Chapter VIII- Early Businesses Now Gone

Millville - The First 200 Years 

 Chapter VIII

Early Businesses Now Gone

 

    Several early settlers provided the family income by operating small shops that supplied products and services for the farmers and other store owners in town. Many small storefronts opened along the streets at the center of the settlement. Blacksmiths, carpenter shops, a bakery, meat markets and general stores opened and closed in regular succession. Restaurants, clothing stores and brick factories changed owners as family heads passed on, as farm­ ers moved to town or others left to try for a better future further west.

    Some of these small businesses grew and prospered for a time. Changes in industry methods eventually created insurmountable problems for many of these firms that started in this frontier community. The industrial revolution with heavy machinery made products that left handcrafted items expensive and non-competitive.
 
WOOLEN MILL
    Wool was an important farm product. Conversions of it into clothe for more than limited homespun use was an important bus­ iness. Thus, the community was happy in 1813 when John Watson started a woolen mill for wool cloth production at the north end of town. Watson, born in London and trained as a carpenter, came to this country and settled in western Pennsylvania. Travel­ ing through this area for supplies, he met and later in 1806 married a daughter of the settler John Eves.

    The original mill was built on the west side of the creek and operated there for many years. However, John Watson was only associated with the mill for a few years. His wife's widowed sister lived in Canada and the Watsons decided to move there to join her. So John sold the business to his brother-in-law, Chandlee Eves.

    Chandlee moved the operation to the east side of the creek into a larger building on the final site. The mill prospered and when Chandlee died in 1835, Benjamin Eves, who had helped his father with the business, took over as the owner. The Civil War created a great demand for the products of the mill. White and striped blankets, some for the army, were made in large numbers.

    As a result of this prosperity, a larger brick structure was erected by the new owner, Charles W. Eves, around the old frame mill during 1866. This permitted production to continue while the new building was completed. The wooden walls were then taken out after the new roof and walls were up.

    Businesses during these years operated on different principles than those of the present period. Laws regarding child labor and compulsory school attendance had never been considered much less made a part of the social ethics of the time. Traveling down that cinder path from the center of town to the mill came children of nine and ten to help in the weaving and carding processes. Many dropped out of the third and fourth grades of the schools available then, to supplement the family income. Schooling was for the very talented if they could find someone who recognized their talent and would then support their costly attendance at some institution of learning. Or for children of the more prosperous who could afford first to relinquish the income these offspring could provide, and secondly, to maintain the monthly tuition for this education.

    As in other manufacturing businesses in the area, the equipment in the mill was powered by drive shafts turned from a waterwheel located on the end of the building. The water to turn the wheel here came originally from a dam located on the creek at the south end of Iola and back of the old park. Later a second dam closer to the mill was constructed. The second dam was rebuilt at its original site after it went out with a flood in about 1888.

    After the war, demand for woolen products fell and the business had several owners. Charles W. Eves sold the mill in 1875 to Shadrack and Parvin Eves. In 1883, Parvin's executor sold his interest to Shadrack. Hoping to keep the mill operating to provide a place of employment for the area, several local businessmen organized the Millville Worsted Mill Company in 1894.

    As sheep growing declined in the region and ready made fabrics became available, the home spinning and weaving industry died out and the business of the mill changed. The wool was shipped in and the cleaned product shipped out.

    The Enterprise Worsted Mill Company, originally organized in Bloomsburg in 1891 by Midgley and Haley, moved into the mill. In July 1896, the sheriff sold the property to a committee of stockholders. Richard Tompkin used the mill for several months and in the spring of 1897, Edward Thorp leased the mill. In 1901 Thorp purchased the business and operated it successfully till his death.

    In 1904 a partnership of Skerry and Jacobs purchased the mill. Three years later Jacobs sold out his half to the other partner, Walter Skerry. Amory Skerry ran the mill, starting in 1914, till it was finally shut down for the last time.

    Eventually, the property was sold to Wayne Hartranft who converted it for use as a hatchery. In 1940 a fire destroyed the hatchery. Today only the original building foundation remains.
 
MILLVILLE CREAMERY
 
    The Millville Creamery was opened on June 13, 1887, by Samuel J. Eckman. He had farmed for several years in Pine Township and believed that a good income was possible if the farmer had a market for his products. In 1885 he urged his neighbors to join him in forming a County Dairymen's League apparently without suc­cess. It did not slow his enthusiasm for the idea of a better market and he was convinced that a butter manufacturing plant was a necessity in the county.

    During the next few years, he visited many creameries through­ out the state. He studied their methods and the details of their building construction and layout. Returning to Millville after one of these trips, he started the plans for a plant. Unable to get any­ one else to build a butter plant, he finally built his own at the foot of Moorhead Avenue. It started processing local milk in June 1887.

    Local milk was in short supply, and to operate the creamery at full capacity, a method had to be found to get milk from the outlying areas into town. Several milk and cream routes to collect the products were established. This still was not sufficient and the creamery opened receiving stations in several other nearby counties. The milk was shipped in cans on the Pennsylvania Railroad to Millville for manufacture into butter and at a later date, ice cream. According to the "Tablet", 500 pounds of butter was made daily during the first year.

    A large number of horse-drawn wagons delivered dairy products on the many routes throughout the area. To augment the milk and butter line, the creamery also sold eggs and meat from these wagons. Milk was still hauled in a can and dipped into the customer's container on the sidewalk for four cents a quart during these early years of the creamery. 

    

    The first building was a wooden structure 24 x 36 feet. The second building, which replaced the first, was 70 by 70 and two stories high. The larger building was constructed of blocks, which were just coming into use at that time. This building, with an addition, which was added on the northern side, stands today and is used by the Millville Lumber Products Company for their offices.

    As it expanded, Samuel Eckman took his two sons into the business. Several other local farmers were partners at various times. The boys, W. J. and C. W. Eckman, had been farmers, but they found the business interesting. In 1910, W. J. took over active management of the business and encouraged the ice cream end of the venture. This gained a widespread reputation for its quality.

    On June 1, 1913, the business was incorporated and W. J. Eckman was elected president with C. M. Eves to serve as treasurer.

    During 1916, the Harbison Dairy Company of Philadelphia opened a milk and cream receiving station on the opposite side of Moorhead Avenue with direct access to the railroad tracks. They offered more for these products than the Creamery had been paying. Many local farmers transferred to the Harbison plant. A few returned to the Creamery for a time. They had not been paid regularly by the Creamery, but were enticed to return there on the promise that a portion of their back payments would be included with each current milk check.

