While Floating Feathers and Euphoria Heights are new brewpubs to the area, booze isn’t.

And, you can’t mention breweries without the F. C. Lucas Brewery (c1853) on Castanea’s Nittany Road. The Lucas home still stands.

Drive up Nittany Road and you’ll “dead end” at the Boyd Keller Reservoir (now dry).

Castanea, Lockport, Loganton and Lock Haven were full of “dive bars.” Today, the quota of one license per 3,000 residents might suggest that Clinton County has many more licenses than the government wants to grant.

My hometown of Castanea, full of Indian history, is cut down the middle by Harvey’s Gap, originating from a cut in the Bald Eagle Mountains and last ridge of the Appalachian mountains.

The “first reservoir” was in Boyd Keller’s back yard. Keller was the keeper and his daughter, Kate, along with husband, Ralph Hamberger, collected township taxes for many years.

Keller had a son, Karl, the famous keyboard artist in South Florida. He and his wife performed nightly atop the Pier 66 rotating club in Fort Lauderdale. We often took guests to this great venue and enjoyed Karl’s shows. It rotates once every 66 minutes with breathtaking views of city lights and beaches.

The “second reservoir” is further up the cut and is still in operation today. Google Earth this area and you’ll see this amazing body of water, accessible with a short hike.

But be alert because bear drink at the reservoir. I hiked it with my young grandson but left quickly after realizing he was packing a Nerf gun with Styrofoam bullets!

Phillip Fable began brewing Castanea Beer in 1863 in the 400 block of East Church Street in Lock Haven, and opened the Castanea brewery for access to the reservoir’s fresh, cold water, caves and ice.

The railroads, mining, lumber and brick industries generated a demand for a lot of alcohol.

According to historian Dochter, by 1868, Fable built a brewery with a cave, mash boiling tub, beer cooler, shops and stables in Castanea.

The township was drunk with growth and founders Brown and Keller purchased lots in 1870 to lay out the town. By this time, Castanea Township had separated from Dunnstable Township.

Along came George Luther and Ferdinand Lucas who purchased the old Fable Brewery in 1883. Lucas, a German immigrant, was a seasoned brew master.

Today you can view the Lucas serving tray and beer bottles inside The Historic Market House on the corner of Grove and East Church Street.

Quite the entrepreneur, Lucas snatched-up The Old Corner Bar and St. Cloud Hotel, located down along the railroad tracks in Lock Haven’s “barberry coast.”

Henderson Street was once a thriving commercial district.

Next Lucas purchased St. Charles, the National Hotel (recently demolished), Mill Hall Hotels, the Lucas House and a few others.

Lucas installed Clinton County’s first mechanical ice machine in 1906. The Lucas Brewery employed about nine people with an average weekly wage of $6. It was tough work. The brewery produced about 1,500 barrels per year, however, some believe authorization tax stamps were “reused” and perhaps the production was much greater.

“Castanea Beer” was also sold in cans and the brewers touted that it had nutritional value and effective digestive agents. So, the more beer you drank, the healthier you became!

If you climb over the gap in the two Castanea mountains, you’ll find Salona’s East End. The Brewery made wagon trails to carry Salona-grown grain to make the beer.

After Prohibition, the Lucas Brewery came to an end and Mr. Lucas lived into the fifties. Growing up in Castanea, we knew the family.

In 2020, Castanea local contractor Jimmy “Hank” Henry, accused on criminal charges related to the sexual assault of a child, bought the brewery and tore it down.

Last year, Henry fatally shot himself in West Virginia.

While Castanea Beer came to an end in 1920, booze continued to flow in this area. Brewed in Lockport, the German Club Pilsner Beer brand became wildly popular. Before hundreds of homes were razed, Lockport was a beautiful little village across the old Toll House and Jay Street covered bridge. You’ll find an image of that bridge inside Penny Lane and the Historic Market House.

The Temperance Movement, created by an 18th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, began the Prohibition Period of 1920 through 1933.

Led by Protestant prohibitionists who attempted to end the trade in alcoholic drinks to heal what they perceived as an ill society beset by alcohol-related problems, turned beer parlors into soda fountains.

In that same decade, local legend “Prince” Farrington was a “moonshiner” who operated an illicit liquor business during the first half of the 20th century. Farrington’s family is still around the area and his house rests atop an island across from Jersey Shore and his mansion stands in Jersey Shore!

Headlines Read: “Farrington Captured,” “The Prince and 11 Others Charged with Conspiracy” and “Prince Farrington Released from Prison.”

While Farrington didn’t drive the car himself, a 1929 Oldsmobile was spotted in a Philadelphia barn by Stephen Poorman. This year he purchased the vintage car and retained Lock Haven’s Larry Duck for a complete restoration. During this 7-month process, the old gangster markings and bullet holes were removed. You can see the car today in the parking lot of Fox’s Restaurant.

Farrington, known as “America’s Most Notorious Bootlegger,” was born in North Carolina in 1890. “Prince” was not a nickname, but his actual name.

He was sick at birth and almost died. His parents called kindly old Dr. Prince who advised them to “stick the kid behind the furnace and let him warm up!” The baby lived and his parents named him after Dr. Prince David. The restored vehicle was driven by mobsters and there’s a dead gangster in the back seat today!

At times, criminals were shot at by police. But the old cars were equipped with machine guns just in case they were pulled over by the Feds.

For more history surrounding the Prince, stop at The Heisey Museum, Ross Library, Market House or pick up one of the books on Amazon.

Stephen Poorman is a longtime area resident and business consultant.