On May 10, 1879, Perkasie officially became a Borough when the Bucks County Court approved a petition signed by 68 village residents. To honor the anniversary, here are 10 facts about the newly created Borough, which has grown just a bit in the past 140 years.
1. The original Perkasie Borough had 116 acres. In 1898, the Borough tripled in size when the former village of Benjamin (aka Bridgetown) joined the Borough. And after a six-year fight, 80 percent of people living the Horn Tract voted to leave East Rockhill and join Perkasie Borough in 1930. Today, it has 1,711 acres.
2. Perkasie was supposed to become a Borough in 1878, and not 1879. For some unknown reason, the county court waited a year to make a final decision on Perkasie’s legal status.
3. Among the 68 petitioners, seven were Moyers, including Joseph G. Moyer and Henry G. Moyer. After the Moyer family, there were four Detweilers and three Dills on the petition. Two women – Maria Loux and Elizabeth Scholl – also signed it.
4. The post office in Blooming Glen wanted to be called “Perkasie.” However, after the North Pennsylvania Railroad agreed in 1872 to make daily stops at the Comleyville station neat the train tunnel, the post office, and train stop got the name “Perkasie” instead.
5. Perkasie’s first mayor was Joseph Hendricks, the Borough’s founder. Hendricks started buying land near the train station in 1869. Hendricks also bought the current Treasure Trove building from Samuel Hager to start his planned land development.
6. Perkasie’s first Borough Council president was Joseph G. Moyer. He later built the iconic building featured in the Saturday Evening Post.
A Victorian view of Perkasie
7. Perkasie’s first election was held inside a “public house” at the current corner of 7th and Market Streets. The Borough had two hotels in 1880.
8. In 1880, Perkasie Borough had 300 residents and it only had 13 cigar makers. Only eight residents were born outside of the United States.
9. Also in the 1880 census, the oldest person living in Perkasie Borough was Sophia Hartzell Harr, who was 77 years old in May 1880. Her son, John Harr, ran the Perkasie Hotel, which was at the center of the Borough’s social life. Today, a parking lot is where the grand hotel once stood.
10. By 1900, Perkasie Borough had grown to 1,803 residents and 318 of them worked in the cigar business.
As a bonus, here are the names of the people on the 1878 petition to form Perkasie Borough:
2 Comments
Very interesting. Awesome & informative site. Thanks for creating!
Love the picture and information. Samuel Althouse is my husband’s great grandfather he signed the petition