State Agency Begins Historical Photo Campaign

Restoration by Ford City residents of the historic PPG tunnel in Ford City have helped make it an iconic landmark locally, and can be submitted for statewide appreciation as part of their 2012-17 Preservation Plan through October.

Historical structures around Armstrong County, from the Armstrong County Courthouse to the PPG Tunnel in Ford City, are sought after for inclusion in the state’s preservation next plan.

The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) hopes to gain public input through photographs of historical places such as these for their next five-year plan.

Media Director Howard Pollman reiterated what commission representatives hope to receive.

“The PHMC is asking Pennsylvanians to take photographs of historic structures that they find important to them and send them to us, because we are using them as part of our Preservation Plan,” Pollman said.

Photo submissions can include archaeological excavations, historic or rural landscapes, downtown streetscapes, residential neighborhoods, and adaptive re-use of historic buildings and structures.

Entitled the “This is MY HISTORY” photo campaign, photos can include preserved structures or those that have been lost to neglect or are slated for demolition. Participants can email photos along with the name of the site and any comments they wish to share to papreservethis@yahoo.com. Photos will be reviewed and shared at http://www.flickr.com/photos/patrailsofhistory/collections/72157627179319880/.

Photos can be submitted anytime through Dec. 31, 2011; however, only submissions received by Oct. 31 will be considered for inclusion in the Commonwealth’s official preservation plan.

Pollman explained the commission’s overall plan.

“Every five years, the PHMC’s Bureau for Historic Preservation develops a comprehensive Preservation Plan for the Commonwealth. It’s something we do as part of our partnership with the Department of Interior,” Pollman said.

The Preservation Plan is required to fulfill several requirements, including meeting the preservation circumstances of the state, achieving broad-based public and professional involvement, taking into consideration issues affecting the broad spectrum of historic and cultural resources within the state, is based on the analyses of resource data and user needs assessed through a public survey last year, and encourages the consideration of historic preservation concerns within broader planning environments at federal, state and local levels.

“By having people send in photos of what they believe is important to them really makes the plan more personal - it’s more interesting for people to tell us what they find important rather than us doing that,” Pollman said.

The commission held public meetings throughout the state throughout the spring to gain public input in the process, the closest being held in Moon Township in May.

The preservation plan will be released in January 2012.

More information about the preservation planning process and the photo campaign is available at www.phmc.state.pa.us. The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission is the official history agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

by Jonathan Weaver

Civil War Roadshow Comes to Folk Festival

by David Croyle

A traveling exhibit housed in an expandable 53-foot tractor trailer is located in the southern end of Kittanning Riverfront Park as part of this year’s Fort Armstrong Folk Festival.

The Pennsylvania Civil War 150 Road Show tells the compelling personal story of Pennsylvanians during the Civil War, both on the home front and the battlefield.

Richard Essenwein, Senior Vice Commander for the Department of Pennsylvania Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, explained the significance of the exhibit.

“The state of Pennsylvania is commemorating the sesquicentennial (150-years) of the Civil War. The Road Show is an interactive exhibit. We’ve been working on this for two years to get it to Kittanning. This trailer will be touring the state for the next four years.”

Essenwein said there are many technology features to the exhibit.

“There’s a recording booth in there. You can go in and record your Civil War family history or any stories you have about the war. The video is then posted online for the rest of the world to see. There’s a scrapbooking station where you can type in your email address and get your photo taken. By the time you get home tonight, it will be in your inbox and will print out as a Civil War scrapbook format.”

Essenwein said he believed the exhibit was approved to come to Kittanning so quickly after its launch because of the persistence of his group.

“We applied for it and honestly, I think we overwhelmed them with so much information on what we do. We have artifacts from Armstrong County during the war. We were required two programs per day. We have expanded it to four programs per day and five on Saturday. I think it just amazed them, when they looked at it and saw how much we could do and how much we were willing to do.”

Essenwein said the exhibit will be available for touring today through Sunday from 1 till 9PM. In addition, there will be five programs per day in the gazebo near the exhibit.

The visit is sponsored by the Sons of Union Veterans of Civil War Camp 43, the Sara A. Crawford Auxiliary, in addition to cooperation with the Fort Armstrong Folk Festival and the Armstrong County Historical Society.