Vol. 6, Issue 2

From the President’s Desk

History is not just facts and dates. It is the happenings that were the result of choices and decisions made by individuals – our ancestors. Local history can be found in many places, unexpectedly by times.  One just has to be aware that it is speaking and be prepared to listen. 

The February exhibit “Fire and Light” was an outstanding exhibit of the highest quality that came together through the efforts of many museum members and others in the community.  The antique candlesticks, lamps, lanterns, and accoutrements “sparked” memories of some of those who visited. The following memories of several visitors to the exhibit will be added to the “Reminiscences” notebook that is on the museum library shelf.

“By the Light of the Lamp”

Hazel Stoops, Chambersburg, grew up in Clinton County, Pennsylvania in the country. Residents who lived along the country roads at that time had to pay for the erection of electric poles and stringing of lines because the local electric company would not pay for that part of the “service”.  It was not until about 1937 or 1938 that her family’s neighbors agreed to collectively pay for electric lines along their road.  Until that event occurred, their family relied on kerosene lamps and lanterns for light after sundown.  The Saturday morning chores included the washing and drying of all the lamp and lantern globes.

Hazel’s grandmother did pay for the purchase of a carbide lighting unit prior to electricity, which supplied light to the whole house. The unit was situated at the back of their house, half buried in the ground.  Carbide provided light through a chemical reaction.  When water was added, the carbide crystals interacted with it, which in turn produced light.  Hazel recounts that the system did not work at all well and was quite unreliable, so much so, that they returned to using kerosene for lighting sometime before the electric lines were installed.  One advantage though to having had the carbide system in their house was that there were chandeliers in all the rooms which were easily converted to electricity when it did arrive on their country road.

Hazel also remembers her mother curling her hair with a hot curling iron that had been heated by putting it inside the globe of a kerosene lamp.

Both Tillie Wine and Karl Higgins loaned very small kerosene lamps for the exhibit.  Tillie’s lamp was used by the members of her mother’s family to light the path to the outhouse.  Karl’s lamp was given to his mother by her father when she was a child. It was also used to light her way to the outhouse.  Both lamps date to the late 1800’s. 

Because of their small size, neither of these lamps would have provided very much illumination.  Imagine in the summertime, when the crickets are chirping and locusts are singing, and the nocturnal animals (skunks, opossums, and stray cats) are out and about, being a child and having to navigate your way to the outhouse.  Hopefully, in the bitter winter months the households would have had chamber pots for nighttime use instead of having to walk, with coat and scarf on, through the bitter cold wind and snowy paths to the unheated outhouse.

When she was a little girl, Evelyn Pensinger remembers visiting her grandmother, who lived in the city of Carlisle. This would have been about 1930 and her grandmother still used gas lights that were installed throughout the house.

Joe Henson remembers that his family still used kerosene lamps when they moved to 208 North Carlisle Street in about 1927.  He would have been about the age of six.

Calvin Barnes built one of the first houses in the neighborhood of North Linden Avenue and East Madison Street.  The house is located on the northwest corner of Linden and Madison.  His friends and family thought he was crazy, because he built his house in the early 1900’s and wired it for electricity when there was no electricity available in that part of town. 

Barnes, even by the light of the kerosene lamp, could see that electricity would eventually be available to everyone, and it would be here to stay.  I imagine that Mr. Barnes probably had the last laugh after all, when his neighbors were struggling to wire their pre-electricity built homes when the power lines were finally strung.

Calvin Barnes was the father of Mabel Barnes Henson, the late wife of Joe Henson.

In contrast to the Barnes house, Pickle Diehl’s current home at 306 East Baltimore Street was built in 1906 and always had electricity.  The decision of where to build one’s home, regardless of the short distance of one block, made all the difference in the availability of services at the turn of the last century in Greencastle.

March Membership Meeting

Sharon Baumbaugh, AAMI member and past director, will share, through a slide presentation and display, her Greencastle-Antrim postcard collection that now numbers over 100. She has been collecting these cards for several years and has gathered information and some trivia to go with the many views of early 20th century life in Greencastle.  Half of the cards will be shown during a slide presentation. Along with the cards to be exhibited, some other pictures and memorabilia will also be displayed as well as some "new" cards.

