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CITY OF DUBOIS Page 121
road from floating away, a series of trestles from 6 to 8 feet high
were constructed, upon which stringers were laid, on which was laid
plank three inches thick by sixteen feet long, making a bridge
across the valley. In times of high water this road had to be
anchored with ropes to the trees that formerly stood in the valley
east of this road.
This road was continued until 1896 when the town
council filled the road with dirt and paved it. At the time of this
filling Mr. John E. DuBois hauled his logs from the woods on a
railroad built for miles into the forest. The borough rented the
railroad and its equipment from Mr. DuBois at the enormous (?) price
of $10 00 per day, furnishing their own repairs, engineer, etc., Mr.
DuBois contributing the dirt from a borrow pit on his lands up on
the mountain. It required about two months to do the filling. The
bridge across the creek was a simple structure on trestle and in
September 1888 the county was persuaded to go along and furnish a
steel bridge, contributing for that purpose $4000.00. The street
built by Mr. DuBois was called "Courtney Street" in honor of Mrs.
Courtney, who had purchased from Mr. DuBois the lot at the corner of
Long Avenue and Brady Street. This piece of ground was in a forest
at that time. Mrs. Courtney erected her house in the woods.
Mr. DuBois maintained a toll gate at the intersection
of Long Avenue. Persons going to the railroad station paid toll.
Tickets were sold for this purpose, but at this date they have all
disappeared. Persons dealing with Mr. DuBois or his store, went toll
free.
The location of this road fixed the business center of
the City of DuBois. An application was made to the Court of Quarter
Sessions of Clearfield County for a road from the railroad station
south to what was then called the "Pike". This road was fought
through the courts for three or four years. The inhabitants of Brady
Township contended that they ought not to be put to the expense of
building a road for the town and alleging that the road was on low
swampy ground and too expensive to keep up. However, the court
finally confirmed the road and thus North Brady Street and South
Brady Street was permanently fixed. That part of South Brady Street
south of Long Avenue was 33 feet wide until it reached the line of
the Long Addition, at which point the street was then made 5o feet
wide out to Weber Avenue and then there the road curved off to the
west, coming back on its present location at about Jared Street.
After Mr. DuBois had gotten his affairs rather
consolidated, he erected a two-story frame building where the
Pennsylvania Railroad station now stands for his store and offices.
This was the first department store in this section. All classes of
merchandise, including drugs, hardware etc. were handled in this
store. In addition thereto the railroad station and telegraph
offices were in the store. A picture of this building is shown,
taken from the west side of the building. The brick building in the
distance was the new store and offices of Mr. DuBois, including the
hotel which he erected a little later.
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