Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1879-06-24
The Birthplace Of Daniel Boone.

The Birthplace Of Daniel Boone.
A NATIVE OF THIS COUNTY VISITS THE
BIRTHPLACE OF DANIEL BOONE.
A well known native of this county,
in his recent peregrinations, has visited
the birthplace and homestead of Daniel
Boone in Berks county, Pennsylvania,
and from his interesting letter publish
ed in the Times and Dispatch of Read
ing, Pa, of the 18th INST, we make the
following extract:-
BIRTHPLACE OF DANIEL BOONE.
"Mr. Jones did us the very great
kindness on the 18th inst, to carry US
to one of the most interesting historic
spots. among the many, this great coun-
ty contains, created as they were during
the colonial times and amid the throes
of that Revolution that under Wash
ingten and his compeers initiated this
Republic. We refer to the birthplace of
that great "pioneer and backwoods-
man." Daniel Boone. Weare surprised
Mr.. Editor, to find among your intelli-
gent citizens may who did not know
that Berks county gave him birth.
When young man. In connection with
| a cousin of his. Henry Miller, he made
several expeditions into the head of the
Shenandoah Valley to trade with the
Indians. This must have been about
1730. This Miller, soon after emigrated
and built on Messy creek, Augusta
county, the first furnace erected in the
Valley of Virginia, and three miles be-
low where the writer was born and
reared. He married a Miss Winters,
and sister of his wife married George
Crawford, of Augusta. Another of the
daughters was the grandmother of Abra-
ham Lincoln, and the youngest of nine
daughters lately died, Mrs. Potter, at
the age of SO years. Mr.. Editor, can
not some one with an antiquarian taste
hunt up and illustrate the history oil
this Miller and Winters family? Mr..
Jefferson in his "Notes on Virginia. u
refers to this furnace built by Henry
Miller. i,
TRIP TO AND ARRIVAL AT BOONE
FARM.
In our drive we passed the spot where
the Hessians, after their capture al
Trenton, were for some time held as
prisoners. The spot is in the eastern
border of your city. The beautiful coun
try we passed over, taking the Boyer
town road as we rode out, for pictures
queness as we'll as for elegant farming
it is too familiar to your readers to dwell
upon. Eighty miles brought us to the
Boone farm" which is mile north Of
the Philadelphia pike and near three
miles from the mouth of the Monocacy,
| !, int hn nj, ri ,i1
This is the red shale land that lies pref.
tily but is the thinest in the county
The historic old mansion, that for aught
we know and probably was built in the
| 10th century, is in good preservation
and will stand for centuries to come
This built Of the dark free stone, the
oldest part is 80 feet long. % feet wide
walls Is to 20 inches thick and two anC
a half stories. The heavy girder sup
ports the joists in both stories, and thu
lower project two feet or more and ar,
covered with narrow roof of shingles
There are two rooms below and thret
above and the old-fashioned wide fire
place in the west end, (house stands
east and west) that has been covered
and made into cupboard. Porches
have been put to the north and south
sides and are modern. An addition
was built to the western end, of the
same kind of stone, same width anC
about sixteen feet long. A large stone
dairy, or it may have been kitchen
was built, as we supposed, at the same
time, few yards to the southwest of the
main building and in 1892. The addi
ton to the old house contains the spring
in the basement and at the southeast
corner, and the water issues from under
the southwest corner of the old house
This room constitutes an elegant dairy
room for fruit, preserves, &C., and the
display of nice bread, pies and with the
butter and milk, gave foretaste of wha
was in store for our friend and Ourself
under the kind and not to-be resisted
invitations of our hostess and her daugh
ter that we must take supper.
ENTERTAINED ON THE BOONE HOME
STEAD.
Little did we anticipate when stop.
ping in your beautiful city that 1t would
be youchsafed to drink from the spring
and eat in the house under whose roof
this grand old woodsman and pioneer
had first seen the light. We believed it
was in Berks that he was born, but die
not suppose knowledge of the spot had
been preserved, much less that the man
sion was in as good state of preserva.
ton as the day he shouldered his trusty
rife, and turned his back on it to seek
home in the wilderness-firsti in West
Virginia, near the mouth of the great
Kanawha. then in the State of Ken.
lucky, near the Blue Lick Springs, and
then in Missouri. where when neigh
bors settled within eighteen miles OF
him, he thought them too close, and in
disgust moved further into the wilder.
ness. A Mr. Richardson has for eigh.
teen months been the owner of the farm.
He removed from a point eight miles
west of your city, and his family seem.
ed to have been informed of the interest
connected with their home as the birth
place of Boone. They had history OF
the United States with sketch of his
life and his likeness, which they at once
produced"
JosHIsMs.-Thare il no sure kure for
lazyness, but have known seckond
wife to hurry it sum.
Much haz been sed about Milk. but
| the best thing hay ever seen on it-iZ