The Society's next regular program is

Wednesday September 24, 2008
Mt. Lebanon Public Library, 16 Castle Shannon Boulevard

TOPIC:
“Life in a Pennsylvania Coal Patch" 
presented by Pamela Nixon

PUBLIC PROGRAMS: Every year the Society presents five free programs annually at Mt. Lebanon Public Library. Topics have included Mt. Lebanon’s golf courses, schools, landscape, and architecture. We have also hosted talks about Pittsburgh’s North Side, the Whiskey Rebellion, Scott Township’s Old St. Luke’s Church, and the archaeology of Woodville Plantation. And we’ve welcomed reenactors George Westinghouse, a Huron Indian, and an 18th Century fur trader.

Click here for 2008 program dates

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HOME HISTORY PROGRAM

Ever wondered who built your home? Ever
wondered who designed the original plans? With the
value of the architecture and design of Mt. Lebanon
homes – most built in the early years of the last
century – being rediscovered and recognized, the
Historical Society of Mt. Lebanon is joining with the
Mt. Lebanon Public Library to assist residents in
finding out who built and designed their homes.

Contact Historical Society trustee and Cultural Resource
Survey volunteer Lori Humphreys at 412-561-6649 or lorih@naticom.net
to schedule an appointment.

THIS PROGRAM IS ON HIATUS FOR THE SUMMER

TOURS: Six years ago, the Society teamed up with the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, Mt. Lebanon Library, and the Mt. Lebanon Historic Preservation Board to create an annual Washington Road walking tour to familiarize Mt. Lebanon second-graders with architectural details and the history of their community. Pictured above, Louise Sturges of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks, leads a tour.  Click here for more tour pictures

We have also conducted two walking tours of St. Clair Cemetery on Scott Road, the oldest graveyard in the community with burials dating to 1805.

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PROJECTS AND EXHIBITS: The Society has presented three Then and Now exhibits in Mt. Lebanon Public Library’s gallery that coupled historic pictures with recent pictures taken in the same location. Portions of this exhibit are now on display at Sky Bank on Cochran Road. We hope to do another exhibit soon and to display pictures from old exhibits in the Mt. Lebanon Municipal Building. Every December since 1998, the society has filled Mt. Lebanon Public Library’s two display cases with holiday-related displays such as toy trains, Santas and handmade ornaments. And the Society’s oral history committee has interviewed several longtime residents about their memories of Mt. Lebanon. The tapes and transcripts will eventually be available to the public.

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HISTORY PRIZE: Since 2001, the Society has presented an annual History Book Prize to a Mt. Lebanon High School junior—selected by AP U.S. history teachers—who has demonstrated excellence in classroom work and an interest in pursuing history in college. Awardees are presented with a recently published history-themed hardback book, and a second copy of the book, inscribed with the winner’s name, is donated to the high school library. Huntington Bank on Cochran Road sponsors the prize. The 2007 winner was Maria Grinko. In 2006 the award went to Elizabeth Michelle.

This year, senior Christa Owens and junior Ryan Pollock were the recipients. The book was
"Great American Documents," which covers the years 1493—with a letter from Christopher Columbus to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain—to 2001—with the missing person’s board erected after 9/11. From milestone decisions of the Supreme Court to international treaties, this book presents the most important documents in our history and includes information about the impact and legacy of every document. 

Christa’s teachers said: “Christa demonstrated exceptional intellectual and personal growth, and dove into historical inquiry. Her research paper, on the media's role in wartime was the best paper produced last year. More importantly, she engaged in the entire five-month project with passion, contacting current scholars and film producers. She approached team-based projects with incredible creative energy, attended numerous voluntary evening sessions, and embraced the ideal of being a scholar-activist, applying concepts from our studies to the world around her, demonstrating the civic-minded essence of American history. Her willingness to use her skills with film as well as her perceptive mind has helped us move our study of the human experience beyond the classroom.”

Of Ryan, U.S. History teacher Pete DiNardo says that “Few students in my career have shown Ryan's depth and range of personal reading. Beyond his natural skills, he loves to engage in discussion and analysis of historical issues. He has proven himself to be both incredibly competent and classy in our in-class formal debates, and followed a topic of deep personal interest for his research paper about post-modernism and post-structuralism's impact on historical study. It has been a joy to witness his expanded concept of public service and impressive to see him wed his intellect and sense of republican duty. Equally important, he has been an inclusive member of team projects, fully involved himself in research and engagement in our simulations, and attended a number of voluntary evening sessions.”

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FIELD TRIPS: The society occasionally hosts field trips. In 2004 we went to the Oliver Miller Homestead in South Park and in 2006 we took a trip to the Bayernhoff Music Museum near Sharpsburg.