This begins a series researching photos submitted by Elberta Sheffer of students in front of various One-Room Schoolhouses in York County. Some photos had writing on the back. However the majority were just photos; those are the ones where discoveries reveal new connections, thus I’ll look at them first. Many
Learn why Dr. John W. Barcroft selected the name Yorkana as the post office for a community in Lower Windsor Township during 1875. The name endures upon Yorkana Borough incorporating in 1912. Dr. Barcroft is the reason several Northern Virginia communities are named Barcroft. What inspired him to select the
Ten-day Yorkana Campmeetings were annual occurrences during summers of the late 1800s to refresh body and soul. It was also the place where love blossomed for young people; as was the case for my grandparents, Luther and Iva Smith. The Yorkana camp was located in a grove of trees on
Students at Rearich’s One-Room School near Spring Grove took a field trip to Washington DC in 1951. What are your memories of school field trips to the nations capitol? My memories are from high school in the 1960s. I never realized pupils attending one-room schools took such trips. Steven Rearich
Margie Ross pointed out the still standing former Neiman’s One-Room Schoolhouse as the present Delp Center; centered in this photo taken along Andersontown Road in the northwestern section of Conewago Township. Upon my visit to this site, a month ago, I unsuccessfully focused on evaluating the Mountain Grove Chapel as
York County service stations featured giveaways ranging from airplane rides to lunar landers. These promotional gifts were a means to entice customer loyalty for particular gasoline brands or stations. G. G. Naugle’s service station operated during the 1930s; along the Lincoln Highway in Stony Brook, Springettsbury Township, York County, PA.
Stonework signature details have been used successfully to verify structures as former One-Room Schoolhouses. Neiman’s One-Room Schoolhouse is used as an example. There were four Neiman’s One-Room Schoolhouses in York County; located in Lower Windsor Township, West Manchester Township, and two in Conewago Township. Neiman’s Grammar (grades 5-8) and Neiman’s
Dallastown’s Merchants Box Company made boatloads of distinctive wooden file boxes for the National Archives. Recent queries about Merchants Box Company, in conjunction with a National Register application, caused me to look deeper into my Merchants investigation, started over 25-years ago; as part of Barshinger family research. That was when
During the early 1900s, there were at least four Smeltzer Cigar Factories in Bittersville; a small village located at the end of the trolley line from York into southeastern York County. Cigar manufacturing was the dominant industry in York County in the early 1900s; both in terms of number of
Miss Virginia Ruth was given the honor of unveiling a dedication plaque to her fellow men and women of industry who make York County the Community of Craftsmen. At the September 13, 1949 event, Miss Ruth was still actively employed by the P. H. Glatfelter Company, after over 60 straight