Witness to History

York always has seemed to play a crucial role in the development of the United States. Asked to identify the nation’s first capital, most Americans would name Philadelphia, Boston, or Washington D.C. By hosting the Continental Congress from September 1777 – June 1778, tiny York (present population estimated at about 40,000) has distinguished itself by being the country’s first capital and one of only eight cities ever receiving that designation.

The history of the County began in the seventeenth century with agreements established by William Penn with the Native American tribes who made their homes along the area’s streams and rivers. In 1681, Penn accepted a grant of land in the new frontier of 16,000 pounds, a debt owed to his father. To Penn, it was an opportunity to establish new homes for his persecuted fellow Quakers.

As early as 1682, Penn and his heirs negotiated with the local Native American tribes to formally purchase the lands. As settlements along the coast grew in size and number, the need for westward expansion became apparent, and in 1722 the areas Iroquois tribes were requested and gave permission for the survey of land beyond the Susquehanna River. A tract measuring 6 miles wide and 15 miles long and including the site now occupied by the City of York was surveyed and named Springettsbury Manor, for Springett Penn, the grandson of the Founder. The Onandagoe, Seneca, Oneida, and Tuscarora nations signed a treaty of peace and deeded to the Penns, “all the river Susquehanna and all land lying on the west side of said river to the setting of the sun.” In 1728, settlers from Germany arrived in the area and their imprint is obvious almost four centuries later.

Located in the picturesque Susquehanna Valley region of South Central Pennsylvania, York is within easy reach of Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. The town was incorporated as a borough in 1787, and chartered as a city in 1887. Named in honor of Yorkshire, England, York is known as the White Rose City. It is also known as a “Gateway;” first as a gateway to the west, later as a gateway to the east, and finally as a gateway to history. York lies smack dab in the middle of its namesake county south of Harrisburg along Interstate 83 near the Susquehanna River and the Maryland state line. The county is also home to Lancaster, known for its outlet stores and Amish goods.

Although the population has become diverse, German and Scotch-Irish roots run deep here. With more than 250 years of heritage and tradition, York blends quaint local customs with the beauty of the rich agricultural Pennsylvania Dutch region. York County has rolling farmlands, a plethora of golf courses, and wineries.

York is also a commercial, manufacturing, and distribution center. A variety of products are manufactured here: electrical machinery, sporting goods, air conditioners, ordnance, and tractors to name a few. York is the home of York Air Conditioners and York Barbells as well as the birthplace of York Peppermint Patties, a world-renowned treat. Several of the manufacturers offer factory tours.

A number of museums reflect York’s historical importance: Agricultural and Industrial Museum, Historical Society of York Museum, Police Heritage Museum, and the Fire Museum of York County to name a few. Still standing and open for tours is the Golden Plough Tavern, established in 1741. History buffs can view the Codorus Furnace where ammunition for the American Revolution was produced. York would be far less well known if British troops hadn’t marched on Philadelphia which was to have been the site of the Continental Congress. The fleeing delegates wound up in York where they debated and signed the Articles of Confederation, one of the most important documents in American history. The patriots attending included Samuel Adams, John Hancock, and Thomas Paine who made the famous declaration that “these are the times that try men’s souls.”

Ten years later there actually was a serious effort to designate York as the permanent capital of the United States. Senator William Maclay of Pennsylvania promoted the idea but the state’s other senator, Robert Morris, advocated Germantown. The split probably ensured that neither would prevail. The Continental Congress also declared a national day of prayer and national Thanksgiving to celebrate the colonial victory at Saratoga. Visitors can tour a replica of the colonial courthouse where the Continental Congress met as well as the General Gates House.

In addition to historical museums, visitors can tour other unusual sites. Want to go to “Hog Heaven”? Luring tourists from all over the world, the Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Museum and Plant Tour presents a unique experience. The antique motorcycle museum features the history and heritage of America’s number one motorcycle manufacturer and the plant tour shows the final assembly of the famous Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The museum and plant tour lasts 90 minutes.

York’s famous mural tour begins on Market Street. Besides a Harley Davidson depiction, some of the other colorful murals include The Articles of Confederation, York in the 1800s, Made in York showing the York-manufactured Pullman automobile, the Power of the Printing Press, and the Four Chaplains.

The York County Heritage Rail Trail, one of eight county parks, winds through the very heart of York County. This trail extends over 20 miles, connecting Maryland’s Northern Central Railroad Trail with York’s historic district. For 134 years, from 1838 to 1972, the Northern Central Railroad connected Baltimore with York and points north, encouraging growth of small communities such as New Freedom, Glenrock and Seven Valleys. It was originally chartered as the Baltimore and Susquehanna Rail Road, then the Northern Central Rail Road, later as the Pennsylvania Rail Road and finally as the Penn Central Rail Road.

The trail is a 10 foot wide, compacted, crushed stone surface designed for hiking, bicycling, running, and horseback riding as well as winter sports such as cross-country skiing and show shoeing. Adjacent to the trail is an active rail line, the Northern Central Railway. The park is open year round, 8 am until dusk, and is patrolled by York County Parks Rangers.

The historic railroad stations in New Freedom and Hanover Junction serve today as reminders of several noteworthy Civil War Events, including a stop over by Abraham Lincoln at Hanover Junction Railroad Station on his way to deliver his famous Gettysburg Address.

