The "Postlethwaite's Tavern In Conestoga Gains Notoriety" Story

Postlethwaite's Tavern in Conestoga

It was an ordinary day.  Carol and I traveled once again to the south of Lancaster County for a photograph that I could use for my story today.  The corn is still high along the sides of the road, but the view from the areas where there is no corn is amazing.  At times I forget just how lucky I am to be able to drive along deserted country roads and see the beautiful farms and farmland that makes Lancaster County the Garden Spot of America.  

Holding Court at Postlethwaite's Tavern.

We turned right off SR72 onto Long Lane which had us heading west in the township known as Conestoga.  In a few minutes we crossed over Slackwater Road and in another minute or two we found the house I was looking to photograph.  The house was constructed along Long Lane in 1725.  The land on which the home was built is said to have belonged to John Postlethwaite at one time, but was later acquired by George Fehl.  

Postlethwaite's Tavern as it appears today.  The porch
seems to have been added later to the original tavern.  

Back in the 1720s there was little established government in rural Pennsyl- vania.  The British held court infre- quently, though on several occasions they held court at Mr. Postlethwaite's house which was known as Postlethwaite's Tavern.  At the time Lancaster was transitioning from an area where Conestoga Indians prospered to one where nearly 100 Swiss German families were settling.  These families had been expelled from Switzerland for their beliefs and had lived and worked on land for generations in an area called the "Pfalz" along the Rhine River.  It was the same area where William Penn had worked hard to recruit potential settlers to his new territories.  The area known as Conestoga aspired to become the center of the emerging town known as Lancaster, but others had picked a location to the north-east of Conestoga.  

The front door tells the tale of Colonial
America and all those who walked through
that door hundreds of years ago.  Benches
on either side were probably filled with those
who would be called into the Court in due time.

The road that passed in front of John Postlethwaite's Tavern was at the time a passageway toward the west and the mighty Susquehanna River.  The new provincial government thought it best to hold court at the Tavern.  Provincial Prothonotary, or chief clerk of the court, Andrew Hamilton was charged with the duty of finding a suitable location for court to be held.  He selected the Tavern along Long Lane near Rock Hill.  It was Lancaster County's first "courthouse" in 1729.  That first courthouse was what I was now standing in front of taking a photograph.  As I stood in front of the property to take my photograph, I half expected someone to open the door and ask what I was doing.  The house is in beautiful condition with black shutters and benches that run the length of the front of the home.  I can just imagine what it must have looked like almost 300 years ago.   Probably had a rail to tie your horse and cover for the buggy in the barn.  

The plaque that stands in front of
the home tells the story of years ago.
Click on image to enlarge.

To the left of the tavern was a large rock that carried a metal plaque placed there by the Lancaster County Historical Society on October 8, 1815.  It told the story of the Justice's of His Majesty, King George II who met for the first time in Lancaster County.  Magistrates present were John Wright, Tobias Hendricks, Andrew Cornish, Thomas Read and Samuel Jones.  John Wright presided over the meeting.  The Courts were held at Postlethwaite's that August and November terms as well as the 1730 terms in February, May and August.  Not quite sure where the Court met after the last term, but I'm sure Mr. Postlethwaite was proud to have had the Court meet in his tavern during 1729 and 1730. The Postlethwaite Tavern was the home of the first Court held in Lancaster County.  A part of history that will always be remembered in the area known as Conestoga.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.