South Williamsport, Lycoming County Pa
1950's Aerial View
1950's Aerial View
"South Williamsport" does not refer to the southern part of the town of Williamsport, but rather, to a completely separate borough. South Williamsport is located in northeast Lycoming County and lies on the south side of the Susquehanna River from Williamsport.
1854 Lithograph "View Of Williamsport Pa" [Looking East]
Showing both the covered bridge crossing the river, and a boat on the west branch canal.
The covered bridge here connected Williamsport to "Rocktown". Rocktown later became part of what is South Williamsport today.
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PHOTO ALBUMS
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PHOTO ALBUMS
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South Williamsport Album on Facebook
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FAMOUS RESIDENTS
& VISITORS
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It used to be, you could hear lions roar in Williamsport. Jared Reaser, a circus entertainer, lived at 1936 West Fourth street in, Newberry Pa. His house had two stone lions on the porch steps. Reaser also kept his 6 lionesses in the rear of his home, later moving them to cages outside the borough of South Williamsport, near Mountain Beach Park. More about Prince El Kigordo:
The Biking Photographer
The Movie Mickey, starring Harry Connic Jr, was filmed in South Williamsport in 2001, with scenes from the 2001 LLWS included in the film. Based on a book by John Grisham, the movie is about "A widowed lawyer wanted by the IRS assumes a new identity and signs his now-too-old son up for one more year of Little League. However, this may have been a mistake, as his son's dominance captures the media's attention as his team careens toward the Little League World Series."
Coincidentally, the same year the movie was filmed, it was found that one of the Little League players of the Mid-Atlantic team was not 12 years old, but rather 14. The scandal may have been what caused the movie to not be released in theaters. It is available on VHS and DVD.
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RIPPED FROM THE HEADLINES
Murders, Mayhem, & More
On Wednesday, October 21, 1970, after a respectful challenge to school policy by the Student Council, School Policy at South Williamsport was officially changed, allowing girls to wear pants to school.
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SAWMILL, FACTORIES
& Other Industries
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Log Booms On the River - The View From South Williamsport
The Lutcher & Moore saw mill began in 1867, when Henry Lutcher partnered with John Waltman, building a sawmill on leased land on the south side of the Market Street Bridge in "Rocktown" - today South Williamsport. G. Bedell Moore replaced Waltman in the venture around 1869. The mill was destroyed by a fire April 16th 1871. A new, larger, mill was rebuilt and operated until the 1889 flood. Lutcher and Moore however, had moved their operation to Texas around 1877, renting the South Williamsport Mill out to others for several years. It had been sitting empty for some time before the 1889 flood carried most of the building away. The land the sawmill occupied later became Lutcher & Moore Park.
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FRATERNITIES, CLUBS
& OTHER ORGANIZATIONS
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FRATERNITIES, CLUBS
& OTHER ORGANIZATIONS
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South Williamsport City Band
The Citizens Band of South Williamsport formed in 1921, erecting a bandstand at Lutcher & Moore Park in time for Memorial Day. The following year the band set out to erect a monument to the Veterans of War. The monument was completed and presented to the community on Memorial Day 1924.
Other Bands:
American Legion Band of South Side (c. 1936) – Mike Bernardi, Director
Garrett Cochran Post Legion Band (1922) – Michael Bernardi, Director
Garrett Cochran Post Jr. Drum and Bugle Corps (1941)
Independent Drum Corps of South Williamsport (1901)
Roal P. Steinbacher Post Drum and Bugle Corps (c. 1941)
South Side Band (1896)
South Side Cornet Band (1886)
South Side Citizens Band (1920) – Charles Noll, Director
South Williamsport Independent Fire Company Band (1917)
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PARADES
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The Mummers Parade
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MONUMENTS & MARKERS
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War Monument at Lutcher & Moore Park, South Williamsport
This photo shows Market Street and second avenue, and the St. John's Church.
(Moved to Lions Park in 1950)
The original location of the War Monument in South Williamsport was at Lutcher & Moore Park. In 1950, the monument was moved to Lions field, when the new Market Street bridge was being constructed. The Monument was re-dedicated at it's new location in 1950.
A piece from the twin towers
The 9/11 Memorial in South Williamsport
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ATHLETICS
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Little League began in Williamsport, and the Little League World Series was held there from 1947-1958 . In 1959, the LLWS moved to South Williamsport.
"Originally called Howard J. Lamade Memorial Field, the location and baselines for the field were first laid out for the 1959 the Little League Baseball® World Series and consisted of simply four bases surrounded by wooden bleachers borrowed from nearby Williamsport (Pa.) Area High School. Nearly 10 years later, in 1968, Memorial Field was renamed Howard J. Lamade Stadium when the original wood and steel stands were razed, and a concrete stadium was constructed."
https://www.littleleague.org/news/howard-j-lamade-stadium-an-iconic-and-historic-summer-destination/
South Williamsport VS Milton
Football Program
November 11th 1949
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PARKS & PUBLIC SPACES
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Lutcher & Moore Park
.jpg)
Sylvan Dell Park 1895-1930, Began as a private park named Mountain Grove, in 1888.
Mountain Beach
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FLOODS, FIRES
AND OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS
AND OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS
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The flood of 1936 reached 33.57 feet at Williamsport. In South Williamsport, the water reached to Lincoln Ave from market Street, and on Bayard Street, it reached as far as Central Ave.
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MARKET STREET BRIDGE
South Side
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Toll house on the south side of the Market Street Bridge
Susquehanna Boat Club. View from Maynard Street bridge looking south.
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HOUSES, STORES
& Other Businesses
& Other Businesses
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The Building at the Corner of Riverside Dr & Maynard St
Torn Down in June of 2025
Some of the businesses that have been in the building include:
Ken Mahaffey’s confectioner shop
Keystone Apartments
Southside Sub Shop
Harrington's Ice Cream
841 Main St South Williamsport
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CHURCHES & CEMETERIES
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Messiah Lutheran Church
South Williamsport Pa
Read the history of the church in:
A History of Messiah's Evangelical Lutheran Church, South Williamsport, Penna., 1868-1943
by Weidman, Helen Breese, PhD.
South Williamsport Pa
Read the history of the church in:
A History of Messiah's Evangelical Lutheran Church, South Williamsport, Penna., 1868-1943
by Weidman, Helen Breese, PhD.
Rocktown Cemetery on Find A Grave
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MAPS
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Rocktown, in the 1873 Atlas of Lycoming County
"Rocktown was the area at the South end of the Market Street bridge and encompassed the present area of Church, Main, Hastings and Market Streets as far south as Central Ave and up Hagermans Run."
1950 enumeration Map Of South Williamsport
Sanborn Fire Map 1912-1950
Start in Volume 2, page 44 - which is page 108. Through Page 56
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HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS
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HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS
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History of Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, by Thomas W. Lloyd 1929, pp. 163-166.
Chapter XIII
South Williamsport Borough
On the south side of the river opposite Williamsport there lies a large and important borough which was originally a part of Armstrong Township and which extends from a point at the crossing of the Pennsylvania Railroad bridge across the river nearly up to the limits of DuBoisown borough. It has had several names during its history but is now known as South Williamsport.
The original settlements within the present borough limits were made by a colony of Germans, some of whom located on what is now known as Hagerman’s Run and others further up the river. One of the leading early settlers was Charles Allen, who came to Lycoming County and located on the "Long Reach," above Linden. He subsequently removed to the "Galloway Tract" which laid a little to the west of the present Pennsylvania Railroad bridge at the lower end of the borough. This was one of the most desirable pieces of land on the south side of the river and afterwards became one of the most productive farms in this section. Charles Allen served in the War of 1812 and was a very prominent man in his day. He was the father of the late Robert P. Allen, for many years a prominent member of the Lycoming County bar and a state senator from this district.
That part of South Williamsport just across the Market Street bridge was early known as Rocktown by reason of the character of the soil in the neighborhood and the village above was known as "Bootstown," from which the old Shaffer Indian path led across the mountain into the valleys along the Bald Eagle range on the other side. Among the early settlers in the Hagerman’s Run gap was Jacob Weise, who built an oil mill near the present site of the old Koch’s brewery. At this time considerable flax was raised in Lycoming County and there were several mills built for expressing linseed oil after the flax had served its purpose for carding and spinning.
The origin of the name Bootstown is said to have been as follows: That portion of what is now the upper end of South Williamsport was originally settled by a colony of Germans from Neuberg on the Rhine and they wished to give the name of Neuberg to the settlement. But upon one occasion a boy of the colony stole a pair of boots and, in those days, nicknames were far more common than now. The place, therefore, received the appellation of "Bootstown," and by that name it continued to be known until the incorporation of the borough.
