Manheim Township has a rich and wonderful history. Working to preserve that history is a local historian, Nat Netscher, who recently published a book that celebrates Manheim Township’s history.

By combing through township files and interviewing long-time residents, Netscher has compiled a great deal of information.

Did You Know...

• In 1917, the Rowe Motor Manufacturing Company built a plant on Fountain Avenue to manufacture trucks. This and other automotive businesses sparked hope that Lancaster would become the Detroit of the East. Unfortunately, Rowe Motor Manufacturing folded in 1925.
  

• One of the major milestones in the history of Manheim Township occurred in 1952. A referendum on the general election ballot that November asked residents to vote whether they wanted the Second Class township to become a First Class township. (The First and Second Class Township designations refer to the rules that apply to township government as spelled out under Pennsylvania's Municipalities Planning Code.)

  The referendum passed by a 2-1 margin: 3,383 voted "yes" and 1,633 voted "no." Voter turnout was 87%, an uncommonly high percentage. But it may have been affected by the fact that it was a presidential election with Dwight Eisenhower running against Adlai Stevenson.

• One of the swankiest hotels in Lancaster County in the early 1900s was the Rossmere Hotel. John W. Hiemenz, a prominent businessman, bought a large private residence in 1899 and turned it into a hotel with 40 guestrooms, a ballroom, restaurant, billiards room and the first bowling alley in the county. The hotel was later converted to the Rossmere Sanitarium, which was torn down to make way for the present Community Services Center on Janet Avenue.

To help commemorate the 275th. anniversary of Manheim Township in 2004, the first completed history of the township was published in the fall of 2003.

At the request of the Board of Commissioners, the township's Community Life Task Force was given the responsibility of producing this book. The commissioned author is C. Nat Netscher. A committee was formed to publish and market the book.

This hard cover, 81/2 x 11 book contains 250 pages, including many pictures. It covers the following aspects of township life from 1729 to the present: land, government, neighborhoods, transportation, education, business, religion, sports and recreation, people, health and safety, and dwellings.

Thank you for your interest and support.