Hershey Before Hershey

Physical Map of Derry Twp.

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:41:27 +0000

Derry Township is a township in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 21,273 at the 2000 census. Hershey, Pennsylvania, the site of the well-known Hershey’s chocolate factory and its affiliated amusement park, are also located within the township. Derry Township is home to one of the largest non-metropolitan Public Works in Pennsylvania. It was named after the city of Derry in Northern Ireland. (via Wikipedia)

Google Earth Map- Derry Twp. Schools

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:41:01 +0000

Derry Township School District is an award-winning public school system located in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Our community enjoys a legacy that began with founder Milton S. Hershey. The district serves approximately 3,500 students in kindergarten through twelfth grade residing in Derry Township.

The 114-acre campus hosts five schools

All of our schools have exemplary facilities, curriculum faculty, administrators, co-curricular and extra-curricular programs. Annually more than 90% of our graduating seniors pursuing post-secondary education.

Hershey High School and Hershey Middle School have been recognized as “National Blue Ribbon” schools by the United States Department of Education.

Hershey High School has also been recognized as one of the top public schools in America by different national publications. At all assessed grade levels, statewide assessment scores are consistently well-above state and national averages.

Our collective goal is to be a model for how public education should – and can – function.

(via the Derry Township School District website)

Google Earth Map- Derry Twp.

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:40:38 +0000

Derry Twp. 1870 Map

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:40:13 +0000

PA Counties Map

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:39:50 +0000

Lebanon/Dauphin Map

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:39:29 +0000

Warrantee Map

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:38:57 +0000

How to Read the Warrantee Map

The purpose of government is to protect its members’ property. In order to achieve this purpose, the property of the members must be known and also taxed so that the government can support itself. In order to be granted the title to a plot of land, one would have to go through a 5 step process: submission of an Application, a request for land with specifics of how much and in what place; an order for a Warrant, which is a written document ordering a survey of the plot restating where the plot is to be and how many acres are desired; the Surveying of the land, which is the process of marking and measuring the boundaries of the land; the Return of Survey, basically the results of the survey and combined with the warrant, also is a statement of the purchase price and fees paid; and finally the Patent, a deed from the previous owner of the land given to the purchaser (1*).

Now by looking at that example, we learn:

Survey Number:	C-24-161
Warrantee:	Rowland Chambers
Acres being Purchased:	103 Acres
Warrant’s Issue Date:	November 24, 1742
Survey Date:	September 12, 1798
Patent’s Issue Date:	April 26, 1798
Patentee:	Henry Etter
Patent Number:	P-34-4

Because William Penn laid out the policies for land distribution with the Indians, his heirs followed in suit as they sold off the land they owned to the immigrants flooding into America. (*2 See here for more information)
Looking at the Warrantee Map of Derry Township(*3), there are 2 sections: the map itself and numbers surrounding it. Looking at the map first, you will see the plots of land as of 1946. In each of these plots are: the survey number, the name of the Warrantee, the number of Acres for purchase, the date the Warrant was issued, the date the plot was Surveyed (and in some cases Resurveyed), the date the Patent was issued, the name of the Patentee, and the Patent number. Certain plots also have circled numbers or letters, which correspond to the numbers around the map. These numbers are data which cannot fit into the plot due to space. Certain plots have instructions for where the survey markings were, while others do not. The ones that do not, one must simply look at the markings of the adjacent plots.

Vincent Bartolome

Limestone

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:38:11 +0000

Beth meets a girl when she is walking through the cemetery. They are both from German Mennonite background, which explains the spelling of Elisabeth’s name. She gave Beth a limestone and told her that it’s what the future holds for this town. Eventually, Hershey built the first chocolate factory from the limestone found in fields in Derry Township.

Brownstone

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:37:38 +0000

Billy meets a boy named John in the Berst Cemetary, and he is German as well. He gives Billy brownstone that is used in the cemetery just for the German Lutheran graves. Later, Brownstone was produced for industry and construction.

Clay

ldrexler — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:37:11 +0000

Jimmy was in the graveyard by the Session House stumbled upon a girl who tells him about the grave of the first Scotch-Irish person to settle in the land. She gives him a piece of clay before he leaves. Clay was extremely important for making pottery, helping to make bricks for houses, and more.