The Peanut Problem
“The first notable increase in U.S. peanut consumption came in 1860 with the outbreak of the Civil War. Northern soldiers, as well as Southern, used the peanut as a food.
Browse Encyclopedia
The Cumberland County Historical Encyclopedia is an expanding publication on the history of the Cumberland County. Covering a wide range of topics and the entire Cumberland County geographic region, the Encyclopedia seeks to be an initial entry point to those interested in the County's history. Entries seek to provide a list of resources available as well as showcasing some of the Cumberland County Historical Society's own collections.
Capt. Alexander Peebles, Sr. (1740-1824), Shippensburg And the Peebles Family
Capt. Alexander Peebles Sr., was a blacksmith and farmer whose homestead of 1774 sits on what is now known as Cramer Rd., Southampton Township (formally Hopewell Twp.), Shippensburg. He was my paternal 4th great-grandfather through my great-grandmother Abbie (Highlands) Baker, whose dad, Wm. Isaac was a son of James Highlands & Mary Elizabeth Peeples (1797-1871), a daughter of Capt. Alexander.
Rosemarie Peiffer – Nurse, County Commissioner
Rosemarie C. Peiffer was born in an area of Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, later known as Nesquehoning, in 1936. Raised on a farm in Schuylkill County, Rosemarie graduated from Reading Hospital and School of Medicine with her Registered Nurse degree in 1956. She married in that same year and moved to Baltimore with her husband, Howard, where they lived until 1964 before returning to Pennsylvania.
Penn Township
Penn Township, Cumberland County is located in the southwestern section of the county. The township was formed officially on October 23, 1860 by partitioning off the western half of Dickinson Township. In 1872, the southern portion of Penn Township was partitioned to form Cooke Township.
William Penn (1644-1718)
Born in London to an ancient family of Gloucestershire, William Penn descended from a long line of yeomen Penns.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike
On April 23, 1935, Cliff Patterson, a Pennsylvania state representative from the Pittsburgh area and an undertaker, proposed to the legislature a bill to study building a road from Pittsburgh to Central Pennsylvania.
A Year in the Life of a Village: Plainfield 1910
In 1812, tavernkeeper Michael Forner laid out lots on a piece of land on the road from Carlisle to Newville. He called the new town Plainfield. Plans were afoot for a Grand Turnpike from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, and Forney thought it "would more than probably go through his new town."It did not. Often referred to as Smokey Town, the name Plainfield was officially adopted with the opening of the Post Office. The map of Plainfield in the 1872 Atlas of Cumberland County shows the locations of the shops, two churches, the school, the hotel as well as the houses. Plainfield grew, and by 1910, the village had approximately 200 residents.
Dr. David A. Plank (1838-1902)
David A. Plank was born near Churchtown, Cumberland County on June 13, 1838, the son of Anna Maria and Jacob Plank, Sr.1 David spent his early years on his father’s farm and later worked in his wheel factory at Churchtown.
Poker Games in Carlisle’s Court House
Frederick A. Harris and Reverend Joseph Martin carried on a correspondence of reminiscences about Carlisle in the 1850s and 60s. Their letters were published in the American Volunteer newspaper in the 1890s.
The Tavernkeeper’s Wife: Elizabeth Pope
Being the wife of a tavernkeeper meant that Elizabeth helped with the running of the tavern as well as taking care of her family. Washing, cleaning, cooking in a hot kitchen over a fire for hours as well as helping in the barroom was hard work.