Bedford Town was laid out in the year 1766 within Cumberland County. The town's founding and subsequent growth were influenced by the construction of a British stockade fort in the tract of wilderness that had been acquired from the Amerindians in the Albany Purchase of 1754. Fort Bedford, from which the new town took its name, had been constructed during the summer of 1758 as a supplies staging depot for the Forbes Expedition. Cumberland County's Court of Quarter Sessions had not yet formed townships in the frontier region in which Fort Bedford was erected ~ and would not until 1767, nine years later.
Prior to the founding of the town of Bedford, the Proprietaries of the Colony of Pennsylvania engaged John Armstrong, the colony's Deputy Surveyor, to lay out a manor around Fort Bedford in the Cumberland County frontier. [See the page titled "The Manor of Bedford"]
In 1763, according to S. E. Slick, his biographer, the fur trader and merchant William Trent wrote a letter suggesting that this region would be an ideal spot for a village. As is so often the case, Mr. Slick did not feel that it was necessary to give too many details, including the name of the person to whom the letter was written, or more importantly the source of his information. In any event, Trent apparently wrote a letter in the winter of 1763 suggesting "how advantageous it would be to establish a town somewhere on the communication lines near the frontier." A town in the vicinity of Fort Cumberland was being planned by the Virginians. In order to deny them the benefit of the trade that a town located in the western frontier might bring, and to instead establish a major trading center for Pennsylvania, Trent proposed that "Raystown, where Fort Bedford was situated would be desirable." One of the selling points Trent made was that the new town would be located on a large branch of the Juniata River. Mr. Slick quoted Trent when he stated that the site was "where they are now preparing to build Battoes to carry Merchandise from there to John Harris's Ferry on Susquehannah & back." Trent's letter was again quoted in regard to describing the village that already had begun to grow up around the old fort: there were at least fifty dwellings "amongst them some good ones." At the time nothing resulted from Trent's letter; perhaps it was not directed to anyone who could get anything done in terms of town building. The letter does not appear in the published Pennsylvania Archives, which suggests that it was not directed toward the Pennsylvania General Assembly (i.e. the Legislature).
In the year 1766, after Pontiac's Rebellion was quelled, the Proprietaries decided to have a town laid out within the bounds of the Manor of Bedford. On Monday, 05 May 1766, the Governor of the province of Pennsylvania directed John Lukens to: "with all convenient speed repair to the place called Fort Bedford . . .and lay out a Town there to be called Bedford . . ." The full order was as follows:
At a Special meeting of the Board in Monday the 5th of May 1766, Present, His Honour the Governor, Mr. Secretary Tilghman, Mr. Receiver General Hockley, and Mr. Surveyor General Lukens, Ordered that the Surveyor General with all convenient speed repair to the place called Fort Bedford in Cumberland County upon the Waters of Juniata and lay out a Town there to be called Bedford into 200 Lots to be accommodated with Streets, Lanes & Alleys with a commodious Square in the most convenient place. The Main Streets to be 80 feet wide, the others 60 feet wide the Lanes & Alleys 20 feet wide. The corner Lots to be reserved for the Prop'ry & every tenth lot beside the lots to be 65 feet on the front & 200 feet deep if the Ground & situation will conveniently allow of that Depth. It is likewise ordered that the streets be laid out as commodiously as may be to any Buildings now on the place worth preserving. And that the Surveyor after laying out the town receive Applications & make Enquiries to be returned & Recorded in the Secretaries Office from any person or persons inclinable to settle & build in the same town. And that the people there now settled have preference as to their own Tenements on which they are now settled. That the Ground Rent for the present be seven Shillings Sterling [per] Annum. And the takers up of Lots be obliged to take out their patents within Six Months from the time of Application & give Bond to Build within 3 years a house of twenty feet Square with a Brick or stone Chimneys, And in Case of failure the Lots to be forfeited. It is further ordered that the Surveyor General make a Survey & Return a plan of the Lands nearly adjacent to the Town and Report the Nature & Quality of them.
How were towns traditionally founded in the past? Usually a person (in most cases a man who was already engaged in what would be considered entrepreneurial pursuits) would locate a tract of land on which the town would stand. 1.) He would first purchase the tract of land. 2.) Then he would engage a surveyor to create a plat, i.e. a map showing the tract divided into lots defined by streets and alleys. 3.) He would give the town a name ~ usually, but not always, his own with the word 'town', 'ville' or 'burg' appended to it. 4.) And then he would sell the lots to individual families or craftsmen who were interested in taking up residence or engaging in some sort of business in the new town. That is essentially the process that the Proprietaries of the province of Pennsylvania requested of the provincial Surveyor-General, John Lukens.