    With the loss of a captive supply, the Creamery's operation was substantially affected. Although it continued to operate for several years, it was finally sold to the Dewart Creamery, Dewart, in 1925.
 
RAILROADS
 
    Transportation in the area has always been an important part of the success of the community. One very important means of traveling to Millville was the railroad for many years.

    The first train into town carried the logo of the Wilkes Barre and Western Railroad. It arrived in town on the sixth day of April 1887 amid a great celebration by the community. The first freight was brought into Millville by rail on April 11, 1887, and the first passenger train arrived on April 25. The tracks had been started in 1885 from Watsontown and the progress was watched with the closest interest. Much speculation centered on first, the completion of the track and then the first arrival of the train in town.

    This railroad which was planned as a vital link in the county's transportation system never really quite made its mark. First, it failed even to start in Wilkes Barre and never reached that area. Then it never made it further west than Watsontown. Also, it was soon in financial trouble and the original owners were required to relinquish control of the operation.

    The town of Millville, however, definitely received a great benefit from this connection to the outside. Products were shipped to a vast new market, which had never before been available because transportation charges by horse and wagon or the canal from Bloomsburg made competition impossible. As a result of the railroad, the creamery had a large expansion, the tie industry around the area could ship to the mines and lumber mills could export their products to the cities. Most importantly, the incoming products necessary for a growing community could be received more quickly and inexpensively.

    When the line was extended to Orangeville in 1891, the system had reached the end of its expansion with the present management. After the completion, this line had to compete with the Bloomsburg and Sullivan, which had opened in 1888. This railroad ran from Bloomsburg through Light Street, Orangeville, Forks, Stillwater, Benton, and Central to Jamison City. It operated six passenger trains a day on the line and several freight trains also connected the communities it served.

    Profitable competition was nearly impossible on this part of the line. Thus, the founders sold to new owners, and the Orangeville spur was closed. The new proprietors changed the name to a more realistic Susquehanna, Bloomsburg, and Berwick Railroad Company. The line never actually came into the town of Bloomsburg. The closest was to the interconnection at Paper Mill which was named for a large paper mill located east of the present Magee Transportation Museum near the Route 80 roadbed before reaching Lightstreet.

    To fulfill the promise made in the names regarding Berwick, the management soon started the spur to Berwick. This section was completed in 1903. The traffic generated by adding this portion was highly rewarding. The Pennsylvania and also the Lehigh could be joined at Watsontown and made this little line very important to the area.

    A report at the turn of the century gave a glowing description of it; "The line traverses a picturesque region of hills and deep valleys, passing through Light Street, Paper Mill, Jerseytown, Eyers Grove, and Mordansville, with a branch to Millville." A ride on one of the swaying passenger cars for a days excursion to Bloomsburg for shopping or to visit with relatives who "had moved away" must have been one of the finest treats possible during those interesting years.

    Although the Interstate Commerce Commission had been created in 1887 to prevent the closing and combination of many of the smaller railroads, its effectiveness was not quickly felt. Pressure was constantly applied to these lines, attempting to force a sale to one of the larger facilities. The S. B. & B. had received several offers to combine their operations. These had been declined, but in September of 1913, Samuel B. Haupt, the president of the line died from injuries suffered when a switch engine in the Berwick yards of the company struck his personal coach. This blow precipitated the decision to sell the line to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company.

    After linking directly with this system, the trackage received even greater usage for a period. The railroads had always had competition with the canals and rivers. None proved quite so formidable as the trucking industry. As more powerful engines were developed for these gas mules which could pick up a load at one doorstep and deliver it to another without unloading, reloading, unloading, and reloading in a repetitive manner, the trucks handled an increasing amount of the freight volume. First, however, it was only the smaller packages from town to nearby town.

    A few years before passenger service was discontinued, the company purchased the Mack Railbus and abandoned the steam cars.

    Millville businesses sensed the changing mood of the railroads early. Rates on smaller shipments were increased first. Then, delivery times were extended on all shipments. Finally, in 1943 or 1944, the Pennsylvania stopped handling small parcels completely and removed the agent who had lived and worked in the community. A minimum weight of 5000 pounds was required before the line would bring a car into town to receive the shipment and this had to be consigned to one destination.

    Switch engines were dispatched from Williamsport to bring the occasional car needed to remove a large piece of equipment from the Girton plant or bring in the carload of lumber used by Millville Lumber or take out a loaded car of walnut logs destined to be processed into paneling in Japan and returned to the states for adorning some home.

    The facilities at one time included the main spur which terminated where the Bell Telephone switching office now stands. Three switches which provided one siding to the east side of the spur, heading north on which were located a cattle retaining stockade with loading ramp and numerous warehouses; a siding to the west, heading south on which were located the Harbison's receiving station, the Robbin's warehouse and the tannery facilities (possibly an additional short spur was also switched from this siding at one time), and the third siding to the east of the main spur heading south on which were located several additional warehouses including the lumberyard of A. J. Hummel. A freight station with a passenger lobby was located on the east side of the main spur and between the north siding abutting Moorhead Avenue. This substantial network provided unlimited service.

    In 1970, the building had fallen into disrepair. Paul Girton purchased the building and the station land that year. Robert Earnest removed the building for him in 1971. The only thing left of this fine transportation system today is the rusting track and switches to remind the next generation of its existence.

    Although it never ran, the only electric railroad in the county to lay any trackage was the Bloomsburg and Millville Railroad. It was incorporated in 1901 and a route from Millville to Bloomsburg was partially graded. Tracks were laid from Eyers Grove into Millville. The company was then reorganized with the thought in mind that the cars could be equipped with storage batteries rather than powered by electric lines. This new company was named the Bloomsburg, Millville, and Northern Railroad. The venture never progressed beyond this point of construction but the company still provided a list of officers as late as 1913, including the following: D. 0. Goughlin, president, WilkesBarre; Walter Hughes, secretary, West Berwick; W. P. Zehner, secretary, Bloomsburg; Directors, William Masters and Ellis Eves, Millville; C. W. Miller, J. C. Brown, James Magee, Bloomsburg; J.P. Kester, Mainville; L. E. Waller, WilkesBarre.

    This system, as described in Chapter III, caused many hard feelings among some of the citizens of that day.
 
BLACKSMITH SHOPS
 
    John Kisner built the first blacksmith shop in the Spruce Run section near the run back of the present barn on the George Mordan farm. In later life, he worked in the shop at the foot of the hill east of the Theodore Parker farm. In 1846 his son, 

    

    Samuel B., came to Greenwood Township and learned his trade with his father and worked there until 1851 when he came to Millville. He built a shop north of the road at the west end of the creek bridge.

    It seems a little strange that the first residence, hotel and smith shop should have been west of the creek. Samuel B. was a friend of George Masters and George persuaded him to move into town and sold him a piece of land now the location of Gordner's Store. Samuel built a shop about where the brick store now stands. In 1856 or 1857 George Masters decided to build the store and wanted part of the land he had sold to Kisner. So another shop was built in the south corner of the lot of the Jessie Masters estate. He also built a house near the shop. This shop was two stories high with two rooms on the first floor. The front room had double doors facing Main Street. There were two forges and anvils. Each forge was fitted with a hand bellows. The back room had double doors facing the store. This was the wood shop. Samuel B. was a cooper also. On the outside of the building at the side of the wood shop were the stalls for the shoeing of cattle. The second story was used by the I.O.O.F., the band, Adam Bob, a colored barber, and Joe Oliver, a photographer, at different times during the early years of the shop.

    During the Civil War, Samuel B. had a flag hanging over the street in front of the shop with a picture of Lincoln under it. A load of men from the Fishing Creek section were passing through and said "When we come back we will shoot that down." That night Samuel B. and Andrew Eves lay in the yard by the pump with loaded guns. But nothing happened.

    For some years Samuel B. hung the flag over the road at election time. And there were some that would not drive under it but would go around by the Master's house.

    All of Samuel B.'s four sons worked in the shop sometime in their lives In 1877 or 1878 Henry W. joined his father in business under the name of S. B. & W. H. Kisner. In 1897 Samuel B. retired and Henry W. and John continued the business. Samuel B. built the second house on the corner of Main and Center Streets.

    Henry W. and John continued the business until 1917 when the tools were sold to William Masters, who had purchased the shop. William Masters rented to Henry Myers for a short time and in 1921 the building was condemned and was taken down by B. F. Cadman. Some of the lumber was sold to John Smith and used for the cabin at Hodge Spring. And some of it was used for a shop for Edward Myers and was built on a lot back of the brick store. Ed worked there until the fall of 1923. Then the tools were sold at auction.

    In 1844 Charles Brumstetter bought his father-in-law, William Eves, four acres of land in the southern part of Millville known as Charlietown (now the Niles Lumber Company and adjoining properties), and soon built a shop in the west corner on State Street. This shop was willed to his son Jesse in about 1873 and he worked there in connection with his farming as long as his health permitted. Jesse’s widow took down this shop soon after his death, which occurred in 1884.

    About 1872, Harmon A. Sevison came to the Eves shop as a smith. In 1882 he bought A. P. Heller a lot on State Street. Late in 1883 this property came into the hands of W. B. and Luther German. They began business in 1884. Luther retired from the business in 1885. W. B. continued until his health failed. Andy Beagle was learning his trade with Mr. German and ran the shop for him for a while.

    In 1893, the shop and Union Hall came into the hands of John Eves (not the original John Eves). He rented the shop to William and Harry Geisinger. The Geisinger brothers possessed unusually fine tenor voices, and often were heard singing "The Anvil Chorus" as they hammered on the red-hot iron. Those passing would stop and applaud, and they would sing another tune.

    An interesting story is told of a glass display case that was fastened on the south side of the old Odd Fellow's Hall (now the pharmacy). This contained thirty or forty nickel-plated horseshoes and was placed there early in this century for the purpose of displaying the craftsmanship, workmanship and precision of these local blacksmiths. The display case was about six feet long and four feet high and its glass cover protected it from the elements, natural and otherwise.

    The nickel-plated horse shoes were all stamped with "J. Geisinger". They were fastened in the back of the case against green or blue billiard cloth, and so each one stood out distinctively. They were all different shapes, types and sizes. There were racing horseshoes, ice horseshoes, cleated horseshoes, mule shoes and pony shoes.

    In 1902 William withdrew and Harry continued until 1907 when he built a shop on the back of his lot. Harry worked there until his health failed in 1911.

    In or about 1914 or 1915 Dr. Stackhouse had a shop in the building formerly belonging to the C. H. Parks machine shop. He also used the Geisinger shop for a few months during that time.

    In 1921, Levi Fortner built a shop on Fourth street for his son-in-law E. E. Fetzer. This shop, though not operating, stands today on the rear of the property owned by William Fetzer, his son.

    William Crawford, Stanley Sult, and others have had shops for short periods of time.
 
GRAIN MILLS
 
    Although named for a mill, this village has no gristmill in operation today. However, mills were a very important factor in the growth of the town and other centers of population in the countryside around Millville.

    Soon after John Eves returned to the area following the Indian troubles, he and his sons erected the first mill. It was a small structure located at the present site of the mill. This mill, built in either 1785 or 1786, was operated by John Eves till his death in 1802. His son Thomas, who had helped with the grinding operations, took over the affairs of the mill. He ran the business till April 15, 1834. David Masters purchased the property on that date. His son, George Masters, operated it till the mill burned to the ground in 1849.

    After 1800, the valleys of timber around the town were being cleared to make way for the farms. When the original settlers arrived in the region, their first job after completion of a shelter for the family was clearing a place for spring planting. Now, much of the land had been cleared and was producing crops that needed to be processed. Some surplus might even be produced for sale. This grain had to be milled, thus many mills were erected on the streams of the area.

    In 1807, Robert Montgomery built the mill at Eyers Grove. Joseph and Jackson Robbins built the Iola mill in 1824. The Rohrsburg mill, apparently built by Thomas Mendenhall, was also built at about this time.

    After the Millville mill burnt, it took several years to find a backer and rebuild the mill. On July 4, 1852, George Masters and John Betz purchased the property. In 1867 Betz sold out to Josiah Heacock and Masters sold to Uriah McHenry. McHenry was active for only a short period. Heacock took over the supervision of the mill and ran it till his retirement in 1902.

    While Heacock was proprietor, the Madison area farmers that had been coming to the mill were given relief in the form of a new mill built by Samuel Farnsworth near Jerseytown. This mill, completed in 1887, was located on the S. B. & B. Railroad and had its own siding.

