As stories fly about the possible planned destruction of Hybla, the Mifflin-Wright house near Wrightsville, more concern has surfaced about this important York County historical site. Hybla has just been named one of the 11 most endangered properties in Pennsylvania by Preservation Pennsylvania. Click these links for media coverage of
While researching my recent York Sunday News column on the Hybla mansion near Wrightsville and the Mifflins who lived there, who were instrumental in York County Underground Railroad activity, I came across an original letter written by Jonathan Mifflin (1743-1850). The letter (memorial/petition)was addressed to York County judges, and in
Fellow blogger Scott Mingus has done extensive research on the Mifflin family of Hellam Township. He has written, both in his Cannonball blog and in his recently published book, The Ground Swallowed Them Up: Slavery and the Underground Railroad in York County, Pa., about the significant role Jonathan Mifflin, his wife Susannah
One of the things of which we York countians are proud is that the Articles of Confederation, our nation’s first constitution, was approved right here 239 years ago today, on November 15, 1777. The Articles served the nation well through the Revolutionary War and beyond, until replaced by the stronger
In honor of those brave patriots who put their life on the line signing the Declaration of Independence, my previous York Sunday News column on “our signer,” James Smith, is repeated below: Who Was James Smith? You might know that James Smith was York County’s signer of the Declaration of
Time to get back to the series of posts on records found at the National Archives and Pennsylvania State Archives for the York County Militiamen who guarded the British prisoners at Camp Security during 1781, 1782 and 1783. As mentioned in previous posts it was June 1832, nearly 50 years
We are not the only generation to denounce the destruction of landmarks once they are gone. Half a dozen recently demolished homes are listed in the April 17, 1866 York Gazette. I have transcribed and annotated the article to give an idea of what is now on those sites. OLD
Continuing the series of posts extracted from the recently updated history of Camp Security, which can be accessed at www.campsecurity.org, this post quotes extensively from the memoirs of Sergeant Roger Lamb of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers (23rd Regiment of Foot). The British prisoner-of-war left one of the few eyewitness accounts
I am sharing two shorter portions of the history of Camp Security in this post. The entire recently revised narrative can be found at www.campsecurity.org under the History tab. In addition, scrolling to the bottom of that page will take you to Blake Stough’s transcription of Pennsylvania Archives documents listing
This post continues an overview of York County’s Revolutionary War prisoner-of-war camp. Click here for the first two installments as well as many other posts that I have written over the past ten years about the camp. The internees were British soldiers captured at two of the most important battles