PRINTER'S NO. 2089
No. 232 Session of 2001
INTRODUCED BY HERMAN, JUNE 5, 2001
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
JUNE 5, 2001
A RESOLUTION
1 Honoring Pine Grove Mills in Centre County, Pennsylvania, on its
2 200th anniversary.
3 WHEREAS, The Village of Pine Grove Mills was founded in the
4 late 18th century by Thomas Ferguson, for whom the surrounding
5 township was named in 1801; and
6 WHEREAS, Settlement began ten years earlier when Ferguson
7 acquired several hundred acres of land which he divided into
8 generous lots; and
9 WHEREAS, Scotch-Irish and German settlers flocked to the new
10 town, drawn by Ferguson's liberal inducements and the abundant
11 natural resources; and
12 WHEREAS, In 1800 Ferguson harnessed Slab Cabin Run to power
13 the village's first gristmill; and
14 WHEREAS, Other mills followed upstream, just beyond a grove
15 of pines, giving the community its name; and
16 WHEREAS, From 1810 to 1815, Tussey Furnace smelted iron on
17 the mountainside above the mills; and
1 WHEREAS, Pine Grove Mills became a thriving crossroads and
2 journey's end for many westward travelers, and by the 1870s the
3 village boasted three churches, numerous merchants, tradesmen
4 and professionals and the prestigious Pine Grove Academy; and
5 WHEREAS, From 1856 to 1919, Pine Grove Mills was a station
6 along the Bellefonte Central Railroad; and
7 WHEREAS, The 20th century saw the rise of State College as a
8 regional center with Pine Grove Mills as a bedroom community;
9 and
10 WHEREAS, Natives and newcomers to Pine Grove Mills have
11 joined together in marking the community's bicentennial,
12 planting flowers, reinstating traditional village Christmas and
13 Memorial Day celebrations, compiling a local history and
14 planning a three-day celebration; and
15 WHEREAS, The Pine Grove Mills Community in Action Foundation,
16 Inc., has been formed to promote long-term preservation and
17 improvement projects; therefore be it
18 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives commend the Pine
19 Grove Mills Community in Action Foundation, Inc., on its efforts
20 in celebrating the 200th anniversary of the founding of Pine
21 Grove Mills.
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