Friedensville is an unincorporated community which is located in Upper Saucon Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Lehigh Valley, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. as of the 2020 census.
Friedensville, Pennsylvania | |
|---|---|
Unincorporated community | |
 Friedens Evangelical Lutheran Church in Friedensville | |
  Friedensville Location of Friedensville in Pennsylvania | |
| Coordinates: 40°33′33″N 75°23′41″W / 40.55917°N 75.39472°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Pennsylvania |
| County | Lehigh |
| Township | Upper Saucon Township |
| Elevation | 420 ft (130 m) |
| Population | |
| • Metro | 865,310 (US: 68th) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP Code | 18017 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1175250 [1] |
The community's name is derived from the German: Friedenskirche, "Church of peace".[2] Zinc mining was once a key industry in the area.
History
editFriedensville Zinc Mines, founded in 1845, were an important operation in Friedensville.[3] Jacob Ueberroth (1786–1862), a local farmer, first discovered the zinc mineral, around 1830.[4] The zinc mines were active from 1853 to 1893.[5]
The zinc mines became famous around the world with the 1872 installation of "The President," then the world's largest pumping engine.[6] The machine could lift 17,500 gallons of water a minute.[7] The massive engine was scrapped in 1900.[8] After the engine was scrapped, one of the 22 boilers associated with it was sold to the Buehler furniture factory in Allentown, PA where it was utilized as a water tank. It was acquired by Lehigh University in is currently in storage, slated to be displayed at the former mine site, near the stone ruins of the engine house.[9]
In 1881, Franklin Osgood purchased the Lehigh Zinc Company’s mines and formed the Friedensville Zinc Company. He built a zinc oxide plant and zinc smelter in Friedensville.[10][11][12]
References
edit- ↑ "Friedensville". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ↑ Espenshade, A. Howry (1925). Pennsylvania Place Names. State College, Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania State College. p. 310.
- ↑ "History". Upper Saucon Township, Pennsylvania.
- ↑ Kaas, L. Michael (2016). "The History of Zinc Mining in Friedensville, Pennsylvania". The Mining History Journal. 23: 17–42.
- ↑ Rocks and Minerals. Heldref Publications. 1926.
- ↑ Donaldson, Francis (1912). Practical Shaft Sinking. McGraw-Hill.
- ↑ Scientific Machinist: Devoted to the Scientific Construction and Operation of Machines for Generating and Utilizing Power, and for All Other Purposes. Scientific machinist Company. 1892.
- ↑ "There's only one of these in the U.S. and it's in the Lehigh Valley: 'It's an important thing for the public to know'". The Morning Call. January 20, 2023. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
- ↑ "Historic steam boiler recovered | Lehigh Valley Press". Retrieved March 11, 2026.
- ↑ "Richard W. Pascoe, Mine Superintendent by L. Michael Kaas" (PDF). mininghistoryassociation.org. p. 42. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ↑ "Friedensville". The Allentown Democrat. Allentown, Pennsylvania. May 25, 1881. p. 2. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ↑ "Death of Franklin Osgood". Greensboro North State. Greensboro, North Carolina. January 26, 1888. p. 4. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
External links
edit
- The President Engine at Friedensville Mines Heritage
- Animated Tour of the President Pumping Engine on YouTube
- Map of Friedensville Zinc Mine at Lehigh University Special Collections