History & Archives

In 1782, the families of Austin and Crossley were the first white settlers in Shickshinny. The first permanent settler in the area was Ralph Austin. At this time, Shickshinny was under the jurisdiction of Connecticut. In 1801, Shadrick Austin bought the 256 acres (104 ha) of land.

Another known settler in the area was William Koons (in the 1850s). Koons settled one mile outside of Shickshinny (where the Shickshinny Creek Bridge was later erected). The name of the area was changed to Koonsville (where the post office was later built). In 1773, Nathan Beach, also from Connecticut, settled outside of modern-day Shickshinny. The area was named Beach Haven after him.

A farm, which encompassed nearly the entire current-day borough, was established by Matthias Hollenback. By this time, it was under the Pennsylvania claim. The land was later inherited by his daughter, Cist Hollenback, who married Chester Butler. In 1857, upon C. Hollenbeck's death, the land was divided and sold to the proprietors of the Shickshinny Company: George W. Search, Lot Search, Nathan Beach Crary, and Nathan Garrison. Walter Garrison bought the corner where the modern-day bank is located. Lot Search held the position of Luzerne County treasurer in 1855 and maintained it for two years.

N. Garrison and Andrew J. Eldon built the first store, located outside the old storehouse, in June 1857. But a few months after the store opened, Eldon fled to China with $3,000 of Garrison's money. It was reported that Eldon was lost in a storm at sea and drowned from the weight of gold in his pockets. The business soon closed and was bought by Nathan B. Crary. A drug store opened at the same time. It was run and managed by Stephen Bond.

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