Nanty-Glo, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Nanty Glo is a borough in Cambria County
, Pennsylvania
, United States
. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,734 at the 2010 census. The name comes from the Welsh "Nant Y Glo," meaning "The Ravine (or "Brook") of Coal."
for "stream of coal") is located at 40°28′20"N 78°50′5"W (40.472096, -78.834777).
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the borough has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²), of which, 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) of it is land and 0.54% is water.
As of the census
of 2000, there were 3,054 people, 1,272 households, and 856 families residing in the borough. The population density
was 1,670.1 people per square mile (644.3/km²). There were 1,362 housing units at an average density of 744.8 per square mile (287.4/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 99.41% White, 0.23% African American, 0.03% Native American, 0.03% from other races
, and 0.29% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.29% of the population. 15.3% were of German
, 12.0% Italian, 11.1% Polish
, 9.9% Irish
, 9.0% Slovak
, 9.0% American
and 7.0% English
ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 1,272 households out of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples
living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the borough the population was spread out with 21.4% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 21.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $25,500, and the median income for a family was $37,727. Males had a median income of $30,192 versus $20,302 for females. The per capita income
for the borough was $14,184. About 11.3% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.6% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.
, labor leader
James Anthony Ripper Collins
, major league baseball player
Charlie Metro
, major league baseball player/manager
Boyd David "Buzz" Wagner, first flying ace of World War Two
A post office opened for Glenglade on November 21, 1894, with Merton A Davis as the first postmaster. Three Davis brothers took turns as postmaster: Merton A., from 1894 until 1900; Montell, 1900 until 1911, and Everett C., 1911-1916. According to oral history, the town name was changed to Nant-y-glo during the term of Montell Davis, through the intervention of his wife. Glenglade became Nant-y-glo on February 20 1901. Whether the Davises had the small town of the same name in Wales in mind or just thought the melodic-sounding Welsh phrase fit the town is not known. The name of Blacklick for the creek that bisects the town and the adjacent township probably means much the same as "brook of coal," a lick being a common synonym for brook and the "black" referring to outcroppings of coal seams on the stream banks and bed.
By 1899 the huge coal deposits in the settlement had attracted additional settlers and the Pennsylvania Railroad installed a spur line through the community that year. Commercial mining was initated in 1896 by Dr. James W. Dunwiddie of Pine Flats, Indiana County, who opened up what was then called Nanty Glo No. 1.
Heisley Mine (1915) was by far the largest, most profitable, and longest-lived Nanty Glo mine. It was originally owned and operated by Coleman-Weaver Company as Heisley Mine No. 3 until 1922, when Coleman-Weaver dissolved and partner John Heisley Weaver, a Philadelphia industrialist, acquired sole ownership. Colman-Weaver Company also originally owned the mines in Revloc and Colver and launched the Cambria and Indiana Railroad
(C&I), which served most Cambria County mines through most of the 20th century. Weaver also owned the mines in Heilwood, Indiana County, which was renamed from Possum Glory to Heilwood after Weaver's nickname, "Heil," from Heisley. Weaver died in 1934 and his company sold Heisley to Bethlehem Mines in 1948. Bethlehem renamed the mine Monroe Mine No. 131 and later renamed it Bethelehem Mine 31 and moved its main entrance from Nanty Glo to Jackson Township (Leidy Portal). The mine closed in the 1980s.
Other mines in what is now Nanty Glo and their starting dates included Lincoln (1900); Springfield, owned by the Peale, Peacock and Kerr Company (1907); Emma Coal Company (1909); and Webster, later owned by the Pennsylvania Coal & Coke Company, Ivory Hill, and the Warren Colliery. "House coal" mines on a much smaller scale (selling coal by the truckload directly to homeowners for house heating) included Lorraine, Bech, Johnson, Cornely, Dorsch, Yobbagy, and Ebandjieff.
Schools Formal education came to Nanty Glo about 1898 with a school opening on what was then the Jackson side of the settlement. Later, a school was opened on the Blacklick or northerly side of the creek. Over the years, there were numerous one-room school houses and in 1918 a fourth-class school district was established. The first four-year high school class was graduated in 1925. In 1957 the school district merged with that of nearby Vintondale, and in 1967 Blacklick Township became part of a triple jointure to form the present Blacklick Valley School District.
Nanty Glo's churches, hotels, theaters,
industries, media, and fire company
The first house of worship in Nanty Glo was the Methodist Episcopal Church, now United Methodist, established in 1901. Other churches in the community, past and present, include: St. Mary's Roman Catholic (1902), First Baptist (1913), St. Nicholas Byzantine Catholic (1919), Church of God and Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses (both 1920), Christian & Missionary Alliance and Holy Ascension Ukrainian Orthodox (1921), Church of the Brethren (1922) and Church of the Nazarene (1935). In the 1920's a Finnish Lutheran Church and a Jewish house of worship were started, both of which no longer exist.
Over the years, Nanty Glo had several hotels including the Home, St. James, Commercial, and Jackson. At one time Nanty Glo had three movie houses, two of which have been destroyed by fires. The third, the Liberty, is now being remodeled as the Blacklick Valley's historical museum.
In addition to coal mining, Nanty Glo had at various times a chemical works, soft drink bottling plant, plastic factory, and a dress manufacturing firm. All of these industries, along with all of the underground mines, have ceased operation.
Nanty Glo was incorporated as a borough in 1918, taking in parts of Blacklick Township and Jackson Township. After the city of Johnstown, Nanty Glo was the largest municipality in Cambria County, with a population of over 5,000, for most of the 20th Century.
Nanty Glo Journal Two newspapers have served the borough during Its history. In late 1920 or early 1921, a small publication called the Nanty Glo Bulletin was published. That paper was purchased by Herman Sedloff, a Russian emigre working as a typesetter in New York who moved to Nanty Glo specifically to establish a labor-oriented weekly newspaper. He published the first edition of the Nanty Glo Journal on May 5, 1921 and continued as its publisher until his retirement in the 1960s. The Journal continues to serve under new ownership.
The Nanty Glo Home Page was established as a not-for-profit and free-to-use community website in 1997 by Jon Kennedy, a local native who began writing for the Journal while in high school and was its editor from 1962 to 1964 while attending Johnstown College (now UPJ
). The website continues to serve the community with thousands of discrete pages, one of the earliest blogs established on the worldwide web, and several hundred film and video clips. It is now kept in trust for the local historical and museum society.
Fire Department In 1913, the Nanty Glo Volunteer Fire Company was chartered. That same year, a hand-drawn hose cart with 500 feet of hose was purchased by the town's governing body and the fire company remains strong to the present time, having an enrollment now of over 100 members. A ladies auxiliary to the fire company was organized in 1927 by 44 women of the community.
, a biking and walking trail that traverses much of Cambria County and adjacent Indiana County along former railroad beds. Free parking is available next to the trail entrances on both sides of the Fire Hall in the town center.
The Liberty Museum is nearing completion at the former Liberty Theater at the intersection of Shoemaker and Roberts Streets.
The Library of Congress has an extensive collection of photographs taken in a public works program of the mines and miners in Nanty Glo and nearby mining towns, taken during the Great Depression..
Belsano,
Cardiff/Nettleton,
Twin Rocks,
Vintondale,
and rural Blacklick Township.
Nanty Glo also serves as a major market place for Jackson and parts of Cambria Township.
in Wales.
Cambria County, Pennsylvania
Cambria County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It comprises the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 143,679....
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,734 at the 2010 census. The name comes from the Welsh "Nant Y Glo," meaning "The Ravine (or "Brook") of Coal."
Geography
Nanty Glo (WelshWelsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
for "stream of coal") is located at 40°28′20"N 78°50′5"W (40.472096, -78.834777).
According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the borough has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²), of which, 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) of it is land and 0.54% is water.
Demographics
The Nanty Glo borough Census 2010 found the population of the town to be 2,734 people. The borough population growth from 2000 to 2010 was -10.5% (down from 3,054 people to 2,734 people). 21.3% of Nanty Glo borough residents were under 18 years of age. Census 2010 race data for Nanty Glo show a racial breakdown of 0.4% black, 0.1% Asian, and 0.9% Hispanic. There were 1,289 housing units in Nanty Glo borough, 91.0% of which were occupied.As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,054 people, 1,272 households, and 856 families residing in the borough. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,670.1 people per square mile (644.3/km²). There were 1,362 housing units at an average density of 744.8 per square mile (287.4/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 99.41% White, 0.23% African American, 0.03% Native American, 0.03% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.29% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.29% of the population. 15.3% were of German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
, 12.0% Italian, 11.1% Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
, 9.9% Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
, 9.0% Slovak
Slovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
, 9.0% American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and 7.0% English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 1,272 households out of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the borough the population was spread out with 21.4% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 21.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $25,500, and the median income for a family was $37,727. Males had a median income of $30,192 versus $20,302 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the borough was $14,184. About 11.3% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.6% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.