York is renowned for outdoor activities. There are 10 parks where visitors can hike, swim, picnic, bird watch, fish, or simply relax. There are picnic shelters, playing fields, and sandy beaches for family or group outings as well as spring-fed trout streams, acres of wildflowers, and undisturbed forests for those who wish to have a genuinely rustic experience. Four parks have mountain bike trails ranging from tame to challenging.

The Susquehanna River and several lakes, rivers and streams make York County one of the top boating and boardsailing areas in Pennsylvania. Golfing is available at 21 public and private courses for golf enthusiasts. Novices, experts, and racers can schuss through the powder of local ski slopes for a challenging experience. For the adventurer who prefers to sleep in a tent or a travel trailer, York County has several fully equipped, well-maintained campgrounds. Hiking, ice skating, horseback riding, biking, indoor and outdoor tennis, archery, snowmobiling, and cycling combine for year-round fun in York County. The American Revolution did not mark York’s debut into the history books. The French and Indian Wars which were fought so bitterly in western Pennsylvania in the 1750s spread within a day’s march of York County, and refugees from Cumberland County fled to its settlements. In 1755, Benjamin Franklin spent time in York hiring 150 wagons, 259 packhorses and buying flour for General Braddock’s army. In 1758 four companies of militia from the County took part in the capture of Fort Duquesne (later renamed Pittsburgh).

As early as July 4, 1774, York Countians selected a committee to protest against British taxation and other oppressive measures. When Boston was blockaded as a result of its famous tea party, York County provided financial help and military support. A local company of militia riflemen were among the first from west of the Hudson River to march to Massachusetts. In 1775 there were 3,349 “associates” or volunteer militiamen within the County, and by 1778, a total of 4,621York Countians answered the call to arms. The total population at the time was just shy of 25,000. In 1779 Colonel Thomas Hartley observed that, “the York districts has armed first in Pennsylvania and has furnished more men for the war and lost a greater number of men in it than any other district on the continent of the same number individuals.” The presence of the Continental Congress in York brought the first printing press to the County. The press was necessary in order that military and legislative news could be sent throughout the colonies. It was also used to print about $10 million worth of currency while in York; money that was so inflated as to be almost worthless. Undoubtedly the most important business conducted here was the drafting of the Articles of Confederation, which in 1781 would be ratified by the required two-thirds of the colonies, establishing the “United States of America.” Victory and independence would finally come for the new nation in 1783.

As the question of slavery became a moral and political issue in the fledgling republic, York County helped maintain a more unusual form of transportation. The phrase “underground railway” supposedly originated in the southern Pennsylvania area as runaway slaves were assisted in their flight to more tolerant states.

After the guns off Fort Sumter thundered the call to war in 1861, York County sent the first fully equipped volunteers to march from Pennsylvania. Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorville, Richmond and Appamatox were some of the battlegrounds on which York Countians fought and died. Within the County, Camp Scott was established as a training post for as many as 5,500 men. Late in June 1863, Confederate troops made their most extensive thrust into northern territory when they spread across York County as far as the Susquehanna River. Union forces fled into Lancaster County but further Confederate advances were stopped when the bridge at Wrightsville was burned. Within the City of York, a committee raised more than $28,000 and gathered supplies of food and clothing to appease the Confederate commander, General Jubal A. Early. His threat to burn the railroad car shops was forestalled when he received urgent orders to withdraw in order to join other Confederate armies massing at Gettysburg in Adams County to the west.

The first Civil War battle on Pennsylvania soil was fought at Hanover on June 30, 1863. Because of this engagement, General J.E.B Stuart and his much-heralded cavalry forces were unable to join General Robert E. Lee’s armies at Gettysburg until after the decisive battles had been fought. This delay in Hanover played an important part in the Union victory at Gettysburg, considered to be the turning point in the War Between the States. York is only 29 miles east of the famous battleground.

A somber close to this period was the passing of Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train through York County. A large part of the local population was at the railroad station to pay tribute to the martyred president on April 21, 1865, as his funeral train passed through York.

Until World War I the County concentrated on increasing industrialization and productive agriculture. During the “Great War of 1914-1918,” more than 6,000 York Countians were members of the nation’s armed services. A total of 197 York Countians lost their lives as battle casualties or as victims of influenza and other diseases that swept across the land, both here and abroad.

With the advent of World War II, local industries were instrumental in formulating a program for combining community resources to increase productivity. The 14-point York Plan soon proved its effectiveness and was widely copied throughout the nation. The objectives of the York Plan were to: educate workers and assure them of the best available housing and health facilities; integrate work that could be done by subcontractors and primary contractors within the local area; and utilize all available machines and workers to meet the demand for war material.

Two outstanding heroes of World War II were York Countians. General Jacob Loucks Devers, commander of Army Ground Forces in the European Theater, and Lieutenant Alexander B. Goode, one of four chaplains who bravely went to their deaths aboard the troop transport S.S. Dorchester. Lieutenant Goode and his colleagues, immortalized in one of York’s downtown murals, were recognized for giving up their life belts so others might live.

Rich and diverse, York is alive with heroism, heritage, and industry. The land with gentle rolling hills, small towns, and prosperous farmlands provides thousands of visitors each year with an American history lesson that is unmatched outside Washington D.C.