P.O. Box 173, Gap, PA 17527-0173
PURPOSE: "TO DISCOVER, GATHER, AND PRESERVE OUR HISTORY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS"
NEWSLETTER
Issue 20, Fall 2014
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE: This Fall newsletter is full of the many exciting things your society has been doing over the summer. Our 10th Gala in June was well attended and the music drew an attentive crowd. The income from the event added to the Museum Fund. Donna Mann and her "mud crew" have been busy with our first archeological dig at the tenant house and have found some interesting things. Paul Herrand his crew have been raising dust inside the building readying the rooms for rehabilitation. Every floor and wall uncoveredhas revealedsomething exciting. Help is still needed to process artifacts and renovate the building.We took a trip this August to see some history outside of our Township. The Fall Tour this year, in conjunction with the Lancaster County Conservancy and GraveConcern, featured the Welsh Mountain Area of Salisbury Township. Costumed interpreters were present at six encampments in the Conservancy's newly acquired forest area. Four cemeteries were also featured on the self-guidedtour. The day was beautiful andthe event was well attended. If you missed this event you missed a great show! Our most recent monthly meetings have included authors whose stories of earlySalisbury Township spark the audience to remember their youth.Some of their books are still available for your library. We are eager to hear YOUR stories. If you are researching your genealogy please consider donatingyour findings to the society. Many of our active members have retired and moved from the area, but we are lucky to havea few younger members stepping up to take their place.The society is a relatively young organization and we have accomplished much in the last 14 years. It is all due to the efforts of the dedicatedpeopleand generous businesses who cherish the history of Salisbury Township. Consider volunteeringa few hoursto keep our Society going as we enter the second half of our second decade.Please attend our monthly meetings and major events or contribute your memories for our archives. Things are happening here in Salisbury Township. Are you excited to join us in the present and future, working to preserve the PAST?- Leona Baker, President
WELSH MOUNTAIN FALL TOUR OUTCOME
A special thanks to those who joined us at the Welsh Mountain Tour on Sept, 27th. With the glorious weather and the great interpreters in full regalia, visitors found history coming alive in the mountains that day. The Lancaster County Conservancy, Grave Concern, and the Historical Society of Salisbury Township brought excitement and education to a large and varied audience who, until recent years, would have feared to go into those hills, even in the daytime. The time line ran from pre-Revolutionary Indian and early settlers to the old moonshiners who fostered that fear. Counting on the expert knowledge of the interpreters, our aim was to set the record straight. The Conservancy built a parking lot on the newly acquired section of the old New Holland watershed (Gault Rd between Rt 897 and Narvon Rd). Paths are currently being developed for hiking and biking. Grave Concern keeps track of the many small cemeteries in the area. The Society’s portion of the profits from the Tour will go directly the Museum Fund for the restoration of the Kennedy Tenant House located on the southwest corner of Newport Ave and Route 30 in Gap. Already people are asking will we be doing this again! And we are thinking of ways to make the tour even better for next year.
- Leona Baker, President
THE 11TH ANNUAL COMMUNITY GALA
Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 6, 2015 for the 11th Annual Community Gala, proceeds to benefit The Historical Society of Salisbury Township.It will be held at the Salisbury Township Park, Gap, PA. Events for the day being considered include a community yard sale, BBQ cook-off, children's activities, and a Battle of the Bands. Details for this full day event will follow at a later date. We look forward to seeing you there, and appreciate your support of our endeavors and your support of The Historical Society of Salisbury Township.
- Andi and Mike Lingenfelter, Gala co-chairs
2015 HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF SALISBURY TOWNSHIP CALENDAR
At only $7.00the Historical Society 2015 calendar is a great gift for those who have lived in the township or just enjoy historical buildings. Nostalgia pops out from every page. The location of each photo is included this year so that you can easily find each site. They can be purchased at the Township Building, by calling 717-442-4071, or emailing .
