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    Around Uniontown
    Around Uniontown
    Around Uniontown
    Ebook194 pages55 minutes

    Around Uniontown

    By Victoria Dutko Leonelli

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    About this ebook

    Once scattered with frontier forts and Native American paths, Uniontown has changed considerably since Henry Beeson, a Virginia Quaker, offered fifty-four lots for sale on July 4, 1776. Around Uniontown captures this history with nearly two hundred vintage images culled from personal collections and the Uniontown Public Library's archives. In these pages, revisit 1896, when Uniontown had its greatest patriotic festivity. View beautiful tree-lined streets with the magnificent homes of coal barons. Visit the "patch towns," and meet the people who lived and worked during the booming coal and coke era. Witness the sensational Polly Williams murder trial, and learn about some of the unique individuals who have called Uniontown home, such as Gen. George C. Marshall, David Blythe, and "Crazy Billy."
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateJun 25, 2003
    ISBN9781439611890
    Around Uniontown
    Author

    Victoria Dutko Leonelli

    Victoria Dutko Leonelli, a certified researcher and curator of the Pennsylvania Room at the Uniontown Public Library, belongs to several historical and genealogical organizations. She also served as a member of the Mayor's Bicentennial Committee, which celebrated the two hundredth anniversary of the incorporation of Uniontown and dedicated the known Underground Railroad station in Uniontown.

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      Book preview

      Around Uniontown - Victoria Dutko Leonelli

      Library.)

      INTRODUCTION

      In the rolling, verdant hills of southwestern Pennsylvania in the mid-18th century, a Virginia Quaker named Henry Beeson chose to make his home. Beeson erected a mill—a great incentive for settlements in the neighborhood. It was at this time that he began laying out a town. The original town founded by Beeson was named Town of Union. However, because of Beeson’s ownership of the mill and much of the surrounding land, the town was popularly known as Beesontown. Keenly aware of the importance of this area’s location and obviously aware of its beauty, he believed it was also perfect for commerce. Native Americans who preceded early settlers valued and utilized the resources of the land in this corner of southwestern Pennsylvania. Here were clear streams and rivers for fishing, travel, and trade. Early Native Americans deemed this part of the country their great hunting ground, evident by the presence of buffalo trails. The Catawba Trail lay north to south and the Nemacolin Trail lay east to west through land that would one day be called Uniontown—the county seat of Fayette County. Fayette County was carved out of a portion of Westmoreland County in 1783 and was named for the great French Revolutionary War hero, the Marquis de LaFayette.

      Instrumental in advising Beeson to lay out his town near Redstone Creek was Alexander McClean, an early commonwealth surveyor of the Mason-Dixon Line and a later recorder of deeds of the county. Beeson traversed the same route used by the British general Edward Braddock and Lt. Col. George Washington. On this route, Washington and Braddock had led the British army against the French and Indians and suffered a great defeat. Acquired in the British victory several years later was this corner of Pennsylvania, resplendent in its natural beauty and recognized for its strategic location. This land was the gateway to the western frontier and, for that reason, it was coveted, fought for, and hard won. Ironically, it was the acquisition of this area by the British that proved instrumental in the push for the settlers’ ultimate independence. On July 4, 1776, unbeknownst to Beeson, across the state in Philadelphia, Colonial delegates had declared independence for our new nation. On that same day, Henry Beeson posted a sign announcing that he would be offering 54 lots for sale in a town lottery.

      The first major influx of settlers found fertile land conducive to farming. But, as wondrous as that farmland was, it was a mere blanket covering the wealth of resources that lay beneath it. The abundance of iron ore and limestone in this area naturally led to the production of iron, and this became a major industry. Ironmaster Isaac Meason built a fabulous home on the site of the former Christopher Gist Plantation. That home would be one of the finest in the country and is presently a historical landmark.

      Completion of the National Road c. 1818 contributed to rapid development and progress in the area. Thousands of people were traveling by stagecoach, and merchants were transporting their goods in wagons to and from the Monongahela River along this important route. This stimulated the local economy and had a collateral effect on the economy nationwide. The Uniontown area had factories dedicated to the production of glassware, iron, and steel and was a successful agricultural area that produced an abundance of crops and dairy products. Brownsville, Connellsville, Fayette City, Masontown, and Point Marion were all located near great waterways. It was a perfect scenario for intense commercial activity. Transporting goods and traveling could be done more conveniently and expeditiously when the railroads came through the county. However, the railroads faced strong opposition from the belief that they would supersede and ruin the National Road, and possibly even the country. Local politicians took this shortsighted stance and adamantly opposed the extension of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad west of Cumberland through Pennsylvania.

      In the mid-18th century, it was known that coal lay underneath the land in what geologists now refer to as the Pittsburgh coal seam. This area was rich in bituminous coal, which was key in the production of coke and, subsequently, steel. These factors led to a great industrial boom in this area, and immigrants from all over Europe came here seeking a better life. In order to accommodate the huge influx of labor, coal companies built clusters of company houses for the miners’ families. The coal companies also owned the stores that were located within the patch towns, and it was at these company stores that the miners could buy with scrip what they needed to live.

      The people who mined the coal and worked the coke ovens were often thought to be mere laborers. In fact, coke oven operation required exacting measures and great skill. Coal mining is backbreaking work, and men and young boys mined the coal fields long before the days of labor law protections. Coal miners and their families lived hardscrabble lives, and often, a miner would not see daylight for months. Upon the backs of these men, women, and children lay much of the realization of this area’s wealth. This county boasted more millionaires per capita during the time of king coal than did any other area in the United States. However, all of this wealth created a great dichotomy of lifestyles among its inhabitants. While the millionaires were building their palaces, the miners and oven workers lived in patches of company houses.

      Great wealth was made while the coal lasted. But, as with all natural resources in the days before environmental protection, the coal was depleted, and with it went the

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