The "The Story Of The River Hills Of Southern Lancaster County": Part I" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading an online version of the book titled "Seeing Lancaster County from a Trolley Window.  The book was published in 1910 and provided a first-hand account of riding the trolley lines that headed in all directions from the city of Lancaster to the seven corners of the county.  

As I was reading about the Pequea trolley line, which passed near Martic Forge where my wife lived as a child, I stumbled upon a few pages that talked about something I had never heard of before.  I asked Carol if she had ever heard about the Pequehanna Inn that would have been near her home as well as the Pequea Railroad Station that would have been about five-minutes from the Inn.  She looked at me with an amazed look on her face and said, "What are you talking about."  "Yeah, there was going to be a 384 room hotel that was to be on the hill that overlooked the Susquehanna River where the Pequea Creek entered the Susquehanna River.  The Pequehanna Inn was to be the largest "inn" in the United States and possess the most elegant dining room in the state.  

Part of the trolley line that ran along th Susquehanna.

And, it was to be a five-minute walk from the Pequea Railroad Station.  It was going to be advertised as the "Lake Placid of Pennsyl- vania."  Wow!  When Carol lived along the Pequea Creek, there was a railroad bridge that ran over the creek a few hundred yards from her front door.  I began to do some research on the railroad and found that at one time the Pequea Railroad and Improvement Company ran on the railroad line from 1849 to 1851, long before Carol was ever born.  

Trolley schedule for Pequea area.

But, that wouldn't have anything to do with a big hotel near the river.  So, I called my friend Jere who did a thesis for his Master's Degree on the Pennsylvania Railroad along the Susquehanna and asked him about a Pequea Railroad Station.  He was baffled, but told me he would check it out.  Wasn't more than an hour later I got a call from him and sure enough, there was a Pequea Train Station near where the Pequea met the Susquehanna.  Up until the early 1900s a passenger train ran along the Susquehanna from Columbia to transport residents to the Pequea area.  Eventually the line was demolished to make room for the Susquehanna Low Grade tracks that were used for freight travel from Harrisburg to the Maryland Line and beyond.  There were two tracks that replaced the one track that carried the passenger train to  Pequea.  Now, as far as the Pequehanna Inn, planning for it began about 1906 when Lancaster City builder and contractor, John Hartman, formed the Universal Cooperative Association.  

Click to enlarge

Hartman had received praise for construction of buildings that were built for convenience and architectural beauty.  Mr. Hartman placed advertisements seeking financing for the project that was to be on a farm of 100 acres in Conestoga Township where the picturesque and historic Pequea Creek emptied itself into the broad and beautiful Susquehanna River.  

The alleged magnificent structure was said to be unique and superbly featured in several particulars.  He claimed it will cover one of the largest areas of ground of any inn in the United States and be built of concrete block construction and be nearly fireproof.  All 384 rooms will be sun lit and will be fully ventilated with pure hill-top air.  Each of its four frontages will have special landscape features with a beautiful interior courtyard and garden.  It will have the largest and finest dining room in the state.  Information from the builder went on, saying the rooms would be for sale which would help cover the cost of construction and part of the maintenance.  They could be used by the the owners or rented or leased to other parties.  

Another view of what the proposed Pequehanna Inn was going to look like.

A schedule of room prices went as follows:  First floor would be Administative apartments with 50 lodging rooms reserved for transient guests; Second floor would be 108 rooms at prices varying from $650 to $250; Third floor would be 108 rooms at prices varying from $750 to $250; Fourth floor would be 108 rooms at prices varying from $800 to $300.  Ample facilities for out-door recreation and an auditorium for conventions, concerts, reunions and entertinment.  If you were interested you could call or visit 55 N. Queen Street in Lancaster for more information.  Mr. Hartman's plan was for the hotel to be a cooperative venture similar to the condos of today.  Rooms would be sold on 100-year leases and owners would have the option to sublet their apartments.  The building would cost about $100,000 (or roughly $2.6 million in today's money).  Mr. Hartman was able to gather financial backing from investors in Lancaster as well as Philadelphia and prepared to turn tiny Pequea into a resort town.  So, a small town, once known as Shoff's Post Office as shown on the 1899 map, was going to become famous.  Follow along with me tomorrow as I tell you the results of the building and what the area looks like today.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.