Bedford is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

and spa town in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Bedford County in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. It is located west of

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Pennsylvania, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the List of c ...

, the state capital, and east of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. Bedford's population was 2,861 at the 2020 census.

History

The vicinity of Bedford was inhabited by Euro-American 'Indian' traders in the late 1740s and early 1750s. Actual settlers did not appear in the region until after Forbes Road was cut to enable the Forbes Expedition to reach Fort Duquesne in 1758. A village of sorts, created by the suttlers who followed the British Army, grew up around the fort, which was located two miles to the west of the Raystown trading post. The village of Bedford was laid out in 1766 by John Lukens. Bedford was incorporated on March 13, 1795. But because the citizens failed to fill the required posts at the time, the town had to be re-incorporated in 1816. For many years it was an important frontier military post. The Espy House in Bedford is notable for having been the headquarters of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

and his force of 13,000 while putting down the

Whiskey Rebellion The Whiskey Rebellion (also known as the Whiskey Insurrection) was a violent tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791 and ending in 1794 during the presidency of George Washington. The so-called "whiskey tax" was the first tax impo ...

in 1794. The Federal Army troops are believed to have assembled near the

Jean Bonnet Tavern The Jean Bonnet Tavern, also known as Old Forks Inn and Bonnet's Tavern, is an historic inn and restaurant located just outside Bedford, Pennsylvania on U.S. Highway 30, at the junction with Pennsylvania Route 31. It can be seen from the Pennsylvan ...

just four miles west of Bedford. In 1758, the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

under General John Forbes came to the vicinity of John Ray's trading post to set up

Fort Bedford Fort Bedford was a French and Indian War-era British military fortification located at the present site of Bedford, Pennsylvania. The fort was a star-shaped log fortress erected in the summer of 1758. Background Fort Bedford was constructed dur ...

as a supply depot on 'the Communication', the line of fortifications and supply depots between Carlisle and the Forks of the Allegheny. The fort was named for John Russell, the politically powerful 4th

Duke of Bedford Duke of Bedford (named after Bedford, England) is a title that has been created six times (for five distinct people) in the Peerage of England. The first and second creations came in 1414 and 1433 respectively, in favour of Henry IV's third so ...

in England. Some believe this is how the town later got its name. Fort Bedford was built as one of the many British Army stepping stones through the state from Carlisle leading west to the Forks of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

. The Forks of the Ohio were claimed by the French who constructed Fort Duquesne on the site of an earlier British fort. The French wanted to control fur trading in the Ohio Valley and along the Mississippi River and its tributary, the Ohio River (formed by the merging of the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers). Fort Bedford provided a refuge for settlers escaping Indian raids throughout the period of the American Revolutionary War. A myth about Fort Bedford claims that it was liberated ten years before the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

by American rebels, James Smith's

Black Boys The Black Boys, also known as the Brave Fellows and the Loyal Volunteers, were members of a white settler movement in the Conococheague Valley of colonial Pennsylvania sometimes known as the Black Boys Rebellion. The Black Boys, named because they ...

, making it the "first British fort to fall to American rebels" during the Revolution. The problem with this myth is that the fort was abandoned by the British Army in 1766 when Pontiac's Rebellion was put down, and the James Smith and the Black Boys raid was in 1769 ~ three years after the fort was no longer a 'British' fort. James Smith's memoirs is the only source of the myth. A group of men attacked a pack train taking goods (including guns and ammunition) to the Ohio valley to be traded with the Indians there. Those men were captured and were placed under guard in the only 'public' building large enough to serve as an impromptu jail. James Smith and his Black Boys attacked the fort/jail, which was being guarded by only three local settlers (not the British Army) and they set the legally imprisoned men free, stole a couple rifles and left. Despite committing his own crimes, James Smith tried to make it look like he was a modern day Robin Hood. The fort later fell into ruin and collapsed before President Washington arrived in 1794. In 1958 a building was constructed in the manner of one of the fort's five blockhouses and currently houses the Fort Bedford Museum. The fort itself, which stood to the east of the museum structure was never reconstructed.

marched his army to Bedford in 1794 to subdue the

. There was much more at stake than quieting the uprising of rebels angered by a tax on

whiskey Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden cask ...

; Washington felt the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

itself was at risk. The rebellion mainly consisted of farmers who claimed that they could, due to the high cost of pack mule transport to the eastern cities, earn more selling whiskey instead of grain. (The fact of the matter is that a pound of whiskey weighs the same as a pound of grain.) The rebellion spread fast, and when it reached Pittsburgh some rebels threatened to burn the city to the ground. Anarchy was on its way; the British and French watched every move hoping they could come back and take over. Washington knew he had to act and make a statement; the laws of America would be obeyed. 12,950 militiamen were called to the south-western corner of the state leaving the rebels without many choices. One historian later stated, "It was at Bedford that the new federal government was finally to establish itself as sovereign in its own time and place." Bedford County, at one time, was famous for its medicinal springs. Three resorts were developed in the county: Bedford Springs (in Bedford Township to the south of Bedford Borough), Chalybeate Springs (in Bedford Township to the east of Bedford Borough) and the White Sulphur Springs (In Harrison Township to the southwest of Bedford Borough). At the Bedford Springs Resort there is a

mineral spring Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produces hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage underg ...

