1999

Nesquehoning football team 1902. In the early years, young men formed football teams on their own. After their team was completed they looked for someone to be their manager, who would arrange games with other towns. These games drew many spectators sometimes over a thousand paid admission to view these games. The players were paid very little sometimes nothing. The manager usually kept most of the money. An immigrant new to Nesquehoning asked what is football? The explanation he received was: When a human catapult, in leather helmet and dirt-smeared canvas suit, springs suddenly and with terrific momentum at you through a hole in the line, you grit you teeth and drive in to stop it. If you bring down your man you can jump back to your place behind the line, with the bleachers rattling, and feel that you have done what was expected of you. But if you missed your tackle, and merely stopped the avalanche by rolling under it, you limp back to your position with just as many bruises and with the coaches yelling “rotten” at you. After two steaming, aching 25-minute halves of that sort of thing you go back to your gym .Its luck mostly, without that, no amount of mere brute muscle is worth anything at all. Linemen are from left- Ed Caraghen – John Coll – Maurio Grainger – Jubs Davis – Jimmy Miller – Chas ‘Rock’ Richards – Ben Oxley. Backfield from left – Fred Jenkins – John ‘Bess’ McDonald – Fred Lewis – Monk Hildebrand. Men standing are from left Bob Measures – Ben Branch – and Fred Hooper

This is a picture of Dr. Behler’s home in the early 1900’s. It was located at the intersection of Catawissa and Douglas Sts. In 1992 Douglas St was renamed Mermon Ave. in honor of the late Dr. Mermon who lived in this house for many years. Dr Jacob Behler graduated from both Kutztown and Bloomsburg Colleges, and in 1891 he graduated from Jefferson Medical College. He was 28 years old when he moved to Nesquehoning in 1893. The same year he was united in marriage to Miss Mayme Longacre. Each morning the Doctor would hitch up his horse and buggy and visit his patients. There were no telephones in town and if people wanted the Doctor to stop at their house they would place a sign in their window or nail a note to a tree in front of their house. Treating his regular patients, delivering babies and the frequent mining accidents kept the Doctor very busy. Deaths in those days from pneumonia, lockjaw, diphtheria, whooping cough, scarlet fever, measles, chicken-pox etc. were frequent, especially in young children. The Doctor would place a sign on people’s houses warning others of a contagious disease. In some cases the house was quarantined, as in 1903 when people in town were dying from small-pox. The State Board of Health compelled everyone in town to be vaccinated. In 1918 many people in town died from the Spanish influenza. Saloons, hotels, ice cream parlors, restaurants, theaters, churches, schools and lodge halls were ordered closed. A law required undertakers to place signs on the doors of residences of fatalities. Funerals were private, with no Church services or viewings. Prompt burials of victims were required. Dr. Behler died on March 26, 1922 from pneumonia. Both Dr. Behler and his wife were related closely to a long list of physicians. Dr. E.H.Kistler of Lansford, being a brother of Mrs. Longacre and thereby cementing a relationship of the well known Kistler family of physicians and specialists. Three children were born to Dr. and Mrs. Behler. Naomi, who died in infancy, Mary, wife of Dr. John S. Barsby, Freeland and Carl. Doctor Behler possessed a most happy disposition; he made himself always very welcome to patients who needed such stimulation perhaps more than medicine. He served as Carbon County Coroner, President of Carbon County Medical Society, President of the Nesquehoning Bank and trustee of Zion’s Lutheran Church. One of the Doctors hobbies was collecting old books and he had some valued treasures in his library. Thus as a result of his passing away, a whole town felt the poignant sorrow that afflicted his wife and children. Dr. Behlers funeral was the largest ever held in Nesquehoning. All the stores, business places, colliery, and schools were closed. His remains were viewed by thousands. Especially sorrowful were the large number of children who gazed in reverence for the last time on the face of him, who had ushered them into life and whose duty it was later to examine them as school children. On April 7, 1922 Dr. Behler’s son in law, Dr. J.E.Barsby moved his family and house hold goods from Freeland to Nesquehoning and took over Dr. Behler’s practice.

