On the way to the Appalachian Studies Association conference, Larry Blalock and I took a side trip to the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum in Matewan, WV. They allowed us to take video of their display in the Museum which can be seen above. Striking minors endured violence by the mining companies for their effortsContinue reading “The West Virginia Mine Wars Museum”
Tag Archives: History
The Martyrdom of Marat and Charlie Kirk
The whirlwind surrounding the death of conservative Charlie Kirk has made me think of historical parallels to this event. Jean Paul Marat was a firebrand journalist in the French Revolution. The martyrdom of Marat and Charlie Kirk have some eerie parallels, even though some might see them on opposite sides of the political fence. MaratContinue reading “The Martyrdom of Marat and Charlie Kirk”
Bardstock and the Cambria Arts and Heritage Festival
I recently attended 2 events locally and took some footage: Bardstock on August 23 and the Cambria Arts and Heritage Festival on September 13 and 14. Bardstock was a hastily organized literary festival by the group Poeming through the Dark, Flood City Fables, and Craftwork Studios. The video above is the footage I took atContinue reading “Bardstock and the Cambria Arts and Heritage Festival”
Reminiscing about JFK’s Visit to Johnstown in 1960
Local writer Carl Schultz has written an article about the visit JFK made to Johnstown in 1960 through a child’s eyes. When I was a little kid, I once ran out into traffic in front of John F. Kennedy’s limousine. In October of 1960, Senator JFK made a campaign visit to Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The juniorContinue reading “Reminiscing about JFK’s Visit to Johnstown in 1960”
Interview on Storytelling with Statistics
Last Monday I was interviewed by Kevin Farkas of Appalachian Beaver County. The interview was about storytelling with statistics. He is compiling an oral history of Beaver County. He saw my post on the poorest school districts in the Alleghenies and wanted some pointers. The video above shows the first half of the interview. The secondContinue reading “Interview on Storytelling with Statistics”
A Panel Commemorated the Rosedale Incident
This week in Johnstown, a panel commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Rosedale incident at the Johnstown Area Heritage Association. For those of you who do not know, during World War I there was a large influx of African Americans and other ethnic groups to work in the steel mills. In 1923, in the RosedaleContinue reading “A Panel Commemorated the Rosedale Incident”
A Woke Puppeteer in Western PA Coalfields
This is the second post by Nick Brisini. After doing research on the history of puppeteering, I realized that this noble art form seemed to be dying out in the modern world. Historically speaking, puppet shows were one of the main forms of entertainment for children and even adults. Puppeteers were esteemed, especially a wokeContinue reading “A Woke Puppeteer in Western PA Coalfields”
Jim Dougherty on Labor History
Yesterday I had a pleasant conversation with retired IUP sociology professor Jim Dougherty on labor history. He is the founder of the Center for Northern Appalachian studies. When he retired his center ended so he took the sign and put it on his door. We spoke about the history of labor struggles in the area,Continue reading “Jim Dougherty on Labor History”
A Commemoration of the 1922-23 Windber Coal Strike
The Battle of Homestead Foundation and the Pennsylvania Labor History Society held a commemoration of the 1922-23 coal mine strike in Windber, PA. The next day they held a commemoration of a failed 1924 Ku Klux Klan raid on the coal mining town of Lilly. This post will focus on the first day. The meetingContinue reading “A Commemoration of the 1922-23 Windber Coal Strike”
Mom’s for Liberty Working to Ban Woke Curricula in PA
Watching a Cambria/Somerset Tea Party meeting broadcast live on Facebook by John DeBartola (I cannot embed the video here), I heard discussion of the group Mom’s for Liberty. They are working to stop the “woke” curricula in our schools. The image above shows where they have chapters located in Pennsylvania. As of this writing theyContinue reading “Mom’s for Liberty Working to Ban Woke Curricula in PA”