1. Township Supervisor Minutes of Springfield 1910, 1920's, 1930's, 1940's 1960's, 1970's, 1980's;

2. School Board Minutes of Springfield Twp. 1920's, 30's, 40's etc.;

3. School Attendance Registers (Wood Cutting School) 1931, 1945, 1946, and 1947;

4. School Attendance Register (Maddens School) 1933; posted July, 2000

5. School Attendance Register (Frehn - Pleasant Bank) 1936; posted July 2000

6. Census of Children Report of Springfield Twp. 1931;

7. School Assessment Records Springfield Twp. 1924, 1927 and 1944; and

8. Justice of Peace Docket of Jacob Grant Lane 1912.

9. Listing of Old School Baptist Cemetery Grave Sites located in Huntingdon Co. , Springfield Twp.. posted July 2000

10. Listing of Walnut Grove Cemetery Grave Sites located in Huntingdon Co., Springfield Twp. posted July 2000

11. Listing of Ramsey / Brown Cemetery Grave Sites located in Huntingdon Co., Springfield Twp. posted July 2000

12. Listing of Old Booth Cemetery Grave Sites located in Huntingdon Co., Springfield Twp. posted July 2000

13. Listing of McKendree Church Cemtery Grave Sites located in Huntingdon Co., Cromwell Twp. posted Nov. 2000

14. Listing of Old Duffey Cemetery Grave Sites located in Huntingdon Co., Cromwell Twp. posted Nov. 2000

15. Listing of Lockes Valley Cemetery located in Huntingdon Co., Springfield Twp. posted Nov. 2000

16. Listing of other Cemeteries and 1860's J.P. Docket for  Springfield Twp. posted Nov. 2000

Springfield Township is located in the extreme southern part of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It was erected in December, 1790 from Shirley and Dublin, two original townships. It borders Dublin Twp. on the east, Cromwell twp. on the north, Clay twp. on the west and Fulton County on the south. In reference to Africa's History of Huntingdon County, 1883, John Bailey was probably the pioneer settler of Springfield Twp. He was a Revolutionary soldier who traveled down the Little Aughwich Creek to near what is now Maddensville and settled here. Others who followed were William Ward, John Robertson, and William Jones. Still more pioneers came whose names were Cutshalls, Stains, Browns, Lanes, Wibles, Ramseys, and Maddens. All settled along the Aughwich Creek, especially in the large meadow formed at the gap in the mountain which later became known as Meadow Gap and sometimes called Podwally. Hugh Orlton chose the hills away from the floods of the creek and owned the pioneer "shingled roof" house in the township.

Early Churches of Springfield Township were as follows:

1.Old School Baptist Church

Was organized in the early part of the 1800's. The original meeting house was of logs , weather-boarded, and located about 5 miles NE of Maddensville or 3 miles SE of Three Springs. This is the oldest church building in the township. In 1883 there were 12 members and Rev. Mr. Rose was the regular pastor, preaching monthly; and, Rev. Stahr was the substitute. The building was extensively remodeled a few years ago without destroying the existing decore and is a landmark today. No regular services are held except the yearly Memorial Services in May.

2.Mount Carmel Church

Located about 2 miles NE of Maddenville, was organized by Cyrus Jeffries, and known as Jeffreyites. As printed in the "Herald" newspaper in 1875, Cyrus Jeffries of Mt. Union was the subject of comment at Camp Meeting at Newton Hamilton, Pa. because of his [unorthodox] religious views. [Reprinted from The Valley Log, Aug. 30, 2000, Steve Kemp: "Window Into The Past".] The Mount Carmel Church in 1883 was occupied by the United Brethren. Today weekly services are held by the Methodist Church.

3.Wesley Methodist Episcopal Chapel

Located at the forks of the creek one half mile south of Maddensville and built in 1855. Building committee included J. Snyder, S. Kimes, N.K.Covert, J.Uncles, J.W. Buckley, and James Linn. Previous to building this chapel meetings were held in the school house near-by. Membership in 1883 was fifteen and preaching every alternate Sunday was the pastor at Three Springs. The Church is not present today.

