I'm pleased to announce my next book project! I am seeking stories, documents and photographs for a forthcoming book from The History Press that will share the histories of the lost and forgotten amusement parks that once brought communities together across Western Pennsylvania. Tentatively titled Lost Amusement Parks of Western Pennsylvania and slated for publication… Continue reading Seeking Stories & Photos for New Book on Western Pennsylvania’s Lost Amusement Parks!
Category: Pittsburgh History
Please help save McKeesport’s historic 1908 roundhouse!
UPDATES: Please join the "Save the McKeesport Roundhouse" open Facebook group here! Please sign our Change.org petition asking Mayor Mike Cherepko to help stop the demolition by clicking here! **************************************************************************************************** News broke last Saturday that the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County intends to demolish a historic building located near the Fifteenth Avenue Bridge in McKeesport, PA - a century-old… Continue reading Please help save McKeesport’s historic 1908 roundhouse!
Joint Issue of The Civil War in Pennsylvania Available Now!
The special joint Civil War issue of PA Heritage, Western PA, and PA Legacies is now available online at http://emag.heinzhistorycenter.org/ or you can purchase a print copy of the magazine here: http://ow.ly/mkTlW. Pennsylvania played a significant role in the Civil War and many soldiers from the state participated in battles. Over 1,100 (and counting!) of… Continue reading Joint Issue of The Civil War in Pennsylvania Available Now!
Following the Drumbeats of the Yankee Drummer
I love to spend time in the library doing traditional research and interviewing people for my history stories, but it's really cool to get to experience history as it's happening in person. That's why I had embark on a mini-quest to find the Yankee Drummer today. I previously wrote about the parallel journeys of two pairs… Continue reading Following the Drumbeats of the Yankee Drummer
Yankee Drummer Repeats Civil War Veteran’s 1913 Trek from Pittsburgh to Gettysburg
My story below comes at a poignant time, on the cusp of Memorial Day, a holiday originally established to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died during the American Civil War (1861-1865). I had the extreme pleasure of talking to a musician and military veteran from Greensburg, Pennsylvania who will soon embark on a… Continue reading Yankee Drummer Repeats Civil War Veteran’s 1913 Trek from Pittsburgh to Gettysburg
Birmingham: The Pittsburgh of the South
One of my new Twitter friends, the Birmingham Public Library, tweeted me a fun fact about the city of Birmingham, Alabama. A century ago, one of Birmingham's nicknames was "The Pittsburgh of the South." The nickname is fitting given the two cities' similar urban developments. Like "The Steel City," the city of Birmingham saw an… Continue reading Birmingham: The Pittsburgh of the South
Pittsburgh’s Gone Batty!
I have to admit, I'm not being very productive at work today. From across the street on the 25th floor, I've been preoccupied with watching the Gotham City police cars and SWAT trucks lined up along the East Busway and equipment and various crew members clustered around the old rail road tracks behind the post… Continue reading Pittsburgh’s Gone Batty!
Pittsburgh: City of Bridges
Let's Learn From The Past: City of Bridges -Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 24, 2011 This is a neat little article that was published by the staff at the Senator John Heinz History Center, located in Pittsburgh's Strip District. Some facts mentioned in the article: Pittsburgh has 446 bridges (more than any other city in the WORLD);… Continue reading Pittsburgh: City of Bridges
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