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125 Years Ago - 1885
Grandmother Susan Schraw-der, residing near White Hall in Juniata County, aged 82 years, walked from the Richfield Campground to Middleburgh, a distance of twelve miles. She arrived here about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, having stopped on the way for dinner. She walked spry as a fawn and said she wasn't tired, but her feet hurt her. She was born in 1803.
Last Wednesday the children of Aaron Bickel of Adamsburg prepared and ate what they supposed to be mushrooms, but turned out to be toad-stools. The children became severely ill, but the timely arrival of Dr. H.J. Smith prevented serious results.
100 Years Ago - 1910
Saturday morning the ther-mometer registered 42 degrees at the eastern end of the county. It being only ten degrees above freezing.
The Centreville Cornet Band passed thru the county seat Saturday to and from the Paxtonville Sunday School picnic. They stopped in Middleburg and played several choice selections which was appreciated by the citizens.
The Middleburg telephone ex-change hours: 7 am to 9:30 pm; Sunday hours: 8 to 9 am and 5 yo 6 pm. These are the times an operator will be on hand to complete your calls.
75 Years Ago - 1935
Twelve Snyder County voters of Beaver Springs petitioned the court to allow them to re-register as Republicans after they were promised jobs. The jobs were not forthcoming, so the proceedings were instituted.
The Donkey Ball Game at Middleburg attracted a large crowd. Reliance Hose Company defeated the Legion Post by the score of 4-2.
C.A. Stuck, Wilson Kline and Lee Kline of McClure spotted a been in a tree on the ridge east of town. They cut the tree, scapped the bee, and removed 70 pounds of honey.
50 Years Ago - 1960
Steiningers TV and Appli-ance Store in Middleburg, began this week to install an Automatic Home Laundry, at the rear of his store building. This will come as great convenience for those who do not own an automatic machine of their own.
25 Years Ago - 1985
Senator Arlen Specter has been chosen as the Keynote Speaker at the Bean Soup this year. Sen. Specter has been our Senator for the past four years.
Grandmother Susan Schraw-der, residing near White Hall in Juniata County, aged 82 years, walked from the Richfield Campground to Middleburgh, a distance of twelve miles. She arrived here about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, having stopped on the way for dinner. She walked spry as a fawn and said she wasn't tired, but her feet hurt her. She was born in 1803.
Last Wednesday the children of Aaron Bickel of Adamsburg prepared and ate what they supposed to be mushrooms, but turned out to be toad-stools. The children became severely ill, but the timely arrival of Dr. H.J. Smith prevented serious results.
100 Years Ago - 1910
Saturday morning the ther-mometer registered 42 degrees at the eastern end of the county. It being only ten degrees above freezing.
The Centreville Cornet Band passed thru the county seat Saturday to and from the Paxtonville Sunday School picnic. They stopped in Middleburg and played several choice selections which was appreciated by the citizens.
The Middleburg telephone ex-change hours: 7 am to 9:30 pm; Sunday hours: 8 to 9 am and 5 yo 6 pm. These are the times an operator will be on hand to complete your calls.
75 Years Ago - 1935
Twelve Snyder County voters of Beaver Springs petitioned the court to allow them to re-register as Republicans after they were promised jobs. The jobs were not forthcoming, so the proceedings were instituted.
The Donkey Ball Game at Middleburg attracted a large crowd. Reliance Hose Company defeated the Legion Post by the score of 4-2.
C.A. Stuck, Wilson Kline and Lee Kline of McClure spotted a been in a tree on the ridge east of town. They cut the tree, scapped the bee, and removed 70 pounds of honey.
50 Years Ago - 1960
Steiningers TV and Appli-ance Store in Middleburg, began this week to install an Automatic Home Laundry, at the rear of his store building. This will come as great convenience for those who do not own an automatic machine of their own.
25 Years Ago - 1985
Senator Arlen Specter has been chosen as the Keynote Speaker at the Bean Soup this year. Sen. Specter has been our Senator for the past four years.
Snyder County Consists of 331 Sq. Miles of Land and 1 Sq. Mile
of Water
of Water
Snyder County Post History -- Rolling Green Park
Snyder County Post History -- The Biff Burger
Snyder County Post History -- The Notorious Victoria Woodhull
Snyder County Post History -- Historical Tidbits I
Snyder County Post History -- Soldiers War Memorial(s)
Snyder County Post History -- Beavertown's 200 Year History
Snyder County Post History -- New Berlin, Original County Seat
Snyder County Post History -- The Biff Burger
Snyder County Post History -- The Notorious Victoria Woodhull
Snyder County Post History -- Historical Tidbits I
Snyder County Post History -- Soldiers War Memorial(s)
Snyder County Post History -- Beavertown's 200 Year History
Snyder County Post History -- New Berlin, Original County Seat
From the Archives of
The
Middleburg Post
The
Middleburg Post
To help celebrate the Beavertown Bicentennial, candy and clothing items with the special logo will be available for purchase at the Beavertown Borough Office. The Susquehanna Bank in Beavertown will have items on display in their lobby.
Beavertown Items
Made Available
For Bicentennial
Made Available
For Bicentennial
Clothing is available to be purchased or you can place an order by contacting the Beavertown Borough office at 570-658-2482 or by calling 658-7205 weekdays from 6 to 9 P.M. or Saturdays noon to 9:00 P.M.
The Introduction of Electricity to
Snyder County
Snyder County
It is difficult to imagine a life without electricity. With all of today's conveniences using it, its easy to wonder how things ever got done before electricity was brought to the area.
The first electric light in Snyder county was installed by H.D. Schnure in November, 1897 in his Isle of Que Mills and at his residence at 100 East Mill Street.
