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The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/pafiles.htm ________________________________________________ HTML with illustrations: http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/1pa/1picts/peckwyo/peck-wyo.htm WYOMING; ITS HISTORY, STIRRING INCIDENTS AND ROMANTIC ADVENTURES. By GEORGE PECK, D.D. WITH ILLUSTRATIONS. NEW YORK: HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE, 1858 THE UMBRELLA-TREE. 417 XXII. MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES. THE UMBRELLA-TREE.* [illustration] THE umbrella, round-top, or signal-tree, is situated on the mountain west of the Valley, about four miles from its head. It is of the variety Pinus rigida, or pitch pine; is about ninety feet high, and two and a half feet in diameter at the base. It is apparently, at a distance, on the summit of the mountain, and surrounded by woods; but it is about forty rods from the apex, and stands in the centre of a ten-acre field, on the estate formerly owned by Mr. Pierce Smith, now by the Kingston Coal Company. My imagination had pictured the tree to be something immense, and, from the misconception, I was somewhat disappointed, as it is not as large as one would be led naturally to suppose, judging of its appearance at a distance, its longevity, etc.; but it is more remarkable for conspicuity of position than for size or height. Many are the traditions in regard to this old stand-by, and perhaps nothing in our early history is more vague and unsatisfactory than the reports in circulation concerning it. Its conspicuity from the east and northeast made it a landmark through the unbroken wilderness to this land of promise, and we can hardly imagine the joy that its prospect lent, when at its sight the weary traveler considered himself almost home. It is said that its lower branches were clipped or hewn off, to render it more observable at a greater distance; and one tradition, or rather a more late fiction, says that they were cut off as a signal of battle, and ominous of the dire fall of on our little army. _____ * Here is a group of interesting objects. "Tuttle's Creek" passes through the culvert which appears on the right of the foreground. The house partly concealed by the shade of the trees is the veritable house erected and long occupied by Colonel Denison, now occupied by his grandson, Hiram Denison, Esq. Last season - 1857 - it exchanged its original red covering for a new white one, and, but for its antique form and large chimney, would now exhibit quite a modern appearance. The house on the left was the residence of the late Mrs. Tuttle, only sister of Mrs. Myers. This is the spot where stood the four block-houses from which "the Yankee Boys" fired the last shot at the Pennamites and killed Captain Bolen. The road which crosses the Creek here is the old road on which the little army marched to attack the Tories and Indians. The umbrella-tree is seen in the distance, upon the mountain's height. 418 WYOMING. We think that any other view than that it is just as God made it would rob him of some of his due glory, and detract from it much real beauty, as being remarkable from nature rather than art. This view is substantiated by almost every physical sign, and the fact that, upon close inspection, it bears no appearance of having had its branches cut off. It has some dead limbs, which show no sudden fracture, as would be the case if they had been hewn off, but, on the contrary, extend several feet from the shaft; and, besides, it has several large limbs, unperceivable at a distance, about half way up. Immediately under the top there is a space of ten or fifteen feet looking quite smooth, showing no abrasion of knife or hack of hatchet. Its top is rather small for the shaft to be compared to an umbrella, and looks more like a delicate parasol put on a large umbrella handle. It is the only tree in a large field, and, although the woodman has cut down all around it, he has paused with a praiseworthy veneration to humble its proud crest in the dust. There it stands nearly as it was a hundred years ago; there it stands erect as God made it; there let it stand till He, in his wisdom, sees fit to fell it. We reluctantly turned our back upon this old pine, and left it "alone in its glory." * * * PROSPECT ROCK is situated on the eastern mountain, directly back of Wilkesbarre, and about midway between the two extremes of the valley. From its prominent position may be distinctly seen both sections of the valley, above and below. It is a steep ledge of light conglomerate, composed of strata four or five feet thick, resting at about an angle of forty-five degrees in position. Its eastern verge is quite precipitous, showing an abrupt fracture from the plane of the strata below, which was caused in its upheaving to its present position. The western surface is convex, and more continuous with the slope of the mountain. A few small pines stand upon it here and there, and dip their roots into its crevices, deriving their nourishment from an almost imperceptible and inconceivable source. The upper section of the valley of Wyoming appears to be an extended plain; the lower a series of hills, undulating up higher and higher until they reach the