Valley Girl Views: The 1883 [Fowler] Map Of Watsontown

Panoramic Sketch Of Watsontown 1883

While I am fortunate to have had access to high quality digital scans of many of our local town's maps by Fowler, for Watsontown all I have are a few photos. The Library of Congress has a photocopy of the map, but it is not available to view online. An original hangs in the Tavern Restaurant in State College, and I believe the Watsontown Historical Society may also have a copy.

Thomas Mortimer Fowler sketched over 400 maps in his life time, more than 200 of locations in Pennsylvania. His maps were a marvel, complete with three-dimensional renderings of every building, bridge and horse-drawn wagon in town. Many of our local towns, including Milton, Watsontown, and Mifflinburg, were sketched by Fowler. Read more about Fowler, and find more of his local maps, here: https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-fowler-maps-of-central-pennsylvania.html

As with the Muncy Map, Fowler's name does not appear on the Watsontown map. It still is almost certainly his work.

Without access to a high quality scan, these images are the best I can do, for now. Eventually I hope to add better photos.

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1. Public school

2. Post Office, Philip Shay

3. West Branch Steam Fire Company

4. Hope Hose Co.

5. Ferry Landing, John Bly

6. PRR Station

7. [Reformed Church?]

8. Union Church

9. Baptist Church

10. Methodist Church

11. Mansion House

12. Cooner's Hotel

13. Pardee, Snyder & Co.

14. Watsontown Planing Mill

15. McKean Bros. Steam Tannery

16. A. Pardee & Sons Bill Mill

17. Furniture & Table Factory

18. Watsontown Boot & Shoe

19. Flouring Mill, J McFarland

20. Cigar Factory, DA Engle

21. Brick Yard, CM Hester

22. Brick Yard , Leiser & Higbee

23. Seed Warehouse, JA Everitt

24. Blacksmith & Wagon Shop, Lewis Hample

25. Blacksmith Shop , CA Shafer

26. Carriage Shop, John Troxell

27. Carpet Weaving, Charles Rader

28. The Cemetery

Left, bottom of the map

On the far right, bottom, is the Pardee Bill Mill, along the canal, full of logs.

#1 The Public School (8th St School)

Beginning at the center, bottom, of the map. The river, labeled WEST BR, with an island, and then the canal above it.

#5 The Ferry Landing, John Bly

#6 Pardee Bill Mill

#4 Hope Hose Fire Co.

Today, 2nd Street is Brimmer Avenue.

Read more about the Ferry Here:

https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2020/10/when-watsontown-had-ferry.html

And More about the Canal Here:

https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2020/10/when-susquehanna-valley-had-canal-west.html

#16 Pardee & Sons Bill Mill

Pardee's Saw Mill. — In 1866 Ario Pardee erected a large saw mill in the southern part of the town at a cost of seventy-five thousand dollars. Mr. Pardee is interested in the mining of coal at Hazelton, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, and the product of the mill consisted principally of prop timbers for use in the mines. He also owned a large tract of undeveloped land in Union county, from which the timber for this mill was derived. This establishment, the largest of its kind in the county, gave employment to a number of men, and was a most important feature of the manufacturing interests of the borough until its destruction by fire, April 17, 1882 - Bells History, 1891 (The Saw mill is also pictured on the 1887 Sanborn Fire Map, so it was apparently rebuilt)

Here's a look of the same view on the Sanborn fire map 4 years later:

Second Street, today, is Brimmer Ave - connecting to the River Bridge

In this photo, the Pardee Saw mill is on the left, and the canal bridge can be seen on the right.

At the top left, the Presbyterian, & Union (Today, Lutheran) Churches face each other

#4, on second street, is Hope Hose Fire Co

#11 The Mansion House

#18 Watsontown Boot & Show

#20 Cigar Factory, D.A. Engle

#12 (top right) Cooners Hotel, Today the Watson Inn

#27 appears to be to the right, above the Watsontown Boot & Shoe. It's possible I am not reading this number correctly, but I believe it is #27 Charles Rader's Carpet Shop. However, I could not find #25 nor #26 on the map, so it could be any of those three.

Read More About Cooners Here:

https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2020/04/from-cooner-hotel-to-watson-inn.html

#4 Hope Hose Fire Company

One of the inserts in the bottom of the map is the Hope Hose Hook & Ladder Sketch

Hope Hose Fire Company, No. 1, was organized on the 11th of June,

1878; the frame building at the foot of Second street occupied by this

company was erected in 1875.

Read more about the Watsontown Fire Companies Here

https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2020/05/hope-hose-where-watsontown-fire-co-began.html

Moving up to the center of town, The Churches

#7 The Presbyterian Church

In 1883, the Lutheran Church was #8 The Union Church.

#9 The Baptist church, to the left, shown here would be the original frame church building. It was torn down in 1897, and rebuilt as a brick church.

#3 - West Branch Fire Company

June, 1874, the borough purchased a new No. 3 Silsby Steamer, and the two hose carts. This was in charge of the West Branch Fire Co, and housed in the borough engine house on Fifth street, where with the other fire fighting paraphernalia it remains to-day.

Top left of the map

#15, The McKean Steam Brothers Tannery

#19 Flouring Mill, J McFarland

#14 Watsontown Planing Mill

#13 Pardee, Snyder & Co

The Watsontown Steam Tannery was originally established in 1866 by Hollopeter & Wagner. The plant subsequently passed to Miller, Faust & Caldwell, who were succeeded in 1879 by W. T. and C. B. McKean. The works were destroyed by fire on the 28th of July, 1881, but have been rebuilt, and the present capacity is four hundred fifty hides per week. Cutler, Foster & Company are the present proprietors. - Bells History, 1891

#14 Watsontown Planing Mill

#13 Pardee, Snyder & Co

#28 Cemetery (top right)

Watsontown Planing Mill Co

#23. Seed Warehouse, JA Everitt

Across and slightly to the left of #23 are two small buildings we know these are the train station.

However, #6 The P.R.R. station, is shown to the right of #23. (I have no explanation for that, but if Fowler made an error here, it would be the first error found on any of his maps)

#17 The Watsontown Furniture & Table Factory

The canal runs along the bottom of this photo, with a canal boat pictured.

I can't find the numbers for the Brick Yards - #21 & #22, but they would be on the north side of the railroad tracks, at the far right

On the 1887 Sanborn Fire Map, shown below, the building to the right is the Watsontown Nail Works, with the log pond to the left, followed by the Watsontown Novelty Works (Today this area is the Watsontown Memorial Park) and then #17 The Watsontown Table & Furniture Factory.