This book is a collection of stories, letters, and historical records detailing the brief history of Bentleysville, a rural community in southwestern Pennsylvania. Established around a mill operated by Sheshbazzar Bentley Sr. and Jr. on Pigeon Creek in 1816, the town grew to a population of 300 by 1868. The author traces the origins of Bentleysville back to the 1770s to document the earliest settlers, while also providing context through significant national events like the Whiskey Rebellion and the Civil War. Although Bentleysville’s history as a village ended before 1900, this work preserves its legacy for future generations.
Bentleysville was a rural community of three hundred persons in southwestern Pennsylvania in 1868. It had grown around a mill that Sheshbazzar (the first ‘h’ is silent) Bentley Junior and Senior operated on the southern branch of Pigeon Creek. Its history is short because as a country village it existed less than a century. This book is a collection of stories, letters, pictures, and facts which have been gathered to preserve its memory. Since 1900, the coal industry has dominated the community and the story of “Bentleyville, Coal Town” is another yet to be written. Documents show that Bentleysville was established in 1816; but for interest’s sake, the author went back to the 1770’s to find the very earliest families and to record their names and arrivals.
In this research, Dartnell tried to confine herself to the borders of this town; however, in the pioneer years, when specific information is scarce, she generalized and enlarged the scope. Her excuse for emphasizing certain details concerning actions on a national or a state level is that the people about whom she was writing were particularly concerned by them. For example, she quoted from letters concerning Indian expeditions, from Washington’s proclamation about the Whiskey Insurrection and from an account of a Civil War incident.
The events are substantially in chronological order, beginning with the settlers over the mountains in 1750 and ending after the Centennial in 1916. This history is far from complete. If some of these clippings and documents lack sufficient explanation, it is because most of them were found in a trunk or scrap book and that there is no one living who can answer our questions.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
First Settlers in Western Pennsylvania-—Life on the Frontier—Indian Wars, Civil Strife and Revolution, p. 1
Chapter 2
The Bentleys Migrate in 1777—Settlers on Pigeon Creek-Indian Forays—Moravians Massacred—Crawford Expedition, p. 7
Chapter 3
Bentley Mill the Site of Elections—Sheshbazzar II Born-Vision of a Town in 1790-—Frontier Schools and Churches—Whiskey Rebellion—President Washington Acts, p. 16
Chapter 4
Sheshbazzar II, Proprietor of Bentleysville-Mr. Bentley Marries Again—The Mitchell Brothers— Village Church, School and Doctor, p. 28
Chapter 5
Squire Bentley— Public School Law of 1834—District Schools-Newkirk Church—River Dams and Coal Mining—Bentleysville Expanding—Methodist Church Built, p. 41
Chapter 6
Gold Rush-Slave Question—Ringgold Cavalry—Bentleysville in Wartime Union Army Draft-Armistice, p. 56
Chapter 7
Post-War Bentleysville—Squire Bentley Dies—First Campmeeting—Appeal for Borough in 1868-New School-Thalia—Letters to Hannah Kenworthy Bentley, p. 69
Chapter 8
Dress in 1870-—School Life—Centennials—Business Directory—General Stores—The Call of the West-Hemie’s Report from Kansas City-—Bentleysville Rail Road Co., p. 87
Chapter 9
Society News from 1880’s—Richard Huffman’s Miracle-Bingville Bugle-Cumberland Presbyterian Church-Two Young Doctors—The Crouch Murder -—Bentleyville Band, p. 102
Chapter 10
Reminisences-Visit to Crouch Hotel-Campmeeting— School Controversy—-New Methodist Church-Local Color, p. 117
Chapter 11
James W. Ellsworth, tycoon—Ellsworth, the Town—Stories of Arthur Watkins and Mr. W. J. Wilson—Social Workers, p. 130
Chapter 12
Bentleyville, Boom Town—New Social Order—Braznell-New Churches—Borough Improvements-—High SchoolHolidays—Automobiles, Telephones, and Fires—-Bentleyville Centennial, p. 137
Acknowledgements, p. 158
Bibliography, p. 161
Index, p. 163
Notes About the Book
- Photocopied book.
Surnames
Abraham, Abramaitis, Alexkonis, Allen, Ames, Auld, Ault, Bach, Baker, Barnet, Bedsworth, Bell, Bentley, Bigler, Black, Blue, Blythe, Booth, Bradford, Braznell, Brodhead, Brown, Buckingham, Buffington, Burd, Burkhart, Burt, Buxton, Cabalk, Caldwell, Calhoun, Canon, Chaplin, Clark, Cleaver, Cochrane, Colvin, Conrad, Cook, Cooper, Cox, Craven, Crawford, Creighton, Cresap, Cristman, Croft, Cross, Crouch, Cullen, Dague, Darroch, Darrosh, Davis, Dawson, Decker, Decotils, Denormandie, Dever, Duvall, Ecuburton, Ellsworth, Elwood, Falkner, Farquhar, Fergison, Fine, Fleming, Francis, Frederick, Freeman, French, Frew, Frost, Fry, Frye, Gallatin, Galloway, Galway, Garber, Gibson, Gilmore, Goldman, Grable, Green, Greenlee, Gregg, Grub, Gwynn, Hackett, Hall, Hamilton, Hargest, Harris, Harvey, Hastings, Hazlett, Hedge, Herron, Hetherington, Hill, Hillcrest, Hinsdilly, Hipple, Hoge, Holland, Holmes, Hopkins, Hoty, Hout, Howell, Huffman, Iams, Jakaitis, Jennings, Johnson, Johnston, Jones, Kerr, Keys, King, Klimaszewski, Krepps, Lash, Leatherman, Leonard, Lever, Leyda, Leydy, Lindley, Luker, Lusk, Lutes, Malone, Manning, Marshall, Marshel, Martin, McClain, McClure, McCormick, McCracken, McDonough, McElhinny, McFarland, McFeely, McGiffin, McIlvane, McKee, McKenna, McMillan, McTerry, Messer, Mill, Millar, Milliken, Mitchell, Moffitt, Momyer, Moore, Morrison, Morrow, Morton, Myers, Neel, Newkirk, Niblack, Nicholl, Noel, Nye, Odbert, Orr, Paden, Parkinson, Pasmore, Patterson, Pew, Phythian, Piersol, Pusey, Radaitis, Rainey, Rankin, Redd, Reed, Reese, Register, Reynolds, Richardson, Rigg, Ringgold, Schlehr, Scott, Sharpnack, Shillings, Shuster, Silveus, Simpson, Smith, Snyder, Sopher, Spencer, Sprowls, Stephens, Stevens, Stevenson, Stockdale, Swagler, Taylor, Thompson, Tinley, Umbel, Underwood, Van Eman, Van Voorhis, Vance, Vankirk, Wallace, warwick, Watkins, Watson, Weaver, Weir, Welch, Weller, West, Wexler, Wherry, White, Williams, Williamson, Wills, Wilson, Wonsettler, Woshner, Wright, Wycoff, Young, and Younker.
Source
Dartnell, Miriam Anna, Bentleysville, Ann Arbor, MI : New Voices Pub. Co., 1955.