Mr. Lukens carried out the directive given to him on 05 May 1766 by John Penn, Lieutenant Governor, and Proprietor of the province of Pennsylvania, to survey and lay out a new town in the frontier of Cumberland County. The first step in the process of founding the new town was accomplished by locating the tract; it would be within the Proprietary Manor of Bedford that had been established on 29 October 1761. At that time, Deputy Surveyor John Armstrong surveyed it for the Proprietaries, whose ownership of the tract accomplished the second step in the process. The third step was carried out by John Lukens between June 04 and 14, 1766 ~ during which time he performed the survey and drew up the plat map. The fourth step ~ giving the new town the name of Bedford ~ had already been done by John Penn. The final step of selling the lots was begun by Lukens who accepted applications for such while he made the survey.
Thusly was the town of Bedford founded between the 4th and the 14th of June 1766 ~ 250 years ago.
Between the 4th and the 14th of June 1766, Lukens produced the plat map requested by the Proprietaries. The map indicated two hundred lots defined by six north-south streets named West, Thomas, Juliana, Richard, Bedford and East and three east-west streets named Pitt, Penn and John. Bedford Street, according to the History of Bedford, Somerset and Fulton Counties, Pennsylvania, was originally named Shelburne Street by the Proprietaries. In addition there were four unnamed alleys: one between Pitt and Penn Streets; a second between Penn and John Streets; a third between Thomas and Juliana Streets; and the fourth between Juliana and Richard Streets. Of the above noted alleys, the first was eventually named Central Way; the second became Vondersmith Avenue; the third became Lafayette Avenue; and the last eventually was named Huntingdon Avenue.
A town square where Juliana intersected with Penn Street was created by limiting the depth of eight lots fronting onto Juliana Street to just one-half of the depth of the other town lots. The town square today is occupied on its south-west corner by the county Court House. In 1766 at the time the town was laid out, there was no suggestion that Bedford would be a county seat. The idea of separating the region from Cumberland County was five years away. The town square, therefore, was not included in the town’s design with the intention to function as the site of the court house. The commodious square was a design feature suggested by the Proprietors in their order for the new town; it was probably a design feature suggested for all new towns by the Proprietors of Pennsylvania.
The space encompassed by the stockade Fort Bedford, fronting on Pitt Street, was defined as three lots. The fortified structure would still have been standing and in use at the time Lukens surveyed the town. It is possible that he noted the space divided into three lots for the purpose of them being sold individually at a later date, in anticipation of the fort no longer standing.
John Lukens did not just arbitrarily lay out the streets. First he called together the 'principal inhabitants' and asked for their opinions on how the streets should be laid out and the preferable sizes of the lots. He worked with the assistance of the Sheriff of Cumberland County (of which this region still was a part at the time). It was decided that streets running east to west should be laid out parallel with the large stone house built by Captain Christopher Lems, [known commonly as Bouquet's House since that is where the Colonel stayed when he visited after relinquishing command of the fort to Ourry].
It was found that the 'lay of the land' suggested that the prescribed size for the lots was not practical. Instead, the breadth was changed to sixty feet and the depth to two hundred and forty feet. The lengths of the eight lots which fronted on Juliana Street, defining the town square, were shorter than the rest by half as noted above. Also, the depths of the lots which were situated along the north side of Pitt Street were extended to the banks of the Juniata River. The depths of these lots varied one to another, depending on the course of the river, but all of them were longer than the rest in the town.
Thirty two lots (sixteen per side) were laid out with an east / west depth orientation fronting along Juliana Street, while the rest of the lots in the town were laid out with a north / south depth orientation fronting on Pitt, Penn and John Streets.
It should also be noted that the size of the lots, although not specifically mentioned in the order, would probably have been intended to accommodate not only a dwelling house, but also space for a garden. It was not only the 'fashion' of the 1700s to have a garden associated with a dwelling, but nearly a necessity. In the absence of convenience stores on every other corner, it was not just the rural farmers, but the residents in towns needed to grow much of their own food.
The Proprietaries required that a certain number of lots be reserved for their own use. The Proprietaries did not necessarily intend to reside on any of those reserved lots. Rather, they reserved them so that they could later sell them for monetary gain. In the town of Bedford, twenty-three lots were reserved for the Proprietaries.
Prior to Lukens' survey, Forbes Road stretched out in a somewhat east~west direction past Fort Bedford's south stockade wall. The road, that is, the portion that was adjacent to the fort and the number of houses originally built by the suttlers who traveled with Forbes' army, was apparently called Bedford Street. That is how Captain Lieutenant Lewis Ourry referred to it in a grant of land he signed on 07 April 1760. Six years later, when Lukens completed his survey, the original Bedford Street was given the new name of Pitt Street.
