease. Virginia then commenced
to build the fort; but the French seized it and, after
finishing it, gave it the name of Duquesne. Virginia
claimed the territory in which the fort was located,
and promptly dispatched Washington on an expedition
to drive the French out. Governor Hamilton appealed
to the Assembly to join Virginia against the intruders;
but that body decided that the French were as yet
only in Virginia. After Washington’s defeat at Fort
Necessity, another appeal was made by Hamilton ; but
as he insisted on an appropriation of money for the
expedition, the Assembly again refused its consent.
Rather than yield the right to give money on its own
terms, the Assembly refused to give any at all. Nor
was Pennsylvania alone in this position. The other
colonies, too, withheld money and supplies rather than
give up their constitutional rights at the dictation of
the Governors.

To gain the friendship of the Six Nations, a colo-
nial congress was held at Albany in 1754, The Albany
by order of the British government. In- Congress
dian affairs were now taken out of the hands of the
126 A History of Pennsylvania

colonies and managed by the mother country through
an agent appointed by the Crown. Among Pennsyl-
vania’s delegates was Benjamin Franklin. He pre-
sented a plan of political union, which, though not
accepted, was a step toward the union formed twenty
years later. However, the purchase of land from the
Indians by the Pennsylvania delegates was not a
praiseworthy act. (See p. 6.) When the Indians in
Pennsylvania learned that they had been deprived
of nearly all the land west of the Susquehanna,
they vowed vengeance, and cast their lot with the
French.

Such was the threatening attitude of the French and
Governor Indians" when, in October, 1754, Hamilton,
Mouis weary of his office, resigned, and was suec-
ceeded by Robert Hunter Morris. The Assembly now
promptly voted 40,000 pounds of paper money, half
of which was for the King’s use. Morris returned
the bill, because he wanted the paper money to be re-
deemable in five years instead of twelve, as stated in
the bill. To prove its loyalty and yet not surrender
its absolute rights over money bills, the Assembly,
on its own credit, borrowed 5,000 pounds, to be ex-
pended in the King’s cause. A year later, the same
difficulty was solved in the same way. The Governor
had secret instructions from the Proprietors not to
assent to any money bills unless he could have a
voice in disbursing the funds thus raised. But Penn-
sylvania, as well as the other colonies, contended that
those who pay the taxes must have sole power to
apply them. That was a principle of English liberty,
and the Americans were entitled to all the liberties of
Englishmen.
<

The Administration of the Government 127

England, perceiving the designs of France to take
possession of the Mississippi valley, sent two Braddock
regiments under General Braddock to America Arrives
in March, 1755. Pennsylvania was asked for troops,
provisions, transportation, and for a part of a com-
mon fund to be raised by all the colonies. The
Assembly met and at once provided for the opening
of a post road between Philadelphia, and Winchester,
Virginia, as well as for wagons and pack-horses.
Franklin undertook the task of getting 150 wagons
and 1,500 pack-horses. He advertised for these in
York, Lancaster and Cumberland counties, and in
two weeks had more than the quota. He gave his
bonds for such horses as might be lost in the service.
Claims to the amount of 20,000 pounds— enough to
ruin ‘him financially — were afterwards presented. The
Assembly, after a long delay, paid his obligations.
Three hundred men were then put to work cutting a
road from Fort Loudon to unite with Braddock’s road
coming up from Maryland west of the mountains.
Together with New Jersey, the province also furnished
a body of troops.

It was June before Braddock’s army left Fort
Cumberland for Fort Duquesne, “over the Braddock’s
worst roads in the world.” He was accom- Defeat
panied by Washington, two chiefs, in command of
some Indians, George Croghan, the Indian agent of
Pennsylvania, and Captain Jack, the “wild hunter.”
Progress was slow, but without danger till the
Monongahela had been crossed, some seven miles from
Fort Duquesne, July 9. The army had just finished
dinner and resumed the march, when it suddenly came
face to face with the French, Canadians and Indians,
 

128 A History of Pennsylvania

The English troops were at once confused by the
strange manner of battle employed by the enemy, who
kept behind trees and logs, while nothing could be
~ seen but puffs of smoke. When Braddock rode up
and down among his men, urging them to fight, they
replied that they would do so if he could show them
the enemy. He got angry at Washington for sug-
gesting to fight the Indians in Indian fashion, and
when some of the soldiers did resort to it, he rudely
ordered them away from their shelter. The battle
lasted for three hours, and had not Washington cov-
ered the retreat with his provincials, the entire army
would have been annihilated. Braddock was shot in
the back just after he had ordered a retreat. He died
on the summit of Laurel Hill the third day after-
wards. His body was buried in the center of the
road, that the retreating army in marching over it
might efface all signs of the grave. In 1804 the re-
mains were re-interred at the foot of a large white
oak tree near by.

Braddock’s defeat was followed by the greatest
The Indians consternation in Pennsylvania. The In-
take Revenge djans now had the opportunity of aveng-
ing the Walking Purchase, the Albany Deed, and other
acts of injustice, real and imaginary. They fell upon
the frontier of Pennsylvania along its entire length —
a distance of two hundred miles. First they disposed
of the isolated settler beyond the mountains,—in the
valleys of the Juniata and the Susquehanna. With
no neighbors nearer than four or five miles, he was an
easy victim. A ‘plow in the furrow, a cabin in ashes,
and a family scalped, mutilated and murdered, was the
usual tale. Then the bloodthirsty Indians broke

\
The Administration of the Government 129

through the gaps of the Blue Ridge. The French offi-
cers who were with them had no control over them’
The main body was encamped on the Susquehanna,
thirty miles above Harris’ ferry. Thence they rav-
aged the counties of Cumberland, Lancaster, Berks
and Northampton. Their atrocities were carried to
within fifty miles of Philadelphia; the scalp yells
were heard at Nazareth and Bethlehem, to which
towns the Indians carried their prisoners and plunder.

Governor Morris called the Assembly in Novem-
ber; but he rejected their bill to raise Dpisficultiesin
money for the King’s use because it taxed Raising Funds
the Proprietary estates. The Assembly then raised
10,000 pounds by voluntary subscriptions, promising
to reimburse the subscribers. Petitions for arms and
ammunition now came in from every part of the prov-
ince. The frontier counties passed resolutions at
public meetings to repair to Philadelphia and demand
measures and means of defense. A body of four hun-
dred Germans marched to the city, crowded into the
hall of the Assembly, and in personal interviews im-
pressed their demands. The murdered and mangled
bodies of a family butchered by the Indians were
taken to Philadelphia, like frozen venison from the
mountains, hauled about the streets, and actually
placed in the doorway of the Assembly. About
three hundred Indians who had remained faithful
to the memory of Penn also joined in the appeals
for help. The political quarrel could not be continued
under such conditions. The Proprietors offered a do-
nation of 5,000 pounds for the defence’ of the
province, and the Assembly passed a bill to raise
money without taxing the Proprietary estates.

1
130 A History of Pennsylvania

A militia law, prepared by Franklin, was the next
A Militia measure of defence. The Proprietary, by
Law Passed virtue of the charter, could raise a militia;
but prior to 1755, no militia law had been passed.
Now, however, the Assembly decided that, although
it was against their own scruples to bear arms, they
would alloy those who thought it right, to do so.
It was to be altogether a volunteer
system. Franklin was made com-
mander. He led about five hundred
men to Bethlehem, in December, to
give much-needed succor to the Mora-
vian settlements. He remained in
Northampton county till February, and
ate, slept, and roughed it with the
associators. The philosopher, scientist, journalist and
statesman became so popular as a soldier that he was
made a colonel, and was actually suggested to lead
an expedition against Fort Duquesne.

While Franklin was in the field, he erected Fort
Allen, opposite the mouth of Mahoning
creek, and formed a line of communication
through the wilderness to Wyoming, establishing a
fort at mid-distance, called the Middle Fort. Gov-
ernor Morris, about the same time, decided to build
Fort Augusta at Shamokin. But there were so many
points along the frontier that needed such protection
that the Assembly took the matter in hand, and ap-
propriated 85,000 pounds for a chain of forts from
the Delaware to the Maryland line. At first there
were less than twenty; but at the close of the war,
no less than two hundred stockades and blockhouses
had been erected, so as to form two distinet lines of

 

Benjamin Franklin.

Frontier Forts
The Administration of the Government 131

defence on the frontier. They commanded the prin-
cipal passes in the mountains, and were garrisoned
by the militia or by the rangers. The settlers fre-
quently lived in the forts for months at a time, taking
their household goods, farm implements, and live
stock with them into the enclosure. When there was
no immediate danger outside, the men worked in
their fields during the day, and returned at night.
They always took their rifles with them, and were
often accompanied by sentinels. To incite the ener-
gies of the militia in the forts, and of the frontiers-
men in general, Governor Morris offered a reward
for Indian scalps and for the recovery of English
prisoners. The Indians could be traced and located
by their paths, of which there were four leading ones.
But the reward for scalps did not accomplish much,
except to arouse the indignation of the Assembly.
Morris also planned Colonel Armstrong’s famous
expedition against the Indian stronghold  Armstrong’s
at Kittanning, although it was executed Expedition
under his successor. The force, consisting of three
hundred men, marched from Fort Shirley, now in
Huntingdon county, August 30, 1756, and attacked
Captain Jacobs, the most active chief of that time, at
daybreak of the 8th of September. Many of the In-
dians were sleeping in a cornfield, on account of the
heat. They were surprised and driven into the town.
After two refusals to surrender, their huts were set
on fire, and many of the savages died in the flames,
singing and whooping as they perished. Captain Jacobs
was shot while trying to escape from a window. The
best part of the victory was the capture and de-
struction of great quantities of powder and other stores
132 A History of Pennsylvania

which the French had supplied. Colonel Armstrong
received a medal from the Council of Philadelphia in
recognition of his services. If he had not destroyed
Kittanning, Captain Jacobs would have marched for
Fort Shirley the next day.

Governor Morris was succeeded, in 1756, by Wil-
Governor liam Denny ; but the Proprietary instructions
Denny were not changed. As it was no time for
renewing an old quarrel, the Assembly waived its
rights temporarily, and passed a money bill satisfactory
to the Governor. They even passed a compulsory
militia law, but Denny vetoed it. Arms and ammu-
nition were needed more than men. Guns were out
of repair, flints were scarce and poor, and the forts
were without cannon. Under such conditions, Arm-
strong’s victory lost its effect. Plowing and seeding
and harvesting had again to be done in dread fear of
the Indian’s tomahawk and scalping knife. The bor-
der counties in 1757 were kept in constant alarm,
and the savages carried terror even to within thirty
miles of Philadelphia.

Fortunately, with the advent of William Pitt as
A Change in prime minister of England, “the heavens
the Ministty ~~ hegan to brighten and the storm to lose
its power.” England now sent men and munitions
of war in numbers and quantities sufficient to put
an end to the struggle with France. Pitt pledged
himself to pay liberally all soldiers who enlisted in
America. Pennsylvania raised 2,700 men. Of the
three expeditions planned, the one against Fort
Duquesne was led by General John Forbes. His
army consisted of the provincials of Pennsylvania
and the southern colonies and of British regulars—
The Administration of the Government 133

9,000 all told. It rendezvoused at Bedford, in Sep-
tember, 1758, and at the suggestion of Colonel Bou-
quet, a Swiss officer in the service of the British army,
cut a new road from Raystown to Loyalhanna—a
distance of forty-five miles. Loyalhanna was made
the base of operations. A small force was sent for-
ward to ascertain the strength of the enemy at Fort
Duquesne. Venturing too far, the detachment was
attacked, and fared no better than Braddock. En-
couraged by their success, the French and Indians
resolved to make a sudden assault on the camp at
Loyalhanna, but were repulsed twice by Colonel
Bouquet. Forbes having been detained at Carlisle
by sickness, reached Loyalhanna about November
1st. The campaign would have been postponed till
spring but for the capture of three French scouts,
who dropped the secret that Fort Duquesne was
weakly garrisoned. Forbes quickly altered his plans,
and sent Washington forward with the Virginians.
But the enemy had fled. Flaming timbers and ex-
ploding powder were all that was left at Fort Du-
quesne to tell the tale of French occupation in the
Ohio valley. Forbes was a hero; the French and
Indian war was over in Pennsylvania; and the
question whether the Celtic or the Teutonic eivili-
zation should prevail in North America was more
than half solved. Forbes’ success was due in no
small degree to Frederick Post, a Moravian mis-
sionary. At the instance of the Friendly Association
of Quakers, this heroic man twice, once in July and
again in October, went among the savages of the
West on a mission of peace. Under the very shadow
of Fort Duquesne, in the presence of the French,’
134 A History of Pennsylvania

and in the face of threatened death, he made a treaty
with the Delawares [and the Shawanese, whereby
these became the friends of the English before Gen-
eral Forbes had marched out of Loyalhanna.

The Assembly, in 1757, had resumed the question
Proprietary of taxing the estates of the Proprietary.
Estates Taxed’ They had sent Franklin to England to
appeal to the King and Parliament. Finding the
King too busy with the war to give him an audience,
Franklin appealed to the people by publishing a book,
entitled * Historical Review of Pennsylvania.” Com-
ing from the man who had discovered the identity of
electricity and lightning, the book was read by
lords and commons. The English people could see no
reason why Penn’s estates should not be taxed, while
they themselves paid heavy taxes for the war in
America. So when finally, in 1759, the question came
before the Privy Council, Franklin won the day. His
fame as a diplomat spread all over America, and
several other colonies made him their representative in
London, to adjust their difficulties.

Governor Denny was removed by the Proprietors
Pontiacs in 1759, and James Hamilton appointed in
Conspiracy  hjs place. The Assembly was now in a
position to aid in the prosecution of the war in
Canada without endangering its rights, and it did so
most generously. After the treaty of 1763 there was
every prospect of a long era of peace. There was no
foreign foe beyond the mountains to invade the colo-
nies, or to incite the Indians against the frontier.
The settlers returned to their abandoned homes to
begin life anew; and the English government forti-
fied the region conquered from the French. But the
The Administration of the Government 135

extension of these defenses and the rapid advance
of the settlers caused a fresh uprising among the
savages. Pontiac, a veritable Napoleon of the wilder-
ness, organized all the tribes from Lake Ontario to
Georgia in a grand conspiracy to repel the English.
In western Pennsylvania he was ably seconded by
Kiashuta, the viceroy of the Six Nations. The attack
was to be made on all the forts and settlements on
the same day; but the plan miscarried, and Fort Pitt
was surrounded about June 1, 1763, a few days before
the warwhoop was heard in New York, Maryland and
Virginia. A bundle of sticks had been given to every
tribe in the confederacy, each bundle containing as
many sticks as there were days till the time for the
attack. One stick was to be drawn out every morn-
ing ; the day on which the last one was removed was
to be the time for the attaek. A Delaware squaw
on the Ohio, who was in sympathy with the whites,
had purposely drawn out two or three sticks, unno-
ticed by the warriors, and so brought about the
untimely action.

The whole frontier of Pennsylvania west of the
Susquehanna, was devastated SO €OmM- The Frontier
pletely that Indian history in America Devastated
presents no parallel. The tomahawk first and the
torch next, was the order which Pontiac had given
all along the line. Corpses and ashes marked the
path of destruction. Although the harvest was ripe,
the farmers abandoned their grain fields and fled
through the mountain passes to the settlements
beyond. On the 25th of July Shippensburg har-
bored over three hundred fugitives; Carlisle, too, was
full to overflowing, and so were other places. Colonel
136 ad History of Pennsylvania

Armstrong, with some three hundred volunteers from
Carlisle, Shippensburg and Bedford, started from Fort
Shirley, on the Aughwick, to destroy the Indian set-
tlement at Muncy, but the enemy had fled when he
arrived there.

But these and other feeble efforts at resistance
Bouquets were far from effective. Unless Fort Pitt,
Eapedition . {pom which the Indians had cut off all
communication, could be relieved, there would be no
safety east of it. General Amherst, commander of
the British army in America, dispatched Colonel Bou-
quet to western Pennsylvania. His command was
composed of rangers from Lancaster and Cumberland
counties, and about five hundred regulars, who were
wornout veterans, unfit for hard service, some having
to be conveyed in wagons. Starting from Carlisle
July 21, he marched by way of Fort Bedford and
Fort Ligonier. On August 5, when within a short
distance of Bushy run, near Braddock’s field, the In-
dians made a savage attack on his advance guard;
and when the main army came up a fierce battle ensued,
lasting the greater part of two days. Nothing but a
strategy saved Colonel Bouquet’s troops from being
annihilated. In the night he arranged them in a
circle. He then ordered a ‘feigned retreat to be made
at the point of the enemy’s deadliest fire. The
Indians rushed into the circle in pursuit of the
retreating lines, but before they were aware of it
received such a fire from all directions that they fled
beyond the Ohio in the utmost confusion. Bouquet
now led his tired army to Fort Pitt, and began to
erect a redoubt—a square stone building, which is
still standing—in place of the old fort. It is the last

#
The Administration of the Government 137

monument of British dominion in Pittsburg. On it is
the inscription, “Colonel Bouquet, A. D. 1764.” The
Indians withdrew beyond the Ohio.

For some months after the battle of Bushy Run,
the frontier of Pennsylvania
was comparatively quiet. The
raid made upon the Con-
estoga Indians (see p. 55)
especially had a wholesome
effect upon the savages. But
with the first appearance of
spring, in 1764, hostilities
were renewed. The British
government now resolved to
carry the war into the Rongages Bodoni
Indian country. Two expeditions were planned —
one against the Indians along the Great Lakes, and
the other against those on the Ohio. The latter was
entrusted to Colonel Bouquet. The Assembly voted
to raise 1,000 men, 50,000 pounds, and 50 pairs of
bloodhounds. The use of the dogs was not put into
effect. Bouquet marched bravely into the wilderness
of Ohio, completely overawed the Indians, and made
them sue for peace. They had to give up all the
white prisoners — more than two hundred in num-
ber—many of whom had been in captivity since
1755. Some of the soldiers had relatives and friends
among the captives, and the reunion of such was a
most affecting scene. Many of the children had
become so attached to Indian life that they had to
be taken back to their homes by force. A few, who
had married Indians, never returned. Those who
could not be identified at Fort Pitt were brought to

 

 
138 A History of Pennsylvania

Carlisle, in the hope that people east of the moun-
tains might claim them. It was here that the old
German widow, Mrs. Hartman, caused her long-lost
daughter to recognize her by singing a cradle song.

Although Franklin had secured the decision in
To Abolish the England that the estates of the Penns
Proprietorship ware to be taxed, yet how and upon what
basis, was an open question. Governor John Penn,
grandson of William, and successor to Hamilton,
would not sign the grant for Bouquet’s expedition
unless the best wild lands of the family estates were
taxed at the same low rate paid by the people for
the poorest; and the Assembly, anxious for peace,
yielded. Immediately, strong opposition arose against
the Proprietors, and measures were taken to abolish
the Proprietorship and make Pennsylvania a royal
province. The Assembly passed resolutions rehearsing
the tyranny of the Proprietary, and a bitter factional
struggle ensued among the people. The anti-Proprie-
tary party circulated petitions praying the King to
take the province under his benign protection. In
October, 1764, the Assembly passed the petition for a
change of government by a vote of 27 to 3. Rather
than sign the document, Issac Norris, at the last
moment, resigned the position of Speaker. In the
final debate, John Dickinson and Joseph Galloway
made the leading speeches for and against, respect-
ively. Both desired the success of the democratic
principle that was asserting itself in the province;
but Galloway favored the abolition of the Proprietary
government as the best way to accomplish the end,
while Dickinson believed its continuance would serve
the end better.
The Administration of the Government 139

Franklin was appointed to carry the petition to
England and lay it before the Crown. The Proprie-
tors do not seem to have feared the result. Thomas
Penn wrote from England to a friend in Pennsyl-
vania: “ We are not in fear of your mighty Goliath,
whose schemes of government are not approved of
here, and who may lose the government of a post-
office by grasping at that of a province.” In Novem-
ber, 1765, Franklin laid the petition of the Assembly
before the Privy Council; but no action was taken,
except that the Penns were required to furnish the
Crown a statement of the financial management of
the province. However, the agitation had its whole-
some effects. The Proprietors ordered Governor Penn
to do everything in his power to conciliate the fac-
tions in Pennsylvania. His task was made easy, for
in their wrath against the Stamp Act the people lost
sight of their grievances with the Proprietors. Never-
theless, the effort to throw off the Proprietary Gov-
ernment was a preparatory drill for the Revolution ten
years later.

THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD

In 1764, Parliament announced a new doctrine of
taxation to the colonies. It was to the ef-
fect that in future, revenue for the King’s
use would be raised in America by Parliamentary acts.
Before that time, internal taxes had always been im-
posed by the colonial legislatures. A bill passed on
this doctrine of “taxation without representation” was
brought in and passed in March, 1765. It was the
famous Stamp Act. Dr. Franklin, who was in Eng-

The Stamp Act
140 A History of Pennsylvania

land at the time, did all he could to prevent its pas-
sage; but, said he, * England was provoked by Amer-
ican claims of independence, and all parties joined
in resolving by this act to settle that point.” No
sooner had the news reached America than the
Stamp Act Congress was called to meet at New York.
John Dickinson, of Philadelphia, drafted the reso-
lutions, since known as the first American Bill of
Rights. John Hughes, a member of the Assembly,
was made stamp distributor for Pennsylvania; but
when the bells were muffled, the colors hoisted half-
mast, and acts of violence threatened, he resigned.
A Philadelphia newspaper appeared the day before the
act went into effect, with skull and cross-bones, spade
and shovel. The editor stopped and asked for sub-
scriptions due, that he might live. The storekeepers
resolved to buy no more British goods. To increase
the product of domestic wool, lambs were no longer
killed. Great frugality was practiced, even the
“pomp of woe” at funerals was restrained. Such
were the results accomplished in Pennsylvania by
the Sons of Liberty, in opposition to the Stamp Act,
and when news of its repeal reached Philadelphia,
they were in high glee over the victory. They dined
and wined the captain of the brig bringing the news,
and presented a gold-laced hat to him. Their kindly
feeling for the mother country returned unabated ;
for on the King’s birthday, they dressed themselves
in English goods and gave their homespun to the poor.
Dr. Franklin, who was largely instrumental in the
repeal of the Stamp Act, had to caution his friends in
America not to be too demonstrative, lest England
take offense.
The Administration of the Government 141

William Pitt, who "rejoiced that America had
resisted” the Stamp Act, drew a line be- Exteriul
tween internal and external taxation, hold- Taxation
ing that Parliament could tax the colonies by the
latter method, on the ground that it could regulate
trade and raise a revenue. Accordingly, in 1767, an
act was passed providing for colonial revenue, to be
raised from a duty on wine, oil, glass,
paper, lead, colors and tea, the pro-
ceeds to be used to pay the gover-
nors’ and the judges’ salaries in the
royal provinces. Again non-importa-
tion agreements were proposed and
accepted by the Philadelphia mer-
chants, while the province sent pro-
tests to the King and to Parliament.
John Dickinson, in the * Letters of a Pennsylvania
Farmer,” stirred the colonists from New Hampshire
to Georgia with his simple, irresistible logic. The
farmers especially — and they were by far the most
numerous class of people then— were thoroughly
aroused from their political sleep by Dickinson. He
pointed out ‘that any law, so far as it creates
expense, is in reality a tax;” that if England
could tax the colonies for the support of the gov-
ernors and judges, the salaries of these officers would
no longer depend on their standing with the Assem-
blies, but would be fixed by the King to serve his own
ends; that the Governors might not call the Assemblies
together at all, except “to make laws for the yoking
of hogs or the pounding of stray cattle.” Dickinson’s
letters were widely read, both here and abroad. At
a public meeting in Boston, Hancock, Adams, War-

 

John Dickinson.
142 A History of Pennsylvania

ren, and others were appointed a committee to write
him a letter, saluting * the Farmer as the friend of
Americans and the common benefactor of mankind.”

Excepting + a brief change in the governorship,
ohn and political affairs were quiet in Pennsylva-
Richard Penn yyj5 jl] 1773. John Penn having returned
to England in 1771, the president of the Council,
James Hamilton, acted as Governor until Richard
Penn, a younger brother of John, arrived a few
months later. Richard was a great favorite in Penn-
sylvania, but he served only till his brother John
returned, in 1773. John Penn now held the governor-
ship until the end of Proprietary government, in 1776.

The duties imposed by the act of 1767 were re-
The Tax Moved in 1770 from everything but tea;
pn Tea which was taxed three pence per pound ;
but the non-importation agreements were faithfully
kept. Hence England was obliged to make arrange-
ments at home so that the accumulated tea of the
East India Company could be sold in America for
what the colonists could buy it before the tax
was on it. This act gave rise to the so-called * tea
parties.” The East India Company sent several ves-
sels loaded with tea to the colonies, but it was not
allowed to be landed. At Philadelphia, the ships
“with the detested tea” got as far as Gloucester Point,
where a committee from a mass meeting of 8,000
people, assembled in the State House yard, met them
and warned them not to come nearer. The captain
was allowed to come to town and decide for himself
whether ‘he thought it prudent to land. He came,
but decided not to land. The committee also induced
the consignees to resign their commissions for selling
The Administration of the Government 143

the tea. The following is a facsimile of the notice
sent to the consignees :

2 am——tAb x

Row ¢ on

Pr - .
A CAE GD

HE PUBLIC prefent their Compliments to Meflieurs
JAMES anp DRINKER....- We are informed that You
have this Day received your Commiffion to enflave your native |
Counlry; and, as your frivolous Plea of having received no
Advice, relative to the fcandalous Part you were to a, in the
TEA-ScHEME, can no longer ferve your Purpofe, nor divert our
Attention, wg expel and defire you will immediately inform
" the PusLic, by a Line or two to be left at the Corr Houss,
‘Whether you will, or will not, renounce all Pretenfions to
execute that Commiflion?-.-.-THAT WE MAY GOVERN OUR-
SELVES ACCORDINGLY.

Philadelphid, December 2, 1773.

 

 

 

1°49 4e CS om

 

 

 

 

i

| &
Pere $a

 

 

 

When the Boston Port Bill (see any United States
history) was passed by Parliament, in pennsylvania
1774, and other repressive acts designed Conservative
to bring Massachusetts to submission, that colony
felt that it could no longer resist Great Britain
without the help of the others. This was not
difficult to get in some colonies; for they had like-
wise been made to feel the rod of the mother
country. Virginia promptly passed a resolution in
her Legislature setting apart the day on which the
Boston Port Bill was to go into effect as one of
“fasting, humiliation and prayer.” Virginia, like
Massachusetts, had been deprived of her liberties by
numerous aets of oppression and restraint, and was
ripe for a united effort to regain what she had lost.
144 A History of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania, having had a Proprietary form of gov-
ernment, based on a most liberal charter, could not so
readily trace her ills to the Crown. Moreover, the
province always enjoyed a growth and a prosperity so
great and uniform that the ills of government bore
less heavily on her than on other colonies. It was
natural, therefore, to find a strong conservative ele-
ment in Pennsylvania when the first steps were taken
to resist Great Britain.

Since Pennsylvania, being next to Virginia and
Paul Revere's €qual to Massachusetts in population,

Visit would influence the middle colonies by
her action, as the other two did their neighbors, it
was important that she should respond promptly and
vigorously to the ery from Boston. So in May, 1774,
Paul Revere came to Philadelphia to explain the situ-
ation. He was received by Joseph Reed, Thomas
Mifflin and Charles Thomson, who introduced him to
other leading men. A public meeting was held
in the City Tavern the very next day. Speeches
were made by Reed, Mifflin, Thomson and Dickin-
son. Dr. William Smith, provost of the Phila-
delphia College, drew up a letter to be carried to
Boston by Revere. The letter, and a set of resolu-
tions accompanying it, defended the right of the
colonies to give and grant their own money through
their own Assemblies; the Boston Port Bill was de-
nounced, and deep sympathy expressed for Massachu-
setts; and a colonial congress was recommended.
Copies were sent to the other colonies, that a united
effort might be made throughout America to let Great
Britain know that a principle is far too dear to be
abandoned by the payment of a petty tax on tea.
The Administration of the Government 145

Another and a larger meeting was held June 28,
in the State House. Stirring resolutions The people
were again passed, similar to the others; Organize
the Governor was asked to call the Assembly
together; a congress of all the colonies was recom-
mended ; and a committee was appointed to corre-
spond with similar committees then organizing in the
other counties of the province. Governor Penn
having declined to call the Assembly, these com-
mittees were to be the nucleus of a new organization
in the movement against the oppressive acts of Eng-
land. Meetings were held throughout the province
“to take the sentiments of the inhabitants.” Those
who favored the liberty party were called * Whigs,”
and those whose sympathies were with Great Britain
were called “Tories.” At the suggestion of the com-
mittee of Philadelphia, deputies were chosen from
every county to meet in the city July 15. At this
provincial congress, an account of what had already
been done in Pennsylvania and other colonies was
given; sixteen resolutions were drawn up to express
the sense of the convention on the difficulties with
Great Britain ; and a set of instructions was addressed
to the Assembly. The * instructions” were the work
very largely of John Dickinson.

“ Honor, justice and humanity call upon us to hold, and to
transmit to our posterity, that liberty which we received from
our ancestors. It is not our duty to leave wealth to our chil-
dren ; but it is our duty to leave liberty to them. * * * So
alarming are the measures already taken for laying the founda-
tions of a despotic authority over us * * * that unless we
can interrupt the work, our children will not be able to over-
throw it when completed.”

J
146 A History of Pennsylvania

“ For attaining this great and desirable end,” the
the First Assembly was asked to appoint delegates
Continental “to attend a Congress of Deputies from the
Congress several colonies.” ‘The men appointed wére
Joseph Galloway, Samuel Rhoads, Thomas Mifflin and
John Dickinson, of Philadelphia; John Morton, of
Chester ; Charles Humphreys, of Haverford; George
Ross, of Lancaster, and Edward Biddle, of Reading.
These were Pennsylvania’s delegates to what has since
been known as the First Continental Congress, whose
sessions were held in Carpenters’ Hall, Philadelphia,
September 5 to October 26. Dickinson was the lead-
ing man among them. Of the six papers drawn up
by the Congress, he was the author of two—the
famous petition to the King, and the address to the
people of Canada. Galloway played a conspicuous
but not very honorable part. According to Bancroft,
he acted as a volunteer spy for the British govern-
ment.” To the delegates from other colonies,” says
the historian, * he insinuated as they arrived that
‘ commissioner with full power should repair to the
British cour’, after the example of the Roman, Gre-
cian, and Macedonian colonies on occasions of the like
nature.” His colleagues spurned the thought of send-
ing envoys to dangle at the heels of a minister and
undergo the scorn of Parliament.” On the third day,
the Congress was opened with prayer, after Samuel
Adams had silenced the objections of Jay and
Rutledge by declaring: “I am no bigot; I can hear
a prayer from a man of piety and virtue, who is at
the same time a friend to his country.” The man
named for this sacred duty was Rev. Jacob Duché,
rector of Christ church, and first chaplain of the
The Administration of the Government 147

Second Continental Congress. News had just been
received of a bloody attack on the people by the
troops at Boston; and as the collect for the day was
read, the members of the Congress believed that a

i | [rp of

   

El

I
| th

;

Carpenters’ Hall.

rude soldiery was then infesting the dwellings and tak-
ing the lives of the people of Boston. Heaven itself
seemed to dictate the words of Scripture, the 35th
Psalm, that memorable morning :

Plead my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with me:

fight against them that fight against me. Take hold of shield
and buckler, and stand up for mine help. * * * *

Carpenters’ Hall was built in 1770 by the Car-
penters’ Company, an organization formed
for giving instruction in architecture and
assisting poor members’ widows and children. After

Carpenters’ Hall
148 A History of Pennsylvania

the First Congress the building was occupied by
various bodies representing the province. The British
occupied it in 1777, the soldiers using the vane on
the cupola for target practice. The First and Second
National Banks both transacted their business within
its walls for several years. Later on it served in all
sorts of capacities—as custom house, land office,
music hall, meeting house, school house, horse market,
furniture store. In 1857, the Carpenters again took pos-
session of their ancient hall, and have since kept it
open as a historic relic. Half a million people
visited the time-honored building during the Centen-
nial Exhibition, in 1876.

The report of the proceedings of the First Conti-
The Assembly D€Dtal Congress was unanimously adopted
Ratifies the Acts by the Pennsylvania Assembly, early in
of Congress December ; and the province thus became
a member of the American Association designed to
secure the enforcement of non-importation and non-
consumption of British goods. Biddle, Dickinson,
Mifflin, Galloway, Humphreys, Morton and Ross were
elected delegates to the Second Continental Congress,
to meet May 10, 1775. Franklin, on arriving from
his ten years’ sojourn in England, in the spring of
1775, was at once added to the delegation. Galloway
had requested to be relieved from serving on account
of the radical acts against England. Governor Penn
had hitherto refrained from directing or controlling
the Assembly in matters pertaining to the contest.
But when Great Britain proposed not to tax the colo-
nists, provided they would tax themselves to the satis-
faction of Parliament, the Governor, in a message to
the Assembly, May, 1775, sided with Great Britain.
The Administration of the Government 149

A second provincial congress was held in Philadel-
phia, January, 1775. Nearly all the coun- an Echo from
ties were represented. Resolutions were Lexington
adopted to provide means for the growth and manu-
facture of things that used to be imported from
England. At first it was determined to exhaust all
peaceable measures for the restoration of American
rights before resorting to arms. It was not until
“the shot which was heard around the world” had
been fired at Lexington, that a different spirit began
to make itself strongly felt. Thousands of people
now agreed * to associate for the purpose of defending
with arms their lives, their property, and their liberty.”

Pennsylvania’s instructions to her delegates in the
Second Congress, to whom, besides Frank- 4. icc of
lin, Thomas Willing, of Philadelphia, and Grievances
James Wilson, of Cumberland, were added, Sought
had been to combine, if possible, a redress of griev-
ances with “union and harmony between Great
Britain and the colonies.” In this position Pennsyl-
vania was not alone; for the Americans generally had
not yet given up the hope of reconciliation. Independ-
ence seemed probable, but not inevitable. Franklin,

however, supported the boldest measures. * Make
yourselves sheep,” he would say, “and the wolves
will devour you.” Dickinson favored a second peti-

tion to the King, and drafted it; but the King
“determined to listen to nothing from the illegal
Congress.”

On the 14th of June, 1775, Congress resolved to
raise a Continental army. Its first levy a continental
was for “six companies of expert rifle- Army Formed
men to be raised in Pennsylvania, two in Maryland,
150 A History of Pennsylvanio

and two in Virginia.” A few days later two more
companies were ordered from Pennsylvania. The
Assembly at once recommended to the counties to
provide arms and equipments for this force. It also
appointed a Committee of Safety June 30, consisting
of ten persons from the city of Philadelphia, four
from the county, two from Chester, and one from
each of the other nine counties. This body organ-
ized, with Franklin as president. Its first act was to
draft rules and regulations for the associators, or
militia, which included all able-bodied men between
the ages of 16 and 50. Many persons declined to
perform military duty on the ground of conscientious
scruples. All such were to contribute an equivalent
in money for military service. The eight companies
of volunteer riflemen, called by Congress, were raised
without any difficulty. Lancaster county furnished
two instead of one, and so there were nine when the
quota had been completed. They were formed into
a battalion, commanded by Colonel William Thomp-
son, of Carlisle. The companies marched for Boston
as soon as they were organized. On the 18th of
July, Nagel’s Berks County “Dutchmen”— the first
company to be ready — arrived at Cambridge, and
within less than sixty days from the date of the call
of Congress, the riflemen of Pennsylvania, Maryland
and Virginia were all with Washington, the first
troops called into the Continental army. :

The Committee of Safety next went to work on
The American the defenses of Philadelphia against an

Navy invasion from the sea. It put the fa-
mous chevaux-de-frize in the Delaware, and began the
construction of the State Navy. In August, 1776,
The Administration of the Government 151

the fleet numbered twenty-seven vessels, with Cap-
tain Thomas Reed as commodore, the first officer of
that title in America. One of the first commissions
issued was that to the famous Nicholas Biddle, as
captain of the Franklin. Three months after the
State Navy was begun, Congress took action for the
construction of a Continental Navy, which was also
fitted out at Philadelphia.

The opening gun of the year 1776, the most
memorable of all the years of the Revo- “common
lution, was Thomas Paine’s pamphlet, Senses 2
“Common Sense,” brought out January 8. The son
of a Quaker in England, he was induced by Frank-
lin to come to Philadelphia, where he associated
with Rittenhouse, Clymer, Rush, and other patriots
of ‘Pennsylvania.

“Everything that is right and natural pleads for separa-
tion. Even the distance at which the Almighty hath placed
England and America is a strong and natural proof that the
authority of the one over the other was never the design of
Heaven. It is not in the power of Britain, or of Europe, to
conquer America, if she does not conquer herself by delay
and timidity.” .

“Common Sense” was written to overthrow the
Proprietary party in Pennsylvania, but it did more.
The King had just issued his proclamation denouncing
the colonists as rebels. Paine’s pamphlet, therefore,
came at a most opportune time to create sentiment
in favor of a separation.

In April, the Assembly renewed its instructions to
the Pennsylvania delegates in Congress The Assembly
not to give their consent to a separation Tested
or a change of the Proprietary government. But
152 A History of Pennsylvania

Congress, May 15, recommended State governments in
the colonies, and declared that all authority under the
Crown should be totally suppressed. On the 8th of
June, the day after Richard Henry Lee, in Congress,
had proposed the independence of the colonies, the
Assembly gave instructions which neither advised nor
forbade a declaration of independenee, but left the
question to the * ability, prudence and integrity” of
the delegates. This doubtful action proved the end
of the Proprietary Assembly; once only did it again
have a quorum of its members. Instead of allowing
the State government, ordered by Congress, May 15,
to be formed by members of an Assembly sworn to
support the King, the people called a provincial con-
vention for that purpose. The Assembly instituted
by Penn did not come to an end till the obstinacy of
the King left no room for reconciliation.

When, on the 1st of July, the vote on Lee’s resolu-
Lee's Resolution tion for independence was to be taken

Adopted in committee of the whole, the Pennsyl-
vania delegation in Congress— Franklin, Dickinson,
Morris, Wilson, Morton, Humphreys and Willing —
were divided, and cast their vote against it. Dickin-
son made a great speech, the burden of which was
that the time was not yet ripe for such an important
step. Wilson, who had held the same view before,
could now no longer agree with Dickinson. Two
other States— Delaware and South Carolina — voted
nay; while New York, whose delegates did not
receive favorable instructions till after the adoption
of the declaration, did not vote at all. The next day,
when the committee of the whole reported to Con-
gress, Delaware voted aye; so did South Carolina.
The Administration of the Government 153

Delaware’s vote was changed by Cassar Rodney, who
rode eighty miles on horseback to vote for inde-
pendence. Dickinson and Morris remaining away,
Pennsylvania, by the vote of Franklin, Wilson, and
Morton, against Humphreys and Willing, was also
enabled to say aye on “the greatest question ever
debated in America or ever decided among men.”
The second day of July, 1776, was not destined to
become * the most memorable epoch in the Tollereon’s
history of America.” It was the fourth Declaration of
day of July when Jefferson’s Declaration MdePendence
of Independence, in which he set forth the reasons for
the act of the second of July, was passed. On the

|
|

So

 

Interior of Independence Hall. Room in which the
Declaration of Independence was signed.

8th, the Declaration of Independence was read in the
State House yard. At the same time the King’s arms
were taken from the court room and publicly burned,
while merry chimes from the church steeples and
peals from the State House bell * proclaimed liberty
154 A History of Pennsylvania

throughout the land.” The Declaration having to be
engrossed, was not signed until August 2. As
Dickinson, Humphreys and Willing had in the mean-
time been succeeded in Congress by other men, their
names do not appear among the signers of Pennsyl-
vania, who were Benjamin Franklin, Robert Morris,
Dr. Benjamin Rush, and George Clymer, of Philadel-
phia; George Ross, of Lancaster; James Smith, of
York ; James Wilson, of Cumberland; George Taylor,
of Northampton, and John Morton, of Chester county.
Before Dickinson left Congress, he drafted the
Articles of Confederation, and once more distinguished
himself by the use of his pen in behalf of his country.
Franklin had prepared a plan of union the previous
year, but it had been laid aside for the time being.

Scarcely had the peals of the Liberty Bell died out,
Washington's When the drums of Washington’s army
Retreat sounded the retreat across New Jersey, in
the fall of 1776 (see any U. S. history). Pennsyl-
vania was in consternation. Liberal bounties were
offered to volunteers; blankets and stockings were
begged for the soldiers; the associators of Philadel-
phia and the counties around it were urged to join
the army, and armed boats were sent to Trenton to
transport Washington’s troops across the Delaware.
In the midst of this excitement, Congress fled precipi-
tately to Baltimore. But Pennsylvania’s Committee
of Safety cooperated with Washington, calling on
every patriot “to step forth at this erisis” and re-
inforce the depleted and disheartened army of less
than three thousand men. The militia of Bucks,
Northampton and adjoining counties answered the
call promptly.
The Administration of the Government 155

After crossing the Delaware on his retreat, Wash-
ington made his headquarters at Newtown, ington
Bucks county, while his army was sta- Crossing
tioned eight miles above Trenton, at Pawar
McConkey’s ferry, near Taylorsville. The Pennsyl-
vania militia were stationed at Bristol, under Cad-
walader, and at Morrisville, opposite Trenton, under
Ewing. Some troops were also stationed at Yardley-
ville and other points up the river. Washington's
plan on the night of the 25th of December contem-
plated a combined attack on Trenton by himself,
Ewing, and Cadwalader. Ewing, owing to the ice in
the river, made no attempt to cross it. Cadwalader,
with honest zeal, tried it; some of the men got over,
but the horses and artillery could not reach the land
on account of the ice. After suffering in a driving
snow storm for some hours, Cadwalader and his men
returned to camp and erept into their tents, without
fire or light. The story of Washington’s crossing the
Delaware is familiar to every school-boy. Before
night on the 26th he had landed in Pennsylvania
with his thousand Hessian prisoners and started them
on their way to Philadelphia, whence they were sent
to Lancaster and confined in barracks erected for
the purpose.

The Supreme Executive Council, chosen under the
new Constitution, in February, 1777, met
March 4, and took the reins of govern-
ment. Thomas Wharton, Jr., was elected President,
and as such was chief executive of the State. The
Council of Safety was now dissolved, Franklin, its
president, having already gone to France as one of
the three commissioners sent by Congress to solicit

The Year 1777
156 A History of Pennsylvania

aid. The year 1777 was to be a memorable one for
Pennsylvania. Many such patriotic and heroic deeds
as that of Robert Morris, in Philadelphia, on New
Year’s morning, and John Kelley, at Stony creek, on
January 3 (see p. 317), were done
before it closed. Morris went from
house to house, in Philadelphia, rous-
ing the people out of bed, to borrow
money of them. Early in the day he
sent Washington $50,000, with the

7 ve? message : “Whatever I can do shall
Fnotiss Wharton. Jo. be done for the good of the service;
if further occasional supplies of
money are necessary, you may depend on my
exertions, either in a public or a private capacity.”
During the summer the Whigs arrested some forty
Tories. About half of them signed their parole,
promising not to say or do anything against the
United States, and then were discharged. John Penn,
the late Governor, refused, and he was confined at
Fredericksburg, Virginia.

The expected attack on Philadelphia was set on
Howe Sais £000 by Howe at New York, July 5, where

for he embarked his troops. On arriving at
Philadelphia tho capes of Delaware, he learned of the
chevaux-de-frize in the Delaware, and resolved to
enter Pennsylvania by way of the Chesapeake, an-
choring his fleet in Elk river, 54 miles from Phila-
delphia. Congress, which had returned from Balti-
more, made a requisition on the Executive Council
for 4,000 militia, and ordered Washington to leave
New Jersey and march against Howe. The comman-
der-in-chief reached Philadelphia August 24, and

   
The Administration of the Government 157

led his troops, decorated with sprays of green and
carrying the American flag for the first time, through
the streets of Philadelphia, to encourage the patriots.
Here the young Marquis de Lafayette joined the army,
to be wounded in his first bat- §
tle. Washington hastened on to
meet the enemy, whose two divi-
sions had formed a juncture at
Kennett Square, September 10.
By a secret movement, he took
position on the high grounds
above Chadd’s Ford, on the
north side of the Brandywine,
directly in Howe’s path. The Betsy Ross Flag.
Early on the morning of the 11th, the British, with
a small part of their army under Knyphau-
sen, made Washington believe that they
intended to cross the Brandywine at Chadd’s Ford.
But he received information that their main body,
s under Howe and Cornwallis,
would cross the river at a ford
higher up. So he sent word
to General Sullivan, second in
command, to meet Howe and
Cornwallis and hold them in
check, while he himself would
defeat Knyphausen first and
then turn his attention to the
main body of the enemy. Just
as Washington was about to
attack Knyphausen, a message came from Sullivan
that the British were not coming from the north,
and that therefore he had disobeyed his orders.

 

Brandywine

 

The Present Flag.
158 A History of Pennsylvania

But Washington had been correctly informed. Howe
had crossed the Brandywine above the forks at Trim-
ble’s and Jefferi’s fords, and soon fell upon Sullivan
above Birmingham meeting house. Washington, leav-
ing (General
Wayne to oppose
Knyphausen at
Chadd’s Ford,
hastened to the
assistance of Sul-
livan; but this
General had
already given
way to the unex-
pected attack of
the British, and was on the retreat. When Washing-
ton came up, his own troops at first fell in with the
fleeing soldiers of Sullivan; but Greene’s corps, which
included a division of Pennsylvanians fighting on
their native soil, was finally planted in a posi-
tion where it could hold its ground against the
British till nightfall. General Wayne made a gallant
stand against Knyphausen; but the defeat of the
American right compelled him at last to retreat and
abandon his cannon to the Hessian commander.
General Greene was the last to quit the field, but not
before darkness had made further resistance impos-
sible. Washington’s army retreated to Chester that
night, and the next day to Germantown.

Howe’s success on the Brandywine caused great

Great consternation in Philadelphia and its
Consternation  yjeinity. Church bells were sunk in the
river or carried away. The Liberty Bell was hidden

 

Birmingham Meeting House.
The Administration of the Government 159

under the floor of Zion’s Reformed church, in Allen-
town ; the State archives were carried to Easton, while
the State government removed to Lancaster. The
members of Congress rose from their beds and fled
in the night to Lancaster, and thence to York. The
wounded in battle were sent to Ephrata and other -
places. Lafayette was cared for by the Moravians
at Bethlehem. Many of the farmers, with their
families and their horses and cattle, sought safety in
the outlying counties; and to prevent the British
from entering Philadelphia before another blow could
be struck, the floating bridges on the Schuylkill were
removed.

As soon as Washington had supplied his army at
Germantown with provisions and ammu- The Massacre
nition, he recrossed the Schuylkill, fol- of Paoli
lowed the Lancaster turnpike and met the British at
Warren Tavern, a little west of Paoli; but a heavy
rain drenched the cartridges, and he had to retire.
He left General Wayne, with
1,500 men, near Paoli, to fall
upon and to destroy Howe's
baggage. The British learned
of Wayne’s position, and made
a sudden attack on the camp
in the dead of night. With the
cry of “no quarters,” they bay-
oneted the Americans in a man-
ner that beggared description.
Some of the victims passed from the sleep of night
into the sleep of eternity without waking. The loss
was heavy to bear, and opened the way to Philadel-
phia for the British.

