Browse Encyclopedia

The Cumberland County Historical Encyclopedia is an expanding publication on the history of the Cumberland County. Covering a wide range of topics and the entire Cumberland County geographic region, the Encyclopedia seeks to be an initial entry point to those interested in the County's history. Entries seek to provide a list of resources available as well as showcasing some of the Cumberland County Historical Society's own collections.

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Babes in the Woods

Outdoor B&W photo of a men and women standing around coffins in Westminster Cemetery near Carlisle, PA. Two coffins are visible, and a third is probably hidden behind one.

In November of 1934, the bodies of three young girls were found on South Mountain along Centerville Road (Rt. 233) in Penn Township. No readily identifiable information was available to determine who they were, and the ensuing investigation of the mystery attracted nation-wide attention.

Whitfield J. Bell, Jr.

Whitfield Jenks Bell, Jr., (3 December, 1914-2 January, 2009) was born in Newburgh, New York, and grew up in suburban Philadelphia.1 After graduating from Lower Merion High School, he enrolled in Dickinson College, graduating in the class of 1935.

Stephen Vincent Benet

Summer after summer Stephen Benet and his siblings,who were all writers, visited their maternal grandparents William and Mary (Mahon) Rose who resided in a Carlisle home located at the northwest corner of North Hanover and West Penn Streets.

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