By the time that General Surveyor John Lukens was engaged to lay out a town on the slight elevation occupied by Fort Bedford, there would already have been a number of buildings surrounding it. There were, according to one map dated to 1766, upwards of twenty-seven buildings built and occupied by the suttlers, who provided goods and supplies to the army. There were also a number of entrepreneurs who established taverns and inns along Forbes Road in the vicinity of the fort and the army's encampments. The change from the intended sixty-five feet width for each lot to sixty feet might have been intended to accommodate certain structures that were already standing, such as the large stone house built by Christopher Lems (known as the Bouquet House).
John Lukens was directed to make a listing of persons interested in purchasing a lot in the new town. The names on the list indicated only the desire of those individuals to purchase a lot ~ not the eventual owners of the lots. Although the directive to John Lukens was for him to compile a list of those wishing to apply for a lot in the new town, it also stated that "the people there now settled have preference as to their own Tenements on which they are now settled." It also noted that for those people "the Ground Rent for the present be seven Shillings Sterling [per] Annum." What that meant was that for an individual such as John Fraser, who is claimed to have built a log structure on the land that was designated as Lot #178 in Lukens' survey, to maintain ownership of that property, he would have to have made payment of 7 shilling each year to the Proprietaries as rent. Failure to do so, as was, in fact, the case of John Fraser, meant that the property would be forfeited. The Proprietaries would then have the right to sell the forfeited lot to someone else.
The town was slow to increase in the number of its residents. In 1783, Johann Schoepf on his travels through Pennsylvania noted that Bedford was "regularly planned, has a court-house, and is the county-seat of the extensive Bedford county, its namesake and as yet very little peopled."
The town of Bedford was designated as the 'county seat' in Section V of the Act erecting the county of Bedford. In that Act, dated 9 March 1771, it was stated, in reference to the holding of Courts of General Quarter Sessions and County Courts:
. . .which said Courts shall, from and after the publication of this act, sit and be held, for the said County of Bedford, on the Tuesday next preceding the Cumberland County Courts in every of the months of January, April, July and October, in every year, at the town of Bedford, until a court-house shall be built; and when the same is built and erected in the county aforesaid, the said several Courts shall then be holden and kept at the said court-house, on the days before mentioned . . .
The first court house to be constructed in the new county seat for Bedford County was a log structure that was erected on Lot #6, on the northeast corner of the town Square. Another log structure without door or windows, but with a trap door on the roof, was built adjacent to the court house. It was constructed during the summer of 1771. Therefore the first and only session of the Court of General Quarter Session of the Peace and Gaol to be held outside of that court house would have the session held in March 1771. It was held at the house of Henry Wertz. [Despite the claims made that many of the court sessions were held in taverns throughout the town, only the first one would have needed to have been held outside of the established court house because until the summer, no court house had been built.]
The log court house and jail were used by the Justices of the Peace (i.e. the 'judges' prior to 1790 when the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was passed) between 1771 and 1774.
In the year 1774, a new court house was constructed on stone on the northwest corner of the Square. This stone court house was two and one-half stories tall. The first floor was utilized as a jail. The second floor ~ access to which was only from the outside and steps up to that entrance ~ served as the actual court house for the Quarter Sessions. The third, attic, floor was used by the Courts of Oyer and Terminer when criminal cases needed to be held.
The third court house, and the one still in use for Bedford County, was built of red brick on the southwest corner of the Square. It was constructed between 1828 and 1829. The fact that the Bedford County court house is still in use makes it the second oldest still in use in Pennsylvania. The Perry County court house was in use in 1827, making it the oldest Pennsylvania court house still in use.
The new brick court house was completed in 1829, but it is believed that some of the offices were put into use in 1828.
The construction crew led by local architect Solomon Filler produced a three-storey structure with exterior walls of red brick, and wood treatments in the Greek Revival style. There is a basement, first floor and second floor. There is no attic room, per se since the second floor courtroom has a curved 'cathedral' ceiling. Only a small crawl space is above the second floor ceiling. The structure measured fifty-four feet in width and sixty-five and three-quarter feet in length. Combined with an addition constructed in 1876, the length was increased to ninety-two feet. Viewed from the outside, there are two levels of windows; as previously, the 'third' floor would have referred to the basement level. The facade on the structure's east end faces Juliana Street. Two square columns built into the red brick wall, known as pilasters, flank either side of two round, free-standing, Doric-style columns, all of which appear to hold up the lintel, frieze and pediment. The two central round columns stand in front of a recessed front-entrance portico. Despite their carved-stone-like appearance, the round columns are actually composed of thin, four-inch wide strips of wood positioned like barrel staves and glued together. Although a round 'bull's-eye' window was a standard element for the Greek Revival style, a half circle window accents the portion of brick wall above the frieze in the Bedford County court house. The brick wall of the facade is punctuated by eight-above-eight small paned windows, flanked by wooden shutters. The windows that dot the two long side walls at the ground and second floor levels consist of six-above-six, small paned windows. Eight brick chimneys, four on each long side wall, rise along the eaves of the court house roof.