Notable Personages
John BrophyJohn Brophy (labor)
John Brophy was an important figure in the United Mine Workers of America in the 1920s and the Congress of Industrial Organizations in the 1930s and 1940s. He was the last major challenger to John L...
, labor leader
James Anthony Ripper Collins
Ripper Collins
James Anthony "Rip" Collins was a Major League Baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, and Pittsburgh Pirates....
, major league baseball player
Charlie Metro
Charlie Metro
Charlie Metro was an outfielder for the Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Athletics, as well as a manager for the Chicago Cubs and the Kansas City Royals. He adopted the name "Metro" from his father, Metro Moreskonich, a Ukrainian immigrant...
, major league baseball player/manager
Boyd David "Buzz" Wagner, first flying ace of World War Two
History
What is now Nanty Glo Borough originated in the 1890's and was called Glenglade. By 1896, the community was a lumber camp of 13 houses built on both sides of the southern branch of Blacklick Creek, which forms the border of Blacklick Township on the north side and Jackson Township on the south side.A post office opened for Glenglade on November 21, 1894, with Merton A Davis as the first postmaster. Three Davis brothers took turns as postmaster: Merton A., from 1894 until 1900; Montell, 1900 until 1911, and Everett C., 1911-1916. According to oral history, the town name was changed to Nant-y-glo during the term of Montell Davis, through the intervention of his wife. Glenglade became Nant-y-glo on February 20 1901. Whether the Davises had the small town of the same name in Wales in mind or just thought the melodic-sounding Welsh phrase fit the town is not known. The name of Blacklick for the creek that bisects the town and the adjacent township probably means much the same as "brook of coal," a lick being a common synonym for brook and the "black" referring to outcroppings of coal seams on the stream banks and bed.
By 1899 the huge coal deposits in the settlement had attracted additional settlers and the Pennsylvania Railroad installed a spur line through the community that year. Commercial mining was initated in 1896 by Dr. James W. Dunwiddie of Pine Flats, Indiana County, who opened up what was then called Nanty Glo No. 1.
Heisley Mine (1915) was by far the largest, most profitable, and longest-lived Nanty Glo mine. It was originally owned and operated by Coleman-Weaver Company as Heisley Mine No. 3 until 1922, when Coleman-Weaver dissolved and partner John Heisley Weaver, a Philadelphia industrialist, acquired sole ownership. Colman-Weaver Company also originally owned the mines in Revloc and Colver and launched the Cambria and Indiana Railroad
Cambria and Indiana Railroad
The Cambria and Indiana Railroad is a railway company that is located in the southeastern part of Indiana County, Pennsylvania in the United States...
(C&I), which served most Cambria County mines through most of the 20th century. Weaver also owned the mines in Heilwood, Indiana County, which was renamed from Possum Glory to Heilwood after Weaver's nickname, "Heil," from Heisley. Weaver died in 1934 and his company sold Heisley to Bethlehem Mines in 1948. Bethlehem renamed the mine Monroe Mine No. 131 and later renamed it Bethelehem Mine 31 and moved its main entrance from Nanty Glo to Jackson Township (Leidy Portal). The mine closed in the 1980s.
Other mines in what is now Nanty Glo and their starting dates included Lincoln (1900); Springfield, owned by the Peale, Peacock and Kerr Company (1907); Emma Coal Company (1909); and Webster, later owned by the Pennsylvania Coal & Coke Company, Ivory Hill, and the Warren Colliery. "House coal" mines on a much smaller scale (selling coal by the truckload directly to homeowners for house heating) included Lorraine, Bech, Johnson, Cornely, Dorsch, Yobbagy, and Ebandjieff.
Schools Formal education came to Nanty Glo about 1898 with a school opening on what was then the Jackson side of the settlement. Later, a school was opened on the Blacklick or northerly side of the creek. Over the years, there were numerous one-room school houses and in 1918 a fourth-class school district was established. The first four-year high school class was graduated in 1925. In 1957 the school district merged with that of nearby Vintondale, and in 1967 Blacklick Township became part of a triple jointure to form the present Blacklick Valley School District.
