YorksPast

Verna Williams surprised me by submitted a photo of a sign heralding the office of Dr. L. V. Williams; used at one, or more, of his locations in York County. The sites include: the initial 1911 office in Mount Wolf, progressing to multiple locations in the City of York, and finally in Springettsbury Township; where he added an office during the 1940s, to his farmhouse along Mt. Zion Road. I had been helping Verna unravel Dr. Louis V. Williams’ connection to General Edward C. Williams, when she discovered the photo of the sign.

Connecting the dots on the naming of Powder Mill Road may go back to inspection visits to the U. S. Army General Hospital in Penn Park during the Civil War. A lasting positive impression of the hospital and the York Community could have influenced Dr. Thomas C. Brainerd to select York as the site for his powder mill venture in 1874; which led to the naming of Powder Mill Road.

Thirty-nine Civil War Veterans were Kiwanis Banquet guests in the York Motor Clubhouse at 2025 East Market Street during 1922. Mahlon Haines was the guest speaker, as he was running for a seat in Congress. Mahlon is in the extreme lower left, within the close-up portion of the group photo.

A log house IS NOT being torn down in Springettsbury Township. That structure, the home of blacksmith Henry Drayer during 1860, is being renovated. After seeing the siding removed from the log structure, several people have expressed their concern; thinking that might be a forerunner to demolition. Be assured, the

Upon seeing the tiny watch George Sellers wrote “it was a beautiful piece of workmanship considering the tools Davis had at his command.” Sellers saw this watch in 1828 when papermaker George King, of York, brought it along on a trip to Philadelphia; showing it off during a paper-mould buying

Eight-thousand quarts of Neuman ice cream was served to Civil War veterans on July 4th 1913 at Gettysburg upon the 50th anniversary reunion of the great battle. The H. L. Neuman Company made this ice cream at their plant along South Newberry Street in York, PA. Henry Lenhart Neuman founded

Arthur Farquhar recalled his capture by President Abraham Lincoln in the April 1922 issue of McClure’s magazine; a monthly publication sold widely throughout the United States. York industrialist Arthur B. Farquhar was 24-years old when he initiated actions that resulted in the surrender of the Borough of York to thirty

Last month Bob Smyser provided some neat Civil War insight about General Gordon stopping at the house still standing at 3103 East Market Street in Springettsbury Township; prior to his Confederate troops marching to Wrightsville. Bob continues to provide interesting York County related Smyser family history with this post. Bob

I received an unexpected reaction to last weeks post: General Gordon napped at 3103 East Market Street. This post answers that inquiry and also provides additional details about Albert Smyser’s prized horse; stolen by the confederate troops when they invaded York County during 1863. A reader inquired why the house

Bob Smyser had a passing interest in family history when he was given a box of papers, recently discovered by his dad; it contained family history research, started by his dad’s grandmother. I met Bob at my family history talk near Pittsburgh last month. He shared a Civil War era