Public buildings had no need for cellars, per se, but starting in the 1790s, with William Strutt's use of a hot air furnace to heat his textile mill in Derby, England, the idea of heating large public buildings with steam rather than by open fireplaces led to the need for a room in which to locate the furnace. Underneath the building, in a cellar made the most sense for the placement of the furnace, and so basements became standard in public buildings. The court house in Bedford was constructed just at the time that the interests in both basement levels and steam heating were becoming popular. The employment of a steam furnace to heat the whole building made the new court house very modern in the 1820's.
As the functions of the court house grew in number, the rooms needed for those functions increased. Various buildings surrounding the court house were purchased or leased and converted into court house annex buildings. Expansion projects were discussed through the years, but it wasn't until 2004 that a project got underway to enlarge the court house structure.
The plan was to construct a modern building to the west of the court house and the adjacent Lyon House annex to connect the two into a 'U' shape.
Construction of the new steel, brick and glass structure began in earnest in the fall of 2005 and continued through the winter. By mid-February 2006, at least half of the structural steel was in place. Unlike the 1828/29 court house's solid brick structure, the new building would have walls of brick veneer: a layer of brick attached to a steel beam and cinder block wall. The renovation of the Lyon House was proving to be more difficult than had been previously anticipated due to its age and the fact that it had undergone many changes over the decades. The construction of the parking garage was nearing completion by late-September. Inside, the offices were also nearing completion with drywall and windows installed. Finishing touches, such as painting the walls and applying necessary trim would be completed soon. Metal roofing was installed on the original 1828/29 court house building to match what was being installed on the new structure. By the time that mid-November rolled around, and three coats of paint had been applied to the walls, it was estimated that the contractors would meet a late-December completion deadline.
The end-of-2006 completion date came and went as work continued on the new building. Changes required to meet state and federal codes had to be made, and they just added hours onto the overall time frame and dollars onto the total cost. The project initially had been estimated at $18 million, but now looked like it would be closer to $19 million. The project continued into the summer of 2007. Some departments were able to move into their new quarters easily and without disruption in their normal everyday work. In April, it was reported in the Gazette that some departments had made the move without problem, but others were experiencing glitches, especially with the computer system.
Finally, on Thursday, 27 December 2007, a ribbon cutting ceremony was held by County officials to officially finalize the expansion project that had taken over two and a half years.
Nearly thirty years after the town of Bedford was laid out, the residents took steps to have it incorporated into a borough. The town, which had served for twenty-four years as the county seat, was moved from the jurisdiction of a town to that of a borough within Bedford Township. Remember that it was established as the county seat in the Act by which the county was erected in 1771. Twenty-four years spans a whole generation. The new generation of residents began to feel that the town needed to have more say in its own ~ rather than just in Bedford Township's ~ affairs; incorporation would accomplish that.
An Act of the General Assembly of Pennsylvania incorporated the town of Bedford into a borough on 13 March 1795.
Chapter MDCCC. [1800] An Act to erect the town of Bedford, in the county of Bedford, into a borough.
Sect. 1. BEDFORD erected into a borough. Boundaries thereof.
2. Of the election of Burgesses, Assistants, High Constable and Town Clerk.
3. The borough incorporated and its powers,
4. Of borough markets and clerks thereof.
5. The borough to enjoy the same powers as Reading. Passed 13th March, 1795 ~ Recorded in Law Book No. V, page 393.
The borough existed, in name at least, for a number of years, but whether it functioned as fully as a borough should is questionable. The earliest records maintained in the Bedford Borough Office at the present time dates only back to the year 1817. So early records that might have provided a glimpse into the borough's growing pangs, between 1795 and 1817, as it became a functioning incorporated borough, have been either lost or destroyed. But that does not necessarily mean that all trace of those early years has been completely lost. Although the records are sparse, we do know from later events, that the fact of the town having been incorporated in 1795 was mostly accurate in name only. The Act of incorporation would eventually be repealed, so there had to have been some sort of discord between the members of the community.
Apparently, only a few of the borough's official positions, including the justices of the peace and constables, were filled during the twenty-two years that had passed since the town had been incorporated in 1795. It is possible that the legality of the town to exist as a borough, if it did not elect all its officials, was brought into question.