 

Anthony Wayne.
160 A History of Pennsylvania

The massacre of Paoli occurred on the night of
Howe Takes the 20th. By several skilful manceuvers,
Philadelphia ~~ Howe, on the night of the 23d, crossed
the Schuylkill below Valley Forge, and took pos-
session of Philadelphia on the 26th. The American
army, too weak to offer any resistance, encamped at
Skippack creek, north of Germantown. The fact
that Washington did not prevent Howe from ecross-
ing the Schuylkill was the chief ground on which,
the following winter, his enemies sought to have him
removed. Even John Adams cried out in despair
after the massacre at Paoli: * O, Heaven grant us
one great soul! One leading mind would extri-
cate the best cause from that ruin which seems to
await it!”

Howe constructed a line of redoubts from the
Howe in Delaware to the Schuylkill, along the
Philadelphia = pregent lines of Poplar, Green and Cal:
lowhill streets. He also posted a strong force at
Germantown, extending from the mouth of the Wissa-
hickon to the Old York road. Washington broke
camp on the evening of October 3, and arrived at Ger-
mantown at 3 o’clock on the morning of the 4th.
General Armstrong, with the Pennsylvania militia,
moved along the banks of the Schuylkill, to fall
upon the Hessians at the mouth of the Wissahickon.
Wayne and Sullivan went down the main street of
Germantown to attack the British at Market Square.
Greene followed a circuitous route by way of the
lime kiln road, to attack the right wing of the
enemy and drive them in upon the center at the
same time that Wayne and Sullivan would attack
them in front.
The Administration of the Government 161

The battle was to begin on all quarters precisely
at 5 o’clock. Armstrong could not drive
the Hessians from their position and get in
the rear of the British center, as was intended.
Wayne and Sullivan, however, forced Howe’s center
at Market Square into confusion, so that the British
commander had to ery, *“ For shame, light infantry!
I never saw you re-
treat before. Form !
form! it is only
a scouting party.”
Colonel Musgrove i
quickly took posses- ied >"
sion of the large and Medes
strong stone mansion J
of Chief Justice
Chew, and used it as
a fort to check the advance of Wayne, whose memories
of Paoli found expression in the cry, * Have it at the
bloodhounds! Revenge! Revenge!” Not willing
“to leave an enemy in a fort (in the rear,” the
Americans tried in vain to set the mansion on fire
and batter it down with cannon balls. This diver-
sion gave the English time to form for battle and
get reinforcements from Philadelphia. When Greene
arrived, almost an hour late, he was outflanked, and,
after fifteen minutes of heavy firing, was driven back.
Though Washington had placed a regiment around
Chew’s mansion, with orders not to cannonade it
again, one of Greene’s divisions opened fire on it
once more. This occurring in the rear of Wayne's
division, he mistook it for the enemy’s fire, and
retreated in great haste. An early morning fog

Germantown

 

The Chew Mansion.

K
162 A History of Pennsylvania

added greatly to the confusion. At about half-past
eight, Washington, seeing that the day was lost,
ordered a retreat, which was made in perfect order, to
Perkiomen creek.

The forts and vessels commanding the Delaware
The Fortson Were next attacked by General Howe, in
the Delaware grder to get the fleet under his brother,
Admiral Howe, to Philadelphia. There were three
forts — Mifflin, Mercer, and Billingsport. Between
these forts were stretched the chevaux-de-frize, and
above lay the American fleet. Billingsport had been
abandoned to the enemy before the battle of German-
town, and on the 22d of October a body of Hessians,
aided by the British fleet, made an assault on Fort
Mercer. They were repulsed, with the loss of 400 men,
who lay in heaps around the fort. Howe’s men-of-
war were equally unsuccessful, having been driven
down the river by Commodore Hazlewood’s Penn-
sylvania State fleet. The attack on Fort Mifflin was
heroically resisted for six long days and nights, until
palisades, parapets and blockhouses had been leveled
to the ground and 250 of its: 300 defenders had been
killed and wounded. The fort was then burned and
the garrison removed to Red Bank. With the fall
of Fort Mifflin, Fort Mercer had to be abandoned also.
The State fleet succeeded in stealing past the city at
night into the upper waters of the Delaware, but the
Continental fleet was less fortunate, and had to be
set on fire and burned.

Howe’s fleet now came up the Delaware and took
“The Battle  @ position in front of Philadelphia. On

of the Kegs” January 5, 1778, the men of the Penn-
sylvania fleet executed a scheme to destroy it. A
The Administration of the Government 163

number of machines resembling kegs were prepared
at Burlington and placed in the river, to be carried
down by the current. The kegs had spring locks so
contrived as to explode on coming in contact with a
vessel. Unfortunately the British fleet kept close to
the wharves at the time to avoid the ice. As the’
kegs moved past the city, broadside after broadside
was hurled at them. Every chip, stick, or drift-log
felt the vigor of the British guns. The affair was
most ludicrous. Francis Hopkinson ridiculed it in a
ballad entitled * The Battle of the Kegs.”

Washington, though reinforced by troops from
Gates’ army, chose the defensive in his
strong camp at White Marsh. Here he
was attacked by Howe, December 4. After a skirmish
with the Pennsylvania militia and a sharp aetion at
Edge Hill, the British retired to Philadelphia without
“driving General Washington over the Blue moun-
tain,” as Howe had threatened to do. And then be-
gan a chapter in Pennsylvania history whose events
make the spot on which they transpired most sacred.
Valley Forge! The American army reached: this
place about the 19th of December. It is a deep,
rugged hollow on the west side of the Schuylkill,
about six miles above Norristown. The soldiers were
too poorly clad to live in tents; so huts, 16x14, in
the form of a village, were made with logs, and
twelve men were assigned to each cabin.

Washington reported that when the army went
into camp at Valley Forge “no less than
2,898 men were unfit for duty because
they were barefoot and otherwise naked.” They often
sat up all night by the fires to keep warm. There

Valley Forge

The Sufferings
164 A History of Pennsylvania

was a scarcity of provisions, the soldiers being with-
out meat or bread for days at a time. Washington
had to issue a proclamation, commanding that one-
half of the grain in store within seventy miles of
his camp should be
threshed out before the
1st of February and
the other half before
the 1st of March. The
British gold at Phila-
delphia was more de-
sirable than the Conti-
nental bills, and so
many farmers sent
their provisions to
Howe. Horses and
wagons being scarce,
the patriots yoked themselves to little wagons of
their own making, or, like beggars, carried their
wood and provisions on the back. Even straw to
lay on the cold, wet earth in the cabins was wanting.
There was no lack of provisions and clothing in the
country; but by mismanagement in Congress the army
was not supplied with them. Washington felt most
keenly for his men, a fact well attested by the prayer
which he sent to the throne of heaven from his head-
quarters in the house of Isaac Potts. Added to these
trials was the famous plot of General Conway, the
attempt to alienate Lafayette, and the clamor of Con-
gress and the Assembly of Pennsylvania to drive the
British out of Philadelphia. But Washington never
shrank from the cause of American liberty as it lay
helpless and groaning in Valley Forge.

 

Washington's Headquarters at Valley Forge.
The Administration of the Government 165

While the Americans were experiencing all this
suffering, Howe’s army had one long Howe's Winter
round of pleasure in Philadelphia. The in Philadelphia
days were spent in pastime and the nights in enter-
tainments. As Franklin said, * Howe did not take
Philadelphia—Philadelphia took Howe.” The officers
played cricket and had cock-fights. A theater was
established on South street. Major André painted the
curtain, and was the soul of the enterprise. But quite
different was the lot of the American prisoners of war
in Walnut street jail! It was a veritable Libby or
Andersonville; and its keeper — Cunningham — was
the original of Marz. The treatment was cruel, the
food was not fit for swine, and the dead were
tumbled into pits in Washington Square, to mingle
with the bones of Indians, paupers, and criminals,
who had been buried there in the past. In the
spring Howe was superseded by Clinton; and the
officers gave a grand féte to the departing General.
It was the famous mischianza —* a combination of
the regatta, the tournament, the banquet and the
ball.” It was enacted at the country seat of Thomas
Wharton, in Southwark, and began in the afternoon
of the 18th of May with a grand regatta, which
started down the Delaware from the foot of Green
street and landed at the foot of Washington avenue.
Here the procession of gay officers, beautiful ladies,
and prominent citizens, headed by all the bands of
the army, formed in line and marched between grena-
diers and troopers up the slope to Wharton’s man-
sion. Then followed a tournament. The festivities
of the evening consisted of dancing, faro, fireworks,
and feasting! and lasted until the sun came up over
166 A History of Pennsylvania

the Jerseys. Once, while this revelry was at its
height, the sound of cannon was heard in the north.
The English officers explained to their frightened part-
ners in the dance that it was a part of the ceremony.
But it was not. A dashing fellow from Washington’s
army, hearing of the mischianza, took a squad of men
in the darkness to the line of redoubts between the
Delaware and the Schuylkill, painted everything within
reach with tar, and, at a given signal, set it on fire.
The flames that shot up all along Poplar stréet
startled Howe’s army, and every cannon from river to
river was fired. The British cavalry dashed out into
the night, but the daring Americans were nowhere to
be found.

Six days after this pageant of folly, Sir Henry
Philadelphia Clinton decided to evacuate Philadelphia.
Evacuated The British learned that the American
capital was not of much importance to them after
all. The Congress had fled on wheels, and Pennsyl-
vania had remained loyal. Washington’s army, now
thoroughly drilled by Baron Steuben, a Prussian
officer who had come to Valley Forge in February,
became a source of danger to the British. Besides,
a French fleet was on the way to New York, and that
city required the presence of Clinton. Just before
the evacuation, on the 18th of June, three peace com-
missioners from England arrived in Philadelphia, and
were willing to gratify “every wish that America
had expressed.” But it was too late. Franklin and
his associates had secured an alliance with France;
and the American Congress refused to entertain such
propositions. It is said that Joseph Reed, one of
Pennsylvania’s delegates in Congress, was offered
The Administration of the Government 167

10,000 pounds sterling and the best office in the
colonies if he would promote the plans for peace; but
that he promptly replied: “I am not worth purchas-
ing; but such as I am, the King of Great Britain is
not rich enough to do it.” Clinton’s army crossed
the Delaware at Camden and Gloucester, New Jersey,
in great haste; while the fleet, with several thousand
Tory refugees and all their possessions on board,
floated slowly down the bay. “The sky sparkled with
stars; the air of the summer night was .soft and
tranquil, as the exiles, broken in fortune and with-
out a career, went with despair from the only city
they could love.”

Washington moved his army out of Valley Forge,
followed Clinton, and soon afterwards Washington
fought the battle of Monmouth, where Follows Clinton
Mollie Pitcher, of Carlisle, made herself famous.
General Arnold was put in command of Philadelphia,
to prevent the disorders that were expected to follow
when the Whigs would return. Congress came back
from York June 25, and the State government, from
Lancaster, the next day. Wharton having died,
George Bryan, Vice-President of the Supreme Execu-
tive Council, performed the duties of the President.
The Whigs now began to punish the Tories. The
Assembly passed an “act for the attainder of divers
traitors,” among whom were Joseph Galloway, Rev.
Jacob Duché, and the Allens. The Quakers and
the German sects were special objects of suspicion
because they thought it wrong to take up arms.
Active measures were taken for the trial of all
persons accused of high treason; but only a few were
executed. The excitement during the trial ran very
168 A History of Pennsylvania

high ; and Arnold, who himself was afterwards court-
martialed for lawless conduct while in command of
Philadelphia, was not able to
repress the disorder that arose.
He speculated in government
contracts, grew rich, and hob-
nobbed with the aristocracy, :
marrying one of its daughters
before * he fled from inquiry.”
The year 1778 is 're-
membered in Penn-
sylvania by one other
event —the Wyoming Mas-
sacre. After Burgoyne’s sur-
render the British organized
the Tories and Indians to make
war upon the frontiers of New
York, Pennsylvania and Vir-
ginia. It was assumed, and
correctly so, that the Ameri-
cans could not give much
attention to the frontier, be-
cause all their available forces would be required to
oppose Howe after he had entered Pennsylvania. So
the savages were set loose like hounds to murder and
devastate. In the month of June the people of
Wyoming became aware of the approach of a large
force of Tories and Indians, under Colonel John
Butler. An appeal for help was made to Con-
gress, as nearly all the able-bodied men of Wyoming
were in the Continental army; but no help came. So
when the enemy appeared in the valley, Colonel
Zebulon Butler, of the Revolutionary army, who was

Wyoming

 

Provincial Court House at York,
where Congress sat, 1777-78.
The Administration of the Government 169

home on a furlough, had only about three hundred
raw recruits to oppose the enemy. Many people, with
their families, had collected at Forty Fort, a little
above the present site of Kingston. Here, on the 3d
of July, Colonel Zebulon Butler, with Colonel Den-
nison second in command, started his little band to
meet a force three times as large.

The engagement began late in the afternoon. At
first the fight was spirited on both sides; but the
men of Wyoming could not long resist the superior
numbers. An order to fall back to a better position
was misunderstood as a signal for retreat. The
enemy then sprang forward, sounded the war-whoop
from one end of the line to the other, rushed in with
the tomahawk and spear, and defeated the brave band
of heroic farmers. Only about fifty escaped, while
those who did not fall in battle were put to death on
the field in the most cruel manner. The refugees in
Forty Fort, consisting
of old men, women
and children, were
allowed to depart to
their homes. But the
Indians soon began to
rob, burn, plunder and
destroy in every direc-
tion, in spite of an
agreement that they
would not. In a week
or ten days these dep-
redations became so
numerous and heartrending that all the settlers who
could get away, fled. Some canie to Sunbury ; others

 

The Wyoming Monument.
170 A History of Pennsylvania

went to New York and Connecticut; but most of
them took refuge in the wilderness of the Pokono
mountains, and finally reached Stroudsburg. Those
who sought safety in these mountains had nothing
to eat except whortleberries. Some perished in a
great swamp, which has ever since been known as
“The Shades of Death.”

The Wyoming massacre was not the only one in
Pennsylvania in the war of the Revolu-
tion. From 1777 to 1784, the frontiers
of the State were one vast region of bloody mas-
sacres. Immediately after that of Wyoming, the wild,
precipitate flight, known as the “Great Runaway,”
occurred in the valley of the West Branch. All
summer the tomahawk and scalping knife had been
doing their deadly work there, and when the news of
the massacre on the North Branch arrived, the West
Branch above Sunbury and Northumberland was
abandoned by the settlers. Boats, canoes, hog-
troughs, rafts, and every sort of floating things, were
crowded with women and children. The men came
down in single file, on each side of the river, and
acted as guards. Sunbury became a frontier town, and
the country below— Harris Ferry, Paxtang, and Mid-
dletown—was filled with the unfortunate refugees.
Bedford and Westmoreland counties and the country
about Pittsburg were likewise sorely afflicted at this
time. A regiment of Continental troops was despatched
from Valley Forge some time in the spring for the
relief of the western frontier. Most of these soldiers
had enlisted from beyond the mountains early in the
war, and they were now glad to go back to defend their
wives and children. The next year Sullivan’s expedi-

Other Massacres
The Administration of the Government 171

tion started from Easton, and marched by way of
Wyoming into the country of the Six Nations, in New
York. He defeated an army of Tories and Indians,
and destroyed many Indian villages. But the punish-
ment had no lasting effect. The ravages continued.
Other expeditions were organized, notably at Fort
Pitt ; and the border warfare raged until 1784.

On December 1, 1778, General Joseph Reed was
elected President of the Council and chief Paper Money
executive of the State. He went into office Troubles
at a time when Pennsylvania, in common with the
other colonies, suffered greatly from the depreciation
of the Continental money. The State, too, had issued
paper money. There was about four times as much
in circulation as was needed for the transaction of
business, and prices were high and fluctuating. These
conditions were very favorable for speculators, and a
law was passed fixing the price of certain articles, to
destroy speculation, and laying em-
bargoes on the exportation of goods
needed by the people. But these
measures gave little relief. The
militia at one time marched down
Chestnut street, posting placards
against Morris, Wilson, and others
suspected of being speculators. At
Wilson’s house they stopped and killed
the captain of the guard, and broke into the hallway,
where for a time there was stabbing and clubbing.

The question of slavery, which had periodically
Slavery disturbed the ruling class in Pennsylvania
Abolished gver since Pastorius’ protest in 1688, came’
up now for final settlement, early in 1780. The

 

Joseph Reed,
172 A History of Pennsylvania

Friends, in their quarterly and yearly meetings, had
repeatedly advised against importing and purchasing
negroes. As early as 1705, a duty was imposed on
slave importation. In 1711 it was forbidden alto-
gether, but the Privy Council in England quashed the
act. The following year, upon petition * signed by
many hands,” the Assembly assessed 20 pounds a head
on imported negroes, thinking so high a duty would
be prohibitory; but the act was again vetoed by the
Crown. A letter written by a merchant in 1715 to
an importer in Jamaica says: “I must entreat you to
send me no more negroes for sale, for our people
don’t care to buy them. They are generally against
any coming into the country.” Yet, in spite of all
opposition, it was the common incident of the day
before the Revolution to vend blacks of both sexes
at public sale, at the coffee houses in Philadelphia.
Family servants were sent to jail to get their dozen
lashes for acts of insubordination. But the laws regu-
lating their conduct and punishment were always
humane. They enjoyed as much liberty as their
masters, were as well fed and as well clad, and gen-
erally lived under the same roof. The final movement
for the abolition of slavery was made in 1779 by the
Supreme Executive Council, in their message to the
Assembly:

“ Honored will that State be in the annals of mankind
which shall first abolish this violation of the rights of man-
kind ; and the memories of those will be held in grateful and

everlasting remembrance who shall pass the law to restore
and establish the rights of human nature in Pennsylvania.”

On the 1st of March, 1780, George Bryan, ex- Vice
President of the State, now a member of the As-
The Administration of the Government 173

sembly, presented a bill for the gradual abolition of
slavery in Pennsylvania, and urged its passage with
great earnestness. It passed by a vote of 34 to 21.
By its operation there were 3,737 slaves left in the
State in 1790, 1,706 in 1800, 795 in 1810, 211 in
1820, and 67 in 1830.

The Assembly about this time made another effort
to relieve the people from the withering  .. pe.
blight of the Continental paper money. of the
It tried to redeem it by taxation at the Continentals
rate of 1 to 40. But neither this nor any other
measure prevented the coinage of the phrase, “It is
not worth a Continental.” To assist Congress in pro-
viding for the army, Robert Morris and other finan-
ciers of the State established the Bank of Pennsyl-
vania, the first bank in America. The last attempt
to prolong the life of the * Continentals” was made
by the Executive Council in May, 1781; but the rem-
edy proved fatal. Pelatiah Webster said of the pro-
ceedings: Thus fell, ended and died the Conti-
nental currency, aged six years.”

The opening of the year 1781 brought President
Reed face to face with a very serious The Revolt at
problem. The Pennsylvania Line, in Morristown
Washington’s army at Morristown, had for some
time been dissatisfied with the treatment they were
receiving at the hands of Congress. Some had been
kept in the army beyond their time of enlistment; all
had arrearages of pay due them ; and the money they
had received was worthless. On New Year’s day the
Line broke out into open revolt and left the camp
for Princeton. Here they were met by two spies, who
tried to induce them to join the British army, but
174 A History of Pennsylvania

these were handed over to Washington and executed.
When Wayne, their commander, met the Pennsyl-
vanians at Princeton, he proposed that they reduce
their grievances to writing. This being done, Presi-
dent Reed and a committee of Congress set out to
meet them. Before entering their camp, Reed sent a
note to Wayne, asking whether it was safe for him
to go within the picket line of the insurgents. Their
committee replied that he need have no fear, that
the whole Line was anxious to have him settle the
unhappy affair. After a hard-fought battle of words
the difficulty was amicably settled by Reed; and the
Pennsylvania Line marched to Virginia to take a
most honorable part in the closing battles of the
Revolution. When offered a reward for delivering
up the two spies, they refused it, saying: “ Our
necessities compelled us to demand justice from our
government; we ask no reward for doing our duty to
our country against its enemies.”

The revolt of the Pennsylvania Line at Morris-
> Complete town was an evidence of the complete
Exhaustion exhaustion of resources for the Revolu-
of the State tion. But none of the States was’ more
thoroughly drained than Pennsylvania. This State
was not only the residence of Congress, with all its
train of attendants and officers, but also of all the
military mechanism of the country. From it the
quartermaster principally drew his wagons, his horses,
his camp equipage of all kinds, besides a great num-
ber of wagoners and artificers. Prisoners of war and
state had been largely the inheritance of Pennsyl-
vania. All this was done at great expense to the
State, and burdened it with a heavy load of debt.
The Administration of the Government 175

The substance of the people had been used, but. in
its place they had nothing but money made of rags.
Pennsylvania’s share of the supplies asked for by
Congress in 1781, was equal in amount to eleven
years’ taxes and all the income of the State.

Reed’s successor as President of the Supreme Ex-
ecutive Council was Vice-President William Moore, who
entered upon his duties in November, i
1781. Early the next year, Pennsyl-
vania joined with Congress in charter-
ing the Bank of North America, by
which Robert Morris, the superintendent :
of finances for the Continental Con-
gress, was enabled to restore the credit
of the United States and transact its William Moore,
financial affairs with greater efficiency. It was the
first incorporated bank in America, and it still exists.

Dickinson, having returned from his six years’ so-
Journ in Delaware, whither he had gone Congress Leaves
after his defeat for reélection to Con- Philadelphia
gress, soon regained his popularity. He was elected
a member of the Supreme Executive Council in No-
vember, 1782, and became its President. The Execu-
tive Council, in April following, proclaimed the news
that the preliminary treaty had been signed, and or-
dered the State flag to be hoisted and the bells to be
rung. The prisoners of war confined in barracks at
Carlisle, Lancaster and Reading were brought to Phil-
adelphia and sent to New York. The chevaux-de-
frize were removed from the Delaware, that the white
wings of commerce might again flutter over its waters.
But before the Quaker City could fully’ enjoy peace,
a number of officers and soldiers of the Pennsylvania

   
176 A History of Pennsylvania

Line, in June, came from Lancaster and were joined
by others, to demand of the Council and Congress a
settlement of their accounts. Their demands were so
insolent that the Council rejected
them. Congress urged that the
militia be called out to disarm
the insurgents, but Dickinson did
not favor a step so serious. Then
Congress resolved to leave, and
adjourned to meet at Princeton.
The leaders in this unfortunate
affair were arrested and court-
martialed. Two sergeants were sentenced to be shot
and others were to be flogged. All were subsequently
pardoned. The Assembly and the people of Phila-
delphia urged Congress to return, promising ample
protection if it would do justice to the army and
public creditors. But it resumed its sessions at
Annapolis.

Peace being now assured, the State authorities
Problems turned their attention to the restoration of
of Peace trade and industry. Commissioners were ap-
pointed to estimate the cost of opening a communica-
tion by means of roads and canals between the
Susquehanna and the Schuylkill. The islands in the
Delaware were divided between New Jersey and
Pennsylvania, according to proximity, and distributed
among the several counties along the river. The two
States were to have concurrent jurisdiction between
the banks. The Council of Censors, with Frederick
A. Muhlenberg as president, held its first and only
septennial session November 10, 1783, to September
24, 1784.

 

The State Flag.
The Administration of the Government 177

After the State government had been formed, laws
were passed in 1777 requiring the oath of
allegiance of all persons above eighteen years
of age, in order to enjoy “the blessings of liberty and
citizenship.” It was a test of loyalty to the Ameri-
can cause, and those who refused to take it were re-
garded as Tories. Some of these did sympathize with
Great Britain; but others declined to take the oath
on account of religious scruples. This class included

many people of means, who paid heavy taxes, directly
or indirectly, and were peaceable and inoffensive dur-
ing every stage of the Revolution. It was estimated
that nearly half of the inhabitants were deprived of
citizenship. In some places the number of persons
qualified to hold office was insufficient to administer
the local government. The agitation to repeal the
test laws began in 1784, but was fruitless until 1789,
when all disfranchised persons were restored to
citizenship, and foreigners alone were required to take
an oath of allegiance.

Franklin returned in 1785 from his nine years’
service in Europe. He was soon after rrankiin President
elected to the Executive Council and of Pennsylvania
made its President. He thus became the chief execu-
tive of Pennsylvania at the extreme age of eighty
years, serving until 1788. It was a singular coinei-
dence that during the first year of the great scientist’s
administration, numerous applications were made to
the Assembly for aid by scientific inventors. One
had made a crucible from blue-stone; another wanted
to convert bar-iron into steel; still another had a
machine to clean wheat and make it into flour; a
fourth asked encouragement in the making of tube-

Citizenship

L
178 A History of Pennsylvania

bellows for blacksmiths; while John Fitch asked for
the exclusive rights of steam navigation in Penn-
sylvania. Three years later one of his improved
steam -packets carried passengers regularly for three
months, from Philadelphia to Burlington, N. J.

In 1787, Philadelphia again became the scene of
The Constitu- a great Federal event—the formation
tional Convention of the Constitution of the United States.
The Constitutional Convention went into session May
25, in the State House, and after a stormy session
of four months, ended its labors September 17. The
delegates from Pennsylvania were all from Phila-
delphia — Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Mifflin, Robert
Morris, George Clymer, Thomas Fitz Simons, Jared
Ingersoll, James Wilson, and Gouverneur Morris.
John Dickinson represented the State of Delaware.
Pennsylvania’s delegation was the largest. Of its
eight members, the venerable President of Pennsyl-
vania, Benjamin Franklin, now eighty-one years old,
was the Nestor of the convention. The Doctor’s
speeches, on account of his physical
infirmities, were read by his ecol-
league, Mr. Wilson. It was Frank-
lin who proposed daily prayers in
the convention, and urged a spirit
of conciliation when the contest
about representation in Congress
AF waxed hot, saying, “We are here

James Wilson. to consult, not to contend.” He
advocated representation in Congress based on popula-
tion; he opposed property qualification for representa-
tives; and he was always a power when he spoke.
While the members were signing their names, Franklin,

 
The Administration of the Government 179

looking towards President Washington’s chair, on
the back of which was cut a sun, said to those
around him: “I have often and often, in the course
of the session, and in the solicitude of my hopes and
fears as to its issue, looked at that figure behind the
President without being able to tell whether it was
the rising or the setting sun. Now I know it is the
rising sun.” Mifflin, though saying but little, was
prominent and influential as a general of the Rev-
olution and a member of Congress. Robert Morris
proposed General Washington as president of the
convention and was well known to the members as
the great financier of the Revolution. Clymer was
one of the members who had the honor of having
signed the Declaration of Independence; he made a
number of speeches and, with Sherman, of Conneec-
ticut, was instrumental in keeping the term slaves
out of the Constitution of the United States. Fitz
Simons was a rich merchant, and objected to the
prohibition of a tax on exports. Ingersoll, a leading
lawyer, took little part, but afterwards acquired a
national reputation. James Wilson was the best-read
lawyer on the floor. Whatever of Blackstone went
into the Constitution was tested by him. Gouver-
neur Morris has credit for more remarks and speeches
than any other member of the convention except
Madison. As chairman of the Committee on Arrange-
ment and Style, Morris deserves the credit for the
clear and simple language of the Constitution. Dickin-
son stood for the interests of the small States, and
his advocacy secured the equality of representation in
the Senate. He drafted the section providing for the
formation of new States from parts of old ones.
180 A History of Pennsylvania

While the thirty-nine members of the convention
Pennsylvania Were signing the Constitution on the
Acts on the afternoon of the 17th of September, in
Constitution 4 lower room of the State House, the
Pennsylvania Assembly sat in a room above; and
there, early the next morning, the document was
read two days before Congress, in session in New
York, received it. The press of Philadelphia pub-
lished it on the 19th, and everybody praised
“The New Roof” at first. Congress sent it to the
States for ratification on the 28th. The Pennsylvania
Assembly was to adjourn sine die the next day. The
members friendly to the Constitution determined that
a convention to adopt it should be called before
adjournment. On the same day that Congress took
its final action, and without knowing what that
action was, George Clymer moved in the Assembly
that a convention meet in Philadelphia to consider
the adoption of the new constitution. The motion
carried by a vote of 43 to 19; but before fixing the
time and manner of election, the Assembly took a
recess, to meet in the afternoon. As it took 46 to
make a quorum, the 19 opposed to the convention
remained away after the recess; and the Assembly
had to adjourn until the next morning. The action
of Congress having now become known, it was sup-
posed that the opposition of the nineteen would give
way ; but it did not. A quorum had to be secured
by dragging the members from Franklin and Dauphin
counties — McCalmont and Miley — from their lodg-
ings to the State House. With clothes torn into
shreds and faces white with rage, the two men were
made to sit in their places until the call for the con-
The Administration of the Government 181

vention was complete. Thus it happened that Pennsyl-
vania called a convention to consider the Federal Con-
stitution twenty hours after the Congress in New York
had agreed to submit it to the States, and twelve
days after it had been finished by the convention.

The violent course of the Assembly, combined with
about a dozen objections to the Constitu- Pennsylvania
tion, made the campaign for the election Adopts the
of delegates very fierce. Wilson was the Constitution
champion on the side of the Federalists. He made
a powerful speech in favor of adoption in the State
House yard. * Centinel,” who wrote letters for the
newspapers, took the opposite side, and was often
abusive, not even sparing Washington and Franklin.
Robert Morris was * Bobby, the Cofferer ;” Mifflin,
“Tommy, the Quartermaster-General;” Gouverneur
Morris, “ Gouvera, the cunning man.” The conven-
tion met at the State House November 21, with
Frederick A. Muhlenberg as chairman. The Fed-
eralists had won 2 to 1; for the Constitution was
ratified December 12, by a vote of 46 to 23. The
members comprised some of the best-known men —
Thomas McKean, Benjamin Rush, and James Wilson,
of Philadelphia; Anthony Wayne, of Chester ; Abra-
ham Lincoln, of Berks; Timothy Pickering, of
Luzerne ; William Findley, of Westmoreland ; and
Frederick Muhlenberg, of Montgomery. Those oppos-
ing the Constitution did so largely because it was in
many ways different from their own State constitu-
tion. The latter had been the work of men from
the frontier counties in 1776; and the representa-
tives of these counties were generally the ones that
opposed the Federal Constitution.
182 A History of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania being the second State to ratify, there
The Affair Was not much demonstration made at the
at Carlisle.  {ime, But when, on the 21st of June,
1788, New Hampshire, the ninth State, ratified it,
Philadelphia and other towns resolved to celebrate
the new Union on the 4th of July. The enthusiasm
was unbounded, but generally peaceable. A serious
riot broke out right after the ratification, in the town
of Carlisle. Thomas McKean and James Wilson were
burned in effigy, cannon were spiked, and a copy of
the Constitution was burned.

The “ New Roof” being up and. Pennsylvania
opposition under it, the anti-Federalists met in con-

Ends vention at Harrisburg for the purpose of
suggesting certain amendments. Twelve were pro-
posed and recommended to the Assembly for submis-
sion to Congress. This action ended all opposition
in Pennsylvania to the Constitution. Fifteen amend-
ments had also been presented by the anti-Federalists
in the Philadelphia convention. They were drawn
up by Robert Whitehill, of Cumberland county, and
were remarkable as being almost identical with the
first ten amendments afterwards added to the Con-
stitution. It is supposed that Madison, who pre-
pared the amendments for Congress in 1789, made
use of those offered by the anti-Federalists of Penn-
sylvania. :

Benjamin Franklin, having declined a reélection on
President account of old age, was succeeded as Presi-
Miutin dent of the State, in November, 1789, by
General Thomas Mifflin. In January following, the
first election for Presidential electors was held, and in
April, Philadelphia gave a royal welcome to Wash-

 
The. Administration of the Government 183

ington, the first President of the United States, as he
passed through on his way to New York. The float-
ing bridge at Gray’s Ferry was so
elaborately decorated that the pass-
age over the Schuylkill seemed like
that along a green lane. Arches
of laurel spanned each end; and
just as the carriage of the Presi- |
dent passed under the western
arch a laurel wreath was lowered
upon his brow by a child clad
in white. - After a banquet and fourteen toasts,
Washington resumed his journey.

A new constitution having been adopted in 1790,
the last President of the State under the governor
old, General Mifflin, was elected the first Mifflin
Governor under the new. He served three successive
terms, until 1799. With his administration began the
system of internal improvements for which the State
became noted. The funding of the national debt, the
national bank, the impost, the excise—all tended to
make money plentiful. The favorite form of improve-
ment all over the country was the canal. In Penn-
sylvania, the Delaware, Schuylkill and Susquehanna
were to be made navigable and connected with one
another by means of canals. This eastern system was
then to be linked in the same way to the waters of
the Allegheny, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The
Legislature also recommended a turnpike from Phila-
delphia to Lancaster, as well as roads in other parts
of the State. To facilitate these schemes of internal
improvement, companies were chartered by authority
of the State. So many more shares were subscribed

 

Thomas Mifflin,
184 A History of Pennsylvania

in some of -them than were authorized by law, that
the names of the purchasers were put into a wheel,
and enough drawn out to form the company.

The Federal government having gone into the
banking business at Carpenters’ Hall, Phila-
delphia, in 1791, through the establishment
of the famous Bank of the United States, Pennsyl-
vania followed the example in 1793. The Legislature
chartered the Bank of Pennsylvania, and the State
took one-third of the entire stock. Branches were estab-
lished at Lancaster, Harrisburg, Reading, Easton and
Pittsburg. The State continued the partnership for
fifty years.

In 1793, the yellow fever appeared in Philadelphia.
The Yellow It lasted from August to November, and
Fever carried off about five thousand people.
The streets were deserted by all except those who
buried the dead. Exposed coffins on chair-wheels
were constantly in sight, but no mourners accompa-
nied them. The dead were hurriedly laid in large
pits, which would receive many before filling up.
Some 17,000 persons left the city, or one-third
of the population. Germantown was a favorite place
for the fugitives. Both the State and the United
States governments moved their offices to that town.

State Banks

THE CONSTITUTIONAL PERIOD

In March, 1791, Congress laid a tax of 25 cents a
The whisky Zallon on whisky manufactured in the
Insurrection [United States. At that time the Mississippi
was not yet open to the Americans for transporta-
tion; hence the farmers around Pittsburg had no
The Administration of the Government 185

outlet for their grain. So they turned it into
~ whisky, which found a market nearer home. The
inhabitants of that section had an inborn hatred for
excise taxes. Their Scotch-Irish ancestors had re-
sisted such faxes in Ireland. Moreover, the Revolu-
tion had been fought without a tax by the United
States government; and the pioneers beyond the
mountains could not understand why one was neces-
sary now. So in September, 1791, when a collector
appeared in Washington county, he was fiercely as-
saulted and had to flee for his life. About the same
time delegates from Fayette, Allegheny, Westmore-
land and Washington counties met in Pittsburg and
passed resolutions against the excise. Resistance more
or less violent was made against the collection of the
tax for several years, but no blood was shed until
July 16, 1794. Then the house of the inspector,
General Neville, was surrounded by a company of
militia, and one of their number was killed by the
shots that were exchanged. The next day Neville’s
house and barn were burned, but not until the leader
of the militia, Major McFarlane, a veteran of the
Revolution, had been shot’ by the occupants. The
death of McFarlane greatly incensed the people, and
a mass-meeting was held on Braddock’s Field, August
1. It was resolved to march to Pittsburg, where the
Federal collectors had their headquarters. Fearing
the town would be burned by the *“ Whisky Boys,”
the people sent a committee out to reason with them.
By the tact of Judge Brackenridge, who preferred * the
loss of four barrels of old whisky to the loss of a
quart of blood,” they were led through the town and
out of it again without doing any harm,
186 A History of Pennsylvania

Pittsburg. was saved by a “free treat,” but the
Federal government, as well as that of
the State, now concluded that something
stronger than whisky even was required to end the
disturbance. President Washington sent a commis-
sion to make peace, if possible, and
ordered an army of 12,000 men to
be collected from Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, Maryland and Virginia. Gov-
ernor Mifflin sent Chief Justice Me-
Kean and General William Irvine to
ascertain the state of the rebellion,
and called a special session of the
Legislature. Judge Brackenridge and
Albert (Gallatin acted as mediators between the com-
missioners and the insurrectionists, and after one
month of hard work came to an amicable agree-
ment. All those willing to do so were to sign
papers signifying their submission to the govern-
ment; but many failed to sign. k Washington, there-
fore, ordered an advance of the army. Soon after-
wards William Findley, at the head of a committee,
met him at Carlisle, whither’ the President had come,
and assured him that peace would be restored.
Washington replied that the army was already on the
march, but that no violence would be used if the
insurrectionists had submitted. No further resistance
was offered. It had been demonstrated that the
Federal government was no rope of sand, to be broken
whenever a State or a part of a State was opposed
to a law.

The difficulties of the Federal government with
France and England, when those nations commenced

An Army Raised

 

Albert Gallatin,
The Administration of the Government 187

war with each other in 1793, made themselves felt in
the State. In common with the whole

country, the people of Pennsylvania sym-

pathized with France. Jay’s treaty with England,
made the following year, caused such a division of the
Americans that they were all either Frenchmen or
Englishmen in their politics. At the election for the
Assembly, there were treaty” and anti-treaty ”
candidates. Genét, the French minister, received the
most flattering attention front the day he arrived until
he was recalled. When Adet, his successor, ordered
all Frenchmen in America to wear the tri-colored
French cockade, everybody in Philadelphia wore it.
Governor Mifflin and his associates in the State gov-
ernment openly sympathized with France. Even after
France had asked a tribute from the American min-
ister, and while * millions for defense; but not one cent
for tribute,” reéchoed over the land, the Pennsylvania
Senate passed resolutions against a war with France.
However, the House would not concur, and when war
was imminent, Governor Mifflin called on the militia
to prepare for defense. Joseph Hopkinson’s * Hail
Columbia,” sung for the first time in a Philadelphia
theater April 25, 1798, to the tune of * The Presi-
dent’s March,” added greatly to the war feeling.
The words were caught up and repeated throughout
the country.

The agitation for the removal of the capital from
Philadelphia began in 1784. In that Removal of the
year a committee, which had been ap- State Capital
pointed on opening communication with the Susque-
hanna, reported that John Harris, of Harris’ Ferry,
had offered some land to the State, which it might use

1

Foreign Politics
188 A History of Pennsylvania

for public purposes. Soon afterwards other interior
towns made efforts to secure the capital ; but Harris-
burg and Lancaster were the principal competitors.
In 1795 Carlisle was the choice of the House, but not
of the Senate. The next year Lancaster was selected
by the House in preference to Carlisle or Reading ;
but the Senate again dissented. In 1798, Harrisburg
and Wright’s Ferry were voted for, but without an
agreement. The following April Lancaster was se-
lected to be the seat ‘of government after the first
Monday of November, 1799.

Early in Adams’ administration, the Federal gov-
ernment imposed the so-called * house
tax,” which required the assessors to
measure and register the panes of glass in windows.
To the Germans the tax seemed tyrannous; and in
the counties of Berks, Lehigh, Northampton, Mont-
gomery and Bucks they resisted the enforcement of
the law. From the fact that the women in certain
places poured hot water on the assessors, the in-
surrection got the name of * Hot Water Rebellion ;”
while through its leader it also received the name of
“ Fries’ Rebellion.” John Fries, a soldier of the
Revolution, was a well known character in the Ger-
man section north of Philadelphia. He was an
auctioneer, and was endowed with the power of
leadership. With a plumed hat on his head, a pistol
and a sword at his side, his little dog * Whisky”
at his heels, and about sixty armed men around him,
he marched from place to place, to the sound of fife
and drum, and harangued the Germans on the in-
justice of the * house tax.” He did this for several
months before the government took any notice of it.

Fries’ Rebellion

 
The Administration of the Government 189

Finally, a United States marshal arrested twelve of
his men and confined them in the Sun Inn, Bethle-
hem. Fries went to their rescue. He appeared be-
fore the inn in March, 1799, and demanded the sur-
render of the prisoners. The marshal had to yield,
and Fries marched away in triumph. By order of
President Adams, Governor Mifflin now called out the
militia, and Fries, betrayed by “Whisky,” was cap-
tured in a swamp south of Allentown. He was tried
in Philadelphia for high treason, convicted and con-
demned to die; but President Adams pardoned him.
The successor to Mifflin was Thomas McKean, then
Chief Justice. He, too, served three succes- governor
sive terms, 1799-1808. In a speech after his McKean
election he applied the epithets, “traitors, refugees,
Tories, French aristocrats, British agents, apostate
Whigs,” ete., to the Federalists; and when Governor
he removed the old soldiers of the Revolution from
office as fast as he could. For this conduct he received
a vote of censuré in the Senate, and but narrowly es-
caped a like rebuke from the House.
This unhappy beginning resulted in
a bitter contest with the Legislature,
lasting during his entire administra-
tion. At one time he was in danger
of impeachment, one of the charges
being that he allowed his clerk to
affix the official signature to public
documents by means of a stamp. In
1799 many petitions for the unconditional abolition of
slavery were sent to the Legislature. By the law of
1780, the children born of slaves thereafter were to be
servants, not slaves, and that only until they were

 

Thomas McKean.
190 A History of Pennsylvania

twenty-eight years old. This condition was obnoxious
to many people; and the free negroes offered to pay
for freeing their brethren unconditionally.

In 1802 the Legislature passed an act which
A Famous became the foundation of the public school

Trial system. It provided for * the education of
the poor gratis.” Great interest was shown, also, at
the opening of the century, in architecture, manufac-
ture, horticulture, literature, and the useful arts —a
number of societies being chartered by the Legisla-
ture to promote one or more of these. But such
useful things were lost sight of in the political tur-
moil of the time. In January, 1805, when Justice
Chase, of the Supreme Court of the United States,
was about to be tried at the bar of the Senate for
“high erimes and misdemeanors,” a famous trial of
a like nature occurred in Pennsylvania. Three jus-
tices of the Supreme Court of the State — Edward
Shippen, chief justice, and Jasper Yeates and
Thomas Smith, associates —had been impeached by
the House for the arbitrary committal of a suitor for
contempt of court. H. H. Brackenridge, the fourth
justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, was also
to be removed, but Governor McKean refused when
the Legislature asked him to do so. Caesar A. Rodney,
of Delaware, was employed by the Legislature to act
as counsel against the judges, because no lawyer in
the State would do it. After a long struggle, the
Senate came to a vote in the case of Shippen,
Yeates and Smith. It stood for conviction—13
guilty and 11 not guilty. As three less than the
required two- thirds voted guilty, the judges were
acquitted.
The Administration of the Government 191

The much-hated embargo act of the Federal gov-
ernment made itself felt in Philadelphia Effects of
very early in 1808. Discontented, hungry the Embargo
and penniless sailors marched to the City Hall, under
the folds of the Stars and Stripes, to ask the mayor
what they should do to keep from starving. Yet the
Pennsylvania Legislature, in common with that of
other States, supported the embargo act in various
resolutions. At the same time, it admitted that cer-
tain evils existed,— “to wit, the great scarcity of
money in the Commonwealth ;” and it appointed a
committee to consider measures to stop the sale of
property for the payment of debts.

After Thomas McKean had served as long as the
Constitution would permit, he was suc- Governor
ceeded by Simon Snyder, the first native Snyder
executive of Pennsylvania born outside of a Quaker
county. He served three terms— from 1808 to 1817.
There were three parties in the field with a candidate for
Governor — the Democrats (Snyder),
the Constitutional Democrats, or
“Quids” (Spayd), and the Federalists
(Ross). The cry of the Federalists
was “Free trade and no embargo.” The
Democrats generally supported Jeffer-
son and his embargo, and passed a
resolution in the Legislature early in
1809 recommending that the members
of the next Legislature * appear in clothes of domestic
manufacture.” The Legislature also ordered * that no
British precedent should be read or quoted in courts of
sustice, nor any British decision made after July 4,
1776, except those on maritime and international law.”

   

Simon Snyder.
192 A History of Pennsylvania

When the United States bank went out of exis-
tence in 1811, a great demand for State
banks was made. Such was the mania for
local banks that in 1814 a bill to charter forty-two
of them was passed, vetoed by the Governor, and passed
over his veto. After the capture of Washington
by the British, the banks of Baltimore and Phila-
delphia suspended specie payment, a measure which
was followed by the banks throughout the country.

Local Banks

 

TWO CENTS TWO CENTS

I promise to pay the Bearer Two Cents
on Demand at the

ScHUYLKILL BANK

When a sum amounting to one dollar shall be
presented.

Philadelphia, July 4, 1815. RICHARD BACHE.

 

 

 

The scarcity of coin gave rise to the use of notes
for small sums—"shinplasters”—issued by individ-
uals. With the establishment of banks all over the
State, public improvements were extended. Petitions
to the Legislature for money to improve the roads
were especially numerous.

When the second war with Great Britain was de-
clared, June 18, 1812, Pennsylvania was
ready with three times as many troops as
were required to fill her quota. In December follow-
ing Governor Snyder, in his message to the Legisia-
ture, said :

The War of 1812

“The sword of the Nation, which for thirty years has be=n
resting in the scabbard, has been drawn to maintain that inde-

 

i
The Administration of the Government 193

pendence which it had gloriously achieved. In the war of the
Revolution our fathers went forth, as it were, ‘with a sling,
and with a stone, and smote the enemy.’ Since that period
our country has been abundantly blessed and its resources
greatly multiplied; millions of her sons have grown to man-
hood, and, inheriting the principles of their fathers, are deter-
mined to preserve the precious heritage which was purchased
by their blood, and won by their valor,”

Pennsylvania’s soil received none of the blood shed
in this war; but her sons bled and died at Chippewa,
Lundy’s Lane, on Lake Erie, and at Baltimore, and
shared in the glorious victory at New Orleans. When
General Tannehill’s brigade of 2,000 volunteer militia
reached Niagara, they promptly crossed the line into
Canada, and gallantly followed the flag of the
United States government into a foreign country.
The historic dialogue at Lundy’s Lane —* Major,
can you take that battery?” “I can try, sir”’—
was between General Brown, a native of Bucks
county, and Major Miller, of Gettysburg.

The greatest contribution by Pennsylvania to the
war of 1812 was what Erie did in helping
to build and man Perry’s fleet. Had it not
been for Captain Daniel Dobbins, of Erie, Perry
might never have been enabled to send the famous
despatch, September 10, 1813: “We have met the
enemy, and they are ours.” Dobbins, as commander
of a trading vessel, had the year before been a pris-
oner of the British at Detroit. Believing that his
experience would be of value, he went to Washington
and told the President and his Cabinet that a fleet
ought to be built at Erie for the purpose of sweeping
the British from the lakes. He returned with orders
to build two gunboats. Late in October he gathered

Perry’s Fleet

M
194 A History of Pennsylvania

a few ' house-carpenters, and by January, 1813, had
made such progress that he was instructed to build
two sloops-of-war. Every stick of timber had to be
cut from the stump, while deep snows covered the
roots and wintry blasts whistled through the tops.
In March, when Perry arrived, the keels and ribs
were ready at the harbor of Erie. He hastened the
work still more by ordering men from Philadelphia
and New York to assist. Frequently a piece of
timber that became part of a ship on an afternoon
had been part of a tree in the forest that morning.
The men of Erie stood guard over the ships while in
process of construction; they went to Buffalo and
Pittsburg for supplies; and when at last Perry was
forced to say to the naval authorities, * For God’s
sake, and yours, and mine, send me men and officers,
and I will have the enemy’s ships in a day or two,”
the militia around Erie responded to his call and
helped to win the great victory that made him * the
young Nelson of America.”

