The township of Middlesex lies along the northerly half of the west side of the Stony (“Stoney”) Ridge, a geological trap dike (older than the North or South mountains) which formed the original boundary between the west and east divisions of Pennsborough Township (established in 1735) as early a
Captain William E. Miller was one of the few Cumberland County residents who won the Medal of Honor during the Civil War. However, Miller may be the most distinctive honoree for winning his medal by going against his orders. Miller was born to a farming family in West Hill, Cumberland County, one mile west of Plainfield in West Pennsboro Township. As a young man, Miller ran his father’s farm and was establishing a small family of his own, when his life was interrupted by the call to war in 1861.
“Kriss Kringle’s Head Quarters” and “The Temple of Fancy,” declared Monyer’s newspaper advertisements.1 Monyer’s store was an emporium of delights for children. Its glass cases displayed candy toys, bon-bons, chocolates, fruit drops, and colorful hard candies.
Original narratives recounting the experiences of local citizens during the Confederate occupation of Carlisle in late June and early July of 1863 are always of interest to staff and patrons at CCHS. Our much-used collection of contemporary accounts, particularly those that describe the shelling of the town, is a perennial favorite of students writing history essays, reporters setting up Civil War-related stories, and history buffs in general.
On Monday, April 10, 1865, news of the surrender of General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia reached Carlisle, Pennsylvania. In response to this event one of the town’s newspapers, the American Volunteer, exclaimed, “Thank God! [T]he fearful and bloody rebellion that has desolated our land for over four long years, costing, as it did, hundreds of thousands of lives, thousands of millions of treasure, is, so far as fighting is concerned, over.”1 Lee’s surrender signaled an end to the fighting between the United States and the Southern Confederacy.
The Confederate invasion of Cumberland County in June and July of 1863 has left marks remaining to be seen 135 years later. All who are familiar with Robert G. Crist's pamphlet on the "Confederate Invasion of the West Shore-1863” know of the effort to fortify the higher points of Hummel Hill at Bridgeport (later Lemoyne).
David A. Plank was born near Churchtown, Cumberland County on June 13, 1838, the son of Anna Maria and Jacob Plank, Sr.1 David spent his early years on his father’s farm and later worked in his wheel factory at Churchtown.
Cumberland County has played host to Prisoners of War at times during its history, most notably during the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and during World War II.
“Carlisle’s strongest white man was “French George” who had a brother “French Ory,” and a sister who was the wife of Jimmy McCarter the carpet weaver. Rathgueb was the family name. We question if the old town has since boasted of male citizens of equal strength.”1
Shiremanstown is a small community located twelve miles east of Carlisle and five miles west of Harrisburg. It derives its name from Daniel Shireman (1753-1810), one of the early land owners and settlers of the land that made up most of the town.