On Wednesday, 05 February 1817,149 the second Act of incorporation for Bedford was signed into law by Simon Snyder, the governor. It had become necessary because the initial Act (Chapter 1800) had, at some time, prior to 1817 been repealed. At the time of this second incorporation, Bedford Borough would have consisted primarily of the town as laid out by John Lukens in 1766. It would also have included some properties to the south ~ apparently the reason for the Act to enlarge the limits of the borough in 1814. Hugh Barclay's addition, to the southwest of the original town, had been laid out by Thomas Vickroy in October 1803. (A survey of the plat was dated 20 & 21 October 1803.) The second time around, the Act by which the town was incorporated stated:
Chapter XXXVI. An Act To erect the town of Bedford, in the county of Bedford, into a borough.
Sect. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in General Assembly met, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That the town of Bedford, in the county of Bedford, shall be, and the same is hereby erected into a borough, under the name and title of "The borough of Bedford," the extent and bounds of which shall be as follows, viz. Beginning at the north end of West street; thence north, being the course of said street, to the most northerly branch of the Raystown branch of the Juniata river; thence down the said branch, by the several courses of the same, to the north end of East street; thence south along the same to the east end of John street; thence west along the same to the north-east corner of the Presbyterian grave-yard; thence south along the east line of the same to the south-east corner thereof; thence west along the south line of the same to the south-west corner thereof; thence north along the great road to John street; thence with the same west to the north-west corner of doctor John Anderson's out lot; thence south to the west end of the division line between doctor John Anderson's and Jacob Bonnett's out lots; thence west eighteen perches to a post near the Federal Springs; thence north twenty-seven degrees west eighty perches to the limestone quarry road at the corner of Thomas Ray's fields; thence north fifty-eight degrees west along said Ray's division fence thirty-eight perches to Cumberland Valley run; thence down the same by the several courses thereof to the mouth of said run; and thence a straight line to the place of beginning.
Sect. 2. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the inhabitants of the said borough, entitled to vote for members of the General Assembly, and who shall have resided within the same for one year immediately preceding the election hereinafter mentioned, and within that time paid a borough tax, provided such tax has been assessed, shall, on the first Monday of May next, meet at the court house in the said borough, and then and there between the hours of one and five in the afternoon elect by ballot one citizen who shall be styled "chief burgess," one other citizen who shall be styled "assistant burgess," six citizens to be a council, and one citizen to be a high constable, all of whom shall be inhabitants of the said borough; but previously to opening the said election, or any subsequent election, held in pursuance of the provisions of this act, such of the inhabitants who may be present at the court house, shall elect three citizens as judges, one as inspector, and two as clerks of the said election, which shall be regulated throughout according to the general election laws of this Commonwealth, and who shall be subject to the same penalties for malpractices as by the said laws are imposed; and the said judges, inspector and clerks, before they enter upon the duties of their respective offices, shall take an oath or affirmation before a judge or justice of the peace of the said county, to perform the same with fidelity, and after the said election shall be closed, shall declare the persons having the greatest number of votes to be duly elected, and in case any two or more candidates for the same office shall have an equal number of votes, the preference shall be determined by lot, to be drawn by the judges in the presence of the inspector and clerks, whereupon a certificate of said election shall be signed by the said judges, a copy thereof transmitted by the clerks to each person elected, and the original recorded in the record books of the corporation; and in case of the death, resignation, removal or refusal to accept of any of the said officers, a new election shall be held for the purpose of supplying such vacancy, in the manner herinafter provided.
Sect. 3. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That on the Monday next after the said election, the members of the council, elected as aforesaid, shall be convened at the court house in the said borough, by order of the chief burgess or assistant burgess, and then and there shall, by lot, divide themselves into three classes, and the seats of the members of the council of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the first year, or the second class at the expiration of the second year, and of the third class at the expiration of the third year, counting the years as commencing for corporate purposes on the third Friday in March.
Sect. 4. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the inhabitants of said borough, entitled to vote as aforesaid, shall, on the third Friday of March next ensuing the election aforesaid, and on the same day in every year thereafter, meet at the court house as aforesaid, and elect in manner aforesaid one chief burgess, one assistant burgess, one high constable, and two members of the council to supply the places of the members of the council vacated in the manner hereinbefore mentioned; and a certificate of such election shall be signed by the said judges, a copy thereof transmitted by the high constable of the preceeding year to each person so elected, and the original recorded in the record books of the corporation; and in case of the death, resignation, removal or refusal to accept of any of the said officers, or if it should at any time happen that no election shall be holden on the day and in the manner aforesaid, the chief burgess, or in his absence, inability or refusal to act, the assistant burgess, shall issue his precept, directed to the high constable, to hold an election in manner aforesaid to supply such vacancy, giving at least ten days notice of such election in one of the newspapers in the said borough, or by five advertisements set up in the most public places within the same, and in the meantime the officers of the said borough, elected for the last year, shall continue to all intents and purposes to hold their respective offices, and exercise all the powers appertaining thereto as fully and effectually as if their term of office had not expired.
