Bloomsburg Main Street 1905 Steam Dye Works 1897 White Mills, 1900 Fort McClure House 2001 Bloomsburg was originally settled in the 1770's, but many Native American settlements existed in the area. Some of these were permanent villages and some, like that at the mouth of Fishing Creek where it empties into the Susquehanna, were seasonal settlements. In this area, archaeologists have found evidence of centuries of occasional habitation and have theorized that the native peoples used the area for fishing villages. The Six Nations claimed the right of supreme reign over other tribes along the Susquehanna River corridor. Territorial disputes continued with the arrival of the first European settlers in the area. In 1761, a wooden stockade was built around James McClure's log cabin, the site of which is now within Bloomsburg town limits. The area became open for further settlement after the French and Indian War lead to better relationships between natives and settlers. The first post office opened here in 1807 as the Bloomsburgh Post Office. Notice the spelling, which was changed in 1894. Columbia County was separated from Northumberland County in 1831, and Bloomsburg was named its county seat in 1850. By then, the discovery of iron ore had led to the growth of industries in the county. The iron ore deposits were depleted after the Civil War, but new industries arose in their place, including textile mills such as the Magee Carpet Company. Manufacturing still employs the largest number of people in Bloomsburg today. Bloomsburg is the only "town" in Pennsylvania. On March 4, 1870, State Senator Charles Buckalew proposed a law to incorporate Bloomsburg as a town, forming a municipal government unique in the state. Even though the town discontinued this political structure in 1920, it was allowed to retain its designation as a town. Bloomsburg University first opened in 1839 as an academy, or a private high school. In 1856 it was reorganized as the Bloomsburg Literary Institute, and in 1867 its first permanent building was erected, known then as Institute Hall. It is now called Carver Hall. In 1869, the school became known as the Bloomsburg Literary and Normal School, and in 1916 it was the Bloomsburg State Normal School. Its progression took it to the Bloomsburg State Teachers College, Bloomsburg State College, and finally Bloomsburg University. The Bloomsburg and Sullivan Railroad began in Bloomsburg in 1888. The railroad was constructed for a corporation headed by Colonel James Jameson and Senator Buckalew. This twenty-nine mile railroad headed north through many of the other towns of the watershed as it wound its way up Fishing Creek. It passed through Lightstreet, Orangeville, Forks, Central, and ended at Jamison City. Bloomsburg is famous today for its fair, the largest one in the state. The first fair was in 1855 on what was then Caleb Barton's field at the bottom of Second Street. It was moved the following year to the corner of Fifth and Market Streets, and its permanent fairgrounds were established where they are today in 1858. Today Bloomsburg has a population of over 12,000 people and a large number of industries and retail establishments. The fair continues to open every September in this viable college town at the mouth of Fishing Creek. by Abby