Early Greencastle postcards were published by Carl's Book Store that once operated from the northeast section of the Public Square.  Cards were also printed by the Echo Pilot Co. and later, in the 1930s and '40s, by Alex Morganthal whose business was on East Baltimore Street. Some cards were printed by businesses located outside the local area - like the one of the Martin's Mill Covered Bridge - noting that it is located in Chambersburg!

The earliest cards are from the 1910 period and show the streets of the town and township as they once were.

See the Calendar of Events for time and place.

April Quarterly Meeting

Dr. James W. Wolfson will be the after-dinner speaker at the April 10 quarterly meeting.  He will speak about the “Old Jewish Cemetery” in Chambersburg.  The “Old Jewish Cemetery” is one of the few rural Jewish cemeteries remaining in Pennsylvania. Wolfson is board chairman and executive director of the Waters Institute for African-American History, Inc.  He has over 30 years of experience as a business management consultant and college professor.  His efforts over the last four years have resulted in three Pennsylvania Historical Markers being brought to Chambersburg, the first since 1975.  Four more marker applications, researched and prepared by Dr. Wolfson, are pending.  He also spearheaded the restoration of Chambersburg’s “Old Jewish Cemetery”, a project that received international attention.   Dr. Wolfson provided a series of retail management seminars to Chambersburg’s downtown businesses, and wrote the grant that was instrumental in the funding of the Capitol Theater renovation.  He has recently developed and taught a series of financial management workshops at Shippensburg University for individual investors and corporate managers.

The “Old Jewish Cemetery” in Chambersburg is a wonderful repository of historical knowledge. It was the central focus of a nineteenth century society of Orthodox Jews who immigrated from Germany beginning sometime before 1840. The cemetery, which contains over 75 gravesites, has been recently restored.

The cemetery was dedicated on May 6, 2001, along with Greystone Neighborhood Park, which was created from a gift of part of the cemetery property to the people of Chambersburg. In addition, the Sons of Israel Cemetery Association has been granted a Pennsylvania Historical Marker.

The “Old Jewish Cemetery” is the first cemetery outside of Philadelphia and the first rural cemetery to receive a PHMC (Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission)  historical marker.  It is believed to be only the fourth Jewish cemetery in America to receive a state historical marker.  The other three are in Philadelphia and Columbia and Georgetown, South Carolina.

The “Old Jewish Cemetery” and the burial society that administered it represent an important example of the history of ethnic groups in Pennsylvania. In particular, its story exemplifies an important element of the pattern of growth and development of the 19th century German wave of immigrants who developed Orthodox Jewish societies in the smaller towns of Pennsylvania.  The burial society was formed in 1840 as a first step in establishing a Jewish community.  A building was erected for the sole purpose of ritual purification of bodies to be interred.  All other traditional Orthodox Jewish rites of burial were followed.

The cemetery is unique in several respects.  Founded during the German Orthodox Jewish immigration wave of 1825-1850, the Chambersburg Jewish community was one of a small number of destinations for the immigrants of this wave.

It is believed that Isaac Burgauer is the only Jewish Confederate soldier to be buried in a Northern Jewish cemetery.  Research continues to confirm this.

At least 23 members of the Chambersburg Israelite Burial Society came from fourteen different Jewish communities in Pennsylvania and from other states, as well.  Some Society members or their relatives were buried in the cemetery and some were not.  The Kahnweiler family of Harrisburg, Lewis Eliot of Taneytown, Maryland, and Lewis Hammerslaugh of Hagerstown are examples of those buried in the cemetery whose origins are outside Chambersburg.

                                           Ted Alexander

Reservations for the April 10 dinner that begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Antrim House are requested by Monday, April 7 by calling Bonnie A. Shockey at 717.597.9325.

Executive Board for 2003

At the January 9^th board of directors’ meeting, the following members were nominated and agreed to continue in their executive board positions:  Bonnie Shockey, president; Dr. James H. Craig, Jr., vice president; Mary Jo Sprankle, secretary; Patricia Faust Baker, treasurer.

Board Resignation

It was with regrets that the board of directors accepted the resignation Jean Oliver due to personal reasons.  As well as the duties of a director, Jean volunteered to make calls for docents and volunteers to be present for the Sunday open houses.  As her time permits, she will continue to help AAMI when and where she can.

