1928 WB Record Almanac, Luzerne County in 1927

The biggest improvement project undertaken in Luzerne County during the year 1927
 was the new Market street bridge in Wilkes-Barre, a modern concrete structure to 
replace the steel structure. Work was begun during the early part of the year and was
 continued without interruption of traffic except for a few hours. Half of the bridge is to 
be completed before work on the other half is begun. The old bridge was moved
 thirty-eight feet to the upper side with only a few hours of stoppage of traffic. The 
County Commissioners gave assurance that this is no danger of cave-in on the site,
 owning to the fact that the State never conveyed the coal lying under that part of the river.
 A flurry was caused when County Controller Butts interposed objections to payment of 
the contractor on the ground that the work had not been properly inspected and that
 inferior material was being used, on the word of a foreman and other employees in
 the employ of the contractor. Later the party who gave the information stated that he 
was intoxicated at the time and the affair was terminated.

The North street bridge project remained in litigation during the year. The long story of
 it is noted in previous issues of the almanac.  The Supreme Court ruled that the Judges 
in the local court must either affirm or deny the petition for the new bridge whereupon the 
county Commissioners contended that the Judges had no the right to disapprove in the 
face of evidence showing necessity for the bridge. In June the court again disapproved
 the recommendation of the Grand Jury and the petition of the county commissioners 
and further litigation was planned, although nothing more resulted during the year.

Sensational charges again the school directors of Hanover Township by eighteen 
citizens made up a subject of intense interest. The charges filled six newspaper 
columns. It was allege that the directors benefitted illegally to the extent of hundreds 
of thousands of dollars on contracts and other wise. The trial of six of the seven 
directors began April 25 and on May 6 they, tighter with one contractor and one 
architect, were found guilty of conspiracy in the first of the many indictments, the 
seventh director not included in the trial because he was depended upon to give 
the most important evidence on the side of the prosecution. He had placed his 
case in the hands of the court.  Judge Fuller imposed the maximum penalty upon
 the whole group, form one to two years in prison, the costs and $500 fine each.  
The defendants were relieved from complying with the sentence until the Superior
 Court could hear the case.  The director who had submitted his case to the court
 was given the same sentence as the others.  In November the Superior Court
 refused to interfere with the verdict and sentence.

In the meantime there was considerable confusion in the appointment of a new 
board of directors.  Judge McLean appointed a board but two of the Judges 
dissented on the ground that the appointments should have been made by the
 full court.  The McLean appointees were ousted by a majority of the court and 
an appeal to the Supreme Court was taken.  The latter tribunal overruled the
 McLean appointments and also the appointments made later by the full court,
 the latter ruling on the ground that the court en banc had not been regularly 
called.  Later the court met formally en banc and the appointments previously
 made by a majority of the judges were confirmed.

Early in the year the County Assessors adopted a new plan for valuing property
 for tax purposes, on the basis of a few subordinate assessors instead of scores,
 they to be paid salaries and to work full time.  It was intended to apply the new
 plan ultimately to the entire county.  The county officials made an honest effort
 to over come the numerous complaints made as to unequal assessments and 
discrimination. By the way, similar complaints are general throughout the State.
 It was stated that in the county assessments varies from twenty to eighty per 
cent of the market value of property, due to the incompetency or negligence of
 many sub-assessors.

In April a testimonial dinner was given at Hotel Sterling by the lawyers of Luzerne
 County in honor of Judge Fuller to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of his
 service as a Judge and his fiftieth year as a member of the legal profession.  
The occasion was a brilliant one and the distinguished guest received may 
congratulations for his eminent services as lawyer and Judge. Later in the year
 Judge Fuller announced that he wound not be a candidate for re-election, though 
many members of the Bar had petitioned him to run again.  His reasons are noted
 in the political review in this issue of the Almanac.

In March occurred the death of Rev. T.C. Edwards, pastor of the Welsh
 Congregational church in Edwardsville, one of the most prominent Welsh 
preachers in the United States and a man of many talents.   He was well 
known both in this country and in Wales for his successful career as a 
conductor of eisteddfods and other Welsh musical festivals.

