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Showing posts from 2012

Wisdoms from Old Farmer's Almanac Calendar-2010

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Where was this located on Tannery Creek ?  Abt.1910 Am guessing the first iron bridge was over the Tioga River -1898     Garden catalogs are in the mail think spring !!   The Yule Log, lit on Christmas Eve, symbolizes an end to old feuds and grudges. I like trees because they seem more resigned to the way they have to live than other things do. (Willa Cather) In Germany, it is customary to give fruit, nuts,and candy to children on St.Nicholas feast day. If January calends be summeryly gay, it will be wintery weather til the calends of May. But cheerily the chickadee Singeth to me on the fence and tree.            (John Townsend Trowbridge) January 25th  If St.Paul's Day be fair and clear                        it doth betide a happy year. Hares take to the open country before a snow storm . We can complain because rosebushes have thorns or rejoice because thornbushes have roses. (Abraham Lincoln) A dream of crocuses signifies happy new beginnings.

Lindley-Presho Historical Society Meeting

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  Photos of several of Lindley's Historic Buildings             On Thursday November 29th,  Durland Weale and Elmer Huels will present a program for the Lindley-Presho Historical Society on several former Lindley businesses . Durland will share information about local Cheese factories and Elmer has a story about the local Condensery. ( Do you know where this was located and the purpose of the business??)           The meeting which will begin at 7 P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall is free and open to the public. Following the presentation, the audience will be encouraged to share their stories, information and photos that they have.                See you there.

Contract Let for Erwin Road 1921

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From Newspaper Archives  Green Library ,Wellsboro, Pa. Wellsboro Agitator 1921-07-20 "Hudson Falls Builder Will Construct Four- Mile Stretch for $184,889          The New York State Highway Department has awarded the contract for the construction of the Erwin -Lindley concrete road to run 3.95 miles from the 'half-way house"on the Addison Road towards Lindley to William L.Sherill, of Hudson Falls at $184,889. This is part of the Erwin-Lawrenceville Road which ,when completed, will connect New York's Southern Tier Highway with Pennsylvania's Susquehanna Trail.       The second and final part of the road,also four miles in length ,will be built next season. ( 3 other Steuben County Highway contracts were listed)  Commissioner Sisson has ordered work started on the four contracts as soon as possible."              In checking the Archives from about 1920 to 1923, it was obvious that history repeats. There were numerous articles in the Agitato r during

Tioga County Honor Guard

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      The November 2012 issue of Mountain Home Magazine features an article on the members of the Tioga County Honor Guard. Rebecca Hazen(the author) and Beagle Media LLC should be congratulated for publishing the article about this dedicated group who take the time to participate in events that honor Military Veterans .       The Town of Lindley is especially grateful for their participation in our Armed Forces Day ceremonies-held each May.  In October, 2007, The Lindley/Presho Veteran's Monument was dedicated and every May since 2008, this organization has come to Lindley and  graciously conducted an Armed Forces Day Ceremony to honor the Veterans of the Lindley, New York area.  So along with the people at   Mountain Home, we would like to thank President Bob Leyfert and members of  the Tioga County Honor Guard for their efforts to honor our Veterans. We hope to see them again on Armed Forces Day 2013. 

October 2012 L/P Historical Society Meeting

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 Herrick Bridge -River Road, Lindley,N.Y.  - 1972  Flood         The program for the October 2012  L/P Historical Society Meeting will be  Thursday October 25, 2012   7 P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall  U.S. Rt.15.   The 1992 WETM Video " And the Rain Kept Falling "  narrated by the late Carl Proper and others will be shown. The film marked the 20th Anniversary of the June 1972 Flood that resulted from Hurricaine Agnes.           The meeting is free and the public is invited to attend.  