One other event of this war caused a great stir
within the borders of this State—the burning of
Washington. Governor Snyder, August 26, 1814, in
obedience to an order from President Madison, made
a call for the militia of the counties nearest to the
Capital. They assembled at Carlisle, York, and Mar-
cus Hook. Those who were ordered to Washington
took part in the attempt of General Winder to keep
the British invaders out of the Capital. Among the
heroes who won distinction on the sea were Commo-
dore Stephen Decatur, Lieutenant James Biddle, and
Captain Charles Stewart, each of whom was honored
by the Legislature with a gold-hilted sword.
The Administration of the Government 195

In February, 1810, Governor Snyder approved the
act of the Legislature establishing permanently the
capital at Harrisburg, before the close of October,
1812. The records were in danger of destruction at

 

The Old Capitol. Built 1819-21; destroyed by fire February 2, 1897.

Lancaster, and a more central place was desired. The
places voted on were Lancaster, Harrisburg, North-
umberland, Bellefonte, Columbia, Carlisle, Reading and
Sunbury. Harrisburg was selected because a very
great portion of the produce of the State would find
its way to market by means of the Susquehanna and
its branches. It was argued that men of capital
would locate at the seat of government if it admitted
of commerce and was within easy and close communi-
cation with Philadelphia. William MecClay gave ten
acres of land to the State, in addition to the four
acres already appropriated by John Harris. The cor-
196 A History of Pennsylvania

nerstone of the capitol was laid May 31, 1819; the
building was completed in 1821 and first occupied by
the Assembly January 3, 1822. Before it was com-
pleted, the State government was quartered in the old
Dauphin county court-house.

Towards the close of Snyder’s administration, there

A Bitter Were old-school Democrats and new-school

Quarrel Democrats. The former were opposed to the

system of caucus nomination, by which Congress and
the State Legislature made known their preferences
for President and Governor. The new school, in 1817,
nominated William Findlay for Governor; the other
wing of the party presented the name of Joseph
Hiester to the voters of the State. The Federalists
voted for Hiester; but Findlay carried the State by
a small majority. When the Legislature met in
December, petitions were presented protesting against
the election of Findlay. A motion to suspend the
inauguration was made in the House. Beyond causing
much rancor, the petitions were fruitless.

William Findlay was Governor for one term only,
from 1817-1820. The war between the
two schools of the Democratic party over
methods of nomination was kept up briskly, and party
spirit ran high. Petitions were sent to the Legisla-
ture asking for an investigation into the conduct of
the Governor. A committee was appointed to make
a report of the charges, of which there were nine;
but no action was taken, because the report of the
committee was not in favor of it.

Governor Findlay was an ardent advocate of inter-
nal improvements. He presented a plan for the
navigation of the principal. rivers as near to their

Governor Findlay
The Administration of the Government 197

sources as possible —the heads of the streams to be
connected by short portages. In this he was but
seconding a like movement by other States and the
United States all along the Atlantie
seaboard. During the second war
with England, the Southern and Mid-
dle States were blockaded and the
coast trade had to be abandoned.
Instead, a system of inland trade
sprang up between New England and
‘the South, which resulted in certain
trunk line routes running north and south. After
the war, when the Indians and the British were no
longer a hindrance to the settlement ‘of the North-
west, great quantities of ware and merchandise had
to be sent westward. But there were no roads
in that direction; so the natural thing to do would
be to open the rivers for navigation. Steamboats,
which had hitherto been used only for passengers,
were now to take the place of the "ox and horse
marine” in carrying freight. Commissioners of
Maryland and Pennsylvania jointly examined the
Susquehanna, and reported that $20,000 would clear
the river from Harrisburg to Tioga Point. With a
canal, twenty-three miles long, from the head of the
West Branch to the Allegheny, the Mississippi valley
could be reached. From the head of Chautauqua lake,
a canal nine miles long would open an easy route to
Lake Erie and the other ‘great lakes. By means of
another water route to Harrisburg and Pittsburg, by
way of the Schuylkill, the Swatara and the Juniata,
Philadelphia could be connected with the Pacific ocean
at the mouth of the Columbia with only seventy-five

 

William Findlay.
198 A History of Pennsylvania

miles of canal. Such were the calculations made to
outdo New York on the north, and such were the
dreams of Pennsylvania while the nightmare of the
Erie canal disturbed her sleep!

At the election for Governor in October, 1820, the
The Elections Contest was entirely confined to State

of 1320 issues. The new-school Democrats had
given Findlay a unanimous nomination for another
term. Joseph Hiester, his opponent, was supported
by the old-school Democrats and the Federalists.
Under the constitution of 1790, the Governor had
many offices to fill, and thus made many enemies. It
was this that defeated Findlay for reélection. At
the presidential election in November, Pennsylvania
was the only State in the Union that made any oppo-
sition to Monroe. It was based on his approval of
the Missouri Bill. On election day, therefore, the
anti-slavery men of Pennsylvania voted for DeWitt
Clinton.

Governor Hiester served one term — from 1820 to
1823. He foresaw the party strife
that awaited him; for he urged the
Legislature ‘in his first message to
reduce the great power and patronage
of the Executive. Findlay became a
2p ? candidate for the United States Sen-

71 i ate in January following ; but no one

Joseph Hiester.  .oiting a majority, the Legislature
adjourned sine die. This unfinished business in-
creased the rancor of party; but early in 1822 ex-
Governor Findlay was elected Senator, and that
contest was eliminated from the struggle between the
two factions.

 
The Administration of the Government 199

The movement for internal improvement did not
abate during Hiester’s term. The great Pb
highways to the West were not to be Improvements
a mere fancy. The Legislature in 1821 2d Fducation
chartered a number of canal and turnpike companies,
and appropriated money for the same. The subject
of education received considerable attention at this
time. Governor Hiester said in his message : “Above
all, it appears an imperative duty to introduce and
support a liberal system of education, connected with
some general religious instruction.”

Hiester not being a candidate for reélection, the
Democrats nominated John Andrew Shulze The Elections of
for Governor in 1823. The Federalist 1823and 1824
candidate was Andrew Gregg, a former Democrat.
Shulze was elected, and was the choice of the
Democratic wing which supported Calhoun and
Crawford against Jackson in 1824. However, the
hero of New Orleans got the electoral vote of Penn-
sylvania by an overwhelming majority. Crawford,
having been nominated by a congressional caucus,
had no chance in this State, where the
Democrats had been split since 1817
on methods of nomination.

Governor Shulze was in office from
1823 to 1829, serving two terms. governor
Assuming that the Legislature Shulze
knew the wants of the State better
than he, Shulze, in his first message, John Andrew Shulze
recommended but one thing for their consideration —
education. Said he, “Convinced that even liberty
without knowledge is but a precarious blessing,
I can not too strongly recommend this subject to

 
200 A History of Pennsylvania

/

your consideration.” The Legislature accordingly

passed a law providing for the education of all
children between six and fourteen at public expense;
but no child was to have this privilege for more than
three years. Being violently opposed, the law was
repealed in 1826.

The subject of internal improvements was another
Internal Im- very live question at this time. Coal, iron
provements  gnd manufactures were becoming great in-
dustries in Pennsylvania. The Schuylkill and the
Union canals, connecting Philadelphia with the Sus-
quehanna, were finished. The great Pennsylvania
canal was begun near Harrisburg in 1827. The
several parts, including the Delaware, the Columbia,
the Harrisburg, the Juniata, and the Western divi-
sions, having altogether a length of 425 miles, were
completed in 1830. A board of five canal commis-
sioners was created by the Legislature in 1825, to
manage this stupendous system for the State. The
money needed was borrowed from banks by authority
of the Legislature. Governor Shulze opposed this
plan, favoring taxation to pay at least a part of the
enormous expense. But the people did not care for
debts in this “era of good feeling,” and before the
close of Shulze’s second term the State had borrowed
$6,000,000. It required all his skill and energy to
remedy the evils that followed.

During the Presidential campaign of 1824, when
four candidates were before the people,
the old parties were broken up. The name
Federalist sank into oblivion. Its place for a brief
period was taken by the anti-Masons, who, in 1829,
named Joseph Ritner as their candidate for Gover-

Governor Wolf
The Administration of the Government 201

nor. The Democratic candidate was George Wolf,
who won the election by a majority of 17,000.
When Governor Wolf assumed office, he reported to
the Legislature that $8,300,000 had been horrowed
by the State since the first loan for
public improvements was authorized
in 182), and. that $3,459,533 was
still needed to complete the canals
and railroads included in the system.
The public works were pushed to
completion, and in a few years
Governor Wolf and others, upon
whose shoulders the responsibility rested heavily for
a time, had the proud satisfaction of seeing the
State prosper greatly under 'its system of water
communication. “Clinton’s Big Ditch” in New York
now had a worthy rival.

Governor Wolf, in his first inaugural address, like
all his predecessors under the constitution Public
of 1790, addressed himself to the subject of Education
public education, and proved himself a warm friend
of that cause. But all the Governors, from Mifflin
down to Wolf, and all the legislative reports, bills,
discussions and enactments, reached no higher ground
than the free instruction of the poor, or, at best, a
general system of free primary instruction. Up to
1830, the great free-schocl system, as we now have
it, was still in embryo. Hven Wolf, when he became
Governor, spoke only of “ensuring to every indigent
child in the Commonwealth the rudiments of learn-
ing.” But in his message to the Legislature of
1830-31, he gives evidence of broader ideas when he
speaks of the blessings of education to “the whole

 

George Wolf.
202 A History of Pennsylvania

community,” to “every individual susceptible of par-
taking of them,” “to the poor, as well as to the rich.”

“I am thoroughly persuaded that there is not a single
measure of all these which will engage your deliberations in
the course of the session of such intrinsic importance to the
general prosperity and happiness of the people of the Common-
wealth, to the cause of public virtue and public morals, to the
hopes and expectations of the rising generation, to whom the
future political destinies of the Republic are to be committed,
or which will add so much to the sum of individual and social
improvement and comfort, as a general diffusion of the means
of moral and intellectual cultivation among all classes of our
citizens.”

The people, too, had advanced. Petitions for the
The Common €Stablishment of a better system of pub-
Schools lic education had come before the Legis-
Established lature from twenty-four counties, while
only a few remonstrances were presented. Much
credit is due to the Pennsylvania Society for the Pro-
motion of Public Schools. It memorialized the Legis-
lature repeatedly in favor of public schools. Yet all
that was done at the session of 1830-31 was to pro-
vide for a “common school fund,” the interest of
which was to be distributed and applied to the sup-
port of common schools in a manner to be determined
by future legislation. In his next message, the Gov-
ernor emphasized the importance of further legisla-
tion. Yet, though the question came up annually
thereafter, nothing was accomplished until 1834. The
people had become wide awake now. Public meet-
ings were held all over the State, resolutions were
passed, comparisons with other States were made, and
an increased number of free-school members was in
both houses of the Legislature. The result was that

 
The Administration of the Government 203

on March 15, 1834, “An Act to Establish a General
System of Education by Common Schools” was
passed. In the House but one man voted nay; in
the Senate, three.

In strange contrast with this unanimity was the
opposition to the law in the next Legis- The Common
lature. A majority of the members went Schools Saved
to Harrisburg resolved to repeal it. The enemies of
free schools had attacked the measure of 1834 in all
parts of the State. Families, neighborhoods, churches,
newspapers — all quarreled with one another and
among themselves. In some instances members of
the Legislature who had voted for the free-school law
made humiliating and dishonorable confession of
having done wrong, else they would not have been
returned. The Senate was especially hostile to the
act of 1834, and repealed it in March, 1835. Thirteen
of the nineteen who voted for the repeal had the pre-
vious year voted for free schools. The House, fortu-
nately, was more friendly; but what it would have
done had it not been for the speech
of one member —Thaddeus Stevens—
cannot be told. It was said by eye-
witnesses of the great fight in that ®
body that Stevens saved the 11th fl
day of April, 1835, for the common
schools in Pennsylvania.

   
     

NS

“Who would not rather do one living NS
deed than have his ashes enshrined in Thaddeus Stevens.
ever-burnished gold? Sirs, I trust that when we come to
act on this question, we shall take lofty ground — look be-
yond the narrow space which now circumseribes our vision,
beyond the passing, fleeting point of time on which we
stand —and so east our votes that the blessing of education

RD
204 A History of Pennsylvania

shall be conferred upon every son of Pennsylvania— shall
be carried home to the poorest child of the poorest inhab-
itant of the meanest hut of your mountains, so that even he
may be prepared to act well his part in this land of freemen,
and lay on earth a broad and a solid foundation for that endur-
ing knowledge which goes on increasing through increasing
eternity.” :

Governor Wolf was nominated for a third term ;
Governor but was defeated by Joseph Ritner, the anti-
Ritner Mason and Whig candidate, who had been
his opponent twice before. Rev. H. A. Muhlenberg,
another candidate, divided the Democratic vote.
“Public Education,” the banner under which Gov-
ernor Wolf fought his campaign, had much to do
with his defeat. But Ritner, although some of his
supporters were “ no-school-tax” and * no-free-school”
men, proved to be an equally staunch friend of the
new law. In his annual messages he favored in-
creased State aid to the common schools, and had
the satisfaction of seeing it raised from $75,000 to
$400,000 a year. He was ably supported in his pol-
icy by his Secretary of the Commonwealth and Super-
intendent of Common Schools, Thomas
H. Burrowes.

Governor Ritner’s administration was
Financial also charged with the task of
Difficulties yy aking the public works
> “answer the great object for which

they had been originally designed — the
public good.” This proved to be a
difficult task on account of financial troubles. A
vast amount of paper money had been issued while
the works were in process of construction. Ritner
wanted this kind of money reduced to within * the

   

Joseph Ritner.

 
The Administration of the Government 205

actual value and amount of its principal.” In the
panic of 1837 (see any U. S. history) the banks all
suspended specie payment, and paper money was the
only medium of exchange. Jackson’s famous “specie
circular” and other measures had forced gold and
silver out of circulation.

The adoption of a new constitution
was the last important
event of Governor Ritner’s
administration. His successor was
David R. Porter, who was Governor Z
from 1838 to 1845. The campaign 7/77
was very heated, and when the election D2vid RB. Porter.
was over the friends of Governor Ritner resolved
to make an investigation of alleged frauds. The
Legislature which met December 4, 1838, was anti-
Masonic and Whig in the Senate; in the House
both parties claimed a majority. Accordingly, two
Speakers were elected in the House— Thomas 8S.
Cunningham, of Beaver county, by the anti-Masons
and Whigs, and William Hopkins, of Washington
county, by the Democrats. Both Speakers occupied
seats on the platform, a double-headed organization
was effected, and both factions adjourned, to meet the
next day. But the anti-Masons and Whigs met
again in the afternoon. Some spectators, friends of
the Hopkins party, went up to the platform and
carried the Speaker pro tem. down into the aisle.
Overcome by superior numbers, the Cunningham
House then adjourned to what is now the Lochiel
Hotel. The Senate also had to adjourn, the Speaker
jumping “out of a window twelve feet high, through
thorn bushes and over a seven-foot picket fence.”

Governor Porter

 
206 A History of Pennsylvania .

Things now assumed a threatening aspect. A
“The Buck- public meeting was held counselling mod-
shot War” epation ; business was suspended for several
days ; Governor Ritner called out the militia under
General Patterson; and, had not President Van Buren
declined to order them, United States troops from
Carlisle would have been on the scene too. The
presence of the bayonet enabled the peacemakers to
restore quiet. The Senate recognized the Democratic
wing of the House as the rightful organization, and
what is known as the * Buck-shot War” came to an
end. The ammunition for the infantry at this time
was buck-shot cartridges. It is said that the Cun-
ningham men made some of these cartridges at their
headquarters and sent them by a negro to the
arsenal, to be used on the mob; that the negro was
caught and compelled to give up his cartridges to the
captors, who distributed them among their friends as
mementoes. Hence the name ** Buck-shot War.”

The suspension of specie payment continued to
Financia disturb business. In 1842 an act was
Troubles passed by the Legislature compelling banks
to resume. Refusal to do so was to be followed by
a forfeiture of their charters. Some resumed; others
tried but had to close their doors, while a few refused
to obey the law. So depreciated paper money re-
mained the currency until the Legislature agreed to
fill the State’s empty treasury by means of taxation
—a measure that had been strongly urged by Wolf.
. The newspapers of those days all published rates of
discount and descriptions of counterfeit notes, and
these were consulted by the people when they paid
or received paper money.
The Administration of the Government 207

Governor Porter had occasion to make a defense of
the Germans and the German language . governor Porter
in one of his veto messages. An aet 2nd the Germans
had been passed abolishing the printing of the laws
in the German language. One-third of the popula-
tion was German. In most of the eastern counties,
German was the language of daily intercourse, of the
schools, and of the newspapers. Governor Porter
could, therefore, see nothing unreasonable in publish-
ing the laws in the only language those people could
understand. A few years later, when a Superinten-
dent of Public Printing was established, it was
ordered that he should receive bids for both English
and German printing, and there was an English and
a German State Printer until 1856.

The Missouri Compromise had resulted in a gen-
eral movement in the North against slavery.
Abolition societies were formed, newspapers
were established, and men and women took the plat-
form. In 1833, a convention met at Philadelphia
and formed the American Anti-Slavery Society. This
agitation brought on riots in Philadelphia between the
whites and the blacks. The most serious occurred
when Pennsylvania Hall was dedicated, in May, 1838.
It had been erected by the Anti-Slavery Society for
the free discussion of that cause. All went well
until the evening of the third day, when a crowd of
roughs threw stones into the windows and hissed and
hooted the speakers. The next night a larger body
put out the lamps in the neighborhood, broke into
the hall, set it on fire, and turned on the gas to assist
the flames. The work of destruction was complete ;
for nothing but the walls was left of this monument
to free speech.

Race Riots
208 A History of Pennsylvania

In 1843, a new party appeared in American poli-
tics—the Native American—which, among
other things, held that foreigners should
not be appointed to office. In Philadelphia the move-
ment was attended the next year by disorderly meet-
ings, fatal riots, and the burning of houses and
churches. In May, Governor Porter ordered General
Patterson to restore order with the militia, which he
did. But on the following Fourth of July there was
a grand Native American procession in Philadelphia.
This revived bitter memories, and the rioting began
anew, lasting for several days. The city was put
under martial law. Troops moved upon the mob
with deadly effect; while the rioters procured a can-
non and fired chains, bolts, spikes and other missiles
at the soldiers. The Governor, who had come to
Philadelphia in person, now called out additional
troops, and was soon able to withdraw the militia
and entrust the city again to the mayor. The Legis-
lature then passed a law strengthening the govern-
ment of the city of Philadelphia, and the riots which
had disgraced the city for ten years ceased.
According to the Constitution of
1838, the Governor could
not hold office “longer
than six in any term of nine years.”
A Governor Porter, therefore, retired, and
- was succeeded by his Secretary of the
® : Commonwealth, Francis R. Shunk, who
Francis R. Shunk. goyyed one term and about six months
of a second term. Having become ill, Governor
Shunk, July 9, 1848, addressed a pathetic letter from
his death-bed to the people of Pennsylvania, and

Political Riots

Governor Shunk

 
The Administration of the Government 209

resigned his office. He died, deeply lamented, July
30, at Harrisburg,

“In taking leave of you under circumstances so solemn;
accept my gratitude for the confidence you have reposed in me.
My prayer is that peace, virtue, intelligence, and religion may
pervade all your borders ; that the free institutions you have
inherited from your ancestors may remain unimpaired till the
latest posterity ; that the same kind Providence which has al-
ready so signally blessed you may conduct you to a still higher
state of individual and social happiness ; and when the world
shall close upon you, as I feel it soon about to close upon me,
that you may enjoy the consolation of the Christian’s faith,
and be gathered, without a wanderer lost, into the fold of the
Great Shepherd above.’’

Governor Shunk was chief executive of Pennsyl-
vania during the Mexican war. Presi-
dent Polk called for six regiments from
this State. In response, ninety companies were
formed, making three regiments more than were
asked, while only two regiments and several detached
companies were mustered into service. These distin-
guished themselves by their bravery at Vera Cruz,
Cerro Gordo, Chepultepec and Mexico. In memory of
their valor the State erected a towering monument on
Capitol Hill, at Harrisburg. The victories of peace
during this administration were equally important. In
1845, the first telegraph poles were erected within the
State, and a line was opened from Philadelphia to
New York. The first movement toward the construe-
tion of the Pennsylvania railroad between Harrisburg
and Pittsburg took place in the same year.

After Governor Shunk’s resignation there was
an interregnum until July 26, when the Governor
Speaker of the Senate, agreeably to the Johnston
Constitution, took the office for the unexpired term.

N

The Mexican War
210 A History of Pennsylvania

The person who thus became acting Governor was
William F. Johnston, and he was nick-named * His
Accidency.” Johnston was also the choice of a small
majority at the election for the unexpired term. He
belonged to the Whigs, who were in
the ascendency in 1848, electing Gen-
eral Taylor President. In the North
they were opposed to the extension of
the slave power. In Pennsylvania the
Assembly passed an act prohibiting
judges of the State from executing
the fugitive-slave law of 1793, and
forbidding the use of the jails for the
detention of fugitive slaves. The privilege of non-
residents to keep slaves temporarily in the State was
also cancelled. These acts were severely condemned
by the Southern States.
In 1850, a new fugitive-slave law was passed by
The Congress, by which United States com-
Underground missioners were authorized to turn over a
Behioa) negro to anybody who claimed him as an
escaped slave. For years the fugitive slave had felt.
safe when he reached Pennsylvania; but now he had
to flee to Canada. In this he was assisted by an
organization known as the “Underground Railroad.”
The origin of this name may be traced to Columbia,
Lancaster county. That town was laid out by
descendants of the Quaker John Wright (see p. 78),
and they reserved some lots in it for free colored
people. It, therefore, became a refuge for runaway
slaves. Their masters could track them as far as
Columbia, where all traces disappeared; and it was
declared that “there must be an underground rail-

 

\ \
William F. Johnston
The Administration of the Government 211

road” leading out of it. Through the secret assist-
ance of the anti-slavery people, the fugitive slaves
were sent across Lancaster, Chester, Montgomery and
Bucks counties to West Chester, Philadelphia, Quaker-
town and Stroudsburg. To these points the negroes
would travel in small parties by night and be con-
cealed by friends in cellars, garrets, hay lofts, and
other hiding places, till all danger from pursuit had
passed. Another line came up from Maryland
through Chester county. Some fugitive slaves entered
the State by way of Bedford and followed the moun-
tains to Potter county, whence they were forwarded to
Canada. Erie, too, was a favorite station. Under the
law of 1850, the least assistance given to a fugitive
slave was punished if it was discovered. A man in
Cumberland county was tried in the United States court
for giving a few slaves something to eat after a night’s
resf in his barn. Though not convicted, he had to sell
his farm to pay the expense of the trial.

In 1851, a serious riot occurred at Christiana, Lan-
caster county, one of the stations of the The Riot
Underground Railroad. It grew out of an at Christiana
attempt to arrest three fugitive slaves harbored in the
cabin of a negro farm hand named Parker. The
owner of the slaves, accompanied by a United States
marshal and his posse, appeared early one morning in
September. A demand to surrender was answered by
a shot from the garret and the blowing of a big
dinner horn. As a gang of kidnapers had been
about for some time, the neighbors understood the
signal as that for serious action. White men and
colored men with guns, seythes, and clubs, ran from
every direction. The _slave-owner was advised to
212 A History of Pennsylvania

leave; but he wanted his property, * dead or alive.”
In the encounter which followed he himself was mor-
tally wounded by one of his own slaves. A number
of the free colored men were arrested and indicted for
treason ; but only one was tried, and he was acquitted.
The riot at Christiana caused a profound sensation
all over the country. It happened in the midst of the
campaign for Governor, and became an issue at the
election.

Governor Johnston was defeated for a second term
Governor by William Bigler, the Democratic candi-
Bigler date, who served from 1852 to 1855. The
common school = system having been extended to
every district in the State in 1849, improvements
in it could be made more easily and effectually. In
his first annual message, Governor Bigler made a
strong plea for professional teachers and other needed
improvements; and he had the satisfaction of signing
a bill creating the office of county superintendent.
Provisions for the education of feeble-minded children
were also made during his term.

The enormous State debt, amount-
The State Ing in 1848 to more than
Dsht $40,000,000, was reduced by
$700,000 during the previous admin-
istration by means of a sinking fund.
, The Governor, therefore, urged the
” completion of the canal along the
North Branch of the Susquehanna —
a work that had been neglected for
ten or twelve years. The canal was to give an
outlet to the boundless coal-fields in that region.
Another powerful impulse to the development of the

 

William Bigler.
The Administration of the Government 213

State was given by the completion of the Pennsyl-
vania railroad, in 1854. The era of great expendi-
tures was now about over. Governor Bigler might
well congratulate the people on the fact that hence-
forth money would flow into the
treasury instead of out of it.

In the election for Governor in
October, 1854, the Whigs
and Native Americans
elected their candidate, James Pollock, /
against William Bigler, Democrat, and “<S
B. Rush Bradford, Free Soil, by a large
majority. The question of slavery was
disrupting both the Whigs and Democrats throughout
the country. This rupture in the old parties, and the
immense foreign immigration about the middle of the
century, gave a new but brief lease of life to the
Native Americans. This party had now come to be
called the * Know-Nothing Party,” from the fact that
its members, when questioned about their purposes
and principles, would say, “I don’t know.”

In 1857, the Legislature passed an act directing the
main line of public works between Phila- The Public
delphia and Pittsburg to be sold. The Works Sold
Pennsylvania Railroad Company purchased them for
$7,500,000. The canals on the Susquehanna and its
branches above the mouth of the Juniata, together
with the Delaware division, were sold the following
year to the Sunbury and Erie Railroad Company for
$3,500,000. These canals, after the railroads had
been built, had failed to be a source of revenue to
the State. The proceeds of the sale greatly lessened
the public debt, and the people were relieved of bur-

Governor Pollock

 

James Pollock.
214 A History of Pennsylvania

densome taxation. The transfer of the canals and
railroads to private corporations closed the history of
public improvements in the line of transportation.

In 1857, a great financial panic occurred in the
The Panic United States, and “a wave of bankruptey
of 1357 swept round the civilized world.” It was
due to speculation, resulting, probably, from the dis-
covery of gold in California and Australia. The
banks of Pennsylvania, in common with others all
over the country, became more or less embarrassed,
and had to suspend specie payments. (Governor
Pollock called an extra session of the Legislature, in
order to release the banks from the penalties previ-
ously prescribed for suspension, and to give relief to
debtors. Through this timely action, ruin and bank-
ruptey were avoided. The year 1857 is also memorable
in the history of the State as closing the career of
one of her greatest sons— Dr. Elisha Kent Kane, the
Arctic explorer. His body lay in state in Indepen-
dence Hall, was viewed by thousands of people, and
followed to the grave by scientists, statesmen, pro-
fessors and students from all over the land.

In the midst of the financial disaster came the
The Republican campaign for Governor. William F.
Party Organized Packer was nominated by the Democrats,
David Wilmot by the Free Soilers, and Isaac Hazle-
hurst by the Americans. The year before, the Repub-
lican party had made its appearance as a national
organization at Pittsburg, and a few months later
nominated its first candidate for President, at Phila-
delphia. David Wilmot received the support of the
Republicans because the new party was to absorb the
Free Soilers. The Democratic candidate was successful.
The Administration of the Government 215

When Governor Packer assumed office in January,
1858, the currency of the State was
still in a disordered condition. But
the attention of the people of Pennsylvania, from 1858
to 1861, was ‘riveted on national affairs. Two
days after the inauguration of Pennsylvania’s only
President, the Supreme Court of the
United States decided that a slave
could be taken into the territories the
same as a horse or an ox, and that,
therefore, Dred Scott, the Missouri
slave, was not a free man. A little
later Buchanan, ignoring the vote of DNL \ Rs
the free settlers against it, urged the William F. Packer.
admission of Kansas as a slave State. These acts
of the government at Washington alienated many
of the President’s supporters in Pennsylvania, chief
of whom was John W. Forney.

The next affair to add fury to the political fire
was the raid of John Brown, one Sunday john Brown's
night in October, 1859, and his execution Raid
on the gallows, December 2. Brown had made Cham-
bersburg his base of operations for some weeks, and
was known there as Dr. Smith, engaged in mining
in the State of Maryland. When his sentence of
death had been passed, the Abolitionists of the State
were filled with indignation. - At a meeting in Phila-
delphia, on the morning of the hanging, Lucretia Mott
—the Quaker Abolitionist—and other speakers ex-
pressed their sympathy, under a storm of hisses and
groans. Two days later the body of Brown passed
through the city, and there was a great clamor from
the Abolitionists and the colored people for a view of

Governor Packer

   
216 A History of Pennsylvania

it. For fear of violence, a trick was played on the
crowd outside the depot. A box, in imitation of a
coffin, was solemnly carried out by six men, while
the real body was quietly and safely conveyed to the
New York ferry. Fresh alarm and anxiety were cre-
ated when, in the same month, Governor Wise, of
Virginia, requested the southern medical students in
Philadelphia to finish their course at Richmond and
other cities in the South.

The year 1860, from January to December, was
The Election given to one continuous agitation of

of 1360 the slavery question, particularly in its
bearings on the elections for President and Governor.
The Democrats of the State were divided in the
choice for President, between Breckenridge and
Douglas; on the candidate for Governor, Henry D.
Foster, they were united. The Republicans had a
majority for Lincoln, and elected Andrew G. Curtin
Governor. Bell, the Union candidate for President,
got about 12,000 votes in Pennsylvania. When
Governor Packer wrote his last message to the Legis-
lature, South Carolina had already seceded, and other
States were considering the same step. “The advo-
cates of secession,” said the Governor, “claim that
the Union is merely a compact between the several
States composing it, and that any one of the States,
when aggrieved, may, at its pleasure, declare it will
no longer be a party to the compact. This doctrine
is clearly erroneous.”

The first decided resistance to President Buchanan’s
First Resistance to Secretary of War, who was a South-

the South erner, and quietly strengthened the
military posts of the South, came from Pittsburg,
The Administration of the Government 217

late in December, 1860. -It was learned that 700
tons of arms and ammunition were to be shipped
from the arsenal at Lawrenceville, Allegheny county,
to New Orleans. Several public meetings were held,
and were attended by thousands of people. Reso-
lutions were passed that the President should purge
his Cabinet of disloyal members, and, as a Pennsyl-
vanian, see to it that the Republic suffer no detri-
ment as long as it were in his hands. While a
committee went to Washington to protest, cannon were
conveyed to the wharf and loaded on the steamer. At
this critical moment Edwin M. Stanton, Buchanan’s
Attorney-General, sent a telegram that the order
would be countermanded in a few days.

On the 15th of January, 1861, began the most
memorable administration in the history
of Pennsylvania — that of the “War Gov-
ernor,” Andrew G. Curtin. In his inaugural address,
he declared that Pennsylvania would “render a full
and determined support of the free institutions of the
Union,” and pledged himself to defend the Constitu.
tion against all its enemies. The .
Legislature likewise took a firm stand
in behalf of the Constitution and the
Union. When Lincoln stopped at
Harrisburg, February 22d, on his
way to Washington, he was enthusi-
astically received in the chamber of
the Assembly, where the members ret he
of both houses had assembled to 227 & Cun,
greet him and to hear his inspiring oratory. It
was after this reception that Lincoln’s famous secret
ride to Washington was planned at the Jones House

Governor Curtin

   
218 A History of Pennsylvania

(now the Commonwealth Hotel). He had been in-
formed that a plot existed in Baltimore to assas-
sinate him on his way through that city. As it had
been published far and wide that he was to leave on
the Northern Central Railroad early the next morn-
ing, Governor Curtin, Secretary Slifer, Senator
McClure, and Colonel Scott, of the Pennsylvania
Railroad, decided, very much against Mr. Linecoln’s
wishes, that he should leave Harrisburg that evening
and pass, by way of Philadelphia, through Baltimore
at an unexpected hour. To deceive the throng out-
side the hotel, Governor Curtin called for a carriage
and had himself and the President-elect driven in the
direction of the Executive Mansion. When near
there, a circuitous route was taken to the depot.
Lincoln, accompanied by a friend, who was armed
with a small arsenal of weapons, hastily took a special
train for Philadelphia. Colonel Scott then, with his
own hands, cut all the telegraph wires leading out of
the city and nervously awaited a cipher despatch that
Lincoln was to send when he arrived at Washington.
It was a long, anxious night for those who were in
the secret. With the dawn of day came these words —
“Plums delivered nuts safely”— signifying that all was
well. Lincoln always regretted that he had gone to
Washington in that way; for it is not believed that
any plot to assassinate him had existed.

The day after Fort Sumter was evacuated, Presi-
The First dent Lincoln called for 75,000 troops, Penn-
Defenders gylvania’s quota being 14,000. Governor
Curtin telegraphed the call all over the State, and so
quick was the response that five Keystone companies
now wear the proud badge of the "First Defenders.”
The Administration of the Government 219

They were the Ringgold Light Artillery, of Reading;
the Logan Guards, of Lewistown; the Washington
Artillery and the National Light Infantry, of Potts-
ville; and the Allen Rifles, of Allentown. The Ring-
gold company was the first to reach Harrisburg, arriv-
ing there the day after the President’s call. In the
streets of Baltimore the * First Defenders” suffered
the taunts, sneers and insults of the same mob that
attacked the Sixth Massachusetts the next day. But
they never wavered under the constant fire of bricks,
clubs, stones and earth. After they had boarded the
train for Washington, the mob tried to derail the
cars, detach the locomotive and break the machinery.
During it all, the Governor of Pennsylvania, with
breathless anxiety, listened to the click of the tele-
graph at Harrisburg, as it reported step after step of
the perilous march through Baltimore. At 7 o’clock
on the evening of the 18th the * First Defenders”
reported at Washington. Congress afterwards passed
a resolution, thanking “the 530 soldiers from Penn-
sylvania who passed through the mob at Baltimore
and reached Washington on the 18th of April last,
for the defence of the National Capital.”

Recruits now poured into Harrisburg by the thou-
sands, overflowing the depots, the streets, and the
capitol grounds. A great camp was established, called
Camp Curtin, in the northwest suburbs. Before the
end of the month twenty-five regiments were formed
there and sent to the front, while thirty more were
offered but not accepted. Simon Cameron, Secretary
of War, Thaddeus Stevens, member of Congress, and
Governor Curtin, all favored a much larger army than
Lincoln had called for.
220 A History of Pennsylvania

On the 15th of May the Legislature, in extra
The Pennsyl- Session, ordered the formation of the fa-
vania Reserves ous Pennsylvania Reserves. George A.
McCall was appointed major-general, and John F.
Reynolds, George GG. Meade and O. E. C. Ord, briga-
dier-generals. They numbered 16,000 men,— thirteen
regiments of infantry, one of cavalry, and one of
artillery,— who were to serve three years. They were
to be drilled and equipped, ready for any call that
might be made. The wisdom of this measure was
seen in July, when the Union forces came rushing
back from Bull Run, defeated and disorganized. The
President instantly called for the Pennsylvania
Reserves. Under the call of * Father Abraham for
five hundred thousand more,” the Reserves now en-
tered upon a career of honor and glory.

In 1862, the State was called on to do little except
Many Soldiers £0 furnish her quota of troops; but the

Ped people in their private capacity did much.
Mason and Dixon’s Line was the gateway to the
South during that year, the Mississippi valley being
still in the hands of the Confederates. As the troops
passed through our cities and towns on their way to
the front, acts of kindness innumerable were shown
to them. Train loads were refreshed with sandwiches
and coffee. In Philadelphia, throughout the war, the
Union and Cooper-shop volunteer refreshment saloons
were kept open with free contributions. Nearly a
million of soldiers from the North and East, as they
passed to and fro, were made happy with something
to eat and drink. At one time a fair was held in
Logan Square and $1,500,000 raised for the sick and
wounded.
The Administration of the Government 221

In August, 1862, a State draft, under the direction
of the United States, was made. The men  prafts and
drafted could furnish substitutes, for whom Substitutes
as much as $1,500 was paid. A regular business of
buying and selling substitutes sprang up at Camp
Curtin, and enormous profits were made in the traffic.
Substitutes were employed who were incompetent or
disloyal, shirking duty in the field and deserting at
the first opportunity. In 1863, a second draft was
made, but by the direct authority of the United States.
On the day appointed for the drafting, the names of
all previously enrolled in a certain district, each written
on a separate ballot, were placed in a wheel, from
which a person blindfolded drew a number of names
equal to the quota of the district. Persons drafted
could be excused from service on the production of a
substitute or the payment of $300.

No sooner had the war fairly commenced than it
became evident that Pennsylvania would
be invaded. The first opportunity came
to the enemy in the fall of 1862. On the 10th of
October, General J. E. B. (“Jeb”) Stuart made a cav-
alry raid through Franklin county. His troops rode
into Chambersburg in the evening, cut off telegraphic
communications, ransacked the stores, and terrified
the inhabitants all night with the tramp of horses
and the rattling of sabers. The next morning they
made a raid on a warehouse containing military stores.
What they could not pack on their horses, of which
1,200 had been taken on the raid through the county,
they destroyed by setting fire to the building. The
flames spread to the depot of the railroad and con-
sumed it, too. The raiders then beat a hasty retreat to

Stuart’s Raid

*
222 A History of Pennsylvania

the Potomae, and thence to Virginia, after causing a loss
of about $150,000. Chambersburg was within a night’s
ride from the Confederate lines all through the war.

Pennsylvania was the land of promise to General
Lee and the army of northern Virginia.
Its rich granaries, great coal-fields, and
extensive factories of war supplies were tempting
objects for capture and destruction. Lee’s defeat
at Antietam foiled the first attempt, but did not
destroy the desire. His victory at Chancellorsville
gave the opportunity to try again. In June, 1863,
the border counties of the State, from one end of
Mason and Dixon’s Line to the other, were threatened
with invasion. The Secretary of War, Stanton, tele-
graphed to Pittsburg that the gunshops of that
city were to be destroyed. Immediately all the great
iron plants were closed and the men were kept at work
for two weeks, throwing up intrenchments. Though
no attack was made as far west as the Monongahela
valley, Confederate scouts visited McConnellsburg,
Fulton county, and Mt. Union, Huntingdon county.
On Monday morning, June 15, a detachment of Lee’s
army, Jenkins’ cavalry, entered Greencastle, and in the
evening the streets of Chambersburg again resounded
with the clatter of Southern troopers. After scouring
Franklin and Fulton counties for horses and provi-
sions, the force proceeded to Shippensburg and thence
to Carlisle, regaling themselves and baiting their steeds
at the expense of the public authorities. Next came
General Ewell with the vanguard of Lee’s entire
army. He arrived at Carlisle on the 27th of June,
a few hours after Jenkins. Ewell made a requisition
for a large amount of supplies, including even qui-

Lee’s Invasion

 
The Administration of the Government 223

nine and chloroform. His force remained at Carlisle
until the night of the 30th. They destroyed the rail-
road bridge, threatened Harrisburg by making raids
in that direction to within a few miles of the city,
and caused vast numbers of the population of the
Cumberland valley to flee across the Susquehanna,
with horses, cattle, and movable things of every

description. :
At Harrisburg there was great consternation.
Earthworks and other defenses, known Great

as Fort Washington, were erected on the Consternation
west side of the river. Governor Curtin, on the 26th,
hearing of the approach of the invaders, called for
60,000 men to defend the State. Even the veterans
of the war of 1812 tendered their services, so great
was the necessity of the hour. General W. F. Smith,
who was put in command of the volunteers, marched
into Carlisle as Ewell marched out. Scarcely had Smith
encamped, when a body of Confederate cavalry reap-
peared, and, after firing, demanded the surrender of
the town. This was refused. Then the town was
shelled and set on fire; but the Confederates were
needed elsewhere —the battle of Gettysburg had
begun.

Early’s division of Ewell’s corps was sent in
advance of Lee’s army in the direction The Bridge
of Gettysburg, by way of Cashtown. At at Wrightsville
the latter place, this force was divided, Dumas
Gordon’s brigade taking temporary possession of Get-
tysburg on the 26th, while Early himself proceeded to
York, and occupied that town the next day. As soon
as York had learned of the approach of the Confed-
erates, the small body of troops stationed there fell
224 A History of Pennsylvania

back to Wrightsville. Here a slight skirmish
occurred ; but the bridge having been set on fire by
the citizens of the town, the enemy could go no
farther. At a public meeting, the people of York, on
demand of General Early, contributed goods and
money to the amount of $35,000. No damage was
done to private property; but the railroad suffered
some loss. -

The most important side-skirmish connected with
The skirmish the battle of Gettysburg was the cavalry
at Hanover engagement at Hanover, York county,
between General Kirkpatrick and General Stuart.
The latter had not crossed the Potomac with Lee, and
his whereabouts were unknown. On June 30, while
General Kirkpatrick’s troopers, dismounted in the
streets, were eating a luncheon served by the people
of Hanover, Stuart suddenly attacked the rear and
threw it into confusion. Moving out into the open
country, the Union cavalry formed in line of battle
and, after fighting until dark, drove the enemy from
their position. ;

The attempts to secure the bridges at Harrisburg
Gettysburg— and Wrightsville having failed, it became
The First Day gyident that a battle would have to be
fought on, the west side of the Susquehanna. So
when Lee halted on the diamond at Chambersburg,
he turned his tired horse to the right and rode towards
Gettysburg instead of Harrisburg. Meade’s army had
been marching northward, to the east of Lee’s, in the
general direction of Harrisburg. General Reynolds,
second to Meade in command, was on the extreme
left with the 1st Corps, closely watching the move-
ments of the enemy. At Gettysburg, July 1, he met
The Administration of the Government 225

the advance forces, under General Hill, as they were
about to enter the town. And now the great battle
was on. But it had scarcely begun when the Union
army suffered its greatest loss. While General
Reynolds was riding forward to select ground for a
line of battle, he fell, pierced
through the head by a ball
from a sharpshooter’s rifle.
Doubleday, who succeeded
him, fought desperately on
Seminary Ridge till the hot
July sun stood at high noon.
General Howard then came
up with the 11th Corps.
The enemy charged upon
him with a tremendous force, a= |
threatening to overlap both “3s
flanks. He ordered a re- a
treat, and the two bleed- lin >.
ing and exhausted corps

fled through the streets of Gettysburg to Cemetery
Hill. When Meade, who was still some fifteen miles
away, and did not arrive till late at night, heard of
the death of Reynolds, he ordered General Hancock
to leave the 2d Corps and hasten to Gettysburg to
assume command of the forces already there. The
Union army—100,000 strong—now came up, one corps
after another, and during the night took position
(in the form of a fish-hook) on Cemetery Ridge
as far back as Round Top on the left and Culp’s
Hill on the right. Lee's line, similar in form, but
much longer, was along Seminary Ridge. His army
numbered about 80,000.

 

 

0
226 A History of Pennsylvania

The second day, until 3 o’clock, was spent by
both armies in removing fences, digging
rifle-pits, building stone defenses, strength-
ening weak points, distributing ammunition, and pro-
viding hospitals. About 4 o’clock Lee opened fire on
Meade’s left. General
Sickles was in command
there, with the 3d Corps,
and by some mistake
had taken an isolated
position. Instantly both
lines in that quarter were
a blaze of artillery and
musketry. Longstreet’s
Confederate corps came
on like the resistless
tide. The Union troops
wavered and fell back.
Sickles was wounded
and carried off the field.
Humphreys lost 2,000
2 =<" of his 5,000 men in
Meade’s Statue. getting back to the posi-

In Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. tion intended to be oec-
cupied in the first place. A division of reinforcements
sent over from Hancock’s corps lost two brigadiers —
Zook and Cross. But there was a natural stronghold
near by — Little Round Top. By the foresight of
General Warren, this was saved to the Union forces,
but the blood shed at this point, which included
the famous Devil’s Den, was most appalling. Had
Longstreet taken Round Top, the assaults on the
lines next to Cemetery Hill could not have been with-

The Second Day

 
The Administration of the Government 227

stood. As it was, the action there soon ended;
but not before Hancock and the general next in
command of the 2d Corps were both wounded.

Just as the curtain of night was falling upon the
scene of carnage on the left, General Tne Louisiana
Ewell attacked Cemetery Hill, held by Tigers
Howard’s corps. It was here where the Louisiana
Tigers made their famous assault. Those desperate
fighters came up to the very mouths of the cannon
and actually spiked two of the Union guns. At this
critical moment a brigade of German troops fell upon
the victorious Tigers, and in a hand-to-hand charge
drove them down the hillside. It was the Waterloo
of the Tigers.

Lee had now attacked the whole Union line except
the extreme

         
 
         
   

 

     

ES right, held by ooo

wg I General Slocum, with the

35 =e Ken 12th Corps. Here Gen-
Vad SN eral Early, of Ewell’s
3 Wen corps, under cover of

 

 

   
   
  

          

     

  

SH PET 1 by
Sry AT Wu
RRR AGRA
\l 8 iy 4 ol Lt ; i A
Wi fi dy ll ke 0

   
   
  
 

Hl

A 2
i os

: i f

|W 3 { » 3

tre RRO a)
pA ih § a wy j itl LG NE RA:

LON : p i li fH] Aa ar hi (4 A y

Where Hancock was wounded.

  

  

   

 

darkness and timber, began a vigorous attack on
Culp’s Hill and points beyond, but was bravely
228 A History of Pennsylvania

repulsed. However, there was a gap in the Union line,
caused by the withdrawal of General Geary to the
support of Round Top. Taking advantage of this,
the enemy broke through and got within a third of
a mile of Meade’s headquarters.

The break made in Geary’s division the evening
before naturally caused the battle to be
renewed in that quarter early in the morn-
ing of the third day. Geary, having returned, opened
a furious cannonade to dislodge the intruders. Ewell,
who had been reinforced by parts of Longstreet’s and
Hill’s corps during the night, responded with fatal
effect all along the line of Slocum, even to Cemetery
Hill ; but it was solid now and well defended. In
front of Geary’s command, the slain were lying in
heaps. At 10 o’clock Ewell fell back, and the battle
of Gettysburg on the right ended.

Then there was a pause of three hours— an omi-
; nous silence, such as sometimes goes
Pickett’s Charge

before . a crash of thunder. Lee was
massing his artillery of 115 guns opposite Cemetery
“Hill. Meade saw what was proposed to be done, and
prepared for it. At 1 o’clock the signal gun was
fired on Seminary Ridge. For two hours an artillery
duel raged such as had never shaken the atmosphere
of either continent. Trees, rocks, and tombstones
were shattered —horses and men were mangled—
guns, swords, and cannon were dyed in blood. When
it ceased, Pickett’s brave Virginians, who had just
reached the battle-field, made their famous charge
upon the Union center. Nothing in history sur-
passes it in heroism and sacrifice. When they neared
the coveted hill, seventy iron throats poured grape,

The Third Day
The Administration of the Government 229

shell, and canister upon them. Yet on they went,
even to the ecannon’s mouth, and for one brief
moment a Confederate flag waved over the Union
guns. But Hancock’s wit)
infantry quickly ad- oo
vanced and recovered
the lost ground. The
raw troops with whom
Pettigrew was to sup-
port the charge gave
way at the same mo- |
ment, and Pickett was
left alone to contend
with the Union forces High Water Mark of the Civil War.
now pressing him on every side. The usual sequel
of retreat did not follow. Pickett’s charge ended
in almost total destruction. The field on which he
fought had been mown with the scythe of Death.
During the time of this last and supreme effort of
Lee, there was a general movement against 1. reserves
Meade’s army all along the line; but it and Grege’s
was of little consequence elsewhere. On Cavalev
the left, in front of Little Round Top, the Pennsyl-
vania Reserves drove back Hood and McLaws, cap-
turing 5,000 stand of arms and taking 300 prisoners.
On the right, General Gregg gained a decisive victory
over Stuart in a cavalry engagement. The following
morning Lee was on the retreat to the Potomac ; but
that day and the next were employed by Meade “in
succoring the wounded and burying the dead.” Gov-
ernor Curtin soon afterwards proposed to the Governors
of the different States whose regiments took part in
the battle, that a cemetery be purchased for the final

 
230 A History of Pennsylvania

burial of the Union dead. The grounds embraced in
this cemetery were at first owned by this State, and
the expenses of maintaining them borne by the sev-
eral States interested. The cemetery was dedicated
November 19, 1863, as Abraham Lincoln said on that
occasion, to be “a final resting place for those who
here gave their lives that the nation might live.” In
1872 the United States government succeeded to the
ownership and management. The entire battlefield is
now the property of the nation, and the position of
every military organization which fought upon the
field has been marked by monuments, not to decay by
the touch of Time. And Gettysburg will be the Mecca
of patriots as long as our fair land endures.

