November 1999

Jefferson College Historical Society

Canonsburg, Pennsylvania


The Jefferson College Times is published by the Jefferson College Historical Society; 220 North Central Avenue; Canonsburg, PA 15317. The Jefferson College Historical Society is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to advancing knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of local history. Members receive the Times by mail at least four times yearly. Articles of local historical interest are earnestly solicited. Correspondence should be addressed to

Editor, Jefferson College Times

117 S. Central Avenue, Canonsburg, PA 15317

What follows is the most recent issue of the Jefferson College Times, modified for the electronic medium.

Revised 15 Nov 1999

News and Comments

Next Meeting:

The Jefferson College Historical Society will next meet on December 8, 1999, at 8 p.m. in the rooms of the society, North Central Avenue, Canonsburg, located on the lower floor of the auditorium building. Guests are welcome.

 

Program:

Joseph Katrencik will show pictures and tell about "Growing Up in Hendersonville." He researched his grandparents' life in the coal mining community, as well as their extended families, for a 1994 article in Pittsburgh History, a publication of the Western Pennsylvania Historical Society. Before he is through, Joe will conjure up the smells of coal dust, burning slate dumps, and holupbki in your imagination. It was a different time, gone, but really not so long ago.

  

Canonsburg's first real fire engine

The Daily Notes announced that Canonsburg finally had a real fire engine, an American LaFrance pumper on July 24, 1925. Unfortunately, photographs of the engine or the Ford that shared the fire house have not been found. Snapshots, anyone?

Daily Notes:

George S. Zemaitis has given a copy of the Daily Notes to the society. The date on it is April 18, 1894, and it identifies itself as the first issue of the daily edition of the newspaper. However, it is undersized. Instead of being 16 by 20 inches, with seven columns, the sheet is letter size (8½ by 11 inches) with three columns. The paper is the typical acidic wood pulp paper of the period, so it probably is not a later reproduction. Perhaps it was handed out as a sample, to encourage people to subscribe.

The 1971 holiday season:

For several years the Times has reprinted material from holiday seasons long past. This year it is not that long ago, but few of the businesses that advertised in the Notes in December 1971 still exist.

Reminiscence:

Lloyd Hampson, who now lives in North Carolina, was a professional photographer in Canonsburg as a young man. His profusely illustrated essay about growing up in Canonsburg appeared in the September 1999 Jefferson College Times. Also in the September issue was an article on the Roberts House, the old stone and brick house on North Central Avenue that is the last remaining building that had been owned by Jefferson College.

These articles, and others from this web site have been archived by Jean Suplick Matuson on her web site, Genealogy in Washington County Pennsylvania.

 

This year's seasonal picture was taken from the Canonsburg High School annex on a snowy day in the 1930s.

 For the last time in the 1900s,

    Happy Holidays.

    See you in 2000.

 

 
The election of officers was held at the March 1999 meeting. The society's president, vice-president, and one director had each served two terms and were replaced by Paul Katrencik, Kathleen Kirr, and Dave Westwater, respectively. Our efficient and unflappable secretary, Lois Ahwesh, graciously consented to reelection. Treasurer and Membership Chairman, Joseph Solobay, has another year to go in his term. Jim Herron joined the Board of Directors in the Immediate Past President slot.

 

Membership in the Jefferson College Historical Society is open to all. An individual active membership is $8; student membership, $5; contributing membership, $15; business or institutional membership, $25; sustaining membership, $50; and life membership, $150. Correspondence concerning membership should be directed to

Joseph A. Solobay, 514 Craighead Street, Canonsburg, PA 15317

 

 

The Jefferson College Historical Society is grateful to Jean Suplick Matuson for undertaking the archiving of past issues of the Jefferson College Times. They will be kept at:

http://www.chartiers.com/jeff/ .

This Internet web site, Genealogy in Washington County Pennsylvania, is a gold mine of historical material for the local historian and genealogist.