Six Penny Creek Community

History

The African-American community at Six Penny Creek was established around 1835. The area was affiliated with the Underground Railroad, and the community was founded in the valley of Six Penny Creek by self-emancipated individuals (escaped slaves) from the south.

Iron Production

The location was close to Hopewell and Joanna furnaces. Self-emancipated slaves leaving the south had the opportunity to be housed within the Six Penny Creek community and work at Hopewell Furnace to earn money to aid in their continued journey north. Many of the records that Hopewell Furnace show that some people worked at the furnace for very limited amounts of time, which may be indicative of escaped or freed slaves moving further north. As the community grew, the individuals within Six Penny Creek began to establish themselves as professionals. Some took work as colliers, farmers, woodchoppers who worked on harvesting wood for charcoal production, stonemasons, and laborers. Many were involved in the iron production industry. For example, Peter Jones was listed in the 1850 and 1860 Censuses and John Hart in the 1850 Census of Union Township in Berks County, PA and both men were recorded in the nineteenth century Hopewell Furnace journals as cutting cord wood that was then used in the production of charcoal to fuel furnaces.

Mt. Frisby African Methodist Episcopal Church

The Six Penny Creek community established Mt. Frisby African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1856. The church was erected on land owned by the Cole family, a notable family in the community. Isaac Cole was a woodcutter at Hopewell Furnace from 1858 to 1883. The church became a station on the Underground Railroad. It was also significant for being the location of the oldest African-American cemetery in Berks County, PA. Several former Hopewell Furnace laborers were buried in the cemetery.

References

• Crimmins, Peter. 2018. ‘‘Forging a Sense of Hopewell Furnace’s History Through its Citizens and Visitors.’’ WHYY.[1]

• DCNR. 2019. ‘‘Stories of Black History in Pennsylvania State Parks and Forests.’’ Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.[2]

• National Park Service, Hopewell Furnace. 2015. ‘‘African-Americans at Hopewell Furnace.’’’ National Park Service: U.S. Department of the Interior.[3]

• ‘‘United States Census, 1850,’’ database with images, FamilySearch [4] : 9 April 2016, Pennsylvania > Berks > Union > image 22 of 40; citing NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

• Walker, Joseph E. 1966. ‘‘Hopewell Village: A Social and Economic History of an Iron-Making Community.’’ Oxford University Press.