Editing Fredonia, Pennsylvania (section)

== History ==
The first resident of the area that became Fredonia was Levi Arnold. Arnold build a grist mill there between 1837 and 1838 and was, over time, joined by several other businesses and residences.<ref name=":0">Appleseed, J. (1976). ''Fredonia 1837-1976.'' Program for Fredonia Centennial Celebration.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~pamercer/PA/PL/boroughs/fredonia/fredonia1888.htm|title=Fredonia, Mercer County, PA|website=www.rootsweb.ancestry.com|access-date=2017-07-04}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EB4VAAAAYAAJ&q=%22fredonia+institute%22&pg=PA146|title=A Twentieth Century History of Mercer County, Pennsylvania: A Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its People, and Its Principal Interests|last=White|first=John G.|date=1909|publisher=Lewis Publishing Company|language=en}}</ref>  William Simmons built the first store in the small village. Based upon the success of his business and the further gains that could be made after the construction of a proposed railroad, Simmons purchased the land that became the borough of Fredonia and had it surveyed and divided into lots.<ref name=":0" /> The land came was purchased from two “Donation tracts,”<ref name=":0" /> which were tracts of land given to Revolutionary War soldiers in an attempt to encourage them to continue to serve.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.phmc.state.pa.us/bah/dam/rg/di/r17DonationLandSeries/DonationLandMainInterface.htm|title=PA State Archives - RG-17 - Donation Land Images - Main Interface|website=www.phmc.state.pa.us|access-date=2017-07-04}}</ref> The name “Fredonia” came from Simmon’s “free” donation of the land for the town square and as a nod to the “Donation” tracts from which the land was purchased.<ref name=":0" /> The first post office was established in 1870 and Fredonia was officially incorporated in August 1876. Fredonia was serviced by [[Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad]] passenger trains between 1869 and 1955. The Fredonia Volunteer Fire Department was established in 1934 and has continued to host their “Old Home Week” festival each summer since 1935.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.sharonherald.com/community/old-home-week-keeps-vfd-running/article_8fe0022a-5b19-59db-856b-4f1870f6e8bb.html|title=Old Home Week keeps VFD running|last=Writer|first=Courtney L. SaylorHerald Staff|work=The Herald|access-date=2017-07-04|language=en}}</ref>

Fredonia was home to the Fredonia Institute, also known as a “[[Normal school|normal academy]]” or “select school.”<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> This higher education institution trained individuals who went on to become physicians, attorneys, teachers, ministers, and enter into other professions. It was incorporated in 1874 and boasted a library established by [[Andrew Carnegie]].<ref name=":0" />

During the [[Great Depression|Depression]], the borough applied for and received [[Works Progress Administration]] funds. The funds were used to pave streets and construct a water system to provide water service to the town that had previously relied on streams, individual wells, and cisterns. The WPA also provided workers who helped construct Fredonia-Delaware High School. This stone building was built in 1942 on Delaware Road and served first as a high school until 1960 when it began to be used as an elementary school within [[Reynolds School District (Pennsylvania)|Reynolds School District]].<ref name=":0" /> The elementary school was closed by the district in the mid-1990s, and the building was subsequently purchased and converted into a personal care and independent living facility.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://greystonecountryestates.com|title=Greystone Country Estates ~ Personal Care & Independent Living – Personal Care & Independent Living, Experienced, Quality Care|website=greystonecountryestates.com|language=en-US|access-date=2017-07-04}}</ref>

Since the 1940s, Fredonia has also been home to a diner created from a [[Tram|trolley car]]. The trolley car came from the Harmony Line of the interurban trolley line that ran from New Castle, PA to Pittsburgh, PA.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kr2SeKxjf-MC&q=fredonia%2C+pa+dinor&pg=RA2-PT168|title=Diners of Pennsylvania|last1=Butko|first1=Brian|last2=Patrick|first2=Kevin Joseph|date=1999|publisher=Stackpole Books|isbn=9780811728782|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> Ownership has changed several times, but the diner is still currently open at its original location.<ref name=":0" />

Fredonia is also home to Pennsylvania’s largest [[Swiss cheese (North America)|Swiss cheese]] manufacturer. Fairview Swiss Cheese, which opened in 1955, is operated by John Koller and Son Inc. The company produces over 7 million pounds of Swiss cheese each year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fairviewswisscheese.com/history/|title=Fairview Swiss Cheese History|website=www.fairviewswisscheese.com|language=en-US|access-date=2017-07-04}}</ref>