Looking back

Civil War veteran a large NEPA employer

From the files of the Wayne County Historical Society

By ANN O'HARA
Posted 1/29/20

From the files of the Wayne County Historical Society

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Looking back

Civil War veteran a large NEPA employer

From the files of the Wayne County Historical Society

Posted

John S. O’Connor (1831-1916) was one of the finest glass cutters in the United States. His J. S. O’Connor American Rich Cut Glassware Factory was one of the largest employers in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Irish-born John O’Connor was a Civil War veteran who had been apprenticed to a glass cutter before the war and became superintendent of his former employer’s glass-cutting works after his discharge. He soon moved to the C. Dorflinger factory in White Mills where he worked for 25 years before building his Hawley factory in 1890. The factory was on a site previously occupied by wooden frame mills beginning in the late 18th century. O’Connor’s factory was one of the most extensive glass-cutting factories in America and, at its peak, he employed almost 300 workers. The O’Connor operation moved to Goshen, NY in 1902, and after many incarnations, the building became the luxurious Ledges Hotel, part of the Settlers Hospitality Group.

From the files of the Wayne County Historical Society. The museum and library are open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday through April.




glass cutting, american rich cut glassware factory, wayne county, historical society

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