    The railroad was important to the mills and particularly to the Millville mill which shipped much of its products by rail. In 1902 M. W. Shoemaker and Harry Shoemaker purchased the Millville property and after ten years sold it to Lundy Reece and Ellis Greenly. Reece and Greenly were very successful with their operation and shipped 50 cars of buckwheat flour in 1913. The equipment, which ground this flour, was the second-largest buckwheat mill in the United States. In 1923 Lundy's son, Marion, purchased a one-third interest in the mill.

    All the mills had a common problem. As they expanded, the need for increased power was obvious. Water became less reliable as farms replaced the woodlands and the spring runoff came as a flood. The creeks of the area began to drop sharply in the summer months. Rather than providing the increased power needed for processing, they produced less. Other types of power had to be found.

    Eyers Grove converted to electric power; Iola added a diesel engine in 1940; Jerseytown had been steam, but changed to diesel; Millville added a 140 hp steam engine in 1913 and also later arranged for electric power so that it could use all three.
Farming has changed over the years and the direct relationship of the farm to the mill has made necessary severe changes for the mills.

    Millville had to make many changes in its procedures. Eventually, bulk feed processing made the feed mill less needed and the large flour processors made small-unit production uneconomical. J. Marion Reece took over his father’s interest in 1945 in the Millville mill and guided the business through some very difficult years until his retirement in January 1963. In 1953 Ellis Greenly retired and Arnold Eves, Melvin Eves and Earl Maust took his share. A partnership involving Earl Maust, Paul Slonaker, and Arnold Eves was formed in 1963 and continued at Marion's retirement with some changes in ownership of the various shares till 1966. The small farmer by that year had nearly disappeared. The mill, which at one time had 500 to 600 customers, was now only serving 150. This substantial drop caused by the consolidation of farms forced the partners to review the business. On April 1, 1966, Arnold Eves and Paul Slonaker, the remaining partners, stopped all processing and sold the mill property to the Girton Manufacturing Company.

    Rohrsburg had to close its doors after a very few years of operation. Jerseytown continues to serve the farmers in that area. Richard Greenly purchased the mill from Howard Greenly in 1910, and operated it till his death. His widow remarried Richard Holdren who operated it for many years. At his death, Richard Holdren, Jr. and Truman Greenly took over the operation prior to Richard, Jr’s. complete control. Richard, Jr. died in the fall of 1971 and the operation of the mill is now being carried on by Mrs. Holdren.

    Elisha Hayman, who named the settlement of Iola after his daughter, operated Iola’s mill. Subsequent operators were Harry Hayman, Uriah McHenry (who had previously been in the Millville mill), M. V. Gehring, Columbia Milling Company, Samuel Fought, J. Rowland Lawton, and his son Ryland. Iola Buckwheat flour became famous throughout the area and on the evening of January 19, 1968, when the mill burned, many were concerned for their supply of flour.

    Today, Eyers Grove continues to process the products of the local fields. It is associated with the farmers' cooperative; Agway, to expand its service.
 
TANNERY
 
    One business, which left little written history is the tannery. Built 907, by two men, Heller and Cutler, it was an important employer of breadwinners for a number of years. The Millville Tanning Company purchased it sometime after the original owners had opened for business. By 1915 the facilities had again changed hands and the Kirtpatrick Tanning Company had purchased the business. Little record is left of subsequent owners.

    A fire, which was first noted coming from the tanning room, quickly destroyed a significant portion of the processing facilities and prevented the reopening of the plant. This fire which occurred on the evening of March 2, 1933, burnt the main production areas and destroyed much of the equipment.

    One of the former employees remembers the fire. During the final hours of the holocaust, the gentlemen who were managing the operation had arrived at the tannery. Each of the two had his individual reaction to the fire. One finished a bottle of whiskey while the other cried.

    These men, Mr. Greenbaum and Mr. Collins were in town supervising the production of the tannery. Mr. Collins claimed to have lost his life savings in the fire, which destroyed the business. While it operated, the tannery received green hides by rail from various slaughterhouses to be manufactured into leather.

    The hides, which had been removed from the animals at slaughtering were salted heavily and bound into bundles to prevent the rapid rotting which would normally occur. The siding from the S. B. & B. permitted the unloading of these hides into the tannery. After soaking they had to be skived to remove the fleshy meat, which had been left at the time the hide was removed from the carcass. These skivings were then loaded into a gondola car spotted at the rear of the building. This car of waste had the rankest smell of any substance known to the community.

    The hair was then removed from the skin and it was taken to the tanning vats. In the large vats, the hides were soaked in tannic acid, which provided the curing effect. Then they were moved to the finishing tables where large rotating rollers were used to press the hides onto the finishing tables.

    The tannic acid was made from the bark of trees. The type of tree affects the cure and the finish of the leather. Local farmers and woodsmen normally stripped bark from the trees as they prepared the logs prior to shipment to the sawmill. Large quantities of bark were available in this area when the tannery opened as the timber stands were cleared by the farmers to open more fields for cultivation. The bark was usually stripped in the spring months and transported to the tannery on hay wagons. Bark sheds were constructed at the tannery to receive this overflow of bark, which would be supplemented during the remainder of the year by smaller shipments from the local sawmills when late cutting was necessary. In later years concentrated acid was purchased for this purpose.

    Bark slabs were run through grinders to reduce them to a powdery texture before being added to the tanning vats.
The power to operate the tannery was generated by a steam boiler. This ran a steam engine to operate the rollers and other equipment. This mill never used waterpower as its source of energy.

    The fire must be considered in the running for the largest conflagration in the history of the community. Only the hatchery fire and the Millville Planing Mill fire were of the same proportions. Eight fire companies from the surrounding communities were eventually on the scene. In addition to the water taken from the water mains, hoses were laid to the creek at the back of the plant and the dam, which had provided the water for the wagon works, was used as an additional supply. Soon after the tannery fire they acquired the first gas-powered fire truck that the town ever had.
 
MILLVILLE WAGON WORKS
 
The best-known industry in Millville in the year 1900 was definitely `John Eves and Co.'. Their wagons had made the town well known in many counties around. The reputation had not come easily. Many years were required of high-quality workmanship to gain the confidence of the trade.

    Charles Eves, the founder, started about 1837 to assemble and sell wheels and other wooden wagon parts. He built a sawmill powered by water from a dam, which he had constructed on the creek at that time. Later, he put up a building where hubs and bendings were made. These products were normally sold to wheelwrights and blacksmiths.

