Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1891-03-27
Recollections of Butler; or Fifty Years
Ago.
(Continued.)
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES MILL.

, (Continued)
= CUYSINGHAM-ygGLEY MILL.
. In the first article of ''Recollections o.
Butler" we spoke of "The Commons" in
the then South end of town, and as being
part Of the donation of John and Samuel
Cunningham to the county of Butler fol
its County Seat We also referred then to
the piece of ground South of The Commons
and between them and the Consequences
ing creek, some six of eight acres not in
the original town, but as the property, 90
years ago and more, of the late John
Negley, Esq. This piece will now be best
recognized when stated it is the same upon
which is the Touring mill of present Mr..
George Walter-old Cunningham mill
and upon which also is the residence of
Mr.. Walter; house and lot of Mr.. Jacob
Boos; the old mansion house of the late
John Negley; fine new residence recently
erected by Mr.. and Mrs. W II. Ritter, the
residence of Mr.. George McCandless, and
two or three houses recently erected and
owned by Mr.. John N. Patterson, all now
standing there.
| For some reason this piece was not in
cluded in the grant made by the Cunning
hams for the county scat, probably because
| their mill was upon it. But it was part of
their 800 acre tract ofland, which they had
| procured before the formation of the county
| and which they called Butler" and which
| I'll oil of old br,,1
and good part of our present one. 1t
extended on the North to about present
Jefferson street and up the hills on the
South to aud ircluding the greater part of
present S"at. C,:i:eicry. In the bend of
the creek, aboli The middle of their tract,
| they built their cele trated mill, the first
Touring mill, according to history, built
upon the waters of the Connoluenessing.
They came here, the chronicles state, in
1897, and built their mill about that time
The late John Negley first appears upon
the SC enc there in 1900. and becomes for
time their miller. They seemed to have
had an idea, from all we ever leased from
our father that the future county seat of
the county would be where it is. But
their hopes of prosperity were soon shatter
ed by the death of John Cunningham, in
1905, according to the chronicles. His
remains were inferred in the old burial
ground of Butler, and, ''now no man knows
his grave" is the brief record concerning
him in the recently made history of our
town. This is a sad reflection to our
citizens as to the grave and end of the man
who as his share gave about n acres ofthe
ground upon which Butler stands, embrac
ing probably this very burial ground in
which he was laid, and of the place in
which it must now be written, mo man
knows his grave" But perhaps the then
citizens of the town likened Mr.. Cunning
ham to Moses, who saw but did
not enjoy the land he sought, and
therefore desired that the place of
his burial should be like unto that of
Moses, of which we are told no one knew
the place. Of what became of his brother
Samuel we never learned. In the year
following, 1906 we find the mill and the
balance of the 800 acre tract becoming the
property of the late Mr.. Negey, and Samuel
probably returned to Lancaster county, from
where they are said to have come. Samuel
Cunningham, the history of the county
states, was the foreman of the first Grand
Jury ever convened il this county.
DEPRECIATION LANDS"
Q00 nf bo rubo,
was one of what were known as "Deprecia-
ton Lands These Depreciation tracts
or lands have an interesting history. They
covered about half of our county. The
lands themselves were not deprecated or
poor, but were so called because the scrip
or certificates that the State had issued to
her soldiers of the Revolutionary war be-
came deprecated. The State to relieve
and pay its then needy soldiers, ordered
these lands, in Western part of the State,
to be surveyed into tracts and sold. the
proceeds to go to paying off and redeeming
the deprecated scrip held by the soldiers
for their services in the Revolution. Hence
the. name Depreciation Lands" James
Cunningham, a brother of J ohm and Samuel,
it appears was surveyor, and was appoint
ed by the State one of its surveyors to run
off these lands. The district he surveyed
passed through or into part of what be-
came Butler county. And hence the name
of "Cunningham's District of Depreciation
Lands. James Cunningham seems to
have been acquainted with Robert Morris
of Philadelphia, the distinguished patriot
of the Revolutionary war and General
Washington's Secretary of the Treasury.
Whether through the influence of James
Cunningham, or through his own desire to
aid the soldiers we have never been able
to learn, but Robert Morris, history tells
us, purchased great many of these tracts,
about 100 of them in Butler county, con-
tanning perhaps 90, 900 acres of land. One
thing seems pretty certain, and that is, that
John and Samuel Cunningham came out
West here either through their brother
James or through Robert Morris. Robert
Morris we are strongly incline1 to believe
aided them, and in the interests of his
lands probably sent them here, resulting in
locating the town of Butler where it is
The first road made from Pittsburg to
Butler was made by John and Samuel
Cunningham. 1t was a direct strait up
and down road, going up and down the hills
without turning to right or left Its old
track can be seen here yet on south Of
town, passing near present barn of Mr..
Hugh McCrea on top of hill south of town.
There were some other very steep places
on it that we knew of and have seen. We
mention above to show the probable con-
nection of Robert Morris with the Cunning
ham, afterwards Negley mill property. We
have but little doubt that it was by his
money or aid that John and Samuel Cum
bingham came out here and founded the
mill at the point they did. Through his
sympathy for the soldiers, in buying these