MONTCOMERY COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA J\Roj^Mstown

$MONTCOMERY COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA J\Roj^Mstown$ BULLETIN HISTORICAL 50CIETY MONTCOMERY COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA j\roj^msTowN £omeky PUBLISHED BY THE SOCIETY AT IT5 ROOM5 18 EAST PENN STREET NORRISTOWN.PA. OCTOBER, 1942 VOLUME III NUMBER 3 PRICE 50 CENTS Historical Society oF Montsomery County OFFICERS * Chester P. Cook, President S. Cameron Corson, First Vice-President Charles Harper Smith, Second Vice-President George K. Brecht, Esq., Third Vice-President Nancy C. Cresson, Recording Secretary Ella Slinglupp, Corresponding Secretary Annie B. Molony, Financial Secretary Lyman a. Kratz, Treasurer Emily K. Preston, Librarian TRUSTEES Franklin A. Stickler, Chairman Mrs. a. Conrad Jones Katharine Preston H. H. Ganser Nancy P. Highley •Died July 16, 1942 Ik's •j •_: V-- > • -' •- Faust Tannery, Ambler THE BULLETIN of the Historical Society of Montgomery County Published Semv-Annually—October and April Volume III October, 1942 Number 3 CONTENTS Chester Preston Cook 171 The Old Faust Tannery and Side lights on the Life of Alvin D. Faust Alvin B. Faust 172 Extracts from the Diaries of " Susan W. Yerkes Bertha S. Harry 182 Thomas Hovenden, Montgomery County Artist Walter A. Knerr .... 203 History of Public Education in Norristown (Conclusion). .. .Paul M. Shellenberger 214 Pennsylvania Clockmakers John Conrad 260 Reports 262 Publication Committee Charles R. Barker Bertha S. Harry Emily E. Preston, Editw 169 Chester Preston Cook The Historical Society of Montgomery County suffered a great loss in the death of its president, Mr. Chester Preston Cook, on July 16, 1942, in the hospital at Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. Mr. Cook's home was at Merion, Pennsylvania. He at tended the Ohio Northern University, and on graduation began engineering work in Vermont, and later became an assistant supervisor with the Paoli Division of the Pennsyl vania Railroad. In 1905 he started a coal business in Narberth. He became a member of the Historical Society in 1927, and served as chairman of committees and also as vice-president before his election as president on February 22, 1942. He had presided at but one meeting during his short term of office, that of April 26th, but his words on that occasion showed an excellent knowledge of the needs and interests of the society. He urged the members to work for an enlarged membership and to plan for expansion in order to- keep our society in the forefront of the historical activities of the state. Finally he appealed to the pride in our county, "the best of them all." Mr. Cook was not known as a writer of history, although many short historical articles of his have been published, but he was, a student of the writings of others, and had a wide knowledge of local history, beginning with his home tovraship of Lower Merion and spreading through the county and to the neighboring counties of Bucks, Chester, Lancaster and many others. His early work in engineering aroused an interest in maps and their makers. He had a large collection of them, and knew how they were made and the men who made them. His interest in our library was constant, and his contri butions of books and manuscript material were generous, as were his other gifts to the Society. Mr. Cook was one of the two presidents of the Historical Society who lived outside Norristown or its immediate vicin ity. The society had hoped much from this new connection. Our loss is great in many ways, and Mr. Cook's genial person ality will long be remembered by those who knew him well. 171 K'Ki History of the Faust Tannery and Sidelights on the Life of Alvin D. Faust* By Alvin B. Faust The locality in Montgomery County situated at the inter section of the Bethlehem Pike and the Butler Pike was long known as Gilkey Corner, named after Andrew Gilkinson who kept an inn and a store there at one time. In 1790 he sold one-half acre, just south of the store and on the east side of the Bethlehem Pike, to Jonathan Thomas for a tannery site. The price was 22 pounds and 10 shillings. The site was well suited for a tannery, since there was on it the very necessary stream, which could be impounded to provide the power required to grind the bark. It could also supply the water needed for preparing the hides and for leeching the ground bark to make the tanning liquors. The site also offered good business possi bilities, being located at the intersection of two main high ways. This location is now called Rose Valley. The Bethlehem Pike is the highway which today divides Ambler