If These Walls Could Talk: Huling Hotel and Pack Horse Inn

By Raymond C. Wilson

My wife's grandfather, John Jay Hackenberger, purchased the former Huling Hotel & Pack Horse Inn located in Amity Hall, Watts Township, Perry County, Pennsylvania in 1927. Hackenberger (who had an engineering degree from Dickinson College) sought to preserve the crumbling stone with plaster. He later removed some of the plaster to expose the date '1648' and old wall. The date was placed on the wall in memory of Marquis Lars Huling, the first white trader here. The purpose of this book is to tell the story of this old house and some of its inhabitants -- members of the Huling, Reutter, Cox, and Hackenberger families who called it their home for nearly 250 years (1735-1980).

• Language: English
• Publisher: Raymond C. Wilson
• Release date: Oct 4, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005742225

Raymond C. Wilson

Raymond C. Wilson is a military historian, filmmaker, and amateur genealogist. During his military career as an enlisted soldier, warrant officer, and commissioned officer in the U.S. Army for twenty-one years, Wilson served in a number of interesting assignments both stateside and overseas. He had the honor of serving as Administrative Assistant to Brigadier General George S. Patton (son of famed WWII general) at the Armor School; Administrative Assistant to General of the Army Omar Nelson Bradley at the Pentagon; and Military Assistant to the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army at the Pentagon. In 1984, Wilson was nominated by the U.S. Army Adjutant General Branch to serve as a White House Fellow in Washington, D.C. While on active duty, Wilson authored numerous Army regulations as well as articles for professional journals including 1775 (Adjutant General Corps Regimental Association magazine), Program Manager (Journal of the Defense Systems Management College), and Army Trainer magazine. He also wrote, directed, and produced three training films for Army-wide distribution. He is an associate member of the Military Writers Society of America. Following his retirement from the U.S. Army in 1992, Wilson made a career change to the education field. He served as Vice President of Admissions and Development at Florida Air Academy; Vice President of Admissions and Community Relations at Oak Ridge Military Academy; Adjunct Professor of Corresponding Studies at U.S. Army Command and General Staff College; and Senior Academic Advisor at Eastern Florida State College. While working at Florida Air Academy, Wilson wrote articles for several popular publications including the Vincent Curtis Educational Register and the South Florida Parenting Magazine. At Oak Ridge Military Academy, Wilson co-wrote and co-directed two teen reality shows that appeared on national television (Nickelodeon & ABC Family Channel). As an Adjunct Professor at U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Wilson taught effective communications and military history for eighteen years. At Eastern Florida State College, Wilson wrote, directed, and produced a documentary entitled "Wounded Warriors - Their Struggle for Independence" for the Chi Nu chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. Since retiring from Eastern Florida State College, Wilson has devoted countless hours working on book manuscripts.

Book preview

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK

Huling Hotel and Pack Horse Inn

Written by

RAYMOND C. WILSON

Author of:

Out of Necessity

Commander in Chief

Martyr of the Race Course

Custer’s Luck Has Run Out

The Men Who Saved West Point

Pennsylvania Bucktails: Civil War Sharpshooters

Wounded Warriors - Their Struggle for Independence

European Royal Bloodlines of the American Presidents

Pass in Review - Military School Celebrities (Volume One)

Pass in Review - Military School Celebrities (Volume Two)

Pass in Review - Military School Celebrities (Volume Three)

Pass in Review - Military School Celebrities (Volume Four)

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK

Huling Hotel and Pack Horse Inn

Published by Raymond C. Wilson at Smashwords

Copyright 2021 Raymond C. Wilson

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Cover artwork by Fay Christine Hackenberger Null

Table of Contents

Introduction

Huling Family

Marquis Jean Paul Frederick de Hulingues

Marquis Lars Hans Huling

Lars Huling

Marquis Lars Huling

Marcus Lauren Huling

Marcus Lars Hulings

Marcus Hulings

Thomas Hulings

David Watts Hulings

Reutter Family

Dr. Daniel Nelson Ludwig Reutter

Dr. George Nutz Reutter

Dr. Harry Daniel Reutter

Cox Family

McClellan Cox

Effie Marie (Cox) Bistline

Hackenberger Family

John Jay Hackenberger

Fay Christine (Hackenberger) Null

Mumma Family

Robert Mumma, Sr.

Robert Mumma, Jr.

Bibliography

About Raymond C. Wilson

Introduction

My wife’s grandfather, John Jay Hackenberger, purchased the former Huling Hotel & Pack Horse Inn and Amity farm located in Amity Hall, Watts Township, Perry County, Pennsylvania from McClellan Cox in 1927. Hackenberger (who had an engineering degree from Dickinson College) sought to preserve the crumbling stone with plaster. He later removed some of the plaster to expose the date (1648) and old wall. The date was placed on the wall in memory of Marquis Lars Huling, the first white trader here.

According to information gathered by Pennsylvania Research Historians, Huling Hotel & Pack Horse Inn was built on the site of a large Native American village near their watering place. It is where Marquis Lars Huling first traded for beaver skins in 1648.

Large Native American village near watering place

The population of the large Native American settlement that previously inhabited Huling’s property is unknown. A large chestnut tree in the center of Amity Farm (which was 7 feet in diameter and 400 years old according to Patric Duncan who counted the tree rings) was originally left standing to mark the site of the Native American longhouse. This ancient tree was later removed by John Jay Hackenberger in 1928.

Cutaway showing interior of a longhouse

History tells us that many of the Native American homes in the local area were constructed of bark. Longhouses could be 200 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 20 feet high. Inside the longhouse, raised platforms created a second story, which was used for sleeping space. Mats and wood screens divided the longhouse into