Treasure Maps of
 

Clarion County Published

CLARION — A visit to the local historical society has prompted Hank Hufnagel of Clarion to write Treasure Maps of Clarion County. “I was over at there a couple of months ago, researching another book,” said Hufnagel, “when I got distracted by a huge old wall map of Clarion County they had hanging in one of the halls. Most times if you want a old map of the county, the place to look is in Caldwell’s Illustrated Atlas of Clarion County published in 1877. This map on the wall, though, was 12 years older than that, having been printed in 1865—just after the Civil War.  

“Jim Anderson, one of the society's volunteers, happened by, and we started talking about the old map, and one thing led to another and I ended up promising to scan it into my computer. That was a big enough job in itself, but then I got the idea to collect every other old map of the county I could find, except those in Caldwell, and make a book of them—that was when the real work began. 

“The finished volume has 158 pages and contains historical maps showing property ownership, old railroads, Indian paths, early roads, iron furnaces, oil & gas fields and settlement dates. It has maps and aerial photographs of county towns and villages, early topographic maps and maps of all the county townships in both 1865 and 1983. The book also includes a brief history of Clarion County, a bibliography and extensive notes on where to find more information. I ended up calling it Treasure Maps of Clarion County because it contains what you need to start finding the historical treasures of Clarion County.” 

When asked to tell a little about one of these treasures, Hufnagel replied, “You may have heard that Helen Furnace fell down during the recent rains. It’s worth a trip out there to view the damage, since you can now see the original inner core of the furnace that was built in 1847. But, you can see a better treasure than that if you just turn around and look at the road that runs below the furnace. Its name on old maps is the Old State Road, and it was the first such road to run through the county, having been completed in 1805. Soldiers marched along it during the War of 1812, and all the early settlers to northern Clarion County traveled is as well. If you follow this road past the furnace, it takes you close by Lucinda and continues on to Fryburg and Venus, where it leaves the county. Or, if you park at the furnace and walk back across where the Old State Road seems to end at the Clarion-Scotch Hill Road, you will find an old disused section that runs down over the hill to cross the river at State Road Ripple. The first quarter mile of this is pleasant walking, and as you go along, it is very interesting to imagine passing early settlers with their cattle and wagons creaking by on their way to settle in Lucinda and Fryburg. Where did they come from? Drive over to Fisher and you will find the same old road again, aptly labeled the Old State Road. Follow this and, in the old days, you would have come to Corsica, Port Barnett and points east. 

“I would call the Old State Road one of the lost treasures of Clarion County. The county is full of such small treasures just awaiting discovery. The purpose of my book is to help people to find them.”