Railroads played a big part in the history of Nesquehoning. This is a picture of a Jersey Central Locomotive at Nesquehoning in the late 1800’s. At first wagons were used to transport the coal to the docks at the Lehigh River. The wagons held one ton of coal and required two horses; each wagon could make two trips per day. The first railroad at Nesquehoning and one of the first in the United States, was called the Room Run Railroad, it was started in 1831. Much time was spent on preparing the grade where the tracks would be laid. Since this was a gravity railroad, you needed enough downward pitch for the cars to roll and not to steep for the mules to pull the empty cars back to the mines at Room Run. It was determined that the grade would be set to an 11-inch drop per 100 feet. When finished it was acclaimed the greatest railroad bed and an engineering marvel. Unlike other railroads that use iron rails placed on wooden ties, the Room Run Railroad used wooden rails placed on stone blocks. These stone blocks were called sleepers. Each sleeper had four holes drilled into it and the holes were plugged with pegs of locust wood. Cast iron “knees,” six inches wide, were then attached to the blocks by iron spikes driven into the locust plugs. The sleepers were spaced four feet apart. The wooden rails were hewn from oak, five inches wide by seven inches deep and twenty feet long. The oak rails were then attached to the iron knees by spikes. Strap-iron, 2 ½ inches wide and five-eighths of an inch thick was then attached to the oak rails with iron spikes driven through countersunk holes spaced four inches apart. When it was finished in the spring of 1833 it was considered the best railroad ever built and the most expensive. The final cost was $123,000, almost $100,000 more than the original estimate of $29,123.75. In the first year 21,000 tons of coal glided down the new railroad from the Nesquehoning mines to the Lehigh River. Each train consisted of six to eight cars loaded with coal and a special car to haul the mules. This car contained water and food bins where the mules could eat, drink and get a well deserved rest after pulling the empty cars back to the mines at Room Run four miles away. The Room Run Railroad was replaced in the 1860’s with a new railroad called the Nesquehoning Valley Railroad. This railroad was built principally to carry the output of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company mines, receiving the traffic which formerly passed over the Room Run and Switchback railroads.

This is a picture of West Catawissa St. looking east. The building on the left has had many owners since it was built. Robert Brinker bought the property from the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company in 1845. He sold it to Ellen McCann in 1852 and she sold it to Sarah Bond in 1900.The original building was destroyed in a devastating fire on July 12, 1901. At that time John Bonds operated a hardware and tinware business in one half and Philip McArdle had a barbershop in the other half. The entire 2,000 people of Nesquehoning – men, women and children were at the fire and even the women and children worked like heroes to help the men in keeping the fire from spreading to the entire town. The town certainly had a narrow escape. On August 10, 1901 construction of a new building was started, it had two store rooms on the first floor and a dwelling apartment on the second. On January 16,1903 William Bond received the mirrors and counters for the saloon he was about to open here. When this picture was taken in 1907 the Bond House was operated by Robert Measures. In 1917 it became John Setar’s Hotel, 1926 Joseph Hydro’s Bar, 1933 Mary Hydro’s Bar, 1974 Donnie McGorry’s Bar, 1979 Smokey Hunsicker’s Bar & Grill, 1988 Jack Staivichi’s Restaurant, and in 1992 Nesquehoning postman John F. Kennedy purchased the property. The stone wall to the left of this building encircled Nesquehoning’s first graveyard; it was St. Patrick’s Cemetery

Many years ago when coal was first discovered here, the company only had sale for large size coal, the smaller size coal had no value so it was discarded. There were mountains of this refuse dumped between Nesquehoning and Hauto. Two and one-half million tons of this refuse was piled up each year. Disposal room in the comparatively narrow valley was a pressing problem and gave rise to unsightly clum banks, evident in many mining localities, but larger in this valley than elsewhere because of the condition encountered in the mining operation and the necessity of removing so much refuse in order to get at the coal. As they found uses for smaller size coal, many Company’s over the years dug up these piles and removed the coal they wanted, each thinking they removed all the useable coal. In 1943 J.H.Pierce built this breaker to reclaim these coal banks again. The breaker was shut down, July l959 and on November 19,1959 it was demolished with the use of 40 sticks of dynamite. In 1992, Panther Creek Partners, built an electric generating plant in Nesquehoning and dug up these mountains of culm for one last time, removing the smallest size coal, even the dust was burned in their furnaces. The miners were never paid for the coal in these culm banks. They had to dig 3,000 lbs. and got paid for 2,000 lbs. because the other thousand pounds was considered useless and ended up in these banks. Little did they know, the coal they throw away would be used to light the streets and homes of their great, great, great grandchildren, and many other people would benefit from all their hard work 165 years ago.

