Big Spring (Pennsylvania)

Last updated
The Big Spring in Brady Township, Pennsylvania, was an important junction connecting the Great Shamokin Path and Goschgoschink Path. The Big Spring.jpg
The Big Spring in Brady Township, Pennsylvania, was an important junction connecting the Great Shamokin Path and Goschgoschink Path.

The Big Spring near Luthersburg, Brady Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, was an important camp site and trail hub for the Great Shamokin Path and the Goschgoschink Path.

The Great Shamokin Path connected the Susquehanna River with the Allegheny River, and extended across Pennsylvania from the native village Shamokin, on the Susquehanna River, to Kittanning, Pennsylvania, on the Allegheny River. The location of the Big Spring Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission Marker, dedicated December 29, 1950, is near US Route 322, on Pennsylvania Route 410, 0.5 miles (0.80 km) southwest of Luthersburg. The Big Spring was accessed by travelers after ascending the steep Anderson Creek Gorge for several miles, then turning west at what is now known as Chestnut Grove, Bloom Township, Pennsylvania.

The Goschgoschink Path, later known as Mead's Path, begins at The Big Spring and proceeds to Thunderbird Spring (Old State Road), Sandy Valley Station, north of Reynoldsville, Jefferson County, thence through the Horme Settlement and slightly north of Emerickville to Brookville; north of Clarion, to West Hickory, Pennsylvania, in Forest County and the Allegheny River. From here, travelers could journey to Fort Le Boeuf and Lake Erie.

In his report to Governor Robert Dinwiddie, George Washington made reference to a beautiful rolling country, suitable for settlement, that he had found along the waters of French Creek. In 1788, brothers John and David Mead were ready to investigate Washington's story, and left Fort Augusta, now Sunbury, Pennsylvania, to explore the far west. They journeyed up mouth of Anderson Creek and turned at Coal Hill towards camp site and crossroads at The Big Spring. From there, they continued northwest on the Goschgoschink Path to the Venango Path and the waters of French Creek. [1] On May 12, 1788, the Mead brothers founded Meadville, Pennsylvania, at the confluence of Cussewago Creek and French Creek.

During the War of 1812, Major William McCelland departed Fort Loudoun, near Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, on March 4, 1814, and marched a division of troops numbering 221 privates, three captains. five lieutenants and two ensigns along Anderson Creek to meet the Goschgoschink Path at the Big Spring. McClelland's division relieved American forces at Lake Erie and later gave a good account of themselves at the Battle of Chippewa and Battle of Lundy's Lane. [2] [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brady Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania</span> Township in Pennsylvania, United States

Brady Township is a township in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,942 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clearfield, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Clearfield is a borough and the county seat of Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census the population was 5,962 people, making it the second most populous community in Clearfield County, behind DuBois. The borough is part of the DuBois, PA Micropolitan Statistical Area, as well as the larger State College-DuBois, PA Combined Statistical Area. The settled area surrounding the borough consists of the nearby census-designated places of Hyde and Plymptonville, which combined with Clearfield have a population of approximately 8,237 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smicksburg, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Smicksburg is a borough in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 57 at the 2020 census, and it is one of the smallest incorporated boroughs in Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Reverend J. George Schmick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynoldsville, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Reynoldsville is a borough in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is 73 miles (117 km) northeast of Pittsburgh in a productive soft coal region. The population was 2,759 at the 2010 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susquehanna River</span> Major river in the Northeastern United States

The Susquehanna River is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast. At 444 miles (715 km) long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the United States. By watershed area, it is the 16th-largest river in the United States, and also the longest river in the early 21st-century continental United States without commercial boat traffic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Branch Susquehanna River</span> River in Pennsylvania, United States

The West Branch Susquehanna River is one of the two principal branches, along with the North Branch, of the Susquehanna River in the Northeastern United States. The North Branch, which rises in upstate New York, is generally regarded as the extension of the main branch, with the shorter West Branch being its principal tributary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">French Creek (Allegheny River tributary)</span> River in Pennsylvania, United States

French Creek is a tributary of the Allegheny River in northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shamokin (village)</span> Historic Native American village in Pennsylvania

Shamokin was a multi-ethnic Native American trading village on the Susquehanna River, located partially within the limits of the modern cities of Sunbury and Shamokin Dam, Pennsylvania. It should not be confused with present-day Shamokin, Pennsylvania, located to the east. The village was the focus of missionary efforts, and then was the staging area for raids on English settlements in Pennsylvania during the French and Indian War. It was burned and abandoned by the Lenape in May, 1756. A few months later, Fort Augusta was constructed on the site of the village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anderson Creek (Pennsylvania)</span> Stream in Pennsylvania, USA

