Edmund Blanchard
Encyclopedia
Edmund Blanchard was a lawyer and prominent businessman in Centre County, Pennsylvania
. He was an early promoter of rail transportation in the area.
The son of John Blanchard
and Mary Miles, Blanchard was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
and educated at Dartmouth College
. At one time a law partner of Andrew Curtin, he also served as district attorney
for Centre County and subsequently became senior partner of the corporate law firm Blanchard and Blanchard, the other principal being his brother Evan. Blanchard & Blanchard's clients included the Bellefonte and Snowshoe Railroad
and the Bald Eagle Valley Railroad
.
Blanchard had been an early investor in the Bellefonte & Snowshoe, and served as a director of the Tyrone and Lock Haven Railroad. This company was reorganized as the Bald Eagle Valley Railroad, of which he served as treasurer. Blanchard's history with these lines put him on good terms with Pennsylvania Railroad
officials, who financed the Bald Eagle Valley and later took control of both that railroad and the Bellefonte & Snowshoe. Blanchard's other business interests included the Bellefonte Glass Works, the Bellefonte Car Works, and the Moshannon Land and Lumber Co.
Because of his connections, Blanchard headed a group of Centre County businessmen that, in 1881, appealed to President George B. Roberts of the PRR to build a branch from Bellefonte to the iron ore deposits at Scotia
. Blanchard and his associates saw the line as key to cutting transportation costs to bring ore to the blast furnace
s at Bellefonte, and hired Samuel Brugger to survey a route from Bellefonte to Scotia, with a branch to State College
.
However, the PRR declined to act on the proposal, as it considered the group's estimates of ore production at Scotia and in the Buffalo Run Valley to be over-optimistic. Undeterred, Blanchard and other interested parties chartered the Bellefonte and Buffalo Run Railroad in 1882 to build the proposed lines, under the presidency of Blanchard. His legal skill was crucial in helping the new railroad acquire some of its right-of-way affordably through eminent domain
.
Heart disease forced Blanchard to scale back his activities in 1885, and he stepped down from the presidency of the Bellefonte & Buffalo Run when it was consolidated to form the Buffalo Run, Bellefonte and Bald Eagle Railroad, although he remained a director of the latter. With the railroad well underway in 1886, Blanchard secured Philadelphia investment to build a new iron furnace in Bellefonte. The Centre Iron Company began work on a hot blast furnace on Logan Branch, at the site of the former Bellefonte (charcoal) Furnace, in fall 1886. Blanchard and his associates also organized the Valentine Ore Land Association to mine ore, mostly from banks in the Nittany Valley
to the east, and the Nittany Valley Railroad
to transport it. However, Blanchard did not live to see Valentine Furnace go into blast in 1888. He succumbed to heart disease on December 27, 1886. His sons, Evan Miles and John, succeeded to his law practice and would later represent the Bellefonte Central Railroad
, successor to the BRB&BE, in litigation.
Centre County, Pennsylvania
Centre County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 153,990....
. He was an early promoter of rail transportation in the area.
The son of John Blanchard
John Blanchard (politician)
John Blanchard was a Whig member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.John Blanchard was born in Peacham, Vermont. He taught school, and graduated from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, in 1812. He moved to Pennsylvania in 1812 and settled in York, Pennsylvania,...
and Mary Miles, Blanchard was born in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
Bellefonte is a borough in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It lies about twelve miles northeast of State College and is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area...
and educated at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
. At one time a law partner of Andrew Curtin, he also served as district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
for Centre County and subsequently became senior partner of the corporate law firm Blanchard and Blanchard, the other principal being his brother Evan. Blanchard & Blanchard's clients included the Bellefonte and Snowshoe Railroad
Bellefonte and Snowshoe Railroad
The Bellefonte and Snowshoe Railroad was a coal-hauling railroad in Centre County, Pennsylvania. Begun in 1859, it came under the control of the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1881...
and the Bald Eagle Valley Railroad
Bald Eagle Valley Railroad
The Bald Eagle Valley Railroad was a subsidiary of the Pennsylvania Railroad which owned several rail lines in central Pennsylvania. It had its genesis in the Tyrone and Lock Haven Railroad, a financially-troubled railroad chartered in 1857, which was unable to complete more than a small portion of...
.
Blanchard had been an early investor in the Bellefonte & Snowshoe, and served as a director of the Tyrone and Lock Haven Railroad. This company was reorganized as the Bald Eagle Valley Railroad, of which he served as treasurer. Blanchard's history with these lines put him on good terms with Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
officials, who financed the Bald Eagle Valley and later took control of both that railroad and the Bellefonte & Snowshoe. Blanchard's other business interests included the Bellefonte Glass Works, the Bellefonte Car Works, and the Moshannon Land and Lumber Co.
Because of his connections, Blanchard headed a group of Centre County businessmen that, in 1881, appealed to President George B. Roberts of the PRR to build a branch from Bellefonte to the iron ore deposits at Scotia
Scotia, Pennsylvania
Scotia was a village in Patton Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania, at . Although the community was called Scotia, the name of the local post office was Benore ....
. Blanchard and his associates saw the line as key to cutting transportation costs to bring ore to the blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
s at Bellefonte, and hired Samuel Brugger to survey a route from Bellefonte to Scotia, with a branch to State College
State College, Pennsylvania
State College is the largest borough in Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Centre County. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 42,034, and roughly double...
.
However, the PRR declined to act on the proposal, as it considered the group's estimates of ore production at Scotia and in the Buffalo Run Valley to be over-optimistic. Undeterred, Blanchard and other interested parties chartered the Bellefonte and Buffalo Run Railroad in 1882 to build the proposed lines, under the presidency of Blanchard. His legal skill was crucial in helping the new railroad acquire some of its right-of-way affordably through eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
.
Heart disease forced Blanchard to scale back his activities in 1885, and he stepped down from the presidency of the Bellefonte & Buffalo Run when it was consolidated to form the Buffalo Run, Bellefonte and Bald Eagle Railroad, although he remained a director of the latter. With the railroad well underway in 1886, Blanchard secured Philadelphia investment to build a new iron furnace in Bellefonte. The Centre Iron Company began work on a hot blast furnace on Logan Branch, at the site of the former Bellefonte (charcoal) Furnace, in fall 1886. Blanchard and his associates also organized the Valentine Ore Land Association to mine ore, mostly from banks in the Nittany Valley
Nittany Valley
The Nittany Valley is an eroded anticlinal valley in the central portion of Centre County, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is separated from the Bald Eagle Valley by Bald Eagle Mountain and from Penns Valley by Mount Nittany. The valley is closed to the north by a high plateau that joins...
to the east, and the Nittany Valley Railroad
Nittany Valley Railroad
The Nittany Valley Railroad was a Pennsylvania shortline built to haul iron ore to blast furnaces near Bellefonte.The company was incorporated on March 15, 1887. It was controlled by B.K. Jamison, president of the Centre Iron Company...
to transport it. However, Blanchard did not live to see Valentine Furnace go into blast in 1888. He succumbed to heart disease on December 27, 1886. His sons, Evan Miles and John, succeeded to his law practice and would later represent the Bellefonte Central Railroad
Bellefonte Central Railroad
The Bellefonte Central Railroad was a shortline connecting Bellefonte and State College, Pennsylvania. Constructed in the late 19th century to haul local iron ore to furnaces in the Bellefonte region, it later hauled freight traffic to Penn State and lime for steelmaking from local quarries...
, successor to the BRB&BE, in litigation.