We would like to thank the following people for donating the following material to our
website, it for taking the time to compile this information and to share it with others.
Rebecca Heinz owner of Luzerne County Connections at
Jim Smith of Folk Finders at
Cheryl Haak, Karen Wood, Maude Luskey, and Sheila Brandon
AUSTINTOWN - See Shickshinny.
BEACH GROVE -Nathan Beach was the first settler on the John Gould farm. Beach
Grove is named after him. He was a long time postmaster there. He was a strong character
man a long-time justice of the peace and a county legislative representative. He had much
to do with the decision to bring in the mills, the turnpike and canals to this area. He was a
Revolutionary War soldier. Joseph Walton, a blacksmith, settled at Beach Grove in 1803
and worked both as a blacksmith and a farmer. Many of the early settlers were attracted
to his area by the excellent shad fishing and "shad-fishing grounds" were priced higher at
sale.
BEACH HAVEN -was named in honor of Nathan Beach, one of the Connecticut
settlers, who came to Salem in 1773 and had already located land in Beach Haven before
the township was organized at Windham, Connecticut. It was plotted by and named for
Nathan Beach's son, Josiah Beach, who came there in 1832 and built a water powered
gristmill. He died a bachelor, and when he died most of his property went to George Beach,
his nephew and the son of Thomas Beach. One of the first settlers at Beach Haven was
Elisha Courtright, of New Jersey, in 1787. The same year Michael, John and Samuel
See1ey came and settled at Bellbend post office, formerly Beach Grove. Beach Haven is
located in a beautiful valley. James Lockhart and Dr. Mason Crary were also early
settlers here. Dr. Crary a daughter of Nathan Beach and he was the first resident
physician. Beach Haven was an important point on the canal. John and Jacob Gould
inherited most of Nathan Beach's property. For a number of years the town flourished, but
when canalling started to falter so did the town's growth. In the town were a post office,
railroad station, two hotels, two general stores, two groceries, brickyard, blacksmith and
shoemaker. Beach Haven had an estimated population of 300.
BELLBEND -is a post office formerly known as Beach Grove.
BENTON -Has a polulation of 1157 in 1860.
BLOOMINGDALE -At Bloomingdale there are a store, a post office, a schoolhouse,
a Methodist Episcopal Church, a saw mill, a blacksmith shop, and about 75 inhabitants.
BRIGGSVILLE -is a post office. There was a store and a tavern here, but it is no longer
open to the public.
BROADWAY -there was a Christian Church, a schoolhouse, a shoe shop, and a few
dwellings. Farming is the usual occupation of the people here. An example of the types of
crops grown are apple and pear orchards and grape vineyards. Formerly known as Irish
Lane.
BUTLER TWP. -was named after Col. Zebulon Butler and was incorporated in 1839. It
has an area of thirty- one square miles. The largest portion of its area came from Sugarloaf
Val1ey. A part of the south of the township was taken off and added to Hazle Township in
1861. Its population in 1860 was 1, 081. Some notable residents were John Balliett, his wife
and two children, Stephen Balliett, G.H. Riep (sometimes written Reab) Joseph Woodring,
Benner (Harry), Shobers, Dolphs, Hill, Bachelor and Spaides. The name of Spaide has
been and is still spelled different ways. Early on it was generally spelled it S-p-a-d-e, but
Spaide, Spaid, Spayd and Spayde are some of the many variations. Philip Woodring, Henry
Davis, Andrew Mowery and George Drum, Abraham Drum and Samuel Woodring.
CAMBRA -is probably a contraction of cranberry. The oldest people frequently called it
Cranberry from the cranberry swamps that are located nearby.
CONYNGHAM TWP. -Click on link.
CONYNGHAM VILLAGE -was laid out and was originally called "Venison Market."
