With the plans for the building of the Midland Pennsylvania Railroad came a number of so-called “investors” who sought money-making opportunities in the Lykens Valley. At a meeting held in Mabel, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, in April 1911, several of those investors, proposed plans for the valley which included specialized truck farming,clearing of trees for lumber, and the planting of apple trees and alfalfa, – and they agreed to petition the legislature to proved an improved state highway through the valley. Were the residents of the Lykens Valley being conned? Or, were the capitalists who descended on the valley honest brokers who had the best interests of the residents as the central selling point in their sales pitches?
The following article appeared in the Harrisburg Telegraph, 12 April 1911.
BOARD OF TRADE NOTES PROSPERITY IN LYKENS VALLEY
Large Tract of Land Has Been Secured for Development
SEEK BETTER ROAD
Committees Named to Represent Dauphin and Schuylkill
ALFAFA AND FRUIT
Recommended to the Farmers as the Best Things to Plant
By Robert F. Gorman
Mabel, Pennsylvania, 12 April — The interest manifested in the developments being made through the beautiful Lykens Valley can be conceived only by attending a meeting of the Lykens Valley Board of Trade, which is affiliated with the Midland Pennsylvania Railroad Company and the Lykens Valley Development Company and its subsidiary companies.
The regular monthly meeting of the Board was held here Monday. In the afternoon the business session was held at the hotel here and in the evening the public meeting was held in St. John’s Lutheran -Reformed Church.
The afternoon session was taken up by the reports of committees and general business. The Board of Trade at the meeting made a new move in improvements and now it is endeavoring to have a State road built through the valley. The members of the board, who live in every part of the forty-five mile valley, had great difficulty getting to this place because of the almost impossible conditions of the main road through the valley. When many of the members arrive here their ire was aroused and immediately there was talk of petitioning the State to improve the road.
During the business meeting the road question came up for discussion and the result was that a resolution was passed asking the State Legislature to amend the Sproul road bill by providing by providing for building and maintaining of a road through the valley. in order to make the request more impressive committees were named to meet the members of the House and Senate who represent the district in which the Lykens Valley runs. The railroad is in both Dauphin and Schuylkill counties.
The Dauphin Committee is composed of Joseph F. Romberger, Berrysburg, chairman; Jacob Hartman, Berrysburg‘; Aaron Daniels, Berrysburg; and Harry Smith, Gratz.
The Schuylkill Committee named is H. J. Klinger, Chairman; C. A. Kessler, Gordon; H. J. Bolich, A. H. Yoder, Mabel. The committee will arrange to meet their representatives and Senators in Harrisburg either the end of this week or the beginning of next.
Buys 300 Acre Plot
Each of the committees reported progress in the work assigned last month at the meeting in Berrysburg. It was announced that the development company had secured a 300 acre tract of mountain land from L. A. Yoder. The tract is located near this place. About 20 acres is covered with pine and this in the near future will be cut. The other acres are covered with various kinds of trees and these will be cleared also, When this done fruit trees of all kinds will be planted. Of the bug plot about 20 acres will be utilized for truck farming. Prior to the meeting, the newly acquired tract was inspected by F. H. Fassett, of the State Agricultural Department; Joseph Laudenslager, lumber expert, of Gratz; D. W. Guise, superintendent of the demonstration farm in the valley; George H. Wells, of Philadelphia, and a number of other men.
During the afternoon meeting a resolution on the death of Mr. Keller, a member of the Board, who died about two weeks ago, was drafted by as appointed committee composed of Messrs. Miller, Kessler and Daniel. A copy of the resolution was ordered sent to the family of the deceased.
Evening Meeting
In St. John’s Lutheran-Reformed Church, about a mile from here, the public meeting in the evening was held. From the church only one or two houses can be seen yet the edifice was filled to its utmost with valley citizens. From points as far west as Berrysburg about twenty-five miles distant, came the public-spirited citizens. The grounds in front of the church were covered with teams, as driving is the only means of getting from one part of the valley to another.
The meeting was called to order by C. H. Kessler, president of the local Board of Trade. During the evening several selections were given by the Weishample Corney Band and the church choir, and a recitation was given by Miss Lottie Bewey, The invocation, address of welcome and the benediction were given by Rev. C. D. Kressley. The response to the address of welcome was made by Robert H. Sexton, of Philadelphia.
