The "Baron Henrich Wilhelm Stiegel: His Stories - Part I" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Traveling north along Main Street, known to many as SR72, in the town of Manheim.  My first knowledge of this street was when my best friend Bill moved to Manheim after second grade.  Boy did I miss him!  But, that is not the gist of my story today; the town of Manheim is the real story.  The town got its name from a guy by the name of Baron Henrich Wilheim Stiegel, known to those who live in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania as Baron Henry William Stiegel.  Actually the title of Baron is disputed by many, since he never signed his name that way.  On August 31, 1750 Stiegel, his widowed mother and brother Anthony arrived from Cologne, Germany on the ship "Nancy" in Philadelphia.  Henry found his first job working for the Stedman brothers who were successful merchants in Philadelphia.  Two years later he became associated with Jacob Huber, an ironmaster in a Northern Lancaster County furnace, as a clerk.  Mr. Huber's furnace was built in 1750 in Brickerville, PA where he made cast iron from ore that came from the nearby Cornwall mines.   While working with Huber, he became acquainted with Mr. Huber's daughter Elizabeth and shortly after married her.  Steigel's wife had two daughters, Elizabeth and Barbara.  In 1757 Steigel purchased Huber's furnace property which at the time was one of the largest and oldest furnaces in the New World.  He tore the old furnace down and built a new one which he named after his wife Elizabeth.  Elizabeth Township, where the furnace was located, was named after the furnace.  He eventually moved his family from Philadelphia, where they had been living, to a large house that was near Elizabeth Furnace.  The following year his wife died leaving him with two small children, but the following year he married Elizabeth Holtz from Philadelphia and she bore him a son in 1760.  Steigel began to make stoves at Elizabeth Furnace and by 1760 the furnace was hugely successful with 75 men employed and 25 tenant houses nearby for some of them to live.  The furnace lands covered 900 acres, much of it wooded.  Then in 1762, his old friends, the Stedmans, and he bought 729 acres on the north bank of the Chickies Creek.  By the end of the year he has surveyed his tract and divided it into lots with streets and alleys.  The town of Manheim was born.  

Drawing of Stiegel's house at Market Square and East High St.

Stiegel and his wife were the first to build  a house on the northeast corner of Market Square and East High Street.  He realized that his town would not grow unless it had some industries, so in 1765 he began to build a glass factory on the northwest corner of Stiegel and Charlotte Streets.  The factory took three years to build and it was so large that a four-horse team could turn around in it and come out the same entrance.  

Latest image of Elizabeth Furnace.

At the time it was the only glass factory in the country and he brought skilled glass blowers from Europe to work in the factory.  They made vases, sugar and finger bowls, salts, flasks, pitchers, tumblers, wine glasses, toys and various other products in a variety of colors.  In 1769 the Stedmans sold their shares in Manheim to Isaac Cox who in turn sold them to Baron Stiegel.  By 1770 he was the sole owner of the town of Manheim.  Soon after he moved his family from the Elizabeth Furnace site to his new mansion in the center of Manheim.  Follow along tomorrow while I tell you the tale of his demise.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.