In June Jude Fuller decided a coal assessment cases that will have a most
 important bearing upon the assessment value of coal property in the county 
and in the revue to be derived from coal deposits.  The Lehigh & Wilkes-Barre 
Coal Co., had appealed from the value fixed by the Assessors upon coal land 
in the borough of Ashley. The Judge reduced the assessment approximately
 forty-six percent, mainly on the ground that the assessment was not in accord 
with the market value of the property as determined by the sale of parcels of 
coal land and on the ground that the per foot method of ascertaining the extent
 of coal deposits had been used. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court.

The Judge’s decision applies in principle to all coal land in the county and its 
confirmation by the higher court would greatly reduce the revenues of the county
 and its municipalities from what the Assessors believed to be a fair amount.  
The county and municipal authorities were in great anxiety awaiting the verdict 
of the higher court.  Judge Fuller’s ruling was believed to be in line with several
 decisions previously rendered by the Supreme Court. In October the court heard
 another appeal by the Lehigh & Wilkes-Barre coal Co., on the assessment of its
 property. One witness for the company testified that a fair value would be 
seventy-five per cent less than that fixed by the Assessors.

A detailed report on the flood situation in the Wyoming Valley was submitted in 
February by the United States army engineers who had made a survey. The 
engineers estimated the total cost of flood relief at $9,400,000. a second project
 would include protection of the Kingston and Edwardsville flats at an estimated 
cost of $1,275,000; a third project would embrace the East Side of the river from
 Solomon’s Creek to the North street bridge at an estimated cost of $1,750,000; 
a fourth project would included the protection o Plymouth at an estimated cost of 
$95,000.  The whole project would include a series of dikes and dredging and 
widening of the river at places as far as a mile below the Nanticoke dam.  The
 engineers estimated that a flood of the proportions of the one in 1902 would cause
 damage to the extent of $2,250.000 to-day, not including damages to sewers, 
owing to the use of much of the low land for building purposes since 1902.  State 
engineers had stated that under certain conditions the river at Wilkes-Barre might
 reach a state of forty feet, eight and six-tenths feet heights than in 1902. An unusual 
amount of snow on the Susquehanna watershed, together with a few days of warm 
weather and heavy rain, might bring about a forty foot stage; nothing was done with 
the report up to the end of the year 1927. it was surmised that no part of the cost of 
flood prevention would be paid by the federal governments, since the Susquehanna
 at this point is no longer recognized as a navigable stream, and there is little likelihood
 that the State will help out owing to the fact that an appropriation for flood relief in this 
section would act as a precedent and other regions would demand the same consideration. 
 It is evident that the local municipalities affected will have to bear the full cost if they 
decide to carry out the recommendations made by the engineers.  It is anticipated that 
there will be much difficulty in inducing them to do so and in apportioning the cost, yet
 the estimate of the great cost of another extraordinary flood would d seem to make 
definite action advisable.

During the year the County Commissioners definitely decided to abandon the idea of 
erecting a county sanitarium for victims of tuberculosis, although the people had favored
 such a project by a vote of five to one several years ago.  The Commissioners decided
 to send poor victims of the disease to the White Haven sanitarium and bear the cost.

The Commissioners paid the cost for the erection of quarters for undernourished children
 on the farm purchased for a tuberculosis sanitarium in Butler Valley.  The place was 
opened in the Summer of 1927. The children are selected by the Wyoming valley 
tuberculosis Association and sixty-sever were accommodated the first Summer. 
The association also pays the cost of the maintenance. The main purpose is to build 
up children so that they will be better able to ward of tuberculosis.

Weather during the year – the first cold spell of the winter of 1926-1927 occurred the
 early part of December, the thermometer registering fifteen degrees below zero in 
country districts near Wilkes-Barre. Christmas temperature was moderate, with rain
 and hail in the evening. New Year had freezing temperature, twenty-eight above zero
 in Wilkes-Barre. Another cold wave was experienced the middle of January, the 
thermometer registering near zero.  Ice from twelve to fourteen inches thick was 
harvested at this time. The latter part of January an ice blockade extended from 
Pittston about eighteen miles north and the river rose to twenty feet but no damage 
was done.  January 26 Wilkes-Barre had its coldest day of the winter, four degrees
 below zero and as low as fifteen below in some parts of the county.  In March a warm
 spell sent the river up to nineteen and six-tenths feet on the 16th. In May rain for a 
number of days raised the river to eighteen and four-tenths feet.  Practically no damage
 was done, although the low lands were flooded.
The spring was cool and rainy and farmers were much delayed with their work.  A hot
 wave in July, beginning the 13th, was the most severe of the Summer, the thermometer
 going to ninety-six degrees in Wilkes Barre. There were few other hot spells. The 
Summer was unusually cool and there was rain on many days. Temperatures of between 
fifty and sixty were not infrequent in July and August.  The crops were delayed for from
 two to three weeks. An extraordinary rainfall occurred in October. For several days rain 
fell almost continuously. The river stage at Wilkes Barre reached twenty six feet and all 
lowlands were flooded.  Traffic over the West Market street route was stopped. In November
 rain again sent the river to a 19:6 feet state.  November weather was unusually mild.

