A group of citizens founded the Historical Society of Montgomery County, PA in 1881. Military veterans, business and civic leaders, and community-minded individuals set out to commemorate the centennial of the county as well as to preserve and educate the public about its profound connections with American history. While focusing on the first one hundred years of the county, they overlooked the impact that they, themselves, would have on this county and how we understand its history. The founders not only saved History. They helped to make it. Ever since then, various members of the Historical Society–as well as historians in and around Montgomery County–have highlighted achievements of a select few of our founders. Now is the time to shine a spotlight on more of these men (and women) who took it upon themselves to preserve the history of Montgomery County.
When you visit the Historical Society of Montgomery County, PA located at 1654 DeKalb Street in Norristown, Pennsylvania, you will see a plaque near the front doors. Installed for the 50th anniversary of the society, the plaque states, “In honor of the founders of the Historical Society of Montgomery County Pennsylvania” and lists twenty-two men, specifying Col. Theo. W. Bean as the first president and S. M. Corson as the first secretary for the society. And yet, our first publication, Historical Sketches. A collection of papers prepared for the Historical Society of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, shows twenty-three men listed. The additional man turns out to have been Robert Iredell. Why was he not listed on the plaque? Could it be his anti-Mason ideology? Or was it a simple omission? In addition, at least three women were also involved in organizing the society. Why are they not listed on this plaque or in the first publication of Historical Sketches?
From our research we can confirm that the following individuals, listed alphabetically, all actively worked to establish our Historical Society.
- William Auchenbach (1832-1906)
- Moses Mendenhall Auge (1811-1892)
- Colonel Theodore Weber Bean (1833-1891)
- Major William Heebner Bean (1861-1904)
- William J. Binder (1843-1930)
- General William Jordan Bolton (1833-1906)
- Isaac Chism (1856-1895)
- William M. Clift (1854-1938)
- Dr. Hiram Corson (1804-1896)
- Samuel Maulsby Corson (1838-1881)
- Lewis Hansell Davis (1838-1902)
- Jones Detwiler (1828-1900)
- Robert Iredell (1809-1904)
- Freeland Gotwals Hobson, Esq. (1857-1906)
- Professor Reuben F. Hoffecker (1833-1903)
- Anna Morris Ellis Holstein (1824-1900)
- Major William Hayman Holstein (1816-1894)
- Nathaniel Jacoby (1818-1889)
- Mary Bean Jones (1863-1957)
- Reuben Krieble (1820-1890)
- Montgomery Smith Longaker (1842-1923)
- William J. Nicholls (unknown)
- Sarah Slingluff Rex (1834-1914)
- Isaac Roberts (1854-1942)
- Dr. John Schrack Shrawder (1839-1910)
- Arthur K. Thomas (1857-1922)
These people came from all over the county and from different walks of life. Many of them knew death and loss –from illness or war or local tragedies within recent memory. Imagine how they travelled to attend the meetings over long uneven and dark roads. Such was the sense of service that brought them together.
Over the next year as we head into the country’s semi-quincentennial, we will take a look at the lives of our founders. Specifically, we will focus on connections among their views (even the disagreements) and what values compelled our founders, as well as how their understanding of the county’s past evolved. You will note how the founding spirits of our mission to preserve, educate, and commemorate the heritage of the county were there all along. Unlike similar county historical societies and preservation organizations, HSMCPA’s founders did not celebrate or document their own ancestors; these were not antiquarians bearing witness solely to their own heritage. But rather, you’ll see that the founders emphasized the county’s importance as the goal of their work.
Each individual listed above will appear in at least one blog post. That is, everyone except William J. Nicholls. After hours and hours of research, we could not confirm the identity of William J. Nicholls. Can you help us find the founding William J. Nichols? It could be William J. Nicholls, the superintendent of a coal company in Pottstown. Or it could be the man indicted for fraud in 1888. Because we cannot be certain as to his identity, we do not want to falsely attribute him to what little facts we could find related to this name. Please put us in touch with anyone can shed light on Nicholls by sharing with research@hsmcpa.org.