When your in the strip mining business, you dig big holes and need big trucks to haul all that dirt, rock and coal. These model AC chain drive Mack trucks were used by the Fauzio brothers of Nesquehoning. These trucks came from Colorado where they were used to build the Boulder Dam (renamed Hoover Dam in 1947). After the dam was completed the trucks were brought to Nesquehoning and modified for use in strip mining operations. People in the picture are, from left Paul Fauzio, Frank “Patty” Fauzio, James Fauzio and his daughter Rosemarie. The Joseph Fauzio family consisted of five sons and three daughters. The father and the sons had worked at the Lehigh Navigation Coal Company operation as hourly employees until the early 1930’s, when the family purchased stripping and hauling equipment from two failing contractors, William Rousch and Joseph Petrosky. The fortunes of the family then steadily improved, as Fauzio Stripping and Hauling Contractors prospered. The brothers divided the responsibilities of running the family business. James headed the company. Frank (Patty) was in charge of operations, Bill, the oldest, supervised the shop where the stripping and hauling equipment was repaired. Patsy and Paul carried out various duties. Rose Fauzio, their mother, was a dominant influence in the business, but Joseph, their father, never took an active interest. The family business continued to grow and it was the largest stripping contractor working for Lehigh Navigation Coal Company when it ceased mining operations in 1954. Because the Fauzio Brothers had invested millions of dollars in stripping and hauling equipment over the years, it had a large stake in the welfare of mining operations in the Panther Valley. Accordingly, after the Lehigh Navigation Coal Company had been closed for approximately six months in 1954, James and Frank were happy to join with Parton and Crane to organize the Panther Valley Coal Company to operate the Lansford Colliery (including the Nesquehoning Mines and Strippings) under lease from the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. When the Panther Valley Coal Company was acquired by the Coaldale Mining Company, the Fauzio Brothers continued to perform contract stripping work for these companies until each company terminated its lease. The Coaldale Mining Company was the last lessee. It ceased to operate the mining property at Coaldale on February 1960. At that time the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company entered into an agreement with the Fauzio Brothers, then operating under the name of Greenwood Stripping Corporation, to lease all of the Company’s anthracite properties. The new lessee constructed a modern coal preparation plant, the Greenwood Breaker, on the site of the old Tamaqua Breaker. This lease was designed ultimately to realize the net carrying value of the anthracite properties, $4,000,000, to Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. The Greenwood Stripping Corporation continued to lease the anthracite properties until May 16, 1966, when it bought the properties for $1,476,723.The Fauzio family then owned the coal lands and continued to produce coal from the various strippings, principally the Forty Foot and Mammoth Stripping, until 1974. At that time, Fauzio interests sold the entire anthracite property to the Bethlehem Mining Corporation, a subsidiary of Bethlehem Steel Company, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The Fauzio family thus played a significant role in the history of the once famous Old Company’s Lehigh.

Hell’s Kitchen #28 around 1917. As early coal seekers stripped down the forests in a frenzied search for coal and sudden wealth, they gave the Nesquehoning Valley another name, “Hell’s Kitchen.” And for good reason. In the summer, the sun beat down unmercifully on the mountainsides and flats with bake oven temperatures not equaled elsewhere in the area. There are many different coal veins, ranging in thickness, from one foot to over fifty feet. Some were given names such as Mammoth, Primrose and Orchard; while others were referred to by their thickness, such as the seven-foot, 28-foot and the 40-foot veins, that is what the #28 refers to in the picture. The 28 foot vein ran east and west for a distance of five miles. It was estimated that there was enough coal on one level to last fifty years without sinking deeper. In the early years, slopes, tunnels and shafts were dug by hand and the miners worked hundreds of feet underground. With the invention of large excavating equipment, a new type of mining started at Nesquehoning called, surface, open pit or more commonly called strip mining. Although strip mining required less manpower, the cost of drilling and blasting, cost of explosives and the removal of millions of tons of dirt and rock called overburden made this type of mining expensive. In a normal year, two and one-half million cubic yards of overburden was removed to produce 625,000 tons of coal. In the picture you will notice two types of cars. The cars on the bottom are being loaded with coal; they were appropriately called coal cars. They were pushed to the breaker for processing, by little steam engines called lokies. The large steam shovel is loading cars with overburden. These cars were called side dumpers. The rail road tracks were run close to the edge of a ravine where they would dump their load over the bank. As the ravine would be filled the tracks were moved closer to the edge. One of these dump sites sometimes called spoil banks, was south of Lemon Hill, now called Ridge St. At one time it was a beautiful hollow, with pine and spruce trees, and a stream, three feet deep and twenty feet wide, where the Indians would get a drink and the Indian woman washed their clothes. If the Indians could now see the destruction of this spot they would surely go on the warpath. The large steam shovel in this picture came from Panama, where it was used to dig the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal took seven years to dig. Area miners said that they dig the equivalent of a Panama Canal every year. They said it should be remembered in addition to this that the Panama Canal is being dug in the open sunlight while the vast majority of work that we do is in dark, narrow passages far below ground and materiel has to be transported greater distances and hoisted from 300 to 3,000 feet. Pete Coniglio of Nesquehoning was one of the last men to operate one of these “real steam shovels.”

