The hustle and bustle of mod- ern society has its faults, as re- sidents of Marcytown can at- test. But it’s unusual when an entire village finds that same fast-paced society has literally passed them: by. Such is the plight of Marcytown. Marcytown is a village no one seems to want and very few people care about. A neighbor- hood of 15 families. it is located on the other side of the moun- tain from Trucksville, along the southeast edge of Kingston Township. s Inaccessible by automobile from the rest of Kingston Township. Marcytown goes un- noticed by most township resi- dents. Many are not even aware of its existence. To reach the area. a visitor must go to Luzerne and proceed up the mountain, travelling for the most part on roads which are overgrown with trees and ‘brush. The product of a by-gone coal era, Marcytown doesn’t re- ceive many visitors. anyway. Marecytown residents pay tax- es in either Kingston Township or Swoyersville. Some of the cul tend school in the Dallas ¥5chool District while others go to Swoyersville. Kingston Township has tried to give Marcytown away, but neither adjoining Swoyersville or Luzerne Borough want it. Perhaps society itself is to blame. There are only two roads leading into Marcytown. Both are by way of Luzerne. One leads you by way of Bennett Street, up the mountain on a dead-end street. Where the road used to continue, there is now a vague path covered with brush and grass. Another part of the town can be reached by going to Kelly Street in Luzerne, contin- uing on to Main Street in Swoyersvilte, turning left on Brook or Warsaw Streets, and then ua steep hill through Soyo Wile into Marcytown. full of curves. rocky. narrow, ina ned and treacherous. Junk c¥s and debris litter both sides of the road. making tra- ih hy) a velling even more difficult. Two families on Marcy Street must go through private pro- perty in Luzerne Borough to reach a roadway. At one time there was a road in their section of town. but it has been oblit- erated by erosion, rain and lack of maintenance. How did this town and its 1,000 acres of land, separated from the rest of the township by a mountain. become attached to Kingston Township? At one time. all the land on the west side of the Susquehanna, from Plymouth to Wyoming, was Kingston Township. Gradually, through the years of urban growth, parcels of land were annexed to become Kingston Borough. Swoyersville, Luzerne and other municipalities. Marcytown remained in the township, passed by during the period of annexation. Periodically, Marcytown re- sidents appear at supervisor meetings. pleading for some- thing to be done in their behalf. They pay taxes in Kingston Township. but derive no bene- fits. They go away from the supervisor meetings with’ sym- pathetic promises. but little else. This reporter visited Marcy- town accompanied by Vern Pritchard, Kingston Township tax collector; on a day which was clear and dry. We found ourselves wondering what the roads would have been like had it been raining or snowing. Webster's defines a road as “An open path for vehicles, people and animals.” The roads in Marcytown bear little resem- blance to Webster’s definition. They stir the imagination bring- ing mental images of the paths our forefathers must have used. Mr. Pritchard said there are 15 homes in Marcytown for which the owners pay 83.2 mills in taxes each year—7 mills to “Kingston Township ; 58 to. Dallas county. and 3.5 for institutions. “The problem is that the store. rebuild and maintain ° ized through taxes. Mr. Prit- chard added that the long route which must be travelled to reach Marcytown from the township is the greatest pro- blem in providing help to the community. Kingston Township offered Marcytown to Luzerne and Swoyersville for annexation several years ago. Swoyersville Council met with the Kingston Township supervisors to discuss annexation. But neither Lu- zerne nor Swoyersville wanted Marcytown. even though the of- fer included the 1,000 acres of land. Atty. Ben Jones III, solicitor for Kingston Township, wrote letters to Swoyersville solicitor Andrew Puhak and council pre- sident John Kolesar, he said, of- fering Swoyersville the 1,000 acres for annexation. Atty. Jones said that Kingston Town- ship received no reply, verbally or otherwise. All Swoyersville needed at the time was a simple annexation ordinance. According to Atty. Puhak, there was a special attorney working on the matter and then he was told that Kingston Town- ship had withdrawn the offer. Atty. Jones said that the offer was withdrawn at a regular supervisors meeting when it be- came apparent Swoyersville did not intend to make any move to- ward Marcytown annexation. Swoyersville Mayor Henry Novroski said that the matter was turned over to the berough attorney and someone was sup- posed to be doing research on an annexation plan. This was five or six years ago. Later, he said, he heard the matter was shelv- ed because Kingston Township withdrew its offer. Mayor Nov- roski said that Swoyersville would like to take the land over, adding that he had never seen any of the letters. ‘As far as I'm concerned, it’s possible for Swoyersville to accept Marcey- own.” the mayor said. He also speculated about talk of an in- dustrial park being located in the Marcytown area. Marcytown has been a head- ache to the Dallas School Dis- trict for years. Because taxes are paid in Kingston Township, the children in Marcytown go to Dallas schools. This means that the district’s buses must go out of the way about five miles each run to pick up six elementary and three secondary students each day. Some of these stu- dents get the bus as early as 7:20 a.m. and do not return home until about 4:15 p.m. James Brokenshire, assistant superintendent ‘of the Dallas School District, said Marcytown is a problem spot in the district. Kingston Township supervi- sors are waiting until the Wilbur Smith Consulting Engineers’ survey of the entire township is complete. before any action is taken on Marcytown. To add to the woes of weary residents, township manager Michael Stanley said that Swoyersville through a simple ordinance. The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has ruled that both municipalities involved must vote on the issue before any land can be annexed. It has to be submitted 60 days before election, according to the Lu- zerne County Election Bureau. And since this is October, and election is only a short month away. there is little hope that Marcytown can expect help this year. Meanwhile, the 15 homeown- ers and their families of Marcy- town must wait out another win- ter and spring. until the agoniz- ing slow wheels of government turn. Should the 1,000 acres in Marcytown become an indus- trial site rather than just a ru- mor. the desolation of Marcy- town could become a prize plum. The answer to the village's dilemma could be in seeking help from the develop- ers. Very few municipalities could resist the tinkle of addi- tional coins in their tax coffers created by a 1,000-acre indus- trial park. But until that day comes, Marcytown residents can only expect the hubub of the urban sprawl below them to keep passing them by. 7 Brook Street in Marcytown is a steep, rocky road, impassable - by two vehicles because of the abandoned cars and debris that line the sides. neil Residents of Marcy Street must cross over into private land in Luzerne Borough to get off of their property, because there is no longer a road by their homes. Marcy Street is typical of the roads in Marcytown. The amount ; of debris which line the sides, and the rocks und curves make i travel difficult. :
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers