The Town Of Sunbury, As It Was Laid Out In June of 1772

In June & July of 1772, John Lukens and William Maclay laid out the town of Sunbury PA.

This is the map they created.

"So rapidly did the people come that it soon became necessary to change from a backwoods settlement to that of a town. Therefore, on the 1 6th of June, 1772, the Governor and the Council issued an order to Surveyor General Lukens to repair to Fort Augusta, and, with the assistance of William Maclay, lay out a town for the county of Northumberland, to be called by the name of Sunbury, at the most commodious place between the forks of the river and the mouth of Shamokin Creek. The
streets were arranged on the plan of Philadelphia, that is, at right angles. Here and there, in choice parts of the town, lots were specially reserved for the Proprietaries. The streets were named suggestively of their surroundings as follows : Deer, Fawn, Elderberry, Hurtleberry, Pokeberry, Blackberry, etc.

Among the lot holders are the names of the men who soon became prominent in the affairs of the county in the beginning of its existence, although many of those who at a later period
were prominent settled across the river in the more aristocratic town of Northumberland. Several of the lot holders of Sunbury were prominent as pioneers in the surrounding valleys. Such was Elias Yungman, from Berks county, whose brother-in-law was the Sheriff of Berks county, and whose grandson married Amelia, the granddaughter of Colonel Henry Antes. His lot was No. 26, on Shamokin street." -  On the Frontier With Colonel Ante by Edwin MacMinn, 1900

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Below I have split the map into sections, so the names on each plot are more readable.  In each section, the Susquehanna River is at the bottom, making the top of the photo the West, and the bottom East.  

Between Cranberry & Dewberry Streets

Between Dewberry & Shamokin Street

Between Shamokin Street & Blackberry Street

Between Blackberry & Pokeberry Streets

Between Poakberry & Hurtleberry Streets

Between Hurtleberry & Elderberry Streets

Hurtleberry was an early term for Huckleberries.

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1866

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For more Stories & History Of Sunbury:
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2020/07/sunbury-pennsylvania.html

And for more stories and history from nearby towns:
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/p/history.html

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The Maclay-Wolverton House as it appears in 1885

Built in 1774

"In the County of Northumberland, laid out in June & July 1772, in pursuance of an order from His Honor the Governor, dated the 16th day of June 1772.

Survv's and laid out by JNO. LUKENS S, Gl And WM MACLAY D.S.

Sunbury, originally the Indian town of Shamokin, was laid out as the county seat in 1772. Because of Sunbury’s location at the forks of the Susquehanna River, by the beginning of the nineteenth century it was the hub of Northumberland County. The seven original townships in Northumberland County, also created in 1772, included Bald Eagle, Buffalo, Penn’s, Turbot, Augusta, Wyoming, and Muncy. The seven townships were divided and subdivided into new townships and counties as areas grew in population and the need for local government increased. Sunbury remains the county seat in Northumberland County. Of the seven original townships, only Turbot and Augusta were located in what is now Northumberland County. As these large sections of land began to develop and more settlers moved into the region, pressure for localized government was exerted until new communities were formed.

Northumberland County was created on March 21, 1772, from parts of Berks, Bedford, Cumberland, Lancaster and Northampton Counties. It probably was named for the English county of the same name. Sunbury, the county seat was laid out in 1772, incorporated as a borough on March 24, 1797, and became a city in 1921.