Hi there.

I live in the same plan as you -- Ewings Mill.

While I don't know all of the history of our neighborhood, I do know that the area now known as Amesbury Village was once a farm. The area that Amesbury sits on used to be somewhat hilly. The neighborhood used to have what was called the Ewings Mill Civic Association. Easter, Christmas, New Year's, etc., parties were held there. I think people probably held other celebratory events there as well. I have some photos of me and "Santa" (a few years later I realized that Santa was my neighbor).

When you drive to Amesbury, where the first building is on the left is where the civic building used to stand.

And there used to be some sort of military site in the back -- when we moved in, we learned that it was called the "Nike site." The clear space you are referring to is remnants of the military site.

If you go to the very back of the plan and turn right, you may see a row of small trailer-type homes. Military families lived in them. At the back of the road is a pond (not sure if it is still there). Several years ago, two boys drowned in that pond. I was probably in elementary school and they were in middle school. This is probably the early to mid-90s.

When you're driving into the plan on Ewings Mill Road, right before the main flat part of Ewings Mill (after you come up the hill where the speed traps are), you can see clear over to the back of some homes in Hunters Run. That clearing used to be the road to a pool area. The pool was gone long before we even moved in. There may be a sign post that still exists near that clearing.

Hunters Run used to be a golf course.

That's really all I know about Ewings Mill. I'm not sure how it got its name. That would be an interesting find.

I hope this helps, though.

Over 100 years ago, there was an important state senator named Ewing...Moon encompassed a much larger area at that time [originally, when founded in 1788 Moon went from Chartier Creek in McKees Rocks, all the way to the Shippingport area in what is now in Beaver County].
Anyway, that is why their are so many places named Ewing in the area.

I know there used to be a pool on Ewings Mill. Right where you come up the hill heading into the plan and there's that place where you can park on your right. I think it was called Skyline Pool or Skylark Pool. Something like that.

That was many years ago though. It was gone before I was born, and I'm 28.

I have so many memories of the "Duck Pond". It was a shame that Shawn and Jeff drowned. They we're pretty good friends of mine. And all the holiday parties at the Civic Center.

The name of the pool was Skylane and was located where the previous reply said it was. We lived at the very end of Burch Drive and walked and/or rode our bikes to the pool everyday in the summers. What a blast! Many great memories there. Also at the civic building. Had my Holy Communion and graduation party there. And partied there for everybody elses as well. The parents of the "old" neighborhood were great friends and "partiers". We had Annual Pig Roasts, softball games, carnivals, Christmas parties, Polka parties, and any other reason to get together and socialize. It's definitely different today. No community interaction! It's really sad. My dad still lives there and we visit a few times a year. What a great place to grow up! Even the woods were great treks to explore. We'd pack a lunch and hike down to the water treatment plant near forest grove road and back. The "Bear Caves" and "Bat Caves" were the best. We also ice skated on the pond every winter and explored the underground military buildings after they closed the "Nike site". It sure has changed since then.

I remember growing up on Ewings Mill Road in the "old days" and swimming at Skylane Pool and riding my bike to the pool and only going home to eat lunch and go right back to swim. I also remember the Nike Site and everyone saying that there were snakes in the underground buildings, but we never saw any, of course it was pitch dark down there!! I remember catching frogs at Trellos Pond and skating on it in the winter time!! I also remember parties at the Civic Center. I remember sled riding on the golf course behind Skylane. I do not visit there often because my sisters told me how much it has changed and I want to remember it the way it was when I was young, it was a fun place to grow up! Now I am 42 and I live in Georgia and I have driven my children past the old house on Ewings Mill Road but I did not go back to where the Civic Center once stood, so that I can still remember the long treks through the woods that seemed to go on forever.

I too grew up in Ewing Mills Heights in the 60's and 70's. We lived on Coralwood Drive.

We belonged to the local pool too. I am from a big family, so that was the highlight of our summer. There wasn't much to do in Moon Township back in the 70's. We had Kmart, MacDonalds, Shop'n Save and a few additional establishments, but they were all on the opposite end of the Township. The pool was our summer entertainment.

I don't recall parties at the Community center, but perhaps we lived far enough from the center that we weren't part of that community. Also, my parents were busy with 8 children, so they didn't have time to "party".

I do remember going to the community center for a summer crafts camp and Brownies.

There was farm at the end of Birch Drive. Was it called McGinnis Farm? We used to buy corn there in the summer. It was delicious! We used to ride our bikes there to pick up the corn and bring it home.

Our home backed up against woods. We used to hike from our home over to McCormick school to play. We would stop at Trello's farm to look for frogs and black snakes. It's funny how safe we felt roaming through the woods without adults. I wouldn't let my children do that today, at least not at the same age we were when we did it.

We too would sled on the golf course that is now a Ryan home community. I don't recall the name of the golf course but I think the people who owned the pool also owned the golf course.

I moved back to Moon about 14 years ago. I rarely visit Ewing Mill Heights because my parents moved from that community over 20 years ago.

Hello. There were some other interesting things down the road, and I thought I’d share a little local history with you.

I lived in the Ewings Mill neighborhood from 1998-2005. The pool and civic club were long gone, although I was aware of their former existence. During my time I spent hours with my son exploring the Nike site, the nearby woods and trails, and the farmland that preceded Amesbury village. There are many broad trails you can hike or bike in this area. This neighborhood has an interesting history derived from early 19th century industry and mid 20th century military needs.

At the end of Ewings Mill Rd, veering to the right, is aptly named Nike Road. This road narrows to a trail that leads to a former military site which was built during the cold war. The main gate and fencing still can be seen in various stages of deterioration. As part of the national defense program, many cities in the US were designated potential targets for long range Soviet bomber attacks. The military built compounds circumventing those cities. Within those compounds were the first guided surface-to-air missile known as the "Nike" (after the Greek goddess of victory).

Pittsburgh was designated a target in 1952, and 12 Nike sites were built around southwestern PA. The one in the Ewings Mill neighborhood was built in the mid-late 1950s to protect local industry and the recently constructed airport. Many of the homes in the neighborhood were occupied by military personnel. There was another nearby site off Forest Grove Rd in Robinson Twp, a current senior citizen center. These two sites complimented one another militarily, and were separated by the steep slopes leading down to Montour Run. They were the last of the local Nike sites to be shut down in 1974.

The name of the road goes back a little further. In 1814, William Ewing built a gristmill at the base of present day Hassam Road near the confluence of Meeks Run and Montour Run. It was technically located in Robinson Twp, on the opposite side of Montour Run. Present day Beaver Grade Road, known as the Beaver Indian Trail at the time, was one of the few roads in Moon Twp. Because of the need for the locals to travel to this mill, a trail developed from Beaver Grade to “Ewing’s Mill”. In 1822 the trail became recognized as Ewings Mill Road by the Township and the County. This road once continued beyond where it currently ends in your neighborhood, traveling down the hill past the Nike site to Montour Run. It also continued up the other hillside into Robinson. A Ewings Mill Road still exists in Robinson Twp off Forest Grove Rd. Both roads mysteriously end, but at one time were connected.