YorksPast

At the top of this illustration, I’ve pointed out, and marked, ten 1860 buildings in the Lower Glades Area within what is now Springettsbury Township. At the bottom of the above illustration is a 1937 aerial photo of the same region. I’ve zoomed in on the 1937 aerial photo to provide better detail in locating the 1860 properties (n11) through (n20).

I’m working my way around Springettsbury Township, normally ten buildings at a time, until all buildings from 1860 are visited. See the post: Springettsbury Township building tally during 1860, for my specification of the four regions.

Other posts in this series include:

• 1860 Buildings 1-10 in North Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 21-24 in North Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 25-31 in North Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 32-35 in North Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 1-10 in South Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 11-20 in South Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 21-30 in South Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 31-35 in South Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 36-41 in South Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 1-10 in East Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 11-20 in East Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 21-30 in East Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 31-40 in East Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 41-50 in East Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 51-58 in East Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 1-10 in West Region of Springettsbury Township As a side note, when properties (w1) through (w10) were first visited, the precise 1860 owners of only two of the properties could be identified. Initial deed searches have now increased that number to seven. The 1860 owners of properties (w1) through (w10) will be posted upon the discovery of the final three.
• 1860 Buildings 11-20 in West Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 21-30 in West Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 41-50 in West Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 51-60 in West Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 61-70 in West Region of Springettsbury Township
• 1860 Buildings 71-80 in West Region of Springettsbury Township

Shearer’s 1860 Map of York County contains the owner/occupant of most buildings; for example (n18) is J. Knaub. Additional information on J. Knaub can be found by consulting the 1860 Census of the United States; where one discovers this is John Knaub, a 47-year-old, farmer, with $7,500 in considerable real estate holdings.

The results after consulting 1860 Spring Garden Township census records are shown below. Spring Garden Township 1860 Census records must be used because Springettsbury Township was formed from the northeast part of that township on April 20, 1891. The order of visitation, of the census taker, often provides assistance on who are neighbors and the tabulation of “value of real estate” separates the landowners from the renters or tenants:

Nine of these 1860 buildings still stand, or are a part of buildings still standing, at the following addresses:

• n11 – 3482 Lower Glades Road
• n12 – 3462 Lower Glades Road
• n13 – 3461 Lower Glades Road
• n14 – 3455 Lower Glades Road
• n15 – 3021 Trout Run Road
• n16 – 3441 Lower Glades Road
• n17 – 3480 Lower Glades Road
• n18 – 3395 Lower Glades Road
• n20 – 3351 Druck Valley Road

In 1860, John Knaub [owning n18] was the resident living in the Lower Glades Area who owned the most real estate. That fact often results in a mention within George Prowell’s 1907 History of York County, Pennsylvania; as is the case for John Knaub. Quoting from Volume II, pages 726 and 727:

John Knaub, was born in Spring Garden Township in 1813, where he received a common school education and was reared to be an agriculturist. He farmed in his native township during his entire life, owning about 300 acres of land near Brillinger’s Mill [an early name for the mill located where North Sherman Street crosses the Codorus Creek]. He married Sarah Zellers, both husband and wife dying in 1891, within a few days of each other, and being buried at Mount Zion Cemetery in Spring Garden Township [Springettsbury Township from 1891 onward]. They were members of the Reformed Church in whose work they took an active part.

In politics Mr. Knaub was a Democrat, serving on the election board, and as township supervisor and tax collector. The children born to this worthy couple were as follows: Henry, who was killed on the Northern Central Railroad, at Reynold’s Mill, York County; Samuel, a farmer of Manchester Township; John, deceased; Jesse [married Sevilla Jane Wilt and took up the stone and brick-mason’s trade in the City of York]; William, a farmer of York Township; Mary, who died in Windsor Township; and Susanna, the wife of Emanuel Dellinger living in York Township.

This photo shows the John Knaub farmhouse, along Lower Glades Road; as it appears today.

A 1993 site survey of this house noted the foundation of this Pennsylvania German Vernacular farmhouse is rubble, uncut, un-coursed stone with beaded mortar joints. Doors & windows on the ground floor have wood sills & lintels, plain & rectangular, sill plate & porch framing above is rough sawn. The building has a limestone foundation with wood upper floors.

In this general area, Dry Stone Walls exist at numerous locations along Druck Valley Road, Colonial Farm Lane and Lower Glades Road. This photo shows an example of these Dry Stone Walls along Lower Glades Road.

The question has been raised; how old are these stonewalls? I suppose they could go back to the earliest settlers, who cleared the land to farm and found an over abundance of stones. Clearing the stones, and with them being relatively flat, made stacking them fairly easily to create fence walls. Do any of my readers have details on the creation of these Dry Stone Walls? Are there any early photos that include these walls?

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