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Transportation
Freeland is a small town sitting on a mountaintop, and it is connected to surrounding areas by large and small roads and highways. But in its earlier days, Freeland was also connected to the outer world by both trolley and train tracks. All of the mining towns in the area had train tracks running to or through them so that coal could be transported out, and those same rail tracks brought immigrants and visitors to the area, and facilitated travel and shipping.
The
photo at the top of this page shows the Lehigh Valley Railroad depot
and freight house on lower Centre Street. Both buildings are long gone,
but
in the early 20th century they were the site of much activity.
Capitalizing on the comings and goings at the station, various
businesses such as lumber and beef companies were located along
the tracks for ease of shipping, and enterprising businesses such
as Peter Shambora's bar were convenient to travellers, as suggested
in this descriptive ad from 1895.
In addition to the railroad, Freeland
enjoyed regular trolley service. In 1894, work was begun by
the Lehigh Traction Company on a trolley line between Freeland
and Harleigh, The trolley ran until 1932, and the last of the tracks
were pulled up in the mid-1960s as part of a repaving project, as
reported in the Freeland Penny Saver. The tracks ran
right up the middle of Centre Street. This postcard, looking north
from below the train station, shows the intersection of the railroad
and
trolley tracks on Centre Street below Carbon. But even more basic than the trolley and train lines were the roads leading into and out of town. In 1845 William Birkbeck made a road through the woods from South Heberton to Eckley and Buck Mountain. What is now Schwabe Street was a wagon and stagecoach road, referred to on some maps as the Butler-White Haven road. Several hotels along what is now lower Birkbeck Street, such as Krouse's Hotel and Livery (the hotel building was burned by arsonists in the past year, and the livery stable still stands but is in disrepair), served the stagecoach travellers. As early as 1878, stagecoaches were also running from Hazleton to Freeland. In 1890 a new road to Highland was opened.
These roads
were not made for
cars and trucks. In Freeland's early decades, there were no
automobiles. Road travel was accomplished by horsedrawn wagons,
carriages and sleighs (as well as by horse and on foot). So, instead
of having new and used car dealerships, garages, auto supply stores and
gas stations, Freeland had carriage and wagon manufacturers, saddle,
harness and hame makers, blacksmiths and wheelwrights, as well as
livery
stables. Early carriage, wagon and sleigh makers included Peter
Brown, John P. Cunningham. Owen A. Peters, Michael Halpin, A. W.
Washburn,
and the Hontz Brothers.
The carriage
and wagon makers did business not only in Freeland but throughout the
surrounding area and, in somc cases, even further afield. This was also
true for the saddle, harness and hame makers. George Wise had a
thriving saddlery and harnessmaking business for decades. The Beagle
Hame Works was very well known, and the 1910 Encyclopaedia Britannica
mentioned hame manufacturing as one of four industries in Freeland.
Hames were the collar-like items that were used to yoke horses and
mules, as shown in this Beagle Hame Works ad.In addition to the vehicles and accoutrements needed for horse travel, there was a considerable amount of maintenance involved, both of the vehicles and of the horses themselves. Freeland blacksmiths and wheelwrights in the late 19th century included Jacob Fox and Bro., Peter Henninger, Elias Shelhammer, A. W. Washburn, W. J. Boyd, S. G. Debman, Charles Eastwood, G. B. Hoch, William Jenkins, and R. E. Roth.
Local livery stable owners included
Conrad Smith, John Rugens, John and Henry Fisher, Gottlieb
Fullmer, Mrs. Ann Donop, Frank O'Donnell and John Krouse. This photo
of Harry Fisher, of the Fisher Livery Stable on Washington Street,
gives
us a view of horse-drawn coach travel. Livery stables provided horses
for use, some provided stabling, and some even sold horses. Horses were
also sold independently. In his 1893 History of Luzerne County,
Bradsby reports that Mathias Schwabe did "a great deal of horse
dealing, sometimes buying blooded horses by the carload." I have yet to mention the teamsters, bus services, and begininngs of automobile travel in Freeland. I'll add some notes about those things at some later date.
Credits: Thank you to Bill Smith for the wonderful photograph of his grandfather, Mr. Harry Fisher, next to the Cottage Hotel and the Fisher Livery stable.