The first settler in what is now the village was George Drum. The village was named for
Capt. Gustavus Conyngham. It contained about 400 people, 2 hotels, 2 general stores, 1
grocery and 1 confectionery, 1 furniture and undertaking store, 1 planing mill, and a
number of small concerns and millinery stores. Mess & Robbins' distillery was located
there. It closed out about 1875. There was a tannery there as well as Drumheller's windmill
factory. Billheimers and William Engle had gristmills. Preacher Shaffer and the McMurtrie
family were among the very early settlers in the village. Abram Klutch kept a hotel in
Conygham Village and A.G. Broadhead kept a store there. Moses Brundage was running
the tannery and the windmill factory was started about 1838. Jacob Drumheller was the
first surveyor. George Wenner was the first blacksmith. The first post office in the village
was kept by William Drum in 1826. Charles Kenelly owned the planing-mill. A foundry was
built by Mordica Mutton.
DALLAS BORO -was incorporated on Apri121, 1879. The boundary lines are surrounded
by Dallas Township. It was taken from Dallas Twp. entirely. Dallas was named after a
popular Philadelphia lawyer named Alexander James Dallas who was the secretary of the
treasury from 1814 to 1817. Some notable residents were Dwight Wolcott, Ira D. Shover,
William Snyder, Theodore Fryman, Charles Henderson, Philip T. Raub, Parkerson
Perrego, Jacob Rice, William Rice, William P. Kirkland, H.H. Shover, George Heitsman,
John Furgerson, Charles H. Cooke, William J. Honeywell, Chester White, Philip Raub,
Leonard Matchell, Levi Howell, James Morrigan, A.D. Hay, I.D. Shaver, Albert Lewis, A.
Ryman, J.J. Ryman. It was formerly known as McCellandsville .
DALLAS TWP -Click on link.
FADE'S CREEK - is a post office in the southern portion of Lake Township.
FAIRMOUNT TWP -Click on link.
FAIRMOUNT SPRINGS- was first known as Fairmount Twp. post office but after-
ward assumed the present name owing to a fine spring on the property of Justice B.P.
Smith. The township name came from the elevations-fairmount.
GLEN LYON -grew out of a small mining operation in 1869. Lee's Mountain is on the
valley's north side. Grain was the principal crop of the residents. Eventually Apple, pear
and cherry orchards were added. The farmers called the area at the foot of Lee's
Mountain, Lyon's Valley. The name was eventually changed to Glean Lyon. Glean Lyon
came from a combination of the Scottish Gaelic, glean, meaning valley, and the Lyon family
name. Glean Lyon means Valley of Lyon or Lyon's Valley. Over time, the word "glean"
was modified to "glen". The town was previously called Williamstown and Morgantown.
The name became official in 1885 and it was named Glen Lyon. They chose Glen Lyon
since it was the valley's original name. Glen Lyon is about four miles from Nanticoke and
the mines were opened in 1870. It had a post office, store and hotel.
HARDPAN -is another one of the "didn't know it was loaded" cases. Several appropriate
names were sent to the department when the post office was asked for, among them
Dodson Chapel by which the locality had been known for some time. Hardpan was tacked
at the tail and partially as a joke. When the papers for the new office came the least
desirable of all Hardpan was the name of the new office.
HARVE'S LAKE -was discovered by Benjamin Harvey in 1781. As he approached a
ridge, he saw the lake through the trees. He followed the lake around to find his home
which was situated on Harvey's Creek at West Nanticoke.
HARVEYVILLE-Thomas Harvey located at Harveyville and opened a blacksmith shop
which he ran for several years. The gristmill at Harveyville was built in 1798 and replaced
in 1837 with a new one which burned down. The present one was built in 1869. It is a
section of Huntington Township.
HELLERTOWN -see Conyngham Twp.
HOLLENBACK -was taken from Nescopeck in 1845 and named for Matthias Hollen-
back. -gets its name from an important Luzerne county family. In 1860 it had a population
of 977 and in 1870 a population of 1,303, which declined to 736 in 1880 by the taking off of
the north half of the township and making Conyngham Township. In 1890 this again slightly
decreased and the population was 724. In 1796 it contained ten taxables and was a part of
Nescopek and extended up to Newport Township. John Balliett was the first blacksmith in
the township. John Hatter built the first frame house in 1848. The first post- master was
Henry Grover. Henry Wbitebread set out the first orchard in 1808. Some notable residents
were Henry Whitebread, B. Whitebread, John Bachman, Abram Shortz, John Balliett,
David Enoch, Samuel Snyder, J. Hatter, Amasa Shoemaker, Peter Goode, Bernard
Whitebread, Henry Whitebread and David Bachman.