The Community Welfare Federation campaign for the twenty-nine charity and character 
building associations in the Wyoming Valley was conducted with William Multer as 
campaign chairman. The goal set was $489,000 and the full amount, with a slight excess, 
was raised in a week’s time. In addition the Federation advanced to the Red Cross 
$14,000 as this district’s part of a national Red Cross fund for the relief of distress in
 the Mississippi valley due to the greatest flood ever experienced along the river.  
Gilbert S. McClintock succeeded George R McLean as president of the Federation.

Another campaign was conducted in Wilkes-Barre and vicinity to raise $170,000 for
 the relief of suffering Jews in Europe and the rehabilitation of Palestine. The campaign,
 with Harry Hishowitz as chairman, netted $180,000

The Wilkes-Barre Young Men’s Christian Association conducted a new building 
campaign for $800,000 beginning November 28.

The vitaphone, a combination of moving pictures and sound, made its first appearance
 in Luzerne County in the Savory theatre in Wilkes-Barre and became a regular feature
 of the daily performance.

The Stephens evangelistic campaign was an outstanding event of a religious nature. 
The campaign was conducted in a specially constructed frame tabernacle next to the 
109th regiment armory. The evangelists were assisted by a local choir of about 600 
voices. A number of local churches combined to support the campaign and it was the 
most successful since the Billy Sunday meetings of years ago. The series of meetings 
continued for seven weeks. It was stated that 2,000 persons had been converted and 
as many more promised to lead better Christian lives. The collection for Mr. Stephens
 on the last day amounted to $14,000.

Prohibition enforcement during the year had become an old story. There were many 
raids, mainly be federal agents, numerous trials in the federal court and the local court 
and some jail sentences imposed but mainly fines. The County Coroner warded against
 drinking the kind of liquor now being offered for sale, stating that in almost every case
 it is poisonous.

Business in the county during a good part of the year was not as good as in other recent
 years, owing to the fact that the mines had frequent spells of idleness, although there 
was no serious depression. In the Fall the coal trade began picking up and the business
 prospects became brighter.  Many Luzerne County people were interested in a conference
 of anthracite region representatives held in Mount Carmel in November to discuss the
 troubles of the coal trade, particularly ways and means of overcoming competition from
 oil and other substitutes, which had gained considerable headway since the 1925-1926 
strike, when many anthracite consumers were deprived of the same use of that fuel. The
 Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce and other organizations advocated an 
extensive advertising campaign for anthracite.

Population estimates made by the Census Bureau for Luzerne County cities and town 
on July 1 1925, were as follows, the estimates being based on rates of growth in census periods:
Wilkes-Barre (not including Parsons and Miners Mills, 
added in 1927) ………77,644
Hazleton…………………36,143

Pittston……………………19,759
Nanticoke ………………….24,732
Kingston…………………..  17,998
Plymouth…………………….16.500

The formal opening of the Sullivan Trail was marked by a motorcade from Wilkes-Barre
 on October 17, containing seventy-five automobiles with prominent citizens and fifteen
 floats. Stops were made at the principal towns from Wilkes-Barre to Elmira, NY with 
concerts by MacLuskie’s band and speechmaking.  The Elmira Chamber of Commerce
 gave a dinner in the evening and the return trip was made the following day.

Doctors Registered during 1927

Mantone R. Leonard, Pittston
Aloysius f. Cawley, Pittston
Llewellyn D. Griffiths, Alderson
Robert Goodman, Huntington Mills
Leonard D Mariano, Wilkes-Barre
Isaac Humphrey, Nanticoke
James H Beckley, Nanticoke