Board Appointments

AAMI member Chris Johnston accepted the invitation to be appointed to fill Jean Oliver’s unexpired term which will end in 2004.  We welcome Chris and look forward to working with her.

Tracy Burger has also joined the board as an appointed member to fill the unexpired term of Alann Schmidt who resigned last year.  Tracy works for the First National Bank in Greencastle and lives in the Welsh Run area.  Both she and her husband Mike have a keen interest in collecting Greencastle-Antrim advertising pieces.

Welcome to both ladies!

Volunteer Calls

Kelly Scott, AAMI member and former director, agreed to take over, from Jean Oliver, the duty of making calls for volunteers to be present during open houses.  If you have volunteered for open house times, you will now be receiving those calls from, Kelly.

The Lincoln Trail in Pennsylvania

The speaker for the February monthly meeting was Dr. Brad Hoch, Gettysburg, author of the book, The Lincoln Trail in Pennsylvania.  Six books were purchased by the museum and were sold to those present at the meeting for $25 each, a discount of $10. It is an interesting book that traces the travels in Pennsylvania of our sixteenth president, Abraham Lincoln.  In the book are many rare photographs, engravings, and maps.  The last trip was when his funeral train stopped in several Pennsylvania towns and cities.  In Philadelphia his body lay in state in Independence Hall with the Liberty Bell at the head of the open coffin. Its inscription reads, “Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.”

Two books remain for sale; both of them are signed by Hoch.

What’s Been Happening

·          Bonnie conducted a tour of the museum on January 6 for the Greencastle-Antrim Newcomers’ Club.

·          Representative Patrick Fleagle, Robert “Red” Pensinger, mayor of Greencastle, and Robert Whitmore, Antrim Township Supervisor were present for the opening of the Pennsylvania Governors’ Signatures exhibit at the January 12 open house.

·          Four families of home-schooled children (five years of age up to tenth grade) were among the visitors during open houses for the Signatures exhibit.  A tenth grade young lady commented she was very pleased with and enjoyed the wealth of historical information she’s found on the Web site. She’s been able to utilize the information in her studies, including writing a 2500 word paper to meet her ninth grade requirements.

·          Bonnie spoke about Allison-Antrim Museum to the Waynesboro Lions Club on Wednesday, February 26.

Web Site Inquiries

·        A family which enjoys visiting small museums while on vacations, emailed to make arrangements to tour Allison-Antrim Museum in April.

·        Someone found the milk glass Easter Egg exhibit on the museum’s Web site that we did a couple years ago and was seeking an appraisal on an egg that they have.  Since the museum does not have a licensed appraiser on staff, it was suggested that the person check with a local auctioneer or auction house.

·        Information was sought on four quill pens and an English glass inkstand that had been passed down to this person from his great-great grandmother.

·        From Pittsburgh, as part of an auction purchase in North Carolina near the Tennessee border, a 1920 calendar was found titled “The Conococheague” with pictures of a few scenes along the creek along with photographs of buildings at Wilson College.  The bidder wondered if the museum would be interested in it.

·        From a publishing company in London, England a question about Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin for a children’s educational book on the American Civil War.

Correction

It was incorrectly stated in the January 2003 “Annals” that Rankin’s Mill was located at the same location of Shinham’s Mill.  Kiesecker’s Mill was located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Frank and Shinham Roads before the Shinham family bought the property and took over the running of the mill. Rankin’s Mill was located about one mile west of Route 11 north on Williamson Road, where Muddy Run intersects Williamson Road.  The mill set on the northeast corner of that intersection.

Taking a Second Look – Francis H. Hoffman

During Old Home Week 2001, a large, illustrated and colorized discharge paper for Francis H. Hoffman was given on loan to the museum by AAMI member George Hoffman, California. It is a preprinted archival piece with blank lines on which to write pertinent information.  This type of document was probably sold door-to-door. 