Like Williamsport itself, all of the south side continued to sleep quietly, never dreaming of its great possibilities until that master genius of progress, Peter Herdic, came to Williamsport. He rapidly turned the little village of Williamsport into a city and by the simple touch of his magic wand converted the south side into a prosperous and self-sustaining community. He built the Williamsport nail mill for making charcoal "blooms," he originated the South Williamsport Land Company, he threw a bridge across the river at Maynard Street at a cost of $40,000 and made it toll free, he had a postoffice established and gave it the name of Burlingame, he sold lots on easy terms and then the south side began to prosper as it had never prospered before. Saw mills, planing mills, furniture factories sprang up almost in a night and from that time until the present the south side has enjoyed a large measure of prosperity.
One of the earlier improvements before the advent of Herdic was the building of a large saw mill at the mouth of Hagerman’s Run which was operated for a number of years by the late Henry Lutcher and G. Bedell Moore under the firm name of Lutcher and Moore, with great financial success. After the timber was exhausted in this section Lutcher and Moore transferred their lumber operations to the state of Texas, where they were again wonderfully successful. The Lutcher and Moore Park in South Williamsport, which occupies the site of the old mill, was donated by them to the borough.
The incorporation of the town as a borough had been constantly agitated after the building of the Maynard Street bridge and finally on November 29, 1886, it was duly incorporated by an order of court and at the ensuing election the late Daniel Steck was chosen as its first burgess. It has grown rapidly in size since then until now it is second to Jersey Shore in population and ranks next to Montoursville in extent of territory. It is a very important adjunct to the city of Williamsport and possesses many advantages not only as a business, but as a residential, section. At the time of the great flood of 1889, when all the bridges on the river were washed away, South Williamsport became the gateway to Williamsport into which to bring supplies. The Montgomery bridge was the key to the whole Pennsylvania Railroad system at that time and when it was rebuilt trains could be run over the Linden branch through South Williamsport and indeed all the way into Pittsburgh without again crossing the river. A station was established in South Williamsport, a rope ferry erected on the site of the washed-out Market Street bridge and for several months freight and all kinds of supplies were brought into Williamsport by way of the Linden branch and the rope ferry. Passengers were also landed in the same way.
There are several important industries in South Williamsport, among them the Stuempfle Brick Works; the Delvan Block Company, E. C. Williams and S. V. Brown, makers of building blocks; Keystone Friction Hinge Company, V. C. Luppert, president; and Keystone Furniture Company, V. C. Luppert president and secretary, Elizabeth T. Luppert vice president and treasurer; Imperial Band Instrument Company, V. C. Luppert president, C. H. Mink treasurer; Williamsport Milk Products Company, makers of Hurr’s ice cream, John H. Hurr president, L. M. Hanswork vice president and J. L. Miller secretary and treasurer; Keystone Silk Mills, weavers of broad silk, C. H. Drinkwater president. Mr. Drinkwater was formerly connected with the Holmes silk mill and upon leaving that established the plant in South Williamsport which has proved so successful. South Williamsport has one bank, The Bank of South Williamsport.
All of these industries are in a flourishing condition and employ a large number of men and women at good wages.
In the year 1920 South Williamsport had a population of 4,341.
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Armstrong Township
From the South Williamsport Area Historical Collection
"Armstrong is the only township in Lycoming County that has had two boroughs carved from it. DuBoistown was the first of the two boroughs established. Located at the mouth of Mosquito Creek, it is a tract of land once owned by Samuel Boone, brother of Hawkins Boone, a martyred Indian fighter and cousin of the famous Daniel Boone.
Andrew Culbertson owned 172 acres adjoining Boone’s property and established a gristmill, sawmill, and a home for his family within the boundaries of present-day DuBoistown.
A small town started to develop. In 1856, John DuBois purchased land within the boundaries of the area and laid out a town that he christened “DuBoistown.” Thirty years later, he founded another town, this time in Clearfield County, which he just called “DuBois.” DuBoistown was incorporated as a borough Oct. 14, 1878, despite opposition from residents of Armstrong Township. C.C. Brown was chosen the first burgess, or mayor, of DuBoistown, but he moved shortly after his selection. George Foulkrod assumed the duties. "
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