small canal borough has big family appeal

By Angel R. AckermanManaging editor

Freemansburg traces its rootsto a seven-house farming com-munity incorporated from landbelonging to BethlehemTownship. It boomed when theLehigh Canal opened in 1829,bringing the population to morethan 700 by 1856.

When the canal died,Freemansburg became a steeltown (70 percent of residentsworked there) and when steeldied… well, officials there hesi-tate to call Freemansburg a bed-room community. In the last 50years, Freemansburg has bal-looned from about 1,500 resi-dents to nearly 3,000.

A large portion of that influxcame in the last couple yearswhen the borough found itselffaced with 550 new homes.

All in one square mile.With the sesquicentennial

celebration starting tomorrow,Freemansburg officials andlong-time residents hope thatnewcomers will use the festivi-ties to learn about their adoptedhometown.

“Hopefully the new residentscan find out where they live andwhat their community is allabout,” said Charles Derr, a life-long Freemansburg residentwho still lives in the housewhere he was born.

It’s the type of small townwhere Derr teases 25-year bor-ough mayor Gerald Yob aboutbeing a transplant. Yob movedhere more than 50 years agolooking for an affordable home.When he moved in, there wereseven homes and an old ballfield in his neighborhood.

He spent 12 years on councilbefore taking the borough’s topspot. Yob said he’ll retire frommunicipal politics after thisterm. But Derr and MikeMicolochick, of the local firedepa r tmen t ,don’t know ifthey believehim. Yob thenpointed outhe’ll be 80-years-old atthe end of histerm.

Age doesn’t stop MikeMicolochick’s father, affection-ately known as “Pop.” PopMicolochick changes light bulbsin the municipal building, doeslight repairs, loads the sodamachine and even grills onFriday nights for volunteers

with the fire department. Popalso serves as a sergeant in thefire police.

That’s the type of small townspirit found in Freemansburg.It’s the home of nostalgia, said

Andrew Guidon. It’s a“close-knit” townwhere residents getinvolved and “makethings happen,” hesaid.

For Lyndell Bogerof the borough’s parksand recreation board,

Freemansburg offers old-fash-ioned camaraderie for her fami-ly.

“It’s a nice place for kids,”said Boger. “Everyone watchesout for each other’s kids. Wetalk to our neighbors. We’ll dis-cuss a recipe over the backyardfence.”

The borough has three parks(Main Street-Canal, MainStreet-Gateway and Municipal)and an increasing recreationbudget thanks to contributionsfrom the development activity.The recreation committee hostsevents for residents fromschool-aged children to singleadults. Senior citizens in theborough will enjoy a freespaghetti dinner in September.The Halloween parade kicks offat 2 p.m. Oct. 7. Trick or treat inthe borough concludes with abonfire in Municipal Park.November brings skate night atSkateaway in BethlehemTownship. December brings theannual Christmas Party and treelighting.

The committeealso helps localstudents completecommunity serv-ice projectsrequired by theBethlehem AreaSchool District.

Some recre-ation venues in theborough haven’tsurvived the course of time.

Derr remembered fondly thehoopla around the annual MayDay celebration atFreemansburg School when hewas growing up. The childrenwould dance around the Maypole and the town would electthe May Court. Derr could namethe May Queen crowned whenhe was in eighth grade.

About 200 would show up atthe crowning, said Guidon.

Some of that atmosphere haschanged, officials said, in partbecause people don’t have thetime to volunteer and getinvolved.

“I blame two things, televi-sion and the economy,” Derrsaid. “You need two workingadults to make it.”

By the time you get home,most people just want to vege-tate in front of the television,especially those who commuteto New York or New Jersey,Derr and Guidon said.

The economy has alsochanged downtownFreemansburg, Derr said.

“Almost 100 percent of ourbusiness community is gone,”Derr said. He would know. Hisfamily has lived in town for acentury.

In the 1940s and 1950s,Freemansburg had 76 business-es on Main Street, Derr said. Helisted three candy stores, fourbars, a pool hall, an A & P gro-cer and three barbers amongthem.