    Wagons also were assembled early or were purchased for resale. In Charles' daybook during 1839, he notes the sale of iron wagons to Solomon and Jesse Brumstetter. Because there was no smith's shop on the site at the time, iron parts would have been purchased from a blacksmith nearby.

    Several sons worked with Charles during these years, and when he passed away in 1855, four of them continued the business. Aaron Kester and Mr. Johnson rebuilt the dam in 1850. The breast this time was forty-eight feet wide. The water impounded here was carried down the race to the main building where it drove an 18-hp turbine, which provided the power for the plant.

    A fire destroyed the building in 1879. After this structure was replaced, only three brothers continued to make farm wagons, which had been added to the line after the Civil War; Ellis, John, and W. Webster. Prior to the fire in 1870, the boys, trading as Ellis Eves and Brothers started a store. It was located in the building of Thomas Elwood Eves on the site of the present bank building. The fourth brother, J. B. Eves, continued to operate the sawmill and the bending business.

    In 1883 the three brothers that were in both the store and the wagon works rearranged their ownership in the businesses. John Eves withdrew from the store to take the wagon works while W. Webster and Ellis relinquished their interest in the wagon works to take up the store. Later John purchased J. B. Eves' interest in the sawmill and bending operation and consolidated the works under one management.

    In 1886 the railroad track was laid into Millville and required a change in the race. A small bridge was built over the head race not far below the dam and the race was straightened to run above the tracks to the mill. The tail race took a nearly direct course to the creek and had to return under the tracks at another small bridge. The location of these bridges, although replaced with other structures, can still be seen at their original locations today.

    The products sold, changed with the needs of the customer. Wagons of many descriptions were made at one time or another during this period; farm wagons, spring wagons, dead stock wagons, lumber wagons, mine prop wagons, and huckster wagons. The season also affected the production as bobsleds, sleighs, and delivery sleds were prepared for the winter's snow. Even a few land rollers and numerous truck bodies were assembled.

    In 1897 the manufacturing building was again destroyed by fire. John and his son, Charles, who had recently joined him, rebuilt the building in even larger proportions.

    The sawmill and the skilled men, who were employed through the operation, provided an opportunity for the firm to use these assets for additional ventures. As early as 1873, the business also was erecting homes in the community for the area citizens. Eleven homes were constructed prior to 1908. These houses all remain.

    The dam needed attention in 1902‑ 03 and was rebuilt with ten additional feet added to the width. All of the dams on this site were constructed of wood. The end piers only were of concrete.

    It was in this same dam that a local man was found drowned in the summer of 1926. Myron Eves had left his home and failed to return on schedule. Originally, it was felt that he had wandered into the woods in the vicinity of the Hodge cabin near Mt. Fairview. The boys from the high school were assembled in the woods and a search was started of this area. In the meantime, the State Police had located his hat at the dam site and dynamited the water in the pool below the dam in an attempt to raise the body. Eventually, the body was recovered from this location.

    During these years working conditions in all industries were different than those we have today. Fred Kinney, a skilled employee at the works at this time, worked six days each week, starting at 6:00 AM and continuing until 6:00 PM. Central lighting had not been installed in the buildings as electricity was not yet available in town. He was paid thirty dollars at the end of each month and was required to furnish his own lantern and coal oil for light.

    With John Eves death in 1911, Charles continued the business. His father was never to see the decline that followed. Although Charles added an impressive forty additional feet to the width of the dam, little could be done to prevent the reverses.

    In 1907 a very good year was recorded with the production of 144 wagons completed. But farm changes and the availability of inex­ pensive sheet metal for machinery construction made great changes in the business.

    The manure spreader, tractors with iron-bedded trailers, and trucks all reduced the demand for wagons quickly. The gasoline-powered vehicle industry was blooming. The wagon business weakened. By 1929 only twenty-seven were sold. The regular force was laid off on December 1, 1929, in the wake of the Wall Street Panic. In 1930 only two wagons were sold. For the next eight years, Charles would hire a man or two to make up a wagon if it was needed from the stock of inventory parts available.

    Charles kept a smith shop in the old paint shop till 1945, but he disposed of most of the business in pieces between 1939 and 1940. Most of the buildings (two were reserved) and a large amount of the machinery and stock he sold in 1939 to Conners at Orangeville. They sold the machinery to a Watts from Mainville and he moved the machinery there. The dam site and the race including the land west of the race were sold to Art Hummel in 1940 after Walter Pursel had purchased the land south of the race and the body room in November of 1939.

    This dispersal wiped out all save the memory of that industry for which the town had been most noted‑ the Millville Wagon.
 
HOTELS
 
    Hotels today are built in larger towns, but a hotel was one of the first businesses in the new community. It was built on the west side of the creek in the field near the present bridge, as were the other original buildings. This hotel was an interesting but rough establishment. It included a tavern. William Sproul was the landlord and operator of the business for at least some of its existence. At this place occurred the only killing recorded in or near the com­munity. During a fight in the tavern, one Thomas Polk killed a John Darnall.

    The hotel was moved to the lot on which Ridall's Store is now located. In 1872 or 1873, Ellis Eves and Brothers built a part of this store building and moved the old hotel to the rear of the lot to approximately where the Texaco service station now stands. It was taken down in 1926.

    In 1861, Jacob Fry built the second hotel for the community with money furnished by Ezra Eves. This one was located on the southeast corner of Main and State Streets. Beds were available for 25 cents a night and meals were 50 cents a day at this time. Bige Row and C. R. Parker leased the property till 1866 when Fry offered the hotel for sale.

    Fry had apparently made only limited inquiries for possible purchasers. A group of local citizens, desiring to assure that the hotel would be `dry', appointed Dr. A. P. Heller to contact Fry to make the purchase for the partnership. The doctor's wife, while the doctor was away attending one of his patients, discussed the pending purchase with Samuel B. Kisner, the local blacksmith. Sam had previously heard Umphry Parker discuss his desire to own the property and reported the availability to him.

    Parker purchased the business and immediately secured a license to sell liquor there. The citizens who had wished to avoid this very thing were deeply disturbed. They laid plans then to prevent another occurrence.

    Umphry was a good businessman. He recognized that people who traveled needed his hotel. He and his son, Theodore, started a stage line from Sereno to Bloomsburg to improve the means of reaching this community. By stopping at the hotel, he also had a chance to encourage passengers to stay there rather than at one of the homes which took in boarders.

