BIGLERVILLE, PA. Residents learn of error in town's age
BIGLERVILLE, Pa. (AP) -- A small town in central Pennsylvania just got a lot younger, after a research error was discovered that had historians believing that the town was 86 years older than it was.
Biglerville, sometimes called the Apple Capital of Pennsylvania, celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding Saturday -- 36 years after celebrating its 150th anniversary.
Historians looking at courthouse records had apparently confused records of Biglerville with that of the founding of Idaville, a village about six miles north.
"The records were talking about a town that was half way between Gettysburg and Carlisle," said longtime Biglerville resident Marion Harbaugh. "Biglerville isn't half way."
Idaville is.
Harbaugh, who was one of the people in charge of the festivities back in 1967, said she found out about the error six months ago. "It was quite a shock," she said.
As it turns out, Biglerville was founded by Henry Hartzell, Harbaugh's great-uncle. The town was incorporated May 26, 1903, although there had been a settlement there for years.
The town was for a time called Middletown, but there was already a Middletown near Harrisburg and another in Adams County.
The town's name was changed to Bigler, in honor of Gov. William Bigler, who served from 1852-55, until they discovered another Pennsylvania town already bore that name. The residents added the "ville" in the 1880s and the name stuck.
Biglerville, with a population of roughly 1,000 people, is called the Apple Capital because it sits in the middle of the county's 21,000-acre fruit belt.