In 1864, the Confederates once more made a raid
The Burning of 1Nt0 Pennsylvania, and burned Chambers-
Chambersburg hypo, They appeared outside of the town
on the evening of the 29th of July, but were delayed
in their entrance until daylight of the 30th. They
planted two batteries and fired a few shots before
the whole column of 3,000 entered. Soon after the
*occupation, McCausland, the commander, demanded
$500,000 in greenbacks or $100,000 in gold, to be
paid within half an hour. On refusal, the town was
to be burned. He was told that “Chambersburg
could not and would not pay any ransom.” Then he
had the court-house bell rung for a public meeting ;
but no one attended. Arrests of prominent citizens
were next ordered, and threats were made to carry
them to Richmond if they did not pay the ransom.
When all this proved to no purpose, he set the town
on fire. In a few hours $3,000,000 worth of property
was destroyed, 3,000 people were left homeless and
The Administration of the Government 231

many of them penniless, and for miles around the
country was crowded with terror-stricken refugees.
Chambersburg was the only town totally destroyed,
within the limits of the Union States.

At the close of the war, Governor Curtin, in a
special message to the Legislature, said pennsyivania’s
that “the resources of Pennsylvania, Battle Flags
whether in men or money, have neither been withheld
nor squandered.” The State furnished, all told, 270
regiments and several unattached companies, number-
ing 387,284 men. Every regiment was supplied with
a battle-flag, emblazoned with the number of the
regiment and the coat-of-arms of the Commonwealth.
The Reserves and other early regiments were provided
with flags bearing additional inscriptions of battles
of the Revolution, the war of 1812, and the Mexican
war, participated in by Pennsylvania regiments of
the same number. These flags were presented by
Governor Curtin in person. Most of them have
since been returned to the State, some tattered and
torn and stained with blood. They constitute an in-
teresting relic, and are preserved in the Executive:
Building of the Capitol at Harrisburg.

When the Pennsylvania regiments were drawn up
to receive their Dbattle-flags, Governor The soldiers’
Curtin always pledged the State to sus- Orphans
tain, clothe and educate the children of those who
had families. So when, in 1863, Colonel Thomas
A. Scott, on behalf of the Pennsylvania Railroad
Company, donated $50,000 for bounties to volunteers,
it was decided to use that fund in another way;
namely, to establish schools for soldiers’ orphans.
A number of schools willing to take pupils were
232 A History of Pennsylvania

selected in various parts of the State, and by 1865
266 soldiers’ orphans were enrolled in them. Through
this measure, Pennsylvania erected a monument to
her soldiers that is more enduring than the granite
columns that have been raised on the battlefields.

At the election for a successor to the great “War
Governor,” John W. Geary, the Repub-
lican candidate, received a majority of
17,000 votes over Hiester Clymer, the
Democratic candidate. Geary was Gov-
ernor for two terms—from 1867 to
1873. The whole country, but more

= om especially the North, prospered greatly
John W. Geary. after the war. Pennsylvania, with its
vast material resources, enjoyed unusual business
activity. However, there was one section in the State to
which the ravages of the war were a decided drawback.
It embraced the so-called “border counties ”— York,
Adams, Cumberland, Franklin, Fulton, Bedford, and
Perry. These suffered greatly on account of the
depredations that had been committed in the course
of the various invasions. When the Legislature was
appealed to for aid, it passed an act in 1868 by
which the claims for damages were satisfied in some
degree. The national government has likewise made
reparation for many losses, and is still appealed to
for the settlement of others.

Aside from “the saw-dust war,”—a disturbance in
Governor Williamsport, in 1871, requiring the pres-
Hartranft  onee of the military,—the Commonwealth
enjoyed peace and tranquillity until 1872. That
year the Liberal Republicans (see any U. 8S. his-
tory) nominated Horace Greeley, editor of the New

   

 
The Administration of the Government 233

York Tribune, against President Grant, who was the
regular Republican candidate for a second term. The
Democrats had practically no candidate, but indorsed
Greeley. The canvass throughout the country was
marked by intense partisan feeling which affected
the campaign for Governor. The Re-
publican nominee was General John
F. Hartranft; the Democratic, Charles
R. Buckalew. A number of prom-
inent Republicans in Pennsylvania
joined the ranks of the Liberals and .\§{§
supported Buckalew for Governor.
After a great political battle, Har-
tranft was elected. At this election,
the Prohibitionists for the first time presented a
candidate —S. B. Chase—for Governor. He received
1,259 votes.

The great financial crisis of 1873 marked the end
of the prosperous times that followed The Financial
the war. It was precipitated upon the Crisis of 1873
country from Philadelphia, by the failure of Jay Cooke
& Co., who were forced to close the doors of their
banking-house on the 18th of September. Before
night, “runs” were made on the other banks of the city,
and in a few days a number of them had to suspend.
These failures began the long train of business and
labor difficulties that made the next few years so
dark to trade and industry. Early the next year a
railroad strike occurred at Susquehanna, because the
New York and Erie road did not make "monthly
payments promptly. Troops had to be sent by the
Governor to restore order. About this time, too,
disturbances in the coal regions began to be serious.

 

John F. Hartranft.
234 A History of Pennsylvania

The first strike of any consequence occurred in the
anthracite section in 1868, for an eight-hour day.
It was not successful, but it resulted in a compact
organization of the miners. In 1871, the State militia
had to be sent to Scranton on account of a strike
against reduction of wages. It was settled by ar-
bitration,— the first noteworthy example of this mode
of settlement in the United States. Other strikes of
minor importance occurred; but on January 1, 1875,
the miners of the Lehigh and Schuylkill regions
went out on what became known as the * long strike.”
It lasted until July, and ended in the unconditional
surrender of the miners. It was generally peaceable ;
but at one time the Governor had to send the militia
to quell disorder.

On July 4, 1874, ground was broken in Phila-
City Hall and the  delphia for the Centennial Exhibition

Centennial buildings, and the corner-stone of
the City Hall was laid. The latter is the largest
public building in America, built of white marble,
in the renaissance style. The main tower, 547 feet
high, surmounted by a statue of William Penn, 36
feet high and facing northeast in the direction of
the famous elm, is the highest in the world. The
building contains some 500 rooms, and has a floor
area of 1474 acres. It has already cost about
$22,000,000, and is not completed. The Centennial
Exhibition, which was to commemorate the Declara-
tion of Independence, had made such progress by
July 4, 1875, that the colossal figure of Columbia,
on Memorial Hall, was unveiled on that day. For
Memorial Hall, the State and Philadelphia appropri-
ated the money; otherwise the Centennial was an
 

The Administration of the Government 235

enterprise of the whole country. About 180 buildings
were erected on the grounds. The five great build-
ings were the Main Exhibition Building, Machinery
“Hall, Memorial Hall, Agricultural Hall and Horticul-

 

 

 

City Hall, Philadelphia.

tural Hall. The States of the Union each had a build-
ing; and so had the United States, the foreign govern-
ments and some enterprising individuals. The four
great days were the opening day, May 10; Indepen-
dence Day, July 4; Pennsylvania Day, September 28;
and closing day, November 10. The Fourth of July
had brought to Philadelphia a large number of people
from all over the United States, but Pennsylvania
Day was the most memorable to this State; for on
236 A History of Pennsylvania :

that day 275,000 of its people surged through the
‘grounds of the Exhibition. The highest attendance
before that had been 99,000. The closing day oe-

 

    

The Centennial Exhibition.

 

curred under the gloom of a bitter Presidential contest
in the United States, and, excepting the magnificent
pyrotechnic display in the evening, was uneventful.
President Grant gave the signal for closing the Exhi-
bition, and instantly the great Corliss engine in
Machinery Hall ceased to move.

The year 1877 is noted for the most extensive
The Railroad and destructive riots that ever broke out

Riots in Pennsylvania. They grew out of the
great railroad strike inaugurated throughout the
United States on the 14th of July. At Pittsburg
some two thousand freight cars were destroyed, many
railroad buildings laid in ashes, and miles of tracks
torn up. The sheriff was helpless against the lawless
mob who took advantage of the strike and engaged in
plunder and destruction. Governor Hartranft was
en route on a visit to the Pacific coast, and had to
return. On the 22d of July, before reaching home,
The Administration of the Government 237

he telegraphed an order calling out the National
Guard. But the armed mob was not to be dispersed
by the State troops, and United States troops had to
be brought upon the scene before quiet could be
restored. The disturbance at Pittsburg was the signal
for disorder at other points. At Philadelphia and
Harrisburg it was nipped in the bud. At Reading the
railroad bridge across the Schuylkill was burned, and
the National Guard came into fatal collision with a
body of strikers in the streets. A company of United
States troops were encamped there until late in the
fall. At Scranton and Wilkes-Barre passenger trains
were fired at as they passed through, and the tracks
greased to stop them. In this section the miners,
too, went on a strike, but the military prevented any
destruction of property such as characterized the
strike at Reading and Pitsburg.

At the election for Governor in 1878 there were
four candidates— Henry M. Hoyt, Repub-
lican ; Andrew H. Dill, Democrat ; Samuel
R. Mason, Greenback ; and Franklin H. Lane, Prohi-
bition. The Republican candidate was elected. In
January, 1879, the first Legislature
holding a biennial session met. The
industries were still suffering from
hard times, but there were signs
of returning prosperity present. Gov-
ernor Hoyt, in his inaugural, reminded
the people that they spent more than 2
they earned, that the extravagance
of the rich is not the gain of the
poor, that waste and profusion are not for the good
of trade. Then, too, frequent assassinations and

Governor Hoyt

 

Henry M. Hoyt.
238 A History of Pennsylvania

other outrages were committed on justices, con-
stables and mining bosses in the anthracite
regions. To expose these lawless deeds and bring
the criminals to justice, detectives had to be em-
ployed. Plots and counter-plots were laid and a
feeling of great uneasiness prevailed. Governor Har-
tranft, in his last message, advocated arbitration and
conciliation as a better policy than repression to
restore tranquillity. The State had paid annually for
eight years $100,000 for the suppression of labor
troubles.

The Legislature of 1879 ordered an investigation of
Important two sham medical colleges in Philadelphia,
Measures which sold diplomas to applicants without a
knowledge of medicine. It authorized another peni-
tentiary, which two years later became the Hunting-
don Reformatory. It reorganized the National Guard,
which was made to consist of 8,220 officers and
enlisted men in a single division—three brigades,
three batteries of artillery, the battalion of State Fen-
cibles, and two independent companies.

In 1881, an effort was made by the Legislature to
have the remains of William Penn
removed from the graveyard at Jor-

dan’s meeting-house, in Buckinghamshire, England,
and interred in Philadelphia. The heirs of Penn
objected ; but the absence of his bones did not mar
the bi-centennial celebration of his arrival in the
good ship Welcome. The affair was begun at Chester,
on Monday, October 23, 1882. Some characters rep-
resenting William Penn and his colonists landed at
the foot of Penn street, where they were received by
Lieutenant Markham and a group of Quakers, Swedes

The Bi-Centennial
The Administration of the Government 239

|
and Indians, appropriately costumed. At midnight
two hundred strokes of the State House bell
announced the beginning of “landing day” in Phila-
delphia. Fully 500,000 strangers were in the city
to see the Welcome come up the Delaware, about 9
o’clock in the morning. The landing was made at
the foot of Dock street, according .to tradition. A
procession was formed, and at the grand stand
Governor Hoyt greeted Penn and his suite. The
founder then made an address, to which Sachem Tam-
anend, of the Delawares, made a reply. The proces-
sion, which included more than 20,000 men in line,
and required four and a half hours in passing, was
very unique. It showed the gradual progress made
during the two centuries of the State’s existence. The
festivities continued until Friday.

At the election in 1882, there were five candidates
for Governor; viz., Robert EB. Pattison,” governor
Democrat ; James A. Beaver, Republican ; Pattison
John Stewart, Independent Republican; Thomas A.
Armstrong, Greenback - Labor; and
Alfred OC. Pettit, Prohibition. As
Governor Hoyt said in his last mes-
sage, “the people determined upon a
change,” for the Democratic candidate :
was elected. Following the example ‘gf
of President Jefferson, Mr. Pattison
would not ride in a carriage from the
depot at Harrisburg, but walked to
the hotel at the time of his inauguration. In his
messages, too, he advocated economy in the public
service, recommending various reforms intended to
lessen expenses.

 

Robert E. Pattison.
240 A History of Pennsylvania

On the day fixed by the Legislature for adjourn-
ALong Extra ment, June 6, 1883, the Governor called

Session an extra session to meet the following
day. The object was to redistrict the State into
senatorial and representative districts, in obedience to
the Constitution, Article II., section 18; also to make
a new apportionment in congressional and judicial
districts. The Legislature had failed to do this work
at the regular session, because the two houses, being
of different political complexion, could not agree.
The extra session continued until December 6. Bills
were introduced to meet the purpose of the call; but
only the one rearranging the judicial districts became
a law. The others failed on account of political dis-
agreements. The expense incurred was heavy and
caused much dissatisfaction. The members were paid
ten dollars per diem. To avoid a recurrence of so
great an expense through an extra session, the law
was changed in 1885. The compensation for both
the regular and extra sessions now is a fixed amount,
— $1,500 for the regular and $500 for the extra,
regardless of the length. Other important legislation
at the session of 1885 was creating corporations for
the production, conveyance and distribution of nat-
ural gas; requesting the Governor to designate a day
as Arbor Day; and requiring in the common schools
the study of physiology and hygiene, with special
reference to the effects of alcoholic drinks, stimulants
and narcotics.

The question of temperance received attention in
Temperance and Other directions also about this time.
Prohibition As early as 1872, Pennsylvania put a
local option law upon the statute books, but it
The Administration of the Government 241

was repealed soon afterwards. With the sudden
growth of the Prohibition party in the Presiden-
tial campaign of 1884, there came a demand for legis-
lation to restrict, and even to prohibit, the liquor
traffic. There were at the time 7,000 licensed drink-
ing places in Philadelphia alone. In obedience to a
loud call from all over the State, the Legislature in
1887 passed the so-called “high license” bill, which
fixed the fees for the right to sell liquor at retail as
high as $500 and $300 in cities, and proportionately
high in boroughs and townships. At the same time,
an amendment to the Constitution, prohibiting the
manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquor as a bev-
erage, was proposed. This proposition having béen
agreed to also by the next Legislature, an election was
held June 18, 1889, for the purpose of ratifying or
rejecting the amendment. A.very spirited campaign
ensued ; but the amendment was lost by a vote of
484,644 to 296,617, the vote by counties being 36
against it and 28 for it. Later on, the “high license”
act was amended so as to increase the amount in
cities of first and second class. ;

At the election for Governor in 1886 there were
four candidates, as follows: James A. Hic State
Beaver, Republican ; Chauncey F. Black, Assumes
Democrat ; Charles S. Wolf, Prohibition; Nev Duties
and Robert J. Houston, Greenback. The Republican
candidate was successful. The Legislature in 1887
did what it had been asked to do by Governor Patti-
son when he called the extra session in 1883. The
State was apportioned into twenty-eight congressional
districts, and representative districts were provided
for 204 members of the House. At this session, too,

Pp
242 A History of Pennsylvania

the appropriation for common schools was increased
from $1,000,000 to $1,500,000; the dissemination of
vile literature was declared to be a misdemeanor; the
“eastern standard” time was made the standard
throughout the Commonwealth; the
culture of trees was encouraged and
their wilful destruction prohibited ;
and hospitals were established for
persons injured in the coal fields. It
1s seen from the nature of these laws
that the State assumed new duties
and responsibilities about this time,
doing things that used to be done
by the people in their private capacity or were not
done at all. The employment of women and children
in factories was regulated and provision made
for their safety, while the fish in the streams and the
game in the forest were protected against ruthless
destruction.
Another example of the
The Johnstown ZrOowing interest
Flood of the State in
its people was furnished by
the floods of 1889. On May
31 the regions of the West
Branch of the Susquehanna, _
the Juniata, and Conemaugh -
rivers were visited by floods
which had no parallel in
history. Many villages, towns
and cities on the eastern
slope of the Alleghanies were,
for a time, rendered utterly helpless. On the western

 
  
 
   
   

James A. Beaver.

 

ISR

John Baker.

 
The Administration of the Government 243

slope, Johnstown and its neighboring towns were almost
obliterated. Three thousand lives were lost in the
Conemaugh valley, more quickly than the story of the
disaster can be told. The cause of this terrible loss

 

 

The Pennsylvania Railroad Bridge and the Wreckage above It.

of life was the breaking of a dam covering 600 acres
of land and calculated to hold 500,000,000 cubic feet
of water. It was situated on the South Fork, two
miles south of the junction with the Conemaugh and
“ten miles east of Johnstown. On the afternoon of
May 31 it rose slowly until it poured over the top.
Then some old leakages became larger, the breast
broke, and the water rushed forth like a demon. John
Baker, the Paul Revere of the occasion, rode a race
with it for a while and saved many people; but the
death-dealing wave, now laden with trees, houses,
wreckage and human beings, defied steam whistles
and telegraphic instruments. It ploughed through
South Fork, Mineral Point, Franklin, East Conemaugh,
Woodvale, Conemaugh, Johnstown, Kernville, Mill-
244 A History of Pennsylvania

ville, and Cambria. It was late in the afternoon, and
the night that followed was one of unutterable agony.
Morning dawned upon a scene that beggared descrip-
tion; and when the people learned what had happened
at Johnstown, they extended aid and sympathy as
unparalleled as the catastrophe itself. Relief commit-
tees were organized in Philadelphia and Pittsburg to
furnish aid and to help bury the dead. Governor
Beaver appointed a Flood Relief Commission to dis-
tribute a fund that had swelled to more than
$1,000,000. The State Board of Health was early
on the ground to enforce the sanitary laws, and the
military came there to preserve order. To pay the
State’s expenses, generous men of means advanced the
money till the Legislature would reimburse them.
There never was a more beautiful example of public
and private charity in all history.

At the election for Governor in 1890, there were
Governor again four candidates : Robert E. Pattison,
Pattison Democrat ; George W. Delamater, Repub-
lican ; John D. Gill, Prohibition ; and T. P. Rynder,
Labor. Mr. Pattison was elected for a second term.
Under the Constitution of 1873, a person holding the
office of Governor is not eligible for the next sue-
ceeding term. Probably the most important act of
the Legislature of 1891 was the passage of the Ballot
Reform Law.” The voter was not sufficiently free
and independent in casting his ballot, and the cry for
purer elections was heard all over the Commonwealth.
The law passed is known as the Australian system,
the nature of which is that it preserves to a man
freedom and secrecy in the discharge of his duty as
an elector,
The Administration of the Government 245

The years 1891 and 1892 are memorable on
account of great labor troubles. On the
2d of April, 1891, the sheriff of West-
moreland county telegraphed to the Governor that
seven persons had been killed and twenty-one
wounded at Moorewood, and that he was unable to
suppress the disorder. Two regiments of the National
Guard were sent there, and order was at once restored.
The following year, on July 6, the sheriff of Alle-
gheny county telegraphed to Harrisburg that a colli-
sion with fatal results had occurred at Homestead
between striking workingmen and armed deputies and
watchmen, and that he was unable to cope with the
rioters. The cause of the strike was that the Car-
negie Steel Company attempted to reduce the wages
of some of its employes, who numbered about 4,000
men. Those who refused to accept the new scale of
wages were locked out, and then the trouble began.
One act followed another until the men locked out
had practical possession of the works. The company
now brought a force of Pinkerton detectives from
Chicago to protect its own property. When these
arrived in barges from Pittsburg, they were attacked
as they attempted to land and a serious riot ensued,
in which the Pinkertons got the worst. About a
dozen lives were lost and scores of persons were
wounded. When the National Guard arrived, the
town was well-nigh under the reign of mob law; but
a two-weeks’ presence of the Second and Third Bri-
gades restored order. The Homestead riot and other
labor troubles caused much agitation in and out of
the Legislature for several years in favor of a board
of arbitration to settle all labor difficulties in the State,

Labor Troubles
246 A History of Pennsylvania

At the World’s Columbian Exposition at Chicago,
Pennsylvania 11 1893, the Legislature spent $300,000
at the to show the products of farm and faec-
World'sFair try, mine and mill, art and education,
and all the best results of the State’s material
prosperity. The Pennsylvania State Building, with
its facsimile State House tower, and its old Lib-
erty Bell in the main entrance, was a favorite
spot at the World’s Fair. In the same year a
beautiful building was erected at Harrisburg, to be
used by the Executive Department and the State Li-
brary. It cost half a million dollars, and was made
fireproof to preserve the official records, documents
and books. The Library contains about 100,000 vol-
umes and is, with a single exception, the most valua-
ble State library in the country.

At the election for Governor in 1894, there were
governor Hive candidates, as follows: Daniel H. Hast-
Hastings ings, Republican; William M. Singerly,
Democrat ; Charles I. Hawley, Prohibition; Jerome T.
Allman, People’s; and Thomas H. Grundy, Socialist-
Labor. Hastings’ majority was with-
out a parallel in the history of guber-
natorial elections. The Legislature of
1895 made a very marked expansion
in the public service. It created a
number of new departments and
- offices. The agricultural department,
with its kindred industries of dairy
and food supplies, horticulture and
forestry, was established in the inter-
ests of farmers. A banking department was created to
execute the laws of banking and financial institutions

/

 

Daniel H. Hastings.
The Administration of the Government 247

in general. A new court of seven judges—the
Superior Court — was established to lessen the work
of the Supreme Court.

On Tuesday, February 2, 1897, the clock in the
tower of the State Capitol struck twelve 4. capitol
o’clock noon as usual; but when it struck Destroyed
again, it tolled its own death-knell, for at by Fite
1 o’clock the fire that destroyed the historic building
on that day had already encircled the dome like a
hydra-headed serpent; and the old clock and all that
was dear about Pennsylvania’s capitol was doomed to
be no more. Many books and records that could not
be replaced were destroyed. The old building had
an interesting history. It had witnessed the inaugu-
ration of sixteen Governors; Presidents Harrison,
Tyler, Taylor, Lincoln, Grant and Hayes had been
within its walls, and Webster entranced an audience
in it with his eloquence. Lafayette was tendered a
public reception in the old Senate chamber, and in
1860 a similar honor was accorded to the Prince of
Wales. The Legislature, after the fire, resumed its
sessions in Grace Methodist Episcopal Church, of
Harrisburg. A new Capitol building was author-
ized to be erected, fire-proof and of the renaissance
style of architecture, the cost not to exceed $550,000.
Work was begun in the summer of 1898, the corner-
stone was laid on the 10th of August, and the build-
ing was occupied by the Legislature January 3, 1899.

Extensive strikes again broke out in the coal
regions in the summer of 1897. In the Extensive
bituminous fields of western Pennsylvania Strikes
one was in progress from July 4 to September 11,
having been a part of a general movement extending
248 A History of Pennsylvania

over West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. In
the main it was peaceable. A new method of restrain-
ing the strikers was put into effect; namely, the
courts granted injunctions enjoining the strikers from
assembling in the paths and roads upon the property
of the mining companies, and from interfering with
such employes as desired to work. Scarcely had the
bituminous strike ended when one broke out in the
anthracite region. The miners wanted higher wages,
and tried to stop the collieries by inducing other
miners not to work. On September 10 the sheriff of
Luzerne county, with about a hundred deputies, met a
body of strikers — mostly Hungarians, Poles, Lithu-
anians, and Slavs — who were marching to a colliery
at Lattimer to persuade others to join them. Con-
sidering such a demonstration unlawful, he ordered
them to disperse. Some tried to force their way past
him. In an instant the deputies fired into the miners,
killing some twenty and wounding about fifty others.
Three thousand troops of the National Guard were
soon tented about Hazleton, and no further violence
occurred. The sheriff and his deputies were arraigned
for murder, but they were acquitted on the ground
that they had not overstepped the bounds of reason
in trying to preserve order.

On the 21st of April, 1898, the United States, after
The Spanish thirty-three years of peace, became involved

War in a war with Spain. Two days later,
President McKinley called for 125,000 volunteers.
Pennsylvania’s quota was 10,762. Governor Hastings
ordered the National Guard — 9,222 men—to mobilize
at Mount Gretna, where they, and others needed to
fill up the quota, were sworn into the service of the
The Administration of the Government 249

United States for two years unless sooner discharged.
About a month later a call for 75,000 more volunteers
was made, and Pennsylvania furnished 6,462 addi-
tional men. The Tenth regiment was sent to
Manila, and took part in a number of engagements
during the year’s service in the Philippines. The
Sixteenth, the Fourth, and the cavalry and artillery
were sent to Porto Rico. The Sixteenth was engaged
at the capture of Coamo. The other Pennsylvania
regiments, though equally anxious to fight, had to
content themselves with camp duty in the United
States. Zs
At the election for Governor in
1898, there were four candidates :
William A. Stone, Republican;
George A. Jenks, Democrat; Silas C.;
Swallow, Prohibitionist, People’s, #
Liberty and Honest Government ; and IN
J. Mahlon Barnes, Socialist-Labor. William A. Stone.
The Republican candidate was elected; and his admin-
istration began January 17, 1899.

    
  

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Fisher’s Pennsylvania Colony and Commonwealth, passim ;
Egle’s History of Pennsylvania, pp. 45-276; Scharf and West-
cott’s History of Philadelphia, Vol. 1; Proud’s History of Penn-
sylvamia ; Gordon’s History ‘of Pennsylvania; Armor’s Lives of
the Governors of Pennsylvania; Carpenter and Arthur’s History
of Pennsylvania ; MeMaster and Stone’s Pennsylvania and the
Federal Constitution ; Colonial Records and Pennsylvania Archives ;
Votes and Minutes of the Assembly, 1682-1790 ; The Governors’
Messages in the House and Senate Journals, 1790-1898 ; Statutes
at Large of Pennsylania; Pepper and Lewis’ Digest of the
Laws of Pennsylvania.
CHAPTER VI

THE INDUSTRIAL HISTORY

Before the Revolutionary war, Pennsylvania’s chief
Commerce ana 10dustries were agriculture and commerce.
Agriculture Like the other colonies in America, the
befors wis province was prohibited by Great Britain
from engaging in manufacturing. Sawmills and grist
mills were numerous along the creeks, for the settlers had
to have lumber for dwellings, and flour for bread ; but
other manufactures were confined to a few simple
articles for home consumption.

The first articles of trade were furs, skins, and
tobacco, obtained from the Indians. This primitive
commerce increased rapidly in variety and quantity.
In 1731, the exports were wheat, flour, biscuit, beef,
pork, butter, cheese, cider, apples, soap, candles,
starch, hair-powder, leather, wax, beer, linseed oil,
peltry, hemp, lumber and drugs (sassafras, calamus,
aromatics, snakeroot, ete.).

A number of ships were built each year for sale,
over and above what were employed by the merchants.
Great quantities of corn were sent to Portugal and
Spain, the Canaries and the Azores, and frequently
ship and cargo were sold. The proceeds were in-
vested in England for manufactures needed in the
province. An extensive trade sprang up with the
West Indies, especially with the French and Dutch
islands. "What was not sold for cash was exchanged

(250)
The Industrial History 251

for rum, sugar and molasses. All the ports of the
other English colonies, from New Hampshire to the
Carolinas, were visited by ships from Philadelphia ;
and Newfoundland fish were carried in Pennsylvania
bottoms to Mediterranean and Caribbean ports.

In 1740, the population of Pennsylvania had
equaled and exceeded that of all the other Rank in
colonies, except Maryland, Massachusetts, Population
and Virginia. Ten years later, Maryland was passed
in the race; after the Revolution, Massachusetts ;
and Virginia had to give
up its place as second
in the Union to Penn-
sylvania in 1830; while
for nearly a hundred
years after 1750, Phila-
delphia was the metrop-
olis of America. When
it is remembered that
Pennsylvania is next to
the youngest of the thir-
teen original colonies,
its rank as second in
population and wealth,
attained so early in its
history, and kept to the —
present time, is a mat- Stephen Girard, City Hall, Philadelphiz,
ter of just pride. The :
commercial transactions of the province produced the
greatest financiers of America. Robert Morris was
the financier of the Revolution, and even before that
time, he, with a few others, had established a credit
in Europe, which was used for banking purposes

 
252 A History of Pennsylvania

among commercial men. The need of a bank in Phil-
adelphia had been felt by her merchants long before
the first one in America was established there, in
1780. Stephen Girard amassed ten million dollars,
and became the richest man in the United States.

The decline of commerce dates from the War of
Decline of 1812. During the Napoleonic wars, Penn-
Commerce * gylvania, in common with all the colonies,
enjoyed great commercial prosperity. Farm products
were in great demand in Europe, and. American ves-
sels had to carry them because we were about the
only neutral on the sea. But when England and
France, by their orders and decrees against our ships
and cargoes, made it necessary for Jefferson, in self-
defense, to resort to embargo and mnon-intercourse,
American commerce got a serious blow; and for some
reason, Philadelphia never recovered from it. With
the completion of the Erie canal in 1825, New York
became the commercial emporium of the United
States.

As long as Philadelphia was preéminent in com-
Commercial IN€rce, her wealth made her the chief patron
Prosperity and of literature, science and art, in America.
Lotigy Andrew Bradford’s * American Weekly
Mercury” (1719), the third newspaper in the colonies,
Christopher Saur’s High German “Pennsylvania His-
toriographer” (1739), and Dr. Franklin’s “General Mag-
azine and Historical Chronicle” (1741), the first maga-
zines, and John Dunlap’s * American Daily Advertiser”
(1784), the first daily paper, were the forerunners
of the many books and periodicals that were to be
sent forth from the Delaware. Two of the colonial
newspapers, the “Pennsylvania Gazette” and the
The Industrial History 253

“Pennsylvania Journal,” were carried through the
Revolutionary period, and, together with the *Penn-
sylvania Packet” (1771), exercised an incalculable
influence in shaping the affairs of the new nation.
Such men as Fenno, Bache and Duane made a last-
ing impression upon United States history, in that
they helped to shape and fashion the political parties.

In the early part of the nineteenth century, such mag-
azines as the “Portfolio” and “Graham’s” filled the
places now occupied by the “North American,”
* Forum,” “Century,” and others. Longfellow,
Bryant, Cooper, Willis, Lowell, Poe and Morris—
all made their debut in the old Philadelphia peri-
odicals. In this literary atmosphere were brought
forth the pioneer of American novelists,— Charles
Brockden Brown,—the first American theater, the first :
medical school, the first law school and the first
circulating library.

Science and art were likewise greatly encouraged.
Franklin’s discoveries had become known
in the remotest parts of the civilized world.
He induced Provost Smith and Tom Paine to come
to Pennsylvania, and the great chemist, Dr. Priestly,
found refuge here from his persecutors in England.
David Rittenhouse, under Pennsylvania skies, became
the greatest astronomer of his time; while the birds
in Bartram’s famous botanical garden on the Schuyl-
kill made Alexander Wilson the celebrated ornitholo-
gist. Audubon, too, acquired much of his bird-lore
in Pennsylvania, greatly to the neglect of his farm ;
and it was in Philadelphia that he resolved on the
publication of his great work—“Birds of America.”
Of the museums then in the country, Peale’s was

Science and Art
254 A History of Pennsylvania

the greatest. No stranger failed to see his natural
wonders and works of art in the State House. The
famous paintings of more than a hundred statesmen
and soldiers hanging in one room, and painted by
Peale and his son Rembrandt, became the nucleus of
the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, in 1806.
The man to honor our State most in the fine arts was
Benjamin West, though in later years a Hovender and
a Rothermel added new glory to our achievements in
that field.

As long as the people of Pennsylvania were en-
gaged chiefly in agriculture and commerce, all the
roads led to Philadelphia. These at first were mere
“horse-ways,” in which the pack-horse, followed by
calves and sheep, carried the products of the farm
in wallets, sacks and baskets. The things purchased
in town were carried
back in the same
way, only the load
was much lighter;
for the people needed
4 their money to pay
area Sea | for their land. Later

% : on, the pack-horses
carried great quanti-
SV ties of merchandise
Birthplace of Benjamin West, Swarthmore, into the interior to

Dosware Connim, Carlisle,  Shippens-
burg, Mercersburg, and even into the Monongahela
valley. The iron made in the Juniata valley was at
first carried to Philadelphia and Pittsburg in this
way. Fifty or a hundred were frequently in one row,
divided into sections of twelve or fifteen, with a man

   
The Industrial History 255

at the end of each section. The first departure from
this mode of transportation was the sled in winter ;
and wagons came into use as roads were made. The
Conestoga wagon was first used about 1760. These
huge vehicles, drawn by six, eight or more horses,

 

Conestoga Team.

often had a capacity of four tons. Their covers were
of linen, high at each end, and their wheels were
broad, to keep them from sinking into the mire of
the country roads. :

The first turnpike in the United States was that
between Philadelphia and Lancaster. The The
road between these two places was the Lancaster Pike
beginning of the chief highway to the West. It went
through Chester and Lancaster counties, crossed the
Susquehanna at Wright's Ferry, passed through York,
Carlisle, Shippensburg and Bedford, thence across the
Alleghenies to Pittsburg — the metropolis of the West
after the Revolution. On this historic road thousands
of emigrants traveled in the summer months to
Pittsburg, where they fitted out for their new homes ;
while long trains of wagons brought the produce of
their farms to Philadelphia. The way was broad and
level in the lowlands, but narrow and dangerous in-
256 A History of Pennsylvania

the mountains, and beset with steep declivities. Many
inns were found along the route, and the villagers
living about them did a thriving business; but—

“ To the merry wayside tavern
Comes the noisy throng no more ;
And the faded sign complaining,
Swings unnoticed at the door.”
—Thomas Buchanan Read.

It was this transportation to and from the West
that gave rise to the project of the Lancaster pike in
1792. When finished it was the wonder of America.

The Lancaster pike was the first important piece
Other of work done in the line of internal
Improvements jmprovements, which began to be made
about 1790. The opening of the Northwest Territory
for settlement made it necessary to carry out schemes
that had been the dream of years, and. turned the
attention of capitalists from the sea to the land. All
over the United States turnpikes, bridges and canals
were projected. Hamilton’s funding system (see any
U. S. history), the United States Bank, the impost and
the excise, all worked together for good times. In
1791 three canals were begun, one along the banks
of the Brandywine, another between the Delaware and
the Schuylkill, and still another between the Schuylkill
and the Susquehanna. These were the beginnings of
the great system of canals, connecting the valleys and
streams, and binding together the different parts of
the State, to an extent and at a cost unequaled by
any similar works in America. The Lancaster pike
was extended until in the year 1806 it reached Pitts-
burg. Around Philadelphia a perfect network of such

 
The Industrial History 257

roads came into existence, and their substantial stone
bridges were an object of admiration to the traveler
in Pennsylvania.

Roads, bridges and canals were not the only means
thought of at this time for the improvement Fitch's
of the interior. Long before Fulton, in Steamboat
1807, made his trip to Albany in the famous Clermont,
John Fitch had steamed up and down the Delaware
between Philadelphia and Burlington, New Jersey.

 

 

 

 

      

pr y =
=] 1 LL

        

Model of Fitch's Steamboat.

The idea of steam navigation had come to Fitch while
at the village of Neshaminy, Bucks county, in 1785.
He made a model and tried it in a stream. He formed
a company in Philadelphia to furnish the capital
needed. A German clockmaker of that city, Henry
Voight, helped him to make the boiler and engine.
After several trials on the Delaware, in the summer of
1786, the boat reached the rate of seven miles an
hour. Then he built a larger one—forty-five feet long;
and on August 22, 1787, in the presence of the mem-
bers of the Constitutional Convention and a vast
concourse of other spectators, he propelled it up and
down the Delaware to the great astonishment of the
multitude. About a year later, Fitch had so improved
his steamboat that it began to make regular trips
from Philadelphia to Burlington, going up one day

Q
258 A History of Pennsylvania

and returning the next. On Sundays it made return
trips to Chester. A time-table, with rates of fare,
appeared in the Philadelphia papers from June to
September, for several years, but the competition of
sailing packets and stage-coaches made the enterprise
unprofitable and the trips were abandoned.

In 1804, Oliver Evans ran a paddle-wheel steamboat
Steam on the 40Wn the Schuylkill and up the Delaware
Ohio and as far as Dunk’s Ferry (now Beverly, New
Mississippi Jersey) and back without accident or delay.
But it remained for Robert Fulton to make a success
of steam navigation, and no place in Pennsylvania prof-
ited more by his invention than Pittsburg. Before
1811, keel-boats, Kentucky flat-boats and Indian
pirogues were the means of transportation down the
Ohio. From St. Louis rude boats and rafts floated
down the Mississippi to Natchez and New Orleans.
But the current was too rapid for this kind of craft
to return; and so they were rudely put together and
sold for lumber at their destination. In 1810, to test
Fulton’s plan of navigation on this interior waterway,
a boat 138 feet long, of some 300 tons burden, was
built at Pittsburg. It was christened the New Orleans,
and launched in 1811. The steamboat left for the
Crescent City in December following. Others were
constructed, and from that time on, Pittsburg built
many river steamboats, and its trade with the Ohio
and Mississippi valleys became immense.

Railroad building also dates back to the time of
opening ways of transportation to the inte-
rior. Oliver Evans, as early as 1773, said he
could apply his steam engine to propel carriages upon
the land; and in 1782 he had succeeded in making

Railroads
The Industrial History 259

one. In 1805, he exhibited a land-carriage in public.
In 1809, Thomas Leiper constructed a wooden railroad
track from a stone quarry in Delaware county to a
boat landing at Ridley, a distance of nearly a mile.
This was the first railroad in America. The track
consisted of oak rails laid on blocks eight feet apart,
and a single horse drew the four wheeled carriage

 

John Bull Engine, 1831. Camden and Amboy Railroad.

having a weight of more than 10,000 pounds. The
road was in operation for many years.

The next railway in Pennsylvania, built in 1827,
and also operated by horse-power, was that leading
from the coal mines at Mauch Chunk to the Lehigh
river, a distance of 9 miles—6 miles longer than the
one at Quincy, Mass., constructed the year before.
Thus one experiment gave rise to another, and in
1829, the Delaware and Hudson Company tried the
locomotive from their mines to Honesdale, the first
actual and practical use of steam on an American
railroad. The first railroad in Pennsylvania for pas-
senger and freight traffic was the Germantown road.
The first passenger train left Ninth and Green streets,
Philadelphia, June 6, 1832, and was drawn by horses.
On the 23d of November following, a locomotive
260 A History of Pennsylvania

engine, “Old Ironsides,” was put on the track, at a
speed of 28 miles an hour.

The first railroad to the interior of the State was
The Columbia the Columbia Railroad, from Philadelphia
Railroad to Columbia. The State undertook this
work in connection with the building of the canals.
In April, 1834, an excursion by members of the
Legislature, Canal
Commissioners, and
others, left Harris-
burg, being towed to
Columbia, by a canal
packet, and thence
earried by rail to
Lancaster, where they
remained all night.
The next morning: ||
they started for Phila-
delphia, the cars being
drawn by horses, and
reached the city in
eight and a half
hours, including stop-
pages. Before winter
the road was in full
operation. The cars
were owned and run by the proprietors of the old
stage lines. Anybody could use the road by paying
two cents a mile for each passenger, and $4.92 for
each car sent over it. It had a single track at
first, with turn-outs here and there, and there were
frequent fights for the right of way. In the sum-
mer of 1835, cars and boats ran from Philadelphia

 

 

 

A Modern Compartment Car.
The Industrial History 261

through to Pittsburg, partly by canal and portage
railroad, in three and one-half days; but by that
time the canal commissioners had procured locomo-
tives and a new rail-
road from Lancaster
to Harrisburg, via
Mount Joy, had been
built. The head of
the canal navigation
east of the Alleghenies
was Hollidaysburg.
Here the Portage Rail-
road, crossing the
mountains by five in-
clined planes on each
side, the cars drawn
by stationary engines,
connected with Johns-
town. From the lat-
ter place the canal
along the Conemaugh
completed the route
to Pittsburg. In 1834,
an emigrant’s boat
from the North Branch
of the Susquehanna passed over the inclined planes
on trucks while the family was in it. It was launched
again at Johnstown, reached Pittsburg, was run into
the Ohio, floated down to Cairo, and was towed up
the Mississippi to St. Louis. The route of transporta-
tion between Philadelphia and Pittsburg, with some
deviations, has since become the main line of the
Pennsylvania Railroad. With its numerous branches

 

Old Portage Road.
262 A History of Pennsylvania

in the State, and its lines outside, it connects New
York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington with
Pittsburg, Erie, Cleveland, Toledo, Columbus, Cincin-

 

 

 

    

ka

e Curve.

The Horsesho

nati, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Chicago, as well as
New England and the South.

Though these internal improvements were begun
The Use to develop the agricultural resources of
of Coal Pennsylvania and to put the State in
commercial relations with the West, their vast ex-
tension and final completion had other causes.

The Conestoga wagons might have transported the
farmer’s produce to market for many years more, had
not Philip Ginter, the hunter, in 1791, discovered
“stone coals,” under the roots of a fallen tree, nine
miles west of Mauch Chunk. Anthracite coal had
been used in the Wyoming valley in 1768; and dur-
ing the Revolutionary war it was shipped down the
Susquehanna for the use of the arsenal at Carlisle.
On a map of Pennsylvania, published in 1770, coal is
marked as occurring near the present town of Potts-
ville. Pittsburg, too, had used fuel dug from a high
bluff before the town, and even then was entitled to

 
The Industrial History 263

be called the Smoky City.” Ginter had his speci-
men examined in Philadelphia, and the Lehigh Coal
Mine Company was formed there. Ten thousand
acres of land at Summit Hill were purchased and a
half dozen arks, loaded with coal, were started down
the Lehigh to Philadelphia. But wood was plenty,
and the use of “stone coals” was not understood.
Although handbills were printed in English and Ger-
man explaining the method of burning it, yet the
new fuel found no paying market, and it was used to
pave the sidewalks. The same disappointments were
“experienced by shippers of anthracite coal from the
Schuylkill region. One man was actually threatened
with arrest as a swindler and an impostor, because
his * rocks,” after “ poking and raking and stirring
and blowing” them for half a day, would not burn.

It was not until after the second war with Great
Britain, during which the embargo, the non-intercourse
act and the blockade started manufacturing in the
United States, that coal came into extensive use.
Then canal and railroad building received a fresh
impetus. First, the Lehigh and Sehuylkill canals were
made to tap the anthracite fields, the one completing
communication with Philadelphia in 1820 and the
other in 1825. Then, in 1833, the Philadelphia and
Reading railroad company was chartered. It was the
first of the coal roads, and by its enormous traffic it
has become a great system, controlling about a thou-
sand miles of line in a comparatively small portion
of the State. The cities and towns which it reaches
have had a wonderful growth in manufactures of all
kinds. The coal fields of the Wyoming valley devel-
oped the two cities, Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, and a
264 A History of Pennsylvania

score or more of smaller towns equally thriving, whose
chief outlets east and west are the Lehigh Valley and
the Lackawanna railroads.

Practically all the anthracite coal produced in this
country comes from the hills and valleys of the Blue
mountains, from the head waters of the Schuylkill
and the Lehigh rivers, northward and westward to
the Susquehanna—an area of a little less than 500
square miles. The counties included in the field are

 

 

Nanticoke Coal Breaker.

chiefly Schuylkill, Carbon, Luzerne, Lackawanna and
Northumberland ; and the number of persons employed
in 1895 was 143,610. The bituminous field includes
the whole section of the State in and west of the
Allegheny mountains. The great center of all the in-
dustries that owe their existence to bituminous coal
is Pittsburg. The number of employees in mining this
kind of coal, in 1895, was 84,904.

These vast deposits of coal enabled Pennsylvania
to become a great manufacturing State—
first, in the number of establishments and
the amount of capital invested, and second, in the
value of manufactured products. In 1890, the number

Manufacturing

 
The Industrial History 265

of persons employed was 620,562, and the value of
the manufactures $1,331,794,901. Manufacturing in
the United States had its beginning on an enlarged
scale in the adoption of the Federal Constitution. It
put an end to the conflicting and restricting legislation
of the States; and it gave the Federal government ‘the
power to protect home against foreign manufactures
whenever necessary. During the Revolution many
things were made here that used to be imported from
the mother country; but from the force of habit,
the people secured them again from the same source
after the war, and opposed home manufactures to
such an extent that the impost proposed by Congress
in 1786 was violently assailed. The love of agri-
culture and commerce was deeply rooted. It was
argued that the way to make money was to sow the
fields with grain, harvest it when ripe, send a fleet of
ships to the marts of the world, and have them come
back laden with gold. The more poetic ones con-
trasted the low of cattle and the bleat of lambs with
the din of mills and factories.
But such alluring pictures did not determine the
policy of Pennsylvania. A few clear heads saw things
otherwise, chief among whom was Tench Coxe, of
Philadelphia. When cotton was still growing in
gardens among rose bushes and honeysuckle vines,
he saw that it would some day be king in America.
No sooner had the Revolution ended than Coxe tried
to import a model of Awkwright’s famous spinning
jennies ; but the British government seized it on the
eve of shipment, and Massachusetts set up the first
stock-card and spinning-jenny. Nevertheless, through
his efforts, Philadelphia and the State at large became
266 A History of Pennsylvania

deeply interested in the manufacture of cotton and
other goods. In 1789, hosiery, hats, gloves, coarse
linens and woolens, cotton goods and many other
articles were made in the State. Premiums were
offered by the “Pennsylvania Society for the Encourage-
ment of Manufactures” for the best specimens of
these articles. In the same year, the Assembly passed
“An act to assist cotton manufactures of this State,”
and offered bounties for the introduction of the
Awkwright patents. It is said that Samuel Slater,
the father of American cotton manufactures, was
induced by these bounties to emigrate to America.
General Washington used to point with pride to the
Philadelphia fabrics worn by his wife. The worsted
hosiery made in Germantown, Bethlehem, Lancaster
and Reading undersold those of the same fineness
made in England. Two hundred and fifty stocking-
looms, each averaging about two pair a day, were in the
State before 1790. One-fourth of the men in Phila-
delphia had already become manufacturers of one kind
or another. Early in the nineteenth century, travelers
were astonished at the great number of factories in
the State. But it was not until about 1840, when the
coal industry and the iron industry joined hands, that
Pennsylvania entered fully upon its great manufac-
turing career.