Sect. 5. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the inhabitants of the said borough, in manner aforesaid, shall elect two constables, two street supervisors, two overseers of the poor, one inspector for the general election, one assessor and two assistant assessors of county taxes for the said borough, at such times, under like regulations, and for the same purposes as are or shall be hereafter directed by law in other townships within this Commonwealth; which said constables, street supervisors, overseers of the poor, inspector, assessor and assistant assessors so elected shall have, use and exercise all and every the powers, rights and privileges, perform all and every the same duties, and be subject to all and every the same fines, penalties and forfeitures, within the said borough respectively, which are or hereafter shall lawfully by used, had and exercised, or which are or shall be suffered by and imposed upon like officers of the several townships; and the names of the said constables, street supervisors and overseers of the poor shall be returned to the next court of quarter sessions of the county, for the same purposes as is or shall be declared by law as to other officers of the same kind in the several townships of this Commonwealth.
Sect. 6. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the first Monday in May next, the chief burgess, assistant burgess and council duly elected as aforesaid, and their successors, shall be one body politic and corporate, by the name and style of "The Burgesses and Council of the Borough of Bedford," and shall have perpetual succession, and shall be capable, in law, to have, acquire, receive, hold, purchase and possess goods, chattels, lands and tenements, rents, liberties, jurisdictions, franchises and hereditaments to them and their successors, in fee simple or otherwise, not exceeding the yearly value of five thousand dollars, and also to give, grant, sell, let and assign the same goods, chattels, lands, tenements, hereditaments and rents; and by the name and style aforesaid they shall be capable, in law, to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded in any of the courts of this Commonwealth, in all manner of actions whatsoever, and to have and use one common seal, and the same from time to time at their will to change and alter.
Sect. 7. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any person duly elected as chief burgess, assistant burgess, member of the council or high constable as aforesaid, and having received notice thereof as directed by this act, shall refuse or neglect to take upon himself the execution of the said office, or having taken upon himself the duties of said office, shall neglect to discharge the same according to law, every person so refusing or neglecting shall, for every such offence, forfeit and pay the sum of twenty dollars, which fine, and all other fines and forfeitures incurred and made payable in pursuance of this act, or of any of the by-laws and ordinances of the burgesses and council, shall be for the use of the said corporation, and shall be recoverable before any justice of the peace of said county, in the same manner that debts of equal amount are or shall hereafter be by law recoverable, and when so recovered shall be forthwith paid to the treasurer of the borough; and it shall by the duty of the officers of said borough; on receiving any money belonging to the corporation, to pay the same to the treasurer forthwith; Provided, That no person elected as aforesaid be liable to a fine for refusing or neglecting to serve more than once in five years.
Sect. 8. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the chief burgess, assistant burgess and members of the council, and high constable, and each of them, before entering on the duties of their respective offices, shall take and subscribe and oath or affirmation before a judge or justice of the peace of the said county, to support the constitution of the United States and of this state, and to perform the duties of their respective offices with fidelity; and the certificates of such oaths and affirmations shall be recorded amongst the records of the corporation.
