Mount Savage Historical Society |
||
|
||
|
Letter from the President |
||
|
Officers for 2009 President
Dennis Lashley
December 5,
2009
If you haven’t already $7 per member to: We would like to thank those members who have already renewed & for those who sent extra donations |
Happy New Year.
2008 has come and gone but left behind many
improvements in our community. The most noticeable is our Jail. Everyone thinks the colors are fitting for a
railroad town. Later this year we hope to add
a new set of bars on the windows and maybe a gate for the door. The Union Mining Office
now has a set of hand rails and the installation of more “Memorial Bricks”. We
have room for about 8 more bricks, if anyone is interested in purchasing one. At the furnace area, most of the brush and trees
have been removed. Now, only a few large trees remain, and they will be removed this
spring. A large pile of clay on the lower side
has been removed and grass planted. Spring should see a lot of green in that area. We have
managed to pave some sections of the road leading to the furnace. This will be an ongoing
project as the summer wears on.
The section of Main St. where the buildings were razed is growing grass. Our thanks goes out to Francis Norris for removing
the stones and keeping it cut. Recently, Dan Williams made arrangements for cross ties to
section off the upper portion. We’re still waiting on the county to decide on the
parking area and other upgrades to the property.
The Bank will be undergoing some ceiling repair and a paint job early this spring.
The outside chimney will still need attention. A
cap was installed on the top but the upper portion needs re-pointed and sprayed with a
water sealer to make a lasting repair. While checking the roof for leaks, a major
discovery was made in the attic of the bank. Rolled up and covered with dust were blue
prints for the Union Mining Company’s Brick Factory. Hopefully we will be able to
have it framed and displayed for Iron Rail Days.
Old Row Park keeps improving. Last year saw the addition of a fence and a new roof
for the cabin. Thanks again to the Lighting Committee for funding these projects. The
museum is also in need of some repairs and holes plugged to keep out unwanted
“visitors”. Last year we had a resident Black Snake hanging out on our front
steps. He decided to make a home under the steps. Hopefully this year we will be able to
rearrange the displays and have the museum open more often to the public.
All of our 2008 events were a big success. We
added a “Lunch With The Elves”
I would like to personally thank Vince Thompson, Chub Norris and Earl Pope for the
wonderful job they’ve done in making Mt.
Savage a nicer place to live. They have taken their time and energy to keep the grass cut
in several areas around town. It sure does make the town look a lot better for the entire
community. Thanks guys.
Don’t forget to visit our website, as we continue to uncover and post the
history of Mount Savage. www.mountsavagehistoricalsociety.org
|
|
| Words
from the Past. Octavius Perinchief A letter to his children. Circa 1866" An offer was made me from Mt. Savage, Alleghany County, Maryland, and there I went. I began to get better; the air was good, the place being in the mountains, and the house we had was comfortable. The people were very kind to us, and I very much enjoyed this new life, and there was plenty of work too. Two years and a half slipped by, and May and Lucy were born there. When the war broke out, the people were scattered, and I, in the excitement, went back to New York, and took a church on Lexington Avenue. My health failed again, and I was called to Cumberland, very near Mt. Savage, where Nellie was born. I stayed there through the war, until my health broke down, and I went back to Mt. Savage, and there got better again. Our little boy, Frank, who was born in New York and at Mt. Savage, Tilghman was born. As my family had increased, and as the war had raised the costs of living to three times what they had been, my income was not sufficient to support us, so I had to look about for another parish. " Before leaving this passage of my life, I ought to dwell upon both the happiness and misery we endured in that region. The scenery was on all sides grand. Our little parsonage at Mt. Savage looked directly upon Savage Mountain, one of the highest of the Alleghanies; a picture of it, copied from a photograph, painted by Mr. Lanman, hangs in our house. The little garden afforded me constant enjoyment, the people were kind and considerate, my salary was at that time $500 and a house,* and we