Historic Hanna's Town (Tour) - Clio

Entries on This Tour

1. Mier’s Spring/Steel Springhouse

Jacob Mier was the first to settle on the land that would later be called Hanna’s Town. Mier established a waystation at the spring in the early 1760s. However, it would not be until the Treaty of Fort Stanwix was signed in 1768 that Europeans could settle this far west. After the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, Robert Hanna purchased the land and established Hanna’s Town in 1769. Hanna had three springs that played an essential role in his building. The Mier’s Spring is the only one still active. The milk house beside the spring belonged to the Steel family and was not present during the 18th century. The small building would be cool and used like a refrigerator.

2. Hanna’s Tavern

Hanna’s Tavern was one of the most important structures in Hanna’s Town. It served as a reliable waystation for those traveling down Forbes Road and it was a bustling place where locals came together during the height of the 18th-century. The tavern consists of a main public gathering room, a bar and grill, a private guest room, a travelers' bedroom, and the Hanna family bedroom. The private room would have been reserved for important quests or those who could afford the space while most travelers would be placed 5 to a bed in the shared bedroom. Hanna’s Tavern was also home to quarterly court sessions and was the location of the signing of the Hanna’s Town Resolves, a precursor to the Declaration of Independence.

3. Hanna’s Town Kitchen Garden

Hanna’s Town was a small subsistence farming community where most of the food came from the kitchen gardens, and fields or foraged from the woods. Families relied on their gardens for dyes, food, medicine, and seasonings for their meals. Many of the women, including Robert Hanna’s wife Elizabeth, were responsible for the upkeep of the kitchen garden.

4. Murry-Beacom House

The Murry-Beacom House is a historic house originating from Murrysville. The building was a gift from the founder of Murrysville, Jeremiah Murry to his daughter Sarah Murry in 1800. Later, Dr. Alonzo Beacom would grow up and live in the house, giving the name Murry-Beacom. The house was reconstructed on Hanna’s Town property from 1993-1995. The house was used as a gift shop and visitor center until 2019 when the Education Center was built. Today, the Murry-Beacom House is a textile exhibit that holds 18th-century artifacts that were used to make textiles. People living at Hanna’s Town wore clothing to work in. During the summer months, clothing provided protection from the sun, bugs, and scratches. In the winter, wool and furs were used to retain body heat. It was not typical to have a large assortment of clothes. Everyone knew how to sew to fix their clothing and families would often pass down pieces from child to child.

5. Lefevre House

The Lefevre House is the newest reconstruction on site. The previous owners, Thelma, and Earnest Lefevre, donated the house to Hanna’s Town. This structure is a prime example of what houses and cabins would have looked like in the 18th-century. Unlike places similar to Colonial Williamsburg, Hanna’s Town had no businesses other than taverns and a blacksmith. The town was mainly made up of log homes with a fort in the middle of town. These log buildings came to the Americas by German and Swedish immigrants who came from heavily wooded areas. However, the styles were quickly adopted by the Scots-Irish, English, and African immigrants.

6. Historic Hanna's Town Blacksmith Shop

The Blacksmith Shop is comprised of a small building that shows what a first-year cabin would have looked like. Blacksmithing was a crucial part of early American trade and although Hanna’s Town was a small subsistence farming community, the town would have needed a Blacksmith shop.

7. Historic Hanna's Town Memorial Plaque

Located at Historic Hanna's Town, the Memorial Plaque is typically not shown on tours. The plaque is located on the hill above the Hanna's Town Fort and is easily accessible. There is little known about the origins of the plaque, but it pays tribute to the founding of Historic Hanna's Town and the early settlements of Westmoreland County.

8. Conestoga Wagon

The Conestoga Wagon is often confused with the Prairie Schooner. Unlike the Schooner, the Conestoga Wagon was designed to carry freight, not people. This Conestoga Wagon is a donated artifact, not original to the site, however, it was constructed between 1790 and 1830. Conestoga Wagons served a major role in trade and transportation after the American Revolution. In Westmoreland County, Conestoga Wagons helped develop roads, grow small outpost towns, and made travel and westward expansion feasible.

9. Historic Hanna's Town Klingensmith House

Built in 1802, the Klingensmith House was donated to the Westmoreland County Historical Society and was later moved to Historic Hanna’s Town. The Klingensmith House reflects the influence German culture had on Southwestern PA, as well as shows the difference between typical German and American architecture. The house also shows the lasting effects German immigrants had and still have on our country today. In 1983, the Klingensmith House was deconstructed and has stood at Historic Hanna's Town since. The house has gone under little reconstruction to make it safer for use, and is now used for special events and programs.

This Tour is a Virtual Museum or Site Tour.

Historic Hanna's Town

Created by Jessica Lucas on June 2nd 2015, 1:49:50 pm.

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Description

Hanna's Town served as the site of the first English courts west of the Allegheny Mountains and first seat of government for Westmoreland County, established in 1773. Hanna's Town was an outpost for settlers, travelers, and those seeking law or court interventions. In May 1775, citizens of Westmoreland County drafted the Hanna’s Town Resolves condemning British actions at the Battles of Lexington and Concord and calling for a county militia. Throughout the Revolutionary War, Hanna’s Town served as a recruitment center for the county militia as well as the Continental Army. On July 13, 1782, Hanna’s Town was burned by British and Seneca forces in one of the last conflicts of the Revolutionary War. Today, Historic Hanna's Town offers guided tours of the reconstructed historic site, educational programs, and special events. Historic Hanna's Town is a Westmoreland County park managed by the Westmoreland Historical Society, which bases its operations at the Westmoreland History Education Center on site.

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