MEETINGS
February 7 7:00
Come and hear what Don and Bonnie Collar learned at a meeting about Rivers of Steel. Some money could be coming our way to make repairs to the Mill!!
March 7 7:00
Meetings are held at the Freeport Community Center. Your presence at the meeting is very important --the Historical Society needs members - not just dues-paying, card-carrying members, but members willing to come out and give a hand.
OLD LETTERS WANTED
Do you have old letters from days gone by? If so, could we use them in the Newsletter? These old letters give us a wonderful look at what life was like in the past.
Marti Moore shares another letter
written to her great-grandmother, Emily Weaver Hill, of Sarver
and Freeport. This very chatty letter was written by her friend,
Cal. It was written in Sarversville on February 18. The year
is unknown, but Marti believes it was early in the Civil War.
Sarversville, Feb 18
Dear Emily,
It is with pleasure I sit down to answer your very kind letter
which I received some time ago. I am happy to say we are all
well at present eccepting Mother, she has not been very well for
some weeks with a bad cold. Willie has just told me to tell Emily
that he has gone to bed with a quart of whiskey in him (he has
a cold and I made him a stew.)
Jacob Hepler is married at last to Mifs Louisa Ekis, about for
weeks ago. John Martin and Bell Barker was married the day before
Christmas. I was at the wedding. Mrs. Martin's little baby was
buried last Friday it died with congestion of the brain and is
two or more down with intermitting fever, but are a little better.
Mrs. George Step has buried three of her children since you left
here, two with scarlet fever or diphtheria and the other was sick
perhaps when you were here. Little Rebecca Greer had catarrh
fever but is altogether well now. Britta talked often about Laura
and Bobby. She would often talk herself to sleep about Laura.
She would often want to go and see little Laura. Tom is still
mending he is able to walk as far as Saxonburg and back. Bell
is at home now she has been here for about a week she is getting
fat as well as her neighbor but don't say anything about us to
any person. Huston commenced to walk on New Year's day and you
may be sure he was proud. He is fat as butter and so is Britta.
I have never been at Mrs. Kellys yet nor seen her baby but they
are all well. I saw Rebecca on Sabbath day and told her I had
received a letter from you and delivered your message to her and
also to sister Jane.
What are they doing about the draft up in your county? I hope
you will not let your old man go. I think I have told you all
the news as far as I know, be sure to come down if there comes
any snow, give my respects to Mr. Hill and reserve a good portion
of love for yourself. Kifs the babies for me. Write soon. Cal
Walker.
Excus me for not writing sooner. I will do better next time,
that's sure. (Spelling and grammar are as written by Cal.)
Marti remarks how fragile life was then, the high mortality rate of babies and children seems astounding to us in this day. Emily herself lost her first 2 children, a pair of female twins to diphtheria, one month apart at the age of 4. Laura is her third child; she grew to be a formidable woman. The possibility of a trip if snow came probably meant that snow made the roads easier to travel on as opposed to mud! As Marti says, "hard times were more expected…people were more prepared emotionally."
Q and A
Q. Was Freeport always called Freeport?
A. No. It was first known as Toddstown when founded in 1796 by David and William Todd. After it was declared "free dockage" many called it Freeportage. With the incorporation of the town on April 8, 1833, the name was officially registered as Freeport. Jacob Weaver (first Postmaster in 1806) was elected Burgess. Today the title is Mayor.
During the period 1826 - 1862 several churches were built. The first public school was founded in 1857 and in 1858 the first school building, a four-room brick schoolhouse, was erected at a cost of $3,000.00. This building stood about where the cafeteria of the present junior high is now situated. When the junior high was built in the early 1920's, an old cemetery had to be moved. Bodies, or what was left of them, were lifted and moved to the upper side of Freeport Cemetery. It was hard for the students not to be gawking out the window as the work was being done; but the teachers sternly warned the children to stay in their seats and do their work…or else! The new building housed all 12 grades and the Class of 1925 was the first one to do their full senior year in this building. Back in the 1840's and 1850's Fourth Street did not connect to Buffalo Street, which was then known as the Butler Road.
Thanks to Rod Chapman for the answer this month. Do you have a question? Send it to the Historical Society at P. O. Box 107, Freeport, call Don at 295-4635 or Email Carol at pchale@salsgiver.com.
HISTORICAL SOCIETY WISH LIST
A. Monetary donation to cover newsletter postage. Buday Printing (thanks Rich!!) prints it for us free, but the postage adds up.
B. Other wishes?
WANTED
An engineer to do a study at the mill and tell us what work needs to be done, especially relating to the roof. This is a great project for an undergraduate engineer.
THANKS
To Freeport Borough for their much-appreciated $200 donation - thank you so much.
FROM JOHN SHOOP'S WEATHER
BOOK
1848 - 1870
There was 18 feet 6 inches water at Pittsburgh on the 12 June 1857 so sais the papers…the grate comet did not appear on the 13 June 1857 but there was the hardest rain I ever saw in the Evening about 5 oclock hevy thunders & litning …We had very hevy rain 16 June Tuesday morning the thermometer stood at 50 dg June 23 1857…the thermometer stood 44 dg June 24 1857…in the month of June we had 22 days rain in sucseshon that is from 1 June to the 22…the thermometer stood 54 July 1 1857…there was snow 22 June 1857…Also snow on the first July 1857…thermometer stood 50 dg July 4th 1857…J. C. Maye Died July 9th 1857…We had very hevy rain on 31 July 1857…George Truby moved in Binghams House Augt 17 1857…George Ftets in Westmorland had oats head 18 inches long and had 1 hundred and 4 grains in it in 1857…There was 9 feet water in the Ohio on the 18th Augt 1857 at Pittsburgh & 30 coal boats went out far below…We had a very hevy hale storm on the 22 Augt 1857 & hevy rain hale fel as big as a walnut the grond was covered…the largest curcis ever in Freeport was here on the first Sept. 1857.
Editor's note: Spelling and punctuation are as written by John Shoop.
HEIRLOOM RECIPES
Sweet Pickled Dillie Beans
Cook 2 pounds yellow beans until
they start to get tender (when pierced with fork.) To each pint,
add 1 t. dill seed, 1/8 t. pepper and 1 clove garlic.
Solution: 3 C water to 1 C vinegar, sweeten to taste.
Add: A couple strips of semi-hot pepper.
Pack all in jars. Add enough vinegar solution to within inch of top of jar. Put in cold packs and bring to boil, take from stove.
This recipe came from Mrs. Raymond
Keener from Slate Lick over 85 years ago. Contributed by Alice
Julius