Universal York

York Haven Suspicious of Slavs

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 23:04:00 -0500

It was 1908. Although their families had been immigrants only a hundred years or so before, some York County people weren't too sure about the new immigrants coming in to work at plants, mills and quarries or to build roads.

These new arrivals weren't of German, English and Scots-Irish stock like them. They were Slavs, Poles, Italians and who knew what.

In the incident below, from the April 30, 1908 York Gazette, York Haven found out that not all foreigners were troublemakers.

Ice Cream of All Flavors for York

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 22:21:41 -0500

What would we do without ice cream? Even though it was served previously, the popularity of ice cream increased in America in the 1840s. Perhaps this was because Nancy Johnson invented the crank-type ice cream freezer about that time.

According to the Gazette advertisement below, York provided a ready market in May 1845 for the cold, sweet concoction. Thomas Gray would even cater your ice cream party.

Early Dentists Kept York Chewing

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 22:58:23 -0500

Dentistry came into its own in the 19th century. According to the American Dental Association website, Samuel Stockton began manufacturing porcelain teeth in 1825. Amalgam fillings were introduced in America in the 1830s, and cohesive gold foil fillings became practical about 1855. Probably best of all from the patients' point of view was the development of various means of anesthesia in the 1840.

York dentists kept up with the times, according to two 1840s ads below from the York Gazette:

What Went on at the York Fair?

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 20:09:53 -0500

n 1867 the York Fair was held in October, about a month later than the current September time slot.

What did those fairgoers do for fun 140 years ago? The fairgrounds, which then stretched from King Street, just east of Queen, to the Spring Garden Plank Road (Prospect Street) was a lively place.

Congress Invades York

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 22:45:58 -0500

If you are reading this, you are probably interested in York County history and know that York was the capital of the United States from the end of September 1777 through June 1778. The Revolutionary War was in full swing, and the British were occupying Philadelphia, which had been the capital of the new nation.

Congress moved west and settled in York for the duration, putting nearly a hundred miles, including the mile-wide Susquehanna River, between them and British General Howe and his troops.

It seems that many Americans of the time, when they heard Congress was meeting in York, said "York? Where's that?" John Adams wrote wife Abigail that he had to take a circuitous route of 180 miles to avoid the British on his way to York, which he estimated was not more than 88 miles from Philadelphia.

Abigail was confused and wrote James Lovell, friend of both Adamses who was also serving in Congress at York, for clarification. She said that John said they were 88 miles from Philadelphia, but she didn't know which way. Were they closer to Boston or further away? Lovell drew her a map.

Fires in Hanover Area Preventable

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 22:41:10 -0500

Every since humans discovered fire, we have been relying on it for cooking our food, keeping us warm, and lighting our way.

We also know the destruction and tragedy accidental fires can cause. Three items, datelined Hanover, from the April 25, 1908 York Gazette illustrate why fire needs to be treated with respect.

York People Fascinated by "Different" People

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 20:31:51 -0500

York Fair week brings back memories of the midway when I was a child. Even though I never spent the money to go see them, I remember the hawkers and big tacky painted banners inviting fairgoers to step in and see the skinniest man, fattest lady, or whatever else they could exhibit to make a buck.

The following ad from the April 11, 1816 York Gazette illustrates how traveling showmen separated Yorkers from their money long before my memories of the 1950s:

York County People Didn't Always Speak English

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:34:18 -0500

Welsh's Store in 1902 With Dollar Bible Sign.

I still don't understand why some people get upset when notices are published or signs posted in English and another language, usually Spanish nowadays. They seem to think that English is the only language all of us should use. If public notices hadn't been bilingual in Pennsylvania in the past, the ancestors of a great many of the people complaining wouldn't have known what was going on.

A few months ago I listed the publishers of York newspapers in 1837, with more German than English editions. Click here to read that post.

Below are a few more examples, illustrating the prevalence of the German language in York County for over 150 years.

York's Small's Meadow Field Had Real Hay and Cows

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 23:11:01 -0500

Small Field, the athletic field for York High, was the subject of a recent post. I checked further into the files at York County Heritage Trust and found that the gift was a real surprise to the York City school board.

Click here to see the previous post and the January 1916 drawing of the meadow.

A November 1915 newspaper article quotes the letter offering the field for the benefit of the children of York:

Wrightsville Civil War Soldier Remembered Confederates at Mt. Pisgah.

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 20:12:23 -0500

A 1917 newspaper account captured some reminiscences of David Sloat, who at 90 was one of the last three Civil War veterans in Wrightsville.

After the war Sloat had moved to Ohio and lived there for fifty years, but he retired back to Wrightsville. There he shared his vivid memories, as a boy of 16, of the Confederate invasion of York County. The account states:

Why did York's Baptist Alley Become Hope Avenue?

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 23:09:21 -0500

Sturdy old houses on Hope Ave. near Oak Lane.

The very detailed Atlas of the City of York by Frederick Roe (1903), as illustrated below, shows Baptist Alley stretching west, between Princess Street and College Avenue, from South Queen Street to the Codorus Creek. It picks up again just east of Penn Street and ends at Belvidere.

Look at a map today, and Hope Avenue follows much the same course, except for a break where William Penn Senior High School takes up the whole block between Beaver Street and Pershing Avenue.

Small Field in York Named for the Small Family

Sat, 23 Aug 2008 21:34:28 -0500

January 1916 drawing of Small Field by T. Tyrrell Heiges, Engr.

A recent letter to the Editor in the York Daily Record mentioned Small Athletic Field, which is owned by the York City School District and site of York High sports contests.

An undated clipping from the York Daily announces the gift of the site to the York school district:

Water Main Break in York Washes Huge Crater in Street

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 22:01:35 -0500

Four York Water employees: Leroy Chronister, Gerry Bolton, James Johnson, and Alexander Wilson work to repair the break.
The recent broken 10-inch water main in South George Street has been repaired and the street resurfaced. The ride there was bumpy for a while, but minor compared to the havoc caused when a 20-inch main, carrying water at 80 pounds of pressure a square inch, burst 60 years ago.

An estimated million gallons of water gushed from that break at Springettsbury Avenue and Newberry Street in October 1948. It created a crater at that intersection that was 20 feet deep by 20 feet wide by 30 feet long.

Hellam Tree House Makes the Movie News Reels

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:44:58 -0500

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from a childhood friend who has lived in California for many years. She found a photo postcard that had belonged to her York County grandmother and wondered if I knew anything about the Brook Leaf Love Nest. I remembered that my family had one of those postcards too and that the photograph of the house in the tree had fascinated me as a child.

Long Level Soldier Wounded

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 22:21:55 -0500

A few days before armistice was declared between the Allies and Germany, ending the First World War, the York Gazette and Daily published a poignant letter written home by a York County soldier wounded in France.

The heading read:
"PRIVATE GEORGE SLOAT IS TWICE WOUNDED
Long Level Soldier Falls in Battle with Bullets in Leg and Arm"