Lindley Connections

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Bath, N.Y. — Oct.21,2012     The following article written by Mary Pelham in the Oct.21st Edition of the Leader  has a Lindley connection not mentioned in the article.** (  It is impossible in such articles to mention all the life history of such a person as General Taylor )     ** A little known fact is after General Taylor's first wife died, he married Mary (Miller) Lindsley -widow of Col. Eleazer Lindsley who had died in 1794. Col.Lindsley was the founder of the present Town of Lindley,N.Y. in1790.         In the deeds in the Steuben County Clerk's Office, are records showing that  in 1805 -General Taylor purchased some of the Lindsley property-including the lot where Col.Lindsley has built the first mill in this area in 1790. This, also, included a sawmill in the same area on what is now Watson Creek in Lindley.       On Thursday, Oct.18th,  I met with five of the Taylor descendants to share information about the Taylor/ Lindsley connection and to try to locate

1896 Lindley History Facts

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         It is interesting how a question about local history can become an interesting research project. In response to query about the date that the Harrison Hotel located near the Lawrenceville RR Depot burned, I began checking the Newspaper Archives of the Green Library in Wellsboro, Penna which are on- line. Previously, I have discovered that these old newspapers have a wealth of information about the Lindley,NY/Lawrenceville,PA area.          Not only am I finding a story about the Cowanesque/Harrison/ Park Hotel, but many other interesting facts and stories. I have chosen this one because it describes how busy the Depot area was on June 24,1896 -- courtesy of the Wellsboro Agitator.          " Mr. W. E. Brown is doing an extensive business at Lawrenceville in the manufacture of barrel -headings and staves for nail -kegs. His factory is near the Fall Brook railway depot. About thirty workmen are employed,and Mr.Brown finds a ready market in Eastern cities for the whole p

Never Forget September 11, 2001

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                                                                     Photo by Laurie ( Pierce) Strom