Nanty Glo's churches, hotels, theaters,
industries, media, and fire company
The first house of worship in Nanty Glo was the Methodist Episcopal Church, now United Methodist, established in 1901. Other churches in the community, past and present, include: St. Mary's Roman Catholic (1902), First Baptist (1913), St. Nicholas Byzantine Catholic (1919), Church of God and Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses (both 1920), Christian & Missionary Alliance and Holy Ascension Ukrainian Orthodox (1921), Church of the Brethren (1922) and Church of the Nazarene (1935). In the 1920's a Finnish Lutheran Church and a Jewish house of worship were started, both of which no longer exist.
Over the years, Nanty Glo had several hotels including the Home, St. James, Commercial, and Jackson. At one time Nanty Glo had three movie houses, two of which have been destroyed by fires. The third, the Liberty, is now being remodeled as the Blacklick Valley's historical museum.
In addition to coal mining, Nanty Glo had at various times a chemical works, soft drink bottling plant, plastic factory, and a dress manufacturing firm. All of these industries, along with all of the underground mines, have ceased operation.
Nanty Glo was incorporated as a borough in 1918, taking in parts of Blacklick Township and Jackson Township. After the city of Johnstown, Nanty Glo was the largest municipality in Cambria County, with a population of over 5,000, for most of the 20th Century.
Nanty Glo Journal Two newspapers have served the borough during Its history. In late 1920 or early 1921, a small publication called the Nanty Glo Bulletin was published. That paper was purchased by Herman Sedloff, a Russian emigre working as a typesetter in New York who moved to Nanty Glo specifically to establish a labor-oriented weekly newspaper. He published the first edition of the Nanty Glo Journal on May 5, 1921 and continued as its publisher until his retirement in the 1960s. The Journal continues to serve under new ownership.
The Nanty Glo Home Page was established as a not-for-profit and free-to-use community website in 1997 by Jon Kennedy, a local native who began writing for the Journal while in high school and was its editor from 1962 to 1964 while attending Johnstown College (now UPJ
UPJ
UPJ may refer to:*Upjohn, stock ticker symbol*Union of Progressive Jews in Germany*University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown* Ureteral pelvic junction or Uretero-pelvic junction...
). The website continues to serve the community with thousands of discrete pages, one of the earliest blogs established on the worldwide web, and several hundred film and video clips. It is now kept in trust for the local historical and museum society.
Fire Department In 1913, the Nanty Glo Volunteer Fire Company was chartered. That same year, a hand-drawn hose cart with 500 feet of hose was purchased by the town's governing body and the fire company remains strong to the present time, having an enrollment now of over 100 members. A ladies auxiliary to the fire company was organized in 1927 by 44 women of the community.
Points of Interest
Just one mile from U.S. Highway 22, Nanty Glo is the major entry point to the Ghost Town TrailGhost Town Trail
The Ghost Town Trail is a rail trail in Western Pennsylvania that stretches from Black Lick, Indiana County, to Ebensburg, Cambria County. Established in 1991 on the right-of-way of the former Ebensburg and Black Lick Railroad, the trail follows the Blacklick Creek and passes through many ghost...
, a biking and walking trail that traverses much of Cambria County and adjacent Indiana County along former railroad beds. Free parking is available next to the trail entrances on both sides of the Fire Hall in the town center.
The Liberty Museum is nearing completion at the former Liberty Theater at the intersection of Shoemaker and Roberts Streets.
Cultural References
Both Time and Life magazines did stories on Nanty Glo as their prime exhibit for their coverage of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's taking control of the nation's coal mines after mine workers defied a Congressional law by going on strike at the height of World War Two. The May 10, 1943, edition of Life features a photo essay by Alfred Eisenstaedt of miners' everyday lives in Nanty Glo.The Library of Congress has an extensive collection of photographs taken in a public works program of the mines and miners in Nanty Glo and nearby mining towns, taken during the Great Depression..
Related Outlying Communities
Students attend public schools in Nanty Glo fromBelsano,
Cardiff/Nettleton,
Twin Rocks,
Vintondale,
and rural Blacklick Township.
Nanty Glo also serves as a major market place for Jackson and parts of Cambria Township.
International Links
Nanty Glo has close links with its twinned sister town of NantygloNantyglo
Nantyglo is a village in the ancient parish of Aberystruth and county of Monmouth situated deep within the South Wales Valleys between Blaina and Brynmawr in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent.- Places of interest in Nantyglo :...
in Wales.