Sewickley Valley:
Traditional name for land extending from Glenfield to Beaver County line at Big Sewickley Creek.
Quaker Valley:
A designation that arose during the 1960s when the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania mandated larger school districts. The name is a compromise that harks back to the Quaker roots of one of the pioneer families - the Ways - and the fact that there was at one time a railroad station called Quaker Valley. Quaker Valley station was located at the foot of Academy Avenue on the property of the Way Family.
The Name Sewickley:
Citizens of the town met to consider a name for their town in 1840, choosing the name Sewickleyville over Fifetown, Contention, Devilís Race Track and Dogtown. The town was incorporated as Sewickley in 1853.
Name Origin:
History records a tribe of Indians called Assiwikales. Popular version is that Seweekly is an Indian name for the sap of the maple trees that were abundant in the rich virgin forest - thus, Sweetwater.
Influences On History:
- The Great Beaver Road - Conestoga wagons, etc.
- The Ohio River - Steamboats and river captains
- The Railroad - Pennsylvania R. R.'s main line west, July 4, 1851
- Migration of iron and steel families from Pittsburgh
- Sewickley Bridge, 1911
- Ohio River Boulevard - Opened December 15, 1934
- Greater Pittsburgh Airport after World War II
Visitors & Residents
- George Washington, 1753
- Col. Bouquet, 1764
- Gen. Anthony Wayne, 1792
- Gen. Zachary Taylor, 1848
- Ethelbert Nevin (1862-1901) - Native Son
- Willa Cather - Visitor, 1900
- William Howard Taft - Visitor
- Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876-1958) - Resident
- Estate Families - Jones, Laughlin, Byers, Oliver, Boggs, Buhl
Prepared by Sewickley Valley Historical Society, 2001
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