Lindley-Presho Historical Society Meeting

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Photo of 1889 Lindley Flood-William Burr 1951 "History of Lindley"                                                           (Bridge prior to the iron bridge 1898)  Before the dams were constructed on the Tioga River in Tioga County, Penna in 1975-76, there were frequent floods along the river in the  Lindley-Presho area.     On Thursday September 27th, 2012, 7 P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall ,  the Lindley-Presho Historical Society will present a program on the Floods of Lindley .      There will be photos and stories of past floods on display. Those attending are encouraged to bring their photos and share stories with the group. Since the Historian's files do not contain many local flood pictures, it is hoped that copies of some of the photos and stories will be donated to the Historian's present collection.                                                           Meetings are free and open to the public.          
Good evening  The 2012 Posts are a mite jumbled up. Please see the Bear With Me Note that I posted today.Hopefully, I have retrieved all the posts that I accidentally deleted . This makes many of the more recent posts show up under older posts.  When I posted Sam Patch about a RR engine - like Sam- I got off track ,but think I am on the way back.  Wish me luck Kitty
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More from Rutty --Flooding from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Reminder ---you can learn what's going on in Lindley Town affairs by reading the Town Clerk's blog linked to this site under Favorites Links on this site- Town of Lindley(lower right corner) Megan posts Town Board Minutes ,announcements and new-a Calendar of meetings at Town Hall. Check it out -learn about what's happening at the Town Board,Planning Board Meetings,etc.. Photo is Toby's Flats-- flooding days before the Penna .dams were built in 1975. Last time Rutty told the story of a trucker crossing the Lindley bridge(see previous posts) When the water started to raise again Sunday,it rose rapidly and at midnight reached it's crest of 19.75 feet above flood stage.Those figures are from the U.S. Recording Gauge at Lindley. Thereafter it fell until seven o'clock.one truck was able to navigate and that word is used advisably with a slight amount of lit
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As stated on Painted Hills Historical and Genealogical Website from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Col ( Gen ) John Taylor or George Washington Taylor "Col (Gen) John Taylor moved to Steuben in 1797 {recorded in the 'Centenial History of Bath' }. Having served as commanding officer of the 4th Hunterdon Militia NJ, he like many others found after the war that their debts incurred in supporting their men in the field were called due, and with the loss of value of the Continental currency, were forced to sell everything they owned to pay off the debts. Faced with mounting debts, and left with no more possessions to sell, Col. Taylor left his home and moved north to Steuben with two of his children. Shortly after arriving, he married Mary Miller Lindsley, widow of a fellow NJ Militia officer, and lived in Lindley until her death in 1806. Although his grave or circumstances of his death are unknown, an obituary in the Geneva Gazette of 25 D
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Happy New Year 2012 from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Old Postcards Route U.S 15 Before the days of tractor trailers,water trucks,tour buses,speed limits over 10 miles an hour
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More Dick Riffle Memoirs from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce More Dick Riffle stories about families that lived on the south end of Lindley River Road now Co.Rt.116. In April,2011,I copied the story of his Aunt Grace's birthday party at her house. Up the road ,a short way was the Hugh Hakes place.I will always remember their place because one day I was delivering the GRIT newspaper(often called the "Pennsylvania Liar" because of the exaggerated stories). Their big German Shepard attacked me and tore some holes in my chest. I screamed and they came running out and called the dog off. My Dad took me to Doc'Long in Lawrenceville and he took a popsicle stick with some green salve on it and put it on my wounds. The pain was worse than the dog bite. Beyond the Hakes place lived the Dunning brothers. I don't remember much about them except their chickens were always in the road and getting run over. Charlie Hammo
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Lindley Honors Employees for Service from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Apologies for not posting a notice last week about a ceremony that was held last Saturday January 14th. at the Lindley Town Hall. The purpose of the ceremony was to recognize the long service time of several town employees who resigned in 2011. Rrecognized were - Guy Hill, Assessor Chairman; Pam (Clarkson) Smith, Deputy Town Clerk; Paul Stermer, Councilman; Herb Eldridge and Alan Neal ,Highway Department and Cindy Stermer ,Custodian. Later this year, Dick Johnson ,Highway Superintendent will be honored for his years of service. These employees had service time from 11 to 37 years. About 40 relatives and friends gathered to thank these dedicated and committed people for their services to the Town of Lindley. Unfortunately, many of those to be honored , were unable to attend . Hopefully,I can post a photo of Guy and Pam who were there as well as a photo of Richard Biggi
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Photo -Reunion At Presho House-(next door to Presho Methodist Church) from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce News from Bi- State Press Lindley,NY April 13,1939 Published by W.Rutty Passmore ( a young house-bound Lindley resident assisted by friends and family)(Kitty) Three cents a single copy---75 Cents for six months--- $1.45 for 1 year ESTIMATED EXPENDITURES OF $135,OOO FOR IMPROVEMENTS TO TOWN ROADS IN STEUBEN Bath- the Board of Steuben County Supervisors at Bath Monday approved 26 projects of highway work. Such work is in 26 towns and the total estimate for the work is $135,000 to be paid from the WPA funds and county road monies. Of this amount, Lindley is allowed an estimated $4,000 for the grade and construction of the culverts on 1.28 miles of Church Creek Road. LINDLEY ITEMS Mrs. Leo Gorges, Mrs. Harlo Harris, Mrs. Harrison B. Toby, Mrs.Samuel Kittel and Mrs. Merle Smith met at the home of Mrs. Hugh Orcutt Tu
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Dick Riffle-The People of Lindley as I Knew Them 1922-1940 from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce "We now come to the Ernest Lundgren home. the 3 oldest, Bob,John,and Hugh were good baseball players.Hugh and I played on the Lindley team together. The daughters were Ruth and Gertrude. The latter and I graduated from Lawrenceville High School in the Class of 1934. The summer of 2006, I met Hugh's son -Jim and had a good 2 hour visit with him. He showed me a number of his Indian artifacts he has found on his property. I,also, enjoyed a 2 hour visit with Elmer and Lucia Huels who lived a short distance from Jimmy's. Elmer's artistic skill in glass engraving is beautiful and fascinating." This ends Dick's memories of those who lived on the south end of River Road-now County Rt.#116 On the next visit with Dick (who will be 94 in May and who still shares Bits of Lindley History by both E-Mail and snail mail), will recal