4.Walnut Grove Bethel or Church of God

Built in 1855 by Thomas Ashton at a cost of $450. Services were held every alternate Sunday. The Church stands today and has the largest membership of all the township churches.

 

Springfield Township supported 6 one room schools in 1881 with an average of 5 months per year. In 1881 there were 6 male teachers employed at twenty dollars per month each, who were educating 122 male and 117 female pupils. The township is still very rural today. 

One-room schoolhouses are a vanishing national treasure in America today. According to the nation's foremost authority on the suject,  Dr. Andrew Gulliford, the one room schoolhouses fell victim to urbanization and school consolidation. Dr. Gulliford's book, America's Country Schools, 1996, states that by the turn of the century, 1900, there were 211,000 functioning one-room schools in the United States. Today the number stands at 835! Most of these are in remote regions like Montana, islands off the coast of Washington State, or a larger number operated by Amish and Old Order Mennonite communities.

Dr. Robert Agostino, at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, who specializes in educational history, states that with the wave of European immigrants moving into the United States, one-room schoolhouses were partially squeezed by demographic pressure. As factories sprouted in the big cities and small towns alike, the idea that everything, including education, could be perfected by adolpting factory-like streamlining which made the muligrade and resource-poor country schools seem backward and inefficient! When the tax burden of running a school outside the consolidated area and adhering to state mandates proved too great financially, the one room school took its last breath.

After closing, many were torn down. Some were turn back to the families who originally donated the land and were then used for grain storage or hogpens or just left to rot away. Neither the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission nor the National Registry of Historic Places keep a specific category for one-room schoolhouses.

In neighboring Franklin County, in 1900 there were at least 200 one-room schools. In 1956, there were 40 functioning schools. By 1960, the last public one-room school closed it doors permanently.

As stated in The Valley Log, October 4, 2000, Steve Kemp, "Windows Into The Past", in 1875 Huntingdon County public schools had an attendance of 8,749. Huntingdon County had 195 school houses in use, nine of which were constructed during the school year ending June 1875. Average attendance was 73.3%; 216 teachers were employed in the county -- 161 men and 55 women whose average age was 26 years.

  Schools of Springfield Twp.:

1.Lockes Valley School House

Located in Lockes Valley near the present Lockes Valley Cementery in the extreme North-Eastern edge of Springfield Twp. Operated spradically as the number of local students demanded. The building no longer exist.

2. Maddens School House

Located approximately 1 mile NW of Mt. Carmel Church and NE of Selea. Also frequently called Election School House. It no longer exist.

3. Maddensville School House

The Old Maddensville School House ( according to Africa's History of Huntingdon County, 1883) was built in 1872 or 1873 and was located along the Maddenville / Fort Littleton Road and approximately  200 yards south of Maddensville. The A. Pomeroy's 1873 Atlas of Huntingdon Co. by Beach Nichols shows it located where the present day County bridge named Maddensville Bridge crosses Little Aughwick Creek. It was used as an old farm storage shed and is left rotting down today.

4.Meadow Gap School House

Located 200 yds. North of the Village of Meadow Gap along State Route 475. The school was eventually closed in the 1940's and students were bused to Woodcutting School. It existed before the year 1883 but no longer exist today.

5.Pleasant Bank School House

This school was later also called Frehn's School. It is located approximately 200 yards south of the present and newly replaced County bridge named Frehns Bridge. It no longer exist.

6.Wood Cutting School House

This school was located in the northern part of the township. It is located along Twp. route 333 called Matthew Bridge Road. It is still standing today as a week-end retreat for a former area resident.

LINKS for Springfield Twp. and related material:

• More Springfield Twp. Information
• Huntingdon County Genealogy

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