The Goschgoschink Path, later known as Mead's Path, begins at the junction of the

Great Shamokin Path The Great Shamokin Path (also known as the "Shamokin Path") was a major Native American trail in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania that ran from the native village of Shamokin (modern-day Sunbury) along the left bank of the West Branch Susqueha ...

at The Big Spring near Luthersburg, Brady Township, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania. The path then proceeds to Thunderbird Spring, Sandy Valley Station, north of Reynoldsville, Jefferson County, thence through the Horme Settlement and slightly north of Emerickville to Brookville; north of

Clarion Clarion may refer to: Music * Clarion (instrument), a type of trumpet used in the Middle Ages * The Register (music), register of a clarinet that ranges from B4 to C6 * A Trumpet (organ stop), trumpet organ stop that usually plays an octave abov ...

, to West Hickory, Pennsylvania, in Forest County and the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ; ; ) is a tributary of the Ohio River that is located in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. It runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border, nor ...

. From here, travelers could journey to

Fort Le Boeuf Fort Le Bœuf (often referred to as Fort de la Rivière au Bœuf) was a fort established by the French during 1753 on a fork of French Creek (in the drainage area of the River Ohio), in present-day Waterford, in northwest Pennsylvania. The fort ...

and

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...

Origins

Goschgoschink is the name applied at the time of Moravian missionary

David Zeisberger David Zeisberger (April 11, 1721 – November 17, 1808) was a Moravian clergyman and missionary among the Native American tribes who resided in the Thirteen Colonies. He established communities of Munsee (Lenape) converts to Christianity in the ...

's arrival in 1760 to three refugee Indian towns. The location of the "Goschgoschink" Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission Marker, erected 1947, is nea
West Hickory
in Forest County, on US Route 62 about south of Main Street ( Pennsylvania Route 127). In his report to Governor

Robert Dinwiddie Robert Dinwiddie (1692 – 27 July 1770) was a Scottish colonial administrator who served as the lieutenant governor of Virginia from 1751 to 1758. Since the governors of Virginia remained in Great Britain, he served as the ''de facto'' head o ...

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

made reference to a beautiful rolling country, suitable for settlement, that he had found along the waters of French Creek. In 1788, brothers John and David Mead were ready to investigate Washington's story, and left

Fort Augusta Fort Augusta was a stronghold in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, in the upper Susquehanna Valley from the time of the French and Indian War to the close of the American Revolution. At the time, it was the largest British fort in Pennsylvan ...

, now

Sunbury, Pennsylvania Sunbury ( ) is a city and the county seat of Northumberland County in Pennsylvania, United States. Located in the Susquehanna Valley, Sunbury is positioned on the east bank of the Susquehanna River. Sunbury's roots stretch back to the early ...

, to explore the far west. They journeyed up mouth of Anderson Creek and turned at Coal Hill towards camp site and crossroads at The Big Spring. From there, they continued northwest on the Goschgoschink Path to the

Venango Path Venango Path was a Native American trail between the Forks of the Ohio (present day Pittsburgh) and Presque Isle, Pennsylvania, United States of America. The latter was located at Lake Erie. The trail, a portage between these important water rou ...

and the waters of French Creek. On May 12, 1788, the Mead brothers founded

Meadville, Pennsylvania Meadville is a city in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 13,050 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The first permanent settlement in Northwestern Pennsylvania, Meadville is withi ...

, at the confluence of

Cussewago Creek Cussewago Creek is a long tributary to French Creek that is classed as a 4th order stream on the EPA waters geoviewer site. Variant names According to the Geographic Names Information System, it has also been known historically as: *Cassewag ...

and French Creek.

References

{{Reflist Native American trails in the United States Historic trails and roads in Pennsylvania Native American history of Pennsylvania