McVeytown Borough

McVEYTOWN, 11.7 m. (522 alt., 566 pop.), formerly Waynesburg, was incorporated as a borough in 1833 and in that capacity assumed 'the invaluable prerogative of issuing shinplasters,' which were widely circulated during the hard times of 1841-2. Townspeople work in the Lewistown viscose plant, on farms, or on the railroad. Several old stone houses stand out among newer frame structures.

Southwest of McVeytown the route traverses desolate country, dotted with crude lime kilns, patches of wooded land, rolling farms, and abrupt rock-strewn hills. At 27.1 m. is (R) a silica quarry across the road from the PENNSYLVANIA GLASS SAND CORPORATION PLANT (not open), a group of red brick and gray metal buildings powdered white with dust.

MILL CREEK, 29.3 m. (603 alt., 334 pop.), site of pre-Revolutionary grist-and sawmills, became an iron center in 1838 when Mill Creek Furnace (see below) was built. In 1852 the area was known as one of the most extensive iron fields in the world, and was well supplied with water power, timber, and limestone. Now, residents have to find employment outside the aging hamlet.

Right from Mill Creek on State 76 to the junction with a lane, 0.1 m.; L. on the lane 0.2 m., where a steep footpath leads down to Mill Creek. Upstream 100 yards are the RUINS OF MILL CREEK FURNACE, which operated from 1838 to 1869. Canal boats transported ore here from deposits north of Water Street (see below). At its peak 120 men were employed in producing sheet iron. From the center of the crumbling circular brick furnace grows a large tree. Near by are the ruins of a six-foot water tank ingeniously constructed of curved wooden segments; lying about in this seldom visited spot are the stone foundations of other structures.

Federal Writers Project, Works Progress Administration, 1940