    The line included a two-horse, spring wagon with a covered top that included either three or four seats for the passengers. It was used mainly from Bloomsburg to Millville. In addition to passengers, the line hauled packages and transported the mail. Because the bank in Millville did not open for another thirty years or so, the townsfolk had to bank in Bloomsburg. Thus, the stage driver also doubled as a messenger, making bank deposits for various businesses and individuals when necessary.

    This spring wagon was usually traded at the hotel livery stable for a lighter buggy to continue the trip north. Mail was the chief customer on this leg of the trip. While the equipment was changed the post office would sort the north-bound mail and the next stop was the Iola post office for a short wait for another sorting. The last stop north was the Sereno post office and then the return to Millville.

    When Parker decided to sell the hotel in 1883, a group formed the Millville Hotel Company and immediately took possession. Most of these men; William Masters, Ellis Eves, W. W. Eves, Joseph W. Eves, C. W. Eves, J. B. Eves, John Eves, and Dr. A. P. Heller had been a part of the earlier group. All were opposed to a `drinking place' in town and they immediately closed the bar.

    At the time the hotel was built, it was a two-story, `L' shaped 

affair with four rooms on the ground floor and five on the second. A stable was located on State Street at the edge of the lot. This stable served as a general livery and the headquarters for the working end of the stage line.

    The new company assessed the partners to permit a substantial enlargement with interior improvements. When completed, although this new structure faced on both Main and State Streets, as did the original, it resembled it little in other details. It was enlarged to 50 feet square and was four stories high. The highest in town. The first floor still contained only four rooms, though larger than previously. The second floor had a parlor and five bedrooms. On the third floor, a dance hall and several bedrooms were included. The fourth floor was another dance hall. In 1890, needing additional sleeping facilities, the company converted the third-floor dance room to bedrooms.

    August 1, 1883, was the grand opening of the new building. B. F. Eves had contracted to operate the business, but on April 1, 1884, A. H. Fulmer took charge. Shortly Mr. and Mrs. H. J. DeMott leased the facilities. In 1889 Mrs. DeMott died and H. J. had no one to handle the lady’s chores. Guests of the hotel at Mrs. Demott's passing included Mr. and Mrs. Hogue. Mr. Hogue was a conductor on the Wilkes Barre and Western Railroad, which had started serving the community in 1887. His wife had time without obligations and volunteered to assist Mr. DeMott with the hotel for a period. The next renter was D. F. Herring.
The company looked about for a means of stabilizing the business; particularly for a way to reduce the turnover of proprietors. The next lessee, J. R. Rice was requested to sign for a five-year term starting April 1, 1891. In 1893, however, the lease was transferred to C. R. Cox.

    In 1896, H. A. Neyhart took charge and lasted till 1899 when Susan W. Heller took up the lease. Susan brought her daughter-in-law, Blanch Heller, into the business with her in 1900. They ran it quite successfully and in 1909 Blanch leased the property herself.

    During this time, the dance hall on the fourth floor was converted to bedrooms which apparently were not used a great deal.

    In 1913, Mont Gearhart followed and stayed for two years. Burr Albertson, Ralph Diehl, and in 1919 Lynn Pursel each rented for a time. Now names started to repeat themselves as old proprietors returned. First Burr Albertson in 1920, then Mont Gearhart in the spring of 1923 till the fall of 1924.

    From the fall of 1924 till the fall of 1926, Otto Diltz ran the hotel. It stood vacant from that date till Harry and Jay Watts took over the operation on February 3, 1931. The business finally closed for the last time on December 1, 1937. The beds which had rested the heads of so many of the visitors to the community stood vacant and the lobby through which had passed a near century of guests was empty.

    The stockholders had sold the property the previous year to the Atlantic Refining Company. On October 31 of that year, the many problems of supplying a clear title to the land were finally resolved and the agreement was signed. In 1899 the founders of the Millville Hotel Company had incorporated the venture and a complete search of the records had not been made. Had this been completed, the discovery of the fact that the transfer of land to the sons of the original John Eves had not been recorded. This recording could have been made at that time and the desperate, time-consuming hunt for this document would have been avoided.

    In either 1939 or 1940, the abandoned building was removed and the lot remained empty for several years. The livery at the rear of the hotel continued as a gas station.

    The stable was originally run by the same management as the hotel. But following the purchase by the Hotel Company, the stable more often was run by another party. In 1884 the building was enlarged and improved and records show that in 1905, H. J. Shoemaker who had previously worked for the hotel running the stables, rented the livery on his own. Then Lorenzo Cox took it for a short period.

    On April 1, 1908, Dildine and Kreamer purchased the livery business which was sold separately from the consideration of rent for the buildings. Normally the livery operation would have included the horses and the rolling equipment. Lorenzo Cox then returned to the place.

    In 1921 S. D. Albertson rented the stables and opened a garage. Hurl Creveling followed in 1925 and was sold in 1933 to Melvin Applegate. It served in 1933 and 34 as a part-time horse barn as well as a garage from which Melvin (Sparky) Applegate traded the animals he was bringing in from Iowa. Applegate took in J. E. Brown and continued as the proprietor of the gas station in 1934.

    1935 saw J. E. Brown and Wallace Eves as partners and in 1936, J. E. took over the complete operation of the garage. The business continued for several years under this management.

    After the war, Paul Girton had acquired the property and proceeded to erect the present station.

    The first occupants of this new station were Don Avery and Walter Long. They sold it to Stan Mausteller who took Blaine Miller in as a partner. Vince Meyers and Dick Kisner were the proprietors during 1950 and 51 then Wilbur Rhone came from Housenick's garage in Bloomsburg and ran the business until his death. In December 1952 Francis (Bucky) Ortwine took over the operation and ran the business until 1961 when he moved to the Gulf Station at the south end of town.

    Ortwine was followed on the old hotel property by a Mr. Hall then Ralph (Chip) Lyons, Jr.

    In 1960 Girton sold the property to the McDowell Oil Company of Bloomsburg. Stanley Mausteller and William Saab opened the business for McDowell and continued until 1965 when Mausteller withdrew and Layne Kindt joined Saab in the management of the station.
 
EARLY SAWMILLS
 
    The first residences in the area used the most easily worked building materials they could find. Since the valleys were large wooded tracts that had to be cleared for farming sooner or later anyway, the obvious choice was wood. The quickest way to prepare it was to cut and stack it. Thus, the community grew with log-walled homes and other buildings.

    One of the first structures, other than a home, normally was a sawmill. Boards were necessary for the settlers' camp for many improvements. Furniture and other household equipment such as shelves for storage were better built from the split log.