HUBLERSTOWN -see Huntington Mills.
HUNLOCK CREEK -is a station on the railroad, where are two hotels and one general
store.
HUNLOCK TWP. -Click on link.
HUNTINGTON TWP- Click on link.
HUNTINGTON MILLS -The name of the village was changed to Huntington Mills
when the paper mills were built by the Koons brothers. J.K. Hubler owned the store and
mill for several years and the place bore his name. The post office was not established until
years after the name was changed to Huntington Mills.
HUNTINGTON VALLEY - runs north and south through the townships of Fairmount
and Huntington. It is not a valley like Wyoming Valley, it is rolling until you strike the
mountains in the north of Fairmount Twp. The farmers find their outlet to Shickshinny on
the river by the turnpike road.
HUNTSVILLE -A village in Jackson Twp.
IDETOWN- Click on link.
IRISH LANE - was once known as Irish Lane for the three Irish men that once lived here
it is now called Broadway, located in Ross Twp.
JACKSON TWP.- Click on Link.
JONESTOWN - James G. Jones gave his name to the place where he opened a store
near the junction of Huntington and Fishing Creeks. The post office was Fishing Creek.
KOONSVILLE -was formerly known as Arch Bridge. The stone arch bridge crossing
Shickshinny Creek was the one of that kind in this section for many years. It was barely
wide enough for the passage of a single wagon, and if the driver was reckless enough to
shift his quid from one side to the other in going across, he was liable to go into the water.
The narrowness of the bridge was the cause of legislative enactment requiring Union Twp.
to increase the width. There was no penalty attatched and the bridge never grew in width
until the Union Turnpike company doubled its width. When the post office was established
the name was changed to Koonsville for William Koons who lived for many years at that
place. It is approximately one mile from Shickshinny, located in Union Twp. There was a
general store, a toll-gate and the Kester brothers had their mine furnishing factory there.
KYTTLE-is a section of Fairmount Twp. The Kyttle cemetery still exists along State
Route 118.
Lake Twp. -Click on link.
Lehman Twp. -Click on link.
LOYALVILLE- ia s post office in a farmhouse in Lake Township.
MAPLE RUN- is an area of Fairmount Township. It was the location of the former
post ofice.
MOCANAQUA - stands as perpetual reminder of Frances Slocum who was stolen from
Wyoming Valley during struggles of the early settlers. The Indians called their little captive
Mocanaqua, which means little bear. Also-- In 1778, Frances Slocum was kidnapped by the
Deleware Indians from her home near Forty-Fort. Raised with the customs and the lan-
guage of the Deleware, Slocum was renamed "Mocanaqua" and later married a chief of
the Miami Tribe. For 59 years her brothers searched for her, only to find her in 1837. By
that time she was accustomed to the Indian way of life she found her brothers' way of life
odd. This town is still named for her.
MOSSVILLE -A section of Fairmount Twp. It was the former center of a prosperous
farming group. The town was named after the Moss Family.
MUHLENBURG - was one of the very early settlements, and has long been a post office
and has a store, hotel, church and blacksmith shop.
NANTICOKE BORO -Click on link.
NESCOPECK TWP. -Click on link. In Indian language -means deep water.
NESCOPECK VILLAGE -is built on the site of an ancient town of the Delaware Indians. It
had about twenty dwellings, one store and a tavern. The southern line of Luzerne County
crosses the Susquehanna here cutting the Nescopeck Bridge diagonally in the middle. The
village was started in 1786 when Samuel Mifflin opened a little store on the bank of the
river. His manager there was William Baird. Mr. Baird resided in the storeroom at the
store. The store is said to have been the first frame building in the township. George Rough
opened a blacksmith shop near the store. A man named Steiner opened a log cabin hotel
nearby. In 1807 John Myers built a frame hotel. In 1815 another hotel was built by John
Rothermel. His son was the first child born here. In 1817 Christian Kunkle built the stone
house in the village and he burned the brick for the chimneys, and for a three-story building
in Berwick. Michael Raber built the first brick dwelling and burned the brick for all the rest.
