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The City of DuBois
Chapter 2
Page 017
CITY OF DUBOIS Page 17
of these streams on the map of Warrant No. 521 is called Sandy
Creek, and the
other Beaver Run (now known as Pentz Run). These two streams seem to
have
settled his location, and finding a good spring of water about where
the old
Rumbarger House now stands, like the Ancients of old, he "pitched
his tent" and
started to make a home for himself and his family in this
wilderness.
Some kind of a dwelling house was erected. Some say that it was made
by
peeling hemlock trees, (this would be the peeling season for
hemlock) and
setting the bark up in form of a tent as the Indians would have done
in making
a Tepee, or lodge. But it is likely that a cabin was erected from
the timbers
of the forest before fall came.
George Shaffer was located on this tract for two years before he
discovered that he did not own the land upon which he had settled.
His death
can be fixed by two events, viz: in 1816, on the first day of April,
he made a
contract with his sons Michael and Frederick for their purchase of
Tract No.
92, purchased from the State in 1786. In the year 1819 his widow,
Catherine,
presented her petition to the Orphans' Court of Centre County,
(which court had
jurisdiction of the affairs of Clearfield County at that time), for
specific
performance of this contract, and the Court ordered a deed to be
made to the
purchasers. It is likely that George Shaffer had been dead at least
one, or
maybe two years, before this was done. If he was dead two years,
then George
Shaffer may have died in 1817. It is also known that he was the
first person
buried at Morningside Cemetery, which no doubt at that time was a
forest. The
grave is located on the east side of tract No. 92.
We have no record or information of how the Shaffers' got through
the
first year. Coming here in May 1812, they had no cleared land upon
which to
plant any crop that would mature in the summer. The best they could
do, after
erecting their cabin and stable for their live-stock, would be to
get a small
clearing to be sowed to wheat, which would not mature until the
following July
or August. In addition to this, they had the problem of feeding
whatever
livestock they possessed. The Beaver Meadow would furnish hay for
the stock.
They could rely upon their rifle to furnish meat, but cereals and
vegetables
were a problem.
Shaffer and his family had brought wheat, corn and garden seeds with
them, for planting. One of the descendants tells us they found a
vegetable
growing in the woods called "Indian Potato" which was quite
palatable, and good
for food, and which they used to help out their meat diet.
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