Lightfoot Mill (Mill at Anselma)

Posted by on Apr 19, 2016 in | Comments Off on Lightfoot Mill (Mill at Anselma) Originally built circa 1747, this working mill in Chester Springs, Chester County, is a rare example of a small 18th-century custom grain mill with its power transmission system completely intact. The basic technology of Lightfoot Mill was adapted over the years to improve efficiency, although much of the original mechanism has been retained. Today, these subsequent limited upgrades illustrate...
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John Nicholson and Land as a Lure in the Infant Nation, 1790-1800

Posted by on Nov 30, 2013 in | Comments Off on John Nicholson and Land as a Lure in the Infant Nation, 1790-1800 John Nicholson was an early Pennsylvania land speculator, financier and entrepreneur. He was born in 1757, emigrated from Wales at an early age and died in 1800. While serving as comptroller-general of the state (1782-1794), he was a major factor in helping Pennsylvania achieve financial solvency after the revolutionary war. In this capac­ity, Nicholson created political alliances with those who...
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A Salute to the Bicentennial of the Keystone State

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on A Salute to the Bicentennial of the Keystone State The current Bicentennial celebration commemorates not the birth of the United States, but the proclama­tion of thirteen British-American colonies that were “free and independent states” as of July 4, 17.76. When they formed a loose compact in 1761, their articles of confederation declared that “each state retains its sover­eignty, freedom and independence.” The...
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Poor John Fitch, The Inventor Few Remember

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on Poor John Fitch, The Inventor Few Remember Philadelphia, August 22, 1787. With the promise of some relief from their intense debate and the heavy summer air, delegates to the Constitutional Convention strolled a few blocks from the State House (now Indepen­dence Hall) to the banks of the Delaware River. Along the river puffed an oddity, a curiosity that the statesmen had never before seen: a steam-operated boat­ – the first of its...
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The Fairmount Water Works: “One of the Very Prettiest Spots the Eye Can Look Upon”

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on The Fairmount Water Works: “One of the Very Prettiest Spots the Eye Can Look Upon” Error and the human condition, being bound tightly together, generally keep a sullen kind of company. Yet as unpromising as that pair might seem, their offspring sometimes attain startling beauty. Certainly the grace and charm of Philadelphia’s Fairmount Water Works, on the east bank of the Schuylkill River, derive both from the human condition and the fitful attempts to improve it....
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Letters to the Editor

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on Letters to the Editor Three Cheers Three cheers for Pennsylvania Heritage and William D. Owen for the excellent article devoted to the Fairmount Water Works (see “The Fairmount Water Works: ‘One of the very prettiest spots the eye can look upon'” in the spring 1994 edition). The discussion of the prob­lems associated with the early use of steam power and the impact on the sub­sequent development of...
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Visiting the Museum of Anthracite Mining: A Walk Through the Rise and Fall of Anthracite Might

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Visiting the Museum of Anthracite Mining: A Walk Through the Rise and Fall of Anthracite Might One of Pennsylvania’s most significant resources was once considered useless. Although anthracite was distinguished as a natural resource as early as 1770, the sale of “stone coal” – as it was then called – was outlawed in some places. Many believed that anthracite (or “hard” coal) was little better than slate and would not burn. Eventually, however, a...
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