Now there are a couple ofused car dealers, three bars anda new deli (Thanhauser’s onMain Street, in one of the for-mer barber shops).

Derr will host a history walkon the canal during the week-end’s events. At the time theborough incorporated, Eastonwas the only city outside ofPhiladelphia, Allentown was thesummer estate of William Allenand Bethlehem was a closedcommunity, open only toMoravians, he said.

The 1819 map shows 11buildings in town, said Derr,most connected to farmingincluding a gristmill, lime kiln

and saw mill. Thatremained the coreof Freemansburgfor 50 years. Thecanal boom led toa 30-year growthperiod, with about20 houses added tothe town’s MainStreet by the timeof incorporation in1856. The first 50

years of official Freemansburgrelied “entirely” on the canal,said Derr, with some farmingco-existing.

According to the 1860 and1870 census records, studied byDerr, 30 to 40 percent of resi-dents worked on the canal,including three local boat yardsthat not only repaired canalboats but also built them. At thattime, the layout of the town wasthe Chestnut, Green, New andMain streets area.

When the railroads came in,during the late 1800s, theLehigh Canal Company had itsown rail line (1864) that pre-

served the livelihood of manyresidents while the canal died.By the 1880s, Derr said, theeconomy of Freemansburg“basically stagnated” andentered a depression.

Many residents then startedto work for Northampton Ironand Bethlehem Iron. But, “bythe turn of the century, the townbasically made another switch,”Derr said. As steel came intomodern construction,Bethlehem Iron becameBethlehem Steel (the giant onthe other side of the LehighRiver) and emerged as the “onlysurvivor” of the change to steel.

Bethlehem Steel built hous-ing for workers in town, thewhole Juniata to Clearfieldstreets neighborhood. DuringWorld War I, Freemansburgdepended on The Steel.

Now, an estimated one-quar-ter of buildings within town lim-its are new residences. The pop-ulation has jumped 60 to 70 per-cent over numbers from adecade ago.

Angel R. Ackerman serves asmanaging editor for The LehighValley News Group and editor ofThe Bethlehem News. Email herat aackerman@lehighval-leynewsgroup.com.

The Bethlehem News16 • August 10, 2006 FREEMANSBURG 150TH

Small canal borough has big family appeal

If You Go:Events forresidents

Sponsored byFreemansburg Parks andRecreation, free for bor-ough residentsn FAMILY FUN FESTIVAL:3 p.m. Aug. 12, part of theanniversary celebration,Freemansburg Elementaryn SENIOR’S SPAGHETTIDINNER: 4 to 6 p.m., Sept.9, register at borough hallbefore Aug. 21n HALLOWEENPARADE: 2 p.m., Oct. 7(rain date Oct. 8)n TRICK OR TREAT &BONFIRE: trick or treat is 6to 8 p.m., bonfire follows atMunicipal Park.n SKATE NIGHT: 6 to8:30 p.m., Nov. 2, registerbetween Oct. 1 and Oct. 23at borough hall. Free,including skate rental.n CHILDREN’SCHRISTMAS PARTY: 2p.m., Dec. 2, borough hall,register between Oct. 15and Nov. 13.n TREE LIGHTING: 6p.m., Dec. 2, Main StreetGateway Park.

“Hopefully, thenew residentscan find outwhat their

community isall about.”

– Charles Derr

“Everyonewatches out

for eachother’s kids.”

– Lyndell Boger

Present day photos by Angel R. Ackerman, others contributed Then: (above) the Willow Grove hotel during a community event. Now: (above, left) fire equipment at the station and (below) taking awalk in the borough’s canal park. The mule barn, reconstructed about a decade ago, is on the right and the lock tender’s houses standson the left. The lock lies between them.

A fallen marker in the Monroe Street cemetery points towardFreemansburg’s downtown. Below, Christ Lutheran Church standsat the corner of Monroe and Main streets.

In preparation for the upcoming sesquicentennial, FreemansburgMayor Gerald Yob (left) talks with Andrew Guidon and Charles Derras they look at Derr’s old photos of town.

See 150th events oncommunity calendar

inside, page 2.

See related stories,page 5.