The earliest iron produced from native ore was
made at Coventry Forge, Chester county,
in 1720. Following this, furnaces and
forges were operated at various points in the south-
eastern part of the State,— Manatawny and Green
Lane, in Montgomery county; Warwick, in Chester;
Glasgow, in Berks; Cornwall and Colebrook, in

Iron Furnaces

 
The Industrial History 267

Lebanon ; and Elizabeth, in Lancaster, where Baron
Steigel made some of the first stoves cast in this
country. In 1786, there were within forty miles of
Lancaster, seventeen furnaces, forges, rolling and
slitting mills, and two boring and grinding mills for
the manufacture of gun barrels. The old forge at
the junction of Valley creek and the Schuylkill gave
us one of the most memorable names in American
history — Valley Forge. In York and Cumberland
counties, too, furnaces and forges were established
before the Revolution. William Denning made wrought
iron cannon for the Continental army, and a monu-
ment was recently erected by the State at his grave
in Newville. After the Revolution the iron industry
spread through the Juniata valley, where scores of
towns and villages by their names testify to the pres-
ence of forges and furnaces in the earlier days. The
first furnace west of the Alleghenies was built about
1790, on Jacob’s creek, fifteen miles from its junction
with the Youghiogheny, where cannon balls were made
for the defense of Pittsburg against the Indians.
Before 1840, iron was made only in charcoal fur-
naces. As other States had an abundance Col Paras
of ore too, Pennsylvania might not, have
become the first in the manufacture of iron products,
had it not been discovered that anthracite coal could
be used as a smelting fuel. It marked an era in the
history of iron manufacture when hard coal was sue:
cessfully used at Mauch Chunk and Pottsville, in the
reduction of iron ore. About the same time, a coke
and “raw coal” furnace was erected in Armstrong
county, and the manufacture of bituminous iron com-
menced. Coal furnaces were now rapidly built in
268 A History of Pennsylvania

every section of the State accessible to the coal fields.
Mills for the manufacture of all kinds of iron products
were established in great numbers. Towns and cities
sprang up ; railroads and canals were built to connect
them ; and the farmers found a new market for their
products among the coal miners and iron workers.

No place in Pennsylvania benefited more from the
pittsburg and iron industry than Pittsburg and the cities
its Neighbors and towns in its vicinity. From the extent
of its iron works, it came to be known as the “Iron
City,” and from the heavy clouds of bituminous smoke
overhanging it, the name of “Smoky City” was also
given to it. By reason of its position as chief gate-
way to the West and of its coal, iron, oil and natural
gas, it 1s the chief center for the manufacture of iron
and steel in the United States. The city is equally
great in other things which its bountiful fuel enables
it to make. About half the glass factories in the
United States are located there—an industry which
the town began in 1797. When the use of natural gas
as fuel became common, Allegheny county acquired an
additional facility for manufacturing, and in recent
years it has become an empire in itself, including
besides Pittsburg and Allegheny, McKeesport, Mifflin
Township, Braddock, Homestead, and other populous
towns and townships.

Natural gas had been known to exist in and around
Pittsburg for many years, but was not utilized, except
on a small scale, before 1884, when George Westing-
house became interested in it, and drilled a well on
the grounds of his own residence. In two years’
time, pipe-lines radiated from Pittsburg like the spokes
of a wheel, and gas was brought there from a distance
The Industrial History 269

of more than a hundred miles. The daily consumption
has been as high as 120,000,000 cubic feet.

There are many other cities and towns that owe
their growth chiefly to the manufacture of iron and
its products, among which are Johnstown, New Castle,
Steelton, Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Pheenixville,
Danville, Kensington (a part of Philadelphia) and
Chester. The last two named are noted for the
building of iron steamships, the yards being known
respectively as Cramp’s and Roach’s. The construe-
tion of iron steamships has been brought to such

 

 

 

 

 

Cramp’s Ship Yard—Launching of the Yorktown and the Vesuvius.

perfection on the Delaware that it is sometimes called
“the Clyde of America.” After our war with Spain,
all the world wanted to know how war vessels were
built at Kensington. Russia ordered several ships at
Cramp’s at once, recalling to our memory the offer
she made to Samuel Humphreys after the War of
1812.

The lumber industry became extensive with the
building of railroads, towns and cities, and The Lumber
the manufacture of machinery incident to industry
the establishment of the coal and iron industries.
Philadelphia, Pittsburg and Erie had been building
270 A History of Pennsylvania

ships and using lumber as an article of commerce
before. Ship carpenters were among the very first
mechanics in the Province. The Swedes had been
building vessels before Penn came, and in 1683 a ship
yard was established in Philadelphia. Other yards
and docks were opened there, and the city became
famous for ship building. It was a common practice
to sell both ship and cargo in foreign ports. During
the Revolution, a Continental and a State fleet were
built on the Delaware, and when Congress established
the Navy Department, in 1798, the first navy yard was
located there. The extensive construction of wooden
craft was discontinued about 1860. Erie has been a
great lumber market ever since Perry’s gallant fleet
was constructed from trees in the surrounding forest ;
while Pittsburg built many steamboats for the southern
and western rivers, and appropriated the products of
the forest in other ways.

The lumber industry of later years centered in the
city of Williamsport. After 1840, it made such rapid
progress, that a great boom was erected in the river at
that place, for the purpose of holding the logs floated
down from the pineries above until they could be taken
- out and sawed. Before 1850, the logs used to be
caught by men in small boats and tied into rafts. The
boom proved so successful that it was enlarged from
time to time, until it extended a long distance up the
river. In the spring it is packed so solidly with logs
that one can walk across the river on them. The large
piers, the heavy timbers bolted together, and the con-
struction of the dam, is an immense piece of work.
The number of mills in Williamsport engaged in manu-
facturing lumber, and dressing it in various ways, has
The Industrial History 271

made the town one of the most flourishing in the State.
Lock Haven is the next largest emporium in the lum-
ber district. The West Branch boom was erected
there about the same time as that at Williamsport,
and the sawmills are extensive. The forests from

 

 

The Boom at Williamsport.

which this great lumber industry was developed are
mostly white pine and hemlock, and are located along
the West Branch of the Susquehanna and its tribu-
taries. ;

. The last great industry of Pennsylvania is that
of petroleum. Only about forty years have
passed since the first still was charged with
petroleum, and the first barrel of refined oil was offered
for sale; yet its exports rank fourth in value, being
surpassed only by cotton, breadstuffs and provisions ;
while every home in our own land enjoys its beneficent
light. It is estimated that the total capital employed
for the production, manufacture and transportation of
petroleum and its products amounts to $300,000,000.
There is evidence that this oil was used in the gray
dawn of history—in Nineveh, Babylon and Egypt.
Certain it is, that in America the Indians collected
their © Seneca oil” from petroleum springs; and in-
dications are not wanting to show that the Mound
Builders had dug wells in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Petroleum
272 A History of Pennsylvania

The French, in their explorations, made note of “a
fountain at the head of a branch of the Ohio, the
water of which is like oil.” English and American
soldiers on duty in western Pennsylvania halted at
“oil creek,” and bathed their rheumatic joints with
the oil that floated on it. Later on, while boring for
brine to make salt, oil appeared, greatly to the annoy-
ance of salt operators.

The history of the industry dates from the year
1858, when, on the 28th of August, E.
L. Drake “struck oil” on Watson’s Flats,
near Titusville. He was the first man to drive a pipe
through the sand
and clay. After
putting down a tube
to the depth of 36
feet he struck rock.
Then he commenced
to drill. When, on
Saturday night, Au-
gust 27, the bore
had penetrated the
rock 33 feet, the
drill dropped into
a crevice about 6
inches. The tools

Colonel Drake's Oil Well. were pulled out and
put aside, to resume work on Monday. “Uncle Billy”
Smith, who did the boring, went to the well on Sun-
day, and found a liquid within a few feet from the
top. He dipped some of it up, and lo! it was oil.
The pump was started on Monday, and the well pro-
duced at the rate of 25 barrels a day.

Drake’s Oil Well

 

 
The Industrial History 273

Oil had been collected near Titusville, on an island
at the junction of Oil and Line creeks,
for nearly ten years before Drake bored
his well. It was done by means of a series of pits,
arranged like separa-
tors, the water flowing
below, leaving the oil
floating on the surface,
to be dipped up with
blankets. Specimens of
this oil had been exam-
ined and its use for
illuminating purposes
demonstrated. As the
whale oil industry was
then on the decline,
and the burning fluid
made of English and :
Nova Scotia coal was not satisfactory, there was a
demand for a new illuminant. The success of Drake's
well, therefore, soon brought forth others in great
numbers, along Oil and French creeks and the Alle-
gheny river.

The next discovery was the flowing well. These
gushers or petroleum fountains greatly increased the
quantity produced. In 1862 the drillers, becoming
crowded in the river bottoms, pushed back into the
adjacent country, and discovered that the high lands
of Clarion, Butler, Armstrong, McKean and Warren
counties also covered the hidden treasure. The pro-
duction in Washington and Greene counties did not
become important until 1885. According to the cen-
sus of 1890, there were 31,768 producing wells in the

Other Wells

 

Oil Derricks.

R
274 A History of Pennsylvania

State. Adding to this number those not then in
operation, there were probably as many oil derricks
in Pennsylvania as there are square miles.

The transportation of oil was at first in barrels,
Transportation hauled on trucks to Oil City, or on barges,

of Oil which were carried down the shallow
stream by means of artificial floods produced by open-
ing a series of dams. At Oil City the barrels were
transferred to larger boats and shipped to Pittsburg,
the great distributing center. In 1866, the Allegheny
Valley railroad was opened, and cars built specially
for transporting oil. In time, the pipe line displaced
the car and boat. This method was first used at
Pithole, for a distance of four miles, over an ascent
of 500 feet. The owners and drivers of oil wagons
threatened vengeance upon the proprietor of the little
pipe line, and it had to be guarded by an armed
patrol. Today the oil region is a network of pipes,
and great trunk lines supply the needs of New York,
Philadelphia, Baltimore, Cleveland, Buffalo, Pittsburg
and Chicago. The total length of pipe line trans-
porting Pennsylvania crude oil, is about 25,000 miles
—"a girdle for the earth.” The trunk line to Phila-
delphia starts at Colgrove, McKean county, its 6-inch
pipe extending over a distance of 235 miles. Pe-
trolenm has also added greatly to the manufactures.
The number and variety of its products are almost
limitless.

Another interest of considerable magnitude is that
of the slate quarries, which are found in the
northern half of Northampton and Lehigh
counties and the eastern quarter of Berks county. The
slate region has an extreme length of 50 miles and a

Slate
The Industrial History 275

maximum breadth of 13 miles. Some slate is also
found in Chester and York counties. The first quarry
was opened in upper Mount Bethel township, North-
ampton county, about the year 1812. Since then the
industry has added much to Pennsylvania’s wealth, as
the annual shipments of such towns as Slatington,
Pen Argyl and Bangor will show. The Slatington
region alone in 1882 produced as high as 110,000
squares of roofing slate (4 or 5 squares to a ton),
30,000 cases of school slate (10 dozen to a case) and
100 blackboard cases. The use of slate for black-
board purposes has since then greatly increased.

For many years the nickel mines in Bart township,
Lancaster county, known as the Gap
Mines, were an important mining interest.
They had been worked at intervals from the year
1718 for their copper. In 1852, it was discovered
that large quantities of nickel had been mined with
the copper and thrown away as refuse. The Gap
Copper Mines at once became the Gap Nickel Mines,
and smelting works were put up near by. There were
mined and smelted more than 600 tons of ore in a
month when the production was at its highest; but -
the industry has been abandoned for some time.

Another ore of much value is the zine ore of
Lehigh county. The mine is situated at Friedensville,
and consists of very large and extended excavations.
It has been worked to a depth of 250 feet, though in
late years it has been idle. Then, there are the
brown-stone quarries near Hummelstown, Dauphin
county, and the blue-stone quarries of northeastern
Pennsylvania, both of which are widely known in the
eastern part of the United States.

Nickel and Zinc
276 A History of Pennsylvania

Although mining and manufacturing are the lead-
ing interests in Pennsylvania, its agricul-
ture must necessarily rank high. We have
some of the finest farming land in the world, and our
thriving and populous towns and cities afford a mar-
ket for all that the farmers can produce, and a great
deal more. In the production of corn and wheat, the
State surpasses all the other Atlantic States; and its
dairy and truck farms surround a hundred centers of
population large enough to consume the products.
The small farms of Pennsylvania are more profitable
than the large ones, here or elsewhere, in proportion
to the capital invested. Of the six counties in the
United States whose agricultural products were the
‘most valuable in 1889, Lancaster ranked first and
Chester and Bucks third and fourth respectively; while
the Young farms, in Dauphin county, are pronounced
the finest in the world.

Agriculture

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Scharf and Westeott’s History of Philadelphia, Vol. III, Chs.
liii-lvi ; Wilson’s History of Pennsylvania Railroad Company ;
Fisher’s Pennsylvania Colony and Commonwealth, Ch. viii ; Trego’s
Geography of Pennsylvania, pp. 116-164 ; Bowen’s Pictorial Sketch
Book of Pennsylvania ; Petroleum, Its Production and Products in
Pennsylvania, in the Report of the Bureau of Industrial Statisties,
1897; Bulletin of the Department of Labor, No. 13, November, 1897 ;
Sypher’s School History of Pennsylvania, Ch. xxxv; Governors’
Messages, in the House and Senate Journals, 1790-1898 ; Swank’s
Iron and Coal in Pennsylvania; McMaster’s History of the People
of the United States, Vol. I, See Index for * Manufactures,” Vol.
II, See Index for “Internal Improvements.”
CHAPTER VII
EDUCATION IN PENNSYLVANIA

AT the time when the Dutch and the Swedes settled
on the Delaware, the schools of Kurope one the
were usually under the control of the Dutch and
church. The minister himself was the © Swedes
schoolmaster, or the schoolmaster was the minister’s
assistant. Evert Pieterson, who taught the first school
on the west bank of the Delaware, in a church at
New Castle, 1657, was to act as “Sexton, Psalm-Setter,
Comforter of the Sick, and Schoolmaster.” The peo-
ple were “poor and scattered,” and the few churches
and preachers among them had to do double duty.
In many cases the parents taught their children under
the oversight of the clergyman. A-B-C books, prim-
ers, and catechisms were sent from Sweden in large
numbers.

But the schools of the Dutch and the Swedes
are merely an historical curiosity. The Foundations
foundations of education in Pennsylvania Laid
were laid by William Penn and the Assembly at its
first and second sessions. The twelfth provision of
the Frame of Government says:

That the Governor and Provincial Council shall erect and

order all public schools, and encourage and reward the authors
of useful sciences and laudable inventions.

Penn held that the government is a trustee for

(277)
278 A History of Pennsylvania

the youth, and must look after their education. In this
way it would endear itself to the people; for they
would remember the government more for their edu-
cation than for their estates. The practical or indus-
trial side of education was especially emphasized by
the founder of our State. His ideas and plans are
expressed in the following act of the Assembly which
met at Philadelphia in 1683:

And to the end that poor, as well as rich, may be instructed
in good and commendable learning, which is to be preferred
before wealth, Be it enacted, etc., That all persons in this
Province and Territories thereof, having children, and all the
guardians and trustees of orphans, shall eause such to be in-
structed in reading and writing, so that they may be able to
read the Scriptures and to write by the time they attain to
twelve years of age ; and that then they be taught some useful
trade or skill, that the poor may work to live, and the rich if
they become poor may not want ; of which every County Court
shall take care. And in case such parents, guardians or over-
seers shall be found deficient in this respect, they shall pay for
every such child five pounds. * * *

This act of 1683 took advanced ground. It pro-
Schools vided for * state education,” “universal edu-
Established ation,” “industrial education,” and “com-
pulsory education.” Acting upon its provisions, Penn
and the Provincial Council that same year engaged
Enoch Flower, from England, to open a school in a
house built of pine and cedar planks. In 1689, the
Friends’ Public Grammar School, which afterwards
became the William Penn Charter School, was opened
in Philadelphia. The master had to be licensed by
the Governor and Council. It was not a public school
in the American sense now, but resembled the so-
called “public schools” of England. It was endowed

-
Education in Pennsylvania 279

and free only to the poor, who were educated in branch
schools located in various parts of the town.

This was all that was done by the State for the
education of its people, down to the Revo- The church
lutionary War. The Charter of Privileges Schools
(see p. 104) contained no clause even relating to edu-
cation. As stated before, church and school dwelt
under the same roof in those days; but as there
were so many churches in Pennsylvania, it was im-
possible to have a state school. The various sects
and churches had schools of their own. The earliest
school started by private effort was one on Tinicum
island. Darby, too, became the seat of a school, in
1692. One was established at Germantown in 1701,
with the learned Pastorius at its head. No sooner
had Christ Church been founded than a school house
sprang up by its side. Schools are known to have
been taught by the Baptist preachers in their early
churches in Bucks and Chester counties. The Scoteh-
Irish regarded the church and the school house as
twin agents of eivilization, and their clearings were
never without them. The Catholics, with whom it is
the policy even now to entrust education to the
church, are known to have had a school in the
priest’s house at (Goshenhoppen, Berks county, soon
after their German mission was established there.
The Lutherans at New Hanover, Montgomery county,
received a gift of fifty acres of land for their church
and school. One of the fathers of the Reformed
Church in Pennsylvania preached and taught in his
own house in Montgomery county for some years soon
after 1720.

No church or sect was more active in education
280 A History of Pennsylvania

than the Moravians. At Nazareth, Bethlehem and Lititz
they had nurseries, where the children above one or
two years of age were fed, clothed, instructed and
cared for at the expense of the brethren. Later paro-
chial schools, with infant departments attached, dis-
placed the nurseries. The Mennonites at Germantown
built a log church in 1706, which was afterwards
used as their school
house. In the present
building, 130 years old,
stands the table at which
“the pious schoolmaster
J of the Skippack” —Chris-
topher Dock —sat when
he taught school in that
town. He is the author of
the first book on school
teaching published in America. He died one evening
after school while kneeling at his desk to pray —as
was his custom. The Schwenckfelders and Tunkers,
worshiping for many years in houses and barns, in-
structed their children at home. Among the Seventh
Day Baptists at Ephrata, a hive of intellectual activity,
the first Sabbath school in America was opened.
Where people lived five or ten miles from a church,
Neighborhood OT Where a variety of religious denomina-
Behools tions existed, schools were organized by
neighborhoods. These were known as “pay” or
“subscription” schools. The building of a house and
the employment of a teacher was usually entrusted to
a committee elected by the neighborhood. The money
needed was raised by voluntary subscription. The
pay schools soon outnumbered those sustained by re-

 

Dock’s Table and Bench.
Education in Pennsylvania 281

ligious bodies, owing to the intermixing of the sects
and churches as the population grew. It was said of
the country around Philadelphia that by 1750 a school-
house stood “in almost every ridge of woods.” When |
the people crossed the mountains and came in contact
with settlers from Maryland, Virginia, New York and
New England, there was such an intermingling socially,
that neighborhood schools had few prejudices to en-
counter. Many ministers were © teachers, but the
churches were not organically connected with primary
education in central, western, and northern Pennsyl-
vania. In the Wyoming valley, 960 acres of land were
set apart in each township “for the public use of a
Gospel Ministry and schools.” Some of the schools
in that section were altogether free before the Revo-
lution. They were supported by the public fund and
a tax on property.

When the Revolution made necessary the formation
of a new constitution in Pennsylvania, The constitutions
this is what was said in it about edu- of 1776 and 179%
cation :

A school or schools shall be established in each county by
the Legislature for the convenient instruction of youth, with such
salaries to the masters, paid by the publie, as may enable them

to struct youth at low prices ; and all useful learning shall be
duly encouraged and promoted in one or two Universities.

The State, in 1776, took no ground in advance of
the church and community schools, when it proposed
to furnish elementary instruction “at low prices.”
Both classes of schools had always striven to reach
people of moderate circumstances. In 1790, however,
Timothy Pickering, of Luzerne, supported by Thomas
McKean, of Philadelphia, William Findley, of West-
282 A History of Pennsylvania

moreland, and others, succeeded in getting the words —
“in such a manner that the poor may be taught gratis”—

attached to the constitutional clause on schools. On
these words rests the
system of common
schools; for, in order
to teach the poor gratis,
it was finally determined
to teach the rich gratis,
too.

The idea of teaching
charity the poorat pub-
Schools jc expense was
stimulated in its slow
SAA growth by several
Alexander Wilson's School House, 1804. educational movements.

The charity schools of
Philadelphia helped to develop it. A charity school
to qualify “a number of the poorer sort as school-
masters in the country,” was at- first connected with
what is now the University of Pennsylvania. The
attempt to teach the Germans the English language
(see p. 49) was a step towards lending a helping hand
in education. It was the first educational movement
to become general in the province. The schools of
the Quakers, but more especially of the Moravians, for
the education of the Indians,—an object set forth in
Penn’s charter for the founding of Pennsylvania,—
were noble examples of free education for the poor.
Then, there were the schools for colored people, in
Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Pittsburg, and elsewhere.
They were open day and evening, for young and old,
and were taught by volunteers, who served by turns.

 
FHducation in Pennsylvania 283

The movement that led up nearest to the present
free schools was the Lancasterian system — The Lancas-
a scheme by which the poor could be taught terian System
gratis at a very low expense. After 1790, repeated
efforts were made to carry out the constitutional pro-
vision in relation to the education of the poor. But
the laws passed resulted in dividing the people into
two classes—the rich and the poor. The children who
were taught gratis became known as “pauper scholars,”
and were ashamed to go to the “pauper schools,” while
the “pay scholars,” were too proud to go. The Lan-
casterian system, named after Joseph Lancaster, an
Englishman, and devised by him in London, at the
close of the eighteenth century, employed the older pupils
as monitors to instruct the others. Lancaster prepared
his pupil assistants for their daily work somewhat after
the method employed by a Sunday school superintendent
at his teachers’ meetings. The system was tried in Phila-
delphia with such satisfactory results that the Legis-
lature passed a law in 1818, establishing public schools
in that city, in which it was to be used in its “most
approved state.” Lancaster himself came to Philadel-
phia to carry the law into effect. Four years later,
Lancaster was formed into a second school district
like that of Philadelphia, in which public schools of
the Lancasterian kind were supported by public taxes.
Dauphin county, in 1827, was authorized to have the
same kind of schools; and a number of other places
in the State introduced them.

The Lancasterian system was followed by marked
improvements. The pupil-teacher, trained improvements
under the eye of an experienced master, that followed
was better than the pedagogue of colonial times, who
284 A History of Pennsylvania

generally tramped the country when he did not teach.
With better teachers came better houses —stone, brick
or frame; and a more extended course of study than
the three R’s, including ge-
ography and Lindley Mur-
ray’s English grammar.
But in spite of these im-
provements, less than
24,000 children attended
school at public expense in
1833— only about 3% of the
entire population ; whereas,
now the school enrollment is about + of the popula-
tion. It was not until the law of 1834 (see p. 202)
had removed distinctions of birth and wealth that the
little red school house dotted all the hills and valleys
of Pennsylvania.
The free school law of 1834 allowed the people
oe Pos Shim of each district to decide at an election
whether to adopt it or not. About half
of the districts accepted it then, and by 1848 it had
grown so much in popular favor that it was made
general. However, if a district was willing to lose
its State appropriation, it was not compelled to
maintain free schools; and it was not until 1874
that the last district accepted the law. State Su-
perintendent Wickersham then said, in his annual
report : “For the first time in our history, the door
of a public school house stands open to receive every
child of proper age within the limits of the State.”
The progress of popular education after 1850
was very rapid. In 1854, greater power to collect
the school tax was given; geography and grammar,

   

An Old School House, 1825.
Education in Pennsylvania 285

together with such higher branches as the directors
might prescribe, were to be taught in every school;
provision for graded schools was made; and the
office of county superintendent was established. Three
years later, the State Superintendency of Common
Schools was made a separate office; before that its
duties were performed by the Secretary of the Com-
monwealth. At the same time the Normal School law
was passed, by whieh the State was divided into
twelve districts,— later increased to thirteen,—in each
of which, beginning with 1859, has been established
a school for the professional preparation of teachers.
As there are many children and youths in the
charitable and penal institutions, it was The states
felt necessary to have some oversight given Interest Grows
to their instruction and training, especially as the
State grants financial aid to their support. For this
purpose the State Board of Public Charities was in-
stituted in 1869. For the same reasons the Soldiers’
Orphan Schools were placed under State supervision.
Evening schools were authorized by law in 1883,
when it was ordered that if the parents of twenty or
more pupils, above the age of six years, made appli-
cation, a free evening school for a term of not less
than four months should be established. But the
crowning acts to make elementary education universal
were the free text-book law of 1893, and the com-
pulsory attendance law of 1895. Children between
the age of eight and thirteen years — and those between
thirteen and sixteen, unless usefully employed — are
now required to attend school at least 70 per centum
of the time during which the schools are open in
their district. Such attendance is possible, because
236 A History of Pennsylvania

all books and supplies are free. The State, by local
taxation, and by general appropriation ($5,000,000),
spends about $20,000,000 for the common schools every
year.

Higher education by public authority began with
The State and a resolution of the Provincial Council,
Higher Education galling for “a School of Arts and Sei-
ences,” out of which grew the William Penn Charter
School (see p. 278). This institution developed into
a school in which Latin, Greek, and other higher
branches were taught, and is today one of the
oldest of its kind in this country. The next step
was taken by Franklin and others, when, in
1749, they founded the Academy and Charitable
School of the Province of Pennsylvania. This
academy, in 1755, became the College at Phila-
delphia, and in 1779 the University of Pennsylvania ;
and with each act of incorporation, the institution
received a grant of land and money. The other
colleges and academies now in the State were all
-established after the Revolutionary war. As long
as there were no free schools, the act of incorporation
usually carried with it a grant from the State, on
condition that a certain number of poor students
should receive instruction free. The colleges and
academies, during that time, also received an annual
appropriation on the same condition. In 1838 there
were nine colleges and one hundred and seven acade-
mies and female seminaries receiving appropriations.
A few years later, when the State was hard pressed
for money on account of its public improvements,
and when the common schools needed all the financial
assistance possible, the appropriations were withheld.
Education in Pennsylvania 287

As the common schools grew in favor, the necessity
for the scholastic and professional prepa-
ration of teachers became apparent. For
this specific and technical purpose Normal Schools were
instituted. On account of their vital importance to the
State they receive aid from that source.

Most of the colleges in this State are denominational.
The first college in Pennsylvania—the The Church and
famous “Log College” —was of this kind. Higher Education
It was established in 1726 by Rev. Wm. Tennent,
pastor of the Neshaminy Presbyterian church, Bucks
county. Tennent prepared young men there for the
ministry and other callings, Out of this school grew
Princeton College, New Jersey. Like “Log College,”
other schools were taught here and there, in colonial
times, by learned divines who knew enough Latin to
make it the language of the schoolroom. But the era
of colleges proper did not come much before the nine-
teenth century. It requires wealth to found higher in-
stitutions of learning. When the churches once had
means, they soon had colleges. Pennsylvania now
has five universities and twenty-seven colleges. That
most of them are denominational is due to the fact
that so many churches and sects settled the State.

But the common schools, normal schools and col-
leges do not include all that the State and its people
have done for education. We need but mention
Girard College and the School for the Blind, in
Philadelphia, the School for Feeble-minded Children
in Media, Lincoln University at Oxford, the Reforma-
tory at Huntingdon, the Pennsylvania Reform School
at Morganza, the School for the Deaf and Dumb in
Pittsburg — as well as like institutions in other parts

Normal Schools
288 A History of Pennsylvania

of the State—to appreciate what giant efforts have
been put forth for the improvement of all classes of
society. :

Pennsylvania is known as the Keystone State —
The Keystone POSSibly on account of the fact that six

State of the “original thirteen” are to the north
and six to the south of her; but probably because
she was considered to hold the balance of political
power between six free States and six slave States,
after the Union under the Constitution had been
formed. Whichever reason may be the true one, it
long since ceased to exist; and if we would continue
‘to occupy the proud position we must do it by our
rank in the Union. But the rank of a State de-
pends upon her schools.

BOOKS FOR READING AND CONSULTATION

Graydon’s Memoirs, ch. i; Scharf and Wescott’s History of
Philadelphia, Vol. III, ch. xlvii ; Proposals Relating to the Edu-
cation of Youth in Pennsylvania, 1749; Boone’s Education in the
United States, see Index; Watson’s Annals of Philadelphia, Vol.
I, pp. 286-297, and Vol. III, p. 163; Wickersham’s History of
Education in Pennsylvania ; The Common School Laws of Pewn-
sylvania.
CHAPTER VIII

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES
THE GOVERNORS OF PENNSYLVANIA

WILLIAM MARKHAM (under Penn, 1681-1682 ; under
Fletcher, 1693-1695 ; under Penn, 1695-1699 ; and in Delaware
under Penn, 1691-1693) was a cousin of William Penn, a soldier by
profession, and but twenty-one years of age when he arrived as
Deputy-Governor. He came to Philadelphia by way of New York,
where he informed the Governor of that colony that his rule of the
~ Delaware had passed into William Penn’s hands. He died in Phila-
delphia, 1704, and was buried with military honors by direction of
Governor Evans. Pennsylvania owes much to William Markham.
He nursed the colony in its infancy, and the child no doubt caused
him many a sleepless night. ‘

WILLIAM PENN (1682-84, 1699-1701) was born in London in
1644. His father was Admiral William Penn, who had distinguished
himself in the British navy, and was anxious that his only son should
be a man of prominence. To this end, he sent William to Oxford.
While there, the youth became deeply impressed by the preaching
of the Quaker, Thomas Loe, and was expelled from college for re-
fusing to comply with certain regulations of dress, which he now
regarded as wrong. To efface the impressions of Loe’s preaching,
Admiral Penn sent his son to the Continent, where he traveled for
a time. Upon returning, William studied law, became an attache
to his father in the naval service, and in 1665 assumed the man-
agement of a family estate near Cork. He acquired some military
renown as a soldier, and had a portrait of himself painted in mili-
tary costume. While in Ireland, Penn once more heard Thomas
Loe preach, and this time the arrow of conviction went straight to
his heart. He joined the Friends, adopted their principles, and
shared their persecutions. At a meeting in Cork, he, with others,
was arrested and thrown into prison. When released, he began to
preach and write the Quaker doctrine. The conversion to the
Quakers of so prominent a person as the son of Admiral Penn was
the talk of the kingdom. The father tried hard to undo Loe’s
work, and even made his son leave home; but William refused to
depart from the Quaker customs, even so much as to take off his
hat to his father, the King and the Duke of York. During his
banishment from home, a mother’s love provided him secretly with

s (289)
290 A History of Pennsylvania

an allowance. His writings being regarded as heretical, he was
arrested and thrown into the Tower of London for eight months,
where he wrote his celebrated work, “No Cross, No Crown.” Ad-
miral Penn now became touched by the heroic conduct of his son,
and had him liberated. The two were reconciled, and William
again took charge of the estates in Ireland, but only for a short
time. Resuming his preaching in England in 1670, he was once
more thrown into prison. After being released again, he continued
to write, preach, and travel in the interests of eivil and religious
liberty, and upon his return from Germany and Holland his his-
tory merged into that of Pennsylvania.

THOMAS LLOYD (President of Council, 1684-86; one of five
Commissioners, 1686-88; President of Council, 1690-91 ; Deputy-
Governor, 1691-93) was entrusted with the keeping of the Great
Seal when Penn sailed for England in 1684. He had been educated
at Oxford and had held places of trust in England. Having become
a Quaker, he resolved to come to Pennsylvania, where he arrived in
1683, on the same ship with Pastorius. Lloyd’s first office was
that of land commissioner, of whom there were three. When he
asked to be relieved from his executive duties in 1688, Penn gave
his consent very reluctantly, yet he afterwards served twice in the
same capacity. He died in 1694, at the early age of 45.

JOHN BLACKWELL (1688-90) had been a captain in Crom-
well’s army, and was at the time of his selection in one of the
New England colonies. “Since no Friend,” says Penn, “would
undertake the Governor’s place, I took one that was not, and a
stranger, that he might be impartial and more reverenced.” But
Penn’s hopes were not realized. After a little more than a year of
turbulent rule, the Military Governor was relieved of his authority;
and he expressed his thanks that he had escaped from his troubles.

ANDREW HAMILTON (1701-1703), the first Deputy-Gover-
nor after Markham’s long and repeated rule, was a native of Scot-
land and a merchant in Edinburgh. On his arrival in America, he
was made Governor of New Jersey. He planned a system of post
offices in the colonies, and was made Deputy Postmaster-General
for all the plantations. He died as Governor of Pennsylvania,
while on a visit to his family at Amboy, New Jersey, in 1703.

EDWARD SHIPPEN (President of Couneil, 1703-04) succeeded
to executive authority on the death of Hamilton. He was Phila-
delphia’s first mayor. Tradition has it that he was distinguished
for three things—the biggest man, the biggest house and the biggest
carriage. He came early into the province from Boston, whither
he had gone from England, and whence he had fled on account of
the persecutions meted out to the Quakers. He was the grand-
father of Chief Justice Shippen and an ancestor of Dr. William
Shippen, the first medical lecturer in Philadelphia, and the second
in America.
Biographical Sketches 291

JOHN EVANS (1704-1709) was of Welsh descent, but born in
London. When appointed Governor, he was a member of the
Queen’s household. He was too young and inexperienced to make
a good executive, while his private life gave great offense. William
Penn the younger had come with him to Philadelphia, and the
ik held high carnival at times in the staid and quiet city of that

ay.

CHARLES GOOKIN (1709-17) was an Irishman. He was the
opposite of Evans in age and morals; yet he did not please the
Assembly, He had been a captain in the English army, and the
selection of a military Governor under Penn, *the Apostle of
Peace,” was somewhat of an anomaly. He returned to England
after his term of office.

SIR WILLIAM KEITH (1717-26) was the son of a Scotch baron,
and had held office under the British government before he was
appointed Governor, having been for some time the King’s surveyor
of customs for the southern provinces. In this capacity he had
visited Philadelphia and become favorably known there. Having
made himself popular with the people, he was elected to the As-
sembly upon retiring from the governorship. He went back to Eng-
land afterwards and died in obscurity.

PATRICK GORDON (1726-36) was another military man, hav-
ing served from his youth in the English army. William Penn had
died in Keith’s administration and Gordon was accordingly ap-
pointed by Springett Penn, the heir-at-law of the proprietary
family. He died in office in 1736, after ten years of a happy ad-
ministration.

JAMES LOGAN ( President of Council, 1736-38) came to
America with Penn on his second visit in 1699, as secretary. He
was born in Ireland, of Scottish parentage, in 1674, and at the age
of thirteen had acquired Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Later he
became proficient in mathematics and the modern languages. He
made investigations in botany and other sciences, wrote books and
corresponded with the learned men in Europe. His library was
joined with Franklin’s to make the Philadelphia library, the first
circulating library in the colonies. Penn invested him with many
important trusts, which were nobly discharged. Although he never
was Governor in name, in his capacity as secretary of the Province,
member of the Council, commissioner of property, and Chief
Justice, he was everything to Penn and the Penn family from the
day he 'entered their service until he died, in 1751. He was a
warm friend of the Indians. His classic home at Stenton, near
Germantown, was nearly always surrounded by Indian delegations,
who camped there to seek advice and favor from their honored
friend “hid in the bushes.”

SIR GEORGE THOMAS ( 1738-47 ), the son of a wealthy
planter, was born at Antigua, in the West Indies. He was a mem-
292 A History of Pennsylvania

ber of the government of that island when appointed, and after his
term of office was Governor of the Leeward and Carribee Islands.
He afterwards became a baronet, and died in London,

ANTHONY PALMER (President of Council, 1747-48) was a
gentleman of wealth, who had come to the Province in 1708, from
the West Indies. It is said that he lived in great style, keeping a
coach and a pleasure barge, in which he made his visits from the
“Governor’s House” at Shackamaxon to the city. He died in
1749.

JAMES HAMILTON (1748-54, 1759-63, and President of
Council in 1771) was a native of Philadelphia, possessed of a large
fortune, and experienced in the affairs of the Province by serving
as Prothonotary. He was twice appointed Governor, serving ten
years altogether. He held other offices, and was a very popular
man until the Revolutionary movement began, when he took sides
with the Crown. He died in New York in 1783.

ROBERT HUNTER MORRIS (1754-56) was bred a lawyer,
and was Chief Justice of New Jersey for twenty years. His ad-
ministration in Pennsylvania occurred at a stormy time inthe his-
tory, and neither he nor the Province had many pleasant recollec-
tions of it. Upon his retirement, he returned to New Jersey,
where he died in 1764.

WILLIAM DENNY (1756-59 ) was born in England. On
finishing his career as Governor of Pennsylvania, he returned
thither, where he retired on an annuity from the Crown. He was
received at Philadelphia with great honors; but his disagreements
with the Assembly made his recall necessary. He had to sign bills
contrary to his instructions in order to get his salary.

JOHN PENN (1763-71 and 1773-1776), the son of Richard and
grandson of William Penn, was a native of Philadelphia, born in
1728. He was twice Governor—from 1763 to 1771, and again from
1773 to the end of the proprietary government, in 1776. He re-
mained here during the Revolution, and, having refused to sign a
parole, was confined in New Jersey and Virginia. He died at his
home in Bucks county, 1795, and was buried in Christ’s graveyard,
from which his remains were afterwards transferred to England.

RICHARD PENN (1771-73), brother of John Penn, and, hence,
also grandson of William Penn, was born in England, 1734. After
coming here, he became a member of the Provincial Council and a
naval officer. As Governor, he secured public confidence to such
an extent that when, in 1775, he sailed for England, the second
petition of Congress to the King was entrusted to him for pre-
sentation to the Privy Council. Parliament availed itself of his
information on American affairs, and he subsequently became a
member of that body. He died in England in 1811.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (chairman of Committee of Safety,
Biographical Sketches 293

1776-77; and President of Supreme Executive Council, 1785-88)
was born at Boston, in 1706, but disagreeing with his brother, to
whom he had been apprenticed as a printer, he came to Philadel-
phia in 1723. He got work from Andrew Bradford, and in a year
had saved enough to seek his fortune in London. He soon re-
turned to Philadelphia, and again worked as a journeyman; but
not long, for in 1830 he had
a printing establishment,
was editor and proprietor of
the Pennsylvania Gazette, and
had married Deborah Reed,
the girl that laughed at him
when he walked past her
house eating dry rolls. Two
years later, Franklin pub-
lished “Poor Richard’s Al-
manae,” the first number be-
ing “for the year of Christ
1733.” He was now a busy
man, yet he studied French,
Italian, Spanish, and Latin,
wrote pamphlets and essays,
and gave time to society and
the lodge. In 1736 he got
his first salaried office, clerk of the Assembly ; and with that
appointment began his long life of public service, more varied
and extended than that of any other man in America. The fact
that he signed the Declaration of Independence, the treaty of
alliance with France, the treaty of peace with England, and
the Federal Constitution, shows what great services he rendered
to the United States. The last years of his life were spent in
great feebleness and much physical suffering, and death was wel-
come when it came, April 17, 1790. His remains were buried in
Christ Church graveyard, at the corner of Fifth and Arch streets,
where thousands stop every year to look at the modest tomb-
stones of Benjamin and Deborah Franklin.

THOMAS WHARTON, JR. (1777-78), was born in Philadel-
phia, 1735, his grandfather having emigrated from England to
Pennsylvania the year after Penn’s arrival. Being a warm
supporter of the Revolution, he was made President of the Su-
preme Executive Council, in 1777, and as such, became the first
Executive of Pennsylvania as a State. He died in office while the
seat of government was temporarily at Lancaster, during the oc-
cupation of Philadelphia by the British. At the request of the
vestry, his body was entombed within the walls of Trinity Church,
Lancaster. :

 

Franklin’s Grave.

GEORGE BRYAN (May- December, 1778) was Vice-President
of the Council when Thomas Wharton, Jr., died, He thereupon
294 A History of Pennsylvania

assumed the office of President and Chief Executive. He was a
native of Ireland, and upon settling in Philadelphia engaged in
the mercantile business, but was not successful. He was long in
the public service—member of the Stamp Act Congress, of the
Assembly, and of the Executive Council. He was a sincere pa-
triot at all times, and his sympathy for his fellowman made him
a champion for human freedom. (See p. 172.) He died in 1791,
and lies buried in the Presbyterian graveyard, Arch street, near
Fifth, Philadelphia.

JOSEPH REED (1778-81) was born at Trenton, New Jersey,
1741. After graduating at the College of New Jersey (Princeton),
and studying law in London, he practiced law and held office in his
native State. Upon settling in Philadelphia, he became at once
prominent in public affairs, serving on the Committee of Corres-
pondence, in Congress, and in the Continental Army. He declined
the office of Chief Justice of the State, as well as a brigadier-
generalship. As President of the Council, he was popular with the
people cn account of his energy, activity and patriotism. He was
a leader in the establishment of the University of Pennsylvania,
the abolition of slavery, and the divestment of the Penns of their
proprietary rights. He died in Philadelphia, 1785, at the early
age of 44, literally worn out in the service of his country.

WILLIAM MOORE (1781-82), born in Philadelphia, was a
merchant when the Revolution drew him into public affairs. He
was active in the measures adopted by the State and Congress to
remove the oppressions of England. After his term of office as
President of the Council, he entered the Assembly and kept up his
interest in public affairs till he died, in 1793.

JOHN DICKINSON (1782-85), though born in Maryland (1732)
and living in Delaware for a time, is claimed by Pennsylvania as
one of her greatest sons. After studying law in Philadelphia and
London, he hung out his sign in Philadelphia. As early as 1764
he was a member of the Assembly, and for the next twelve years
the leading man in Pennsylvania. His star went down for a
time, because he opposed the Declaration of Independence as
premature ; but he was too great to skulk. He shouldered the
musket in defense of his country, and was made brigadier-general
of the State militia. After he had retired to his farm in Delaware,
he was first sent to Congress by that State and then elected as its
executive. When the Revolution was over, Dickinson returned to
Philadelphia and was soon after honored with the presidency of
the Executive Council. In the Constitutional Convention, in 1787,
and in the campaign for its ratification by the States, he again
demonstrated his great power and influence. When our relations
with France were on the point of breaking, he took up his pen
for the last time. John Dickinson died at Wilmington, Delaware,
in 1808. :
Biographical Sketches 295

THOMAS MIFFLIN (1788-99), by his conspicuous services as
statesman and soldier in the Revolutionary period and after, holds
a high place in the history of Pennsylvania. He was born in
Philadelphia in 1744, trained in the faith of the Quakers, and in-
tended for the mercantile business, which he pursued for a time.
He was chosen to the Assembly at the age of 28, and two years
later he was a member of the first Continental Congress. At the
opening of the Revolution he entered the Continental Army as
major of a Pennsylvania battalion, and after the battle of German-
town resigned as major-general. At the battle of Long Island,
Mifflin covered the retreat and, in spite of a dreadful mistake in
his orders, did it heroically. His resignation was forced upon him
by impaired health, but Congress would not accept it, and he con-
tinued his duties as quartermaster-general till 1778, and later on
received the thanks of Congress for “wise and salutary plans rec-
ommended,” to reduce the general expenses. After the war, he
was elected to Congress and served as President for a year. He
was also a member of that great and honorable body which framed
the Federal Constitution. His valuable services in the Legis-
lature as Speaker of the Assembly and president of the Council,
and in the convention which framed the constitution of 1790, over
which he presided, made him the almost unanimous choice for the
first Governor of the State. After holding this high office as long
as the constitution permitted, he again entered the Legislature
and died in the harness, at Lancaster, in 1800. His remains are
buried at the German Lutheran church of that city.

THOMAS M’KEAN (1799-1808), whose parents were natives
of Ireland, belonged to Pennsylvania and Delaware. He was born
in Londonderry, Chester county, 1734, but studied and practiced
law in New Castle, Delaware, and was a member of the Legisla-
ture of that State. Having been well educated and endowed with
great ability, he became one of the pillars of the Revolution. In
the Stamp Act Convention, held in New York, he assisted in
drawing up the address of the colonies to the House of Commons.
He was a member of the Continental Congress from both Pennsyl-
vania and Delaware, sitting in that body from 1774 to 1783. At
one time he was both Chief Justice of Pennsylvania and President
of Congress. He was at the head of the Supreme Court in Penn-
sylvania for twenty-two years. He died in Philadelphia in 1817,
and was buried in the grounds of the Presbyterian church, on
Market street.

SIMON SNYDER (1808-17) was born at Lancaster, and was
the first of the German Governors of Pennsylvania. He was a
tanner by trade, but.of studious habits. At the age of 25 he en-
gaged in the mercantile business at Selinsgrove, now Snyder
county. He began his public career as justice of the peace. He
helped to frame the Constitution of 1790, and after he entered the
Legislature was chosen Speaker of the House for six successive
terms. He was a candidate for Governor four times, being de-
296 : A History of Pennsylvania

feated the first time by a small majority and elected the other
times by large majorities. He died in 1819, while a member of
the Senate, and his body rests in Selinsgrove.

WILLIAM FINDLAY (1817-20), of Scotch-Irish descent, was
born at Mercersburg, Franklin county. He began life as a farmer.
After he was twenty-nine he was elected to the Legislature for a
number of terms, and subsequently held the office of State Treas-
urer for ten years. After serving one term as Governor, he was
elected United States Senator and served one term. He finished
his public career as an official of the United States mint. Mr.
Findlay died at Harrisburg in 1846, at the residence of his son-
m-law, Governor Shunk, and was buried in that city.

JOSEPH HIESTER (1820-23) was a native of Bern township,
Berks county, his father having emigrated from Germany. Joseph
served his country most loyally in the Revolution. He raised a
company at the very outbreak, and when the battalion was formed
was appointed major. He was wounded and taken prisoner in the
battle of Long Island, and was confined in a prison ship for a
year. When exchanged, he was again wounded at Germantown.
He received extensive training as a statesman in the Legislature,
the constitutional convention of 1790, and Congress. He died in
1832, and is buried in the grounds of the German Reformed
church of Reading.

JOHN ANDREW SHULZE (1823-29), born at Tulpehocken,
Berks county, was the son of a German clergyman, and he himself
had served as pastor of several Lutheran congregations in Berks
county before his health demanded that he should engage in some-
thing else. He entered the mercantile business at Myerstown,
then Dauphin county, and, becoming interested in politics, was
elected to the Legislature. When the new county of Lebanon was
organized, in 1813, he accepted an office in it, which he held for
eight years. After that, he again entered the Legislature, serving
in both houses. At the end of his second term, he engaged in
agricultural pursuits, but before his death he removed to Lancas-
ter, where he died in 1852. i

GEORGE WOLF (1829-35) was a native of Allen township,
Northampton county, but his father had been born in Germany.
George received a classical and a legal education, and was well
prepared for the important duties of his life. He studied law while
he was principal of an academy, and rose rapidly in public favor.
Having been a clerk in a county office before he was of age, it is
not surprising that he had been postmaster of Easton, clerk of the
orphans’ court and member of the Legislature before he was forty.
In 1824 he was elected to Congress, and served in that body till
elected Governor, in 1829. . After serving in the gubernatorial chair
forsix years and writing his name indelibly upon the pages of Penn-
sylvania’s history, he entered the service of the United States in
Biographical Sketches 297

the capacity first of Controller of the Treasury and afterwards
of Collector of the Port in Philadelphia, in which city he died in
1840. His remains were buried in Harrisburg, the scene of his
great services in behalf of his beloved State. Governor Wolf was a,
man of the people and always mindful of their best interests. He
was the first executive to have his office in the Capitol; his prede-
cessors had used a room in their private residence for that purpose,
much to the annoyance of those who were not accustomed to ser-
vants in waiting, stationed at every turn.

JOSEPH RITNER (December 15, 1835 January 15, 1839) was
the third Governor born in Berks county. His father was a
German farmer and, like most farmer boys of his day, Joseph
received but a meager education. When a young man, he removed
to Washington county, where he engaged in farming. By the
force of his mental vigor, he soon proved himself a useful man
in his new heme, and the people honored him with a seat in
the Legislature. He served six years and rose to the position of
Speaker. As the successor of Wolf, he became the guardian of a
precious legacy—the common school law; and he handed it down
to posterity without the loss of one jot or tittle. At the end of
his career as Governor, Ritner retired to a farm near Mount
Rock, Cumberland county, where he died at the ripe old age of
eighty-nine. President Taylor, in 1848, appointed him Director
of the Mint at Philadelphia, but a favorite of Fillmore succeeded
to the office soon afterwards. The following are the opening
lines of a poem by Whittier on Ritner’s message of 1836:

“ Thank God for the token ! one lip is still free,—
One spirit untrammelled, —unbending one knee !”’

