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Lord's Valley - Blooming Grove Township

In 1809 Levi Lord, along with his son Simeon and 12 associates from England, came to this region in hopes of purchasing a land tract from Dr. Phillip Myddleton.  Discovering some title problem, the entire group except for Lord decided to purchase elsewhere.  in 1810 Lord procured a valid title and the property became part of Blooming Grove Township.

The Lord's of Liverpool made their first home in the cabin of Sam Helm, a noted woodsman who apparently 'squatted" on the land.  Helm acknowledged Lord's claim to the property and offered it to him and in the same gentlemanly spirit, Lord is said to have paid Helm for his improvements.

The Lord's began to make their living in the abundant timber.  In response to traffic in the area, Simeon Lord built a hotel in 1850.  (The Lord House is today a Pike County Historic Site as well as a State Historic site).  In the early part of the century, Sim Lord, Jr. (son of Simeon Lord and grandson of Levi Lord) managed the hotel and sold gasoline.  The Lord's Valley Post Office also operated out of the Lord house until 1955 when the Hawley Post office assumed it's responsibilities.

Courtesy of the Blooming Grove Republican Club

Blooming Grove Township is the "hub" of Pike County, and Lords Valley is geographically the center of both the Township and the County.  The only township in Pike county not bordered by another county, Blooming Grove Township was formed December 17, 1850.  Originally the entire area was part of Northampton County.  On march 21, 1798, Wayne County was set off from Northampton county and what is now Pike county was part of Wayne county until March 26, 1814, when Pike County was formed.

Probably the first settlers to visit the area were from Connecticut, but most were driven away by the Indians in the areas.  finally, in 1769, Jonas Selley, the pioneer of Blooming Grove, settled in Blooming Grove, built a log house near the present route 402 and Blooming Grove road intersection and proceeded to clear the land.  It is thought that the areas was an abandoned Indian village.  These new settlers traded with the Indians and built a friendly relationship with them.  Jonas Seeley remained in blooming Grove until 1772, when he moved to Chatham, NJ and did not return to Blooming Grove until after the American Revolution.  It is believed that he sold his property to a William Spearing who owned the property until 1827, when he sold to Solomon Westbrook. 

In 1835 Solomon Westbrook, John Westbrook and William H. Nyce purchased the property in Blooming Grove, where they operated sawmill.  In 1851 Jacob Kleinhans bought the William H. Nyce property and built a tannery on the Blooming Grove Creek, where his descendants still live.

The Westbrook House, located on Blooming Grove Road, was built in 1870 and is one of the oldest framed buildings in the township.  It is now owned by the Blooming Grove Hunting and fishing Club.

In 1870, Fayette s. Giles had the idea of establishing a hunting and fishing resort in the wilds of Pennsylvania.  He, with the help of William H. Bell from Branchville, NJ who was married to a Westbrook, pursued the idea.  The Westbooks obtained eleven thousand acres, which contained lake Giles, Beaver, Laura, Belle, Ernest, Bruce and Long Pond, as well as potions of Taylor's Creek and Bright Brook.  Others who joined in the venture were Charles Hallock, Colonel Sanders B. Bruce, Genio c. Scott, and David D. Field.  An Act of Pennsylvania General Assembly grated a charter to the Blooming Grove Park Association.  This charter gave the Association the power to make and enforce its own game laws.  The purpose of the Association, now the blooming Grove Hunting and Fishing Club, was to propagate fish and game.  in 1872, the first clubhouse was built.  Until then, the members boarded at the Westbrook House.  This clubhouse was destroyed by fire in January 1881.  A new clubhouse was built that same year.

The wilderness of Blooming Grove Township is no more.  With the advent of developments and Interstate 84, it has become a "bedroom" community of families.

 Jeffrey J. Ferretti, G.R.I. R.E.C.S.

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