, a

chalybeate Chalybeate () waters, also known as ferruginous waters, are mineral spring waters containing salts of iron. Name The word ''chalybeate'' is derived from the Latin word for steel, , which follows from the Greek word . is the singular form of ...

spring, a

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

spring, a

sulfur spring A fumarole (or fumerole) is a vent in the surface of the Earth or other rocky planet from which hot volcanic gases and vapors are emitted, without any accompanying liquids or solids. Fumaroles are characteristic of the late stages of volcani ...

and two sweet springs. In the year 1804, a mechanic from Bedford, Jacob Fletcher, drank some of the water. The

rheumatic pains Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including art ...

and ulcers he had been suffering from troubled him less that night. From then on he often drank from the spring and soaked his limbs in the water. In a few weeks he was entirely cured. News spread and the "healing springs" quickly became popular. Bedford penn street

The discovery of the curative springs at what would become known as the Bedford Springs Resort led Dr. John Anderson to purchase the nearby land and build a spa in 1804. Due to the lack of medicines in that time, people from great distances flocked to the hotel in search of a cure for their illness. They would come to Bedford Springs to "take the waters". The

Bedford Springs Hotel Omni Bedford Springs Resort is a resort hotel outside of Bedford, Pennsylvania. Established in 1806, it is one of last and best-preserved of 19th-century resort hotels based around mineral springs. The hotel was documented in 2005 by the Histor ...

was the first place in America to have an Olympic sized pool. President

James Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( ; April 23, 1791June 1, 1868) was an American lawyer, diplomat and politician who served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861. He previously served as secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and repr ...

made it his "

summer White House Listed below are the private house, residences of the various President of the United States, presidents of the United States. For a list of official residences, see President of the United States#Residence, President of the United States § Re ...

". While Buchanan was there the first trans-Atlantic cable message was sent to his room from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

on August 17, 1858. The hotel, in 1855, also housed the only

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

hearing ever to be held outside of the capital.

Chalybeate Springs Hotel Chalybeate Springs Hotel, also known as The Chalybeate, is a historic 19th and early-20th century resort hotel located at Bedford Township in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. It consists of the original two-story, three-bay Federal-style brick dwe ...

, along with the nearby

, were popular resorts during the 19th century among the wealthy. Notable visitors to Bedford Springs included

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

James Polk James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military leader who served as the 12th president of the United States from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to th ...

, and

Thaddeus Stevens Thaddeus Stevens (April 4, 1792August 11, 1868) was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania, one of the leaders of the Radical Republican faction of the Republican Party during the 1860s. A fierce opponent of sla ...

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and as governor ...

, and

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

visited Chalybeate Springs Hotel, as did many other notable people.

U.S. Route 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

, also known as the

Lincoln Highway The Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, and formally dedicated October 31, 1913 ...

, passes through Bedford. Up until the opening of the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's we ...

in 1940, U.S. Route 30 was the key east-west route connecting

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

to the west. In 1927, David Koontz built a coffee pot-shaped building, which was originally a

diner A diner is a small, inexpensive restaurant found across the United States, as well as in Canada and parts of Western Europe. Diners offer a wide range of foods, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a com ...

. This building, a landmark in Bedford, was moved in 2003 to the Bedford County Fairgrounds. The Bedford Historic District was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1983.

Geography

Bedford is located in the center of Bedford County at (40.016361, −78.504071). It is completely surrounded by Bedford Township. The borough is accessible from Exit 146 of the

at the midpoint between

and

U.S. Route 220 U.S. Route 220 (US 220) is a spur route of US 20. It runs in a north–south layout in the eastern United States, unlike its parent route as well as conventionally even-numbered highways which run east-west. US 220 extends for fr ...

is a four-lane north-south highway that bypasses Bedford to the west and becomes

Interstate 99 Interstate 99 (I-99) is an Interstate Highway in the United States with two segments: one located in central Pennsylvania, and the other in southern New York. The southern terminus of the route is near exit 146 of the Pennsylvania Turn ...

just north of town where it crosses the Pennsylvania Turnpike. US-220 Business passes through the center of Bedford as Richard Street. The Raystown Branch of the

Juniata River The Juniata River () is a tributary of the Susquehanna River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed August 8, 2011 in central Pennsylvania. The river is ...

, a tributary of the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...

, flows west to east through the center of Bedford. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the borough has a total area of , of which , or 2.51%, is water.

