Glen Hope is another one of Clearfield County’s boroughs that has always been large in area but has traditionally had a small population. No one, however, should sell Glen Hope short on local historical significance.
The town itself is situated on the banks of Clearfield Creek where both state Routes 53 and 729 intersect. Both of these roads were once trails used by the First Nation peoples in the area.
The route 729 trail ran from Lumber City to Janesville where it, in turn became part of Route 453 and made its way to Tyrone. The trail connected the Susquehanna River to the Little Juniata River. Both rivers were the First Nation people’s avenue of travel and trade.
Glen Hope’s place was special because the trail crossed Clearfield Creek. The creek was used for Native American and early European settler’s travel and development. It also played a vital role in the development of the logging and rafting industry in southern and central Clearfield County.
A few miles east, Captain Edward Ricketts, a French and Indian and Revolutionary War veteran, erected a crude cabin in 1801. A monument along Route 53 was dedicated in 1955 to mark the approximate spot.
Captain Rickets had been exploring the area since the 1780’s. His lands were given to him by a grateful but financially-strapped Pennsylvania legislature in payment for his war service.
Glen Hope, as a community, had its foundations in 1806, only two years after the establishment of Clearfield County
Glen Hope’s location helped it to grow. Early families such as the Coopers, Wrights, Calwells and Keagys contributed to the growth of a town that was originally called Mechanicsburg!
It has been noted the Mrs. Israel Cooper poetically spoke of the rare beauty of the glen and the hope of wealth and happiness that the village offered. The name, Glen Hope, stuck.
Businesses and homesteads soon were built to fill the borough lots. A Dunkard and Methodist Church were both established. The Glen Hope United Methodist Church is still active today.
Like decent and concerned people most everywhere, the men and women of Glen Hope established a community school. The wanted their children to be as educated in so much as a small nearly wilderness mountain school could offer.
The school shown in the photo was opened in 1885. It offered instruction to eight grades and was used until its closing in 1963 as the Moshannon Valley School District continued to consolidate its elementary schools.
It was then used as a borough building until its dismantling and sale in the 1980’s. Remarkably, its basic framework was rebuilt on the land of a private residence in Ramey. The wide and locally milled white pine planks can still be seen.