Matamoras to Shohola:: A Journey Through Time
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About this ebook
Matthew M. Osterberg
Historian Matthew M. Osterberg, author of Arcadia's Matamoras to Shohola and Port Jervis, has used historical photographs from the Minisink Valley Historical Society and private collectors to compile this history of a commercial endeavor that helped transform a nation.
Read more from Matthew M. Osterberg
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Matamoras to Shohola: - Matthew M. Osterberg
paper.
INTRODUCTION
Matamoras to Shohola: A Journey Through Time is a photographic history, depicting life from 1860 to 1960 in six of the 13 Pike County rural communities: Westfall (Millrift), Milford Township, Milford Borough, Dingman Township, Shohola (Pond Eddy), and Matamoras, whose ancestors settled the ancient and glacial Minisink Valley in the early 1700s. For eons of geological time, the beautiful Delaware River, which forms a natural border between Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey, has continued to touch the shores along Matamoras to Shohola and has effected the culture and economy of its proud residents.
The bountiful Delaware River fertilized the lowlands for farming and allowed the commercial transportation of timber and bluestone for the buildings and sidewalks of many major cities. The railroad brought visitors from New York City and Philadelphia to the grand hotels and comfortable boardinghouses situated along the tranquil streams and scenic foothills of the Pocono Mountains in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Tourists arrived by train via Port Jervis, New York, and Pond Eddy/Shohola, Pennsylvania, and were picked up by stagecoaches and transported to their tourist destinations.
Although the Great Depression closed the doors of many popular boardinghouses and luxurious hotels, the prosperity occurring at the close of World War I and World War II encouraged urban families to build summer cottages and permanent homes in Pike County.
Looking at old photographs to see how some things have changed and how other things have stayed the same thrilled me. Time and trends alter certain architectural features, but, fortunately, a considerable number of old buildings remain standing (Jay’s Handy Corner in Matamoras and the Emily Cottage in Milford), while tragically many exist no more (Indian Point in Dingman Township and the original Evergreen Lodge in Westfall). It is essential that the history of any community is preserved, and one way to accomplish this important goal is to show people how a community lived in the past. Matamoras to Shohola: A Journey Through Time is a part of this commitment to historical preservation and the enhancement of an economy dependent on tourism.
This book’s presentation of rare photographs provides a vision of life in small communities when the world was a larger place in which to live and people moved at a slower pace. Turn these historic pages and learn how a few communities developed in a little corner of one of the original colonies and came to play a significant role in America as it emerged from 1860 to 1960 to become the greatest power in the world. Enjoy pictures of magnificent homesteads, busy farms, cascading waterfalls, enterprising merchants, and famous people, and realize the enduring contributions made by the Dutch, German, and French immigrants.
While Pike County has a rich heritage of historical landmarks and natural resources, it is people and organizations that have made these communities special. Photographs of early schoolhouses (Quicktown School in Westfall and the Matamoras High School), country churches (St. Jacobi’s Lutheran Church in Shohola and St. John’s Episcopal Church in Milford), festive parades (Milford’s Fourth of July Firemen’s Parade), and civic groups (Matamoras’s Christmas Basket) give us a clear understanding of how vital educational, religious, and civic responsibility have always been in these close communities.
As these interesting pages are turned, the reader will see how Matamoras to Shohola is a unique region comprised of wonderful neighborhoods, each distinctly representing the era of its growth (the De Behrle Cottage in Milford and children playing on a pony cart in Westfall). This journey through time takes us back to the past but in many photographs confirms the present. I was successful in gathering photographs of hotels and restaurants still in operation (Rohmans in Shohola and the Dimmick Inn in Milford), as well as changing street and water views.
In this book, I will tell the story of one hundred years of intense economic transformations, beginning with the horse and carriage deliveries (horse and buggy on Raymondskill) and moving toward the surrender of the railroad (Pond Eddy train station) and the invention of the automobile (cruising down Broad Street). I’ll conclude with a helicopter bringing Pres. John F. Kennedy to Milford Township (landing at Grey Towers) as Matamoras to Shohola grew and America came to lead the world.
Hopefully, this book will visually inspire the thoughtful reader with a lasting awareness that all communities must preserve their history in order to ensure the future. The next time you decide to discard your old photographs and memorabilia, contact the author by mail at 107 East High Street, Milford, Pennsylvania 18337. Who knows, your photographs might just be the reason for another journey through time.
Matthew M. Osterberg
June 1998
One
TOURISM
Some years after serving in the Civil War, John H. McCarty, whose grandfather had been