Member Newsletter. Also inside. Winters Heritage House Museum. In this Newsletter

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1 Winters Heritage House Museum P.O. Box East High St., Elizabethtown, PA (717) Return Service Requested US Postage Paid Non-profit Org. Elizabethtown, PA Permit No. 1 Winters Heritage House Museum Member Newsletter Published by the Elizabethtown Preservation Associates, Inc. June 2014 In this Newsletter Summer Camp for little kids! Summer Camp for older kids! Image Collection Drive Help us get our Past Together! WWII Blimp sails off to Media, PA! Also inside Fun Findings in the Seibert Library Dear Elizabeth Our Historic Advice Column The Committees of Winters Heritage House.and more!

2 Dear Elizabeth Our Historic Advice Column The spirit of our town founder, Elizabeth Hughes (residing here from 1750 to 1760), offers her advice to our generation. If you have any advice needs from or a history question for Elizabeth, please send them to Dear Elizabeth, c/o Winters Heritage House Museum s ; winters-hh@embarqmail.com Dear Elizabeth, I know styles have changed quite a bit over the years, and wearing less clothing is more acceptable now. However, it seems you Colonials were so very over-dressed. While I think it s awesome that you were so style conscious, weren t you hot and uncomfortable in all those skirts and coats and hats? Dear Bella, Bella Phation Out here in the (now Elizabethtown) wilderness, Barnabus and I are very rarely treated with a chance to view any of the latest clothing trends. Indeed, if our native friends come past for a visit, we are simply pleased if they are decently covered. It is truly wonderous what one gets used to, and Barnabus discussing a pile of furs with a nearly naked Conoy hardly gives me reason to blush anymore. I cannot speak for the folks living in large cities such as Lancaster who are more often found to follow the fashions from Paris. But, out here, we dress very simply. It is common to own just two outfits. One of wool, of course, for winter wear, and one of linen, which doubles as your winter undergarments and as your summer articles. If you find us overly-attired, I suspect you are not imagining the daily events one is exposed to. Shorts and flip flops would never do if you chance upon a bear or rattlesnake, or find you must reshoe your horse, or needs hike 4 miles to your neighbor through briars and rhododendrons, all of which occur with regularity. Linen is a most excellent fabric for a hot day, and once dampened can feel lovely and cool. I ponder your generation s desire for synthetic fabrics. Wrapping yourself up in suffocating plastics just does seem to fly in the face of common sense. Tis no wonder you have drifted to the more native-like clothing selections. Yours truly, Elizabeth Dear Elizabeth, I have heard it said that, in your day, women often died when their skirts caught on fire while cooking at the hearth. This was supposedly the second leading cause of death amongst women. (The first being death during childbirth.) Women were practically burning up right and left, and no one thought anything about it! This sounds awful, and I was wondering if you ve ever had any close calls of this nature. Dear Bonnie, Bonnie Blazes How curious! Let me rush to assure you, that this is not the problem you have been lead to believe it to have been. Certainly somewhere, I suppose, some lazy child bride may have fallen asleep in the ashes and found herself a- flame, but truly anyone with a nose and a care for her skirts would not come to such an end! Your worries may be laid to rest. I remind you that our clothing is made of natural materials; linen and wool, most often. These fabrics tend to smolder rather than burn outright. Try it with a scrap of something, and you will see how difficult it is to catch one up in a flame. Now picture a dutiful wife working over her fire. She smells a bit of smoldering wool, and simply steps on the edge of her skirt to extinguish the char. Certainly she is dismayed at the prospect of having to mend her skirts, but she does emerge from her cooking alive and well. It is your modern fabrics, once again, that are the culprits of this misconception. Synthetics and treated fabrics surely will erupt into flame if exposed to fire. Your generation has seen this and then assumes all fabrics behave so. My advice would be for your era to change to more sensibly made attire. However, as common sense seems amazingly undeveloped in your time period, I suppose it would be best if I advise you, instead, to refrain from cooking.

