Researching Local History, Part II
In the last post I responded to a query about researching York County history by beginning a list of reference books – many that are recent and readily available at the Museum Shop of the York County Heritage Trust or a local bookstore. Continuing with the list, here are some reprints and hard-to-find reference sources:
“History of York County, from its Erection to the Present Time [1729 – 1834]” by W.C. Carter and A.J. Glossbrenner. This is the first comprehensive history of York, and the default reference source for the works that followed. The book was primarily written by W.C. Carter, who compiled detailed notes on various topics related to local history. But his work was not published during his lifetime. A.J. Glossbrenner came into possession of Carter’s research, organized it, and published it.
“History of York County, From One Thousand Seven Hundred and Nineteen to the Present Time, Compiled from Authentic Sources” by I. Daniel Rupp. This 1845 work, frequently packaged with a similar history of Lancaster County, relied heavily on the work of Carter and Glossbrenner.
“History of York County, Pennsylvania, 1886” John Gibson, Historical Editor. At over 1,000 pages, this history was a major undertaking. Gibson draws heavily from Carter and Glossbrenner for the early history, and also draws from his own work, a Historical Sketch published in 1876. The book includes a lengthy “Special History” written by George R. Prowell, as well as biographies on prominent citizens.
“History of York County Pennsylvania, 1907” by George R. Prowell. In some ways this 2,000+ page work is an update of the 1886 history. Most historic researchers begin with Prowell. I typically look in Prowell first (for pre-1907 information), and then look for other sources. His history contains a staggering amount of information, but sometimes it is not totally accurate. In fact, there is contradictory information in different chapters. But this massive history was written over a period of years, and Prowell was almost blind by the time it was completed.
The 1886 and 1907 histories are available, reprinted, from the Museum Shop of the York County Heritage Trust. Gibson is one volume, and Prowell is two (the second volume being exclusively biographies). A third volume contains an index, which is extremely helpful.
Any serious researcher of York County history should have a copy from Prowell’s 1907 work. And any serious collector of York County books should track down an original 1907 copy – though it may cost $300 - $400!
You should be able to find reprints – or CDs – of all four county histories listed above through certain genealogy research sites. Keep in mind that the quality of these will be less than that of the reprints available at the Heritage Trust because in many cases they are just scanned pages from works published 100 or more years ago.
Another vital reprint is the “Atlas of York Co. Pennsylvania, Illustrated from Actual Surveys by and under the direction of Beach Nichols, 1876.” The reprint I have was packaged with the “Atlas of the City of York, York County Pennsylvania, Fred’k B. Roe, 1903.” Together, they provide a great overview of York during these periods. The 1876 atlas includes beautiful illustrations of notable buildings while the 1903 atlas includes every lot in the city as well as who owned that lot.
When writing “Postcard History Series: York,” these aforementioned sources didn’t really help me. All of the postcards I planned to use were from the first 40+ years of the 20th century. And between Prowell’s 1907 work and Sheets’ 1981 work (see previous blog), no major local history was published.
But sometimes, history is about packaging. In 1945, 1957, and 1968, the local Chamber of Commerce published books about the community, including detailed business profiles. While they included historic information, they weren’t packaged as local histories. But for the 21st century researcher, these three publications are filled with history – snapshots of York in the mid-20th century. I picked up copies at the York Emporium on West Market Street near the Market & Penn Farmers Market. The three books are:
“The Story of a Dynamic Community, York, Pennsylvania” by Betty Peckham, published by the York Chamber of Commerce in 1945.
“York, Pennsylvania – A Dynamic Community Forges Ahead” by Betty Peckham, published by the Chamber in 1957.
“Greater York in Action” by Lynn Smolens Taub, published by the York Area Chamber of Commerce in 1968.
Within these books you can track the evolution of business and industry. World War II is ever-present in the 1945 book while the business exodus to the suburbs can be found throughout the 1968 publication. The individual company profiles are quite fascinating. It was through one of these books that I realized that the York Bank had constructed a replica of the State House (1793 building in Centre Square) on West Market Street. I had walked by this building hundreds of times without ever realizing it.
In the previous post, I mentioned that York is unique in that there has been so much published research about local history. My list has primarily been “broad brush” histories – not focused on a specific topic. But you can find books specifically about Pfaltzgraff or York International or the Pullman Automobile. You can read about the first courthouse – and construction of its replica – in Helen Miller Gotwalt’s “Crucible of a New Nation” or learn about local civil rights in “The Story of Civil Rights in York, Pennsylvania: A 250-Year Interpretive History” by Jim Kalish.
Check out Jim McClure’s “Never to be Forgotten” for another list of local history books. Near the end of the book Jim includes “30 good books for historical information about York County.”
I’ll leave you with four more books. Two were published in conjunction with York County’s 250th anniversary in 1999: “York County at 250: Patterns of Our Past” by Thomas L. Schaefer and “York: Then and Now.” The former looks at the settlement and growth of York County while the latter is a book of photos submitted by York County residents.
Now out of print, another one of my personal favorites is “Lewis Miller Sketches and Chronicles,” edited by Robert P. Turner and published in 1966 by the Historical Society of York. Lewis Miller was a 19th century folk artist and his drawings chronicled daily life in York County and beyond.
And finally, “Skinny Dipping in the Codorus – The Boyhood Recollections of Raymond Jacob Sechrist, A Walking Tour of York, Pennsylvania in the Early 1900s.” This book was edited by Margery H. Freas and published by the Historical Society of York County in 1991. Copies are still available at the Museum Shop of the Heritage Trust – on the discount table, no less! What a great resource to learn about York in the early 20th century.