Nanticoke Mountains. Above, it seems continuous with the Lackawanna Valley, and the gray front of Crag Campbell marks the entrance of the Susquehanna; below the mountains curve gracefully as the bow in the clouds for the egress of the river. To get a proper appreciation of the view from this rock, you should PROSPECT ROCK. 419 spend a night at one of the hotels a short distance below, arise with the sun, with the mental energies fresh and unimpaired with the toils of ascent. It was in the month of July that I made my visit, and all nature was dressed in her most varied and pleasing garb. Spread out beneath were the fields of every shade of green and of gold. There were the shock-dotted fields, where the farmer had been gathering together into convenient heaps his means of subsistence and profit; fields of still waving grain, interspersed with meads of fresh-springing grass from newly-mown hay-fields. Black lines mark the course of fences dividing possessions and fields, showing a beautiful simile to the checkered scenes of life, where every man is moving for his own advantage. Immediately beneath is the borough of Wilkesbarre, with its small houses and tiny spires, as though contrived for the habitation of Liliputians. Directly across from it is the village of Kingston, below which are the scattered houses of Plymouth, and above, toward the head of the valley, is the village of Wyoming, still more diminutive in the distance. Here and there are scattered throughout the country habitations and public works, showing the insignificance of puny art in such a vast area of beauteous nature. "Oh, pigmy man, how small thy workings are! Thy boasted rule has not the power to even mock at heaven, for who could mountains make, or paint a scene like this?" These are naturally the feelings of an observer and student of nature when impressed with the power of the magnificent and sublime; he pauses in a reverie of inexpressible delight, and is forced to admit the inability of language to convey his thoughts to others. This rock has the advantages of position in presenting to the view nearly all parts of the valley, neither rendering it dim by too great distance, nor unpicturesque by being too near. A large area is here placed before the vision, concentrated into one grand conception, subject to one contemplation. In the west are the horizon, scalloping hills, giving glimpses here and there between them of the country beyond. The Susquehanna is occasionally visible, and the three islands here seen seem like "Arks of nature's make floating on to join the sea." There is another view from what is called the White Rocks, but a short distance ascending to the right from the Spring House, which has advantages in rendering some parts of the valley still more perspicuous than Prospect Rock does, on account of their more jutting position. Time had been "winging us away" faster than we were aware or wished. The sun had already dipped his lower verge below the western mountains, giving their tree-clad summits an appearance as HARVEY'S LAKE [illustration] HARVEY'S LAKE. 421 if fringed with fire. As our little giddy world wheeled eastward, leaving the king of day gradually sinking from the horizon, he seemed to kiss the western hills with his ruddy lips, and, bidding us goodnight, sank in a sea of glory. * * * HARVEY'S LAKE. THE following sketch of a trip to Harvey's Lake is contributed by Miss Miranda Myers, of Kingston: Bright and early, long before the purple hill-tops environing Wyoming were illuminated by the rising sun, we presented ourselves at the gateway, ready for a drive to this romantic summer retreat some twelve miles distant. Passing the wild scenery of the Narrows, and through a beautiful rural district, we inquired, for perhaps the dozenth time during our ride, How far off is Harvey's Lake? An honest-faced Hibernian answered, "Shure and you are right on it; and you have only to drive a bit ahead and turn into the lane, and you'll get there." Thanking him, we prepared to follow the direction, if it only brought us to our destination. We soon had the extreme satisfaction of seeing the Lake House, with its fair proportions, loom up before us. As we drove up, the accommodating proprietor, Mr. Clayton, met us at the door, ready to attend to all our wants. The house is built upon a slight elevation on the eastern shore, a few rods from the water's edge. It is large and commodious, handsomely furnished, and capable of accommodating a large number of guests. From the verandas, which extend around two sides of the house, a magnificent prospect feasts the eye - a scene of unrivaled and quiet beauty - the calm and unruffled surface of the lake sparkling in the sunshine, begirt with beautiful hilly woodlands. These afford covert for herds of deer and other wild game, while the lake furnishes an abundance of the finest fish. Harvey's Lake has been resorted to for hunting and fishing ever since the first settlement of the country, long before there was a road cut through the mountains, the old hunters tracing their way through the dense forests by means of marked trees. It is said that the lake was discovered by one of the early settlers of the Valley noticing that the wild ducks flew very high, and in a northerly direction, from which fact he concluded that there must be quite a large body of water not far distant.