WILKES-BARRE 



62S5 



WILKINSBURG 



the River Common, and across the river, which 

 is spanned by several bridges, is a large natu- 

 ral park with a bathhouse and public bathing 

 beach. Harvey's Lake and Sans Souci Park 

 are resorts near the city. Noteworthy public 

 structures include a Federal building, erected 

 in 1905 at a cost of about $125,000; a court- 

 house which cost $2,000,000; Irem Temple, an 

 interesting example of Moorish architecture; a 

 city hall, armory, Y. M. C. A. and Y. W. C. A. 

 buildings; Osterhout Free Library, a $500,000 

 high school and several churches. The Mu- 

 seum of the Wyoming Historical and Geo- 

 logical Society contains many interesting his- 

 torical relics. Among these is a painting of 

 Frances Slocum, who, as a child, was kidnaped 

 by the Indians and later became the wife of 

 an Indian chief. The city has the Harry Hill- 

 man Academy, Saint Ann's Academy and Wyo- 

 ming Seminary. There are several large hos- 

 pitals, homes for friendless women and children 

 and similar institutions. 



Industries. Luzerne County is one of the 

 most productive coal regions in the United 

 <s; the value of its coal output is greater 

 than that of the gold production of the United 

 States, including Alaska. Aided by abundant 

 cheap fuel, manufacturing has developed to im- 

 portant proportions. In the city are some of 

 the largest lace and silk mills in the United 

 States. Among other extensive factory prod- 

 ucts are locomotives, engines, boilers, cement 

 and sugar mill machinery, wire rope and insu- 

 lated wire, mining machinery and adding ma- 

 chines. 



History. Wilkes-Barre was founded in 1769 

 by emigrants from the colony of Connecticut. 

 The mother colony claimed this territory, but 

 the claim was disputed by the Pennsylvanians, 

 or Pennamites, as they were called, before and 

 for several years after the War of Independ- 

 ence. The Decree of Trenton in 1782 gave 

 Pennsylvania jurisdiction over the territory, 

 and the settlers were confirmed in their titles 

 to the land. Many monuments throughout 

 region mark the places of historic events. 

 In the Public Square, in the heart of the city, 

 is a monument to John Wilkcs and Colonel 

 Isaac Barre, two member* of the English Par- 

 h: in tent who had sympathised with the colo- 

 nies prior to the War of Independence. The 

 monument marks the site of the old fort which 

 gave refuge to women and children at the time 

 of the great Wyoming Massacre, during tin 

 War of Independence. The site of the mas- 

 sacre is marked by the Wyoming Monument. 



Queen Esther's Rock, the home of Frances 

 Slocum, the Fell House and old forts are his- 

 torically interesting. The city was chartered in 

 1871. It adopted the commission form of gov- 

 ernment in 1913. R.WJ. 



WILKIE, ivil'ki, a town in the central-west- 

 era part of Saskatchewan. It is a divisional 

 point on the Canadian Pacifies line between 

 Winnipeg and Edmonton, and is also the termi- 

 nus of several short branches. By rail Wilkie 

 is 579 miles northwest of Winnipeg, 269 miles 

 southeast of Edmonton and 100 miles west of 

 Saskatoon. Branches from Wilkie run to I 

 robert, forty-four miles southwest; to Kelfield, 

 thirty-five miles southeast; and to Cut knife. 

 twenty-nine miles north. Wilkie was found. ,1 

 in 1908, and was named for Daniel Robert Wil- 

 kie (bora 1846), president of the Imperial 

 Bank. It was incorporated as a town on No- 

 vember 1, 1910. Population in 1911, 537; in 

 1916, about 1,200. 



Wilkie is a large shipper of wheat,, its ele- 

 vators having a capacity of nearly a quarter of 

 a million bushels. There is a flour mill and 

 several lumberyards. The exhibition grounds, 

 government immigration hall and Royal 

 Northwest Mounted Police barracks are fea- 

 tures worthy of special mention. 



WILKIE, SIR DAVID (1785-1841), a painter 

 who is noted chiefly for his sympathetic and 

 charming pictures of Scottish life and scenes. 

 He was bora in Cults, Fifeshire, and received 

 his art training in Edinburgh and in the Royal 

 Academy schools, London. Wilkie 's first im- 

 portant picture Village Politicians was ex- 

 hibited in 1806. This was followed by Blind 

 Fiddler, Village Festival, The Bagpiper, Rent 

 Day and others, all characterised by humor, 

 simplicity and a kindly realism. In 1811 he 

 was elected a member of the Royal Academy, 

 in 1830 was appointed court painter and six 

 years later was knighted. In his later years he 

 attempted historical pictures and portraits, but 

 was less successful than in his particular field 

 of portraying everyday life. He died while on 

 a trip abroad, and was buried at sea. 



WILKINS, MARY ELEANOR. See FREEMAN, 

 M.MM- I-:. WILKINS. 



WIL'KINSBURG, PA., a residential borough 

 of Pittsburgh, situated five miles east of the 

 city in Allegheny County, in the southwestern 

 part of the state, and on the Pennsylvania 

 Railroad. Electric lines operate to Pittsburgh 

 and to other cities. Wilkinsburg is distinctly 

 a residential borough, the majority of its peo- 

 ple being employed in Pittsburgh. The chief 



