Named after the Mount Carmel Inn which was itself named for Mount Carmel in Israel. The inn was opened in 1812 by Richard Yarnall and was strategically located on the Centre Turnpike (also known as the Reading-Sunbury Road or Old Reading Road) halfway between Pottsville and Danville. During the latter part of 1854 the Philadelphia and Sunbury Railroad was completed from Shamokin to Mt. Carmel, which led to the opening and development of a number of collieries in the region. During the same year, the Locust Mountain Coal and Iron Company commenced making extensive openings and improvements upon their valuable coal lands in the vicinity of Mt. Carmel, building breakers for two collieries - the Coal Ridge and Locust Mountain collieries. The township was erected in 1854, formed from part of Coal Township; by 1862 the borough was incorporated within the township.
In the past, there were extensive anthracite coal mining interests here and in the vicinity. In earlier years, the borough had manufactured miners' caps, cement blocks, cigars, shirts, stockings, etc., and large silk and planing mills, foundry and machine shops, a knitting mill, lumber yards, a packing plant, and wagon works. Currently that area supports light manufacturing in paper and plastics.
- before 1770 - Area inhabited by Native Americans (possibly Lenape, Iroquois, and/or Saponi)
- 1770 - Europeans first settled in the area
- 1772 - Northumberland County formed, area that would become Mt. Carmel located in what was then Augusta township
- 1785 - Catawissa township formed from part of Augusta township
- 1788 - Ralpho township formed from part of Catawissa township
- 1789 - Ralpho township renamed to Shamokin township
- 1805 - Centre Turnpike Company incorporated
- 1808 - Centre Turnpike opens
- ~1811 - Centre Turnpike completed
- 1812 - Mt. Carmel Inn opens, located on the Centre Turnpike in (then) Shamokin township
- ~1830s - coal mining begins
- 1837 - Coal Township formed from parts of Little Mahanoy and Shamokin townships
- 1846 - first Post Office opens
- 1847 - land now comprising Mount Carmel Borough purchased by speculators
- 1853 - town plot finalized
- 1854 November 14 - Mount Carmel Township incorporated, from part of Coal Township
- 1855 - Evangelical Grace Church, the town's first church, opens at Third & Market Streets
- 1855 - Centre Turnpike decommissioned
- 1862 November 3 - Mount Carmel Borough incorporated
- 1877 - Mt. Carmel Progress, the pioneer newspaper, was established
- 1883 November 17 - Edison Electric Illuminating Company of Mount Carmel founded
- 1894 November - Shamokin-Mount Carmel Electric Railway (trolley line) connecting Shamokin with Mount Carmel completed
Transportation
Highways
- Pennsylvania Route 61, designated from 1963 to the present, previously:
- before 1911: Centre Turnpike
- 1911 - 1926: Pennsylvania State Highway No. 161
- 1926 - 1935: U.S. Route 120
- 1935 - 1963: U.S. Route 122 (1940s)|U.S. Route 122
- Pennsylvania Route 54
- before 1929: Ashland Road
- 1929 - 1961: PA 54 via Ashland Road
- 1961 - 1966: designated as PA 45 via Ashland Road
- 1966 - 1999: reassigned concurrent with PA 61 east of Mount Carmel
- 1999 - present: route changed to follow SR 2035, PA 901, SR 2042, SR 3002, and SR 4028 to rejoin its former route along PA 61.
- Pennsylvania Route 901
- Routed through Mount Carmel Township by 1969
Railroads
- Danville, Bloomsburg, and Pottsville Railroad
- Quakake Railroad -> Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad -> Lehigh Valley Railroad
- Shamokin Valley and Pottsville Railroad -> Northern Central Railway
- Philadelphia and Reading Railroad -> Reading Company
- Shamokin Valley Railroad
- Shamokin-Mount Carmel Electric Railway (trolley line)
Patch Towns
- Alaska (Mt. Carmel Junction)
- Atlas
- Beaverdale
- Connersville
- Diamondtown
- Dooleyville
- Marion Heights
- Merriam
- Natalie
- Reliance
- Strong
| This article uses content from the English Wikipedia. Where appropriate, the content of the Coal Region Notebook is available under the GNU Free Documentation License. |
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