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.
Encouraged by the editor of the Carlisle Herald newspaper to submit reminiscences for the entertainment of his readers, James Miller McKim wrote several lengthy articles under the pen name AGC. (A Genuine Carlisler.) The February 8, 1872 edition of the newspaper contained McKim’s reminiscences of Carlisle in the 1820s and 1830s and included memories of Nicholas Ulrich and his tavern. McKim wrote:
The Union Fire Company was organized on April 6, 1789 by a group of citizens that had joined together to order a fire engine after a devastating fire in the fall of 1788. By January of 1790 the engine was housed in a shed built to the west of the Court House in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
There are many theories about the origins of Valentine’s Day. The Romans celebrated a festival called Lupercalia in honor of the gods of love in mid-February. In 496 the Pope declared that the death of St. Valentine should be celebrated on February 14.
Born in Williamsport, Pennsylvania in 1936, Pat attended William Penn High School and graduated from the Harrisburg Hospital School of Nursing in 1957. Afterwards she worked as a pediatric surgical nurse at the Harrisburg Hospital and then later held a position as Charge Nurse in a long-term car
In 2015, the Cumberland County Historical Society purchased Christopher Vanlear’s tavern ledger.1 The entries in his ledger provide a new source of information about the Colonial and Revolutionary War eras in Carlisle, a town of major importance on the Pennsylvania frontier.2
Velocipedes were all the rage in Paris, and by November 1868 they had made their appearance on the streets of New York and were causing a sensation.
George N. Wade, longtime State Senator representing Pennsylvania’s 31st district, was born on August 13, 1893 in Washington, Pennsylvania.1 One of 9 children, Wade started work in the oil and coal industry at sixteen years of age.
Who was this man with a most unusual name? In 1817, Charles B.T. Waggoner petitioned the court of Cumberland County to grant him a license to pedal. According to Pennsylvania law, a man would only be granted a license if he could not earn a livelihood because of a disability.
A former resident wrote reminiscences of his school days in Carlisle in the 1820s and of his teacher Henry Wales. He sent them to the editor of the Carlisle Herald for publication.
Jonas E. Warrell was born April 3, 1896 in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania to Albert and Anna Daley Warrell. He graduated from Conshohocken High School in 1913 and attended Drexel University.