3 Lost Kobel, Nissley and Ober Graves from 1789 and 1823 are Found By Dale Good Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan (What God does is done well). So reads the last line on Michael Kobel s gravestone, discovered this spring along side an old Nissley-Whisler farm boundary line. The Seibert Library, alerted to the discovery pulled out its cemetery records. An undated account read Kobel Stone (Paul Moyer Farm, off 743 just W. of Elizabethtown). There were five or six stones in this plot originally, all the others have disappeared. Etched in German script on the stone: Starb den 19 Feb'r 1823 (Died on 19 Feb. 1823). Subsequent recovery efforts have revealed 7-8 additional stones. All apparently dating from the 1700 s and early 1800 s. The family names include Kobel, Nissley and Ober. Sadly, the older stones writing has been badly eroded, making the researching more challenging. Michael s grave may have been the last added to the cemetery. Almost lost to time, the cemetery does not appear in early 1864, 1875 and 1899 detailed atlases of Elizabethtown and West Donegal Township. Research by the Seibert Library reveals the site was more or less sitting on the boundary line between lands patented by Benjamin Whisler in 1766, to the east, and lands patented by Hans (John) Nissley in 1754, to the west. In 1783, Benjamin Whisler acquired from Hans (John) Nissley and his wife Mary 112+ acres of their land to the immediate west of the cemetery 1. It appears the cemetery site was then surrounded by Whisler Family lands when Michael Kobel was buried in Two of the remaining stones, very worn but with partially discernable etchings read: H. N., 1789 and M.N. We believe the location of the site and the date are strong evidence that these stones belong to Hans (John) Nissley and his wife Mary. This Hans, who died in 1789, built and lived in the small stone house, next to the Masonic Village at 561 Bainbridge St 3 & 4. The graves are currently located on private property, in an area where they are exposed to inadvertent damage. Proceedings are underway to relocate the graves to an area that can be more suitably cared for. In our next newsletter we will reveal more about the biographies of the Elizabethtown pioneers buried there: Michael Kobel ( ), who purchased three of Barnabas Hughes original town lots where the Moose Lodge is located today. He was a tavern keeper and early postmaster. Hans Nissley, (d. 1789) who was a Mennonite Minister and early miller. Some of their stories are recorded in Richard K. MacMaster's book "Elizabethtown, The First Three Generations". 1 Lancaster Co. Land Patents AA-8-91 and A , Lancaster County Deed X Lancaster Co. Deeds: G-3-180, B and UU-298. Further research is needed to verify this. 3 Elizabethtown-The First Three Centuries, Richard MacMaster, Masthof Press, Page Lancaster County Will: Y Translation of Head Stone Zum Unden-en von (In memory of) Michael Kobel Starb den 19 Feb'r 1823 (Died on 19 Feb. 1823) Sein alter war 59 Jahr, 5 monet und 2 tage (He was aged 59 years, 5 months and 2 days) The line later revealed ( Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan What God does is done well) was underground until recently, when the stone and grave began to undergo the relocation process.

4 Image Drive 2014 History is Still Happening Help us preserve it! Many people don t realize how poorly our modern-era photographs are aging, especially those taken after Please consider; if we want images from the 1900s to survive another years, now is the time to start an effort to preserve them. The Seibert Library of Winters Heritage House Museum is putting together a drive to gather meaningful photos of Elizabethtown up through the 1980s. We are interested in increasing our files on the Elizabethtown area s people, buildings, and events. Image source will be noted in our archives. The first photo drive will go on during July of How to Participate Make an appointment with the museum to bring your photos in for review. We will work with you to select and scan your best photos. The originals will be given back to you. In exchange for being able to add a scan of your photo to our archives, we will also provide you with a digital copy. Please note that computers are not the best place to store photos, either. However, it is our hope to build an image database that can be responsibly cared for, protected and transferred as technology advances.

5 Blimp goes on Display at the PA Veterans Museum in Media, Pennsylvania. Several years ago, our multi-talented volunteer, Harvey Eshelman, donated a very detailed model that he had made of a US Navy WWII blimp to the Winters Heritage House Museum. Harvey served in the Navy Airship (blimp) Corps during WWII. To this day, very few people realize how valuable our ASW (anti-submarine warfare) airship fleet was to securing both coasts of the US from submarine attacks. Many US merchant ships (over 400!) were attacked and sunk by the German U-boats during the war along our own coastline. Harvey explains that the German subs were so close to our beaches, that for evening entertainment the German soldiers would sit on the decks of their surfaced sub (the subs had to surface nightly to recharge their batteries) and watch the activity on the Coney Island boardwalk. Blimps were quiet and could sail slowly at a low altitude, making them excellent tools for locating enemy submarines. During the war, only one Navy Airship, K-ship K-74, was shot down on July 8, All but one crewmember were rescued. Harvey s model is of this very airship to commemorate that service. Make an Appointment for Image Preservation Call: Winters Heritage House Museum We are open Wed., Thurs., Fri., 9:30am to 3:00pm, or leave a message other hours. Or Winters-HH@embarqmail.com Appointments will be made, to the best of our ability, to accommodate your schedule. Photo source will be noted in our archives. Types of photos we are looking for; My appointment is: Photos of Elizabethtown that include meaningful buildings, citizens, or events. (such as of the fair or parades, etc.) from early through Be prepared to tell us as much as you can about the photo. Written information is helpful. Harvey spent a good deal of his Navy time on the blimp landing crew, a very dangerous job. As a blimp came in to land, teams of men would race out on either side to secure the long ropes that dangled from the nose and sides of the blimp. His tales of men being tangled in these trailing lines are especially harrowing. Often, blimp landings required several approaches before the correct altitude could be obtained for the landing crew to secure the trailing lines. It was not uncommon during an aborted landing for one of the snaking lines to Bring a flash drive so that we can save a digital copy of your photo for you. Original photos will be returned to you. If you have photos already in a digital format, please consider sharing them with us, as well. tangle around an unfortunate landing crew member and either give him a nasty burn (called a skinning) or to wrap around his leg in such a way that he became airborn as the blimp lifted off. Apparently, every blimp landing field had a pond at the end of the runway for the hopeful purpose of allowing someone tangled in the trailing lines a place to drop. Harvey s model blimp has been on display at the Winters Heritage House Museum. However, we felt that an even more appropriate home for this beautifully made model would be at the new Pennsylvania Veterans Museum in Media, Pennsylvania. The curators there are in agreement with us and have taken the blimp to display in their halls. We have sent along several of Harvey s recorded Navy Airship Corps stories, as well! Harvey Eshelman s handmade model of the Navy Airship K -74 Please visit to learn more about the PA Veterans Museum.