DAVID RITTENHOUSE PORTER (1839-45), whose paternal
ancestors had come from Ireland, was born in Montgomery county,
near Norristown. Andrew, his father, was an officer in the Revo-
lutionary army and was once offered a position in Madison’s Cabi-
net. Horace Porter, son of the Governor, distinguished himself in
the Rebellion and was appointed Minister to France by President
McKinley. David received a classical education and, while assist-
ing his father, who was Surveyor-General, studied law; but
his health demanded a more active occupation. He therefore en-
gaged in the manufacture of iron in Huntingdon county. After
representing his adopted county in the Legislature, both as Repre-
sentative and Senator, he was elected Governor and served two
terms. He died at Harrisburg in 1867, and was buried there.

FRANCIS RAWN SHUNK (1845-48) was of German descent
and a native of Montgomery county, having been born near the
Trappe, in the same year, with Governor Porter, 1788. At the
early age of fifteen he began to teach, and when a young man he
was appointed clerk in the Surveyor-General’s office by Governor
Porter’s father. In 1814 he shouldered the musket in defense of
Baltimore against the British. At the age of twenty-eight he
began the practice of law and became interested in politics. He
298 A History of Pennsylvania

was clerk of the House of Representatives for several years and
secretary to the Canal Commissioners. In 1842 he removed to
Pittsburg and practiced his profession. About six months before
his term as Governor had expired, he was forced to resign on ac-
count of shattered health. He died July 30, 1848, and his dust
reposes with that of his kindred, at the Trappe, his native place.

WILLIAM FREAME JOHNSTON (1848-1852), whose father
was Scotch-Irish, was born at Greensburg, Westmoreland county,
1808. He received a common school and academic education,
studied law and began the practice of his profession in Armstrong
county. He soon rose to prominence and became district at-
torney. He next represented his county in the House, and later,
his district in the Senate. In the financial crisis of 1837, he
proposed a measure of relief in the Legislature, whose salutary
effects made him very popular. After his term as Governor, he
was engaged in the manufacture of iron and the production of coal
and petroleum. He was appointed Collector of the Port at Phila-
delphia by President Johnson, but the Senate would not confirm
him on account of its hostility to the administration. He died at
Pittsburg in 1872, and was buried there.

WILLIAM BIGLER (1852-55) was born of German parents, at
Shermansburg, Cumberland county. While William was quite
young, the family removed to Mercer county, where the father died
and left them struggling on on a small backwoods farm. It would
have been a great solace in his dying hour if he could have seen
the future of two of his sons, one of whom, John, became Gover-
nor of California, and the other, William, Governor of Pennsyl-
vania. Burdened with the support of their widowed mother, the
boys had to be content with a meager schooling. William learned
the printing trade, and was employed for several years by his
brother John, in the office of the Centre Democrat, published at
Bellefonte. Andrew G. Curtin, afterwards Governor, influenced
William to commence the publication of a politieal paper at Clear-
field. Under many misgivings, he founded the Clearfield Democrat,
and laid the foundation of his political career. Disposing of his
paper, he went into the lumber business and became the fore-
most lumber merchant on the West Branch. He was elected to the
State Senate in 1841, and in his own county received every vote
cast but one. He was elected Speaker twice, and reé€lected to the
Senate twice. His great service in the Legislature was rendered
in advocating the bill giving the right of way for the construction of
the Pennsylvania Central railroad. A great effort was made then to
connect Philadelphia and Pittsburg by means of the Baltimore and
Ohio railroad, through Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and the west-
ern counties of Pennsylvania, instead of by a direct route across
the Alleghenies. After his retirement from the Governor’s office,
he became president of the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad Com-
pany, and represented the State one term in the United States
Biographical Sketches 299

Senate. At the close of his public life, he devoted himself to his
business affairs and to the welfare of his town—Clearfield—where
he died and was buried in 1880.

JAMES POLLOCK (1855-58), whose ancestors emigrated from
the north of Ireland and settled in Chester county, was born at
Milton, Northumberland county, 1810. He was educated at the
academy of his native town and at Princeton College. His schol-
arly attainments secured him the degree of LL.D. from his alma
mater and from Jefferson College. Soon after being admitted
to the bar, he was elected district attorney of Northumberland
county. He represented his district in Congress from 1843 to 1849,
and was then appointed president judge of the district including
Northumberland. After the expiration of his official term, Gover-
nor Pollock resumed the practice of law at Milton. He bore a
prominent part in the convention at Washington, between the
North and South, in 1860, to prevent an appeal to arms for the
settlement of the strife between the two sections. He was Director
of the Mint at Philadelphia from 1861 to 1866, and was instru-
mental in getting the motto, “In God we trust,” placed upon the
coins. He received the same appointment again under Grant’s
administration. Mr. Pollock remained an honored and respected
citizen until his death, which occurred in Lock Haven, in 1890: His
remains are interred in the Milton cemetery.

WILLIAM FISHER PACKER (1858-61), of Quaker ancestry,
was born in 1807, in Howard township, Centre county, his father -
having removed from Chester county. Like his predecessors,
Pollock and Bigler, William was left fatherless when a child, and
had to encounter the hardships of life early. He learned the art
of printing before he was fifteen, but, after working at the trade
for a few years, studied law at Williamsport. However, he never
applied for admission to the bar. Instead, he bought an interest
in the Williamsport Gazette, and later helped to establish the
Keystone, a Democratic paper at Harrisburg. He served on the
Board of Canal Commissioners, was Auditor-General, and a member
of the House and Senate before he became Governor. While in
the Legislature, he took the leading part in passing the bill to in-
corporate the company that built the Northern Central railroad
above Harrisburg. At the close of his term as Governor, Mr.
Packer, owing to declining health, retired to his home in Williams-
port, where he died and was laid to rest in 1870.

ANDREW GREGG CURTIN (1861-1867) was born, 1817, in
Bellefonte, Centre county. His father was a native of Ireland,
one of the first iron manufacturers in central Pennsylvania, and a
man of liberal education and great prominence. Andrew was edu-
cated in private schools at Bellefonte and Harrisburg, and in the
academy at Milton. He read law at home, and took a course at
Dickinson College. He commenced the practice in 1839, and at
once took high rank in his profession. He entered the political
300 A History of Pennsylvania

arena to win. After helping Harrison and Clay and Taylor in
their Presidential contests, his first prize came in the form of Sec-
retary of the Commonwealth and Superintendent of Common
Schools, under Pollock. As School Superintendent, he labored
hard to enable the law establishing the county superintendency to
take root in public opinion. Governor Curtin was called to rule
the State at the most critical period of its history; but he was equal
to the occasion, and fulfilled every expectation that his inaugural
address of 1861 had aroused in the minds of the people. So ar-
duous were his duties that, at the end of his first term, his health
demanded a change, and in November, 1864, he sailed for Cuba, to
spend the winter months there. In 1868, he was a prominent
candidate for Vice-President on the ticket with Grant, and when
the latter had been elected President, he made Curtin Minister to
Russia, a position he held till 1872. Pennsylvania’s * War Gover-
nor” will always be held in the dearest remembrance. He de-
voted every moment of his time, every thought of his mind, and
every fiber of his strength, to the success of the Union army and
the welfare of the boys from Pennsylvania who fought in that
army. Yea, more! From the time of that cold Thanksgiving
morning when the two waifs, begging at his house in Harrisburg,
told him their father had been killed in battle, his great heart also
had a place for the soldiers’ orphans. After retiring from public
life, Mr. Curtin resided in Bellefonte until his death, in 1894. His
remains rest in Union Cemetery.

JOHN WHITE GEARY (1867-73), of Scotch-Irish descent,
was born near Mount Pleasant, Westmoreland county, 1819. Be-
fore he had graduated at Jefferson College, his father died and he
had to teach school to finish his course. After a brief experience
as a merchant’s clerk in Pittsburg, he became a civil engineer.
When the Mexican war broke out, his career as a soldier began
with the appointment of lieutenant-colonel. Having won distine-
tion at Chapultepec, Geary was made Colonel, and first comman-
der of the city of Mexico after its capture.
Later, when the conquests of the war had been
put under the control of the United States,
Colonel Geary was made postmaster of San
Francisco, then alcalde of the city, and finally its
first mayor. Upon his return to Pennsylvania,
he lived on his farm in Westmoreland county
until 1856, when he was made Governor of the
> Territory of Kansas. He found the anti-slavery
and pro-slavery parties arrayed in arms against
each other ; but he disbanded their armies and
/ sent them home. Under his course, the cause

James Buchanan, ©f slavery would have been crushed in Kansas
then, but he resigned when Buchanan was

elected, because he felt that he was no longer wanted. Early in
1861, he raised the 28th Pennsylvania regiment and rose to the

 
“Biographical Sketches 301

'

rank of brigadier-general. His command won glory at Fredericks-
burg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Lookout Mountain, and in Sher-
man’s march to the sea. After the capture of Savannah, General
Geary was made Military Governor. His ripe experience and
patriotic services made him a great favorite for Governor of Penn-
sylvania in 1866. His second term expired January 21, 1873, and
he died suddenly on the 8th of the following month, at the Capital
city, where he was buried.

JOHN FREDERICK HARTRANFT (1873-79) was born in New
Hanover township, Montgomery county, in 1830. As his name
indicates, he was of German descent. Preparing for college at
Treemount Seminary, Norristown, and taking the freshman year at
Marshall College, Mercersburg, he graduated at Union College,
Schenectady, in 1853. He read law, and was admitted to the bar
at Norristown in 1859. Two years later, the young lawyer raised
the 4th Pennsylvania regiment and helped to fight the battle of
Bull Run, as a member of General Franklin’s staff, the three
months’ enlistment of his regiment having expired the day before.
He then organized the 51st regiment, led the famous charge that
carried the stone bridge at Antietam, participated in all the
engagements of the 9th corps, including Vicksburg ; was made
brigadier-general in 1864, gallantly recaptured Fort Steadman,
and was breveted major-general. After the war, he served as
Auditor-General of the State two terms. When he retired from the
Governorship, he was made major-general of the National Guard,
and served suecessively as Postmaster and Collector of the Port, in
Philadelphia. He died at Norristown, in 1889, and his body rests
by the banks of the Schuylkill. An equestrian statue has been
erected to his memory on the Capitol grounds in Harrisburg. *

HENRY MARTIN HOYT (1879-83), a descendant of an old
New England family, was born at Kingston, Luzerne county, in
1830. He worked upon his father’s farm until he was grown.
Then he prepared for college and entered Lafayette, but finished
his education at Williams College, Mass., in 1849. He was a
teacher in a high school at Towanda and in Wyoming Semi-
nary at Kingston. He was admitted to the bar at Wilkes-Barre,
in 1853. Aft the outbreak of the civil war he helped to raise the
52d regiment, and was made lieutenant-colonel. For meritorious
service he was mustered out at the close of the war as brevet
brigadier-general. He served as Judge in the courts of Luzerne
and as Internal Revenue Collector before he became Governor.
When he left Harrisburg he practiced law in Philadelphia and
Luzerne, and gained no little reputation as a historian and po-
litical economist. He died in Wilkes-Barre in 1892, and is buried
there.

ROBERT EMORY PATTISON (1883-87 and 1891-95), whose
ancestors dwelt across Mason and Dixon’s Line, is the son of a
prominent Methodist clergyman, and was born at Quantico, Som-
302 A History of Pennsylvania

erset county, Maryland, in 1850. The father removing to Phila-
delphia, Robert was educated in the public schools of that city,
graduating as the valedictorian of his class in the Central High
School. He was admitted to the bar in 1872, and five years later
was elected City Controller, an office which his valuable services
enabled him to hold for two terms, though he did not belong to
the ruling party. On the strength of the popularity thus ac-
quired, he was nominated and elected Governor in 1882, the
youngest that the State has ever had, being but thirty-two years
old. Having spent four years as a private citizen, he was again -
elected Governor. Since his retirement in 1895, he has been
living in Philadelphia.

JAMES ADAMS BEAVER (1887-91), whose forefathers
came from the Palatinate, in Germany, was born at Millerstown,
Perry county, in 1837. He was prepared for college at Pine Grove
Mills Academy, Centre county, and graduated at Jefferson Col-
lege, Canonsburg, in 1856. He studied law at Bellefonte and
began his professional career there. When the civil war com-
menced, he entered the army as first lieutenant of the Bellefonte
Fencibles. He rose to be lieutenant-colonel of the 45th regiment,
colonel of the 148th, a regiment mostly recruited in his own county,
and, for distinguished conduct at Cold Harbor, to that of brevet
brigadier-general. He was several times wounded and spent
weary weeks in the hospital. At Ream’s Station, where he lost
his leg, he joined his regiment when he had barely recovered from
a ghastly wound in his side, received in the first assault upon
Petersburg. Mr. Beaver became a prominent lawyer and business
man after the war, earnest in every duty and greatly devoted to
religion and education. In 1895 he was appointed one of the
judges of the Superior Court.

DANIEL HARTMAN HASTINGS (1895-99) was born in Lamar
township, Clinton county, in 1849. His father was a native of
Ireland, and his mother, of Scotland. Daniel passed his boyhood
days on a farm, attended the public schools, and before he was
fifteen years of age taught a school in his own neighborhood. In
1867 he had attained such standing as a teacher that he went to
Bellefonte to take charge of the academy at that place. He next
became principal of the public schools of Bellefonte, filling the
position for seven years and improving himself by private study at
the same time. After editing the Bellefonte Republican, he read
law and was admitted to the bar in 1875. He subsequently became
interested in coal mining in Cambria county. It was while on
business at Hastings, of that county, that the memorable flood
occurred at Johnstown. Being Adjutant-General of the State, he
made it his duty to assume control of the great work of relief ex-
tended to the sufferers, and won high praises for his services. He
was a candidate for Governor in 1890, but was defeated in thi
convention by twelve votes. :
-

Biographical Sketches 303

WILLIAM ALEXIS STONE (1899-1903), of New England and
Pennsylvania German descent, was born in Delmar township, Tioga
county, 1846. His early life was spent on his father’s farm. He
was educated at the State Normal School in Mansfield. He joined
the army before he was eighteen years old, as a private in the 187th
regiment, and participated in the siege of Petersburg. He was
several times promoted and was advanced to the grade of second
lieutenant in 1865. After the war, Governor Hartranft appointed
him assistant adjutant-general of the Thirteenth division, Na-
tional Guard, with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. He studied
law and was admitted to the bar in 1870, first practicing in Wells-
boro and later in Pittsburg, where he served as United States
Distriet Attorney for the Western district of Pennsylvania. Be-
fore becoming Governor, Mr. Stone served as a member of Con-
gress for eight years.

OTHER HISTORICAL PERSONS

WILLIAM ALLEN, of Philadelphia, was Chief Justice of
Pennsylvania from 1750 to 1774. He aided Benjamin West, and
cooperated with Dr. Franklin in founding the College of Philadel-
phia. He bought the land for the State House and paid for it with
his own money. He believed in the cause of the colonies, but not
in revolution or independence. He went to England in 1774, and
there advocated a plan for restoring harmony. His sons agreed
with him in sentiment, and all were on both sides of the contest at
one time or another. Andrew was on the Council of Safety and in
the Continental Congress, but deserted the cause in 1776, and his
estate was confiscated. William was with Montgomery at Quebec,
but in 1778 raised the regiment of Pennsylvania Loyalists. James
took no part, but remained quiet in the country.

JOHN ARMSTRONG, of Carlisle, after his daring achieve-
ment at Kittanning, was of continued service to the frontier set-
tlements during the French and Indian war, and in the Revolution
he rose to be a major-general. He was at Fort Moultrie, and
commanded the militia at Brandywine and Germantown. He served
twice in the Continental Congress.

JACK ARMSTRONG, known as “Captain Jack,” the “black
hunter,” the “black rifle,” the “wild hunter of the Juniata,” the
“black hunter of the forest,” was from Cumberland county. He
entered the wilds of the Juniata, built himself a cabin and lived by
hunting and fishing. One evening when he returned from his
sports, he found his wife and children murdered and his cabin
burned. From that time on he forsook civilized life, lived in caves,
and protected the frontier settlers from the Indians, asking no re-
ward but the gratitude of those whom he rescued. “Jack’s Nar-
rows,” a narrow passage of the Juniata through Jack’s mountain,
below Huntingdon, was named after him.
»

304 A History of Pennsylvania

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON was a worthy successor of Alex-
ander Wilson in bird-lore Though born in Louisiana, he spent
a number of years in Pennsylvania. His father, in 1798, had
bought him the Millgrove farm on the Perkiomen, near Schuylkill
Falls. Here he married the daughter of an Englishman, who was
his neighbor. Though he had previously formed a passion for
birds, it was on this farm, where he had much leisure, that he
pored over the idea of a great work on ornithology. He sold his
place in 1810 and with the proceeds sailed down the Ohio, with his
wife and child, on a bird sketching expedition. He spent years in
American woods. In 1824 he went to Philadelphia, where he met
Charles Lucien Bonaparte, who encouraged him to publish the re-
sults of his researches. After two years more of exploration, he
went to England to get subscribers for his work on “The Birds of
America.” He revisited America three times to make further re-
searches, and died in 1851.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN BACHE was born in Philadelphia in
1769. His father had come from England, and married Sarah,
the only daughter of Benjamin Franklin. The lad accompanied
his grandfather, Dr. Franklin, to Paris, pursued his studies there
and acquired a knowledge of printing. On his return to Phila-
delphia he graduated at the College of Philadelphia, and in 1790
published the first number of the General Advertiser, whose name
was afterwards changed to the Aurora and General Advertiser.
This paper became an ardent champion of the French Republic,
and represented the anti-Federal party. Bache died of yellow
fever in 1798.

JOHN BARTRAM, born in what is now Delaware county, in
1699, was the father of American botany. He established a
botanical garden —the first ever attempted on this side of the
Atlantic —on the west bank of the Schuylkill, a little below
Philadelphia, near Grey’s Ferry. His mind was probably di-
rected to a serious study of botany by James Logan. By the aid
of friends Bartram was enabled to travel and gather specimens, _
many of which were sent to Europe and eagerly studied there.
His son William devoted himself to the same pursuit, and, being a
single person, he traveled extensively, and on his return lived a
life of seclusion at the old homestead.

EDWARD BIDDLE was born in Philadelphia, and served as
an officer in the French and Indian war. He then became emi-
nent as a lawyer in Reading. He entered the Assembly before
the Revolution, became its Speaker, and was a member of the first
Continental Congress. He was also a member of Congress in
1776, and one of the foremost advocates of independence, but
could not attend the sessions on account of a lingering disease, to
which he succumbed in 1779.

NICHOLAS BIDDLE was born in Philadelphia in 1750. At
the age of fifteen he was left with three other shipwrecked sailors
Biographical Sketches 305

on an uninhabited island in the West Indies, and was not rescued
for two months. He next entered the British navy; but soon re-
signed in order to join a Polar expedition. Horatio Nelson, the
hero of Trafalgar, was on board the same vessel. At the outbreak
of the Revolution Biddle was placed in charge of a vessel on the
Delaware, but afterwards was sent to the Bahamas, where he
made valuable captures. His next achievement was the capture
of eleven vessels and several hundred men, on a cruise to the
banks of Newfoundland. He had only one vessel with which to
take these prizes and bring them back to Philadelphia. Biddle
was now placed in command of the best ship of the navy and
ordered to the West Indies. There, in 1778, he fell in with a
British ship of superior armament, but would have won had not
the magazine exploded and killed him and all his erew but four.

JAMES BIDDLE was a native of Philadelphia. He served in
the war with Tripoli, and was taken prisoner. In the war of 1812
he was a lieutenant on the Wasp when she captured the Frolic.
He was put in command of the prize, but both ships were captured
and taken to Bermuda. After his exchange he commanded the
Hornet, and was wounded in the capture of the British Penquin.
Besides a gold medal, Congress gave him the rank of captain.

JEREMIAH SULLIVAN BLACK was born in the Glades,
Somerset county, and was educated in a log school-house near
his father’s farm. He studied law and settled at York. At the
early age of thirty-two he was elevated to the bench, reaching the
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania nine years later, and serving in it
eighteen years. He became Attorney-General in Buchanan’s
administration, and towards its close was transferred to the posi-
tion of Secretary of State. Upon his retirement from office, in
1861, he resumed the practice of law at York.

HUGH HENRY BRACKENRIDGE came to America from
Scotland at the age of five and settled, with the rest of the family,
in York county. He graduated at Princeton by teaching school at
intervals and tutoring at college. He thought nothing of walk-
ing twenty or thirty miles to get the loan of a book or newspaper.
He taught school after graduation, and early evinced his ability as
a writer. In 1776 he went to Philadelphia and edited the United
States Magazine. He was licensed to preach, and served as chap-
lain in the Revolutionary army; but he studied law and settled in
Pittsburg. Here he distinguished himself as a lawyer, a politician,
a judge, and a writer. Brackenridge was mixed up to some ex-
tent with the Whisky Insurrection, and he published an account
of it. He was Judge of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania from
1799 to 1816. His chief work as an author is “Modern Chivalry,”
in which he gives an admirable picture of society in western
Pennsylvania at the close of the eighteenth century.

WILLIAM BRADFORD was one of the Quakers who, in

T
306 A History of Pennsylvania

1682, landed in the woods where Philadelphia now stands. He
was the first printer in the Province, but after a time was charged
with printing seditious writings, though not convieted. How-
ever, he had become obnoxious to the settlers and went to New
York, where, in 1725, he started its first newspaper, The New
York Gazette. For thirty years he was the only printer in the
colony of New York. His son Andrew, born in Philadelphia in
1686, was the only printer in Pennsylvania till about 1725, and he
started, on December 22, 1719, the third newspaper in the colo-
nies and the first in Philadelphia, the American Weekly Mercur Y.
He also had a book store, and was postmaster of the city for a time.

SAMUEL BRADY was born in Shippensburg, and removed
with his father to Union county, where he became a typical fron-
tiersman. He joined the Revolutionary army at Boston when but
seventeen, and at the battle of Monmouth won the rank of cap-
tain. Like Van Campen, he was now selected to fight the Indians,
and was stationed at Fort Pitt. In this capacity he won a reputa-
tion for skill and daring that was not surpassed in all America.
He hunted and killed Indians like game in the forest. He shot
one Indian off a horse while the savage was carrying away a woman
and her child; he killed three others while they were sitting on a
log planning how to make sure of his scalp; and he escaped from
death at the stake by pushing a squaw with a papoose on her
back into the fire that had been kindled for him.

CHARLES BROCKDEN BROWN was born in Philadelphia
in 1771, having descended from those who came to Pennsylvania
in the good ship Welcome. He was the first American of note
who made literature a profession, He established the Literary
Magazine and American Register in 1803 ; but discontinued it at
the end of five years. Two of his novels, ® Arthur Mervyn” and

3 “Edgar Huntley,” attained
to the rank of standard
romance; but most of them
have long since been for-
gotten, though they were
read with avidity in his
day. Brown lived in hum-
ble circumstances, in a
“low, two-story brick house,
standing a little in from the
street, with never a tree or
a shrub near it.” He died
in 1810.

JAMES BUCHANAN,
fifteenth President of the
United States, was born at
“Stony Batter,” near Mercersburg, Franklin county, April 23,
1791. He was the son of a Scotch-Irish trader, and was educated

 

Birthplace of James Buchanan.
Biographical Sketches 307

at Dickinson College. He began the practice of law in Lancas-
ter, 1812, and soon entered the Legislature. For ten years from
1821, he was a member of Congress. After serving as Minister
to Russia one year, he entered the United States Senate in 1834,
and continued in that body till he was made Secretary of State
by President Polk. In this position he had to settle the questions
of u5° 40 or fight,” of the acquisition of Texas, and of the
Mexican war. Pierce sent him to England as Minister, and he
was present at the Ostend conference, which was to bring about
the sale of Cuba to the United States. In 1856 he was elected
President, receiving besides the vote of several Northern States
that of every slaveholding State except Maryland. Towards the
close of his term, especially after Lincoln’s election, the slave
power made his administration most difficult, and his so-called
“temporizing policy” was severely criticised. After his career in
the White House he lived in retirement on his estate near Lan-
caster, known as Wheatland. Here he died June 1, 1868.

THOMAS H. BURROWES, a native of Lancaster county, was
educated at Quebec and in Trinity College, Ireland. He became
a lawyer and practiced his profession in Lancaster. After serving
in the Legislature, he was appointed Secretary of the Common-
wealth by Governor Ritner, in 1835, and as such was ex-officio
Superintendent of Common Schools, and entrusted with the execu-
tion of the free school law passed the year before. His hand
fashioned much of the school legislation between 1836 and the end
of his second term as Superintendent of Common Schools, in 1863.
Thus this man, who confessed in 1836 that he “knew no more about
the details of schools than about the local geography of the moon,”
became a pillar in the structure of public education in Pennsylvania.

ZEBULON BUTLER was born in Connecticut, and was a
member of the committee of three under whose direction the first
successful settlement was made in the Wyoming valley by the
New Englanders. He was one of the judges while the valley was
attached to Connecticut as the town (township) of Westmoreland.
He was an officer in the Revolution. Being home at the time of
the Massacre of Wyoming, he was the leader of the settlers on that
dreadful July day, 1778. Ho died in Luzerne county, 1795.

JOHN CADWALADER, of Welsh descent and born in Phila-
delphia, was commander of ® The Silk Stocking Company” when
‘ the Revolutionary movement began, and at once entered the
service of the army. He was made brigadier-general and placed
in command of the Pennsylvania militia. He cooperated in the
capture of the Hessians and was present as a volunteer at
Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth. When the “Conway
cabal” was formed, he challenged Thomas Conway to a duel and
shot him in the mouth, but was himself unhurt.

SIMON CAMERON was a native of Lancaster county. He
308 A History of Pennsylvania

worked at the printer’s trade in his boyhood and youth, and ed-
ited a newspaper in Doylestown and at Harrisburg after he had
become of age. He next became interested in banking and the
construction of railroads, and soon acquired wealth. He was
elected United States Senator by the Democrats in 1843 ; but
after the repeal of the Missouri Compromise he became a Re-
publican. In 1857 he was again elected Senator, and served till
1861, when Lincoln appointed him Secretary of War. Not agree-
ing with the President on the question of freeing and arming the
slaves, Cameron resigned and accepted the post of Minister at St.
Petersburg. He was once more elected Senator in 1867, and
served continuously for ten years. He died in 1889.

ANDREW CARNEGIE came from Scotland at the age of ten
years, his family settling in Allegheny. He began life there in a
cotton factory, then became a messenger boy for a telegraph com-
pany and worked himself up to the position of superintendent.
He made a fortune in oil, became interested in iron works, and soon
was the largest manufacturer of iron, steel rails, and coke in the
world. His public gifts, in the form of libraries to Pittsburg,
Allegheny, and other places have been princely. His success in
Pennsylvania was so gratifying to his admirers in Great Britain
that a seat in Parliament was offered to him and the freedom of
cities extended.

GEORGE CLYMER, whose name is affixed to the Declaration
of Independence, was born in Philadelphia, and fell heir to the
mercantile business of his uncle. When the opposition to Eng-
lish rule became active, he resolved to live as a freeman or perish
as a patriot. He was chairman of Philadelphia’s tea committee,
Continental treasurer, member of the Council of Safety, and a
delegate in Congress at various times after July 20, 1776. In this
body he labored hard and took high rank. His family lived in
Chester county, and when he visited them he did so only for a
night at a time. After the Revolution Mr. Clymer entered the
Assembly, where his greatest service was that performed in behalf
of abolishing the death penalty in all but the most flagrant cases
of erime. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention,
and of the first Congress. After serving as Revenue Collector of
Pennsylvania during the Whisky Rebellion, he retired to private
life and died in 1813, at Morrisville, Bucks county.

JAY COOKE was born in Ohio, and entered a banking house
in Philadelphia at the age of seventeen, becoming a partner when
he arrived at his majority. He established the firm of Jay Cooke
& Co. in 1861, and placed most of the loans of the United States
during the Civil War. His success as the agent of the Govern-
ment gave him the name of the “Financier of the Rebellion.”
The house prospered until it became the fiscal agent of the North-
ern Pacific Railroad Company. He failed September 19, 1873,
“Black Friday,” and precipitated the panic of that year. Though
Biographical Sketches 309

Cooke lost his fortune, his character was unsullied. His mag-
nifieent mansion — Ogontz, named after an Indian chief who was
his friend in childhood —is now ®“Ogontz Seminary for Young
Ladies,” and is situated at Chelton Hills, Montgomery county.

MARGARET CORBIN was another heroine like Mollie
Pitcher.” She was wounded and utterly disabled at Fort Wash-
ington, while she heroically filled the post of her husband, who
was killed by her side, serving a piece of artillery. Her name is
found on the rolls of the Invalid Regiment of Pennsylvania, as it
was discharged in 1783. She was born in Franklin county, and
died in Westmoreland county about 1800.

TENCH COXE, born in Philadelphia and educated there, be-
came a merchant at the age of twenty-one —in the year of the
Declaration of Independence. He turned royalist and left the
city to join the British. He returned with Howe and was arrested
and paroled after the evacuation of the city. Then he turned
Whig and entered upon a long political career. He sat in the
Annapolis convention, in the Continental Congress, and held
other high places ; but veered from one side of party politics to
another. His claims to a place in history lie in his labors for
American manufactures and his writings on political economy. He
may justly be called the father of the American cotton industry.

WILLIAM CRAMP was born in Kensington, now in Phila-
delphia. He began ship building on the Delaware in 1830, when
he was but twenty-three years old. At first he built only barks
and brigs, but he soon received orders for larger vessels. As his
sons grew up and learned the business, he took them into partner-
ship, under the name of William Cramp & Sons. The Civil War
heralded them throughout the world as chiefs in their craft. It
was then that the Delaware became known as the “Clyde of
America.” “New Ironsides” was built for the Government in
seven months after the order had been received. Foreign nations
have had war vessels built at Kensington, and our own navy has
received its finest marine warriors from the Cramps. William
Cramp died in 1879. .

GEORGE M. DALLAS, a lawyer of Philadelphia, mayor of
that city, and district attorney, was United States Senator from
1831 to 1832, when he became Attorney-General of the State. For
two years he held the post of Minister to Russia. Dallas was
elected Vice-President on the ticket with Polk, in 1844. He was
put on the ticket to hold the protectionist vote in Pennsylvania for
Polk, as against Clay; but in spite of this he gave the casting vote
in the Senate for the Walker Tariff of 1846. His last public office
was that of Minister to England, under Buchanan’s administration.

STEPHEN DECATUR was born in Maryland while his father
sojourned there on account of British occupation cf Philadelphia.
When the family returned in 1779, Stephen was three months old.
310 A History of Pennsylvania

He began service in the navy in 1798. In 1804 he distinguished
himself by destroying the Philadelphia, which had fallen into the
hands of Tripoli. In the war of 1812 he captured the British ship
Macedonian, and, after a stubborn fight, had to surrender the un-
seaworthy President. In 1815 he performed a most valuable service
for his country by humbling the Barbary powers, with a squadron
of ten vessels. He concluded a treaty by which tribute was
abolished and prisoners and property restored, thus adding another
jewel to the erown of the American navy. He ended his career in
a duel with Commodore Barron in 1820.

WILLIAM DUANE was the successor of Bache (see p. 304)
in the management of the Aurora. He was a native of the north-
ern part of New York. When a lad of five, he was brought to
Philadelphia by his widowed mother, but soon afterwards taken to
Ireland, where he was educated and apprenticed to a printer.
Coming back to Philadelphia in 1796, he was employed as one of
the editors of the Aurora. After Bache’s death, the paper was
known for years as “Duane’s paper” and was a powerful instru-
ment in the organization and upbuilding of the Republican, or
Democratic party.

REV. JACOB DUCHE was born in Philadelphia, and graduated
at the college of that city, completing his studies in England. As
rector of Christ Church, he was a man of great influence when the
Revolution commenced. He was chaplain of Congress in 1776,
and gave all his salary for the relief of soldiers’ widows and
orphans. But his loyalty to the American cause failed when the
British took possession of Philadelphia. He helped to welcome them,
and wrote a letter to Washington urging him to give up a hopeless
struggle. The letter was laid before Congress, and Duché fled to
England. He returned some time after the war, but his influence
and position were gone.

JOHN ELDER, one of the first clergymen in the vicinity of
Harrisburg, was a Presbyterian from Ireland, a graduate of the
University of Edinburgh, a scholarly man and of varied ability.
He was pastor of the congregation at Paxtang for nearly sixty
years. During the troublesome times with the Indians, he was
colonel of the Paxtang Rangers. He and the men of his congre-
gation frequently carried their rifles with them to echureh, so con-
stant was their danger from the savages. The graveyard at Pax-
tang, where Colonel Elder lies buried, and that at Derry Church,
both in Dauphin county, are Meccas for the Scotch-Irish.

OLIVER EVANS was a native of Delaware, but early in life
came to Philadelphia, where he made the first high-pressure
steam engine and the first steam dredging machine used in this
country. This machine was put on wheels and propelled itself to
the Schuylkill river, where it was fitted with a steam paddle and
navigated down the Schuylkill and up the Delaware a short dis-
Biographical Sketches 311

tance. It is supposed to have been the first steam carriage on
land in America. He urged the construction of railroads with
rails of wood or iron, but had not the means to carry his ideas into
execution.

JAMES EWING was a native of Lancaster county, but early
in life settled in York. He was a lieutenant in Braddock’s expedi-
tion, served with distinction through the whole of the Revolution,
and rose to the rank of brigadier-general.

JOHN FENNO was a native of Boston. He established the
Gazette of the United States in New York, when the Government
under the Constitution began, and removed it to Philadelphia the
next year in order to publish it at the capital of the nation.
Fenno’s paper became a strong advocate of the Federal party and
bitterly opposed the “French faction” in the United States. He
died of yellow fever in 1798, four days after the death of his
political antagonist Bache, of the Adwrora.

WILLIAM FINDLEY, a native of Ireland, came to Pennsyl-
vania in early life, served in the Revolution, and settled in West-
moreland county, where he became active in politics. He was a
member of the Legislature and of the State convention that
adopted the Federal Constitution. This he actively opposed on
the ground of its centralized power. He was eleven times elected
to Congress, serving from 1791 to 1799 and from 1803 to 1817.
He was an ardent supporter of the Jeffersonian party and was a
great power as a speaker.

THOMAS FITZSIMMONS came to Philadelphia from Ire-
land and engaged in the mercantile business. He served in the
Revolution as captain of a company, and his firm subscribed
$20,000 for the support of the army. He was a member of the
Assembly for many years and a delegate in the Continental
Congress from 1782-3. After his services in the Constitutional
Convention in 1787, he served in the Federal Congress from 1789
to 1795.

JOHN WEISS FORNEY was born in Lancaster, in 1817, and
learned the printer’s trade. He went to Philadelphia and for a
long time edited The Pennsylvanian. He was clerk of the House
of Representatives at Washington, and while in that position ed-
ited the Union. In 1857 he began the Philadelphia Press, and
continued to be its editor till 1877. Under his management the
paper became a very powerful organ, receiving and inflicting many
heavy blows. It was popularly known as “Forney’s Press.” In
1878, Colonel Forney established Progress, a weekly literary jour-
nal, modeled after the London World. He died in 1881, widely
known and deeply mourned, having enjoyed the friendship of all
the leading men of the nation during his long career as a journalist.

JOHN FITCH was born in Connecticut, and was a watchmaker
312 A History of Pennsylvania

by trade. He made guns for the Continental Army, and was with
the troops at Valley Forge. Robert Fulton is said to have had
access to his drawings and papers, and it was proved by the
courts, in 1817, that his inventions and those of Fitch were in
substance the same. Fitch once said that the day would come
“when some more potent man will get fame and riches from my
invention, but nobody will believe that poor John Fitch can do
anything worthy of attention.” After his enterprise on the Dela-
ware had failed he went to France, but the French Revolution pre-
vented a renewal of his steam navigation there. He finally went
to Kentucky, where he had some land. Becoming involved in
law suits with intruders on his possessions there, he committed
suicide in 1798.

ROBERT FULTON, the successful inventor of the steamboat,
was born at Little Britain, Lancaster county, in 1765. He was
at first a portrait painter, and at the age of
twenty-one went to England. There he
soon became interested in engineering and
inventions. He next lived in France, where
he invented the torpedo and vainly tried to
get Napoleon, as well as the British Min-
istry, to adopt it. He returned to America
in 1806, and the next year the Clermont
steamed from New York to Albany. He was
afterwards employed by the Government in
projecting navigation schemes; but owing to

=, SY lawsuits over his patents, he never amassed

a fortune from his inventions, though they

Bosnian brought fortunes to other men, and were of

the greatest importance in developing the interior of the United
States. He died in New York in 1815.

   

ALBERT GALLATIN, who made a lasting mark on the sur-
face of national politics, was born at Jeneva, Switzerland, and
became one of the most illustrious American statesmen. He was
educated in the university of his native city and eame to Ameriea
in 1780, at the age of nineteen. After varied experiences he
settled in Fayette county, where he founded New Geneva and
established glass-works. He soon entered the Legislature, and
in 1793 was elected United States Senator, but was not admitted
to his seat on account of a question raised about the time of
his citizenship. After his services as a mediator in the Whisky
Insurrection, he entered Congress and distinguished himself in
financial matters. From 1801 to 1813 he was Secretary of the
Treasury, and made a record as one of the ablest American finan-
ciers. He was one of the commissioners that negotiated the treaty
of Ghent, doing more than anyone else to close the war of 1812.
Madison offered to make him Secretary of the Treasury once more,
but he declined, and accepted the place of Minister to France,
Biographical Sketches 313

which post he held seven years. In 1826 he was sent as Envoy
Extraordinary to Great Britain. After retiring from political life,
he engaged in banking in New York city, and died at Astoria, on
Long Island, in 1849.

JOSEPH GALLOWAY was Speaker of the Pennsylvania As-
sembly from 1766 to 1774, and he proposed a form of government
in the Provincial Congress favorable to the Crown. When the
Howes issued their proclamation in 1776, granting amnesty to such
Americans as would forsake their revolutionary course, Gallo-
way’s courage failed him and he turned Tory, together with the
Allens, one of the most noted families in the Province.

“ Galloway has fled and joined the venal Howe;
To prove his baseness, see him eringe and bow,
A traitor to his country and its laws,
A friend to tyrants and their cursed cause,” ete.
His estates, with that of other Tories, were confiscated, and he went
to England.

STEPHEN GIRARD was a descendant of a French seafaring
family, living near Bordeaux. When a boy of eight he lost his
right eye and a little later his mother. Doubly unfortunate,
Stephen was anxious to escape from the surroundings of his youth.
Receiving several thousand dollars from his father, he sailed as a
cabin boy to Santo Domingo, made some money and formed a love
for the sea. At the age of twenty-eight he sailed from Bordeaux
as captain, never to return. Two years later, in 1776, he came to
Philadelphia and stocked a small store with a cargo he had brought
from the West Indies. He amassed a large fortune in foreign
trade, his ships making voyages to Europe, India and China. He
was very frugal in private life, but generous in public affairs. He
worked in a hospital for several hours each day during the yellow
fever epidemic, and staked his fortune to assist the country of his
adoption in the war of 1812. He gave large sums to charity, and
founded Girard College, which continually supports and educates
some two thousand orphan boys within its walls.

DAVID M’MURTRIE GREGG was born in Huntingdon in
1833, graduated at West Point, and was assigned to the dragoons.
After serving in several Indian campaigns, he entered the stern
gervice of actual war in 1861. He began as first lieutenant in the
cavalry and rose to be brevetted major-general of volunteers. He
participated in most of the battles of the Army of the Potomac,
and greatly distinguished himself as a commander of cavalry. His
sterling qualities as a private citizen have been recognized on
several occasions since the war. He was appointed Consul at
Prague, Bohemia, in 1874, and was Auditor-General of the State
from 1892 to 1895. He lives in Reading.

GALUSHA A. GROW came to Pennsylvania from Connecti-
cut in 1847, at the age of twenty-three, and settled in Susque-
hanna county. He represented the * Wilmot district” in Congress
314 A History of Pennsylvania

)
from 1851 to 1863, occupying the Speaker’s chair during the trying
“time of 1861 to 1863. He then engaged in extensive business enter-
prises, being president of a railroad and residing for a while in
Texas. He declined a nomination for Congress in 1879, but was
a candidate for United States Senator in 1881, in a long, hard-
contested struggle in the Legislature. He was then out of poli-
ties until 1894, when he was elected Congressman-at-large by the
enormous majority of 188,000. He has been in Congress ever
since —as tall and erect as in the days before the Civil War,
when Keitt, of South Carolina, assaulted him on the floor of the
House and got the worst of the encounter.

WINFIELD SCOTT HANCOCK was born in Montgomery
county in 1824, and graduated from West Point at the age of
twenty. He earned the title of veteran in the Mexican war by
hard and gallant fighting, and held honorable positions in the
regular army until the war of the Union broke out. Then he was
summoned to Washington and made a brigadier-general in the
Army of the Potomac. He was promoted to the rank of major-
general, and by his magnificent bearing he won the soubriquet of
“The Superb.” His name was never mentioned as having com-
mitted a blunder in battle for which he was responsible. He was
the Democratic candidate for President in 1880,.but was defeated
by James A. Garfield. He died in 1886, and is buried at Nor-
ristown. .

JOHN HARRIS, the first pant settler on the Susque-
hanna, was from Yorkshire, England, and came to Philadelphia
some time before 1698. In 1705, he located on the Susquehanna
as an Indian trader licensed by the province. He noticed the
advantage of the location at the point where the Paxtang flows
into the Susquehanna, and in 1825 established himself there per-
manently, buying a large tract of land including the lower part
of the present site of Harrisburg. He acquired a powerful sway
over the Indians by his courage and good judgment. On one
occasion he refused rum to some drunken Indians, and they tied
him to a mulberry tree on the river front and were going to burn
him. He was released by some friendly Indians who came to the
spot just as the others were kindling the fire. When he died,
in 1748, his remains, by his own request, were buried at the foot
of that tree. Its decayed trunk stood in Harris Park till 1889.
The grave is enclosed with an iron fence. His son, John Harris,
was the founder of Harrisburg, and a prominent man in the
affairs of the province, especially in the Indian wars. In 1753
he got a charter to run a ferry across the Susquehanna, and the
place became known as Harris’ Ferry.

JOHN HAZLEWOOD was an Englishman by birth and eame
to Philadelphia as eaptain in the merchant marine. After he had
been made commodore of the Pennsylvania navy, the Continental
vessels in the Delaware were also put under his command. While
Biographical Sketches 315

Lord Howe was with his fleet in Delaware bay, in 1777, he sent
for Commodore Hazlewood and promised him His Majesty’s pardon
and kind treatment if he would surrender the Pennsylvania fleet.
His only reply was that he would “defend the fleet to the last.”

JOHN HECKEWELDER was born in England, and eame to
Pennsylvania with his parents when he was twelve years old.
He became a Moravian missionary, and worked chiefly among the
Delawares after they had been removed to the Ohio. He pub-
lished his observations upon their language, habits and character.
His views, which are very favorable to the Indians, have been
warmly attacked and warmly defended. After laboring forty
years among them, he went to Bethlehem, where he passed the
remainder of his days in retirement.

FRANCIS HOPKINSON was a Philadelphian, a graduate of
~ the University of Pennsylvania, and a lawyer by profession.
After spending a few years in England, he settled in Bordentown,
New Jersey, which State he represented in Congress when the
Declaration of Independence was signed. He helped to draft the
Articles of Confederation. He was also at the head of the Navy
of the Revolution for a time. By his witty satires and popular
poems and songs, he greatly aided the cause of liberty. He was
Judge of the Admiralty for Pennsylvania from 1779 to 1789, and
afterwards a United States District Judge.

JOSEPH HOPKINSON, son of Francis Hopkinson, of Revo-
lutionary fame, was, like his father, a Philadelphian, a graduate of
the University of Pennsylvania, a lawyer, a Congressman, and a
United States District Judge. He is known in literature by a
single brief production only, the patriotic song of Hail Columbia,
which was encored the first time it was sung, by an audience that
was. “mad as the priestess of the Dorie God.”

THOMAS HOVENDEN was Irish by birth and educated at the
Cork School of Design. When a young man he came to America
and studied art in New York. Later he went to Paris to study,
and when he returned settled in Plymouth township, Montgomery
county. He was a member of numerous art societies in Phila-
delphia and New York. He painted many famous pictures, but
is best known to the world by “Breaking Home Ties.” Many a
silent tear was dropped at the World’s Fair by the multitudes that
daily stood looking at “Breaking Home Ties.” What “Home,
Sweet Home?” is in song, “Breaking Home Ties” is on canvas.
Hovenden’s negro pictures, notably “The Last Moments of John
Brown,” were painted in the studio of an old barn that had once
done service on the underground railway. “The Confederate in a
Pennsylvania Farm House” was his noblest expression of the
domestic incidents of the Union war. Hovenden lost his life while
trying to rescue a child from death under a locomotive, near Nor-
ristown in 1895.
316 A History of Pennsylvania

CHARLES HUMPHREYS, brother of Joshua the shipbuilder,
was born at Haverford, now Montgomery county. For many years
he was a successful miller. He was a member of the Assembly in
1764 and again in 1775. In the latter year he became a member of
the Continental Congress ; and, although he opposed the oppres-
sive measures of Great Britain, he voted against the Declaration of
Independence.

SAMUEL HUMPHREYS was a noted shipbuilder of Phila—
delphia. His father, Joshua, had been engaged there in the same
occupation, and had designed and constructed the Constitution,
the Chesapeake, the Congress, the President, and the United
States. After the war of 1812, Samuel was asked to come to
Russia to organize a navy, but declined, saying, ® Whether my
merit be great or small, I owe it all to the flag of my country, and
that is a debt I must pay.” Because he had designed, drafted,
and constructed most of the ships launched at the port of Phila-
delphia, and thus had helped to make the American navy victori-
ous over England—a victory which France, Spain and Holland
had all failed to achieve — he was made Chief Naval Constructor of
the United States. He held this distinguished place until he died,
in 1846.

JARED INGERSOLL, born in Connecticut and educated at
Yale, met Benjamin Franklin in Paris, and soon after commenced
the practice of law in Philadelphia, where he rose to distinetion.
He was an ardent patriot during the Revolution, member of Con-
gress in 1780-81, and so was well prepared for the great duty of
his life—to help frame the Constitution. He held important State
offices afterwards, and declined the appointment of Chief Justice of
the Federal Court.

WILLIAM IRVINE was born in Ireland, and settled at Carlisle
as a physician when he was twenty-one years old. In 1776 he
raised a regiment and joined the army in Canada, where he was
captured at the battle of Three Rivers. After his exchange in
1778, he was put in command of a Pennsylvania brigade at the
battle of Monmouth, and remained its commander until 1781. He
was then transferred to Pittsburg to guard the frontier, which was
menaced by the British and Indians. While there he became
interested in the northwestern section of the State, and it was
largely through him that the State afterwards purchased the
triangle.” To show its gratitude for his labors, the State donated
him a tract of land on Lake Erie. General Irvine was a member
of the Continental Congress two years and of the third Congress
under the Constitution. His last service in the field was as senior
major-general in command of the troops raised to suppress the
Whisky Insurrection. The close of his life was spent in Phila-
delphia, where he held a Federal office. General Irvine had two
brothers in the Revolution and three sons in the War of 1812.

