Graffiti Leads To Tale Of Two New Hollanders

According to Brian Frankhouser, member of the board of trustees of the New Holland Area Historical Society (NHAHS), teenagers in the mid-1800s maybe were not so different from today. John H. Hull, who would have been about 18 in 1850, carved his first and middle initials, and his last name into a brick on the Railroad Avenue side of the Kauffman Building. In 1850, he, or possibly his father, wrote his name on a board that Steve Loewen discovered in 1987 when he was remodeling 331 E. Main St., New Holland. "(Hull) had a lot of spunk," said Frankhouser. "He was the type of teenager who put his name places. That's my opinion."

Loewen found the board in a wall near the fireplace. "That's when I discovered that my building was built to be the (Trinity) Lutheran (Church) parsonage in August of 1850," Loewen said. There is some discrepancy as to whether the same John Hull who put his name on the brick also wrote his name in the manse. "There was no 'John H. Hull' listed (in the 1850 census)," noted Frankhouser. However, a "John H. Holl," a 17-year-old student, was listed, and his father was listed as "John Holl," a house painter. "I think it's pretty obvious that the father painted the Lutheran parsonage. However, it's not obvious who put their name on the board. Was it the father or the son?" asked Frankhouser, who explained that the name Holl morphed into Hull as time passed.

John H. Hull (the son) grew up in New Holland, and he lost his right arm as a child in a firearm accident during a July Fourth celebration. He became a schoolteacher and later moved to Allentown. According to his obituary, he worked as a bookkeeper, and he was active in politics. When he died, he was a widower who left several children.

According to Frankhouser, much of the information available about Hull and others who lived in New Holland in the same time period came from a man who left New Holland at the age of 23. William W. Davis was born in New Holland in 1836, and his family lived at 224 E. Main St. In 1855, when a group of 72 residents migrated west from New Holland to settle in Sterling, Ill., the Davis family was among them. "This was the biggest migration from New Holland ever," said Frankhouser, who noted that Davis did not leave with his family until after he completed his final term at Franklin & Marshall College, where he spoke at his graduation ceremony in 1856. According to NHAHS docent Ron Dyer, Davis' subject was "Decline of Political Integrity," and future president James Buchanan was in the audience.

"(Davis) is significant to this story because if it weren't for him, we would know little of New Holland in the 1840s," said Frankhouser, who explained that Davis continued to receive The Clarion. "Davis lived to be 88 years old," said Frankhouser, who added that as New Hollanders in his age group died, Davis sent letters to The Clarion sharing information about their lives.

NHAHS will take part in the ExtraGive 2022 online fundraising event to be held on Friday, Nov. 18. Readers who wish to support NHAHS during the ExtraGive may visit http://www.extragive.org. More information about the historical society is available at https://nhhistorical.com.