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Cameron Colliery - Glen Burn Coal Mining

The Early History Of Shamokin

Shamokin From Mount Carmel Road by James Fuller Queen, 1851
Source: Library of Congress

Although the old Reading road, opened in 1770  to  connect  the incipient  settlements  of  the  upper  Susquehanna  with  the  Schuylkill Valley,  passed  through  the  present  limits  of  Shamokin  borough,  this locality  was  for  many  years  practically  unmarked  by  the  influences  of  civilization.

There were numerous varieties of  timber,  but  its  value  was  trifling and  a  long  period  elapsed  before  the  waters  of  Shamokin  creek  at  this  part of  its  course  were  made  to  subserve  a  useful  purpose  in  furnishing  the  power for  a  single  saw  mill;  and  there  was  coal  in  practically  inexhaustible  quantities, but  its  existence  was  scarcely  known  and  the  time  had  not  yet  arrived for  its  profitable  development.  And when,  at  length,  the  miners  pick  and shovel  began  the  work  of  prospecting,  the  immediate  results  were  not  such as  to  encourage  sanguine  expectations. 

The  railroad  and  mining  industries of  this  country  had  not  yet  passed  the  experimental  stage,  and  it  was  not until  adequate  transportation  facilities  had  been  provided,  with  the  growth of  a  demand  for  the  distinctive  product  of  the  region,  that  the  way  was opened  for  its  unrestricted  development. 

Shamokin, PA – circa 1851

Then  followed  a  rapid  influx  of population,  diverse  in  language,  nationality,  and  creed,  but  homogeneous  in the  purpose  of  lending  their  common  energies  to  the  work,  and  thus  Shamokin,  the  largest  town  in  Northumberland  county,  has  reached  its  present proportions.  It  has  sixteen  churches,  an  efficient  system  of  public  and parochial  schools,  water,  gas,  and  electric  light  companies,  three  lines  of railway,  two  banks,  and  an  ample  quota  of  stores  and  hotels,  while  the  collieries of  the  surrounding  region  and  a  variety  of  local  industrial  establishments furnish  employment  for  the  population

Click the links below to learn more about Shamokin’s early history

Title and Deed Transfers In The Early Years

The Story of Jesse Major (Shamokin Traded For A Horse)

The Town Plat (Early Town Layout)

Shamokin Pioneers

Shamokin In 1830

First Stores & Hotels

Early Physicians & Lawyers

Municipal Organizations & Government

The Riot of 1877

Facilities of Travel & Transportation

Early Industrial Interests

The Post Office

Shamokin’s First Banks

Water, Gas, Electric & Light

The Shamokin Board Of Trade

Secret & Other Societies

The Early Press In Shamokin

Churches

The Beginnings of Education In Shamokin