* _____ * The lake derived its name from Benjamin Harvey, who settled upon the outlet below Plymouth, and it is supposed by his descendants that he was the first white man who discovered it. The descendants of Thomas Bennet suppose that he is entitled to the honor of the discovery of this lake, and that he was led to the search for it by the flight of flocks of wild ducks. It is quite probable that these hardy pioneers each made the discovery in the same way, one reaching it from the lower extremity of the Valley, and the other from Forty Fort. It is certain that Mr. Bennet cut through the first bridle-path from Kingston to the lake, as that path is noted on the field-books of the earliest surveyors, and is called "Bennet's Path." Andrew Bennet, son of Thomas Bennet, launched the first canoe upon the placid waters of this lake in the year 1800. John Bennet, Esq., son of Andrew Bennet, says that the canoe was made in the Valley, and shod with hickory saplings, and drawn over the mountain by two horses attached to it tandem, and that he, then a lad, rode the leader, and that his father led the way on foot, and that another man followed and kept the "dug-out" right side up. They arrived sufficiently early in the day to launch their craft, and steal upon a fine buck standing in the edge of the lake, and shoot him down. The canoe was kept concealed at the head of the lake in a thicket of laurels. The lady traveler who contributed this article is the great-granddaughter of Thomas Bennet. 422 WYOMING. Below us, in front of the house, a wagon-road winds along the shore, and is soon lost from sight among the trees. Looking across the lake toward the west, we observe a small clearing with several dwelling-houses; one is pointed out to us as the property of Hon. Warren J. Woodward. Casting our eyes down along the shore in the direction of the outlet, through a gap in the hills we behold the faint outlines of distant mountains against the sky, in fine contrast with those nearer by. At our left is the inlet, though, properly speaking, the lake has none, being fed by springs at the bottom. A rude, unfinished bridge crosses the inlet. This can be used only by foot-passengers, as it is sunken considerably near the centre. Having finished our observations from the house, we betake ourselves to the boat, a number being always in readiness. The white, pebbly bottom of the lake is distinctly visible for quite a distance from the shore; but as we near the centre it gradually disappears, the water becoming very deep, and assuming a look of inky blackness. We were told that a line ninety feet in length had been sunk here without reaching bottom. We were recalled from our aquatic expedition to the house by the sounding of the gong. Here we found an elegant dinner awaiting us - fish, flesh, and fowl, served up in every possible style, with vegetables, tarts, puddings, pastry, etc., in profusion, calculated to please even the most epicurean palate. Dinner over, we again sallied forth in quest of enjoyment. Noticing upon one of the pillars of the lower veranda a diagram of the lake, with the distances along the margins given, we made inquiries of Mr. Clayton, and learned that some scientific gentleman, TOBY'S EDDY. [illustration] TOBY'S CAVE. [illustration] TOBY'S EDDY. 425 whose name we have forgotten, made an actual survey for the benefit of visitors. We give it as it appears there. Lovely as the lake is in the rich glow of the morning sunlight, its romantic beauty is by no means diminished when bathed in the glorious coloring of the afternoon sun. The rippling current flashes and sparkles, the wild duck skims gayly over its surface, regardless of the lurking sportsman, and the splashing oars of the pleasure-boat keep time to the harmony of nature; every tree growing upon the margin of the lake has its counterpart slumbering motionless beneath the water. But we must turn our backs upon this scene of bewitching loveliness, for the lengthening shadows warn us that the sun is sinking in the heavens, and we have yet twelve miles between us and our valley-home. Persons visiting Wyoming should not fail to take a drive to the lake; we are certain they would be amply rewarded. Indeed, we see no reason why Harvey's Lake may not become as fashionable a resort during the summer as the more crowded watering-places, accessible as it is from our cities, within twelve miles by railroad, and affording every facility for enjoyment. TOBY'S EDDY. THIS famous locality is situated at the mouth of Toby's Creek, near Kingston village. The beautiful scenery copied in the opposite engraving lies between Ross Hill and the river, and is one of those lovely, secluded spots where one delights to spend an hour or two in retirement from the busy world. Here the students of the seminary hard by often meet to shake off the blues and recruit their exhausted energies. Here they bathe, walk, swing, and exchange pleasant greetings. Here many a pleasant picnic has been held, and glances have been exchanged full of meaning, and ominous of happy days at new homes. But, alas! progress and civilization have made sad ravages upon this sweet and beautiful spot. The railroad has