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Introduction
The photographs below document the maple syrup operations of Mr. & Mrs. Allen Lester Korns on their family farm in Southampton Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. As far back as I can remember into the 1950s, their son Melvin Lester Korns was also involved with the maple syrup operations, and also lived on the farm. Both father and son were chosen as Maple Kings at the Meyersdale Maple Festival.
L. Dietle, March 23, 2025
1956 Korns sugar camp photo, outside
The following 1956 photo shows the sugar camp of Allen & Gladys (Bittner) Korns of Southampton township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. This camp was located in Southampton Township on the family farm in the woods north of their fields, and was constructed from rough-sawn oak planks. (photo courtesy of Mildred Sass)
1956 A. Korns sugar camp photo, with steam
The following 1956 photo shows the Somerset County PA sugar camp of Allen & Gladys (Bittner) Korns as maple syrup was being made; note the steam rising from the roof vents. (photo courtesy of Mildred Sass)
Inside the sugar camp with Allen and Gladys, 1956
The following photo shows Allen and Gladys (Bittner) Korns inside the sugar camp on their family farm in Southampton Township, Somerset County, PA. The iron doors are the doors of the fire box, where wood is burned to boil the sugar water in the evaporators to make maple syrup. The syrup was also canned in this building, using metal cans with screw-top lids. (A picture of one of the cans is included below.) Look through the back door and see the kitchen area, where a wood burning stove was used for cooking.
According to the 1932 book "Somerset County Outline" by John C. Cassaday, the transition from kettles to evaporators took place about 1858. This transition was not even across Somerset County. My Grandfather Irvin Henry Dietle, who farmed in Larimer Township on a smaller scale than the Korns family, was still producing syrup outdoors in an iron kettle suspended between two posts in the 1960s.
Gathering sugar water in 1964 on the Korns farm
The following 1964 photo shows the gathering of sugar water on the Allen Korns family farm in Southampton Township, Somerset County, PA. The tractor and trailer-mounted sugar water tank are parked at a storage tank that piped the sugar water down to the sugar camp as needed. (photo courtesy of Mildred Sass)
Allen Korns and Rev. John Miller filling their buckets with sugar water
The following photo shows Allen Lester Korns (left) and another individual (right) filling buckets of sugar water from galvanized pails/keelers. The rear of the photo is inscribed, "Bro John & Daddy Mar 1953". The individual on the right cannot be Allen's brother John Korns who died at the age of 36 in 1930 because the photo is labeled 1953 and the individual on the right looks older than age 36. On another copy of the photo from the photos of Mr. & Mrs. Allen Korns, the individual on the right is labled, "Rev John Miller".
Allen Korns and another individual emptying their buckets of sugar water
The following photo shows Allen Lester Korns (right) and another individual (left) emptying their buckets of sugar water into trailer-mounted tanks. The other individual is obviously the same Rev. John Miller who is in the previous photo, based on matching details (buckets, hats, etc.)
Gathering sugar water with horse-drawn wagon
The following photo shows gathering sugar water on the Allen Korns farm using a horse-drawn wagon with a sugar water tank. The wagon wheels have wooden spokes and rubber tires.
Gathering sugar water with tractor-drawn tank
The following photo shows gathering sugar water on the Allen Korns farm using a tractor-drawn dual-wheeled trailer with a sugar water tank. The individual is Allen Korns, and the tractor is a Fordson with steel wheels that I remember from my childhood (The tractor was no longer running when I was old enough to remember it, and was permanently parked near the "new barn"). This photo was used in a 1951 advertisement, which is included farther below.
Gladys (Bittner) Korns gathering sugar water
The following photo shows Gladys (Bittner) Korns (wife of Allen Lester Korns) gathering sugar water on the Allen Korns farm. Note the flanged rim of a sugar water tank in the foreground.
Dorothy Saltman unloading wood at the Allen Korns sugar camp
The following photograph is from the album of Mrs. Allen Lester Korns. It shows Dorothy Saltman unloading firewood at the Allen Korns sugar camp. The firewood is being unloaded into the woodshed, which was located directly up the hill from the sugar camp. The wood was brought down to the sugar camp on a cart that was ran on rails.
According to a conversation that I had with Dolores Korns in December of 2007, Dorthy Saltman went to Peru with Mary Mildred (Korns) Jones as a missionary nurse, but had to come home because she could not tolerate the climate. Dolores also indicated that Mary Mildred (Korns) Jones was the wife of Elias Jones. Mary Mildred Korns was the daughter of Nevin Lewis Korns, and was the grand-daughter of John Wilson Korns. According to my mother Estalene (Korns) Dietle (Nevin's niece), Nevin worked for the railroad, and had something to do with improvements to train air brakes.
Sugar water pail/keeler from Allen Korns' farm
The following photograph shows a galvanized sugar water pail from the Allen Korns farm in Southampton Township, Somerset County, PA. It was used for gathering sugar water from maple trees for manufacturing maple syrup. The hole is for hanging the pail from the tap/spout that is installed in a drilled hole in the tree.
Maple syrup can
The following photo shows an old maple syrup can that was in the attic of Allen Lester Korns' Southampton Township farmhouse in 2008. This was the style of metal container that Allen used to can his maple syrup for sale.
Korns Sugar Bush advertisement
The following printed page is from the 1951 Maple Festival Program.
Maple Festival wooden nickels
The following photograph shows wooden nickels from the 1952 Maple Festival that are signed by the Maple King from that year, Allen Lester Korns.
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