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Does History Repeat Again??? from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Wellsboro,Pa March 8,1911 THE AGITATOR Some little excitement has been occasioned during the past few days to the finding of oil in the well being drilled by the Tioga Water Co.on their property on Park Hill.-although our people have none of them, so far as heard from, been carried away by the prospect of coming into immense fortune in a few days-as some newspaper reports would seem to indicate says the Tioga Argua(?). That oil has been found there is no denying and it is said that could it be separated from the water and the sand -the well would produce several barrels a day which confirms our belief of many years standing that oil exists in this immediate vicinity, but whether it can be tapped so as to produce paying quantities remains to be proven. This we understand ,will be tried , and it is hoped this time that the projectors will prove, as we believe they will h
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1940 Floods Part I from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Prior to the Corp of Engineer Dams in Tioga County , Pa floods were a common occurance in theTioga River Valley area. The following is a description of floods in Spring 1940. From the April 4th,1940 issue of the Bi State Press , ( Rutty Passmore Editor,) is an article pertaining to floods at that time.( Because it is a lengthy article, I am breaking it into parts.) Residents living in the area before the dams still have vivid memories of the "Flood Days" ( Notes in red are my additions ) TIOGA VALLEY CLEANS UP AFTER NEAR RECORD INUNDATION Several Thousand Dollars Damage Estimated after Rivers and Streams Return to Near Normal LINDLEY THRICE INUNDATED WITHIN WEEK Friday afternoon an ice jam started a short distance north of the Town of Lindley and soon extended to Lawrenceville, some 2 miles. the water soon went over the Susquehanna trai
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1940 Floods Part II Rutty Passmore from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce SATURDAY MORNING was pale as the valley was blanketed with a thick fog arising from the cold water. It continued to cover the valley until the warm rains and the thawing weather dissolved the fog.The rain continued and the river began to rise again, by 7 P.M. it was over the road agin by the schoolhouse and by ten it was over the road between Lindley and Lawrenceville for the first time.Traffic continued for the next hour or so. South bound trucks used the * back road connecting Morgan Creek Road and the Susquehanna Trail along the base of the hill during the night with only a few using the road going north.( * road was near old State Line Camping ) The York- Buffalo Lines instructed their trucks to travel by way of Elmira until the danger passed. Water surrounded the home of Mr. and Mrs. Albert Lawrence ( *Morgan Creek Road in the field across diversion ditch
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Mother Nature Surprises from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce The thermometer on the bank by Wegman's read 75 degrees at 2:30 this afternoon. Some different than the pictures of last year about this time. It is interesting to look back at the newspaper clippings that I save on the weather. On 3-13/14/1993- the area experienced a whopper of a storm. Our family has vivid memories -as our grandson and grand-daughter were here from Arizona to celebrate her eighth birthday. She had wished for snow. She had her wish and was snowed in for three days. "Be careful what you wish for- it may be more than you expect!!!" I couldn't copy the pictures on the Leader dated 3-15-1993 but the headlines read "DIGGING OUT Snow leaves entire area buried; crews may be plowing out all week." The brutal storm that blanketed the Southern Tier with nearly 2 1/2 feet of snow this weekend left
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Happy St. Patrick's Day 2012 from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce What a wonderful day. Whether or not we are Irish, we can still enjoy the activities associated with the day. The photo was taken at the Philedelphia Flower Show in 2007. If you enjoy flowers and flower shows ,this should be on your to-do list. A few sayings as copied from the daily quotes in the Corning Leader this week. "The list of Irish saints in the past is counting; but in all there is no other figure so human ,friendly and lovable as St.Patrick -who was an Irishman only by adoption" "An Irishman is never drunk as long as he can hold onto one blade of grass to keep from falling off the earth." "When Irish eyes are smiling ' tis like a morn in spring . With a lilt of Irish laughter,you can hear the angels sing. " "My favorite- " May your pockets be heavy and may your hearts be light. Ma
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Lindley-Presho Historical Society Meeting from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce The Lindley -Presho Historical Society will meet tomorrow Thursday March 24th 7 P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall. The program will be memories of attending school-especially Lindley one room schools. The program is free and open to the public. Those attending are encouraged to bring bring photos and or memorabiliaia from their school days. The photo is the Central School (#3 )in the hamlet of Lindley-near the NYS wetlands on Lindley Road. In the 1972 flood,the building was destroyed.
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Donald and Dick Riffle to the Rescue from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Home of the George Riffle family on Morgan Creek Road in the 1940's. After the home burned,the property was acquired by the present Lindley Woodworks business. During Sunday evening, Donald and Dick Riffle known to all as Don and Dick rowed a boat to the home of Albert Lawrence and removed the family which was marooned. They made two trips ,the first trip to the house they returned with Mrs. Lawrence and sons Charles and Lewis. On their return to the house the second time, they removed all the furniture and movables to the second floor with the aid of Mr.Lawrence and Mr. Lawrence's father Albert Lawrence,Sr. and all left including the dog as the water was about to enter the house.Before the water receded,it was flowing about a foot deep thru the house. Water entered the Pruynes's Filling Station ( below the present Enderle home ) and ran about
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Spring Flowers from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Happy Easter 2012
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Announcemments and Dick Riffle's Flood Memories from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce s Thanks to Dennis Abbey for the great photo as costruction began on future I99 west of present U.S. Rt.15. As reference - former State Line Camping Buildings are in bottom left corner of photo. I understand those buildings will be removed for the bridge over Morgan Creek Road. On Thursday evening April 26, 7 P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall-the Lindley/Presho Historical Society will present a program in recognition of the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812. Comments will be made about the 28 War of 1812 American Soldier's remains which were discovered in Canada in 1987. In 1988, these unknown soldiers were interred in the Bath,N.Y. National Cemetery. Other information will be given about the involvement of Steuben County and Lindley in this war. On Sunday May 20th, 2012 , 2 P.M at the Lindley-Presho Veteran's Monunment at the Lindley Town Hall--.
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WWII Program from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce John Biggio -(student) will share his school project a Powerpoint Presentation "A Look Back at WWII " with the Lindley -Presho Historical Society on Thursday May 24th at 7P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall. John spent considerable time and effort on his project and has some interesting information to share. Hopefully,there will be a large audience that evening to view John's program. Without a doubt, it will revive some stories and memories for many of the audience.