ELISHA KENT KANE was a native of Philadelphia, and a
induce the western Indians to

Biographical Sketches 317

graduate in medicine of the University of Pennsylvania. He
served on the medical corps of the United States Navy, and thus
cultivated a love for travel, which he gratified by visiting many
parts of the world. He evinced his daring on the Philippine
Islands by descending the crater of a voleano to its very bottom,
charring his boots and becoming insensible from gas. In 1850, he
joined the Arctic expedition sent out in search of Sir John
Franklin. Upon the return of the expedition from its fruitless
voyage, he organized one under his own command and set sail in
1853, taking as surgeon Dr. I. I. Hayes, of Chester county, who
afterwards himself became a noted Arctic explorer. Though
Franklin was not found, Dr. Kane’s explorations and secientifie
observations were most valuable. He reduced to geographical
certainty more than a thousand miles of coast line in Greenland.

JOHN KELLEY was born in Lancaster county, but became
a frontiersman in Union county. In December, 1776, he joined
Washington’s army as major in the Northumberland battalion.
After the battle at Princeton, when Cornwallis was close upon the
heels of Washington’s army, the commander-in-chief detached
Kelley with a party of Pennsylvania troops to destroy a bridge on
Stony creek, to prevent the advance of the enemy. Kelley cut the
timbers with his own hand midst a rain of British balls. When the
bridge fell, he went down with it into the floating ice, and made
his way into camp the same night, not alone, but in company with a
British soldier whom he had captured on the way. Kelley died at
Lewisburg, where a monument was erected in his honor.

KIASHUTHA had his home on the broad bottom-lands just
above Sharpsburg, Allegheny county, which still bear his name.
He was one of the active and remarkable Indians of Pennsylvania.
He appears to have been detailed by the Iroquois, as early as 1758,
to watch the Delawares and Shawanese, then living at and near
Fort Duquesne. He lent himself to the schemes of Pontiac
and allied himself with the British mm the Revolutionary war.
Later, he again became the
friend of the settlers, visited
General Wayne, and tried to

submit to the Government.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN
was born in Amity township,
Berks county, in 1736. He
was a man of considerable
influence in the General As-
sembly, in the Pennsylvania
convention to ratify the Fed- Home of Mordecai Lincoln.
eral Constitution, and in the :
State convention which framed the Constitution of 1790. He died
at his residence in Exeter township, in 1806. His father was

 
318 A History of Pennsylvania

Mordecai Lincoln, who had come to Berks county from Massa-
chusetts, and died in Amity township in 1735. Mordecai had
much property —some of which was in New Jersey, where he
willed three hundred acres to his son John. .This John Lincoln
left New Jersey some years later, established himself in Virginia,
and was the grandfather of the President. The Lincolns were
closely allied to the ancestors of Daniel Boone, also of Berks
county. Squire Boone, the father of Daniel, was one of the ap-
praisers of Mordecai Lincoln’s estate, and his “loving friend and
neighbor ;” while Abraham Lincoln, the subject of this sketch,
was married to Anna Boone, a first cousin of Daniel.

LOGAN was the second son of Shikellimy, and was named after
James Logan, the Indian’s best friend after Penn had left the
province. Logan lived for a long time near a large spring still
bearing his name in the Kishacoquillas valley, six miles from
Lewistown. Removing to the west in 1771, he located on the Ohio
river some thirty miles above Wheeling. Here his whole family
was murdered by some whites, in a drunken carousal. To avenge
this foul deed, he ordered his chiefs to commit the most frightful
barbarities among the whites. When he was asked to consent to a
treaty of peace, he made a reply that schoolboys might well commit
to memory. It opens with these words: “I appeal to any white
man to say, if ever he entered Logan’s cabin hungry, and he gave
him not meat; if ever he came cold and naked and he clothed him
not.”

ALEXANDER KELLY McCLURE was a native of Sherman’s
valley, Perry county. He was a farmer’s son, educated in the
village school, and apprenticed to the tanner’s trade. But when
he had learned it he established the Juniata Sentinel at Mifflin.
He next took charge of the Chambersburg Repository, and at the
age of twenty-six became a lawyer. Having taken a very active
part in State and National politics, he soon after entered the Legis-
lature, and was chairman of the Senate Committee on Military
Affairs in 1861-62. He was a close friend of Curtin and Lincoln,
having done yeoman service for the election of both; he played a
prominent part in Pennsylvania and the Nation during the Civil
War. When the Confederates burned Chambersburg, he had
scarcely time to get out of town before the invaders’ torch was
applied to all the property he had. In 1868 he went to Phila-
delphia, and after practicing law there and serving another term
in the State Senate, he established the Times, in 1875, of which he
has ever since been the editor. His close relations with Lincoln
and other public men of the Civil War enabled him to write a
valuable work, entitled ©“ Lincoln and the Men of War Times.”

GEORGE A. M’CALL was born in Philadelphia, graduated at
West Point, and served in the Seminole and Mexican wars.
President Taylor made him Inspector-General of the United States
army, and in 1861 Governor Curtin appointed him major-general
Biographical Sketches 319

of the Pennsylvania Reserves. He was with the Army of the
Potomac until the battle of Frazier’s Farm, where he was taken
prisoner. After his exchange, his health made it necessary for
him to resign. He died near West Chester in 1868.

GEORGE BRINTON M’CLELLAN was born in Philadelphia
in 1826, and educated at the University of Pennsylvania and at
West Point. He had just finished his military course when the
Mexican war commenced. After it was over the Government sent
him to Europe as an expert, to report the operations of the
Crimean war. Upon his return, he was engaged by the Illinois Cen-
tral Railroad as civil engineer, and afterwards became a railroad
president. When the Civil War broke out he was appointed
major-general and placed in command of Western Virginia, where
he greatly distinguished himself. After the disaster at Bull Run,
he was made commander of the Army of the Potomac, and soon
after succeeded General Scott as commander-in-chief. In organ-
izing the Army of the Potomac, he performed a most valuable
service ; but in his campaigns before Richmond, he disappointed
the authorities at Washington, and was relieved of the command.
Pope’s disasters restored MeClellan for two months, in which time
he fought the battle of Antietam. When he was again removed
and placed on waiting orders, he resigned from the army, in 1864.
The same year he was the Democratic candidate for President, and
received 21 electoral votes. He was Governor of New Jersey,
1878-1881, and died at South Orange, in that State, in 1885.
“Little Mac” was very popular with the Army of the Potomac,
in spite of eriticism outside of it.

GEORGE GORDON MEADE was born in Cadiz, Spain, while
his father was United States Consul there. Upon the return of
the family to Philadelphia, George was educated in the public
schools, and afterwards entered as a cadet at West Point. He
served in the Indian war in Florida and in the Mexican war, and
was promoted for brave conduct in battle. In 1861 he was made a
brigadier-general in the Pennsylvania Reserves. The next year
he rose to the rank of major-general, and after the battle of Chan-
cellorsville was assigned to the command of the Army of the
Potomac, which position he held until the close of the war.
General Meade was highly honored by the people for his high
character, his great military ability and the important part he
took in the war of the Union. Philadelphia presented him a
house, and after his death, in 1872, raised a fund of $100,000 for
his family.

WILLIAM M. MEREDITH, who for many years held the fore-
most rank in Pennsylvania as a lawyer, was born in Philadelphia.
He helped to frame the Constitution of 1838 and that of 1873, being
chairman of the convention that framed the latter. He became
Secretary of the Treasury in 1849 and held the office until Presi-
dent Taylor’s death. He was Governor Curtin’s Attorney-General,
320 A History of Pennsylvania ra

and was offered the position of counsel for the United States in the
Geneva arbitration of the Alabama question. Pennsylvania has
reason to be proud also of Samuel Meredith. The Merediths are
Welsh. Samuel’s father came from Wales and had the honor of
entertaining Washington when the latter first came to Philadel-
phia—a young man unknown to greatness and to fame. The two
accidentally met in a coffee-house, and Meredith made the young
Virginian his guest while remaining in the city. Samuel, the
son, was a prominent officer in the Revolution and for a long time
afterwards was Treasurer of the United States. He was a partner
in business with George Clymer, and the firm contributed liberally
to the cause of liberty. About 1800 they invested largely in lands
in northeastern Pennsylvania. Meredith built himself a mansion
at Belmont, near Pleasant Mount, Wayne county, where he died
in 1817. He lies buried in a neglected grave.

GOUVERNEUR MORRIS came to Pennsylvania in 1778, as a
delegate from New York to the Continental Congress, then in
session at York. He became a citizen of Pennsylvania, and prac-,
ticed law in Philadelphia. He was Assistant Superintendent of
Finances under Robert Morris, delegate from Pennsylvania to the
Constitutional Convention, and Minister to France. After his
return from Europe, he again lived in New York, where he died
in 1816.

ROBERT MORRIS, the financier of the Revolution, emigrated
from Liverpool to Philadelphia when he was a boy, and served
as a clerk for the Willings — the rich merchant firm of which he
was afterwards a member. He rescued Congress repeatedly from
financial crises, by borrowing money on his own and his firm’s
credit. The $1,500,000 for Washington’s campaign against Corn-
wallis was raised by his exertions and on his own notes. From
1781 to 1784 he was Superintendent of Finance, and on several
occasions kept the new nation from going into bankruptcy. When
the Constitutional government, which he helped to form, went
into effect, he was elected United States Senator. He was urged
to become Secretary of the Treasury, but he refused, and sug-
gested Hamilton. In his later years he was unsuccessful in busi-
ness, lost his fortune, and was at one time imprisoned for debt.
''hus the man who once had owned the most magnificent home in
the city of Philadelphia died in comparative poverty.

JOHN MORTON was of Swedish ancestry and was born in
Ridley township, Chester county (now Delaware). His education
was very limited, but his talents were great. He was a surveyor
and a farmer until he became engrossed in public business. He was
justice of the peace, sheriff, common pleas and supreme judge,
member and Speaker of the Assembly, delegate to the Stamp Act
Congress, to the first Continental Congress and to the second. His
last year in Congress was the most important part of his life; for
he was called on to decide whether to vote for the Declaration of
Biographical Sketches 321

Independence or against it. He chose the wiser course and voted
for it. He died in April, 1777, at the age of fifty-four, and lies
buried at St. James church, in Chester. To those who could not
forgive him for his vote in favor of independence, he said in his
dying hour: “Tell them they will live to see the hour when they
shall acknowledge it to have been the most glorious service I ever
rendered to my country.”

LUCRETIA MOTT, a native of Massachusetts and the wife of
James Mott, began her career in Pennsylvania as a school teacher
in Philadelphia. Soon after she became a preacher in the Society
of Friends. She made a tour through New England and the Middle
States, preaching and denouncing slavery and intemperance. She
was one of the founders of the American Anti-slavery Society, in
1833. She was a delegate to the World’s Anti-slavery convention,
held in London, 1840, but was excluded because she was a woman.
Her exclusion increased the woman’s suffrage agitation, in which
she now became a leader. She took part in the first woman’s
rights convention, in 1848. She remained active in the cause of
anti-slavery and woman’s rights to the end of her long life, in 1880.

HEINRICH MELCHIOR MUHLENBERG was born in Ger-
many in 1711. He was a graduate of Gottingen and a man of great
scholarship and culture. He had intended to become a missionary
in Bengal, but received a call from Pennsylvania to labor among
the destitute Lutheran population, which had been much neglected.
He labored hard in his pastoral charge of Philadelphia, New
Hanover and Providence, and preached in many other places,
making long journeys and gaining a wide acquaintance. He was
also instrumental in bringing other educated ministers from Ger-
many into the province, thus laying a deep and broad foundation
for the Lutheran Church. During the Revolution he was an ardent
patriot, and through his great influence did much for the cause of
liberty. He was so outspoken that his life was often in peril. At
his death, which occurred in 1787, there was deep and widespread
sorrow, which found expression in tolling bells, churches draped
in mourning and the preaching of many funeral sermons.

JOHN PETER GABRIEL MUHLENBERG, son of Heinrich
Melchior, was born in Montgomery county, and educated at Halle,
Germany. He studied for the ministry and preached at Wood-
stock, Virginia, when the Revolution broke out. He showed his
partiality for a soldier’s life while in Germany, for he ran away
from the university and joined the dragoons. It was not sur-
prising that he told his congregation in Virginia one Sunday that
there was a time to fight and a time to preach. At the close of the
service he tore off his gown, showing himself in full uniform, and
reading his commission as colonel. He invited the men of his
congregation to follow his example, and they did almost to a man.
He did valiant service for the cause of liberty, and retired at the
close of the war with the rank of major-general, having partici-

U
322 A History of Pennsylvania

pated in nearly all the campaigns in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and
Virginia, as well as at Stony Point and Charleston. Soon after he
returned to Pennsylvania, where he was elected to the Executive
Council and both houses of Congress. He closed his public career
as Collector of the Port at Philadelphia. He and Robert Fulton
are Pennsylvania’s representatives in Statuary Hall of the National
Capitol.

FREDERICK AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG, son of Heinrich
Melchior, was born in Montgomery county, educated at Halle, Ger-
many, and preached for a time in New York city. He represented
Pennsylvania in the Continental Congress in 1778 and 1780, and
was president of the convention that ratified the Constitution of
the United States. When the new government was organized in
1789, Frederick A. Muhlenberg was chosen Speaker of the first
House of Representatives. He was also Speaker of the third Con-
gress.

GOTTHILF HEINRICH MUHLENBERG was another son of
Heinrich Melchior. He, too, was educated at the University of
Halle, which he entered at the age of ten and attended for seven
years. Then he traveled in Germany and England. When he
returned to America he was ordained as a minister and assisted his
father in the church in Philadelphia. When the British took pos-
session of the city he retired to the country, where he devoted
himself to his favorite study—botany—and acquired a world: wide
reputation as a botanist.

LINDLEY MURRAY, of Quaker descent, was born on the
Swatara, within the present limits of Dauphin county, in 1745.
He resided in England the greater part of his life; but his school
books were republished in this country, numerous editions being
brought out in Philadelphia. They soon displaced the text-books
of other authors in Pennsylvania, notably those of Noah Webster,
which had been so largely used.

JOHN NEVILLE was a native of Virginia, served with Brad-
dock and through the Revolution. Becoming a citizen of Allegheny
county, he held several important civil offices. In 1791, when the
excise law was passed, President Washington appointed him in-
spector for western Pennsylvania, hoping that his great popularity
would allay the opposition to the law in that section.

ISAAC NORRIS was a very influential Quaker of Philadelphia.
Isaac, his father, was likewise a prominent man in the Province,
and lived in great luxury in a mansion at Fair Hill. Isaac, the
son, acquired a large fortune in addition to what he inherited.
He became a member of the Assembly in 1734, and was Speaker of
that body for fifteen years after 1751. Norris proposed the in-
seription “Proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the in-
habitants thereof,” on the State House bell, which was ordered
from England the first year he was Speaker. He was a striet
Biographical Sketches 323

Quaker, and defended the peace policy of the province whenever
wars broke out. His followers, in opposition to the war party,
were called the “Norris party.”

THOMAS PAINE, familiarly called Tom Paine, came to Phil-
adelphia from England, where he had been an exciseman and a
political writer. He came here at the opening of the Revolution
and edited the Pennsylvania Magazine. Besides his Common Sense,
he published the Crisis, which appeared at intérvals during the
war. His services as a writer were of great value to the American
cause. After the formation of the State, he was clerk in the Leg-
islature. When the French Revolution broke out, he was first in
France and then in England. Being outlawed by the English on
account of his “Rights of Man,” he returned to France, was elected
to the convention, imprisoned by the Jacobins, and wrote his
“Age of Reason.” He returned to the United States, and died in
New York in 1809. .

FRANCIS DANIEL PASTORIUS, born in Germany in 1651, was
educated in the classical and modern languages and all the science
of hisage, and trained in the practice of the law. He arrived in Phil-
adelphia, August, 1683, and in October began to lay out German-
town. He was its first bailiff, a member of the Assembly, and a
signer of the first protest against slavery made in America. This
protest is the subject of Whittier’s poem, “The Pennsylvania
Pilgrim.” Pastorius taught school in Germantown and Philadel-
phia for many years. He published several works and left others
in manuseript. His Latin prologue to the Germantown book of
records was translated by Whittier in the ode beginning Hail to
Posterity.” He died in Germantown in 1719.

ROBERT PATTERSON came to this country from Ireland
when quite young and entered the employ of a merchant in Phila-
delphia. After going through college, he entered the army in the
War of 1812, and rose to be captain. He then became a promi-
nent manufacturer in Philadelphia. When the Mexican war broke
out, he again buckled on his sword, and was appointed major-
general of United States volunteers. He distinguished himself at
Cerro Gordo, and when the Civil War commenced, the offer of his
services at the first call for volunteers was very welcome. He was
assigned to the command of the department of Pennsylvania,
Delaware and Maryland. Having enlisted only for three months,
and being nearly seventy years old, he was mustered out of ser-
vice after the battle of Bull Run. He engaged again in manu-
facturing, and lived to the ripe old age of eighty-nine.

REMBRANDT PEALE, born in Philadelphia in 1778, was the
son of Charles W. Peale, who was for nearly twenty years the
only portrait painter of note in America, having made the first
likeness of Washington, and the likenesses of nearly all the Revo-
lutionary officers. The son produced a portrait of Washington at
324 A History of Pennsylvania

the age of seventeen. He studied abroad for a number of years,
and when he returned to Philadelphia painted the famous ® Court
of Death” and “The Roman Daughter.” He made a great effort
to have drawing introduced in the schools, but was not very success-
ful. Both the father and the son studied under Benjamin West.
Rembrandt died in 1860.

TIMOTHY PICKERING, though a native of Massachusetts
and a resident of that State in the early and late years of his life,
was identified with so much of Pennsylvania’s history that he
deserves a place in it. As adjutant-general in Washington’s
army, he was at Brandywine and Germantown; later he served on
the Board of War and was made quartermaster-general. At the
close of the war, he went into business in Philadelphia, but re-
moved to Wilkes-Barre in 1786. He was the leading spirit in the
settlement of the land dispute between Pennsylvania and the
Connecticut settlers in the Wyoming valley. He organized
Luzerne county, and was a delegate from that county in the Penn-
sylvania convention that ratified the Constitution of the United
States. He negotiated treaties with the Six Nations, was succes-
sively Postmaster-General, Secretary of War, and Secretary of
State. - From the last office he was dismissed by John Adams be-
cause he would not resign. He again settled on his lands in
Pennsylvania; but a number of his friends in Massachusetts
bought them in order to induce him to return to his native State,
which he did, and afterwards served in both houses of Congress.

“MOLLY PITCHER’S” true name was Mollie Hays. Her
husband was an artillery sergeant. She accompanied him to the
war, and after two years of camp life immortalized her name at
the battle of Monmouth by taking his place at his gun when he
was wounded and by carrying water for the wounded after the battle.
The latter act won for her the name of * Molly Pitcher.” After
Sergeant Hays died, she married George MeCauley. This ex-
plains the inscription on her tombstone in the old Carlisle grave-
yard :

*MOLLIE McCAULEY,

RENOWNED IN HISTORY AS

‘MOLLIE PITCHER,’
THE HEROINE OF MONMOUTH.
DIED JANUARY, 1833, AGED 79 [?] YEARS.
ERECTED BY THE CITIZENS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, JULY 4, 1876.”

DR. WILLIAM PLUNKET was the first resident physician of
Northumberland county. He was a native of Ireland, and on his
arrival in America settled at Carlisle. He was lieutenant and
surgeon in the French and Indian war, and received for his ser-
Biographical Sketches 325

vices several hundred acres on the West Branch. To this he gave
the name of “Soldier’s Retreat” and established his residence
there. He took part in the opening scenes of the Revolution, but
became neutral afterwards.

JOSEPH PRIESTLY was an English Unitarian clergyman,
a scientist, and an author. He made many discoveries in chem-
istry, and in 1774 discovered oxygen gas. His theological views
being obnoxious, his church and property were destroyed by a
mob and he came to America in 1794. He resided at North-
umberland and continued his scientific investigations there until
his death, in 1804. In 1874, the scientists of America celebrated
the centennial anniversary of the discovery of oxygen at North-
umberland.

SAMUEL J. RANDALL was born in Philadelphia, in 1828,
and engaged in mercantile pursuits. He entered politics as mem-
ber of the councils. He served in the State Senate, and at the
outbreak of the Rebellion joined the Union army as a private.
In 1863 he was elected to Congress, where he remained until his
death, in 1890. He was Speaker of the House from 1876 to 1881,
and was long the recognized leader of the Democrats in the
House, except in matters pertaining to the tariff, on which ques-
tion he was a protectionist. His national reputation made him a
prominent candidate for the Presidency, and he was brought for-
ward in the Democratic conventions of 1880 and 1884.

THOMAS BUCHANAN READ, the Poet-Painter, was born
in East Brandywine township, Chester county ; lived in Philadel-
phia and Cincinnati, spent much of his time abroad, and died in
New York, in 1872, shortly after his return from the last sojourn
in Europe. He was not alone a great poet, but an artist, too. His
portrait of “Sheridan and His Horse” has attained almost equal
celebrity with his popular poem on Sheridan’s Ride.” *“Longfel-
low’s Children” is another favorite painting. His reputation as a
poet rests in the short lyrics contained in his “Lays and Ballads.”
¢Sheridan’s Ride” was dashed off by the author at a hotel an
hour or so before atlending a reception given to General Sheridan.

JOHN FULTON REYNOLDS was a native of Lancaster and
a West Point graduate. After gallant services in the Mexican
war, he was appointed commander of cadets at the military
academy. He entered the war of the Union as lieutenant-colonel
and rose to the command of a corps. General Meade and the en-
tire Army of the Potomac lost a brave soldier and a noble gentle-
man when Reynolds fell before Gettysburg. He was but forty-
three years old, and had it not been for a sharp-shooter’s bullet
he might have won glory on many another battlefield. His re-
mains were buried in the Lancaster cemetery on the Fourth of
July, when Lee’s army was in full retreat across Mason and

Dixon’s Line.
326 A History of Pennsylvania

DAVID RITTENHOUSE was born on a farm near German-
town, in 1732. He showed his mechanical genius at the age of
seven by making a little waterwheel, and ten years later he had
made a clock with his own hands. Mathematics engaged his mind
while at work on the farm. He used fences and buildings as
blackboards. Before he was of age he had mastered the “method
of fluxions,” of which he for a long time supposed himself the sole
discoverer. He constructed the most complete orrery that had
ever been made; it is now in possession of Princeton University.
Later on he made a still larger one for the University of Penn-
sylvania. Rittenhouse succeeded Franklin as president of the
American Philosophical Society, and was also a prominent man
in the councils of the State and Nation. He helped to form the
first constitution of Pennsylvania, was State Treasurer from 1777—
1789, member of the Board of War, and the first Director of the
United States Mint. He died in 1796, at his home in Philadel-
phia, corner of Seventh and Arch. An eulogium upon his char-
acter was delivered in the presence of Washington, members of
Congress, the State Legislature, and the City Councils.

SAMUEL RHOADS was a wealthy builder in Philadelphia
and repeatedly a member of the Assembly before the Revolution.
He was elected to the first Continental Congress while he was
mayor of the city. He helped to found the Pennsylvania hos-
pital and was an active member of the Philosophical Society.

JOHN ROACH, a native of Ireland, came to this country at
the age of fourteen, and settled in New York as a machinist. He
established a foundry and made the largest engines then in use.
He was very successful, and in 1871 bought the shipyards at
Chester. His plant covered 120 acres and was valued at
$2,000,000. He built sixty-three vessels in twelve years, chiefly
for the United States. On the refusal of the government to ac-
cept the Dolphin, in 1883, he made an assignment and closed his
works; but they were re-opened when the vessel was accepted.
He built more than a hundred iron vessels altogether, and con-
structed the sectional dock at Pensacola, Florida. He died in
1887.

GEORGE ROSS was a native of New Castle, Delaware, and
was classically educated. He settled in Lancaster, 1751, and
practiced law. He served in the Assembly several years and
was prominent in all the movements that led to the Revolution.
His first important service was performed as a delegate to the
Provincial Convention in 1774. The Assembly elected him as one
of the delegates to the first Continental Congress. He next
raised a company of .associators, and was president of the Lan-
caster Military Convention, July 4, 1776. He was vice-president
of the convention that framed the first State Constitution, and at
the same time a member of Congress, affixing his name to the
Declaration of Independence, August 2, 1776, in a hand that was
Biographical Sketches 327

second only to John Hancock’s in strength and boldness. He
died, as Judge of the Admiralty Court, in 1779. A memorial pil-
lar was erected in 1897, on the site of his house in Lancaster.

BETSY ROSS was the wife of John Ro

Ross, the signer. The mane oon
house where the flag was
made is now 239 Arch
street, below Third, in
Philadelphia—a small two-
storied and attic tenement,
formerly No. 39. She was
a Quaker lady, engaged in
upholstering. Washington
was a frequent visitor at her
house and knew her skill
with the needle. She em-
broidered his shirt ruffles
and did many other things
for him. He, together with
Robert Morris and George
Ross, her husband’s uncle,
called on her, in June, 1776,
and told her they were a
committee of Congress and
wanted her to make the flag
from a rough drawing.
She replied, “I don’t know
whether I can, but I’1l try.”
She suggested that the de-
sign was wrong, the stars
being six-pointed and not
five-pointed, as they should be. This and other changes on the
drawing were made by General Washington, in her back parlor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PETER FREDERICK ROTHERMEL was born in Nescopeck,
Luzerne county, 1821. He came to Philadelphia in his childhood,
and commenced life as a surveyor. At the age of twenty-two he
followed the natural bent of his mind, dropped the surveyor’s
chain and took up the painter’s brush. In 1856 he went to Europe
and studied art three years. On his return he was elected a mem-
ber of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. He produced
numerous well-known paintings, some of which are owned abroad.
After the Civil War the Legislature of Pennsylvania commissioned
him to paint the © Battle of Gettysburg.” He completed the colossal
work in 1871, and received $25,000 for it. It hung in Memorial
Hall, Philadelphia, until the Executive Building was erected at
Harrisburg, when it was placed on the wall of the Flag Room.
He died at his home in Linfield, Montgomery county, August,
1895, in the same week with Hovenden.
328 A History of Pennsylvania

BENJAMIN RUSH was born in Byberry township, Philadel-
phia county, northeast of the city. He graduated at Princeton
and studied medicine here and abroad. He practiced his profes-
sion in Philadelphia with great devotion and success. During the
yellow fever epidemic of 1793, he stuck to his post when all but
two other physicians had fled. For a whole week, he visited and
prescribed for about 120 patients per day, and many had to leave
his office unaided. He was a professor of medicine in the Uni-
versity of Pennsylvania, and had numerous office students. To
his fame as a practitioner and teacher of medicine, Dr. Rush
added the distinction of being an eminent author. He was the
first writer on temperance in America. He also mixed in the
councils of the State and Nation, and employed his talents in the
cause of liberty. In July, 1776, he was chosen a member of Con-
gress, and was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independ-
ence, though not one of the delegates present at the adoption.

CHRISTOPHER SAUR (now Sower) was born in Germany,
graduated at Marburg University, and studied medicine. He
came to Philadelphia in 1724, settled in Lancaster county as a
farmer, but removed to Germantown soon afterwards. Feeling the
want of books among his countrymen here, especially in the line
of religion, he imported Bibles and other works from Germany.
After he had established his printing house, he issued in the Ger-
man language an almanac — long continued by his descendants, a
magazine — among the first in America, and in 1843, the Bible —
Luther’s translation, the largest work yet published in the colonies,
and with the exception of Eliot’s Indian Bible, the first Bible
printed in America. Saur is supposed to have invented cast-iron
stoves; at least he introduced them into general use. He also
practiced his profession and made eight-day © grandfather” clocks.
His son, Christopher, who was likewise a prominent man in the
Province, especially in the Tunker Church, continued the publish-
ing business. The house is still known as the Christopher Sower
Publishing Company, after an unbroken existence of one hundred
and fifty years.

MICHAEL SCHLATTER was born in Switzerland and was
sent to America by the Reformed Synod of Amsterdam to look
after the German emigrants of that denomination in Pennsylvania.
He was pastor of the churches in Philadelphia and Germantown 3
and organized congregations in this State and in New Jersey,
Maryland and Virginia. He induced other ministers to come to
America and assisted in organizing the synod of America. His
work in behalf of the education of the German settlers was untir-
ing and most laudable. In 1757 he was chaplain of an expedition
to Nova Scotia against the French, and for espousing the cause of
liberty in the Revolution he was imprisoned when the British
occupied Philadelphia.

THOMAS. A. SCOTT was born in Franklin county, and on
Biographical Sketches 329

account of his father’s death was obliged to leave school at the
age of ten years and earn his livelihood. After filling several
clerical positions, he began his railroad career at Columbia, where
he was collector of tolls on the line of the State railroad. He
was promoted to be chief clerk in the collector’s office in Phila-
delphia; and in 1850 he entered the service of the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company as station agent at Duncansville, then the
western terminus of the road. He now rose from one position to
another, becoming vice-president of the company in 1860, and
president in 1874. It was largely owing to Colonel Scott that the
Pennsylvania railroad attained to its high rank among the trunk-
lines of America— a rank that is second to none. It was during
the war of the Rebellion that his great abilities were put to the
severest test. Governor Curtin called him to Harrisburg in 1861
to direct the movement of troops from the North and the West
while en route through the State on their way to Washington.
When the bridges of the Northern Central railroad had been de-
stroyed, Simon Cameron, Secretary of War, asked Governor Cur-
tin to send Scott to Washington in order to open a new route.
Though he was needed in Harrisburg, the Governor released him
and in a short time the movement of troops below Mason and
Dixon’s line was again uninterrupted. When Lincoln heard the
good news, he said, “ Thank God! we are all right again !” Scott was
now mustered into the United States service as colonel and ap-
pointed Assistant Secretary of War. In this position he kept up
an incessant stream of cars, carrying troops and supplies, across
the Potomac and the Ohio into the heart of the Confederacy.
Colonel Scott’s useful and well-rounded life ended in 1881.

SHIKELLIMY was of Oneida birth and was probably born in
New York. He first appeared in Pennsylvania about 1728, living
on the West Branch, below Milton. Later on, he established him-
self at Shamokin as the chief of all the Iroquois on the Susque-
hanna. His influence was courted by the provincial authorities,
and he attended nearly all the treaties made in his time. He was
a warm friend of the Moravian missionary, Zeisberger, and of
Weiser. While in Bethlehem the last time he was converted. On
his way home he took sick, and died shortly after his return.
Zeisberger was his spiritual adviser in the last hours, and had him
buried in a coffin. Another important and interesting character,
near Shamokin, was Madame Montour, a French Canadian, who
had married Roland Montour, a Seneca brave, and lived on the
Chenasky as early as 1727. In that year she acted as interpreter
in Philadelphia between the Governor and the Five Nations. At
the death of her husband, John and Thomas Penn condoled with
her publicly, in Philadelphia, while she attended a treaty. Her
son Andrew was also a provincial interpreter for a number of
years. He received a grant of land northwest of Carlisle, and was
captain of a company of Indians in the English service. The
French set a price of £100 on his head.
330 A History of Pennsylvania

WILLIAM SMITH, D.D., was a native of Scotland, educated
at the University of Aberdeen, and of great learning and executive
ability. He came to New York at the age of twenty-four, but was
induced by Franklin to settle in Philadelphia and become the first
Provost or President of the College of Philadelphia, a position he
held until the institution was merged into the University of Penn-
sylvania. He took great interest in political affairs, as well as in
matters of church and education. He sided with the Proprie-
taries, and the Assembly had him arrested at one time and thrown
into jail. But his work as a teacher went on, for his classes met
him in the prison. When the Revolution commenced he was an
ardent supporter of the American cause, preaching loyal sermons
and making patriotic addresses. However, in 1777, he was arrested -
for disloyalty, supposedly because he regarded the Declaration of
Independence as premature. He gave his parole and retired to
Maryland, whence he returned in 1789, to receive back what he
always called “My College.”

JAMES SMITH was one of the men who signed the Declara-
tion of Independence. When a lad, he came to this country from
Ireland, and settled with his father on the west bank of the Sus-
quehanna. He was educated in the classics to some extent, be-
came a surveyor and a lawyer, practicing these blended professions
first near Shippensburg, then at York. He resided all the rest of
his life in York, and was for a long time the only resident lawyer
there. At the outbreak of the Revolution, he at once took an
active part in behalf of liberty. He raised the first Pennsylvania
company for resistance to Great Britain, was a member of the
Provincial Convention in 1774, and served as a delegate in Con-
gress. He died in 1806.

EDWIN M. STANTON, of Quaker stock, was born in Ohio,
and practiced law there until 1848, when he settled in Pittsburg
and became leader at the bar of Allegheny county. He went into
Buchanan’s cabinet as Attorney-General, to fill a vacancy. When
Simon Cameron resigned the portfolio of Secretary of War, Lincoln
selected Stanton to fill the place. His management of the War
Department was noted for vigor and integrity. He became em-
broiled at times with politicians and officers, especially with
McClellan and Sherman. He remained in Johnson’s cabinet after
Lineoln’s death, but was suspended by the President on account
of serious disagreement. This action brought the quarrel be-
tween the President and Congress to a head. Stanton was re-
stored but again removed, and the President’s impeachment fol-
lowed. Congress passed a vote of thanks to Mr. Stanton on his
retirement. He resumed the practice of law, but his long and
arduous labors had undermined his strength, and he died in 1869.

ARTHUR ST. CLAIR came to America as a British soldier, in
1758. He was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and served under
General Wolfe at Quebec. He established himself in Westmore-
Biographical Sketches 331

land county, and took the side of the colonies in the Revolution.
He served through the whole war and rose to the rank of major-
general. He represented Pennsylvania in the Continental Con-
gress from 1785 to 1787, and was president of that body when it
passed the famous Ordinance of 1787, by which the Northwest
Territory was organized. He was Governor of this Territory from
1789 to 1802. He commanded the expedition against the Miami
Indians, which ended so disastrously. He was sick at the time
and gave his orders on a litter; but public opinion obliged him to
resign his command. After his long and distinguished public ser-
vice, he lived poor and neglected on Chestnut Ridge, Westmore-
land county, till he died, in 1818.

THADDEUS STEVENS was born in Vermont. He made
shoes, taught a country schoo!, and graduated at Dartmouth Col-
lege before he came to Pennsylvania, as assistant teacher in the
academy at York. Stepping from teaching to law, he began to
practice at Gettysburg. He rapidly rose to distinction, and was
sent to Harrisburg as a law-maker. He took no prominent part
in the passage of the free school law except to vote for it. But
when its repeal was threatened, he defended it with all his match-
less logic and eloquence, and won the day against determined op-
position. In honor of its author, the speech was beautifully
printed on silk by some free school friends in Reading, and
proudly kept by him until his death. He performed great ser-
vices for the nation later on, but he himself always regarded his
successful defense of free schools in Pennsylvania as the greatest
achievement of his life. In 1841 he removed to Lancaster, where
he was elected to Congress in 1848. He served in that body four-
teen years, dying in Washington in 1868. He was one of the
boldest and ablest statesmen who sustained the Union in its
hour of peril. He was a sincere and consistent friend of the
colored race. He ordered in his will that his body should not be
buried in a cemetery where the color line was drawn. He served
in Congress when he ought to have been at home enjoying the
twilight of his life; for during his last year he was daily carried
in a chair to his seat.

CHARLES STEWART was born in Philadelphia, and entered
the United States Navy in 1798. He captured three French ships
in 1800, and distinguished himself in the Tripolitan War. In the
summer of 1813 he took command of the Constitution, and eaptured
three English vessels that year, and two in each of the following
years of the war. He received a vote of thanks, a sword, and a
gold medal, from Congress; a vote of thanks and a sword from the
Pennsylvania Legislature; and from New York the freedom of the
city. From the people he received the sobriquet of “Old Iron-
sides.” He remained in the navy till he died, in 1869, a period of
seventy-one years, and rose to be rear-admiral. He was the
grandfather of Charles Stewart Parnell, the great Irish Home Rule
leader in the British Parliament.
332 A History of Pennsylvania

HENRY WILLIAM STIEGEL, the founder of the quaint old
town of Manheim, Lancaster county, emigrated from Manheim,
Germany. He was a very eccentric character. He made frequent
visits to his furnace and always drove a four-in-hand. It is said
that he had a watchman stationed in the cupola of his mansion to
announce his return home by firing a cannon. A band organized
among his employes then proceeded to the cupola and many of the
villagers repaired to his residence to join in the demonstrations.
Among the recorded facts of his eccentric life is this: When he
deeded the lots upon which the Evangelical Lutheran church was
built, in 1770, the price was to be a red rose, to be paid yearly
upon demand. The red rose is paid to his descendants to this
day. It constitutes a very unique and beautiful observance in the
church, and has attracted much attention in recent years in the
newspapers and magazines. The Baron afterwards became re-
duced in circumstances, and ended his life in a log house at
Womelsdorf, where he taught a village school.

“Baron Stiegel ist der mann,
Der die (Efen gieszen kann.”

Baron Stiegel is the man
Who can cast the stoves.

BAYARD TAYLOR (1825-1878) was a native of Kennett
Square, Chester county, and lived there after his many travels by
land and sea, though he died at Berlin, Germany. Before he was
twenty-one, he went to
Europe and made a trip on
foot among the most inter-
esting places. His experi-
ences were recorded in
“Views Afoot, or Europe
Seen with Knapsack and
wi Staff.” This work made him
13 famous at once, and he was
¢ in a position to write other
books—of travel, poetry and
fiction—and to become pop-
ular as a journalist and lee-
turer. As a novelist, he de-

GE picted American life, par-

Library of Bayard Taylor at Cedarcroft. ticularly life in Pennsylva-
nia, as in “Hannah Thurs-

ton” and “The Story of Kennett.” In his verse, too, he often
drew material from his own State, as, in ® The Pennsylvania
Farmer.” The greatest of his poetic efforts is the translation of
“Goethe’s Faust.” He loved Germany and the German people.
While his father was a descendant of an English immigrant of
1681, his grandmothers on both sides were of German descent. It
was a fitting coincidence, therefore, that he should have died in
the German capital, as the American minister to Germany.

     
Biographical Sketches 333

Bayard Taylor was the greatest literary man Pennsylvania has
produced, and Kennett Square may be proud to be his cradle
and his grave.

GEORGE TAYLOR was an Irishman by birth, the son of a
clergyman, who gave him an education more liberal than most
youths received at that time. On his arrival in America he paid
for his passage by working in the iron works of Durham, Bucks
county. He made money, bought an estate in Northampton
county, and fixed his residence there. He was soon after sent to
the Assembly and served five years in that body. He was active in
the movement which led to the Revolution, and entered Congress
in July, 1776, with Ross, Smith, Rush and Clymer, to take the
places of those who had opposed the Declaration. He was there-
fore one of the members not in Congress on the 2d of July, but on
the 2d of August, when the engrossed document was signed.
Taylor died in Easton in 1781.

TEDYUSCUNG was a frequent visitor to Philadelphia, and
had acquired a free use of English. He was one of the ablest
of Indian chiefs, but was too fond of liquor. At Albany, while
negotiating a treaty, he was so much under its influence that his
wife had to rebuke him publicly. At his earnest request, he was
baptized by the Moravians; but he relapsed into his old ways,
though not without regret. Blamed by his own people for siding
with the English, and envied by the Iroquois for his influence in
the councils of the province, he was between two fires during
most of the French and Indian war. In 1763, he burned to death
in his own house at Wyoming while asleep in bed. Some Iro-
quois Indians put him to sleep with liquor and then set fire to his
house. Tedyuscung was the last chief of the Delawares on the
east side of the Alleghenies.

WILLIAM TENNENT was a native of Ireland, liberally edu-
cated, and while there a clergyman in the Episcopal Church. He
came to America in 1718, and was received as a minister into the
Presbyterian Church. After a brief pastorate in New York, he
came to Bucks county, where he remained to the close of his life.
He preached at Neshaminy; and on land that was given him by
James Logan he erected the “Log College,” a mame probably
given to the school at first in contempt. About 1840 a part of one
of the logs was found and a cane made from it and given to one of
the professors of Princeton Seminary.

CHARLES THOMSON came to Pennsylvania from Ireland at
the age of eleven. He was a very influential man during the
Revolution, both in the councils of the State and the United
States. He was called “the Sam Adams of Philadelphia.” He
was scholarly and true to his principles. The Indians had so
much respect for him that he was elected a member of the Dela-
ware tribe. They called him “the man of truth,” and it used to
334 A History of Pennsylvania

be a saying —“It is as true as if Charles Thomson’s name were
under it.” Ile was Secretary of the Continental Congress during
its entire history from 1774 to 1789. He had made a careful
record of all the proceedings and reduced it to the form of a book ;
but for fear of offending some of the Revolutionary families, he
afterwards burned the manuseript. This was probably the greatest
mistake of his life; for much valuable history is buried in his
grave. He died in 1824. ,

MOSES VAN CAMPEN was a Dutchman from the Minisink
settlement on the Delaware, but lived near the present site of
Bloomsburg most of his life, and was famous for his daring in the
border warfare on the Susquehanna. He and
a companion once freed themselves at night
from a guard of nine Indians, killing all but
one of them. After this wonderful escape,
he was in great demand to organize bands
against the Indians. In 1782 he was ordered
by the government to clear the West Branch
about Williamsport of Indians. But in this
he failed ; for he was captured, carried to
Niagara, and delivered to the British. When
* the Indians learned who he was, they de-
manded him back. The British officer prom-
ised to protect him if he would renounce. the

Moses Van Campen, American cause. He replied that he would

die the most cruel death the Indians could in-
flict before he would dishonor the character of an American officer.
His loyalty secured him protection, and he was exchanged when
the war closed. He died in New York State at a very old age.

JOHN WANAMAKER was born in Philadelphia in 1838 and
received a-common school education. He became a merchant and
built up the largest retail business in the United States. He was
a member of the Centennial Commission and contributed much to
its success. He has always taken great interest in Christian and
philanthropic work. He is the superintendent of the largest Sun-
day School in the world, and a very prominent member of the
Young Men’s Christian Association. He was Postmaster-General
in President Harrison’s Cabinet, and made many improvements in
the postal service by his business-like methods.

ANTHONY WAYNE was a native of Chester county, and
played the soldier so much in his boyhood that his father made him
choose between the farm and his books. He took the latter and
became a surveyor. In 1774 he was sent to the Provincial Conven-
tion in Philadelphia, then to the Assembly, and the next year was
a member of the Committee of Public Safety. In 1776 he joined
the Northern army as colonel of a regiment. His soldierly quali-
ties secured him promotion first to the rank of brigadier and then
to that of major-general. He was wounded at Three Rivers,

 
Biographical Sketches 335

fought at Brandywine, was twice wounded at Germantown, re-
ceived honorable mention for bravery at Monmouth, and a gold
medal from Congress for his capture of Stony Point. The people
expressed their appreciation of his daring by calling him Mad
Anthony.” He was also present at the capture ef Cornwallis.
Georgia afterwards gave him a farm for driving the British out of
her borders. In 1791 that State sent him to Congress, but in a
contest for a seat he lost. He then received the command of the
Federal army, and once more distinguished himself by subduing
the Indians of Ohio in the battle of Fallen Timbers. He died in
the old fort at Presque Isle, in 1796, and was buried “at the foot
of the flag-staff,” according to his request. In 1809 his remains
were carried to Chester county.

~~ CONRAD WEISER at the age of fourteen emigrated from’
Germany with his parents and a company of Palatines. They
settled in a body in New York. Here young Conrad lived for
eight months with an Indian chief, who took a great fancy to him
and taught him the Indian language, so valuable in his life. In
1723, with many of his German neighbors in New York, he settled
at Tulpehocken, near Reading. He engaged in farming and ac-
quired a large tract of land in Heidelberg township. His knowl-
edge of the Mohawk secured him the position of interpreter for
the province, .in 1732. He held this position as long as he could
attend to its duties, and was present at all the treaties made.
His word was held in great respect by the red men. During the
French and Indian war he was commander of all the forces raised
west of the Susquehanna. In his last years he lived in Reading.
He died in 1760, and is buried in the family graveyard, near
Womelsdorf.

BENJAMIN WEST was born in the county of Chester (now
Delaware) in 1738. He was born a Quaker and had a strong de-
sire to become a painter, but received little encouragement be-
cause his sect then were opposed to “likenesses” of all kinds.
However, he overcame all obstacles in his way. He drew his
sister’s baby while he watched it, he learned from the Indians
how to prepare some simple colors, and he despoiled the cat’s
whiskers to make a brush. A present of a painter’s outfit was
sent to Ben one day by a Friend in Philadelphia, who had de-
tected his wonderful talents while on a visit to the Wests. With
it he made a painting that gave evidence of his future greatness.
In 1759, he visited Italy to study under the great artists. Then he
found his way to London, where he was patronized by the King
and became the president of the Royal Academy of Arts. He died
in London in 1820.

GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE was born in New York, and as a
boy became familiar with machinery in his father’s agricultural
works at Schenectady. He entered the Union army in 1863, and
after his return became a student at Union College. However, the
336 “A History of Pennsylvania

spirit of invention, which had made him most useful in the army,
was too strong to be shut within college walls. Going to Troy one
day, a delay, eaused by a collision, suggested to Mr. Westing-
house the idea of a brake under the control of the engineer.
Being invited to Pittsburg, as agent for the introduction of steel
frogs, he traveled much among railroad men, and finally got con-
sent to try his air-brake on the “Pan-Handle,” between Pittsburg
and Steubenville. A train of four ears and an engine was fitted
out, in 1868, and the first application of the brake prevented a
collision with a wagon on the track. The Westinghouse Air-
Brake Company was formed the next year, and since then Mr.
Westinghouse has taken out more than 1,000 patents, including
those of the air-brake, the union switch and signal apparatus,
and electric lighting. In 1891 the Westinghouse Electric and
Manufacturing Company was organized for the manufacture of all
these patents. The works are in East Pittsburg and employ thou-
sands of operatives.

WILLIAM WHITE, of Philadelphia, graduated from the col-
lege there at the age of 17. He completed his theological
studies in 1770, took holy orders in England, and commenced
his career as an Episcopal clergyman in his native city, in 1772.
He was a zealous supporter of the Revolution, and fled to Mary-
land when the British occupied Philadelphia. He was chaplain
to Congress from 1787 to 1801. Dr. White was made bishop of
Pennsylvania in 1786—one of the first three in America.

ROBERT WHITEHILL, of Cumberland, but native in Lan-
caster county, resided on a farm two miles west of Harrisburg.
He was in public life for a long time, and made a brilliant and
successful record. During a term as Senator of Pennsylvania, he
was Speaker at the celebrated impeachment of the Supreme
Court. He was elected to Congress in 1805, and served in that
body till his death, in 1813. From 1774, when he served on the
county committee, to the time of his death, he filled almost every
position in the gift of the people.

JAMES PYLE WICKERSHAM was born in Chester county,
and began his career as an educator by teaching school at the age
of sixteen. After equipping himself at the Unionville Academy,
he took the prinecipalship of the Marietta Academy, in Lancaster
county. He was elected the first superintendent of schools in
Lancaster county. To improve the teachers he held a “ Teachers’
Institute” at Millersville, and thus laid the foundation of the
Normal School at that place — the first in the State — of which he
became the principal. He served in this capacity for ten years,
when Governor Curtin made him State Superintendent of Com-
mon Schools. He now had a wide field of usefulness, and he cul-
tivated every part of it with splendid results during his fourteen
years of office. Before his death, in 1891, he wrote a History of
Biographical Sketches : 337

Education in Pennsylvania, which is a ver valuable contributi
to the history of the State, y bution

THOMAS WILLING was the business partner of Robert
Morris. The firm was of great assistance to the Revolutionary
cause in supplying stores and funds. Mr, Willing was mayor of
Philadelphia, Judge of the Supreme Court, president of the Pro-
vineial Congress of 1774, and became a member of the Conti-
nental Congress in 1775. He voted against the Declaration of
1ndebendenss on the ground that it was not the time for such a
step.