This picture was taken at Nesquehoning’s # 1 tunnel around the turn of the century. The first deep mine ever dug in the United States was at Nesquehoning’s Room Run Gap, now known as the Wash Shanty Hill. The veins of coal at Nesquehoning were so steeply pitched the digging of drifts; tunnels and shafts were needed to remove the black wealth. Because of the thick, steeply pitching seams, much of the development work of driving haulageways and chutes was done through solid rock below the coal seams. This was called the “breast and pillar” method. Pennsylvania Dutch were the first miners, but with the problems encountered at Nesquehoning, experienced miners were needed. Welsh, English and Irish men were summoned to Nesquehoning, they were skilled miners, and although they knew little about the problems of the Nesquehoning anthracite fields, they worked out many basic mining methods that were used up until the mines closed on Dec. 31, 1957. The coal from Nesquehoning had the distinction of being the highest quality anthracite coal ever found, not only in the Panther Valley, or in Pennsylvania but the entire world. When the government bought coal, it was tested and had to meet certain standards. The government always bought coal from the Nesquehoning mines; even other coal companies would buy coal from Nesquehoning to mix with their coal, so it would pass the governments tests. Many coal dealers demanded that the coal they received come from the mines at Room Run. It is said the term “black diamonds” was first used when a Philadelphia coal dealer described coal from Nesquehoning’s Room Run mines. He said “when shoveled it has the sound of glass and it sparkles like black diamonds.”

In 1946 the local young men had been home from the war for a year and were collecting their “52-20” money and enjoying the good life. However, they got bored rather quickly. They needed something to do. In October, a group of Nesquehoning sportsmen met to plan ways to raise money to buy bleachers for the Nesquehoning High School football stadium. Out of that meeting the idea of a semi-pro football team was born. And what a team it was! The Nesquehoning Hurricanes, as they were named, quickly gained a reputation as being one of the most rugged and aggressive squads ever to take to the gridiron. Savage-like tackling by the fast-breaking Hurricane front wall and speedy running by the backs on a variety of mysterious plays literally drove the opponents into the turf and dirt of the stadium. They played three years, 1946-47-48. With a record of 29 wins, two losses and a tie, the Hurricanes had carved a niche in football history that has never been, and probably never will be equaled. During the Hurricanes three seasons, they racked up 769 points but gave up only 96 points. Their opponents were shut out in more than half the games (18), and in three others opponents, only generated a safety (2 points). No opponent ever scored more than 14 points in a game against the smothering Hurricane defense. The final game of the 1948 season was the last game ever played by the Nesquehoning Hurricanes. At Nesquehoning stadium the Hurricanes faced the Allentown Buccaneers of the Pennsylvania Pro League. That was the Hurricanes finest hour as they defeated the Buccaneers 27-14 in what many say was the best game ever played on a local gridiron. Following the close of the 1948 season, representatives of Rider College offered full scholarships to team members who wanted to play collegiate football. Nine members of the Hurricanes accepted and played four years of football against top ranked college teams. Incidentally after the former Hurricanes graduated, Rider College dropped football! This is a picture of the original team in 1946. 1st row from left to right- Harold Billig – Joe Macalush – Andy Rose – Milan Troiani – Pete Slivka – Jake Maurer – Zello Davis – Paul Valusek – Schmick Cerimele – Danny Kinn. 2nd row – Mike Mikovich – Mike Collura – George Slivka – Ed Watkins – Slim Evanko – Jack Drigan – Joe Pancoe – Billy McCullian – George Kusko – Ray Bonner – John “Flash”Mulligan – Wash Polohovich. 3rd row – Ben Turrano – Chip Koval – Frank Tessitore – Herky Tomacek – Joe Ouly – Angelo “Bearcat” Malaska – Ed Becker – Stanley “Froggy” Zaba – Jack Jones – Paul Zuk – Billy Stickler – Dick Kuzma – Sam Kutalek – Bill Bincarowsky and Mike Bonner.

