Sunday Carroll Eagle column for August 24 2008: “Years ago, folks celebrated The Forks in Westminster” by Kevin Dayhoff
Years ago, folks celebrated The Forks in Westminster
EAGLE ARCHIVE By Kevin Dayhoff Posted 8/24/08 (690 words)
Years ago, folks celebrated The Forks in Westminster
EAGLE ARCHIVE By Kevin Dayhoff Posted 8/24/08 (690 words)
The City of Westminster has recently been working to form a group to study the Pennsylvania Avenue of town.
In that context, it's interesting that back on Aug. 8, 1924, the editor of the now-defunct newspaper, The American Sentinel, wrote an article about the renaissance of the area on the west end of Westminster known as "The Forks."
The 1924 article was titled, "The Forks Regaining Its Old Prestige."
According to historian Jay Graybeal, who wrote a column about the article in 1999 for the Historical Society of Carroll County, it was the demolition of an old general store at the forks of Pennsylvania Avenue and West Main Street that so excited the editor.
"The old frame store and dwelling at The Forks ... has been razed by Mr. Roy Shipley, a recent purchaser," the article read. "The old building had quite a history and was one of the landmarks of this city."
An old photo in my collection reveals what must have been a large structure with an elegant fountain in the front. The sign above the front porch identifies the store as "Geo. R. Grumbine Groceries and Provisions."
Growing up in Westminster in the 1950s and '60s, and especially in this area of town, I recall Pennsylvania Avenue as an elegant and thriving mixed-use residential and business section of town. The Forks was generally considered the "center of town."
And it was a memorable, unifying force in the community. As late as the 1950s directions were still given that cited the location of store, such as "just up the street from where Grumbine's used to be ..."
[…]
The west end of Westminster is rich with history and tradition. It was annexed by Westminster way back in 1825. At that time, that section was known as "Logsdon's Tavern" -- last of the original five towns that were ultimately consolidated into what we now know as Westminster.
Many who follow the happenings of Carroll County government may find it of interest that the Carroll County public information administrator, Vivian Laxton, is a descendent of the Logsdon family that helped form the foundation of what we now know as Westminster -- and whose roots pre-date before Carroll County was a county.
In 1825, what we know from history as Logsdon's Tavern was actually a part of Frederick County…
[…]
The 1924 Sentinel article gives us a great deal of additional insight into the history of this area of Westminster, and the fact that parts of town were then still considered their own enclaves:
"For quite a number of years before the Civil War," the article notes, "Westminster was divided into three distinct settlements known as Dead End, The Forks, and Irishtown."
To read the rest of the column go here: Years ago, folks celebrated sticking The Forks in Westminster