    When John Eves returned after the Indian uprising that accompanied the war with Britain, he built a new cabin and then proceeded to construct a grain mill and sawmill. Naturally supposing him to be a man of common sense, it must be presumed that the sawmill came before the other. The boards from this mill would make the construction of the grain mill simpler and more versatile.

    Therefore, it is to be assumed that the second industry in the area, after farming, was the lumber business.

    The pattern established by John Eves was not unusual and many other sawmills were built in rapid succession throughout the surrounding townships. Very few records are available other than that of the first mill by John Eves to permit a listing, but enough exists to reassure those taking this backward glance that it was a principal industry.

    Logging was a large commercial business as the land was being cleared, and the sawmills were to continue supplying the local demand for wood products for many years.

    A few mills left some imprints. In 1881, Henry Getty and William Greenly started a planing mill, which Charles Cutler operated in 1914.

    In 1884 Shoemaker and Lore built another planing mill which was sold to Ed Buck for use in conjunction with his wagon works. It was later removed and the Grange Hall stands in its place.

    The A. J. Hummel mill, which he built, was recently removed by Niles Lumber.

    Local lumber can not be considered a major factor today in the area's livelihood. Millville Lumber Products must bring large quantities here for processing, and it is doubtful if the large forest stands will ever be the same again.
 
BRICK KILNS
 
    When a permanent settlement was a certainty, some in the community looked for a more secure type of residential structure. In the fields along the creek, they found the soil suitable for the production of brick. Here were set up the several brick kilns that fired the brick in most of the buildings erected in the town.

    Charles Eves during his lifetime was very much interested in brick stores and homes. He left some records regarding them.

    The oldest brick structure in Millville is the Friends Meeting House. It is built on the site of the original wooden house. It was laid in the year 1846. It is assumed that John Legget, Sr. and his sons, John, Jr. and William, did the masonry work and bricklaying. John W. Eves, W. M. Eves, R. J. Eves, and Uriah Mills did the carpentry work and John, Jr. and William Legget did the plastering.

    The oldest brick residence was made by Benjamin Eves about where his former home had burned. This fire occurred before 1860 and although the exact date of erection is not known, all records indicate that by 1860 the house was being occupied. This house is now owned by Charles Vandenburg and was known for years as `The Nook', a name given it by the John Farron's.

    Benjamin was the owner of the woolen mill near this site and his son Charles W. Eves succeeded him at that vocation. Charles also built a brick house at Bentown. Today it is the home of Mrs. Jane Henrie. It was constructed in 1860 and has window weights, which has been considered further proof that it postdated Ben's home. The brick for this house was made in the field of the now abandoned Dr. Southall residence. In about 1866 David Masters built the house that was the home of his mother and brother, William, for many years. This house with its slate roof was removed in the early forties by Dr. Southall when he constructed his second residence. He built the wooden structure now the property of Thomas and Grace Hunter and Mrs. Edith Russell, widow of the first fire chief of the present Millville Fire Company.

    At or about the same time, Ellis Eves, then involved in the wagon works, built the large brick building at the southern end of town which now serves as the residence of Klase Bardo. Klase used the ground floor for some years as a garage prior to his retirement. Ellis Eves lived in this home till he built a new abode at the corner of Second and Center Streets. The brick for the Bardo property was made west of the present railroad along the tailrace of the wagon works. Probably the brick for the David Masters house was made there also.

    In 1889 W. M. Eves, who was living in Iola, built the brick structure on Main Street next to Shafer's store. In 1878 Frances P. Eves built the house on Chestnut Street where Joe Phares now lives.

    After her home on the present George Myers lot burned, S. Emily Eves, in 1888, built the brick house now owned by Earl Eves. The fire that destroyed her former home occurred in 1874. The brick for this new home was made on the Chandlee Eves farm located on the hill at the southernmost edge of town and now owned by the Maynard Robbins estate.

    Probably the next brick home was that of James Duff on State Street. It was constructed for "The Eves Sisters" in around 1903.

    Dr. Christian built a brick home on State Street between Moorhead and Walnut, now the residence of Martha Rider Watts. In 1910 William Eckman who was operating the Creamery at that time built a residence on the north corner of Moorhead and State now the home of the Walker's who just recently moved to the community. The Eckman brick came from Watsontown.

    In 1903 J. C. Christian bought the lot on the south corner of Moorhead and State from an heir of Joel Moser named Gardner. He began the brick house there and then sold to Chandlee Eves in 1904. Chandlee finished the house and moved there in 1905. Today Jack Lewis resides in this house.

    Josiah Heacock built the brick house near the gristmill on Main Street which is owned today by Glen Stere and serves as the residences of Donald Sieg and LaRue Hock.

    In 1919 J. W. Bowman took down the house on the southwest corner of Railroad and Main originally built by James Masters and replaced it with the brick home in 1920 now the residence of Ralph Gordner.

    Additional brick homes or partial brick residences have been built in and near town recently indicating a desire for the permanence of a household. Only one home built over these long years no longer remains.

    Three brick stores were built in the borough limits. The first, by George Masters in 1857, is owned by Ralph Gordner and still serves as the store operated by Lester Gordner. The second was built by C. W. Eves on which is the rear of the new post office. It was constructed in 1887 and in addition to apartments on the upper floors, it also housed the Ely's Drug Store for many years. The third store was started in 1894 and completed in 1895 on the corner of Railroad and Main Streets. W. M. Eves and Sons erected the structure which served as a store and later was divided to house the bank when it was chartered in 1900. Today, Betty Shafer operates the only dry goods business in the area from the first floor and basement of this building. Apartments complete the second and third floors.

    In 1914 the bank completed its present structure which includes gray brick and Indiana limestone in its construction. Also, the post office, newly completed in 1969, is of brick. The silk mill, woolen mill, and tannery were also of brick.

    For many years it has been necessary to have brick brought into the community for any construction. Unfortunately, even the exact locations of the clay deposits have passed with the craftsmen.
 
THE WEEKLY TABLET
 
    For 30 years Millville had its own newspaper‑ The Weekly Tablet. It was founded in 1887 by G. A. Potter, who had been a printer and editor of one weekly or another in Bloomsburg for years.

    At the time five other weeklies existed in the area; two in Bloomsburg and one each in Benton, Catawissa and Berwick. Now there is none, though one published in Sweet Valley, Country Impressions, has some circulation in the northern part of Columbia County.