This is a picture of the East End school building located on East Center St. It was built in 1890 by contractor Herman Reiber at a cost of $6,904.00, and was used as a school until 1957. After a hundred years the building still stands and is an example of the quality and workmanship of the skilled craftsmen a century ago. In 1890 teachers were paid $31.50 per month. Families in those days were very large, eight, ten, and even more children in a family were not uncommon. When school opened Sept 1907, there were 733 children enrolled and 43 pupils reported to high school. The largest number of students in one room was 74 and the smallest was 18. In 1909 and an eight room addition was added to the front of this building. The first class to graduate 12 years of school was May 30,1908, there were 7 students. A.E.Wagner Ph.D. was supervising principal of Nesquehoning schools in the early 1900’s. When he came here he said, “teachers are the ones who make good schools, there is much in skilful organization and management, but the spirit, individuality, initiative, and willingness to work of the teachers make the school, and when schools are good, weak teachers are the exception. Children are taught a great many things not necessary for them to know, and they are not properly grounded in things that are essential. Children on leaving school have accumulated a wide variety of information which helps them but little, if at all, toward making a living or being of service to anyone. The ability to read intelligently, manipulate figures accurately and rapidly, write a legible letter correct in form and punctuation, with all words properly spelled, history and geography should be learned during the first six school years. This is termed a common school education.” In 1913 he implemented his new plan. In the seventh year of school, children were put in three groups. The first were boys who would likely go to work in the mines. They were taught - mine circulars, first aid to the injured, mine law, mine measurements, geology and mining machinery. The second group are those who would likely go to work in the silk mill. Their courses were - the silk industry, first aid, factory regulations and manual training. The third group are those who will likely go the high school and college. Girls were also taught domestic science and all boys will take shop work in wood and the mechanical drawing. If you wanted to complete high school in three years instead of four, you could do so by going to an eight week summer session each year, you also needed an average of over 85 per cent. Mr. Wagner left Nesquehoning in 1914 to take a position at Ohio University.

In the late 1940’s Mary Rose Coniglio operated a roadside stand at the bottom of the Broad Mountain and in 1950 at the age of thirty she opened her restaurant at 168 E. Catawissa St. She sold ice cream and candy and her menu was made up of the usual items, the most popular were her pizza at 15 cents per slice and hoagies at 35 cents each. Her luncheonette became a favorite hang out for the kids of Nesquehoning. She saw them go from bobby socks and poodle skirts in the 50’s to the bell-bottoms and mini skirts of the 60’s. As seen in this picture there was a counter with stools, where you could sit and enjoy your CMP or banana split. She also had six tables, two pinball’s and a jukebox that started out playing songs by the Shirelles and Bill Haley & the Comets to the Rolling Stones and Beatles in the 60’s, to the Eagles, Deep Purple and even disco music in the 70's. On January 11, 1978 she put the closed sign in her window for the last time, also closing a chapter in the History of Nesquehoning.

Glen Onoko is a scenic glen located in the northeast corner of Nesquehoning. The ravine is the site of several beautiful waterfalls that descend over 900 feet. Onoko Falls is the highest at 80 feet. Chameleon Falls named for the wide variety of colors emanating from the spray and foam surrounding the falls are 50 feet high, surrounded by cliffs and rhododendron. Cave Falls are also 50 feet high. Terrace Falls, Pulpit Rocks, Duel Vista, Rainbow Cascades are some of the other sights at the Glen. Around 1870, the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company landscaped the Glen and opened a depot. This major undertaking included rustic staircases, railings, bridges and at one point steps were cut into a giant fallen hemlock tree. At the entrance of the scenic ravine were beautiful terraces, fountains, a dance pavilion, swings, picnic tables and rustic love seat benches for the romantic at heart. In 1874, 25,000 tourists visited the Glen, and by the early 1880’s, Glen Onoko became a world famous attraction with over 100,000 tourists in 1882.

