TOWNSHIPS AND BOROUGHS.
In the order named the following were organized as townships in Bedford county prior to the formation of the county of Somerset: Brother\’s Valley, Turkey-Foot, Quemahoning, Milford, Elk Lick and Stony Creek.
BROTHER\’S VALLEY the first township erected west of the Allegheny mountain in Pennsylvania, was formed in 1771, during the first session of the Bedford county courts. Originally it embraced all the territory lying between the Allegheny mountain on the east, the Youghiogheny river and west foot of Laurel hill on the west, and from the Maryland line northward to the Conemaugh river.
TURKEY-FOOT was erected from Brother\’s Valley during the July sessions of court in 1773.
QUEMAHONING was organized from Brother\’s Valley just prior to the beginning of the revolutionary war, during April sessions, 1775.
MILFORD was erected about 1780, ELK LICK about 1785, and STONYCREEK about the year 1792.
The foregoing were the six townships of Bedford county lying west of the Allegheny mountain, which by the passage of the act of April 17, 1796, became the county of Somerset.
Milford, Elk Lick and Stony Creek townships records are defective and in consequence, the precise date of formation or knowledge of their original “meets and bounds” cannot be ascertained. The same difficulty is encountered in the court records of Somerset county. They fail to show when townships were created, or to describe (except in a few instances) their original boundaries.
Since the organization of Somerset county townships and boroughs have been formed as follows:
SOMERSET township, from Quemahoning and Milford, in the early part of 1796.
CAMBRIA township, now part of Cambria county, about 1799.
ADDISON township, named after the first president judge to hold court in the county, Hon. Alexander Addison, was organized about the year 1800.
CONEMAUGH township was formed during February sessions in 1801. The court then ordered “That all those parts of Quemahoning township included within the following bounds, viz.: Beginning at the Bedford county line due east of the Head Spring of the North Branch of Shade Creek, thence to the head spring thereof, thence down the said North Branch to where it empties into Stony Creek, thence north
sixty-four degrees west to the Westmoreland county line, thence along the Westmoreland county line to the river Conemaugh, thence a straight line to the junction of the North and South Branches of Little Conemaugh river, thence up the south branch thereof to the head spring thereof, thence due east to the Bedford county line, and thence along the Bedford county line to the place of beginning, be and it is hereby erected a new township, and that the same be hereafter known and designated by the name of Conemaugh township.”
During the same sessions of court all that part of Bedford county which was annexed to Somerset March 1, 1800, lying north of the Glade road, was attached to Stony Creek township.
SOUTHAMPTON township was erected during the May sessions of court, 1801, and originally included all that part of Bedford county annexed to Somerset county in 1800, lying south of the Glade road.
SOMERSET town was created a borough by a legislative act approved March 5, 1804.
ALLEGHENY township was formed May 6, 1805.
JENNER township was erected by order of court May 29, 1811, and was so named in honor of the discoverer of vaccination. It has been stated that at an early day smallpox prevailed to an alarming extent in this township.
GREENVILLE township was erected about 1813.
SHADE township was erected about 1814.
BERLIN borough was erected about 1836.
PAINT township was erected about 1836.
STOYSTOWN borough was erected about 1836. (Stoystown was first incorporated March 29, 1819. The charter became inoperative for some reasons, and the town was reincorporated about 1836.)
SUMMIT township was erected about 1842.
JEFFERSON township was erected about 1847.
UPPER TURKEYFOOT and LOWER TURKEYFOOT townships were organized by the division of old Turkey-Foot about 1848.
NORTHAMPTON township was erected about 1852.
MIDDLECREEK township was erected about 1853.
LARIMER township was erected about 1S54.
NEW CENTREVILLE borough was erected about 1854.
WELLERSBURG borough was erected about 1857.
SALISBURY borough was erected about 1863.
DALE CITY borough was erected about 1872. (Subsequently the name was changed to Meyersdale.)
URSINA borough was erected about 1872.
CONFLUENCE borough was erected about 1874.
NEW BALTIMORE borough was erected .about 1874.
JENNERTOWN borough was erected about 1875.
(Source: History of Bedford, Somerset & Fulton Counties, Pennsylvania 1884)
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