PEA PATCH ISLAND AND FORT DELAWARE STATE PARK TOUR
On August 17, 2014 the society took our first bus tour. The destination was Pea Patch Island, Fort Delaware State Park, and historic Olde New Castle, Delaware. We were blessed with fair weather being that it was the middle of August. The fort was a technological wonder back in its day. Our guide on a short but informative tour explained the difference between cannons and guns and where they would have been and why. There were enough re-enactors on hand that day to provide a live demonstration. They fired one of the guns on top of the fort with a small charge, and it was quite an experience. Wildlife abounded and some of us were fortunate to see a couple of bald eagles getting their lunch. Herons, sandpipers, ospreys, etc. were plentiful. Our guide also said that the Pea Patch name came from a lore that a ship wrecked on the island and there were pea plants on board that sprouted on land. Our tour then took us back to the mainland Delaware City. We boarded the bus to historic Olde New Castle. This quaint town along the Delaware River had a lot to see and tour. Many of us enjoyed lunch at the historic Jessup Tavern. After a delicious meal, we toured the town and the historic courthouse. The courthouse was lively and informative. A short walk down the street was Battery Park and a good view of the Delaware Memorial Bridge off to the right. Other historic homes were open but not all got to see them as time ran out. It's safe to say that a good time was had by all. Check for more information on upcoming bus trips on our website and in the newsletter due out in spring 2015.
- Sue Summers, Membership and Bus Tour chair
KENNEDY TENANT HOUSE - MUSEUM UPDATE
The museum committee has received proposals fromtwoarchitects withplans to add a unisex ADA restroom and a handicapped ramp to the entrance of the building.
We are meeting with the land planning engineer who planned the Houston Run Subdivision and who engineered the new Newport Avenue that is going in south of the Kennedy Tenant House to meet with Newport Road. The new road has been built by the Salisbury Township crew and has been completed this year. The engineer, Brent Good, if hiredwill tell the society where to make the parking lot, where to place the wheel chair ramp, how to handle the storm water run-off, if we need a retention basin, and how to meet the requirements ofDEP, USDA erosion control, EPA, Lancaster Planning Commission, Salisbury Township zoning, and the Bay Foundation to name a few.
We will need to have an architect signed plan for the house and an land engineer architect plan signed before we go to the zoning board. The committee is trying to get these permits at the lowest cost through local professionals.
- Paul Herr, Museum Chair
KENNEDY TENANT HOUSE - THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL DIG
During our fall archaeology excavation at the Kennedy Tenant House, we were able to complete 17 shovel test pits before we had to stop because of the weather and the construction of the new road adjacent to the property. We were able to recover a significant amount of domestic artifacts that include late 18th century and early 19th century ceramics, nails, and glass. During the winter months we will clean, identify, date, and catalog the recovered artifacts. An analysis of the artifacts and their location on the property will help us in determining how the property was used in the past. In the spring, we hope to conduct a more extensive excavation to recover additional artifacts as well as hopefully locate the blacksmith shop that may be located on the property. Unfortunately, we have lost some of the proposed excavation property to the new road but we still may find some useful information by excavating to the west and north of the house. I have included photos of some of the artifacts that have been found so far.
- Donna Mann, archaeologist & society member
18th-19th century ceramics 18th-19th century German stoneware
18th-19th century mouth-blown glass 18th-19th century redware
19th century metal handle
GENEALOGY CORNER
Tidbits and Connections
*We get many requests on our website from researchers who are looking for us to supply much needed connections. There are some questions that we can answer, and if it is of general interest we will print it here as an interesting tidbit for you. If you can help provide information or if you need some help with your research, please email Leona Baker at or at 717-442-4071. Please remember to leave your contact information including email if you have it.*
Q: Which cemetery is the oldest in Salisbury Township? Could it be the Pequea Presbyterian Church Cemetery?
A: There are 3 burials in the Gault Cemetery in the 1700's. The earliest is 1759. Pequea Presbyterian has an earlier burial. A James Stewart died on March 9, 1750. So we would say that Pequea Presbyterian is the oldest and Gault is probably second oldest. - Anna Groff, Cemetery Recorder
LOOKING FOR INFO: Trying to locate the parents of John Becker who died February 18, 1851. He reportedly owned the Baker/Becker farm in the Gap area around 1790.