wanted for nothing. " But now I must say a word about your mother. When we were married she was in perfect health, and supposed she was able, and certainly was willing, to undertake the life demanded of her as the wife of a minister. But neither she nor I knew what such a life involved. She bore the privations of Kansas life bravely. In Brooklyn she began to taste other elements; sewing circles, charity societies, social demands, and unreasonable expectations. By temperament and disposition she was fitted for retirement, and for close intimacy with a few friends. In her position she could have no intimate friends, no real society, but was the property of the parish. She had to be as intimate with one as another, no matter whether congenial or not. At Mt. Savage she was relieved of this, and found her social relations were very pleasant, because there were about half a dozen families, officers of the companies with their wives and children—persons of culture and Christian consideration; and the great mass of the people were operatives in the mining region. These, taken all for all, were the best people, and had more religion than any among whom our lot had fallen ; though, in other places, we had found individuals and single families in all respects their equalChildren’s Christmas Party
Santa’s Helpers serving pizza to a group of area children at this year’s "Lunch With The Elves" on Dec. 7. ________________________________ WE NEED YOUR HELP Share Your Family History The Mount Savage Historical Society is in the process of setting up a Genealogy / Archive Center. The purpose of this center is to collect, record, preserve and share the rich history of the many different family groups who have lived and worked in the Mount Savage area. We would also love to have a copy of any old photos of the town, or family members. They would also be added to our center. Any amount of family information that you may have will be helpful. A big part of genealogy is sharing the information that you have with others who are searching for their family history. We want to record this info before it's lost in time. Please take a few minutes and mail your family info to : The Mt. Savage Historical Society Questions - please contact: Visit from the First Mt Savage Banks Family
Last
summer Gunter Corrado and I were busy painting the backside of the town Jail, when we
heard a fellow up on the bridge calling to us. He wanted to know if there was anything
left of the Mt. Savage Bank. I immediately put
down my brush and told him he was in for a very big surprise. But, the surprise was going
to be mine. It turned out the folks on the bridge were the family of the first President
of the bank, W. Bladen Lowndes. You
should have seen the look on their faces as I opened the door to the bank and they saw
what their Grandfather saw when he walked thru the door. They walked around touching
everything, remarking that their Grandfather probably touched these very surfaces. While here I had the opportunity to fill them in on
all of the Mt. Savage history. They were
surprised when I told them their Grandfather was a part of the group that went to the county to get funding for our Jail along
with being on the Board of Directors of the Union Mining Company. While here they became members and gave us a very nice donation. They were so impressed they came back again right before Christmas. This time with 3 generations of Lowndes. It was an amazing visit to say the least. |
COKE OVENS 1849 Coke was made from coal mined within three miles of the furnaces. A long battery of ovens was located on an artificial bench dug out of the hill on a level with the top of the two furnaces. This bench was known even in 1949 as the "coke yard" & the remains of a railroad track bed leading from there to some old mines west of Mt. Savage could still be traced in 1949.Coke ovens were also located on a flat between the C&P "Bridge Shop" & the foot of Mac's Hill just east of No. 2 brickyard. In addition to the use of mortar, the masonry of the furnaces was tied together by heavy square iron rods, forged round on the ends & threaded. Men working in the rolling mill said that the main engine had a cylinder with a 20-inch bore and 40-inch stroke. Two dams were built across Allegany Creek to provide a sufficient water supply. Jennings Run was too heavily charged with sulfur from nearby mines to be suitable as a water source. Jennings Run comes from the valley from Frostburg while the two branches of Allegany Creek come from Big Savage Mountain to join Jennings Run past where the furnaces were located.
