Our little England – baa, baa black sheep
Article by Beth Evans Simmons and Dennis Cass
Summary by Cam Stadtmueller
The pastures and open fields of Harborcreek Township had an entirely different look 175 years ago. The most prominent animal of the early 1800s is seldom seen today – sheep, thousands of sheep.
Beth Evans Simmons and Dennis Cass recently collaborated on a new research paper entitled “Our little England – baa, baa black sheep.” In previous newsletter issues our members have read about the Cass Woolen Mill being a prominent business along Six-Mile Creek in an area called “Factory Gulch.”
Several mill owners are explained in detail beginning with Joseph, Sr. and Olive Backus who “had three mills along Six-Mile Creek” in 1810. Lester and Mary Hays owned the “Fulling mill” for seven years before transferring it in 1844 to John Thornton, John Cass, John Rhodes, Thomas Rhodes, and Joshua Jewett. These men enlarged the woolen mill to the three-story structure you see pictured in the full article and the 2000 edition of the Cass Chronicles by Dennis Cass and Perry Smith, a copy of which is in the Society’s Reading Room. By the 1870s John Cass was sole owner of the mill, and following his death, Martha Halderman, daughter of Joseph Backus, purchased the business. Operation ceased “sometime before 1900.”
The Cass Woolen Mill would not have prospered without the abundance of sheep farmers in Harborcreek Township. Records cited by Simmons and Cass reveal that the 1850 Census enumerated 161 farmers owning a total of 5,321 sheep and sending 14,413 pounds of wool to mills. Samuel Stevens had the largest flock with 400 sheep, and Elijach Owen had the smallest with only three. It is fascinating to read the men’s names and flock sizes, and then compare this to the 1880 chart showing the decline of sheep to 1,700 owned by 50 farmers and wool dwindling to 3,500 pounds for processing.
In the late 1800s, less wool was sent to the Cass Mill for processing and profits declined. WHY? Sheep nibble grass to the roots and ample acreage is needed for rotating them among pastures. Harborcreek farmers were putting more acreage into the fruit industry, especially “hardy Concord grapes,” apples, cherries, pears, and peaches. The few farmers who kept smaller flocks marketed their wool to mills in other areas of Pennsylvania or out-of-state. One well-known processor was the Frankenmuth Woolen Mill in Michigan, which has been in continuous operation since 1894.