Sect. 9. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall be the duty of the chief burgess, or in case of his absence, inability or refusal to attend, of the assistant burgess, and at least four members of the council, to hold sessions, in all which the chief burgess or assistant burgess, as the case may be, shall preside, and in the case of an equal division of the council he shall give the casting vote, on the third Saturday of May, July, October and February in each years, and oftener if occasion should require, of which notice shall be given in manner aforesaid by the chief burgess or assistant burgess; at which sessions they may enact and ordain, revise, repeal and amend all such by-laws, ordinances, rules and regulations as shall be deemed expedient to promote the peace, good order, benefit and accommodation of the citizens of the said borough, to provide for the regulation of the markets, improve, repair and keep in good order the streets, alleys and highways, ascertain the depth of vaults, sinks, pits for privies, make permanent rules relative to the foundations of buildings, party walls and fences, and particularly to accomplish the conveyance and distribution of a sufficient quantity of good and wholesome water to and through the borough, and its permanent continuance for the accommodation of the inhabitants; they shall further have power to enact by-laws imposing fines and penalties and incurring partial or total forfeitures, and to assess, apportion and appropriate such taxes as shall be adjudged necessary for carrying the said by-laws, ordinances, rules and regulations from time to time into complete effect; which by-laws, ordinances, rules and regulations shall be signed by the president of the council, attested by the secretary, and recorded in the record books of the corporation, and also to appoint annually a secretary, treasurer, clerk of the market, and a collector and such other officers as may from time to time be thought necessary and the same officers from time to time to remove for misdemeanor in office; which sessions of the said burgess and council shall be held at the court house in the said borough until a town house shall be erected: Provided, That no by-law, ordinance, rule or regulation of the said corporation shall be repugnant to the constitution or laws of the United States or of this Commonwealth, and that no person shall be punished for a breach of any by-law, ordinance, rule or regulation made as aforesaid, until ten days have expired after the promulgation thereof in at least one English, and, if there be any, one German newspaper printed I the said borough, or by at least five advertisements set up in the most public places within the said borough: And provided also, That in laying such tax due regard shall be had to the valuation of taxable property assessed, or hereafter to be assessed, for the purpose of raising county rates and levies, so that the said tax shall not in any one year exceed one cent in the dollar of such valuation, unless some object of general utility should require the same, in which case the consent thereto of a majority of the taxable inhabitants of the said borough shall be previously obtained in writing.
Sect. 10. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the chief burgess elected and qualified agreeably to this act, or in case of his absence, inability or refusal to act, the assistant burgess, is hereby authorised and empowered to issue his precept as often as occasion may require, directed to the high constable, or, in case of his inability to act, to some other fit person, commanding him to collect all taxes assessed by this act, or by the ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations of the corporation, and to cause the same to be paid over to the treasurer; and the said burgess is hereby authorised to carry into effect all by-laws enacted by the said chief burgess or assistant burgess and council.
Sect. 11. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall be the duty of the secretary to attend all sessions of the burgess and council when assembled upon business of the corporation and perform the duty of clerk thereto, and keep and preserve the common seal and records of the corporation, and be answerable for the same, and also for the faithful discharge of all the duties which may be enjoined upon him by virtue of this act or the acts of the corporation, whose attestation, with the seal of the corporation, shall be good evidence of the act or thing so certified.
Sect. 12. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the treasurer shall give sufficient security for the faithful discharge of the duties of his office and for the safe delivery of all monies, books and accounts appertaining thereto into the hands of his successor upon demand made for that purpose.
Sect. 13. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the street supervisors, treasurer, high constable, clerk of the market, collector, and overseers of the poor, as well as other officers who may be appointed in the corporation by the chief burgess or assistant burgess and council, shall, at their sessions on the third Saturday of May and October in each and every year, render their accounts to the said burgess and council for settlement, and the said accounts being adjusted and settled accordingly shall be forthwith published by said council, shewing particularly the amount of taxes laid and collected and all monies paid into the treasury, and the particular items of expenditures.
Sect. 14. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the chief burgess, assistant burgess and three members of the council, to be appointed at their first session in each year, or any three of them, shall constitute a court of appeal, and prior to the collection of any borough tax the collector shall inform each inhabitant of the amount of his tax and of the time and place of appeal: Provided, That the said court of appeal shall have no other power, as such, than to determine the justness of the apportionment of said tax and to remedy any grievance that may occur in imposing the same.
Sect. 15. And by it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall be the duty of the high constable to give notice of the annual election in said borough, in at least one newspaper printed therein, or by setting up at least five advertisements in the most public places therein at least ten days previously thereto; he shall attend and see that the election is opened at the time and in the manner directed by this act: Provided, That David Mann and James M. Russell, of the said borough, or either of them, shall publish and superintend the election to be held on the first Monday of May next, as herein before directed.
Sect. 16. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the chief burgess, or in case of his absence, inability or refusal to act, the assistant burgess and council shall from time to time affix the salaries of the high constable, secretary, treasurer, clerk of the market and such other officers as may be appointed under this act; which salaries shall be paid out of the borough treasury by orders drawn thereon signed by the chief burgess or assistant burgess, as the case may be, and attested by the secretary, which salaries shall not be increased or diminished during the time for which the said officers shall have been appointed respectively: Provided, That if any person appointed by the said burgess and council as aforesaid shall neglect or refuse to take upon himself the duties of the office to which he shall be so appointed, he shall, for such neglect or refusal, forfeit and pay for the use of the corporation the sum of ten dollars, unless he can render to the said burgess and council a satisfactory reason why he should be exonerated from such service: Provided also, That no person shall be liable to a fine for refusing to take upon himself the duties of the office to which he shall be so appointed oftener than once in five years.
