Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1875-06-05
REMIN IsCENCES.
wkITTEs FoR THE xARrrssRuRe IspEPESpxST
BY A BERKELEY BOY.
THE BURGH FORTY YEARS AGO
AND MORE.


AND MORE.
read in the Martinsburg cores
pondence OF the Baltimore Sun,
that sever thousand is now claim
ed as its population. Running
back only half a century. the
changes in the makeup and gen.
eral aspect of the old Burgh are GER
tainly no iceabIe. What they must
appear to the memory OF older per-
sous, such as the "Old Citizen"
whose skeleton of local history was
given n the last issue of the Week
IS INDEPENDENT, we younger
people are left 10 imagine. / can
remember when, with the eXcep-
tion OF the BCyds, the Pendletons,
the Dandridges, the Stevenses and
the Hunters, who made up the
seattle ed population of what was
called equality Hill,n there were
no dwellings further South. along
Queen street, than the bridge, -
Patrick Cunningham's tailor shop,
which stood there at a sort ofjump-
ing-off pace, may be said to have
marked the confines of Plebian
civilization in that direction. In
the opposite direction the Plebians
had Scarcely reached so far. Be-
tween Anthony S. Chambers shop
and where the bridge now spans
the Tuscarora creek, there was not
more than one dwelling, fifty years
ago-perhaps two. The one 7 have
in memory stood on a bank, in ut
ter dilapidation, at the east side of
the street, a few years ago, a grim
old sentinel, as it were, frOWning
upon the notwithstanding engines
of the innovating railroad,and the
operations of the Strines in real es-
tate, in consequence whereof the
beautiful suburban retreat of Dam
iai Burkhart has been swallowed
UP by the insatiaie nav of Bust
ness, whose only representatives
in that direction for long years Of
the sTownu of Martinsburg's Rip
Van Wrinkle life, were the old "oil
mill'' and the grist mill. The first
named ofthese Was converted into
a carpet factory by Mr.. Conrad.
and the last named was run by Mr..
Ransom for the purpose for which
it was built. IT has, indeed main
tanned its identity longer than any
other Of the manufacturing estab-
lishments of the olden time. Its
walls have resisted the influence
Of time,to sequel indicating very
plainly the economical value of
the local limestone treasures for
building purposes. The old soil
mill,n when / last noticed it, was
mandatory for building mate
rails, Wherewith some newcomer
was helping to build up the waste
places-and wonderful facilitators
of housebuilding are those same
saving and planning mills, and
door, window sash and blind fac
tories To appreciate the changes
they have wrought, one has only
to recall the feelings, and chop
pings, and hewings and raisings of
the primitive log houses, and the
s'all the year round"job which the
wonderfully patient owner of
finer house was contented to con-
template.
Ifa nation is not born in a day.
now, a city may be. Just give
your Geographic order, backed by
the stamps, and your house shall
come by rail and be ready for oc-
cupancy in less time than neighbor
Smiths talking of building new
house" once consumed 1t used
to be standing rule for young
men when contemplating matri-
mopy, to build the cage before
the bird was caught. But
that is no longer necessary pre-
caution. Now the anxious swain
may catch the bird and fly away
with it on his wedding tour, with
every reasonable assurance that an
order, which he gives en- route, will
have eventuated in the readiness
of the cage for his birdie by the
time he returns
One of the changes which can
scarcely realize is, that the sleepy
little one-horse town, al over
which we boys could chase each
other without being more tired
than boys often are, Is now IA city
with population of seven thou
sand" to quote the correspond
ence already referred to, and with
a Mayor and City Council end a
that.
| could not help noticing the
names of seven candidates for the
Council in the Independent for the
22d inst, all backed by the myth
ical "Many Voters" that were re-
presented as backing up every as
pirant for county legislative hon-
0rs ia auld lang syne. Seven times
Aknnn "a xr1f Of thu old Rursr IA - vnfprs