Electrical Service in Sellersville, Pennsylvania

18th century

An aerial view of Sellersville in 1894

Sellersville was founded in the early 18th century. It was centered on a major road known as Bethlehem Pike that connected Philadelphia to Bethlehem and the rest of what was then Western Pennsylvania. The town was very small and was called Sellers Tavern. Its most notable feature was a large inn. The present Washington House in Sellersville, however, was not Sellers Tavern. The town grew slowly over the years until the Industrial Revolution.

19th century

In the 1860s, the North Pennsylvania Railroad was built, running parallel to Bethlehem Pike: this stimulated the growth of light textile industries and brought a wave of population growth. The East Branch of the Perkiomen Creek runs through the town which connects it to an adjacent town of Perkasie. This creek was dammed in the early 20th century creating a small body of water known as Lake Lenape. Along the length of the lake a park was built on Perkasie and Sellersville lands. In the 1920s and 1930s this park housed a carousel, a roller coaster and several other amusements. The railroad brought hundreds of people from Philadelphia in the summer time, and it became a well known vacation spot for blue collar city workers.

20th century

In August 1938, Deutschhorst Country Club, a summer retreat created by the German American Bund, a Pro-Nazi organization moved to the area after purchasing a 40-acre ranch outside of the town. The group used the area as a summer camp where family functions and activities were pursued in addition to political rallies. As World War II approached, the club sought to distance itself several times from the Nazi cause in local newspapers and was reported as "almost abandoned" from a lack of use by 1940. FBI agents were reported to have been watching the club grounds and visitors were reported to have covered their license plates in order to avoid being identified as a Bund member.

In September 1939, shortly after the start of World War II, the leader of German American Bund, Fritz Julius Kuhn, gave a speech to gathered members of the German American Bund and associated groups such as the World War I German Veteran league known as the Kyffhauser Bund, declaring that with the start of the war Adolf Hitler would "lick the world" in the new conflict. The camp would eventually be closed after the dissolution of the German American Bund on December 8, 1941, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. [3] [4] [5]

The town was also home to the Radium Company of America, which was the largest uranium milling facility in the world at the time. A business operating under the name of the United States Gauge Company originated in Sellersville in 1904 and allegedly became a prominent manufacturer of gauges for military use, many of which were coated with radium-based paint[6] for night-time luminescence. The company later became instrumental in the production of nuclear weapons,[7] leaving behind a legacy of industrial and radioactive contamination that has been well-hidden by local, county, state, and federal government agencies for decades.[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]

21st century

In the 21st century, the town remains relatively small, sandwiched in between a ridge line and the larger town of Perkasie. The center of town still runs along Bethlehem Pike which is now called Old Route 309. The Washington House has recently been restored to become an upscale restaurant. Next door to the restaurant was a livery stable, which was converted into a theater and later into a movie theater in 1894. It has since been restored, and reopened in 2001 as Sellersville Theater 1894, a popular live music venue. The creek is still dammed but only the carousel in Perkasie remains of the amusements.

The textile industry has long moved out of the area and Sellersville has become mainly a residential town for people working in the many urban centers that are only a short commute away. Grand View Hospital, Bucks County’s first hospital, has provided residents of Bucks and Montgomery counties with comprehensive healthcare services since 1913. The town is surrounded on three sides by open country and spread out housing developments. The local firehouse provides various activities throughout the year, including a carnival in the summer. The Holiday House Pool and Recreation Center becomes a hotspot for people to escape the heat during the summer as well. There are various businesses along Main Street, one being the Washington House, which provide some jobs as well, but largely the town remains a residential area. Sellersville Museum is located off Main Street in Sellersville and displays different exhibits every month.

The Teller Cigar Factory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.[17]

Source: Wikipedia