The marriage customs of the Indians were peculiar. When a young Indian decided that he wanted a particular girl his mother went to her home with a leg of venison or bear meat, telling the girl that her son killed it. If the girl and her family were willing that the marriage should take place the girl’s mother would take a fish to the young man’s home with a piece of the venison and say, “This is from my daughter who prepared it.” After this they worked and fished together for days, during which the happy lover wooed his dusky mate of the forest, each being dressed in robes of feathers and the skins of wild animals. When the Indian had no mother, he himself told the girl of his wish; and if she was willing she went with him. They remained married only as long as they pleased each other. The man would leave rather than quarrel with his squaw. He would usually not remain away long enough to have his neighbors notice his absence. He seldom returned, if he left the second time. The aged were always favored by the young who sought their company and advice. In travel the older ones always went on horseback or in a canoe. They assembled annually, that the aged ones might tell to the grandchildren the things that had happened to the tribe, and of the treaties that had been made. No spot in all the County is better known or more admired than Glen Onoko. Nature has made other falls that are higher and more awe inspiring; but rare are the waterfalls that are as romantically beautiful. The name is Indian in its origin; and, as the storytellers say, thereby hangs a tale. The top of Locust Mountain, to the rear of Nesquehoning, is capped with large rocks composed of smoothly worn pebbles and fine-grained sand cemented together so firmly that the storms and frosts of centuries have striven in vain in trying to separate them. In the topmost one is the basin wherein Onoko’s mother ground her corn; nearby is another wherein with heated stones she warmed her water, or broiled her wild turkey, fish, or venison. In the Nesquehoning Valley below wild roamed the happy Opachee. Often he climbed the rocky ravines to the top of Broad Mountain, where he angled the silvery trout from its sand bottomed springs, or followed the sparkling waters in their descent as they gurgled and tumbled over the moss-covered boulders, and then all of a sudden dash themselves into spray as they leaped into the abyss of the then nameless falls. Here at these falls Opachee sat one day radiant but silent. Fleet of foot had he been that afternoon. Eye more keen or hand more true had never sent an arrow more swift or sure than that which felled the deer he was carrying down the mountain. Now he had the venison he was looking for. Tomorrow his mother should pass up the narrow valley bearing some of it to Onoko’s folks, who would smoke a pipe of peace; and then, indeed, what joy might not be his. In his bright visions he saw himself and Onoko sport through love’s sunny morning, and live happily through life’s golden afternoon. Alas, the illusions of hope! It might not be. No delicious venison, prepared by the hand of his betrothed, was ever to be returned. No happy rambles for fish to the sand springs, no blissful journeys with his chosen sweetheart to the glorious mountain tops to gather its sun-kissed berries. Her parents refused and Onoko was heartbroken. In her wild anguish, to live without her brave, Opachee, seemed agonizing, hopeless, and useless. Headlong she plunged over the cliff; her mangled body was found on the rocks at its bottom; though Onoko is gone, her name still clings to the falls and the Glen, and blends sweetly and sadly with its wildness and beauty. The spirit of the Indian maiden haunts this tragic site. At precisely 9:15 on any sunshiny morning, the restless ghost of Onoko makes a misty appearance as a white-veiled lady gliding across the silvery surface.

Meed’s Memorial Methodist Church is one of Nesquehoning’s most familiar and historic buildings. Most people refer to it as the “Town Clock.” In the early years many people didn’t have clocks and few had pocket watches. For over a hundred years the familiar ring of the clocks bell left generations of Nesquehoning’s residents know what time it was. Many miners of old were forgiven by their supervisors for being late when they offered the explanation that this clock had stopped. Built in 1889 at a cost of $16,855.76, Meed’s Memorial Methodist Church replaced their first Church that was built in 1864. The Church possesses a valuable Estey Organ. An appeal was made to the Andrew Carnegie Fund for a donation to the purchase of the organ. The reply was that if the congregation could raise one-half of the cost, the Carnegie Fund would equal it. Mr. Meed who had formerly resided in Nesquehoning happened to pass through town while the excavation for the building of the church was being done. He inquired what was being built. When he heard that it was a Methodist Church, he was delighted and expressed a desire to assist financially. He contributed several thousand dollars, and as an appreciation of his generosity the church bears his name. There are several streams that flow through Nesquehoning . At first wooden bridges were built over these streams and later the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company sent workers to replace the bridges with stone arches. The wall the children are leaning against is the exit of one of these stone arches. These stone arches are still under the town. This rare photo of Meed’s Memorial Methodist Church was taken around 1895. Ladies Aid of Meeds Church held a band concert and social on July 23, 1912, the money was used to purchase a new bell. The next time you pass Meed’s Memorial Methodist Church take notice to the flowerpot in the front yard, it’s the old bell.