Events

A Fall Foliage Festival is held in the beginning of October on the first two weekends of the month. The celebration stretches from Penn Street, down Juliana Street, to the park by the Fort Bedford Museum. The event includes many vendors, touring of the fort, the Children's Theater, pony rides, and an antique car show. The Bedford County Fair takes place annually in July or August. Alongside a classic midway of rides, games, and food vendors are a multitude of 4-H-sponsored events (including animal shows and livestock auctions), automobile racing, demolition derbies, and a petting zoo. The automobile racing and demolition derbies take place at the Bedford Fairgrounds Speedway, adjacent to the remainder of the Fair.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,141 people, 1,536 households, and 832 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,830.8 people per square mile (1,092.6/km²). There were 1,640 housing units at an average density of 1,478.0 per square mile (570.5/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 97.71% White, 0.51% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.76% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 0.73% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.80% of the population. There were 1,536 households, 21.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.3% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.8% were non-families. 40.5% of households were made up of individuals, and 19.7% had someone living alone who were 65 or older. The average household size was 2.04 and the average family size was 2.76. In the borough the population was spread out, with 18.8% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 22.8% 65 or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 80.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.5 males. The median household income was $28,549 and the median family income was $39,122. Males had a median income of $29,148 versus $21,375 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $18,028. About 8.5% of families and 11.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.6% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Bedford has both

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...

and

REI Rei or REI may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Rei, a story arc of the anime ''Higurashi When They Cry'' *Rei, a shapeshifting godlike dragon in the Australian webcomic series ''Vainglorious'' *Rei I, II and III, episodes of ''Neon Genesis Eva ...

distribution centers, due to its close location to major highways and cities.

Transportation

Bedford County Airport Bedford County Airport is a public airport in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. It is owned by the Bedford County Airport Authority and is five miles north of the borough of Bedford, Pennsylvania. It opened in 1994. Most U.S. airports use the same ...

is a public use airport in Bedford County. It is owned by the Bedford County Airport Authority and is located four nautical miles (7.4 km) north of the central business district of the borough of Bedford.

Media

Magazines

* ''Hometown Magazine''

Newspapers

* ''Bedford Gazette''

Television

Bedford receives television programming from the Johnstown- Altoona-

State College, PA State College is a home rule municipality in Centre County in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is a college town, dominated economically, culturally and demographically by the presence of the University Park campus of the Pennsylvania Stat ...

media market.

Radio

Six radio stations are licensed to serve Bedford: * WBFD - 1310 AM * WRAX - 1600 AM * W254DF - 98.7 FM (rebroadcasts WBFD) * WAYC - 100.9 FM * W293DF - 106.5 FM (rebroadcasts WRAX) *

WBVE WBVE is a Classic Rock formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Bedford, Pennsylvania, serving Bedford and Bedford County in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a sta ...

- 107.5 FM

Notable people

William Mann Irvine William Mann Irvine (October 13, 1865 – June 11, 1928) was an American academic and founding headmaster of Mercersburg Academy in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. Early life and education Irvine was born on October 13, 1865, in Bedford, Pennsylvani ...

(1865-1928) – founding headmaster of

Mercersburg Academy Mercersburg Academy (formerly Marshall College and Mercersburg College) is an independent selective college-preparatory boarding & day high school in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania in the United States. Founded in 1893, the school enrolls approximat ...

* Lawrence Taliafero (1794–1871) – U.S. diplomat to Dakota and Ojibwe nations, 1819–1839. *

John Tod John Tod (1779March 27, 1830) was an American judge and politician who served as a Democratic-Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district from 1821 to 1823 and for Pennsylvania's 13th con ...

(1779–1830) – U.S. Congressman for Pennsylvania from 1821 to 1824 * Henry Woods (1764–1826) – U.S. Congressman for Pennsylvania from 1799 to 1803

References

* Ned Frear, The Bedford Story: Fort Bedford (Pennsylvania: Gazette Publishing Company, 1998) * Ned Frear, The Bedford Story: The Whiskey Rebellion (Pennsylvania: Gazette Publishing Company, 1998) * Ned Frear, The Bedford Story: The Bedford Springs (Pennsylvania: Gazette Publishing Company, 1998) * * ''History of Bedford, Somerset and Fulton Counties'', (Chicago, 1884) * ''History of Bedford and Somerset Counties'', (New York, 1906)

External links

Borough of Bedford official website

History of Bedford County during the Colonial and Revolutionary War periods

Bedford County's Sestercentennial (2021) website

Website devoted to possibly the only half-timber building associated with the French and Indian War still extant
{{authority control County seats in Pennsylvania Populated places established in 1751 Spa towns in the United States Boroughs in Bedford County, Pennsylvania 1751 establishments in the Thirteen Colonies 1795 establishments in Pennsylvania