This cache is part of the ten-county Allegheny
GeoTrail project (see link below). It contains a special stamp to
be used in your GeoTrail passport, which you'll want to obtain
before setting out to find the cache. Please do not remove the
stamp! Get your passport stamped at 6 or more AGT caches within a
county, and get a FREE geocoin representing that county. There are
ten different coins to collect, plus a bonus 11th coin if you get
all 10 counties. Click the logo for more information!
The coordinates listed for this geocache will take you to the
Brookville Courthouse, one of four locations of historic interest
for this cache puzzle.
Once the puzzle is found, the final stage is located within the
Dr. Walter Dick Memorial Park. Your answers should eventually point
you there.
The four locations are provided as waypoints, and you may visit
each one in any order you wish. It is best to drive to each
location, although if you wish, walking to and from the court
house, the Heath homestead, and the cemetery on Pickering Street is
desirable, albeit hilly.
Here are the locations, in order of historic
importance:
1. FIRST SETTLEMENT - (N41 09.367, W079 03.159)
In 1795, Andrew Barnett and Samuel Scott were sent by Joseph
Barnett to explore the French Creek wilderness. When they reached
Mill Creek, they were so impressed with the area as a potential
lumber and saw mill site that they returned to inform Joseph
Barnett of this area. They described it as the “Eureka”
spot, where "the lofty pine leaned gloomily over every hill side,"
and was the ideal home for a lumberman. In the spring of 1797,
Joseph and Andrew Barnett, Samuel Scott, and Moses Knapp came from
their home at the mouth of Pine Creek, then in Lycoming County, to
this ideal mill site. They then built a pioneer cabin and mill at
the present site of Humphrey's mill at Port Barnett, with the help
of some Native Americans.
Puzzle Question 1: find the stone historical marker near the
large brick chimney in Port Barnett, and write down the day in June
1997 that this marker was erected. (Note: due to construction, the
marker has been moved to a nearby location.
_A_ _B_
2. JEFFERSON COUNTY – (N41 09.638, W079
04.811)
On March 26, 1804, Jefferson County was created from Lycoming
County. This wilderness region, which once was embraced in six
other counties before it was erected into a separate county, was
named in honor of Thomas Jefferson, who was then President of the
United States
Puzzle Question 2: According to the historical marker,
what year was Brookville incorporated as the county seat?
_C__ _D__ _E__ _F__
3. SETTLER’S GRAVE – (N41 09.853, W079
04.731)
Here lies the first settler of Jefferson County, Joseph Barnett.
Known as the “Patriarch of Jefferson County”, he served
his country under General Potter in the Revolutionary War, and
served in the state militia. He owned and operated a sawmill at the
mouth of Pine Creek (a.k.a. PA Grand Canyon) until his discovery at
Port Barnett. In the fall of 1797, after working on the pioneer
cabin and mill, Joseph Barnett returned to his family, leaving his
brother Andrew and Scott to finish working on the mill. Not long
after, Andrew became ill and died, and was buried on the north bank
of the creek, at the junction of Sandy Lick and Mill Creek; Scott
and two Native Americans were the only attendants at his funeral.
In November 1799, Joseph Barnett brought his wife and family to the
home prepared for them in the wilderness of Jefferson County. They
floated their first boards of lumber to Pittsburgh, PA in 1801.
After selling the lumber in Pittsburgh, they would return to Port
Barnett via canoe or by foot with flour, salt, and other supplies
on their backs. His homestead became a tavern for other pioneers
that were now moving into the region. Joseph saw the formation of
Jefferson County, watched the town of Brookville grow to become the
county seat, and was postmaster at Port Barnett until his death in
1838.
Puzzle Question 3: According to the years engraved on his
head stone, how old was Joseph Barnett when he passed
away?
_G__ _H__
4. HEATH HOMESTEAD – (N41 09.579, W079 04.788)
Elijah Heath moved to Brookville in 1818. In 1835, two runaway
slaves – Charles Brown and William Parker - were being held
in the Brookville jail. The Honorable Judge Elijah Heath, an
outspoken abolitionist, “determined that no such outrage
should be perpetrated upon the free soil of Jefferson
county.” One night, with the help of Mr. Pearsall, the jailor
at the time, he supplied implements for filing off the lock of
their cell. The following morning, when the slave owners came to
the jail to take charge of their property, the runaways were well
on their way to Canada. The slave owners eventually learned of
Heath’s involvement in the matter, and filed a lawsuit
against him. Under the fugitive slave law, the suit was decided in
favor of the slave-holder, and Judge Heath’s act of humanity
cost him $2,000. The township of Heath in the northern part of
Jefferson County was named for Elijah Heath. His home, built in
1836 and remodeled in 1902, was documented as having been one of
Brookville's Underground Railroad stops. The house retains the
basement passageway which provided cover for runaways on their way
to Canada.
Puzzle Question 4: According to the historical marker, in
what year was Elijah Heath born?
_I__ _J__ _K__ _L__
To solve the puzzle and determine the final coordinates for
the cache:
Replace the letters with their representative numbers from the
clues you collected on the way in this order:
N41 A0.FJK, W079 0H.EF2
Now, drive to Dr. Walter Dick Memorial Park (see waypoint Q5).
The trail begins at the foot bridge across North Fork creek
(waypoint Q6), and the cache is located a few paces off of this
trail near the final GPS location.
Good Luck and enjoy the history lesson!