utterly ruined its beautiful unity. Its jagged, rocky embankment, running through the centre of the little natural paradise, has broken its ancient enchantments, and dispelled the bewitching associations which clustered around it. So goes this world of ours. What God made is perpetually changed, if not improved, by the inroads of art and the spirit of the age. 426 WYOMING. TOBY'S CAVE. WHAT is called Toby's Cave is found in the hill-side west of the Eddy. It is not deep or large, but might once have constituted a place of retreat for old Toby the Indian, whose haunts were once along the creek to which his name has been given, and who planted corn upon the flats above. It is said by some of the old talkers that this cave once extended quite to the opposite side of Ross Hill, the distance of three fourths of a mile. Curious legends of strange supernatural appearances in this cave are told by an old gossip still living, all of which may be doubted without just exposure to the charge of unwarrantable skepticism. Stories of strange sights and superhuman noises, which used to be told about Toby's Cave by superannuated nurses, and believed without a doubt by children, are not worth repeating; still, they have left their impression, and they continue to cling to the locality with which they were originally associated. Legends, however incredible, often constitute classic ground, and give a sort of importance to objects and localities which otherwise have little about them to render them noticeable. There are in the world many such objects, and among them is Toby's Cave. SEMINARIES. THE great changes which have taken place in Wyoming are remarked in nothing more clearly than in the means and appliances of education which constitute both its power and its pride. We give brief sketches of the origin, progress, and present condition of the three leading institutions of the Valley, arranging them in chronological order. THE WYOMING CONFERENCE SEMINARY. This is a school for both sexes, and was opened September 24, 1844. The opening address was delivered by the Rev. J. P. Durbin, D.D. The first seminary building was of brick, thirty-seven feet by seventy feet, and three stories high. The cost of the building and fixtures, $6089, of which about one fourth was contributed by Thomas Myers, Esq., of Kingston. The building for the accommodation of the ladies and for a boarding-hall was erected by Mr. Myers, and subsequently sold to the trustees. The school opened with thirty scholars, and the whole number in attendance the first term was forty-seven. There were three teachers: Rev. R. Nelson, A.M., Miss Ruth In- SEMINARIES. 427 galls, and Mr. E. F. Ferris. The patronage continued to increase for every succeeding term until there arose a pressing necessity for an additional building. In the winter of 1850-51, while the trustees, without funds, were deliberating upon the subject, and vainly endeavoring to devise a plan for enlarging the buildings, they were happily relieved from their embarrassment by the noble and generous proposition of one of their number, William Swetland, Esq., to defray himself all the expense of the erection of such a building as the trustees should deem necessary to meet the wants of the school. Accordingly, a building was erected and finished in the fall of 1851, at a cost of between three and four thousand dollars, and named "Swetland Hall." At the same time, lion. Ziba Bennet, of Wilkesbarre, donated to the institution $1000, to be expended in the purchase of a library, which was appropriately named by the trustees "Bennet Library." Within six months from the completion of "Swetland Hall," all the rooms in the whole establishment were occupied, and the trustees began to arrange for putting up an additional building. They had contracted for its erection, and excavating for the foundation had already been commenced, when, on the 15th of March, 1853, the buildings were entirely destroyed by fire, supposed to have originated from a stove in the third story. While the ruins were yet smoking, the trustees were stimulated to an immediate effort to rebuild by the remarkable liberality of William Swetland, Esq., already referred to, who, together with his son, Mr. George Swetland, and his son-in-law, Payne Pettibone, Esq., donated to the institution in all something over $8000. They were also greatly aided by the liberal donations of $1000 by Isaac C. Shoemaker, Esq., of Wyoming, $500 by Hon. Urbane Burrows, of Gibson, and $500 by Amos Y. Smith, of Wyoming. The above, with other contributions, enabled the trustees to erect four buildings, three of them being of brick. The entire value of the whole establishment now can not be estimated at less than $30,000. The institution has an experienced and efficient board of teachers, a superior philosophical and chemical apparatus, an extensive library, and a valuable cabinet. The Rev. R. Nelson still presides over the institution with great ability and success. The catalogue just issued shows an attendance of 676 students during the year. The success of this institution is without a parallel in the state. 