Byrnesville, Pennsylvania

Last updated

1999 satellite image showing the clearing that was once Byrnesville. PA 61 Centralia and Byrnesville.jpg
1999 satellite image showing the clearing that was once Byrnesville.

Byrnesville was a town located in Conyngham Township, Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was located about halfway between Centralia and Ashland. In 1985, the population of Byrnesville was approximately 75 people living in 29 homes. [1]

Contents

Byrnesville was founded in 1856. [2] Most of the residents were Irish Catholics who worked in the local anthracite coal mines. It was made up of Upper and Lower Byrnesville. The first homes were built in Lower Byrnesville around 1856 and in Upper Byrnesville around 1865. An elementary school was located in Byrnesville but was discontinued in the 1930s. [1]

Byrnesville was one of the casualties of the Centralia mine fire. In late 1983, the 98th United States Congress approved $42 million to help move families impacted by the fire. Relocation offers were extended to residents in Byrnesville and Centralia. [3] The last home in Byrnesville was torn down in 1996, which spelled the end for the town. The only remaining structures there as of July 2019 are a religious Shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary on a hillside by the side of Route 61, [2] an intermodal container, and the structural remains of a garage now reclaimed by nature. [4]

The present-day routing of Pennsylvania Route 61 follows the two-lane Byrnesville Road — originally an old logging road through Byrnesville — bypassing a 0.75-mile (1.21 km) long section of the original route of the four-lane highway which has been heavily damaged by subsidence caused by the underground fire. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

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

Catawissa is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 1,539 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Bloomsburg-Berwick micropolitan area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centralia, Pennsylvania</span> Ghost town in Pennsylvania, United States

Centralia is a borough and near-ghost town in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Its population has declined from 1,000 in 1980 to five residents in 2020 because a coal mine fire has been burning beneath the borough since 1962. Centralia, part of the Bloomsburg–Berwick metropolitan area, is the least-populated municipality in Pennsylvania. It is completely surrounded by Conyngham Township.

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

Hellertown is a borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. Its population was 6,131 at the 2020 census. Hellertown is part of the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. as of 2020.

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

Mount Carmel is a borough in Northumberland County, located in the Coal Heritage Region of Central Pennsylvania's Susquehanna River Valley, United States. The population was 5,725 at the 2020 census. It is located 88 miles (141 km) northwest of Philadelphia and 71 miles (114 km) northeast of Harrisburg, in the Coal Region. It is completely encircled by Mount Carmel Township.

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

Ashland is a borough in Schuylkill County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Pottsville. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. A small part of the borough also lies in Columbia County, although all of the population resided in the Schuylkill County portion as of the 2020 census. The borough lies in the anthracite coal region of eastern Pennsylvania. Settled in 1850, Ashland was incorporated in 1857, and was named for Henry Clay's estate near Lexington, Kentucky. The population in 1900 was 6,438, and in 1940, 7,045, but had dropped to 2,471 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 61</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 61 is an 81.8-mile-long (131.6 km) state highway that is located in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the United States. The route is signed on a north–south direction, running from U.S. Route 222 Business in Reading northwest to US 11/US 15/PA 147 in Shamokin Dam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 54</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 54 is a state highway which runs for 82 miles (132 km) in eastern Pennsylvania in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 42</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 42 is a 58.6-mile-long (94.3 km) state route that is located in central Pennsylvania. The southern terminus of the route is situated at PA 61 in Centralia. The northern terminus is located at U.S. Route 220 in Laporte.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 29</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 29 is a 118-mile-long (190 km) north–south state highway that runs through most of eastern Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 663</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 663 (PA 663) is a 22.13-mile-long (35.61 km) state highway in Montgomery and Bucks counties in southeast Pennsylvania. Its southern terminus is at PA 100 in the borough of Pottstown and its northern terminus is at PA 309 and PA 313 in the borough of Quakertown, where the road continues eastward as PA 313. Along the way, PA 663 also passes through the borough of Pennsburg. It is called John Fries Highway between Pennsburg and Quakertown. It has an interchange with Interstate 476 at exit 44 west of Quakertown. The route was assigned in 1930, and it has had several realignments since its commissioning, including two major ones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centralia mine fire</span> Long-burning coal-seam fire in Pennsylvania