Included in the loan is a synopsis of the Civil War history of the 2nd Regiment of the 112th Pennsylvania Volunteers, of which Francis Hoffman was a member until he was wounded during the Petersburg Campaign. There’s also a map that shows the advance to the James River, and a black and white photograph of Francis and his wife, Urilla, in front of their West Madison Street home in Greencastle. Among the list of “Recent Acquisitions” for this issue of the “Annals” is included the official military discharge paper of Francis Hoffman from the Civil War.  It was donated to the museum by John A. Hoffman, grandson of Francis.  Francis was discharged for medical reasons – amputation of the left leg above the knee from wounds received in the Battle of Petersburg.

Also received as a gift from John Hoffman are the following archival pieces: 

1. application paper, dated June 18, 1864, for an artificial limb or commutation, which Francis chose
2. handwritten pension certificate, dated July 27, 1866, for $15 per month.
3. pension certificate, dated June 4, 1874, raising his monthly pension to $24 per month because of his leg amputation
4. letter of notice from the Surgeon General’s Office of the War Department, dated August 26, 1890, informing Francis, “that all claims to the benefits of the laws relating to artificial limbs are suspended,” pending appropriations by Congress to pay for them.
5. pension certificate, dated April 20, 1903, increasing his pension to $46 per month
6. from the Bureau of Pensions, Department of Interior, a slip of paper, dated May 1, 1920, “Under Act of Congress approved by the President…your pension is increased to $65 per month.  THIS SLIP SHOULD BE SECURELY ATTACHED TO YOU PENSION CERTIFICATE.”  It was glued.
7. A survivors and heirs claim and a form for the Declaration for Widow’s Pension – neither of them filled out.

The official military discharge paper and related archival documents were gifts to AAMI from John A. Hoffman, Middletown, Pennsylvania, brother of AAMI member Harold “Red” Hoffman.  Francis Hoffman was their   grandfather.

This is a wonderful little collection that has come together after being separated, for some time, by 3,000 miles. It chronicles some of the events in the life of Francis H. Hoffman from Greencastle as the result of his being a Private in Company H, 112^th Pa. Volunteers, 2^nd Regiment, Heavy Artillery during the Petersburg Campaign of the Civil War.

Recent Acquisitions

·        Three lathe turned wooden vessels made by the late Harry Garling, Greencastle; one shaving mug that belonged to “Doc” Minnick, the milkman; one Greencastle souvenir cup commissioned by Carl’s Book Store and made in Germany depicting the South Jefferson Street train station, all gifts from Hazel M. Sellers.

·        A 1920’s sleeveless, black lace dress with a jacket belonging to Lulu Matilda Wilson McCool born in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania in 1864 was given by her great, great niece, Barbara Harnish, a resident of Antrim Township.

·        A hand-woven linen bed sheet with a red embroidered “E” monogram in the corner.  This sheet belonged to Elizabeth Deardorf Grove who was born on January 10, 1851 and died October 25, 1922. She was the daughter of Isaac and Christina Holsinger Deardorf.  She married Abram L. Grove and they lived near Shady Grove.  She was of the Old Order German Baptist church and Abram was a Lutheran. The linen sheet was a gift from Elizabeth Grove’s great-grandson, John Lehman, Waynesboro.

·        All of the 2002 Smithsonian magazines, a gift from Harold Hoffman.

Calendar of Events

Thursday, March 6, noon – 3 p.m. and Sunday, March 9, 1 – 4 p.m.: Open house –

Greencastle-Antrim advertising pieces from the collection of AAMI members Mike and Tracy Burger.

Thursday, March 13, 7 p.m., Evangelical Lutheran Church: Monthly meeting – Sharon Baumbaugh, slide presentation of her Greencastle-Antrim postcard collection

Thursday, April 10, 6:30 p.m., Antrim House Restaurant: Quarterly meeting, Jim Wolfson speaking about “The Old Jewish Cemetery in Chambersburg”. Reservations required by April 7 (597.9325)

Sunday, April 13, 1 – 4 p.m. and Thursday, April 17, noon to 3 p.m.: Open house – White House Easter Eggs from the collections of David Thomas and AAMI member Pam Ott.

Sunday, May 4, 1 – 4 p.m., and Thursday, May 15, noon – 3 p.m.: Vintage hats from the collections of Becky Manifold.  Please note that the May Sunday open house has been moved from the second Sunday which is Mother’s Day to the first Sunday of May.  This will allow the volunteers called upon to enjoy their Mother’s Day.