DAVID WILMOT, of Bradford county, was born in 1814, and
educated at an academy. He began the practice of law at Wilkes-
Barre but soon afterwards settled in Towanda. He became a
prominent Democratic politician and served in Congress from
1845-51. He was the author of the ® Wilmot proviso,” providing
that slavery be excluded from territory to be purchased from
Mexico in 1846. It passed the House, but not the Senate. For
several years the ® Wilmot proviso” was brought up and debated
when new territories were to be organized. After serving as
president judge in the Bradford district, he became United States
Senator in 1861. Two years later, he was made Judge of the
United States Court of Claims. He died at Towanda in 1868, and
the famous “proviso” js inscribed on his tombstone.

JAMES WILSON was a Scotchman, educated at Glasgow,
St. Andrew’s and Edinburgh Universities. He emigrated to
America, and, after practicing law at Reading, appeared in public
life as a delegate from Cumberland county to the convention that
met in Philadelphia to concert measures preparatory to the First
Continental Congress. He retained his residence in Carlisle till
1777, when he removed to Annapolis, Maryland, and the next year
finally settled in Philadelphia. He was prominent in the discus-
sions preceding the Revolution, was several times a delegate in
Congress, and was one of the signers of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence who also sat in the Constitutional Convention, in 1787.
In 1789 he was appointed one of the first associate justices of
the Supreme Court, and was at the same time a law professor in
the University of Pennsylvania. Wilson’s fame rests chiefly in
the fact that of the fifty-five delegates to the Constitutional Con-
vention, he was the best prepared, by his knowledge of history
and the science of government, for the work that was to be done.
None spoke more to the point and none, excepting Gouverneur
Morris and Madison, was so often on his feet. He died in North
Carolina while on his judicial circuit, and was buried there.

ALEXANDER WILSON was a Scotchman, who came to this
country in 1794 with a few borrowed shillings and no acquain-
tances. He worked at first with a copper-plate printer, then with
a weaver, in Philadelphia. He followed teaching next, and, while
he taught a school near Darby, Delaware county (see page 282),

Vv
338 A History of Pennsylvania

became acquainted with the famous naturalist, William Bartram,
who, by his own love of birds, deeply interested the young man
in that branch of nature. Wilson resolved to make a collection
of all the birds of America. He set out on his first expedition
in 1804. He studied drawing and etching, and prevailed upon
a Philadelphia publisher to undertake an American Ornithology,
of which there are nine volumes. He traveled extensively in
the United States, collecting specimens, for nearly a decade.
In his eagerness to get a rare bird, he swam across a river
and caught cold, which ended in his death, at Philadelphia, in
1813. Wilson was also a poet. He gave us a beautiful glimpse
into his life at Darby in his poem —*The Solitary Tutor.”

DAVID ZEISBERGER was a Moravian missionary, who emi-
grated to Georgia from Moravia, in the Austrian empire. He
came to Pennsylvania to assist in the building of Bethlehem and
Nazareth. He studied the Delaware language at Bethlehem, and
went among the Five Nations to acquire the use of theirs. He
not only did missionary work among Pennsylvania Indians, but
among those of New England and the South. When the various
tribes had been driven to Canada and beyond the Ohio, Zeisberger
followed even thither. He died in Goshen, Ohio, a town which
he founded. He published Indian school books of various kinds,
and left a diary extending over the years from 1781 to 1798.

COUNT VON ZINZENDOREF, founder of the Moravian colony
at Bethlehem, was born at Dresden, Germany, in 1700, educated at
Halle, and after traveling for a time as a religious reformer, was
appointed a member of the Saxon state council. But political life
was not to his taste, and he became interested in the Moravian
brethren, among whom he was ordained a bishop. When he had
planted the settlements in America and organized a number of
missionary stations among the Indians, he returned to “ Herrnhut,”
his estate in Saxony, where he died.
APPENDIX

Principal Officers of the United States Government from Pennsyl-

vania, 1783 to 1897

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date of ap- ’
NAME potatment Born Died
PRESIDENTS
Prior to the adoption of the Constitution .
Phemas Mifllin. .................... 0 0 ans Nov. 3,1783 1744 1800
Arthur St. Clair... oil riers cians Feb. 2,1787 1724 1818
Term of ‘
PRESIDENT Service | Born | Died
Under the Constitution
Jamey Buchanan... ............. 0.000 00 nin 1857-1861 1791 1868
VICE PRESIDENT
George M. Dallas. oc... o.oo re vini en enamine 1845-1849 1792 1864
SECRETARIES OF STATE
Timothy Pickering 1795-1800 | 1745 1829
damesBaelanan.  ..... LL a 1845-1849 1791 1868
deremiah:S. Black. ...........0.0.ccv ci oniisanns 1860-1861 1810 1883
SECRETARIES OF THE TREASURY
Abort Gallatin. Ji. is... viet 1801-1814 1761 1849
Alexander J. Dallas 1814-1817 1759 1817
Richard Rush... 0... 00. 0 onan nin sa teids 1825-1829 1780 1859
Samuel BD, Ingham. ...ci.o.cvoie ict iviiiiniens 1829-1831 1773 1860
William J. Duane..... 1833 1780 1865
Walter Forward.............. 1841-1843 1786 1852
William M. Meredith. ....cv. aii tiiiinnvnrannan 1849-1850 1799 1873
SECRETARIES OF WAR
Timothy Pickering 1795 1745 1829
James M. Porter ...... 1843-1844 1793 1862
William Wilkins ...... 1844-1845 1779 1865
Simeon Carreron.. ... 00 0 csi sia ens 1861-1862 1799 1889
AWN Stanton... .......... nati von abisins 1862-1868 1814 1870
J. Donald Cameron 1876-1877 1833
SECRETARIES OF THE NAVY
WIlIamY JONeS. cei iii nae Raa 1813-1814 1760 1831
AdOIDh IG. Borie... .... on. cerns dseamwain ish oy 1869 1809 1880
SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
PM. T- McRBennan.,...........0i.000nsvinsidinans, 1850 1794 1852
340 Appendix

Principal Officers of the United States Government — continued

 

 

 

  
 

  
  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

  

 

NAME Torn 2 Born | Died
POSTMASTERS GENERAL
Timothy Pickering.... ....cccoveeiesvrrasrasscesses 1791-1795 1745 1829
James Campbell... ............. 1853-1857 1812 1892
John Wanamaker 1889-1893 1838
Charles Emory Smith 1898 1842
ATTORNEYS GENERAL
William Bradford 1794-1795 1755 1795
Richard. Rush .................. 0... ..| 1814-1817 1780 1850
Henry D. GHDIN..... ev svana va sins cas tamvninsiion 1840-1841 1801 1860
Jeremiah S. Black 1857-1860 1810 1883
Edwin M. Stanton............. cc vnssasnaiii sini dnney 1860-1861 1814 1869
Wayne MacVeagh........... 1881 1833
Benjamin H. Brewster 1881-1885 1816 1888
ASSOCIATE JUSTICES OF THE SUPREME COURT
Joines WIHSON..... . .eicvniasiion nsresesvtsnnative 1789-1798 1742 1798
Henry Baldwin..........eoovnieiirnincrnnresunnan... 1830-1846 1779 1846
BRObErt C Grior.. cv rcuicies aes Mirna ons sevens 1846-1870 | 1794 1870
William Strong... 7 .acriis snr svsssssdnsaniantos 1870-1880 1808 1895
George ShIras, Jr......c.covessvnsnsvsnsssessarsovsee . 1892 1832
PRESIDENTS PRO TEM. OF THE SENATE
William Bingham. ........ cco seca esa don 1797 1729 1808
James ROSS... oa ios Sinisa ss iran tana 1797-1799 1761 1847
ANATEW GOTT. ris or nsnsasnt snnilemsisieanaie sts 1809 1755 1835
SPEAKERS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FA MUNIeNDOrE... oo. ciao odes sn man sivaniadeie enrwinss 1789-1791 1750 1801
F.:A. Muahlenberg............conives ciieianse iin. 1793-1795 1750 1801
Galusha A. GIOW.... cv. csr esiicvrsmnrh snares 1861-1863 1823
Samuel Jo Randall .......ci iodine, 1876-1881 1828 1890
SENATORS
William Maelay.......c....... 1789-1871 | Samuel McKean.............. 1833-1839
Robert Morris................ 1789-1795 James Buchanan....... ...1834-1845
Albert Gallatin............... 1793-1794 Daniel Sturgeon........ ...1839-1851
James Ross... .............0.0 1794-1803 Simon Cameron........ ...1845-1849
William: Bingham............ 1765-1801 James Cooper... ....... ...1849-1855
John P. G. Muhlenberg........... 1801 Richard Brodhead...... ...1851-1857
George Logan........... .1801-1807 William Bigler.......... ...1855-1861
Samuel Maelay............... 1803-1808 Simon Cameron .. 1857-1861
Andrew Grege............«..» 1807-1813 David Wilmot.... .1861-1863
Michael Leib, ...............> 1808-1814 Edward Cowan...... ..o..... 1861-1867
Abner Leacoek............... 1813-1819 Charles R. Buckalew......... 1863-1869
Jonathan Roberts............ 1814-1821 Simon Cameron .............. 1867-1877
Walter Lowrie... ...00.....o.. 1819-1825 Jom Seott..... ..c.ini0k ..1869-1875
William Pindlay.............. 1821-1827 William A. Wallace ..1875-1881
William Marks... ...-.:.....:- 1825-1831 J. Donald Cameron 1877-1897
Isane D. Barnhard ........... 1827-1831 John 1. Mitchell. ..o. 0. 1881-1887
George Mifflin Dallas ........ 1831-1833 Matthew Stanley Quay ...... 1887-1899
William Wilkins, .........v-. 1831-1834 | Boise Penrose................ 1897-
INDEX

Adams county,232. See also Gettysburg.

Adolphus, Gustavus, 17.

Agsioaiinre, 250, 276 ; ‘department of,

Alvary, Congress, 125; purchase, 66,

Algonquins, 1.

Allegewi Indians, 2.

Allegheny, valley, 64, 93, 124;
85, 185; city, 268, 308.

Allens, the, 167, 303.

Allentown, 45, 60, 159, 219, 268.

Allman, Jerome T., 246.

Amendment, of Frame of Government.
101, 102; of Federal constitution, 182;
of State constitution, 241.

American Philosophical Society, 326.

Andastes, 3.

Arbor Day, 240.

Armstrong, John, 88, 131, 161, 303;
“Captain Jack,” 75, 197, 303; Thomas
A., 239; county, 89, 267, 273.

Army, Washington’ 8, troops for, 150;
retreat of, to Pennsylvania in 1776,
154; crossing the Delaware, 155;
comes to Pennsylvania in 1771, 156;
at Valley Forge, 163; leaves Valley
Forge, 167; at Morristown, N. J... 173;
marches through Pennsylvania in
1781, 174.

Assembly, General, first, 28, 30, 100,
101; second, 102; powers of, enlarged.
104; first struggle for rights, 112; sent
home, 113 ; scruples about war, 115,
121, 130; gets right to adjourn at will,
115; holds back Governor's salary,
123 ; assists in King George's war,
123 ; disputes with Proprietary, 124;
asked to build a fort on the Ohio, 125;
contends for the right to apply taxes
for the King’s use, 126; and Governor
Morris, 129; aids freely in the French
war, 134; petitions King for change
of government, 138 ; accepts acts of
First Continental Congress, 148 ; in-
structs delegates in Second Continen-
tal Congress, 149; receives instrue-
tions, 151; the Proprietary dies, 107,
152.

Associators, 123, 149.
Audubon, James, 253, 304.
Aughwick, 74.

Bache, Benjamin F., 253, 304.
Baldwin, Henry, 340.
Ballot Reform, 244.

.

county,

 

Baltimore, Lord, 16.

Bangor, 275.

Banks, the first bank in Pennsylvania
and America, 173, 252; the bank of
North America, 175; State, 184, 192,
200, 206, 214, 246; the United States
bank, 184, 192.

Baptists, 279.

Barnes, J. Mahlon, 249.

Barnhard, Isaac D., ., 340.

Bartram, John, 36, 253, 304.

“Battle of the Kegs, ” 163,

Beaver, James A., 239, 241, 244, 301;
county, 89.
Bedford, town, 75, 76, 133, 136, 255;

county, 170, 211, 232,

Beisel, Conrad, 47.

Bellefonte, 195, 299, 302. [317.

Berks county, 150, 188, 266, 274, 296, 297,

Bethlehem, 46, 129, 130, 159, 266, 269,
280, 339.

Bicentennial, 238.

Biddle, Edward, 146, 148, 304; Nicholas,
151, 304; James, 194, 305.

Bigler, William, 212, 298, 340.

“Big Runaway,” 170.

Bingham, William, 340.

Birmingham, 33, 158.

Black, Chantry F., 241; Jeremiah S.,
305, '339

“Black ay 308.

Blackwell, John, 112, 290.

Bloomsburg, 7

Boone, Daniel, 318.

“Border counties,” 232.

Borie, Adolph E., 339.

Bouquet, Colonel, 76, 82, 133, 135-138.

Brackenridge, Hugh, 185, 186, 190, 306.

Braddock, town, 268.

Braddock’s Zampaig, 127-128 ;

grave,

RL William, 35, 42, 305; Andrew,
252, 293, 305; William, 340; county,
69, 337.

Brady, Captain Samuel, 88, 305.

Brandywine, 33, 151-159.

Brewster, Benjamin H., 340.

Bridges, 257.

Bristol, 23, 33, 39.

Brown, Charles Brockden, 253, 306;
John, 215; the schoolmaster, 76.

Brown-stone, 275.

Bryan, George, 167, 171, 293.

Bryn Mawr, 52.

Buchanan, James, 215, 216, 300, 305, 306,
339, 340.

road,

(341)
342

Bucks county, 30, 62, 129, 154, 211, 257,

Buckalew, Charles R., 233, 340.

«Buckshot war,” 205, 206.

«Burnt Cabins,” 74. -

Burrowes, Thomas H., 204, 307.

Bushy run, 82, 136

Butlen, Zebulon, 67, 168, 307; county, 89,
273

Byberry, 33.

Cadwalader, John, 155, 307.

(Cambria county, 88.

(Cameron, Simon, 219, 307, 329, 339, 340;
J. Donald, 339, 340.

Camp Qurtin, 219, 221.

Campbell, James, 340

Canals, 91, 197, 199, 200, 212, 213, 214,
256, 261, 263, 268: commissioners, 200.

Capital, State, 187, 195.

Capitol, 196, 246, 6, 247.

Carbon county, 62, 264

Carlisle, 60, 74, 76, 136, ‘175, 182, 184, 188,
195, 206, 992, 223, 2 24 255, 262, 337.

Carnegie, Andrew, 24 5 308.

Carpenters’ Hall, 107, 146, 147, 184.

Catholics, 279.

Centennial exibition, 234-236.

Centre county, 209, 3

Chambering: 76, oo, 222, 224, 230,

318.

Clarion: Penn’s, 97; of Privileges, 104,

Chase, S. B., 233.

Cheat river, 8,

Cherry Tree, 8 3.

Chester, town, 28, 33, 39, 258, 269, 321,
326; county, 30; Welsh and Scotch:
Trish in, 53, 54; 207, 266, 275, 276, 279,
317, 325.

Chestnut Ridge, 3

Chevaux-de- -frize, 114 162, 175.

Chew mansion, 161.

Christ Church, 36-38, 279.

Christiana, 211

Clarion county, 273.

Clearfield county, 88, 2

Clymer, George, 106, os. 154, 178, 180,
309, 320; Hiester, 232.

Coal, 91, 92, 261-264

Coat of Arms, 100.

Colgrove, 274.

Colonial government, 96.

Columbia, 195, 197, 2 260, 329.

Commerce, 117, 250- 959.

“Common Sense,” 151,

Concord, The, 40

Conemaugh creek, 261.

Conestoga, wagons, 255, 262; Indians,

Congress, Continental, First, 146; Sec-
ond, 148, 154, 159, 167, 175.

Connecticut, claim of, 64; dispute with
settled, 68.

Connelly, Dr. John, 83.

Conococheague, 74, 75.

 

 

Index

Constitution, of 1776, 107, 108; average
life of an American, 108; of 1790,
109; of 1838, 109, 110, 205; of 1873,
111; Federal, 178-182.

Conway Cabal, 164, 307.

Cooke, Jay, 233, 308.

Cooper, James, 340.

Copper, 275.

Corbin, Margaret, 308.

Cornplanter, 86.

Corry, 93.

Council of Censors, 108, 109, 176; of
Safety, 106, 107, 151, 154, 155.

(County, Act, “the great new,” 89; map,
present, 65; of 1800, 89.

Cowan, Edgar, 340.

Coxe, Tench, 265, 308.

Cramp, William, 269, 309.

Crawford county, 89.

Cresap, Thomas, 79.

Croghan, George, 127.

Cumberland, valley, 45, 54, Li county,
127, 129, 136, 211, 267, 297, 3!

Curtin, Andrew a, 216, 217, 218, 219,
223, 229, 231, 299, 329.

Dallas, George M., 309, 339, 340; Alex-
ander M., 339.

Danville, 269.

Darby, 279, 339. [283, 322.

Dauphin county, 54, 180, 196, 275, 276,

Decatur, Stephen, 194, 300.

Declaration of Independence, 152-154:
the signers from Pennsylvania, 15%;
of Rights, 108, 109.

Delamater, George Ww.

Delaware, State, first enki in, 16;
called the “three lower counties, ” 19;
forms a separate council, 112; gets a
separate Assembly, 113: bay, dis-
covery of, 14; Indians, 1-3, 4-5, 63,
134; Tord, 14; river, first settlement
on, 15; county, 21, 259.

Denning, William, 267.

Denny, William, 132, 202.

Dickinson, John, 106, 138, 140; as the

“Pennsylvania Farmer,” 141, 144, 145;
in Congress, 146, 148, 152, 153, 154;
as President, 175; in ‘Constitutional
Convention of 1787, 178; sketch of.
294

Dill, Andrew H., 237.

Dobbins, Daniel, 193.

Dock, Christopher, 280.

Doylestown, 308.

Drafts, 221.

Drake, E. L.,2 [33

Duane, itiine, 253, 310; William 2.

Du Bois, 95.

Duché, Rev. Jacob, 37,146, 167, 310.

Duke of York, 19

Dunecansville, 329.

Dutch, settlements on the Delaware, 14—
17; claim, 16; settle on Minisink
Flats, 17; rule, 19; West India Com-
pany, 15.
Index

Easton, 45, 60, 64, 159. 269, 270, 296, 333.

Education (see also Schools), 36, 190,
199, 200, 201; foundations of, laid, 277;
in constitutions of 1776 and 1790, 281;
in the charter, 282; charitable and
penal, 285 ; compulsory, 285; higher,
286, 287.

Elder, Rev. John, 55, 310.

English, first settlement, of, in Pennsyl-
vania, 21; immigrants, 91, 92.

Ephrata, 47, 159, 280.

Episcopalians, 36-39.

Erie, town, 87, 88, 193, 211, 260; county,
89; Indians, 7.

Evans, John, 14, 290; Oliver, 258, 310.

Ewing, James, 155, 311.

“Fair Play” men, 72.

Falls of Trenton, 33.

Fayette Sownty, 85, 185, 312.

Fenno, John, 253, 311.

Findlay, William, 196, 198, 199, 296, 340.

Findley, William, 181, 185, 281, 311.

“First Defenders, » 918,

Fitch, John, 178, 957, 311.

Fitz Simons, Thomas, 178, 311.

Five Nations, 1, 6.

Flag, provincial, 123 ; Betsy Ross, 157,
327; Pennsylvania battle, 231.

«Flat Tron,” 81.

Fletcher, Governor, 108, 113.

Floods of 1889, 242, 3

Fothon General, i 0 134 ;

Forney, John W., 215, 311.

Forest county, 89.

Fort Allen, 130; Augusta, 71, 73, 130;
Casimer, 18; Christina, 19; Du-

_ quesne, 81, 125, 133; Granville, 75;
Greenville, Indian treaty of, 86;
Le Boeuf, 81, 125; Ligonier, 136;
Loudon, 75, 127; Machault, 125; Me-
Intosh h, 9; Mercer, 162; Mifflin, 162;
Nassau, 15, 18; Necessity, 85, 125;
Pitt, 76, 81, 83, 85, 137, 170; Presque
Isle, 87, 88, "195, 335; Shirley, 131, 135;
Ft. Stanwix, Indian purchase at, 67,
71, 82; Washington, 308.

« Forty Fort, ” 67, 169.

Forward, Walter, 339.

Foster, Henry D., 216.

Fox, George, 25, 39.

Frame of Government, 98-104.

Franklin, Benjamin, in colonial his-
tory, 37, 38, 84, 105, 106, 107, 122, 123,
124, 126, 127, 130; in England, 134, 139,
140; in Congress, 148, 149, 152, 153,
154; in France, 155, 167; as President,
177, 118, 181, 182; 9252, 286; sketch of,
292

Franklin, town, 93; county, 180, 221,
222, 232, 306, 328.

French, erect forts, 125.

Friends. See Quakers.

Fries’ Rebellion, 188.

Frontier forts, 130.

road, 75,

 

343

Fulton, Boland 257, 258, 312, 322;
county, 222, 2

Furly, hg 102.

Furnaces, 266-268.

Gallatin, Albert, 185, 312, 339, 340.
Galloway, Joseph, 138, Li, 148, 167, 313.
Geary, John W., 228, 232, 300.

Germans, 39-53 ; A Palatines, 44;
where from, i; great numbers of,
45; education of, 49; occupation, lan:
guage, and position in the State, 50,
51,207; as frontiersmen, 54, 59 ; in
Juniata valley, 74, 76; in York
county, 74; in southwestern Pennsyl-
vania, 85; naturalization of, 116;
immigration of, checked, 118.

German sects, 48, 167.

Germantown, settled, 39-43, 159; bat-
tle of, 160-161; 266, 979: academy, 43. :

Gettysburg, battle of, 223-230; painting
of battle of, 327; Thaddeus Stevens |
settles in, 331.

Gill, John D., 244,

Gilpin, Henry D.. 340.

Ginter, Philip, 262, 263.

Girard, Stephen, 252 313; college, 287.

Gist, Christopher, 8

Golden Book of a, Anne, 44.

Gookin, Charles, 115, 290.

Gordon, Patrick, 118, 290.

Governor, of Province, treble vote and
veto of, 102; of State, 109, 110, 208.

Gray’s ferry, 183, 304

Great Meadows, 85.

Gregg, Andrew, 199, 340; David M., 229,

313

Greencastle, 222.

Green county, 273.

Grier, Robert C., 340.
Grow. Galusha, 313, 340.
Grundy, Thomas . 246.

“Hail Columbia,” 187, 315.

Hamilton, Andrew, 104, 290 ;
134, 142, 292.

Hancock, Yiopld 5 225, 227, 229, 314.

Hannastown, 82, 8.

Hanover, 224.

Harris, John, 4, 314; John, Jr., 55, 71,
187, 195, 314.

Harrisburg, 60, 171, 182, 185, 195, 197,
209, 217, 219, 22, 224, 237, 246,282.

Hartman, Mrs.

Hartranft, John ae "933, 236, 301.

Hastings, ‘Daniel ou, 246, 6, 248.

Haverford, 316.

Hawley, Charles I., 246.

Hayes, Dr. 1. 1., 317.

Hazleton, 248.

Hazlewood, John, 162, 314.

Heckewelder, 8, 47, 315.

Hendrickson, Captain, 15.

Hiester, Joseph, 196, 198, 296.

Hollidaysburg, 261.

Homestead, 95, 245, 268.

James,
344

Honesdale, 259.

Hopkinson, Francis, 37, 163,
Joseph, 187, 315.

“Hot Water Rebellion,” 188.

House of Represent: tives, 109, 205.

Houston, Robert J., 241.

Hovenden, Thomas, 254, 315.

Hoyt, Henry M., 237, 238, 239, 301.

Hudson, Henry, 10, 14.

Huguenots, 57, 58.

Hummelstown, 275

Humphreys, Charles, 146, 148, 152,:153,
154, 316; Samuel, 269, 316.

Hungarians, 9“.

Huntingdon, town, 75, 287, 303; county,
222

315;

Impeachment, of Logan, 114; of Su-
preme Court Justices, 190.
Injlopendance Hall, 119-121, 198, 246,

og county, 88.

“Indian country,” 86, 89.

Indian purchases, map of, 6; first, 26,
63; of 1736 and 1758, 60; of 1686, 61;
of 1754, 66, 74, 75, 76 ; of 1768, 67, 1,
72, 76, 83,788; of 1749, 70; of 1784,

73, 86.

Indians, tribes of, in Pennsylvania, 1-
8; character and life, 8-14 ; treaties,
11; threaten Pennsylvania, 122;
show hostility, 123.

Ingham, Samuel D., 339.

Ingersoll, Jared, 178, 316.

Internal Improvments, 110, 177, 183,
192, 196, 199, 200, 201, 204, 212, 213,
214, 256, 264.

Inventions, 177.

Irish, 91, 92.

Iron, 91, 92, 254, 266-268.

Iroquois, 1, 4, 5, 317, 329.

Irvine, William, 38, 185, 316.

Jack’s Narrows, 75.

J acobs, Captain, 131.

Jay's Treaty, I .

Jenks, George A.,

Johnston, al - 210, 212, 298.
Johnstown, 95, 249-941, 269.

Jones, William, 339.

Judiciary, 109, 110, 115, 190, 247.
Juniata valley, 6, 45, 64, 74-77.

Kane, Dr. Elisha K., 214, 316
Keith, Sir William, 29,
George, 53, 103.
Kelley, John, 155, 317.
Kennett, 33, 157, 332.
Kingston, 66, 169.
Kiskiminitas, 82.
Kittanning, 75, 88, 131.
Kittatinny valley, 59.
Kyashuta, 85, 317.

116, 290;

Lackawanna county, 264.
Lafayette, 157, 159.

 

Index

Lancaster, town, 39, 45,
188, 195, 266, 283, 295, 307, 326, 331;
county, 54, 76, 78, 127, 129, 136, 211,
255, 267, 275, 276, 311, 317

Lancaster, Joseph, 283.

Lands, classes of, 60 ; Penn’s policy re-
specting, 60; State gets common, 61.

Lane, Franklin H., 237.

Lattimer, 248.

Laurel Hill, 83, 128.

Law, the Great, 101.

Lawrence county, 89.

Lawrenceville, 217.

Laws, to be approved by Crown, 97,115;
to be explained by agent in London,
97, 118; test, 177; British in Pennsyl-
vania, 5

Leacock, Abner, 340.

Lebanon, 45, 60; county, 266.

Legislature, 109, 110, 111; and the em-
bargo, 191; grants charters, 199;
creates canal commissioners, 200 ; es-
tablishes free schools. 202-204 ; sells
public works, 213; extra session of,
240; expands public service, 246; sits
in a church, 247.

Lehigh, valley,’ 45, 92; county, 188, 274,

159, 175, 176,

Lath ‘Michael, 340.

Leiper, Thomas, 259.

Lenni-Lenape Indians, 1-3.

Lewisburg, 317.

Lewistown, 75, 219, 318.

Liberty Bell, 120, 153, 158, 246, 322.

Library, State, 246; Philadelphia, 291.

Lieutenant-governor, 111.

Ligonier valley, 82.

Lincoln, President Abraham, secret
ride of, 217—at Gettysburg, 930—an-
cestry of, 317—and McClure, 318—and
Thomas Scott, 329 ; Abraham, 181,
317; Mordecai, 318.

Literature, 253-254.

Lititz, 280.

Lloyd, Thomas, 112, 113, 290.

Lock Haven, 72, 92, 270.

Logan, James, 44, 104, 114, 115, 118, 1°1,
123, 125, 291, 304 ; George, 340 ; the
Mingo Chief, 75, 318.

Log College, 54, 287, 333.

Lowrie, Walter, 340.

Loyalhanna, 133.

Lumbering, 92, 269-271.

Lutherans, 48, 49, 321.

Luzerne county, 69, 249, 264, 301.

Lycoming county, 73.

MacVeagh, Wayne, 340.

MeCall, George A., 220, 318

MecClay, William, 195, 340; Samuel, 340.

McClellan, George B., 319, 330.

MeClure, Alexander %. 218, 318.

MecConnellsburg, 222.

McKean, Thomas, 181, 182, 185, 189, 190,
191, 281, 295; Samuel, 340

McKean county, 273, 274.
Index

McKeesport, 95, 268.
McKennan, T. M. T., 339.
Magazines, 253, 306, 328.
Mahoning creek, 89.
Manheim, 332.
Manufacturing, 41, 42, 91, 264-269, 309.
Marcus Hook, 33, 194.
Mahan, William, 26, 28, 101, 103, 112,

Marks, William, 340.

Maryland, 77-81.

Mason and Dixon's Line, 80, 84, 220, 222.

Mason, Samuel R., 237.

Mauch Chunk, 92, 259, 262, 267.

Meade, George G., 220, 224, 225, 228, 319.

Media, 287.

Mennonites, 39-42, 48, 280.

Mercer county, 89.

Mercersburg, 254, 296

Meredith, William N = Bn, 339;
uel, 390.

Mey, "Captain, 15, 16.

Middletown, 170.

Mifflin, Thomas, 144, 146, 148, 178, 181,
182, 183, 186, 187, 189, 295, 339.

Militia, 116, 121, 130, 154, 161, 171.

Miller, Peter, 47.

Milton, 95, 299, 329.

Minisink Flats, 3, 16, 62, 63, 69, 334.

Minuit, Peter, 17.

Mischianza, 165.

Mitchell, John I., 340.

Monastery, Wissahickon, 43.

Monongahela valley, 222, 254, 267.

Monroe county, 62.

Monsey Indians, 2.

Montgomery county, 31, 48, !
266, 279, 297.

Montour, Madame, 329; Roland and
Andrew, 329.

Moore, William, 175, 294.

Moorewood, 245.

Moravians, 46, 69, 159, 280, 282, 315.

More, Dr. Nicholas, 101.

Morganza, 287.

Morris, Robert Hunter, 126, 129, 130,
131, 132, 292; Robert, 38, 106, 126, 152,
153, 154, 155, 171, 173, 175, 178, 181, 251,
320, 327, 340; Gouverneur, 178, 327.

Morrisville, 309.

Morton, John, 146, 148, 152, 153, 154, 320.

Mott, Lucretia, 215, 321.

Mt. Carmel, 95.

Mt. Union, 222.

Muhlenberg, Rev. Henry M., 48, 321;
Frederick A., 48, 109, 176, 181, 322, 340;
John P. G., 48, 321, 340 ; Gotthilf, 48,
322; Rev. H. A., 204.

Muncy, 72.

Murray, Lindley, 284, 322.

Mutiny, of Pennsylvania Line, 173.

Sam-

52, 188, 211,

Nanticoke town, 95; Indians, 4.
National Cemetery, 230.
National Guard, 238.

Natural Gas, 240, 268,

 

345

Navy, State pnd Continental, 106, 150,
151, 162, 270,

Nazareth, 46, vat 280, 339.

Neshaminy creek, 26, 257

Neville, John, 185, 322.

New Castle, 269.

New Geneva, 312.

New Gottenberg, 18.

New Hanover, 48, 321.

New Netherlands, 15, 19.

Newspapers, first in Pennsylvania, 35;
first German in Pennsylvania, 43;
252, 298, 304, 305, 310, 311, 318.

Newville, 267.

Nickel, 275.

Norris, Isaae, 138, 322.

Norristown, 163, 297, 301, 314, 315.

Northampton county, 62, 129, 130, 188,
274.

Northumberland, town, 71, 195, 325;
county, 73, 170, 264.

Oaths, of Quakers, 114, 115, 116 ; of
allegiance, 177.

Office-holders, qualifications of, in
1790 ; made elective, 110.

Ogontz, 308.

Ohio valley, 64, 124.

Oil City, 93, 273.

0rd, 0. E. C., 220.

Orwigsburg, 69.

Oxenstiern, 17.

Oxford, 287.

Packer, William F., 214, 215, 216, 299.

Paine, Thomas, 151, 253, 323.

Palatinate, 44.

Palmer, Anthony, 123, 291.

Panies, 214, 233.

Paoli, 159.

Paper money, 110, 117, 118, 125, 170, 173,
204.

Parker city, 93.

Parnell, Charles Stewart, 331.

Parties, political, 187, 191, 196, 198, 200,
204, 205, 208, 210, 213, 214, 216, 233, 237,
239, 241, 244, 246, 323.

Pastorius, Francis Daniel, 2 279, 323.

Patterson, Robert, 206, 208, 3

Pattison, Robert B. y 289, Hi 0 244,
245, 301.

Paxtang, “Boys,” 55-56 ; township, 70,
171, 3 .

Pe ae: Charles, 323; Rembrandt, 254,

Posty’ Ss Mason, 253

Pen Argyl, 2

Penn, William, 10, 11, 12; and the
Jerseys, 22; inotive of, 22; condi-
tions favoring his colony, 23; his
charter, 24 ; arrival in Pennsylvania,
27; his treaty, 3, 8, 28; his mansion,
29; his first departure, 33; his re-
turn, final departure, and death, 4,
103 ; and the Germans, 39; his ideas
of government, 98-100, 101; offers to
346

sell his province, 105; his successors,
105; his rule ends, 116; remains of,
238; his views on education, 277;
sketch of, 289.

Penn, John, son of William, 38, 105,
121

Penn, Richard, son of William, 105,

Penn, Thomas, son of William, 105,

Penn, John, grandson of William, 106,
138, 142, 148, 156, 202.

Penn, Richard, grandson of William,
142, 292.

Penn, Mrs. William, 105, 116, 121.

Pennamite and Yankee war, 67-69.

Penrose, Boies, 340.

Pennsbury, 22, 30, 33.

Pennsylvania, name and extent, 25;
first settlers, 26; present county map
of, 65—county map of 1800, 89;
northern boundary, 87; population
in 1790, 90; increase of population,
90-95; form of government, 96;
charter of, 97; Frame of Govern-
ment, 98-100; new frame, 100 ; under
the Crown, 103; a State, 106; atti-
tude towards British oppression,
143-145; furnishes riflemen for Con-
tinental Army, 149 : votes for inde-
pendence, 153; government moves
to Lancaster, 159, and returns to
Philadelphia, 167; suffers from paper
money, 171; share i in the Revolution,
175; ratifies Federal Constitution,
180-182 ; sides with France, 187;
supports embargo, 191; feeds Union
soldiers, 220: invaded by Lee, 222;
the “Keystone” State, 288.

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts,

Pennsylvania Reserves, 220, 229, 231.

Pequea, 39.

Perkiomen, 39, 163, 304.

Perry county, 232, 302.

Perry’s Fleet, 193.

Peters, Richard, 124.

Petroleum, 93, 271-274.

Pettit, Alfred C., 239.

Philadelphia, Indian name, 12; county
formed, 30; founded, 31-32; incor-
porated, 104; Continental Congress
meets in, 146, 149 ; occupied by the
British, 161-167 ; mutinous soldiers
in, 175; effects of Embargo on, 191;
riots in, 207, 208; receives fugitive
slaves, 211; John Brown’s body in,
215; southern medical students leave,
216; feeds soldiers of the Union, 220;
builds City Hall, 234; sham medical
colleges in, 238; the metropolis of
America, 251; declines in commerce,
2562; seat of literature, 252; all the
roads lead to it, 254, 256 ; and steam-
boats, 258; first passenger train
leaves, 259; becomes manufacturing

 

Index

city, 265; builds ships, 269—270 ; end
of pipe line, 274; and schools, 278,
282, 283.

Pheenixville, 269.

Pickering, Thomas, 69, 181, 281, 324, 339,
340.

Pietists, 42.

Pike county,

“Pitcher,” Tinie, 167, 324.

Pithole City, 93.

Pittsburg, founded, 82 ; manor of, 83;
in 1790, 86; 185, 197, 216, 222, 236, 254,
255, 256; and steamboats, 258, 269,
270 ; and coal, 262; center of bitumi-
nous coal field, 264—of iron industry,
268—of oil trade, 274, 282, 287.

Pleasant Mount, 320.

Plunket, Dr. William, 72, 324.

Plymouth, 67.

Poles, 94.

Pollock, James, 213, 299.

Pontiac’ S war, 55, 82, 135-138.

Population, movements of, 110; in-
crease of, 90-95; 251.

Portage Road, 261.

Porter, David R., 205, 207, 208, 207;
James M., 339.

Post, Frederick, 133.

Post office, first in Pennsylvania, 35.

Potter county, 211.

Pottstown, 95.

Pottsville, 92, 219, 262, 267.

Priestly, Dr. Joseph, 253, 325.

Printing Press, first in Pennsylvania,
> 1 first German in Pennsylvania, 43,
328.

Printz, Governor, 18.

Proprietary, rights and rents, 60, 61,
294; mature of, 96 ; dispute with As-
sembly on Indian presents, 125; taxa-
tion of estates of, 129, 134, 138

Provincial Congress, 145, 149.

Provincial Council, nature of, in 1682,
100; changes in, 102,

Quakers, 21, 22, 25, 29; characteristics
of, 35; chief immigration of, 36; and
the Mennonites, 39; and the Scotch-
Irish, -54-56 ; non-resistance of, 113,
167; Friendly Association of, 133;
and schools, 36, 278, 282,

Quakertown, 211,

Quay, Matthew S., 340.

Quit-rents, 60, 105.

Railroads, 91, 92, 209, 213, 258-264, 268,
208, 311, 329.

Randall, Samuel J, 325, 340.

Raystown, 75,133

Read, Thomas Buchanan, 256, 325.

Reading, 45, 60, 175, 188, 195, 219, 237,
266, 304, 331, 337.

<< Red Rose,” 332.

Redemptioners, 44, 122.

Redstone creek, settlers of, 82.

Reed, Joseph, 106, 144, 170, 173, 294:
Index

Reformed, the, 48-49, 328.

- Revere, Paul, 144.

Revolutionary period, 139-185.

Reynolds, John F'., 254, 327.

Rhoads, Samuel, 146, 326.

Ridley, 959, 320.

Riots, race, 207, 211; political, 208 ; la-
bor, 236, 238, 245.

Ritner, Joseph, 200, 204, 205,

Eitjenhonse, David, 84, it GH 253,

Rittinghuysen, William, 42.

Roach, John, 269, 326.

Roads, 254-257.

Roberts, Jonathan, 340.

Rodney, Caesar A.,153; Caesar A. Jr.,191.

Ross, Betsy, 327; George, 106, 107, 146,
148, 154, 326, 327; James, 340.

Rothermel Peter F., 254, 327.

Rush, Dr. Benjamin, 151, 154, 166, 181,
328; Richard, 339, 340.

Rynder, T. P., 244.

St. David's church, 38.

St. Clair, Arthur, 83, 330, 339.

Saur, Christopher, 43, 252, 328.

“Saw Dust War,” 232.

Schlatter, Rev. Michael, 48, 328.

Schools (see also Education) for Ger-
mans in English language, 49, 282;
common, 202, 204, 212, 242, 2892, 283,
284, 331; William Penn Charter, 278;
Soldiers’ orphans’, 231, 300; Reforma-
tory, 238, 287; appropriation for com-
mon, 242, 286; Friends’ public gram-
mar, 278; church, 279; neighborhood,
280; charity, 282; Indian, 282; col-
ored, 282, 287; Lancasterian, 283;
Normal, 285, 287; State and county
superintendent of common, 285, 307;
evening, 285; free text-books in com-
mon, 285; money for common, 286;
for the blind, deaf and dumb, and
feeble-minded, 287.

Schuylkill, river, 15, 197; valley, 45, 69;
county, 264

Sera rtiors, 45, 280.

Science and Art, 192, 252-254.

Seoteh, 91, 92.

Scoteh-Irish, 53-57 ; east of the moun-
tains, 59; in Juniata valley, 74; in
Cumberland valley, 74; west of the
mountains, 82; insouthwestern Penn-
sylvania, 85; naturalization of, 116;
and the Quakers, 118; and the Whisky
Rebellion, 185; and education, 279;
Mecca of, 310.

Scott, Thomas A., 218, 231, 328; John,
340.

Scranton, 92, 233, 237, 263.
Selinsgrove, 295.

Senate, State, 109, 190.

Seventh Day Baptists, 47, 280.
Shamokin, ( Shay), 5,71, 130.
Sharpsburg, 31

Shawanese ons, 7, 134.

 

347

“Sheridan’s Ride,” 325.

Sherman’s valley, 74.

Shikellimy, 5, 51, 329.

Shinplasters, 192.

Shippen, Edward, 290.

Shippensburg, 60, 76, 135, 222, 254, 255.

Ship yards, 269, 309

Shiras, George, Jr., 0.

Shulze, John A., 199, 2

Shunk, Francis R., he Nn, 297.

Sideling Hill, 80.

Singerly, William H., 246.

Sinking Spring valley, 76.

Six Nations, 63, 64, 66, 125, 170.

Shirpak creek, 161.

Slate, 2

Binge. om 275.

lg 42, 171, 189, 207, 210, 215,

Slifer, Eli, 218.

Smith, James, 154, 330; Dr. William,
144, 253, 330; Charles Emory, 340.

Snyder, Simon, 191, 192, 194, 295.

Somerset county, 305.

Sons of Liberty, 140.

South Bethlehem, 95.

Stamp Act, 139, 320.

Standing Stone, 75, 89.

i Edwin M., 217, 222, 330, 339,
340

State Road, 85.

Steamboats, 01, 178, 257, 310.

Steelton, 95, 269.

Steigel, Baron, 267.

Stenton, 291.

Stevens, Thaddeus, 203, 219, 331.

Stewart, Charles, 194, 331; John, 239.

Stone, William A., 249, 3 303.

Strikes, 94, 233, 234, 236, 247, 248.

Strong, William, 340.

Stroudsburg, 170.

Sturgeon, Daniel, 340."

Suffrage, in 1790 and 1838, 110;

Summit Hill, 263.

Sunbury, town, 71, 72, 170, 195; Manor,
61.

[111.
in 1873,

“Sun Inn,” 46, 189.
Supreme ‘Executive Couneil, 108, 109,
155.

Susquehanna, valley, 45, 64, 70, 128:

river, 197; town, 233; county, 313.
Susquehannock Indians, 3.
Swaanendael, 16.

‘Swallow, Silas C., 249.

Swedish, West India Company, 17;
first settlement, 17 ; authority ends,
19; settlements, 19; foot-prints, 20~
21; ship building, 270; schools, 277.

Tarentum, 95.

Taxation, 113; of immigrants, 118; the
right of, 126 ; of Proprietary estates,
129, 134, 138; Parliamentary, 139, 141,
142, 148; State, 206, 213.

Taylor, Bayard, 36, 332; George, 154,
333.
348

Tea Party, 142.
Tedyuscung, 63, 64, 66, 67, 333.
Telegraph, 209.
Telner, Jacob, 40.
Temperance, 240, 328.
Tennent, Rev. William, 287, 333.
Thomas, George, 121, 201.
Thompson, Col. William. 150.
Thomson, Charles, 144, 333.
Tidioute, 93.
Tioga county, 303.
Tioga Point, 197.
Titusville, 93, 272.
Tories, 145, 167, 177.
Towanda, 301.
Townsend, Richard, 33.
Transportation, 254-264.
* Treaty Elm, 29
Triangle, the, 88.
Tulpehocken, 296, 335.
Tunkers, 43, 280.
Turkey Indians, 2
Turnpikes, 183, 199, 255, 256, 257.
Turtle Indians, 2.
Tuscarora, Indians, 6; valley, 74.

Underground Railroad, 210.
Union county, 305.
University of Pennsylvania, 282, 286,

330.
Unrest, the, 15.
Upland, 26, 28, 101.

Valley Forge, 160, 163-164, 170, 267.

Van Campen, Moses, 72, 334.

Venango county, 89.

Virginia, claims of, 81;
83-85.

dispute with,

‘Walking purchase, 61-63, 122, 128.
Wallace, William A., 340.
‘Wanamaker, John, 334, 340.

War, King George's, 122, 123; French
and Indian, 124-135 ; of the Revolu-
tion, 146-176; of 1812, 192-194, 312,
316 ; Mexican, 209; of the Union,
216-231 ; Spanish, 248.

‘Warren, town, 86; county, 89, 273.

‘Washington, George, 37, 81, 128, 154,
182, 186, 317, 327 ; county, 85, 185, 273.

 

Index

Wayne, Anthony, 106, 158, 159, 161, 162,
174, 181, 335; county, 320.

‘Weiser, Conrad, 51, 71, 122, 123, 335.

Welcome, The, 27, 238.

Welsh, 52-53, 91, 92.

West, Benjamin, 2 254, 303, 324, 335.

‘West Branch, 72, 19

West Chester, nin

Westinghouse, George, 268, 337.

‘Westmoreland, township, 68; county,
83,170, 185, 298, 300.

Wharton, Thomas, Jr.,/ 18D, 167, 298.

‘Whigs, 145, 167. 316

Whisky Ans netion, 184-186, 306, 312,

‘White Marsh, 163

White, Rev. William, 38, 336.

‘Whitehill, Robert, 182, 336.

Wiecaco, 38.

Wickersham, James P., 284, 336.

Wilkes-Barre, 66, 69, 92, 237, 263, 324.

Wilkins, William, 339, 340.

Wilkinsburg, 95.

Williamsport, 73, 92, 232, 270, 299.

Willing, Thomas, 149, 152, 153, 154, 337.

Wilmot, David, 214, 337, 340. :

Wilson, James, 149, 152, 153, 154, 171,
178, 181, 182, 337, 340; Alexander, 253,
304, 338.

Wolf Indians, 2.

Wolf, George, 201,
Charles 8S.

Woman's Suffrage, 321.

Womelsdorf, 332, 335.

World's Fair, 246, 215.

‘Wright, John, 78, 210.

Wright's Ferry, 118, 255.

Wrightsville, 224.

‘Wynne, Dr. Thomas, 52.

Wyoming valley, 66; first massacre, 67;
the Massacre of, 168; 262, 263, 280,
307, 324.

202, 204, 206;

Yellow Fever, 185, 328.

York, town, 60, 159, 194, 223, 255, 267,
275, 305, 330, ST; county and Mary-
land dispute, 78; ‘and Braddock’ S cam-
paign, 127.

Zeisberger, David, 89, 329, 339.

Zine, 275.

Zinzendorf, Count, 46, 71, 339.
 
 
 
 
 
' RETURN CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT
 TOw==p 202 Main Library

LOAN PERIOD 1 |2 3
~~ HOME USE
4 5 6

 

 

 

 

 

ALL BOOKS MAY BE RECALLED AFTER 7 DAYS
RENEWALS AND RECHARGES MAY BE MADE 4 DAYS PRIOR TO DUE DATE.
LOAN PERIODS ARE 1-MONTH, 3-MONTHS, AND 1-YEAR.
RENEWALS: CALL (415) 642-3405

DUE AS STAMPED BELOW

 

 

 

1Q0H
TIA

 

 

 

 

 

SENT ON ILL

SEP 151899
U. C. BERKELEY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY

FORM NO. DDé, 60m, 1/83 BERKELEY, CA 94720 >
Ss
U.C. BERKELEY LIBRARIES

LTT

C(022b1bL9kL3
Hn
Rite
HAN

cats

 

 

 

 

 

 

HE EL er
St BEI 4 RRR HI