History of the Cumberland Valley, Pennsylvania


Book Description

The Cumberland Valley in Pennsylvania covers the counties of Cumberland and Franklin. It extends into Washington County, Maryland, which is not covered in this book.




Remembering Carlisle


Book Description

Since its Founding in 1751, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, has been at the crossroads of history as the site of Washington's headquarters during the Whiskey Rebellion, a city shelled and occupied by Confederate forces and the home to Dickinson College and the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. With lively vignettes and firsthand accounts, Joseph David Cress recounts the remarkable history of the borough. Tales of the McClintock Slave Riot of 1847 and the courthouse fire of 1845 stand alongside the legendary figures of Molly Pitcher and all-American athlete Jim Thorpe. Cress chronicles Carlisle's evolution from an outpost on Pennsylvania's rough-and-tumble frontier to a vibrant and thriving hub of the Cumberland Valley. Book jacket.




Murder & Mayhem in Cumberland County


Book Description

From the horrific Enoch Brown Schoolhouse Massacre of 1764 to settlers who hunted local tribes for a bounty, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, has long had a violent and bloody history. As more people came to the region, murder and mischief of every kind only multiplied. Local author Joseph David Cress explores the dark side of history, from little-known cases such as that of Sarah Clark--who became the first woman hanged in the county after she poisoned a family to dispatch a romantic rival--to high-profile crimes like the shocking 1955 courtroom slaying that left one person dead and three injured. Join Cress on a hair-raising walk down Hell Street as he investigates the underbelly of Cumberland County.




Wicked Carlisle


Book Description

With Wicked Carlisle, author Joe Cress revisits the criminal history of Cumberland County. Taking a more focused and less bloody approach, Cress will largely bring new stories of mischief to the table, though he will revisit the lighter side of two or three crimes from Murder and Mayhem in Cumberland County. From stories of college pranks gone wrong, Carlisle's own Robin Hood and the robbing and subsequent torching of a beloved local theater (the Strand where the local HS now sits ) to abuses at the Carlisle Indian School and the town's connection to the raid on Harper's Ferry, Cress scours the underbelly of the borough for mischief and misdeeds.













Cumberland Valley


Book Description

Nestled between the Tuscarora and Blue Ridge Mountains is the center of the Cumberland Valley, an area settled by men and women who crossed the Susquehanna River and built their log cabins in the wilderness. These early settlers were hardy souls who confronted the hardships and struggles of Native American raids, the American Revolution, and the Civil War. In the 1800s, the iron industry sprang up in the small villages of Roxbury, Edenville, and Mont Alto, and academies and colleges were founded. The late Victorian resorts of Pen Mar, Monterey, and Buena Vista drew visitors to the valley. Today, within the mountain-protected borders of "Mother Cumberland," are the towns of Chambersburg, Mercersburg, Waynesboro, Greencastle, St. Thomas, and other small communities each with a rich history of its own.