Information needed on the Baker family who had a farm along the Lincoln Hwy in Gap in the 1800s.
Looking for book or history of Rev. George Whitefield preaching under an oak tree next to the old Pequea Presbyterian Church.
WANTED: Local resident is looking for someone to make her a miniature of the Gap Town Clock.
NAME SEARCHES:
- The Leech Family is searching for Buchanan, Jenkins, Gault, Armor, McCamant, Robert Smith, or George Leech.
- A researcher is searching for information on John S(?). Gault and his son, James Alexander Gault.
- The James Madison Walker family researcher is searching for connections to Coates, Dickinson, Brooke, Kreider, Fawkes, or Ammon descendants.
DID YOU ATTEND OR KNOW SOMEONE WHO ATTENDED A ONE ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE IN SALISBURY TOWNSHIP? The Historical Society is looking for any pictures or stories you may have for a book being published in 2016. Please send only copies of originals to Historical Society of Salisbury Township, Attn: Schools, P.O. Box 173, Gap, PA 17527
THANK YOU: Mr. Norman Kurtz was visiting from California, and he asked for help on hisgenealogy mission. This is his thank you note:"I am back home now after my East Coast travels. Thanks so much [especially] to Joan Lorenz and Ken Skiles for the help and hospitality shown me.I did what I set out to accomplish, seeing the old Kurtz homestead in Earl Twp and visiting the Kurtz graveyards, as well as seeing the New Holland, Earl, and Salisbury areas. Joan's book was a great source of information and a good reference tool, and Ken was areally good tour guide! He got me onto the Pioneer property where my immediate ancestors are buried and two other graveyards. He has done a superb job with his restoration work on the two Kurtz cemeteries. With best regards, Norman Kurtz"
MONTHLY MEETING CALENDAR
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11th: 6:00 pm, Yoder's Restaurant, New Holland, PA: Annual Christmas Banquet. Call 717-442-4071 to RSVP.
REMINDER: The banquet in December will take the place of a public meeting.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 15th Public Program - 7:30 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building: Chalfont Iron Manufacturing in Atglen, PA in the early 20th century by Chuck Chalfont
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 5th: Quarterly Board Meeting - 7:00 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19th Public Program - 7:30 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building: History of Lancaster's Dairies by Ken Skiles.
THURSDAY, MARCH 19th Public Program - 7:30 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building: Show and Tell - Bring your favorite historical artifact and tell us all about it!
THURSDAY, APRIL 16th Public Program - 7:30 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building: History of Gap in its heyday - old businesses and home owners of a bygone era by Trudy Ardrey
THURSDAY, MAY 7th Quarterly Board Meeting - 7:00 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building
THURSDAY, MAY 21st Public Program and Annual Elections - 7:30 pm, Salisbury Township Municipal Building: History of the Lion's Club in Salisbury Township by James Ardrey
SATURDAY, JUNE 6th - Time TBD, Gap Park: Community Gala
ANNOUNCEMENTS
BIRTHS - Congratulations on the new additions!
Paul Herr welcomed a new granddaughter named Annabelle Grace Herr into the world on Sunday, May 4th, 2014.
Andrea and Michael Lingenfelter welcomed their first child, a daughter named Marianna Elizabeth Lingenfelter, into the world on Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
DEATHS - Our condolences to the families and friends of those listed here:
Thomas Wilfred, late husband of Mary Wilfred, passed away over the summer. The Wilfred's were long-time active members of the society before moving to Michigan. Feel free to call Leona Baker for contact information for Mary.
Jerilyn Summers, late wife of Dr. Kermit Summers, passed away Wednesday, November 12, 2014.
Isabel Lieberman, late wife of Ronald Lieberman, owner of The Family Album, passed away Friday, November 28, 2014.
LOCAL - The Lancaster Mennonite History Society is currently hosting an exhibit of Abner Zook's dioramas until December 31, 2014. Stop in and check it out when you have a chance.