    Mr. Potter was a veteran of the Civil War and his paper in Bloomsburg was called Star of the North. During the trial and execution of the Mollie Maguires it was issued as a daily.

    The Tablet's first location was in the brick building near the wagon works and the family also lived there. Although it was early May when the family moved, a heavy snowstorm occurred that day. The paper had two subsequent locations. One was in the basement of what was known as the Opera House Building, the first floor of which was a general store. Next, it moved to a location on State Street, which had once been a bakery and the odor of stale bread persisted for years.

    The newspaper was five columns wide and consisted of eight pages. The front page and four inside pages were `ready-print' furnished by the Western Newspaper Union. The circulation was about six hundred. The bundle of papers arrived on Tuesday noon's train and that night and Wednesday morning the three remaining pages were printed with local news.

    The type was set by hand, for the linotype was a new invention and beyond the means of the publisher, anyway. The equipment was primitive. A Martha Washington hand press, large enough to print two newspaper pages at a time, was slow and cumbersome. Today it is a collector's item and can be found in a few museums. It was used chiefly to print full-sheet public sale bills. It was also a back-breaker to operate.

    Two small presses and one large enough to print a newspaper page comprised the other press equipment. Foot treadles furnished the power for many years, but finally, a gasoline engine was used to operate the newspaper press.

    Mr. Potter's daughter, Annie, learned the printing trade and assisted in the office. She also was one of two teachers in the public school. She later married Boyd Trescott.

    Tramp printers frequently came through town and were em­ ployed when there was a rush of work. Mostly they were well-educated and good printers but addicted to alcohol. They seldom remained more than a few weeks and then drifted on. One, angered by something, at night dumped all the type on a pile of ashes. Weeks were required to sort it. The tramps usually slept in a small room at the back of the building.

    Mr. Potter was a leader in the incorporation of the borough. He was irritated at being forced to walk, like other Millville voters, to Greenwood to cast his ballot. He was something of a philosopher and humorist. On one occasion, reporting on a temperance meeting, he said it was "large and enthusiastic." Reminded that only two people attended, he laughed that the statement was still true because he had the enthusiasm and Aaron Kester the size.

    On a winter night about 1908, the building was badly damaged by fire but the paper missed only one issue.

    When Mr. Potter died, Mr. and Mrs. Trescott continued the publication but he was handicapped in being left-handed and all printing equipment was made for right-handers. Consequently, Mrs. Trescott did most of the work. Their son, Paul Trescott, learned the trade in the little shop and went on to become a nationally known newspaper editor.

    When World War I broke out, Mr. Boyd Trescott, who was a civil engineer, was elected borough engineer in Berwick and the family moved there. The paper was sold to Eugene Cadman but went out of business after a few weeks.

    Another weekly served the community for a brief period during 1949 and 1950. Robert Asson and John Bowen published the “Millville Reporter” on a small duplicating machine from an office in the old Ely building. Millard Ludwig and Gene Pouftz were reporters on the staff.
 
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
 
    Spring wagons were the first form of public transportation used in Millville. Theodore Parker started a stage line between Bloomsburg and Sereno soon after 1866. A two-horse spring wagon with a covered top and three or four seats was used for the run between Bloomsburg and Millville, and an exchange was made at the Millville Hotel for a lighter buggy to make the trip North.

    Flossie Kisner remembers the many times she and her sister, Hattie, left their home in Iola at 8:00 in the morning to walk to Millville. They would leave the Millville Hotel in Renzy Cox's spring wagon at 9:00 and arrive in Bloomsburg at noon. The mud was so deep it was impossible for the wagon to make any better time.

    Besides passengers, the drivers were often responsible for bank deposits, mail, messages, and cargo. Mrs. Kisner recalls the time Mr. Cox's cargo got away from him and the passengers were obliged to wait while he retrieved the calf and the journey could be resumed.

    After 1887 trains consisting of two coaches and a baggage car made trips between Watsontown and Berwick. Vernon Miller operated the steam car that was lodged in Millville overnight and was ready to make the first of the three departures made from Millville each day. William E. Feinour started in 1913 as railroad agent at the Millville station and continued in that position for thirty‑ five years.

    Steam cars were abandoned for the gas-powered railbus, or as many remember it today, `the dinky'. The dinky ran the same route as the steam car had, and the only difference was the need for a turntable where Walnut and Railroad Streets meet to reverse directions. The track did not go into Bloomsburg, but a stop was made near the town and a spring wagon was used to transport the passengers the remaining distance.

    In the mid-twenties, a Bloomsburg bus company had a bus, commonly known as `the jitney', coming into Millville. By 1930 cars were owned by almost every family and the need for a public transportation system was no longer in demand.

    The Second World War came and along with it, work in the A. C. & F. in Berwick and in another defense plant in Allenwood, and also a rationing of gas. Herman Parker and LaRue `Doe' Hess provided a bus line that made three trips a day between Millville, A. C. & F. and Allenwood for twenty-five cents a ride. They owned four buses and maintained them in the garage between the Hotel and Ludwig's farm equipment shop on State Street. Soon after the War ended, so did the reasons for keeping up this bus line.

    In 1948 Doc Hess' son-in-law, Robert Fought, set up bus lines that ran through Benton, Orangeville, Light Street, Berwick, Bloomsburg, and Millville. Special trips were arranged for Saturday afternoon movies or roller skating in Bloomsburg, and fair week always provided an occasion to run extra buses. One of Bob's most frequent drivers was his wife, Phyllis Jane. A ride on Fought's bus line was twenty-five cents a trip, but near the end, it was lowered to twenty cents. By 1964 the need for a public transportation system in Millville was again nil, and the line is no longer in existence.

    The Smith brothers from Eyers Grove hauled ice and had a mail route from Bloomsburg. Their regularly scheduled trips to and from Bloomsburg could usually be depended on if a ride was necessary between buses.

    These businesses each served the area with an important contribution. Some provided the very necessities of life. Others were located here because of some resources. Normally, they improved the market for the product, be it buckwheat, wool, lumber, or others. They would also require employees. These jobs provided the cash necessary for a family to live in a community rather than on a farm. With this income, he could purchase his food from the farmer and procure the other items necessary for a healthy existence

    Unfortunately, these businesses did not survive but their presence, however short, was a blessing for the community and its residents.

Additions and corrections made for this Second Edition. DBG

Second Edition- Copyright Dean B. Girton Dec. 30, 2022