Original diary in Lancaster County Historical Society Archives.
Summary
Francis Ziegler was born in Columbia, Pennsylvania in 1817 and he died in 1902. He was a school teacher and a telegraph operator.He recorded in this diary sporadically between 1854 and 1857. His entries describe personal experiences, but many entries pertain to events of the day, both local and national. His discontent with politics and the times, in general, is clear. The diary begins at the time of a cholera epidemic in Columbia during which many people died. He presents a picture of a very frightening time. Another highlight of the diary was his description of the invasion of Pennsylvania by Confederate troops during the Civil War. He witnessed the burning of the bridge over the Susquehanna River between Columbia and Wrightsville. This action closed off a potential route for the Confederates to reach Philadelphia and Harrisburg after Gettysburg.
In: Journal of the Historical Society of the Cocalico Valley , v.26 (2 vols)
Includes index.
Summary
Transcription of the diary of Adamstown resident, Ida Stohler Trostle (1874-1967). The diary was written during the years that Ida's husband Lewis Trostle was the proprietor of Adamstown's "Lancaster County House"; it illustrates the day-to-day interaction of Ida with her family, friends and church community. The diary is footnoted and indexed.
Phebe Earle Gibbons was from a prominent Quaker family. The diary covers years 1849, 1854, 1855, 1856 and 1857. "MRS. PHOEBE EARLE GIBBONS, a lady of literary tastes, was born in Philadelphia, August 9th, 1821. Her father,Thomas Earle, was a man of great note in his day, and in1840 was the first candidate of the Liberty party for Vice President. The subject of this sketch was well educated in select schools in Massachusetts, and taught in Mr. Picot's French school in Philadelphia and elsewhere for some years. In 1845 she was married to Dr. Joseph Gibbons of Lancaster County. In 1861 she began the study of Greek, with Professor William M. Nevin, of Lancaster. A portion of the Odyssey, translated by her was published in the Ladies' Friend of Philadelphia. A small medical work was translated by her from the French, for Lindsay and Blakistoa, which was published in 1866. She has also translated a portion of the Herman and Dorothea of Goethe. At different times she has written articles for magazines. In 1872 she published a small volume, entitled " Pennsylvania Dutch," a portion of which originally appeared in the Atlantic Monthly. Mrs. Gibbons is an active member of the Lancaster Linnaean Society. She is a lady of varied acquirements and marked intellectual capacity." [Biographical History of Lancaster County by Alexander Harris.]
