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Northern Tier Coalition of Townships
Susquehanna County, PA
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Coalition
Members
Apolacon Twp..
Bridgewater Twp.
Choconut Twp.
Forest Lake Twp.
Franklin Twp.
Jessup Twp.
Liberty Twp.
Middletown Twp.
Rush Twp.
Silver Lake Twp
Friendsville
Little Meadows
Montrose
SILVER LAKE TOWNSHIP
Silver Lake is located in the north central portion of the Northern Tier Coalition area and was named after both Silver Lake and Silver Creek, which are significant hydrologic elements of the Township’s landscape. The area is also known for its bountiful supply of cold blue water lakes, including Quaker Lake, Laurel Lake, Silver Lake and Cranberry Lake. The area was settled with sheep farms and a dairy industry though farming is less prevalent in the area today. Most of the jobs are outside the township in Binghamton, Endicott, and Johnson City.
Early History Silver Lake was divided from Bridgewater Township in 1813 and included in the one hundred thousand acres purchased by R.H. Rose in 1809. Rose, a Scottish settler from Chester County, Pennsylvania promoted the settlement of Silver Lake, and the early development of the Townships resources. By the 1820’s, Silver Lake had a number of roads and mills and had a significantly larger population than many of the townships in Susquehanna County.
Recent Development Silver Lake Township is 32.7 square miles large. 1,542 people lived in Silver Lake in 1990, an increase of 43.7% since 1980. The 2000 census found an additional 182 residents – an increase of over 12 percent making Silver Lake one of the most rapidly growing areas in the Northern Tier Coalition. Silver Lake, like Middletown, has a high percentage of its housing units in season use – of the township’s 1,037 housing units, 38 percent were only occupied seasonally. Silver Lake grew five times the rate of the County between 1970 and 1980, and overall 43.7% between 1980 and 1990. As of 1994, the County grew at a rate of 6.6% per decade with Silver Lake the fastest growing township with a population density of 50 persons per square mile. Recent development in Silver Lake has been increasing – with a eleven percent increase in the 1990s. Silver Lake, however, has seen 19 new subdivisions between 1998 and 2000 – showing significant development pressure and the potential for more seasonal residential development in the future. The land use divides into approximately the following: 77% forest and undeveloped, 8% in agriculture, 5% in each residential and recreational and 1 or 2% in commercial, public, water and utilities.
Conservation Issues & Opportunities Silver Lake enjoys a landscape dominated by head water features – from the various lakes and wetlands to creeks such as the Silver Creek, Big Snake Creek and Fall Brook. Water quality is therefore of paramount importance, as this water begins its long trek from these communities to the communities of the Chesapeake Bay through all those in between. Water quality and septic design problems can and have been add addressed with community septic systems built by lake associations, shoreline ordinances and other ordinances that limit development near water features, and the requirement of specific setbacks and locations for septic fields away from water features. Silver Lake is also home to the only two nature preserves in the NTC area, both owned and managed by the Edward L. Rose Conservancy. The main preserve of the Conservancy is located above and around Silver Lake. Other issues are similar across all townships and are included in the following section of this booklet.
FOREST LAKE TOWNSHIP
Forest Lake has one of the highest elevations of the NTC townships, and is the headwaters for the Choconut creek and the east and middle branches of the Wyalusing creek. The community is also closely tied to its roots, and while land use patterns are dispersed, the community’s character is not. Forest Lake is remains largely a working landscape with extensive working forests, quarries and a number of dairy farms. Birchardville and Forest lake are hamlets that have maintained their relationship to the neighboring countryside. Forest Lake Township is also host to a longest segment of the Milford- Owego Turnpike in the NTC.
Early History Forest Lake Township was established in May of 1886, but its first settlers arrived in 1799. Jesse and Jabez Birchard, descendants of those on the Mayflower, established a settlement called Rush. More people arrived in 1800, and the population of the settlement increased rather slowly. Dairy farming became the primary form of agriculture in the area, and Forest Lake had some of the largest dairy farms in Susquehanna County during the mid-1800s. Many of the settlers were immigrants from England and Germany. In fact, the name Forest Lake was termed by Mrs. Turner in 1819 upon her arrival to the area from England. The first post office was established in 1826 (the Birchardville Post Office), with a second one opening in 1831. The first church in the township was a Baptist church, established by E. D. Dimock, and before 1810, everyone in the community was a member since there was no other church in the township. In Dec. 1811, a Presbyterian church was founded, followed by a Methodist church built in 1847.
Recent Development According to the 2000 census, Forest Lake Township is home to 1,237 residents, making it one of the larger townships in terms of population. The population is stable – with only a 4% increase between 1990 and 2000. However, like so many other townships in the NTC the demographic make up of the community is aging – with the age group of 65 and older dramatically increased in the past decade. In terms of development, Forest Lake has also remained stable. Between 1990 and 2000 seventeen new housing units were constructed, a change of only 4 percent. Forest City saw 12 new subdivisions between 1998 and 2000 – with no new subdivisions in 2000. Much of the development is along the paved roads in the Township, e.g. 267 and the St. Joseph-Montrose road. Significant amenity development has occurred around Forest Lake, the lake.
Conservation Issues and Opportunities Many of the conservation issues raised by residents and the township supervisors are issues shared by other NTC communities, including rural quality of life, roadside exurban development, loss of family farms, and concern for landfills. There was also concern for quarries, but more in terms ensuring that this type of working landscape would not be displaced by conservation or development agendas. Water quality is also of concern and a goal for the Township with its jewel of a lake and its many trout streams.