Pennsylvanians, Benjamin Franklin, was the promoter and proprietor of the first printing establishment in the city of Lancaster. His name was not known in the matter at the time, and only came to light a few years ago through the discovery of certain legal documents drawn up at the time. Franklin had been doing

, 1730, a petition was presented by "the magis- trates, grand jury and other inhabit- ants of Lancaster county,setting forth that not having the conveniences of any navigable water for bringing the produce of their labors to Philadel- phia, they were obliged, at a great ex- pense, to transport them by

was of this marriage that the subject of this sketch was born, at the homestead, in Manor township. By her various marriages Connolly's mother became quite wealthy. Soon after the birth of this son the family moved to Lancaster borough, occupy- ing a house on South Prince street, where they lived and

new homestead was builded- Some- thing of this is to be seen in the vi- cinity of Lancaster, where buildibg stone was both good and abundant, but to realize this fact in the fullest measure one must go into the sand- stone regions of the northeastern part of Lancaster county and into the adjacent

Donegal in the Revolution Patriotism and Piety, A notable historic event in the his- tory of Lancaster county, binding the present to the past by an enduring chain of events, was the unveiling of a monument in Old Donegal church- yard, on Thursday, October 4th, 1899. This interesting memorial shaft

the time, and only came to light a few years ago through the discovery of cer- tain legal documents drawn up at the time. Franklin had been doing much of the printing for the Ephrata com- munity before it procured its own press, and for the other religious sects in the State. Lancaster county was the

Early Lancaster Playbills and Playhouses. Public shows and amusements are probably nearly as old as the human race itself. We know they have exist- ed among all civilized nations from their earliest history. In Greece, where they reached their highest early development, they were in existence five

EARLY LANCASTER THEATRE, The Hon. W. U. Hensel a short.time ago called my attention to an incident related by the eminent actor, James E. Murdoch, in the interesting volume of memoirs written by him, in which he relates some of the more striking events of his theatrical career. As the scene of the

, so numerous had the set- tlers become in the valley of the Con- estoga and its tributaries at the time of the founding of Lancaster Town, and in many cases, I fear, without pay- ing the slightest attention to the legal requirement of procuring land from the Proprietary Government, or any one else