Dawson Pennsylvania At 150, Healthy, Historic! Early in its 150-year existence along the Youghiogheny River, the little community of Dawson grew from a group of plotted farm lots to a booming industrial hub where it has been said, “A millionaire lived on every corner!” Coal and beehive coke production provided the fuel for rapid growth and accumulation of wealth. Railroads, mines and coke ovens employed the human machinery that kept the wheels of progress rolling toward a smoke covered population of 890 near the turn of the century. Even though Dawson owes its illustrious history to the coal and coke revolution it did not evolve as a patch town. The early families that engineered the town’s growth did so by building and living in the area. As a result of that dedication, some of the large, ornate homes still grace the town. Some streets bear the names of the surveyors who laid them out, or the magnate who lived there at the time. One such home was built and occupied by James Cochran, a pioneer in the mining and coke industry, who with his brother Mordecai, floated a log raft down the river and sold the first commercial beehive coke at Cincinnati, Ohio. “Little Jim’s” home still stands in Dawson’s historic district. Benefactors of the town proper laid out streets paved with locally fired bricks, and sandstone foundations supported well built homes framed with locally cut lumber. The Cochran family was very generous to the community with their wealth, and a municipal water system was fed by large wells on one of the Cochran farms. As the population grew, retail business increased as well as entertainment venues. Rare for a town of its size, Dawson boasted theaters and an opera house, two hotels, a bank, clothing, shoe and general stores, several groceries and a furniture store. Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist and Catholic Churches drew large congregations. Three different edifices were constructed in sequence on the property where Cochran Memorial United Methodist Church now stands. A frame chapel, the first building, was moved to Bryan where it stands today. The second, a huge traditional brick structure constructed by businesswoman and philanthropist Sarah Cochran, stood until around 1920 when Mrs. Cochran had it replaced with the magnificent stone church of today, dedicated to her late husband, Philip. No documentation or even a sentence about the illustrious past of Dawson could exist without the inclusion of at least a mention of Sarah B. Cochran. Deeply devot-
by Roy W. Hess Sr.
ed to God and her family, when she tragically lost both her husband and her only child, she defied the norms of the time when she kept, managed and guided the area’s largest company to incredible success. However wealthy, Sarah B. Cochran never abandoned her hometown attitude or compassion. She built magnificent churches but taught Sunday School classes. The beautiful mansion she had constructed at Linden Hall frequently welcomed public events. Mrs. Cochran was a devoted supporter of both education and women’s rights! Several colleges have buildings named for their benefactor, Sarah B. Cochran. While Mrs. Cochran remained in relative obscurity nationally, her philanthropy equaled and, in some cases, eclipsed that of her more well-known male counterparts. In possibly the only book about Sarah B.’s life, A Lesser Mortal, The Unexpected Life of Sarah B. Cochran, author Kimberly Hess accurately documents Mrs. Cochran’s colorful life. But to residents of Dawson, the name Sarah B. speaks of benefactress and legend! Early access to the town was by a major road (now PA Route 819) to Scottdale, northeast of Dawson, and a wooden plank/steel girder bridge across the Youghiogheny River to the south. The south end of the first bridge was later raised to allow passage below to the P&LE train. The bridge was built as a toll structure. When the bridge was paid for, the toll was ended. While the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie rail yards across the river grew and employed more and more workers, the Baltimore & Ohio railroad split Dawson, and carried coal, coke and passengers to the east and west.
Old B & O Railroad station located in front of the old Rush House. 7
