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Antrim Township

10655 Antrim Church Road
717-597-3818

Antrim Township is a Municipal Government located in Franklin County, South-Central Pennsylvania with its southern border being a part of the Mason-Dixon line. The 69.5 square mile area has a population of approximately 12,504 citizens. There are 103 miles of Township roads and 77 miles of State highways.

In 1741, the Lancaster Court of Quarter Sessions authorized the formation of Antrim Township, then part of Lancaster County. Early Antrim included most of the land in Franklin County, however, its original size was decreased as more Boroughs and Townships were formed. This land was part of Penns Woods, acquired in 1681 from the King of England. Ownership of this land was in dispute between Lord Baltimore and Penns Woods. The Court of England eventually hired Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon to survey the disputed area now known as the Mason-Dixon line. The area was a hunting and fishing grounds for various Indian tribes.

The region was then settled by Scotch-Irish (from Northern Ireland and Scotland) and German immigrants. Thereby the name"Antrim" is derived from a County in Ireland.

In the mid 1700s, several Indian attacks saw citizens massacred by raiding parties. One of the most well-documented incidents occurred in 1764 when teacher Enoch Brown and ten of his scholars were killed by three Indians during the Pontiac Rebellion following the French and Indian War. One Scholar, Archie McCullough, was scalped and left for dead. He regained consciousness and survived. Enoch Brown Park is now owned by the Township and houses a monument at the common grave of Mr. Brown and his pupils.

The Civil War saw much activity given the strategic location of Antrim Township. On June 22, 1863, Corporal William H. Rihl, of the First New York cavalry regiment, was the first Union soldier to die in fighting north of the Mason-Dixon. He was fired upon by Confederate infantry just north of the town of Greencastle. Corporal Rihl is buried at this location and is marked by a large monument along Route 11.

A few weeks later Confederate General Robert E. Lee and tens of thousands of his soldiers marched thru Antrim enroute to another small town known as Gettysburg. Following this deadly battle the retreating Confederates again traversed Antrim Township where skirmishes broke out. Many supplies and weapons were discarded from wagons to lighten the load.

A series of one-room schools dotted the landscape until consolidation led to their demise. The Greencastle-Antrim School District now includes one primary school, one elementary school, one middle school and one high school.

Farming was and still is the main business of the area and in Pennsylvania. Industry includes Grove Worldwide Hydraulic Crane Manufacturing, World Kitchens, Jerr-Dan Roll-Back Truck Manufacturing, Strait Steel, Tarco, Beck, L & S Stone, Fresh Express, Foodlion Distribution Center and dozens of smaller industries.

A series of roads and waterways provided transportation from farm to market. Over the years, Antrim Township has seen the improvement of what was once a toll road and later designated Pa. Route 16 (east and west) and U.S. 11 (north and south) along with Interstate-81 traveling north and south.

The Township insignia depicts agriculture, the Brown's Mill one-room school, now serving as a museum in the village of Kauffman Station and Martin's Mill Bridge, a covered, wooden bridge that was built in 1849. The Bridge stands today in excellent repair and is the center of a beautiful park located along the Conocheague Creek and owned by the non-profit Martin's Mill Covered Bridge Association.

Township Government's original responsibility included construction and maintenance of rural roads and small bridges. Today, five elected Board of Supervisors and appointed staff oversee not only transportation, but public sewer, water, zoning, planning and special projects concerning the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Antrim Township.


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