Nether Providence Township.

Levis; 1855, John Eves, Edward Hokin; 1856, George Sharpless, Robert Watkins; 1857, Elbon Levis, Thomas I. Leiper, Henry F. Esrey, Edward L. Thomas; 1858, Edward Sharpless, C. D. Pierce; 1859, John Sharpless, William L. Green; 1860, E. L. Thomas, John Lord; 1861, John H. Miller, Jesse W. Byre; 1862, John Sharpless, Jacob Hibberd; 1863, E. L. Thomas, Caleb Pierce; 1864, William H. Howard, William H. Osborn; 1865, John C. Lindsay, Thomas J. Leiper; 1866, John C. Lindsay, John H. Miller; 1867, William Osborne, Robert Watkins; 1868, Jacob Byre, Washington James; 1869, George Sharpless, John H. Miller; 1870, Thomas S. Armstrong, William H. Osborne; 1871, George Sharpless, W. James; 1872, Abram Ward, Thomas Palmer; 1873, Charles Leiper, John Lindsay; 1874, George E. Howard, William H. Osborne; 1875, George W. Rigby, Abram Ward; 1876, Jacob Hibberd, George Sharpless; 1877, William Osborne, Samuel C. Lewis; 1878, Thomas Palmer, George C. Howard; 1879, T. J. Osborne, George Sharpless; 1880, William C. Burk, Jacob Hibberd; 1881, George C. Howard, Thomas Palmer; 1882, George Sharpless, John Wood; 1883, John D. White, Jacob Hibberd; 1884, Thomas Palmer, Isaac Miller.

The following are the names of school directors for the Todmorton School District:

1850, William T. Crook, Robert Buck, James W. Dale, William Lees, William Turner, Jr., Nathan Chadwick; 1851, Robert Hall, James Ourey, Elisha Gordon; 1852, Jacob D. Dudley, Thomas Crompton, James E. Holt; 1853, no report; 1854 to 1858, no report.

1859, Samuel Bancroft, William Turner, Timothy Dawson, Peter Barbour, Alexander McBride, Benjamin Lord; 1860, Thomas Cohill, Benjamin Lord; 1861, Peter Barbour, Charles E. Bourne; 1862, William Turner, Samuel Bancroft, William Carney; 1863, Samuel Bancroft, Jeremiah Craner, Timothy Dawson; 1864, Peter Barlow, Charles E. Bourne; 1865, John Hibbets, William Turner, Reuben Allen; 1866, Samuel Bancroft, John Hibbets, James Redmond, Walter Grindrod; 1867, Joseph Richards, George Latch; 1868, Reuben Allen, William Turner; 1869, Samuel Bancroft, John Lawton; 1870, George Latch, John Hibbets; 1871, no report; 1872, Samuel Bancroft, Charles Speed, Robert Cunningham; 1873, William Millener, John Dolin, M. Martin; 1874, Samuel Thomas, Frederick Heydon, Thomas Canning; 1875, no report; 1876, Samuel Bancroft, James Hamilton, Mory Lane, George Latch; 1877, Hugh McMurtie, Frederick Heydom, Samuel Thomas; 1878, Samuel Bancroft, Michael J. McMullen, Alexander Wilson; 1879, John Conway, Alexander Wilson; 1880, Samuel T. Thomas, Frederick Heydom, Thomas R. Nichols; 1881, George Dempster, Christian Woefel, William Buckley; 1882, Samuel Bancroft, William Buckley; 1883, A. Clegg, John Wilson; 1884, no report.

Mills. - In giving an account of the mills of Nether Providence the plan of following the creeks will be employed, first giving those on Ridley, and after those on Crum Creek.

Turner's Cotton-Lap Factory. - In 1813, William Beatty, an edge-tool maker, entered into an agreement with Daniel Sharpless to take the ground on the Providence road, above the present bridge, where William & Richard T. Turner now have their cotton-lap factory, free of rent for seventeen years, in consideration of building a house, shop, dam, and race there. William Beatty at this place erected a tilt- or blade-mill, which he operated successfully. In 1825 he made sixteen hundred cast-steel picking-axes, five hundred broad-axes, five hundred drawing-knives, two hundred cleavers and choppers, steeled about five hundred axes and adzes, besides manufacturing many chisels, gouges, knives, and other tools. In 1828, William Beatty moved to Crum Creek, in Springfield, above the present paper-mill of J. Howard Lewis. The title to property on Ridley Creek had passed to Henry Sharpless, and in the latter year he changed the tilt-mill to a cotton-lap factory, and rented it to Ambrose & Charles Williams. On May 10, 1867, William & Richard T. Turner, the present owners, purchased the mill and eight acres of ground, and continued there the manufacture of cotton laps.

Waterville Mills. - In 1764, on the site of this mill, on Ridley Creek, Daniel Sharpless was assessed on a saw-mill, which was in operation prior to 1755, for William Worrall (born in Marple in 1730) states in his "Recollections," published in 1820, that in that year (1755) the water in the several creeks in Delaware County was so low that the race at Daniel Sharpless' saw-mill was dry, which was never known to have occurred before that time. In 1790 he built a fulling-mill at the present Waterville, and conducted the business there until 1805, when it was operated by Isaac Sharpless. In 1810, Daniel Sharpless had again assumed control of the enterprise, and in 1815, Enos Sharpless erected a grist-mill and saw-mill, and Isaac Sharpless was operating the fulling- and woolen-factory at that place. James Schofield, in 1826, was the lessee of the Isaac Sharpless factory, and was then manufacturing fine cloths and cassimeres. At a subsequent date Daniel Sharpless was operating the mill, to be succeeded by Antrim Osborne. The latter remained at this locality until 1863, when he removed to Rose Valley Mills. Robert Hall succeeded Osborne in the factory at Waterville, where he remained until 1871, when, having purchased the Mohawk Mills, in Chester, he removed thither. In 1873 the Sharpless factory was rented to Joseph Bowers for a shoddy-mill, which he operated until 1877, when he also removed to Chester. The mill at Waterville was after that date rented to various parties until 1882, when it was destroyed by fire.

As early as 1815, Enos Sharpless had erected, perhaps a few years prior to that date, a grist-mill on Ridley Creek, the water being supplied by the same race which furnished the power to the Isaac Sharpless mill. In 1826, Enos Sharpless had at Waterville a grist-mill, saw-mill, and a cotton-factory, the latter operated by George Richardson. The machinery required by the latter at that time consisted of five carding-engines, throstles, spindles, and one mule of one hundred and eighty spindles. Richardson manufactured cotton yarn. He was succeeded in 1828 by Richard Wetherill, who subsequently moved to Manayunk. On Nov. 15, 1835, Gideon Smith, Laurence Hartshorne, and John M. Sharpless entered into partnership in the manufacture of dye-stuff and the grinding of dye-woods, and a part of the grist-mill was arranged with machinery for that purpose. Hartshorne soon retired from the firm, and in 1842 Smith also withdrew from the partnership, but still remained in the business. On Nov. 15, 1845, the grist-mill and dye-works were partly destroyed by fire. John M. Sharpless immediately rebuilt the mills, but on April 24, 1846, they were again burned.