Educational Resources
AERIAL PHOTOS – MAPS – ANNA MORRIS HOLSTEIN – CHRIST CHURCH (OLD SWEDES) – LIMESTONE GEOLOGY – FROM REBEL HILL TO VALLEY FORGE – BRIDGEPORT & THE RIVER TOWNS – PORT KENNEDY – ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
Aerial Photos
- Aerial Photos of King of Prussia 1942-2010 – PDF file of the King of Prussia downtown area, suitable for large-format printing.
- 1928 Aerial Photos – Photos from all over the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- 1959 Aerial Photos – Photos from all over the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- 1970 Aerial Photos – Photos from all over the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- 1980 Aerial Photos – Photos from all over the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- 1990 Aerial Photos – Photos from all over the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- 2000 Aerial Photos – Photos from all over the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- Oblique Aerial Photos – Oblique (not straight down) photos for various locations/years of the Upper Merion Area from our Digital Archive.
- Penn Pilot (off-site) – Free historical archive of aerial photos from all over PA. Has some years we do not have in our archive.
- PASDA Aerial Imagery (off-site) – PA Spatial Data Access Website. Covers more recent years we do not have in our archive.
- 1849 Maps of Upper Merion & Montgomery County – from our Digital Archive.
- 1871 Map of the Upper Merion Area – from our Digital Archive.
- 1877 Maps of Upper Merion & Montgomery County – from our Digital Archive.
- 1893 Maps of Upper Merion, Bridgeport and West Conshohocken – from our Digital Archive.
- 1895 USGS Topo Map of the Upper Merion Area – from our Digital Archive.
- 1912/1913 Mueller Atlas Maps of the Upper Merion Area – From our Digital Archive
- Population Graph of UM, BPT, and WC 1930 to 2010
- Relief Maps of the Upper Merion Area and the Chester (or Great) Valley – from our Digital Archive.
- Historic PennDOT Road Map (off-site)s – Scroll down to the Montgomery County list. Free for classroom use, courtesy of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Transportation. All rights reserved.
- Andy’s Antique Maps (off-site) – (Franklin Maps) Historical maps of our area can be viewed here.
- Historic Map Works (off-site) – Historical maps from many places can be viewed and purchased here.
- Library of Congress Map Collection (off-site) – This link takes you to a search for Montgomery County maps, but you can search any area.
- Images of Anna, her house and her gravesite – from our Digital Archive.
- Three Years in Field Hospitals with the Army of the Potomac – (Free Google ebook) Anna’s book describing her experiences as a nurse during the Civil War. Very well-written.
- Women’s History Issue of the KoP Historical Society Gazette – Information about Anna, as well as other Civil War vets buried at Christ Church (Old Swedes), Upper Merion. Includes information about Sarah Priest, the nurse who seemed to have suffered from PTSD after the war.
- Daughters of the American Revolution Magazine (vol 20) – (Free Google ebook) A short bio of Anna is in this issue.
- Tavistock Rare Books website – A list of Civil War nurses including a short write-up about Anna.
- Google Map Location of Anna’s House – It still stands across Henderson Rd from the Giant Shopping Center.
- Picture of the Church (on wikimedia)
- Images of the Church (in our archive)
- See the location in Google Maps
- 350th Anniversary Article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, 1993
- Relief Maps of the Upper Merion Area and the Chester (or Great) Valley – from our Digital Archive.
- VF Park Guide to Limestone & Dolomite Geology – includes a geological history of the area.
- Valley Forge Mountain Association History of Mount Misery – a non-profit working for community improvement.
- Article about PA Clouded Limestone (King of Prussia Marble) – A collector’s website that explains the difference between marble (a true metamorphic rock) and PA clouded limestone (partially metamorphosed sedimentary rock) as well as the history of its use. Be sure to click the small navigation triangles to see pictures and maps.
- Article from Lime.org – Explains the environmental chemistry of limestone, as well as its many uses especially in metallurgy.
- Article by a Metallurgist Focusing on Limestone’s Use in the Steel Industry – Includes the chemical difference between limestone and dolomite.
- New Construction and Sinkholes in King of Prussia – 2016 article on Philly.com about the new construction in King of Prussia and the issues they’ve had with sinkholes.
- UM Township Sinkhole Map – 2004 map (pdf) published by the township of known sinkholes and sinkhole prone areas.
From Rebel Hill to Valley Forge
- Itinerary of General Washington by William S. Baker – (Free Google ebook) This link should open right to Dec 11 when the army left Whitemarsh and marched to Swede’s Ford.
- The Camp by the Old Gulph Mill, William S. Baker – (Free Google ebook) Address by Baker to the Sons of the American Revolution about Washington’s encampment on Rebel Hill before moving back to Valley Forge.
- Old Roads Out of Philadelphia, John Faris – (Free Google ebook) 1917 book describing the roads in colonial times and in 1917. This link should open to a description of Gulph Rd. The book contains quotations and stories from the passage of Washington’s troops, as well as their encampment on Rebel Hill.
- Becoming Valley Forge, by Sheilah Vance – Historical fiction about the road to Valley Forge by someone who grew up on Rebel Hill.
- Painting of the Drinker Oak – The oak tree that stood on Gulph Rd about where the Wawa parking lot is now. The tree was already old when Washington’s troops marched past it. Sadly, the tree died and was removed in the 1980s.
- Reading Eagle Article About the Drinker Oak
- King of Prussia Inn circa 1900
- Moving the Inn, August 20, 2000
- The Inn on Bill Smith Blvd Now
Bridgeport, West Conshohocken and the Schuylkill River Towns
- Images of the A.H. March Meat Packing Plant in Bridgeport – from our Digital Archive.
- What Killed Downtown: Norristown PA from Main Street to the Malls, Michael Tolle – Did you know that up until the 1950s, Main Street Norristown was the place to shop? Tolle traces the rise and fall of the commercial district in Norristown, documenting the fact that its decline began before the building of the King of Prussia Mall. An interesting study in the recent shift to an automobile-based commercial economy.
- They’ve Been Down So Long That Getting Up’s Still on Their Minds, Michael Tolle – History of the Schuylkill River Towns, focusing on the many common elements of their history and economics. Tolle argues that until 1980 their trajectories were very similar. The Conshohockens and Phoenixville are the only ones who seem to have reversed their decline since then.
- The Story of Port Kennedy – The village of Port Kennedy was essentially erased by Valley Forge Park and US 422. This is an article from the Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society History Quarterly. It is a story of limestone, kilns, quarries, and the Bone Cave!
- State Board of Health and Vital Statistics for PA 1898 – (Free Google ebook) This link opens to the report of the inspectors sent up the Schuylkill River to test water quality. Includes test results at various locations along the river (including acceptable levels of various pollutants), as well as descriptions of the industry and agriculture along the river causing the pollution. Scroll down to p. 217 for the part that describes Bridgeport. Many PA State Board of Health reports are available as free Google ebooks – they are interesting windows into both health concerns of the time and the environmental cost of the industrial revolution.
- EPA Superfund Site: Tyson’s Dump – Illegal disposal of toxic waste in a local dump in the 1970s.
- EPA Superfund Site: O’Hara Sanitation – Illegal disposing of toxic waste in a well.
- EPA Superfund Site: Stanley Kessler – Degreaser allowed to run down floor drains into the ground.
- EPA Superfund Site: Alan Wood Steel – Disposal of wastes in quarries.
- Asbestos Removal in Valley Forge Park – The state allowed Ehret Magnesia and successor companies to pump waste into their old limestone quarries. It took the park years to clean up the mess.