The North Mountain Historical Society

Meeting: April, 2000

April 17, 2000

April 17, 2000, speaker David Kline, subject: "The History of the Susquehanna and Tioga Turnpike."

The History Buffs met at the Brass Pelican on Monday, April 17 with 28 People present. In the absence of Tom Stackhouse, Jim Vance chaired the meeting. Zane Hartman gave thanks and the minutes of the last meeting were read.

Following breakfast, Jim introduced David Kline who gave a most interesting and informative talk on the history of the Susquehanna and Tioga Turnpike. David had a large map of the area on which was located the route of the turnpike and various stage coach stops. He also had pictures he had taken of the turnpike as it remains today on Painter Den property and in the Dushore-Lopez area. A Pennsylvania Act signed March 8, 1806, authorized construction of turnpikes. In 1807 a company called the President, Manager and Company of the Susquehanna and Tioga Turnpike Road was incorporated to build a Turnpike from Berwick to Elmira, NY. (at that time called "Newtown"). By the "best and nearest route." Men who built the road lived in shanties and moved as the work progressed. The
Susquehanna and Tioga Turnpike started in Berwick, crossed Jonestown Mountain to Jonestown along Huntingdon Creek. From there it went through Cambra to Fairmount Springs and on up Red Rock Mountain to Long Pond (now Ganoga Lake), then past the present town of Mildred over Huckleberry Mountain, then on to Towanda and Elmira. It reached Elmira in 1825, 18 years after it was first started. The turnpike was a toll road; tolls were more for a two-horse vehicle than for a single horse. Some parts were a "corduroy" road made by placing 7 ft. logs side by side at right angles to supporting log rails underneath. The Berwick and Towanda Turnpike Co. began running stagecoaches in 1827. Stagecoaches ran from station to station with fresh horses being picked up--usually at 12-mile intervals. Stages rain twice daily leaving Berwick in the morning, stopping for lunch and changing horses at Long Pond Tavern and spending the night at Schrofogels Hotel. The stone house in Fairmount Springs was also a Stage Coach stop.

Our thanks to David for the interesting presentation and the handout giving us all the information to take home with us. The next meeting will be Monday, May 15, at the Brass Pelican. Tentative plans are for a presentation on the Fishing Creek Confederacy by George Turner, president of the Columbia County Historical Society.