Sam Patch

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One more Lindley RR story from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce Hopefully this will copy so that you can read it by clicking on it to enlarge the print. Then next time -I will move on to a new topic... Enjoy>>>>>>>>>>>

Please bear with me

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Some of you will wonder what happened to the blog posting. In my  attempt on a new computer to enlarge  the Sam Patch article, I accidentally deleted all the 2012 postings.  After worrying  about losing them , spending some time looking and trying to find ways to recover them, I finally found them on Google Reader--- only to be baffled by how to get them back on the blog. Fortunately-son Dan who is computer wise rescued me and showed me how to copy and paste. It will take a couple days,but most of the posts will be back -if not in proper order.  For an old lady who never wanted to learn how to use a computer- it just goes to  prove old dogs can learn new tricks with the right teacher..  Thanks-Dan      MOM    The picture is an old "generic" Postcard
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Armed Forces Day May 20th, 2012 -- Lindley,NY from Lindley Presho Historical Society by Kitty Pierce On Sunday-- May 20th The Tioga County Penna. Honor Guard will conduct their annual Armed Forces Day Ceremony in Lindley. The purpose of the ceremony is to honor past and present Military Personnel from the Lindley area for their contributions and service to our nation. The service is scheduled to begin at 2 P.M. at the Lindley Town Hall . Members of the Guard will raise the flags, and present a wreath at the Veteran's Monument. Following the Pledge to the Flag,Tracy Rumsey -Veteran and former Lindley Supervisor will give a short talk . After the Benediction, the Honor Guard will do a Ceremonial Riffle firing -followed by Taps. Refreshments will be served. The event is free and open to the Public. This ceremony is a way for the Lindley Community to thank all the local area Military members for their service to our country. If you know a Veteran or present