NEW COLUMBUS- The residents desired to do the honor of America when this place
was named but there already being a Columbus inWarren County the word "new" was
required as a prefix before the town could be christened by the postal authorities.
NEWPORT TWP.-Click on link.
OUTLET - is a section of Lake Township. It was located at the south end of Harvey's
Lake. As a post office it was known as Lake. It later took the name Outlet.
PIKE'S CREEK - is a section of Lake Township.
PLYMOUTH BORO -Click on link.
PLYMOUTH TWP. -Click on link.
PRITCHARD-was a section of Hunlock Township.
RED ROCK - is a section of Fairmount Twp. It is located at the foot of North Mountain.
REGISTER - is a selection of the post office department. Pine Creek, Westover other
names were chosen by the applicants but the odd name of Register came out of it.
REYBURN -bears the name of one of the late president Garfield's physicians. The post
office came into being about the time of Garfield's death and the people not having a suit-
able name, the department gave the name of Reyburn to the post office.-is a post office and
gristmill an in one. It also had a little store. It was a sma11 community north of Koonsville
on the road to Muhlenberg. In 1939 there was a one-room schoolhouse that housed eight
grades. Across the road was the Reybum Bible Protestant Church. The church had a
separate hall in the rear of the building. The upper hall had a large kitchen area and stage.
Many local happening were held here including one of the favorites -the box social. The gals
made up a dinner in a fancy box or basket keeping it a secret which one was theirs and then
the guys would bid on the boxes and get to eat dinner with the owner. "Over the road" was
the general store run by Ray and Edna Martin. Some notable residents were Rev. Bruce
BELLES, Edna Belles MARTIN, Harriet MORGAN, Mildred VOSLER, BILBY,
BLACKBURN, LANNING; HAGENBAUGH, BAER.
ROSS TWP. -Click on link.
RUGGLES - is an old lumber camp. It was once a busy hamlet but it has since decayed.
In it were a store and sawmill. In the center of operations of Ruggles & Shonk.
SALEM TWP. -Click on link.
SHAWNESE - is a section of Harvey's Lake Boro.
SHICKSHINNY BORO -Click on link. From the History of Luzerne County.
SHICKSHINNY BOROUGH -Click on link.From the History of Luzerne, Lack. and
Wyoming Counties.
SILKWORTH- is a section of Lehman Twp.
SLOCUM TWP. -Click on link.
SLOCUM VILLAGE - Silas Alexander opened a small store near Mr. Stackhouse's about
1848. This was the first store in the place. P. J. Myers kept the only store. A postoffice
called Lutsey was established with John Rosencanz as postmaster. The name of the office
was changed to Slocum. Mails. John Rosencrans was the first teacher. The first frame
house was built by William Lutsey about 1837. Hiram Rosencrans was the first black smith.
The land for the cemetery was left to the town by John Ogin in his will. His wife was the first
person buried in Slocum township. She died in 1836 and was buried on a knoll west of the
cemetery.
SWEET VALLEY - there are a store and a post office, a Christian Church, a blacksmith
shop, a sawmill, a schoolhouse about 75 inhabitants.
TOWN LINE -is just what the name indicates. The place located on the township dividing
Huntington and Union Townships.
UNION TWP.-Click on link.
WAPWALLOPEN -a jaw breaker for the unintiated is of Indian origin, its English
equivalent being "The place where the messengers were murdered". Who the messengers
were and who murdered them is not recorded. It has also been said to mean "where the
wild grows. The Indians would use this to make many items.
WATERTON- was named by the Watson brothers who suceeded Jared Harrison in the
mercantile business at that point. In order to secure a post office H.D. Watson carried the
mail from Shickshinny free for several years. The route was finally extended to Forks and
compensation granted.
ZENITH- is a section of Nescopeck Township.