I Spoke With Mr. B.

Earlier this week, I spoke with a Mr. B., a man who is very familiar with the Mehoopany photographs (these photos include views of the Jennings/Gaylord Hotel, as well as the aftermath of the 1910 fire).

He said that while some of the photos can be attributed to his father, others were taken by a "deaf-mute itinerant photographer"!

When I visited Mehoopany last month I saw the same images in a collection of a Mr. W., who lives in a house that was built on the site of the hotel. I took some photos of these photos; still, I'm hoping to obtain much better copies from Mr. B. The picture of the hotel in a previous blog post is from that colection.

(The names in the story are edited in order to preserve privacy.)

The Jennings & Kintner Enterprise, Mehoopany

Recently, the cousins and I had a hot email debate was about a photograph that was recently posted on the website of the Wyoming Valley Historical Society. The undated photograph showed a two-story structure that sported a sign that read, "JENNINGS & KINTNER".

Through the efforts of some Ohio-area period clothes experts, a consensus was reached as to an approximate date, which is in the span immediately following the Civil War, specifically 1865-1870.

After my whirlwind Tunkhannock-Mehoopany tour last Wednesday, July 1, I feel I'm a lot closer to knowing what the photo is all about; so much closer, in fact, that I feel I can put this mystery to bed for a while. In other words, it's no longer quite the mystery.

While I was at the historical society, I was able to obtain a nice print of the photograph, although they could not provide the source of the photo, nor could they tell me anything about the building. But their map, which I'll tell you about later, helped a great deal to pinpoint the building's location.

My next stop that day was the Mehoopany Library, where I met with Ina Hunter, the librarian. In fact, when I walked through the door she said, "Are you here to do some family research?" She must have seen my licence plate! When I told her I was looking for information about the JENNINGS & KINTNER, she immediately showed me the book that would explain it all. In fact, she allowed me to check out a duplicate copy of the book! Talk about trust!

The book is "Wyoming County, 1842-1992, Compiled by the Sesquicentennial Committee and the Wyoming County Historical Society of Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, 1992". This book has an extensive history of Mehoopany Township, as well as surrounding towns. On page 65, you can find the JENNINGS & KINTNER photo with the following caption, possibly written by Dorothy Cavalier, the author of the Mehoopany Township chapter:

"Jennings and Kintner Store just south of the Little Arch Bridge Corner of Main Street and Bridge in North Mehoopany. Upstairs was a tailoring shop -- also a photography studio at one time. The canal boats came into the Little Mehoopany Creek and unloaded their wares at the store. The building was renovated and used as a garage and finally torn down."

So, where exactly was this? This takes us back to Tunkhannock. According to the historical society map of the county, the area around Jenningsville, Laceyville and Mehoopany were peppered with enterprises that were founded, owned, or operated by the Jennings families -- I say "families", because one must remember that there were many people named Jennings in the vicinity before William came to America.

So, look at the intersection of Main, Depot and Race Street in the map in this post. There you will find a building and the following description: "Store & P.O., Jennings & Kintner". That's it.

Of the identities of the people in the picture, not much can be proven. I have some thoughts, but I'll reserve them for another post.

I read the news today, oh boy!

From the Wyoming Democrat, 21 February, 1872. Thanks to the Wyoming County Historical Society...

You Have a Room in the Jennings Hotel

This is it, cousins. Wasn't she a beauty?

I'm visiting friends who live about an hour from Mehoopany. Yesterday, I spent the better part of the day at Tunkhannock and Mehoopany!

I have many more awesome discoveries, but I don't want to be rude to my guests -- I've already spent a lot of time at a computer and not being sociable.

When I get back home you'll get the full story!