The attached map fragment is from the 1876 Beers map of Southampton Township, Somerset County, PA. If I understand my elders correctly, the area that is known locally as the "Board Yard" is labeled. My Uncle Melvin, who lives near by, believes that this is where the planks were stored for the Plank Road. Mike McKenzie knows an individual who lived not too far above Grandview Drive who referred to John Dom's curve as the "Board Pile" instead of the "Board Yard"; that individual had also heard that the boards from the plank road were stored there.
The road shown in blue and labeled "Private Road" was built as a private road by Leroy Troutman's father and Allen Lester Korns, according to my Uncle Melvin. This road was built sometime after Melvin was married. It was built because it was difficult to get up the Felty Hill road to what is now known as Grandview Drive. It was maintained as a private road for a number of years. Later on, it was maintained by the Township, and (after a court battle) became a public road. This 1876 map shows the Felty Hill road crossing over what is now Grandview drive and connecting with the Palo Alto road; Melvin told me in 2009 that he doesn't remember the Felty Hill road crossing over what is now Grandview drive and connecting with the Palo Alto road. Although it isn't shown on this map fragment, Melvin also doesn't remember the old angled road that angled southwest from the Palo Alto road east of Long Lane, and connected with the Plank Road. I mention these things because knowing Melvin's age, they help us to date the time period when the aforementioned roads were in service.
The local road names "Grandview Drive" and "Walnut Lane" were suggested by my Aunt Dolores and accepted as the names for the roads after the review of others. These names were suggested to avoid simply naming the roads after the people that lived along them. The name "Grandview Drive" was the result of that road having farm by the name of Grandview along it. The name "Walnut Lane" was the result of Walnut trees being along what is now "Walnut Lane". If I remember correctly, the roads had to be named when the 911 emergency phone system was implemented.
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