Commonwealth Speakers:Our History, Our Communities
The Pennsylvania German Groundhog lodges are a phenomenon unique to Pennsylvania. Commonwealth Speaker William Donner discusses their role in the state's cultural history.
"No English Spoken Here" - The Pennsylvania German Groundhog Lodges
Since 1934, groups of Pennsylvania Germans have held annual meetings to celebrate their culture and heritage while paying homage to the weather-predicting abilities of the groundhog. At these meetings humor, songs, plays and speeches are offered, all in the Pennsylvania German language - speakers are even fined for each word of English that they use! Although less well-known than the famous Punxsutawney Phil, there are now seventeen Pennsylvania German groundhog lodges that hold annual meetings. William Donner will give an overview of the cultural and historical background of the Pennsylvania Germans and explain how the lodges are an important part of preserving this ethnic identity today. Slide projector and screen preferred.
William W. Donner, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Kutztown University, Kutztown
Mining for Truth: Coal Culture
Coal communities - both in Pennsylvania and abroad - are the setting for many works of documentary and fine art, including novels, stories, paintings, photographs and songs. Some of these works have had a long and prosperous history. Others recently have been re-discovered by folk historians and contemporary artists exploring coal culture. Christine Goldbeck discusses the art of mining and art about mining, as audiences look at and listen to artists whose work preserves the industrial and cultural history of coal.
Christine Goldbeck, Author and Editor of The Mine Country, Shenandoah
Discovering History in Your Town
Take a stroll through your town and learn how to see its historical development in the houses and stores that line its streets. Almost every building offers visual clues about its past, and assembling these pieces of the puzzle can help residents and visitors start to visualize how the community developed over time. Bryan Van Sweden will work with your organization to plan a tour route and offer a demonstration in "reading" buildings by pointing out these visual clues. Alternatively, this presentation can be offered as an armchair tour through digital photographs assembled prior to the program. Requirements: For the armchair tour, LCD projector and screen.
Bryan Van Sweden, Bureau for Historic Preservation, Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Harrisburg
The Rowhouse: A Home for America's Middle Class
The most popular architectural form in Pennsylvania may be the rowhouse, and its introduction in the 18th Century and its proliferation in the 19th and 20th Centuries established a standard for middle class housing. The rowhouse rose to prominence amidst a diverse architectural landscape where German house forms, Quaker architectural expressions and new ideas about class and the configuration of urban space all vied for attention. Thomas Ryan explains how the rowhouse form came to be preferred by the middle class for their housing stock, and how they shaped the residential neighborhoods to come. Requirements: LCD projector.
Thomas R. Ryan, Ph.D., Executive Director, Lancaster County Historical Society, Lancaster
Connie Mack and the Philadelphia Athletics
When the Philadelphia Athletics left Philadelphia in 1954, many loyal fans were heartbroken. Many still remembered the 1929 A's, one of the best teams in baseball history, and others, such as Richard Rosen, who had developed a more recent emotional tie with the A's, mourned their departure. This presentation offers an history of the A's in Philadelphia, highlighting the remarkable teams of 1910-1914 with "Homerun" Baker, "Chief" Bender and Eddie Collins, and those of 1929-1931 that included Foxx, Cochrane, Simmons, and "Lefty" Grove. And of course, the legendary Connie Mack's influence on the sport will be discussed as well. Requirements: Overhead projector, screen, and display table.
Richard L. Rosen, Ph.D., University Ombudsman and Associate Professor of History, Drexel University, Philadelphia
Centralia: The Other Fire
In 1962, a mine fire was discovered burning close to the Borough of Centralia in Columbia County. Since then, the fire has spread, and a community of one thousand people has dwindled to twelve. Rather than an upsurge of helping behavior, social norms broke down - Centralians responded to their disaster with fist fights, tire slashings, telephone threats and a fire bombing. And what took place bears a remarkable resemblance to the town's response to a surface fire in 1908. Sociologist Stephen Couch will explore the complicated relationships between the town and the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, and investigate how a town's history shapes its future. Requirements: Screen.
Stephen R. Couch, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology, Penn State University - Schuylkill
The Johnstown Flood of 1889
In this hands-on program, participants are taken back in time to the days of the Johnstown Flood. Through music, dress and story, audiences will learn about the workers caught in the terrible flood, and Gregory Zaborowski will sing of the Pennsylvanians who suffered and died at Johnstown.
Gregory J. Zaborowski, Folk Musician, Johnstown
Duffy's Cut
The death by cholera - and possibly violence - of an entire Irish immigrant work gang constructing the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad (P&C) offers insight into early 19th Century attitudes about industry, immigration and disease in Pennsylvania. A group of fifty-seven Irish immigrants from Donegal, Tyrone and Derry arrived in Philadelphia in late June, 1832, and were brought to Chester County by a fellow Irishman who provided labor to P&C. William Watson will talk about what the death of the men meant to the P&C, why their deaths were covered up, and how the local community and the railroad responded to the cholera epidemic. Requirements: Screen and display table. LCD projector and microphone preferred.
William E. Watson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of History, Immaculata University, Springfield
The Changing Face of American Sports: 1945 to the Present
The recent history of American sport is one of increasing inclusion. Paul Rosier examines the expansion of the idea of American sport to include both women and men, and people of all races. In particular, participants will learn about the experiences of Jackie Robinson, Wilma Rudolph, Muhammad Ali and other African American athletes, as well as those of Billie Jean King and college women who have struggled for gender equity through Title IX legislation. TV/VCR and LCD projector preferred.
Paul C. Rosier, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of History, Villanova University, Villanova
The Pennsylvania German Traditional Farm
The form of the Pennsylvania German farm is unique, from the distinctive architectural forms of many houses, barns and outbuildings to how these are arranged on the farmland itself. Irwin Richman will discuss the bank barns, two-front-door farmhouses, root cellars, spring houses and four-square gardens that are particular to Pennsylvania German farm life. Requirements: Slide projector and screen. Remote control for slide projector preferred.
Irwin Richman, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Pennsylvania State University - Harrisburg, Middletown
Valley of Work: Scenes of Industry
Barbara Jones takes a look at the Big Steel era in Pittsburgh and the surrounding region through the eyes of the artists who witnessed the dramatic power and growth of that city between 1850 and the 1950s, the words of the workers who labored in the mills and the music that serves as a reminder of that significant industrial period of western Pennsylvania history. Requirements: Screen and CD/cassette player.
Barbara L. Jones, Curator, Westmoreland Museum of American Art, Greensburg