I t was early fall when Jim Paul came to Earl Pope to have his father ,Wilbert Paul’s vintage Allis Chalmers checked out. Jim said it was running rough and wanted Earl to check it out.Wilbert purchased this tractor in 1956 and has been using it on the family farm ever since. It was a year old when the WD45 found a home on the Paul farm. What started as a "little" tune-up ended in a restoration project for his dad. First a motor overhaul, then repairs to the steering. The brakes were next, along with wiring and sheet metal repairs. It was about this time when the decision to paint the tractor was made, so parts were steamed and prepared for primer. The rear wheels came off along with the back fenders. Jim made regular visits, checking on the progress and was in great spirits with the way the project was coming along. He was there at every step making sure his Dad’s tractor was getting the best of care. The rehab was so complete that Earl took the tractor to Bill Miller’s shop for a professional paint job. On December 30, Jim stopped at Earl’s shop to pick up paint for the wheels which he then delivered to the paint shop. This act for his father was the last thing Jim would do. Sadly, Jim passed away that afternoon, just a few days before the WD 45 was completed. He never got to see the tractor he lovingly had restored for his father. A few days later on a very cold and blustery day the tractor was unveiled at the Paul farm. I wish you could have seen the look on Wilbert’s face when he climbed aboard his Allis Chalmers for one more ride on the tractor that Jim had spent so many hours on, taking care of the farm. Jim will be missed. Ramblings in Mt Savage 1849 1849 An eyewitness Account Editors Note Please excuse the typos. The Author tried to write with the accent of the Irish and Scottish men they encountered There were nine of us altogether, including Walley and the baby. We thought the air would do the young ones good; so bright and early we got dressed, not in our best, but our blackest suits, and went, some in the buggie, some on horseback, and some on foot, down the hill, about a mile, to ' the store." Robert, the cannie Scotchman, who is the doer of all work at ' the works,' was there, with an old white horse, which was soon tackled by chains to a coal-car; no, not exactly a coal-car, but a car made out of one, of rough boards, with a canvass awning over head. On the horse was seated a very small boy, whose legs, stretched to their utmost capacity, formed just about crotchet enough to keep him on, and no more. He was a son of' one of the hands,' and ready for anything. It was a delightful day, not a great deal of dust, and all of us in apple-pie order, when, after receiving Robert's directions about keeping a look out for the switches, and mind the break in coming back, we started on a pleasant trot up the rail road to Frostburg, at the distance of two miles off. The mine-road is laid in the valley or ravine, along side of Jennings' run, on a track dug out of a gentle slope, and at a grade of about one hundred feet to the mile, so that we were going up all the way. Once in a while we came to some exposure of the strata, where one can see the coal veins of various degrees of thickness. Sometimes, where it is on the slope of the mountain or hill, the coal vein likewise slopes; sometimes it is straight, and then you will be sure to find a corresponding vein at the same height on an opposite hill, the intermediate space having sunk down, or got out of the way somehow, so say the geologists. The baby fell asleep, while Walley kept up a constant chattering, not missing a single tree or flower that presented any remarkable features. Now he called attention to ' what a little water' there was in the brook, owing to the long drought; now to colts and calves of a neighboring fanner; and now to the boy on the horse, who was but little bigger than himself. The vicinity of switches and empty cars, and men with smouched faces, indicated that we were approaching the mine near Frostburg. We descended near the mouth, and being furnished with little lanterns and candles, we were soon all marching into the ' bowels of earth.' A funny procession we formed. The old lady walked at the head, and the year-older, in his nurse's arms, came in the rear — the two extremes of life; yet both full of energy, and looking with interest on novelty. The vein is ten feet high, so that there was no difficulty about walking in ; but it looked amazingly pokerish, that dark and dingy cellar, and the ladies held back a moment; but encouraged by each other, and the careless step of the guides, went on. It was very dark, and with all our eyes and lights we found it difficult to discern the way. By degrees, becoming accustomed to the darkness, the darkness of the coal sides was made visible. Coal! coal! coal! 'Allegheny groceries,' as Mr. Frost, the courteous and capacious proprietor calls it — here it is in abundance, to make cheerful all the hearths of Gotham with the lively blaze. On we go, with careful steps and occasional warnings from before to look out for ' a big lump of coal on the pathway,' or train road Ramblings Continues in next Newsletter Remembrances of Robert Rost Mrs.
Pressman was feisty and outspoken and in my mind, "bigger than life". After
one of the later meetings that always took place in the old Union Mining Office on Foundry
Row, the men on hearing that the strike was to continue, gathered outside and yelled
threats and insults to dad, who was still there talking with Mrs. Pressman. He wanted to
leave but wasn't sure he could get past the men to his car. When he expressed his fears,
Mrs. Pressman grabbed her umbrella and told him to follow father her.
She went out and told the agitated men to make way or she'd hit them on the head. Dad
followed her to his car untouched. Mrs.
Pressman ran the office, but really the company. If sales were slow, she'd make calls. If
a load got rejected, she'd find another buyer so it didn't have to come back. She handled
a lot of the complaints. In many ways she was
responsible for what success the company had. It was a hard day when my dad retired her at
age 86. SCIENTIFIC DISC0VERY YEAR-BOOK OF FACTS FOR 1857 An
invention by Mr. John W. Brown, of Mount Savage, Md., has for its object the rolling of
the rails into such forms successively as to cause all parts of the rail to be submitted,
in the rolling process, to a uniform degree of drawing and compression, thereby preventing
the separation of the head and flange, making all parts of the rail of equal density. It
enables rails to be
|
|
