Brick rowhomes along a small-town Pennsylvania street

McSherrystown, PA

The Best Mold Removal and Cleanup in McSherrystown

Mold Detection and Damage Cleanup in the Conewago Valley

Patrick McSherry bought 300 acres in 1763, cut them into five-acre lots, and the first deed was recorded on June 27, 1765. Today the borough fits into half a square mile and is completely surrounded by Conewago Township. Close-set houses, old basements, and neighbors on every side: water problems here tend to travel.

Call (267) 828-9088 Request an inspection

Half a Square Mile, Surrounded

McSherrystown is one of the smallest boroughs in Adams County. It covers 0.51 square miles at about 587 feet in elevation, and Conewago Township wraps all the way around it. Patrick McSherry bought a 300-acre tract from the Digges family in 1763 and divided it into five-acre lots. The first deed we know of is from June 27, 1765, and the town was incorporated in 1882. It’s called the fourth oldest town in Adams County.

Conewago Township was settled in 1731 and incorporated in 1801, and it borders Hanover in York County. Conewago Chapel, the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, is in the township. The parish dates to 1740 and is described as the oldest Catholic church west of the Susquehanna River. The Conewago Valley School District, which serves both the borough and the township, covers about 70 square miles.

For mold, the size of the place is what matters. Lots are small, houses are close together, and many are brick or stone with basements. Water from one property ends up at the next, and a gutter that dumps at a shared lot line keeps one foundation wet all year.

What We Check in McSherrystown Homes

Older blocks in the borough. Moisture readings on foundation walls, the shared wall if the house is attached, downspouts and where they end, the sump if there is one, and the attic, where old insulation jobs often blocked the ventilation.

Homes on the township side. Sump pump discharge, supply lines behind appliances, water heater pans, bath fan ducts traced to their actual ends, and HVAC condensate drains.

Vacant and estate houses. A house shut up through a humid stretch with the HVAC off is a common call. We check every level, because the basement and attic read very differently.

Everywhere. Relative humidity in the basement, main floor, and attic, read separately. It should stay between 30 and 50 percent.

How the Job Goes

Once the moisture source is found, every job follows the same steps: containment, negative air with HEPA filtration, remove what’s grown on, HEPA clean and treat the framing, dry to standard, verify, then patch and paint. The mold removal page lays out each step, and the basement mold removal page covers the stone and block cellar version.

If water is on the floor right now, water damage and structural drying comes first, since wet drywall and subfloor can start growing mold in 24 to 48 hours. For a smell you can’t trace, start with mold inspection and testing. For a house you’re buying, our guide on mold found during a home inspection explains what to ask for. The Gettysburg page covers the company, and the cost page has planning ranges.

Streets and Corners We Know in McSherrystown

McSherrystown sits on the east end of Adams County, with Hanover just across the county line in York County. Postal ZIP code 17344 covers the borough, and some addresses around it carry a Hanover mailing address.

The borough. About 3,077 people live here, up from 2,691 in 2000. F.X. Smith & Sons has made cigars here since 1863, though the company was sold in 2018. The borough was also the headquarters of Boyds Bears, which has since closed.

Conewago Township. The township had 7,869 residents in the 2020 census, up from 5,709 in 2000. It includes the community of Midway and is a little over 10 square miles.

Schools, Parks, and Landmarks Around McSherrystown

Schools. Delone Catholic High School is in McSherrystown. The public schools belong to the Conewago Valley School District, which formed under that name on July 1, 1971, when the borough and Conewago Township merged into one district. The Conewago Valley Intermediate School opened in fall 2005.

Church. Conewago Chapel, the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, is in Conewago Township and traces its parish to 1740.

Hospital. WellSpan Gettysburg Hospital is at 147 Gettys Street in Gettysburg.

Neighborhoods and Areas Around McSherrystown

The original borough blocks laid out from the 1765 lots
Streets near the Delone Catholic campus
Homes in Conewago Township around the borough
The community of Midway
The edge toward Hanover

Things to Do in McSherrystown

Conewago Chapel

The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in Conewago Township, tied to a parish founded in 1740.

F.X. Smith & Sons

A cigar maker that has operated in McSherrystown since 1863.

Top Sites in McSherrystown

McSherrystown Borough

The fourth oldest town in Adams County, laid out from Patrick McSherry’s 1763 purchase.

Conewago Valley Region

The surrounding valley, with a settlement history that goes back to 1731 in Conewago Township.

Questions we hear a lot

I'm in McSherrystown but my mailing address says Hanover. Do you still come out?

Yes. McSherrystown, Conewago Township, and Hanover run into each other, and some addresses near the line carry a Hanover mailing address. We work on both sides of the county line. Tell us the street when you call. Pennsylvania doesn't license mold work in either county, and the job is the same.

Our block is all close-set houses. Can mold in one house spread to the next?

Mold spores don't respect property lines, but the real risk is water. A leak or flooded basement in one house can wet a shared wall or the soil against the next foundation. When we inspect an attached or close-set house, we check the shared wall and the grading on that side, since the cause is sometimes next door. We can write up what we find so the neighbor has it in hand.

A relative's house sat empty after an estate sale and now smells. What happened?

Most likely the HVAC was off through a humid stretch and the basement went past 60 percent humidity for weeks. Empty houses are one of the more common calls we get. An inspection tells you whether it's surface growth that a cleaning handles or growth in the framing that needs full remediation, and the written report helps with a sale or an insurance claim.

Get it handled

Call Gettysburg PA Mold Remediation Pros

(267) 828-9088 Request an inspection

Started in Gettysburg in 2012
IICRC AMRT and WRT certified
1-year warranty on every job
Chuck is on the job, not just the phone