428 WYOMING. LUZERNE PRESBYTERIAL INSTITUTE. This institution is located in one of the pleasantest portions of the Valley, in the village of Wyoming. Rev. Thomas P. Hunt, so widely known for his able advocacy of the cause of temperance and religion, first suggested and labored for the establishment of a literary institution at this place, and has ever been most earnestly devoted to its interests with time and means. Not less indispensable have been, from the first and always, the abundant services and liberal benefactions of Mr. Thomas R. Atherton, or the efforts and counsels in its behalf of Rev. J. D. Mitchell, its first principal and always firm friend and supporter, as well as those of others, its early and constant, or more recent friends, among whom are the entire board of trustees as at present constituted, consisting of Rev. T. P. Hunt, Rev. N. G. Parke, H. Rice, T. F. Atherton, Hon. C. D. Shoemaker, Rev. H. H. Welles, Rev. C. R. Lane, W. S. Shoemaker, Hon. Steuben Jenkins, Theodore Strong, E. A. Lawrence, and Joseph P. Atherton, with Rev. J. Dorrance and James Jenkins, former members. The great aim of the institution is to furnish facilities for a sound Christian education of youth. It is not sectarian in its teachings, but Christian, and invites to the enjoyment of its privileges youth from all denominations alike. Instruction is given in all the English branches, sciences, mathematics, languages, and ornamental branches common to our higher seminaries, preparatory for college, for teaching, or for the active duties of business and social life. It has a male and a female department, a normal department at some seasons of the year, also philosophical and chemical apparatus, and geographical, astronomical, and anatomical maps and charts. The institute building is out of debt, and will be enlarged as soon as the state of the times will permit. There is a good boarding-house; students also board in private families, while lads and others, as desired by parents, board with the principal. Classes were first formed in 1849. An act of incorporation was obtained the following year. Rev. Reuben Lowrie, now a missionary in China, Rev. C. R. Lane, now of Tunkhannock, and Rev. P. E. Stevenson, acted as principals of the institution in succession. E. A. Lawrence, A.M., extensively known and approved as a highly accomplished teacher, is now principal, and, although the pressure of the times has unfavorably affected the attendance, as in many other institutions, the condition of the institute is encouraging and promising. Several of its students are SEMINARIES. 429 preparing for the ministry, while others of them are already proclaiming the Gospel to a dying world. THE WILKESBARRE FEMALE INSTITUTE. A number of gentlemen, citizens of the borough of Wilkesbarre, deeply sensible of the importance of a thorough and Christian education for their daughters, and believing that the female character requires a system of instruction and discipline differing somewhat from that adopted in reference to the other sex, after consultation, determined upon the establishment of a female seminary of a high order - one which should preclude the necessity of seeking beyond their own borough the facilities for a finished education. Accordingly, a subscription for the erection of a suitable building was opened, and some ten or twelve thousand dollars raised. The subscriptions, several of which are very liberal, were principally from members of the Presbyterian congregation. Of the whole sum, nearly one half (including recent donations) is the contribution of George M. Hollenback. A charter for the contemplated institution was obtained in the summer of 1854, during which year the seminary edifice was completed. This is a neat and commodious building, three stories in height, with suitable school and recitation rooms, lofty and well ventilated. There is also good accommodation in furnished rooms for some forty or fifty boarders under the same roof with the family of the principal; the grounds are ample; and the site, fronting the Susquehanna, with an open common intervening, is one of unusual beauty. The school was opened in October, 1854, with some fifty young ladies, under the charge of Rev. Joseph Eastburn Nassau, since which time, though subject to temporary fluctuation, it has made encouraging progress. Quite a number of young ladies have completed the prescribed course of study, which is equally extensive and thorough with that of our best seminaries, with honor to themselves and the institution. The average number of pupils in actual attendance is now about seventy, and is steadily increasing. The principal, R. S. Howes, A.M., who has had a successful experience of sixteen years at the head of select and high schools, proves to be well fitted for his position, and gives to the trustees and patrons of the institution entire satisfaction. The institute is, by its charter, under the supervision of the presbytery of Luzerne, by which body the trustees are appointed. 430 WYOMING. The object of this supervision is not the inculcating of sectarian tenets, nor to render the institution an organ of proselytism, but to secure an enlightened, homogeneous, and salutary religious influence, with the hope that our daughters, while subjected to thorough mental discipline, will also be adorned with those Christian graces which are the highest and loveliest accomplishment of the female character.