6 The Committees of the Winters Heritage House One of the most enjoyable ways to help out at the Winters Heritage House is to become involved with of one of its many supporting committees. Some committees are based on an historic skill, such as the Quilting, Textile, and Herb Garden Committees. These committees give the museum a pool of talent to use for educational programming, and often create a financial benefit, as well. Others, such as the Property, Library and Oral History Committees provide key components of the museum s mission; Protecting the properties and history of Elizabethtown, and keeping them available to the community. Over the next few newsletters, we will explore the Committees of Winters Heritage House Museum. The Quilting Committee This committee is one of our busiest groups. They generally meet in the evenings on the second and third Mondays of each month. This group has many lively, fun members who range in skill from beginner to accomplished quilters. They support the museum through an annual May Quilt Exhibit, by making items to be sold in the museum store and during the November Holiday Craft Show. Over the years, they have completed and sold many quilts with the proceeds going to the Winters Heritage House Museum. Currently they have a quilt for purchase that was created by Dottie Leban. Dottie was a talented artist and a long time member of the quilting committee. When she passed away several years ago, the committee purchased and finished her latest quilt. The quilt hangs for sale in the museum store. Property Committee Every great institution has its secret society. Winters Heritage House has the Property Committee. Perhaps as opposite to the Quilting Committee as one can get, the Property Committee has only a few members who probably do not even know who they are. At times the group has been down to just a few, but it works best when the numbers swell. Meetings are held impromptu, in basements and attics, or both. There is often pointing and head scratching involved, and logs are commonly discussed. No one has counted the members, and we ll probably never know what their population is. So, who are these mystery people? What do they do? This committee gets together Secret Property Committee member, Jerry Lorsen, helps paint the museum exterior. to decide how best to manage the grounds and buildings, helps troubleshoot issues within the buildings, and slaps on some fresh paint when needed. Rather than accruing financial support, they seem to have a spending problem, though spending wisely is at their heart. The museum may not let on that you are considered a Property Committee member, but if you ve been seen here holding a paint scraper or a rake, or discussing the movement of a paper pineapple (our AC indicator), chances are you re in!

