Religious Freedom Was Planted, Watered
and Grew...
MONTGOMERY COUNTY,
PENNSYLVANIA
ILLUSTRATED BOOKLET
The history of Montgomery County, PA, is recalled
through a mixture of colorful tales and factual data in this NEW 50 Page Booklet, reprinted primarily from three hard-to-find books: the
1843 edition of Historical Collections of the State of Pennsylvania
by Sherman Day, An Illustrated History of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
by William Egle, M.D., and Pennsylvania, a Guide to the Keystone State,
a WPA project published in 1940. The spiral-bound booklet is printed one-sided
on 60# paper, with the print enlarged for easier reading. A clear vinyl sheet
has been added to protect the front cover.
The communities mentioned include: Montgomeryville,
Lansdale, Center Square, Norristown, Bridgeport, Lafayette Hill, Plymouth
Meeting, Jeffersonville, Collegeville, Pottstown (formerly Pottsgrove), Lower
Merion, Upper Merion, Jenkintown, Abington, Hatborough (Hatboro), North Wales,
Evansburg, Conshohocken, Sumanytown, Willow Grove, Horsham Square, Montgomery
Square, Line Lexington, Reesville, Flourtown (Flour Town), Klingletown, Hatboro,
West Conshohocken, La Trappe (Trappe), Eagleville, Evansburg, Barren Hill,
Fort Washington, Collegeville, Hiskorytown, Jeffersonville, Port Kennedy,
King of Prussia, Limerick Square, Norritonville, Bryn Mawr, Ardmore, Shannonville,
Spring Mill and Swedesburg.
The Day and Egle
histories cover the early development of this area, while excerpts from the
WPA book, give a nostalgic glimpse from a 1940 vantage point, including interesting
historical notes, especially as they relate to sightseeing possibilities.
There may occasionally be some duplication of material, but usually with a
different slant or emphasis.
Among the many and diverse subjects in the booklet are: Physical
Features and Mineral Deposits; Early Settlers, why they came and where they
came from; Quaker (Friends) Meeting Houses, Episcopal, Lutheran, Swedish,
German Reformed and Presbyterian Churches; Tales of William Penn; a Town Named
for a Tavern; Henry M. Muhlenberg, father of the Lutheran Church in America,
and the oldest Lutheran Church in the US; Gaspar de Schwenckfeldt and the
church he founded; “Free Love Valley” and the “Battle Axes,” a nudist group
founded by Theophilus Gates; Revolutionary War tales, like Lafayette betrayed,
Washington’s Army saved by an eaves- dropping Quaker woman; Col. Allan McLane’s
wild flight from the British; the Defeat at Germantown, including a personal
account by Col. Timothy Pickering, and Life at Valley Forge; Letters found
inside a slab of marble: a “Freak of Nature” or a Religious Symbol First
Canal Attempted in US; the Potts family; Bio of Gen. Andrew Porter; Bio of
John James Audubon, ornithologist and artist; Early Movies; Educational Institutions;
and other interesting bits of history and trivia.
ILLUSTRATIONS include
Ancient Friends Meeting House at Lower Merion; Pottstown; Norristown, from
the Northwest (full page); Ancient Lutheran Church at Trappe, Mr. Chew’s house;
George Washington’s Headquarters at Valley Forge; Valley Forge, as seen from
the west; Montgomery County Court House; Valley Forge; and the Old Norristown
Fire Company.