Sect. 17. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any person or persons shall think him, her or themselves aggrieved by any thing done in pursuance of this act, or of any by-law or ordinance made under the authority of the same, except what relates to the assessing and collecting of the borough tax, and appointments made by the burgess and council as aforesaid, he, she or they may appeal to the next court of common pleas to be held for the same county, upon giving security according to law to prosecute his, her or their appeal with effect, and the said court having taken such order therein as shall seem to them just and reasonable, the same shall be conclusive and bind all parties.
Sect. 18. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the first Monday in May next, the act entitled "An act to erect the town of Bedford into a borough," passed the thirteenth day of March in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five [recorded in Laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Vol. III, p. 202], and the act entitled "An act to enlarge the limits of the borough of Bedford," passed the twenty-sixth day of March in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fourteen [recorded in Law Book No. XIV, p 411], be, and the same are hereby repealed.
Rees Hill, Speaker of the House of Representatives. Isaac Weaver, Speaker of the Senate.APPROVED ~ the fifth day of February, one thousand eight hundred and seventeen. Simon Snyder.
And so, officially, with this second Act of Incorporation, the town of Bedford, for a second time, became the Borough of Bedford on 05 February 1817.
The image on the official seal of the Borough of Bedford, when it was incorporated the second time, was of a water hydrant with water coming out of the top.
One of the, if not the most important thing that motivated the people of the town of Bedford to get the town incorporated into a borough was the fear of fire in the town. Apart from the river that flowed past the town, the only good source of water within the town's boundaries were a number of springs located along the hillside to the west of the town. Those natural springs were controlled by one family on whose property they existed. By incorporating the town into a borough, the governmental authority of the borough could command the use of those springs for the benefit of the community.
After the incorporation of the borough, tunnels were dug throughout the town and wooden piping was laid from the springs to the hydrants which were located at each intersection.
The borough grew and over the years blocks of houses were annexed by the borough authorities to become part of Bedford Borough.
"The Barclay Addition" was annexed in 1803, bringing three blocks just south of John Street into the borough. The "Defibaugh Addition" in the vicinity of the Bedford Fair Grounds was annexed in 1873. During the following year, the "Haehnlen Addition", to the south of the town, was annexed. The "Job Mann Addition", to the north of the river, was also annexed in 1874. And a third addition, known as the "Shuck Addition", lying between Pitt Street and the river to the west of the town, was also annexed in 1874. Four years later, in 1878, the "Josiah M. Gephart Addition" along the south side of West Pitt Street was annexed. The "Major John Watson Addition" was annexed in 1884. This addition encompassed about a dozen blocks to the southeast of the intersection of Juliana and John Streets. In 1888 the borough annexed the "G. M. Anderson Addition" of eight blocks east of East Street. The "John Alsip Addition" of 1890 included a small area lying within the Defibaugh Addition of 1873. "J. M. Reynolds Sub-Division" of the Haehnlen Addition was acknowleged as annexed in 1917. In 1943 the "Arnold Addition", a triangular shaped tract located to the south of the G. M. Anderson Addition, was annexed. The "R. N. Risser Addition" of 1948 brought a few blocks of houses north of the Mann Addition into the borough. In 1951 and 1972 blocks of houses to the south of the southwest corner of the borough were annexed under the name of the "R. H. Hammer Addition". The "Meadowbrook Terrace Addition" was annexed to the southeast corner of the borough in 2002. And finally, at some time after 2002, the "Arnold Addition" was annexed to the west of the Hammer Addition of 1972.
There are also four areas which have been defined and given names, but which have not been formally annexed into the borough. They include the 1937 "Seifert Addition" to the west of the borough, "The Heights" of 1953 north and east of the Mann Addition, "Church Hill Manor" of 1997 just north of the Meadowbrook Terrace Addition and the 1998 "Orchard Heights" north of the Mann Addition
There are fourteen architectural styles represented within the Historic District of Bedford Borough. They include: Colonial, Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival, Italianate, Second Empire Victorian, Gothic Revival, Victorian, Beaux Arts, American Foursquare, Art Deco, Craftsman, Early 20th Century Commercial Vernacular and Contemporary
Although the Espy House, a stone example of the Colonial style, is more famous, an older half-timber example of the Colonial style stands at 111 South Juliana Street. The building, now known as the Fortified Bedford House and housing the Peppercorn Market business, is believed to have been built to serve as the powder magazine for Fort Bedford and served as various storefronts over the years. The logs comprising the log section attached to the half-timber structure's east wall might originally have been part of the Fort Bedford stockade. By the 1790's, homeowners throughout the borough were removing and reusing logs from the deteriorating fortification.
