Williams Grove, Pennsylvania

{{short description|Unincorporated community in Pennsylvania, US}}

{{Infobox settlement

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|subdivision_name2 = Cumberland

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|timezone = Eastern (EST)

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|elevation_ft = 423

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|area_code = 717 & 223

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|blank1_info = 1191460{{Gnis|1191460|Williams Grove, Pennsylvania}}

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Williams Grove is an unincorporated community in Monroe Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Williams Grove is located off U.S. Route 15 and is home to the Williams Grove Speedway and defunct Williams Grove Amusement Park.

History

The Williams family settled and built the John Williams House, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.{{NRISref|version=2010a}} In 1850, they began hosting picnics on their property, in a grove next to the Yellow Breeches Creek. This grove would later become Williams Grove Amusement Park.{{cite web |title=Local Amusements - Window to History |url=https://www.historicalsociety.com/local-amusements-window-to-history/#:~:text=Back%20in%20the%201850s%20the,grove%20to%20extend%20their%20stay. |website=Cumberland County Historical Society |access-date=27 May 2024 |date=26 October 2016}}

In 1928, the grove was sold to Roy Richwine, who developed it into a full amusement park and opened Williams Grove Speedway in 1939.

In 1963, Ashcombe Farm & Greenhouses opened on the eastern end of the village. On May 22, 1989, two men who lived at the Williams Grove Mobile Home Park tossed illegal fireworks onto the roof of Ashcombe's. The fireworks caused a large fire, causing an estimated $500,000 in damage and destroying almost the entire complex. A makeshift market was erected in the parking lot, while a new building was being constructed. The new Ashcombe Farm & Greenhouses opened in 1990.{{cite web |last1=Kiner |first1=Deb |title=Don’t miss these photos of the 1989 fire that destroyed Ashcombe’s |url=https://www.pennlive.com/life/2019/05/dont-miss-these-photos-of-the-1989-fire-that-destroyed-ashcombes.html |website=pennlive |access-date=27 May 2024 |language=en |date=22 May 2019}}

Williams Grove Amusement Park closed following the 2005 season.{{cite web |title=Williams Grove Amusement Park (Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, United States) |url=https://rcdb.com/4681.htm |website=rcdb.com |access-date=27 May 2024}}

In 2007, Williams Grove Historical Steam Engine Association purchased a 90-acre plot of land that they had previously been using for festivals.{{cite web |last1=Marrs |first1=Jennifer |title=Steam engine group buys 90 acres in Williams Grove |url=https://cumberlink.com/news/steam-engine-group-buys-90-acres-in-williams-grove/article_69db1b8b-fd4a-5af7-a7b2-8d315616199b.html |website=The Sentinel |access-date=27 May 2024 |language=en |date=19 January 2007}}

T.J. Rockwell's replaced the former Countryside Inn in 2008.{{cite web |last1=Umble |first1=Chad |title=Funck's Restaurant Group buys T.J. Rockwell's restaurants in Elizabethtown, Mechanicsburg |url=https://lancasteronline.com/business/whats_in_store/funcks-restaurant-group-buys-t-j-rockwells-restaurants-in-elizabethtown-mechanicsburg/article_c383b53c-942b-11ec-97e8-e72333463369.html#:~:text=The%20Mechanicsburg%20restaurant%20opened%20in%202008. |website=LancasterOnline |access-date=27 May 2024 |language=en |date=23 February 2022}}

References

Category:Unincorporated communities in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania

Category:Unincorporated communities in Pennsylvania