The Centralia mine fire is a coal-seam fire that has been burning in the labyrinth of abandoned coal mines underneath the borough of Centralia, Pennsylvania, United States, since at least May 27, 1962. Its original cause and start date are still a matter of debate. It is burning at depths of up to 300 ft (90 m) over an 8 mi (13 km) stretch of 3,700 acres (15 km2). At its current rate, it could continue to burn for over 250 years. Due to the fire, in the 1980s Centralia was mostly abandoned. There were 1,500 residents at the time the fire is believed to have started, but as of 2017 it has a population of 5 and most of the buildings have been demolished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 63</span> 37.4-mile-long (60.2 km) state highway located in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Route 63 (PA 63) is a 37.4-mile-long (60.2 km) state highway located in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area. The western terminus of the route is at PA 29 in Green Lane, Montgomery County. The eastern terminus is at Interstate 95 (I-95) in Bensalem Township, Bucks County. PA 63 runs northwest to southeast for most of its length. The route heads through a mix of suburban and rural areas of northern Montgomery County as a two-lane road, passing through Harleysville, before coming to an interchange with I-476 in Kulpsville. From this point, PA 63 continues through predominantly suburban areas of eastern Montgomery County as a two- to four-lane road, passing through Lansdale, Maple Glen, Willow Grove, and Huntingdon Valley. Upon entering Northeast Philadelphia, the route follows Red Lion Road and U.S. Route 1 (US 1) before heading southeast on a freeway called Woodhaven Road to I-95.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 232</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 232 (PA 232) is a 25.2-mile-long (40.6 km) state highway located in southeastern Pennsylvania. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 1 (US 1)/US 13 at the Oxford Circle in Philadelphia. The northern terminus is at PA 32 in the borough of New Hope, Bucks County, on the banks of the Delaware River. The route passes through the urban areas of Northeast Philadelphia as Oxford Avenue, serving the Lawncrest, Burholme, and Fox Chase neighborhoods. Upon entering Montgomery County, PA 232 becomes Huntingdon Pike and through suburban areas, serving the communities of Rockledge, Huntingdon Valley, and Bryn Athyn. The route passes through more suburban development in Bucks County as Second Street Pike, running through Southampton and Richboro. In Wrightstown Township, PA 232 enters rural areas and becomes Windy Bush Road as it heads north to New Hope.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 75</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 75 is a 71.2-mile-long (114.6 km) north–south state highway located in central Pennsylvania. The southern terminus is at the Mason–Dixon line in Montgomery Township, where the road continues into Maryland as Maryland Route 494. The northern terminus is at an interchange with U.S. Route 22 and US 322 northeast of Port Royal. PA 75 is a two-lane undivided road that passes through the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians in Franklin and Juniata counties. The route heads north from the Maryland border in Franklin County to Mercersburg, where it runs concurrent with PA 16 and PA 416. From Mercersburg, PA 75 heads north and crosses US 30 in Fort Loudon before it runs northeast through a long valley, where it has an interchange with the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Willow Hill. The route turns north and heads into Juniata County, where it continues through another valley. PA 75 passes through Port Royal and crosses the Juniata River before it comes to its terminus at US 22/US 322.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 281</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 281 is a 45.8-mile-long (73.7 km) state highway located in Fayette and Somerset counties in Pennsylvania. The southern terminus is the West Virginia state line near Markleysburg, where the road becomes West Virginia Route 26. The northern terminus is at U.S. Route 30 in Stoystown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 924</span> State highway in Pennsylvania, US

Pennsylvania Route 924 is a 22-mile-long (35 km) state highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The highway runs from PA 61 in Frackville, Schuylkill County, northeast to PA 309 in Hazleton, Luzerne County. PA 924 runs through rural areas in the Coal Region, serving Gilberton, Shenandoah, Brandonville, and West Hazleton. The route is mostly a two-lane road with the section between Frackville and Shenandoah a four-lane divided highway with an interchange serving Gilberton and another four-lane divided highway section to the west of Hazleton. PA 924 intersects PA 54 in Shenandoah, PA 339 in Brandonville, Interstate 81 (I-81) west of Hazleton, and PA 93 in West Hazleton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">U.S. Route 122 (1935–1963)</span>

U.S. Route 122 was a United States Numbered Highway that was a spur of US 22. Located in the state of Pennsylvania, it existed from 1935 to 1963. At its greatest extent, the route ran from US 1 and Pennsylvania Route 472 in Oxford north to US 11 and PA 14 in Northumberland. Along the way, US 122 passed through Parkesburg, Honey Brook, Morgantown, Reading, Hamburg, Schuylkill Haven, Pottsville, Frackville, Ashland, Centralia, Mount Carmel, Shamokin, and Sunbury.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solomon Creek</span> River of the Susquehanna River, Pennsylvania

Solomon Creek is a tributary of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 8.8 miles (14.2 km) long and flows through Fairview Township, Hanover Township, and Wilkes-Barre. The creek is affected by acid mine drainage and has significant loads of iron, aluminum, and manganese. The creek's named tributaries are Spring Run, Sugar Notch Run, and Pine Creek. The Solomon Creek watershed is located in the Anthracite Valley section of the ridge-and-valley geographical province. Major rock formations in the watershed include the Mauch Chunk Formation, the Spechty Kopf Formation, and the Catskill Formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laurel Run mine fire</span> Mine fire in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

The Laurel Run mine fire is an underground mine fire near the communities of Laurel Run and Georgetown, in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The fire started burning in 1915 at the Red Ash Coal Mine. Attempts to control it lasted from 1915 to 1957 and recommenced in 1966. In the 1960s, the United States government and the Pennsylvania state government became involved in containing the fire. Attempts at stopping the spread of the fire were erroneously declared successful in 1973, and the fire is still burning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church (Centralia)</span>

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church is a Ukrainian Catholic church in the town of Centralia, Pennsylvania. The church is the last remaining church in Centralia, which was largely abandoned after a mine fire rendered much of the town unsafe.

References

  1. 1 2 "Byrnesville, Pennsylvania". offroaders.com. Archived from the original on October 23, 2007. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  2. 1 2 Holmes, Kristin E. (October 21, 2008). "Minding a legacy of faith: In an empty town, a shrine still shines". Philly.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2014. Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  3. PA, Centralia (February 27, 2015). "Byrnesville, Pennsylvania and the Centralia Mine Fire". Centralia PA. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
  4. "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
  5. PA, Centralia (September 25, 2014). "Abandoned Centralia: Old Route 61". Centralia PA. Retrieved July 30, 2021.

40°47′45″N76°20′21″W / 40.7959°N 76.3392°W / 40.7959; -76.3392