AREA HISTORY:  Pleasureville, York County, PA

Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Abby Bowman

Copyright 2004.  All rights reserved.
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History of York County, Pennsylvania.  John Gibson, Historical Editor.
Chicago: F. A. Battey Publishing Co., 1886.
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PLEASUREVILLE, Page 610

Pleasureville, known all over York County until a few years ago as "Possumtown."  
John Myers lived at the place half a century ago, when there were only a few 
houses, and the surrounding country was covered with a dense forest.  His only 
occupation was "coon and possum hunting," and he had constantly nailed on the 
front of his house scores of opossum skins, and from this circumstance the town 
got its first name.  The town is situated on the road leading from Freystown to 
Rudy's Mill (formerly Brillinger's Mill), about two miles and a half, northeast 
from York, and has a population of nearly 300.  The houses in the place are 
nearly all frame, and the number of dwellings at present is sixty-three.  The 
town has a two-story brick schoolhouse, in which are a secondary and primary 
school.  There is also a large three-story frame hall in the place, in which the 
Mount Zion band meets (of which William Leightner is leader, and has nineteen 
members), and the Pleasureville Relief Association, which has been in existence 
some fifteen years and numbers eighty-four members.  There is a tine frame 
church in the place known as the United Brethren Church, of which Rev. Jacob 
Smith is pastor -- membership eighty-four.  A. Bowers is superintendent of the 
Sunday school and it numbers 130.  There are three stores, one blacksmith shop, 
one shoe-making ship and four cigar manufactories.