Page:Historical and Biographical Annals of Columbia and Montour Counties, Pennsylvania, Containing a Concise History of the Two Counties and a Genealogical and Biographical Record of Representative Families.pdf/370

 328

COLUMBIA AND MONTOUR COUNTIES

chased from J. Simpson " 18 0 acres o f land on Mahoning C reek; North side of the East Branch 01 the Susquehanna, called K a rk a a se "; and on this land w as laid out the town o f Dan­ ville. In the fall o f 1 7 ^ Gen. WiUiam Mont­ gomery moved his family to Mahoning (after­ wards Danville) permanently, and commenced the improvement o f his estate and the develop­ ment of the country. That part o f Danville east o f Church street w as laid out by John Sechler. In 177 6 Gen. William Montgomery constructed the log house that afterw ards became a part of the stone mansion which he erected, on the corner o f bloom and M ill streets, now known as the Kussel) stone house. In 1777 Alexander, his youngest son, was born in this oe house, and seventy-one years later, in 18 4^ he passed aw ay in the same room in which he was bom. Gen. William M ontram cry donated sixty lots between Mill and Otcstnut streets for the erection and maintenance o f an academy, to be under the super>i$ion and control of the M a­ honing Presbyterian Church. Gen. WilUam Montgomer)' also donated the land for the courthouse and Gen. Daniel Montgomery gave the land for the jail. .Amos W icker^iam. who owned the prop­ erty to the northeast of the William Monlgomcr)' tract, conveyed to the Presbyterian Lhurch the ground upon which the original Mahoning church was built and which is now occupied by the present Grove Presbyterian church. lh i.s conveyance also included the ground used for the old burying ground on Bloom street. Upon the erection o f Columbia county, in 18 13, Danville was ntadc the county seat and continued to be such until 1847. The opening of the canal in 1832 marked the lieginning o f prosperity and development fo r Danville. Following this came the erec­ tion of the iron industries, the forerunners of those vast manufacturing plants which have liecn the great source o f business and ma­ terial prosperity of the town. In 1849 the liorough o f Danville was incor{lonited and in 18 5 1 it was made subject to the irovisions of the (icncral borough law. The lorough then consisted o f two wards. North ward and South ward. In 1867. however, the wards were increaswl to four and named First, Second. Third and Fourth wards.

cated along what is now the old canal west o f M ill street; the store o f Gen. Daniel Mont­ gomery, located upon the premises now occu­ pied by the "M ontour H o u se ": and the black­ smith shop o f John Deen on Market street, near Ferry. These were all established prior to 1806 and brought much trade from the surrounding country and from the south side and were the means of the establishment of the post office at Danville. In 1809 Gen. William Montgomer)- erected a woolen mill in the rear o f what was a fte r­ w a r d the Daniel Ramsey homestead upon M ill street, just opposite Mulberry street. Dr. Petrikin an erw ards erected a woolen mill between the lands later occupied by the North Branch Steel W orks and the Delaware. I.ackawanna & Western Railroad Company. It wa.s subsequently used by Duncan Hartman as a planing mill and later by the National Iron Company as a spike and bolt factory. It w as burned in 1871. The grist and plaster mill, known as the John Montgomery mill, was erected prior to 1825 and connected with it was a woolen mill and carding machine. In the rear o f what was afterw ards the I.aubach residence there w as erected a saw ­ mill. In 1839 Peter Baldy, S r., built the old stone gristmill on Church street which fo r many years furnished a large part of the community with flour .and feed. It is now, after years o f idleness, occupied by the Metal Engineering Company and the Metal and Machine Com ­ pany. Danville is peculiarly an iron town and from its early years it has been engaged in manu­ facturing from iron and steel. T he nrst iron foundry established in D an­ ville was that of John C. Thiel, erected in 1821). In 1830 Casper Thiel acquired control and in the latter part o f that year fonneil a nartncrship wiih Samuel Bitlcr, Sr. In 18 31 Mr. Bitlcr dic<l and on .April 18th o f that year Thiel failed in business. T he creditors oncrate<l the plant until 1832 and then closed it. The priKlucts of the foundry were mill gudgeons, mold boards, plowshares, land slides, wagon boxes, andirons, sadirons and griddles. The I'^glc Foundry was built on the east side o f Ferry street, along the canal, in 1837, by Moore 9c Stuart. Samuel Huber w as the IN D t'S TR IE .S chief molder. In December, 1838. the build­ ing burned with a loss o f ten thousand dob T he first of the iiuUistrics o f Danville were bars, but was rebuilt in 1842 by Stuart. Biddle the gristmill o f Gen. William Montgomer)', lo­ 9c Lloyd. A machine shop was later added