Anderson Creek is a 23.6-mile-long (38.0 km) tributary of the West Branch Susquehanna River in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Shamokin Path</span>

The Great Shamokin Path was a major Native American trail in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania that ran from the native village of Shamokin along the left bank of the West Branch Susquehanna River north and then west to the Great Island. There it left the river and continued further west to Chinklacamoose and finally Kittanning on the Allegheny River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culbertson's Path</span> Native American trail in Pennsylvania, US

Culbertson's Path was a Native American trail in north central Pennsylvania in the United States, which connected the Great Island Path with the Sheshequin Path. The eastern / southern end of the path was on the West Branch Susquehanna River at what is now the village of Allenwood in Gregg Township, Union County. The northern / western end was in Old Lycoming Township just north of what is now the city of Williamsport in Lycoming County.

Fort Augusta was a stronghold in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, in the upper Susquehanna Valley from the time of the French and Indian War to the close of the American Revolution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Indian Warpath</span> Part of network of trails in eastern North America used by Native Americans

The Great Indian Warpath (GIW)—also known as the Great Indian War and Trading Path, or the Seneca Trail—was that part of the network of trails in eastern North America developed and used by Native Americans which ran through the Great Appalachian Valley. The system of footpaths extended from what is now upper New York to deep within Alabama. Various Native peoples traded and made war along the trails, including the Catawba, numerous Algonquian tribes, the Cherokee, and the Iroquois Confederacy. The British traders' name for the route was derived from combining its name among the northeastern Algonquian tribes, Mishimayagat or "Great Trail", with that of the Shawnee and Delaware, Athawominee or "Path where they go armed".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pine Creek Path</span>

The Pine Creek Path was a major Native American trail in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania that ran north along Pine Creek from the West Branch Susquehanna River near Long Island to the headwaters of the Genesee River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bald Eagle Creek Path</span>

The Bald Eagle Creek Path was a major Native American trail in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania that ran from the Great Island on the West Branch Susquehanna River southwest to what is now the village of Frankstown on the Frankstown Branch Juniata River. The path ran from Clinton County southwest through Centre County and a small part of Blair County to its southern end in Blair County. It was part of a "Warriors Path", an important connector between paths leading to New York and the Six Nations of the Iroquois and the Ohio River country in the north and west, and paths leading to what are now Maryland, Virginia, and the Carolinas in the south.

Bilger's Rocks is a park in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, USA, near the town of Grampian in Bloom Township. The surrounding area is intricately laced with hills, mountains, and river valleys that generally follow the Appalachian mountain range in a northwest to southeast direction. The area of the park is located along the Allegheny section of the mountains, approximately 8 miles (13 km) southwest of the highest point on Interstate 80 east of the Mississippi River.

The Goschgoschink Path, later known as Mead's Path, begins at the junction of the Great Shamokin Path at The Big Spring near Luthersburg, Brady Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania. The path then proceeds to Thunderbird Spring, Sandy Valley Station, north of Reynoldsville, Jefferson County, thence through the Horme Settlement and slightly north of Emerickville to Brookville; north of Clarion, to West Hickory, Pennsylvania, in Forest County and the Allegheny River. From here, travelers could journey to Fort Le Boeuf and Lake Erie.

Nemacolin was a hereditary chief of the Delaware Nation who helped Thomas Cresap widen a Native American path across the Allegheny Mountains to the Ohio River Valley.

The Pennsylvania State Game Lands Number 30 are Pennsylvania State Game Lands in McKean County in Pennsylvania in the United States providing hunting, bird watching, and other activities.

References

  1. McCreight, Major Israel (1939). Memory Sketches of Du Bois, Pennsylvania, 1874–1938: A History. DuBois, PA: Gray Printing. p. 69. OCLC   28554939.
  2. McCreight, Major Israel (1939). Memory Sketches of Du Bois, Pennsylvania, 1874–1938: A History. DuBois, PA: Gray Printing. pp. 68–71. OCLC   28554939.
  3. Wallace, Paul A.W. (1965). Indian Paths of Pennsylvania. Harrisburg, PA: Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. p. 61. OCLC   1078148.

41°03′02″N78°43′30″W / 41.05056°N 78.72498°W / 41.05056; -78.72498