7 Fun Findings in the Seibert Library Aberdeen Mills A Local Gem This interesting history of Aberdeen Mills was written by Mabel Eshelman 78 years ago. If you have never visited Aberdeen Mills, we encourage you to take a short drive out to view this lovely historic Elizabethtown treasure. Simply head out of town on North Market St., and just after the last light, bear right on Mill Road. Follow Mill Road to Aberdeen Mills. (Don t be tempted by the Aberdeen Rd. turn!) You can also access the mill from the Conewago Recreational Trail (2.5 km along), using the North Market street entrance. Calling ahead may secure you a formal tour!! History of Aberdeen Mills In 1774 Ulrich Sherr built a mill along the Conewago Creek about three miles from Elizabethtown. It was built of stone. Thirty-six years ago [1896] the mill burned but the original stones still remain and are standing in the present structure. A small stone bearing these letters and dates is found on the one side of the mill near the roof U. S. B. S The initials stand for the Sheers, Ulrich and his wife Barbara. The one dwelling house now standing and made of stone was built before 1774, according to the present occupants. The date is so much worn off of the marker stone that it is not legible. Long ago it was one and one-half stories high but has since been enlarged, as can easily be seen in the arrangement of the stones at the side of the house. The other stone dwelling house was probably built since It is quite evident where a former door in this second house has since been closed with stones. This door was wide enough for the barrels of whiskey to be rolled in and out. Near these two dwelling houses in a shed in which there is a well now, but which was used as a distillery in the days that this was not prohibited by law. Several hundred feet from the houses are the remains of a small cemetery in which are three tombstones, the writing [?] on which can be deciphered. One is of the man who built the mill Ulrich Sherr, born September 29, 1722 and died April 13, 1777; the second, now broken in two or three pieces, is that of his wife,--barbara Sherr, born in 1723 and died in 1806; and the third is that of Heinrich Sherr, probably a brother [sic], born in 1786 and died in The mill passed from the Sherr family to the Redseckers and then in 1890 to Jacob Ressler. The present owner is A. L. Gantz and it is almost eighteen years now that he has owned it. It was usually called after the name of the owner, but since the railroad has a station, Aberdeen, not very far away, it has been called Aberdeen Mills. There is no machinery to make the power in the mill other than the millrace being forced over a wheel fifteen and a half feet in diameter and three feet in width. In the mill is an old French stone burr for grinding which is used at the present time for making cornmeal and whole wheat flour. One cannot visit Aberdeen without being impressed with the beauties of nature along the stream, -- the water, the trees, and rocks. In some rocks holes resembling hollow buckets have been hollowed out by means of the action of the water and small stones. Because of Keep an Eye on Elizabethtown s Second Fridays!! August 8, 2014 Winters Heritage House Museum will participate in the MSIB Art Walk, from 5-9 on Friday August 8 and 11-5 on Saturday, August 9. Several members from the museum s artist co-op will join other local artists for an evening of art-touring entertainment. (free) September 12, 2014 the museum will also be a stop on the MSIBorganized Wine Walk. Each of the six locations featured on the walk will provide part of a dinner and a paired wine from one of three local vineyards. (tickets required) For further information on these events, please MarketStreetIB@gmail.com

8 Don t Forget Your Benefits! Your museum membership benefits allow you a free tour for yourself, and possibly several guests (depending on your membership level.) What a fun outing for you and a friend or two! Also, check to see if you are eligible for a summer camp discount, or sponsor a camper if you aren t using your discount. Library research is always free for members! Museum Happenings Great Scot We re Famous! Winters Heritage House Museum will be featured on an Irish television show put together by Waddell Media of the United Kingdom. The show, Paul and Nick s Big Food Trip, features two chefs who travel from village to village within the UK, preparing local foods. This month they want to follow the trail of Ulster- Scots emigrants to the United States, and visit some Colonial American Scotch-Irish sites. Winters Heritage House museum is on the agenda, as is Donegal Presbyterian Church in Mount Joy. The chefs will visit some local food producers and will then prepare a dinner for several Ulster-Scots descendants. The portion of the show featuring the museum will focus on the 1760 Scotch Irish log rooms, the 1847 open hearth kitchen, Wayne Fettro s Donegal to Donegal mural (pictured below), and the raised bed garden. Filming occurred on Monday, June 9. The show s air date will be January of You can visit the Waddell Media website at If you re interested in watching the show once it s completed, please the museum (winters-hh@embarqmail.com) and we will send you the link and password information. Museum and Seibert Library Hours Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 9am to 3pm, and by appointment. Please call ahead if you plan to do research in our library, so we can be sure a librarian is on hand. Phone: Winters-HH@embarqmail.com Website: Summer History Day Camp June 25, 26, & 27 Children ages 7-16 are invited to enroll in the Winters Heritage House Museum s Summer History Day Camp program. The younger crew of kids, ages 7-12, can enjoy up to two days of activities, on June 25 & 26. This camp, titled Town Tradesmen, will explore the Elizabethtown community for modern and historic trades. Each morning, children will be apprenticed at several participating merchants, and learn more about their community as they do so. Games and fun will follow in the afternoons. Older children, ages can spend one day involved in a single intensive historic skill. This year, the Tradesman Camp will focus on traditional wool processing. Campers will spend the morning learning how to select, clean and prepare a fleece for spinning. The afternoon, they will spend weaving on looms. To register for either camp, please contact the museum Adult Chair Caning Workshop A workshop that will teach adult students all the intricacies of chair caning is being put together now, and will run November 1, 2 and 3 from 9am to 5pm, each day. Students will develop a thorough understanding of this craft by the completion of the course. Walter Turpening, of Kingsport, Tennessee, will travel to the area to instruct the class. Walter uses 100% cotton cord to cane, which allows for a great deal of color and pattern to be incorporated into the design. The 3-day class cost is $450, with the first $200 due at sign-up. To register for the class, please contact the museum, , or Donna Bucher, To register for classes or events, please contact the museum by calling (717)