F. H. Fasset, of the State Department of Agriculture, and Walter A. Stebbins, secretary of the New Jersey Alfalfa Land Company, Inc., were the principal speakers of the evening. Mr. Stebbins spoke of the great profits in alfalfa, and how much more fattening it is than other fodders. He said:
“Alfalfa is a leguminous or pod plant and belongs to the same family as the ordinary garden bean or pea, hence its strong feeding qualities. It is estimated that good timothy hay contains two and eight-tenths per cent of digestible protein, alfalfa eleven percent, and the best wheat bran twelve percent. On this basis, a ton of alfalfa hay is almost equal in feeding value to a ton of wheat bran and is more valuable than three tons of timothy hay. Protein is the quality in feed which makes meat and muscle.”
On Alfalfa
The speaker then traced the life of alfalfa and told how it worked its way to this country. In the United States it was first raised in California, but it is gradually working eastward, and he explained that in certain parts of the Lykens Valley the soil is particularly adapted to the growth of it. Mr. Stebins exhibited an alfalfa plant and some alfalfa hay and it was eagerly viewed by the people. The root of the plant acts as a fertilizer and concerning this he said:
“It is estimated by the Agricultural Department of the State of New York that ground planted and allowed to remain in alfalfa two or three years will be rejuvenated and fertilized to an extent equivalent to $35 worth of commercial fertilizer per acre.”
Alfalfa roots, he showed, go down into the ground to a distance of from ten to forty feet, thus being able to get the best that the soil provides to carry to the edible part of the plant. One seeding for alfalfa, he stated, would keep the field producing two and three crops each year for about seven years.
Following Mr. Stebbins came Mr. Fassett. He gave a general talk on tree-planting and the care of trees and urged the farmers of the valley to raise apples. He showed the higher profits in apples over other fruits on the commercial markets.
“Fight the Western fruit growers,” he said. “This is the section of the country nature provided for the growing of apples and the success of the Western growers was only attained after hard work. But we have something here which they can never get and that is quality.”
The speaker told the farmers to get all the nitrogen worked into the soil possible and then introduced them to tree trimming. He said that he was glad to learn that a cold storage plant was to be established in the valley. After commenting on this he said he hoped that the farmers of the Lykens Valley would pack their barrels and boxes with apples honestly, having the same kind on the bottom as on the top. Continuing, he informed his auditors that Pennsylvania had a black eye in the commercial markets because of the manner in which many of the apples are packed.
After Mr. Fassett had closed his talk, short addresses were made by George B. Wells, of Philadelphia; N. D. Yoder, Joseph F. Romberger, Valentine Quigel and D. W. Guise. Mr. Wells told the people of the co-operation in the valley and said that the manner in which people were interesting themselves in the developments was very gratifying to the men who started the development. He invited the people, too, if any of them wanted to start an industry, to ask the assistance of the development company, and if the proposition was a good one the development company would finance it.
Finley Acker There
All yesterday was taken up in visiting various parts of the valley. Early yesterday morning the party was augmented by the presence of Finley Acker, of Philadelphia. The woodlands and lowlands were visited and several farms were inspected. Several hours were spent on the demonstration farm. The tract of land has been put in good condition during the past month and the old buildings which were on it have been removed and very soon these will be replaced with new ones. The farm will be divided into a number of parts and on each of these parts a certain product will be grown. Each plot will be given a name and the alfalfa section will be called the Stebbins section; the orchard will be known as the Fassett section; and the potato field will be called the Martin section in honor of A. L. Martin, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture.
In speaking of the valley yesterday, Mr. Acker siad:
“I am interested in the valley more each trip and everything is progressing nicely. The people are working hard and very soon where will be some marked improvements about here. At present we are working out a plan by which we can place sheep, goats and hogs in the fruit orchards to eat the shoots which may arise.”
The trip through the valley was made in two automobiles loaned by Jacob Hartman and Mr. Kebaugh, of Berrysburg.
The next meeting of the Board of Trade will be held at Gratz, 9 May [1911] and at this meeting addresses will be made by some prominent men from New York, Philadelphia and New Jersey cities.
Accompanying the party yesterday and Monday was William Blake Upperman, a representative of the New York World.
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