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CLARK'S SUMMIT CENTENNIAL PLANNING COMMITTEE

Historical Highlights

Articles Included:

Short History of Clark's Summit

Clark’s Summit Borough was incorporated on August 30, 1911. Prior to that, it was a village in South Abington Township. As a borough, it was entitled to have a municipal structure and to perform services for its citizens that were not possible without that status.

Deacon William Clark came to this area in the late 1790’s with a land grant from the state of Connecticut for his services in the Revolutionary War. That grant was not recognized and he had to purchase his land.

Clark’s Summit became established in 1850 when the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad established a station there. The name “Clark’s Summit” may have been created by the surveyors for the railroad. Before then, the Philadelphia and Great Bend Turnpike through Clark’s Green was the principle link south to Scranton and to places north.

The Northern Electric Street Railway was built in 1907. Although the D. L. & W. provided passenger service, the Northern Electric made Clark’s Summit a “bedroom” community for Scranton's middle class leading to its rapid development.

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Clark’s Summit Now a Regular Borough

(Scranton Times, August 30, 1911)
ORDER OF INCORPORATION WAS HANDED DOWN TODAY BY JUDGE EDWARDS

The new borough of Clark’s Summit was incorporated today by the court, in a decree signed by Judge Edwards.

It is ordered that that the polling place shall be in the second story of the wagon factory owned by T. E. Shilling and the first election for borough offices shall be on the regular election day, November 7.

Austen Staples is appointed majority inspector of election; Floyd Young minority inspector and William F. Shurtleff, judge.

Ward B. Parker is appointed to give notice of the election by posting ten handbills in different public places, at least ten days before election day, and he shall certify to the court within six days after election day the names of the men elected to the different offices.

If the electors desire at some future time to have the borough divided into wards that can be done by another proceeding. Until then, the borough will not be divided into wards.

The officers to be chosen in November are a burgess, six councilmen and five school directors, as well as one justice of the peace, three auditors, one assessor and one high constable and one tax collector.

The lines of the borough take in substantially the old Second election district of South Abington township. Beginning on the state road, easterly of Northern Electric park and taking the park in the line goes along the Newton Wallace road to the road leading between Clark’s Summit and Chinchilla, thence along the northeasterly side of an old abandoned road south twelve hundred and fourteen feet to a lane and along that lane to the road leading from Clark’s Summit to Mud Pond, thence along that road along the westerly line of the farm of Frank Moyer and crossing the road leading to Lake Winola, thence to the corner of land of George Nichols and Summit Park, thence to the road leading from the state road to Gravel Pond, thence along the state road at Dalton, thence to the highway between Clark’s Green and Waverly, taking in Lorain Park and coming down to the plot where the high school stands and taking in that.

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