His private system consisted of a dynamo connected to the water wheel at the mill. The churning of the water turned the wheel, winding the dynamo and sending current through the line. This in turn would illuminate the crude electric light bulbs hooked up in the house or mill.
When it was time to go to bed, Mr. Schnure would light a lantern and go over to the Mill, close the gates of the water turbine and the dynamo would slowly grind to a stop and the lights would go out.
Selinsgrove borough wanted a public electric lighting system. They initially granted an electric light franchise to a Millersburg startup, but the proposition was deemed unsatisfactory. They attempted several other franchises but none ever materialized.
According to Geo. Wagen-seller in his Personal Recollections of Half a Century, he tells how in January 1905, he was in his office in Middleburg, when a dapper young man named David Goldstein entered and wanted to know if Wagenseller would like electric lights for the county seat. Wagenseller listened.
The first electric light in Snyder county was installed by H.D. Schnure in November, 1897 in his Isle of Que Mills and at his residence at 100 East Mill Street.
His private system consisted of a dynamo connected to the water wheel at the mill. The churning of the water turned the wheel, winding the dynamo and sending current through the line. This in turn would illuminate the crude electric light bulbs hooked up in the house or mill.
When it was time to go to bed, Mr. Schnure would light a lantern and go over to the Mill, close the gates of the water turbine and the dynamo would slowly grind to a stop and the lights would go out.
Selinsgrove borough wanted a public electric lighting system. They initially granted an electric light franchise to a Millersburg startup, but the proposition was deemed unsatisfactory. They attempted several other franchises but none ever materialized.
According to Geo. Wagen-seller in his Personal Recollections of Half a Century, he tells how in January 1905, he was in his office in Middleburg, when a dapper young man named David Goldstein entered and wanted to know if Wagenseller would like electric lights for the county seat. Wagenseller listened.
H.D. Schnure
Geo. Wagenseller
In the issue of The Middle-burgh Post of February 2, 1905, it was hinted that a group of capitalists was talking about the feasibility of electric power for a chain of county towns, with the current to be generated at one plant. The editorial said they were undecided about a site and discussing several possibilities.
The first site proposition was to use the waters of Penn's Creek at New Berlin; the second to employ the water from mountain streams in Paxtonville. Both were considered to be inadequate flow to generate the current.
Final decision was to employ the waters of Middlecreek near John H. Hoover's farm, where a small dam for a grist mill already existed. Wagenseller and his capital venturist friends got an option from Hoover to buy the land within one year.
Editor Wagenseller described the plan as follows:
Final decision was to employ the waters of Middlecreek near John H. Hoover's farm, where a small dam for a grist mill already existed. Wagenseller and his capital venturist friends got an option from Hoover to buy the land within one year.
Editor Wagenseller described the plan as follows:
A mountain 200 feet high and 900 feet across stands between Hoovers mill site and Penns Creek along the narrows along the Narrows above Glase's house. It is proposed to build a dam at Hoover's and dig a tunnel through the mountain from Hoover's to Glase's, placing a large turbine wheel and an electric light power house near the mouth of the tunnel at the Narrows."
Geo. Wagenseller
Middleburgh Post, Feb 9, 1905
Middleburgh Post, Feb 9, 1905
This is how Wagenseller, editor of The Post, become a great powerhouse of ideas to bring material improvements to the county. Not to say he wasn't without his detractors. Many doubted the practicality of it all.
Delays occurred in the bidding and new surveys were constantly being made. The dam was to be of solid concrete, 17 to 20 feet high and about 360 feet long. The bids submitted were deemed too high by Wagenseller, and along the way, the tunnel idea was scrapped, due to its small contribution to the fall of the creek within the range.
Soon more money was needed to complete the dam. Bonds were issued to gather more capital and at last, on December 3rd, 1906 the dam and power plant were deemed to be completed, and 16,000 volts were being furnished to Northumberland.
Selinsgrove had contracted for 22 arc lights at $60 per arc per year. Finally, on January 19, 1907, the first arc lights were turn on in Selinsgrove.
Business was so good that eventually a new plant was needed at Sunbury to help bear the load which could not be carried by the steam plant at Northumberland and the water plant at Hoover's.
Soon more money was needed to complete the dam. Bonds were issued to gather more capital and at last, on December 3rd, 1906 the dam and power plant were deemed to be completed, and 16,000 volts were being furnished to Northumberland.
Selinsgrove had contracted for 22 arc lights at $60 per arc per year. Finally, on January 19, 1907, the first arc lights were turn on in Selinsgrove.
Business was so good that eventually a new plant was needed at Sunbury to help bear the load which could not be carried by the steam plant at Northumberland and the water plant at Hoover's.
Wagenseller said that in spite of all his efforts, Middleburg never got any electricity from this plant. He said "the lack of appreciation on the part of many people for the real good I was instrumental in bring to the county, was naturally very discouraging, but I survived."
Wagenseller was a real promoter and the County owes him a huge debt of gratitude for all he has done. While some of the ideas may have turned out to be fantastic, he loved Snyder County and wanted to see it progress by participating in the developing industrialization.
It can be certain that his name will be coming up often in future issues of the County History Page of The Snyder County Post.
Wagenseller was a real promoter and the County owes him a huge debt of gratitude for all he has done. While some of the ideas may have turned out to be fantastic, he loved Snyder County and wanted to see it progress by participating in the developing industrialization.
It can be certain that his name will be coming up often in future issues of the County History Page of The Snyder County Post.
| • | 232,000 feet of lumber |
| • | 1650 barrels of cement |
| • | 653.5 tons of sand |
| • | 1500 perches of stone |
Hoover's Dam Building
Materials (1906):
Materials (1906):
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