The following is a transcription of an original
typewritten manuscript prepared by Mrs. Clyde Long for the 1976
Bicentennial celebration. The names of the people are highlighted.
Any notes in [ ] are my own remarks and were not in the original document.
Submitted by C. Phillip
Gilmore.
HARRISVILLE
HISTORY
1825 -
1976
CELEBRATING
OUR NATIONS 200TH BIRTHDAY
HISTORY
OF HARRISVILLE
1825
- 1976
compiled by
Mrs. Clyde
Long
With information
from
the organizations, old histories
and many citizens.
BICENTENNIAL
EVENTS COMMITTEE
Lawrence
Upton -- Chairman
Clyde
Long -- Co-chairman
Mrs.
Albert
Peters -- Secretary-Treasurer
Mrs.
Mylon
Ruppenthall -- Community Club
Mrs.
Gary Snyder -- Home and School
Mrs.
Dean Hart -- American Legion Auxiliary
Mrs.
Arnold Young -- Harrisville Art Group
Mrs.
Harold Uber
-- Firemens Auxiliary
Mrs.
Raymond Snyder -- W.C.T.U.
Mrs.
David Braham -- Girl Scouts
Richard
Montgomery
Brian
Grossman -- Boy Scouts
Ralph
Humphrey
Donald
Humphrey -- Deer Hunters Association
Clifton
Cokain
-- Lions
Club
William
Martin -- Community Band
Joseph
Taylor -- Community Choir
Gerald
Ritenour
-- American Legion Post 852
James
Thompson -- Firemens Association
Herb
West
-- Game Co-ordinator
Rev.
William Milligan -- Harmony United Presbyterian Church
Rev.
George Elgin -- United
Methodist Church
A
special thanks goes to anyone
filling in for their chairman.
<page
1>
HARRISVILLE
-- 1825-1976
Harrisville
was surveyed in 1825
for Ephraim Harris, who
began the sale of lots April 11 of that year. He was the first postmaster
in the villiage [village] and was succeeded, in 1826, by his son, Samuel.
E. Harris. In 1833 the southern addition was surveyed, on Colonel
Reeds Farm, and named Reedsville, so that the two towns formed the
foundation for the borough.
Colonel
Reed established, his home and tavern on his farm in 1797. The
tavern keeper and a blacksmith were the first invaders of the
"Prairie Tract" or the great Indian cornfield.
From the date of
the first settlement, when Chief Cornplanter and his sub-chiefs and
warriors were frequent guests in the cabin of the pioneers to 1843, when.
Mohawk murdered the Wigton family, the old
Indians would come to look at the sites of their former villiage [village]
and cornfields and to point out to their children the scenes among which
their own childhood was passed.
Two years after the
survey of the townsite, Major John R. Harris,
son of Ephraim, established himself as a
merchant, built a carding mill, opened a tavern and continued in business
here until his death in 1874. Within the next few years the
following businesses were started: James Lee
erected a frame building and opened with a stock of goods. William
McGill opened a blacksmith shop, Thomas
McElree, cabinet maker, James and William
Forker were hatters, Samuel E. Harris
and Washington Parker had little stores, John
R. Harris kept a tavern on the site of the modern Kerr house, William
P. Brown established a cabinet shop and within a radius of three
miles there were ten distilleries and in the village four taverns.
Whiskey sold for twenty five cents a gallon.
Thompson
Kyle came in 1845, and gave his attentions to the development of
coal deposits.
In 1865 there were
four stores, a foundry, three blacksmith shops, G.
W. Magees carriage shop, one tannery, one pottery, one cabinet
shop, three shoe shops, two temperance hotels, one grocery and one saloon.
The professions were represented by three physicians, two common school
teachers and one select teacher, and pastors of three local churches.
<page
2>
A fire on June
6,1872, destroyed Samuel Kerrs hotel and William
Kirkpatricks dwelling, on the east side of the street and
threatened the whole town.
Business interest
in 1894 were represented by H. C. Black and sons, Robert Black, J.
E. Curry, D.W. Humphrey, L. R. Cummins, W. L. Morrison, E. S. Beatty,
Samuel B.
Bingham,
R. L. Brown, A. G. Steen, J. M. Elrick and James
Bortz.
Some of the
businesses that have come and gone through the 1900’s were McDonalds
Blacksmith shop, MacCosbes Electric
shop, Browns Furniture
store.
F.
F. Karns Grocery, H. C. Gibsons, Forrest
Barber, Walters Barber, Clarksons
second hand store, Sabins store, Jacquies
Dress shop, Cathcarts Hotel, Brennemens
Hardware, K. and L. Dress shop, Herrs
Cloverfarm store and Sproulls Mill.
Borough officials:
The first election
of’ the borough of Harrisville took place
September 11, 1846, when Lyman Howard was
chosen Burgess; Robert
Long,
Samuel Brown, Washington Allen, John Hunter
and W. A.
Gilmore were councilmen. P.
D. Brumbaugh and R. K. Wick
were
overseers of the poor, Robert
Donaghy, Constable and assessor, John R.
Harris and Hugh McCoy, street
commissioners, and R. R. Walker, Clerk. The
first Justice of Peace was William A. Gilmore.
1976 officials of
the borough are Newell
Walter,
Mayor; Andy McGill, Clyde Long, Malcom Barron,
Alfred D. Brandon, Charles Bastyr, Lawrence Upton and Paul
Lowers are councilmen. Mrs. Harry Davis
is borough secretary.
Go
to the next page