Borough and Upper Dublin Township. Jonathan Thomas is supposed to have operated the tannery until his death in 1808, and in 1810 his son sold the property to James Rutter, of Pottstown. James Rutter also bought the thirty-five acre farm east of the tannery, which was his resi dence and farm, the latter being operated in connection with the tannery. My father, Alvin D. Faust, a native of Lehigh County, came to work for James Rutter as an apprentice about 1841 or 1842. He was not to receive any wages for one year, but was to get board and lodging and learn all the "ins and outs" of the tanning business. At the end of the year James Rutter paid my father $6 a month for his services. My father was not expecting any pay and was agreeably surprised. When he paid ♦Read before the Society April 25, 1942. 172 OLD FAUST TANNERY; SIDELIGHTS. LIFE OF ALVIN D. FAUST my father the extra wages, he said, "When I made arranger ments with your father, John Faust, I did not promise any wages, for I did not know what kind of a Dutchman I was going to get." -My father was a hustler. In his prime, he was just a little short of six feet tall and weighed 180 pounds. From his early youth he had learned to work hard and long. His father had not found enough work for him to do at home in their own tannery and farm at Snydersville, Lehigh County, so he sent my father to work on his uncle's ISO-acre farm near Fogels- yille in the same county. As there was little farm machinery in use at that time, lots of help was needed. On the farm they raised about 50 acres of wheat each year. The wheat was cut with a grain cradle and bound by hand. Thrashing was done with the flail, most of which was done in the winter time. When I knew my father, he was as adept with the scythe or grain cradle as he was in handling horses. During his appren ticeship, he probably helped Mr. Rutter on the farm as well as in the tannery, for at that time no one had ever heard of labor unions or a forty-hour week. In 1843 father was back in Lehigh County helping his father who was ill. In 1844, grandfather, John Faust, died at forty-four years of age. He had had failing health for some time, due to tuberculosis. Father was then just twenty-one years old. He had a younger brother and sister. Because of grandfather's long illness, he did not leave much of an estate. But, with the financial assistance of an uncle and aunt, my father and his brother managed to continue the tanning busi ness at Snydersville. To continue the business it was necessary to make many trips to Philadelphia to get supplies. These trips of course were made with a two-horse team carrying heavy loads, both down.and back. Snydersville was about 55 miles from Phila delphia. It took one week to make the round trip. On these trips to Philadelphia it became natural for my father to stop oif to see James Rutter, who always insisted that he stay over night. A warm friendship grew up between Mr. Rutterand my father. By this time Mr. Rutterwas getting 174 bulletin of historical society of MONTGOMERY COUNTY old and was anxious to sell the tannery. My father and his brother were both married now. They knew that the tannery and small hill farm in Lehigh County would not support two families, so they agreed to separate. In consequence of this decision, my father, in December of 1850, bought the tannery and seven acres of ground at Gilkey's Corner, on the south side of the Butler Pike. The price was $3,000. This also included a frame house. This house was torn down in 1867 and on the same site a brick house was built. It is now 928 Butler Avenue. Sometime near the first of April, 1851, my father and mother moved to their newly purchased home at Gilkinson's Corner, Montgomery County. Some of their neighbors helped them move. These neighbors made father promise them that he would accompany them to Philadelphia, as they had never been in Philadelphia. The purpose of going to Philadelphia was to get supplies of shad. These were very plentiful, priced at three cents each. On account of much rain about the first of April of that year, they did not get started until late in the week. Friday night the movers stayed at Line Lexington, and the next day they arrived at their destination., The men folks unloaded the things,'then hurried to Philadelphia to buy the shad. They returned in the evening with their purchases, and the follow ing morning started on their return trip home to Lehigh County. My mother had never seen the place before they moved there, and as the house was dilapidated aiid uninviting, mother became very homesick—but more about that later.

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