Norman Gasbarro | December 14, 2010
(Part 1 of 4). Corp. John C. Gratz died on 26 (or 25) January 1862 at Camp Northumberland, Virginia, while serving as a member of Company G of the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry. The official cause of death was an “inflammation of the brain.” Three documents in the collection of the Gratz Historical Society record […]
Norman Gasbarro | December 13, 2010
The Gratz House – from a Mural in the Gratz Community Building Theodore Gratz (1811-1863), the third son of Simon Gratz and Mary {Smith] Gratz, was born in Philadelphia. Theodore’s father, Simon, was the brother of Rebecca Gratz, and therefore Theodore was Rebecca’s nephew. Because of the estrangement of Rebecca and her brother Simon, probably […]
Norman Gasbarro | December 8, 2010
During the Civil War, one railroad ran from the interior of the Lykens Valley area to the Susquehanna River. Believed to be completed in 1834, the line went from Millersburg to Lykens. Its primary use was to transport coal from the coal mines around Lykens to the Susquehanna River. Horses pulled the early coal cars […]
Norman Gasbarro | December 7, 2010
Not everyone supported the draft. One case that was noted in a Philadelphia Inquirer article on 25 October 1862 was a group of law resisters in the coal mining area of Schuylkill County referred to as “The Collieries.” Exactly where the group was located in Schuylkill County was not known, but they were allegedly responsible […]
Norman Gasbarro | December 6, 2010
At the start of the Civil War in April, 1861, there was great enthusiasm and support in many places in the north. President Abraham Lincoln’s call for 75,000 volunteers was answered and it appeared that these men would be sufficient to end the rebellion quickly; life could then go on as before. After the shocking […]
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