Frick Improved Portable Steam Engine at Somerset Historical Center

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Frick Improved Portable Steam Engine at Somerset Historical Center Founded by Lancaster County native George Frick (1826–1892) in 1860, the Frick Company, of Waynesboro, in southern Franklin County, manufactured a variety of agricultural machinery, including threshers and traction engines, as well as boilers, ice machines, and sawmills. In 1923, the company manufactured the Frick Improved Portable Steam Engine, which allowed farmers to take advantage of a new,...
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Harnessing the Power of the Wind: A Contemporary Use for a Historic Energy Source

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Harnessing the Power of the Wind: A Contemporary Use for a Historic Energy Source Much like the oil farms of the last century were for drillers and riggers, Pennsylvania’s wind farms are proving grounds for engineers and technicians as they harness wind power. The long-standing use of wind power that for centuries propelled sailing vessels has been transformed throughout the world to produce electricity. Farmers used wind power in the late nineteenth and early twentieth...
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PHMC Highlights

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on PHMC Highlights Washington Crossing Historic Park has an unusual and highly entertaining way of casting the individual to portray General George Washington at the Bucks County historic site. In September, contestants competed in the 2009 George Washington contest during auditions in which they answered questions about the American Revolutionary War. The winner earned the privilege of playing Washington at the...
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Pennsylvania Heritage Society Newsletter

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Pennsylvania Heritage Society Newsletter Topics in the Summer 2011 Newsletter: Reserve Your Seat for Our Signature Series Bus Trip to Winterthur 2011 Teaching American History Project Civil War Sesquicentennial Event Calendar for July – September 2011 July – September 2011 Pennsylvania Civil War 150 Road Show Welcome New State Museum Affiliate Members Welcome New PHS Members  ...
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Documenting Railroading History

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Documenting Railroading History CSX Transportation and a series of public sector partners, including the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, have undertaken an $850 million project, the National Gateway, to create a doublestack cleared freight rail network on CSX Transportation lines between Mid-Atlantic points and the Midwest. As part of the project, in 2009 the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER)...
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Fishing on the Yough River

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Fishing on the Yough River The Youghiogheny (pronounced yock-ah-gay-nee) River – known to locals, anglers, and kayakers as “The Yough” – is a 134-mile long tributary of the Monongahela River which rises in northern West Virginia, flows through Maryland, and enters southwestern Pennsylvania on the border between Fayette and Somerset Counties. It joins the Monongahela from the southeast at...
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Saving Documents Today for Future Generations

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Saving Documents Today for Future Generations For three years, from 2008 through part of 2011, the archival staff of the Pennsylvania State Archives in Harrisburg, administered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), has been involved in an initiative to improve the management of the Commonwealth’s historical records maintained by its sixty-seven county governments. Known as the Itinerant Archivist Project, the program...
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Sampling a Taste of the Past Along the Pennsylvania Trails of History

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Sampling a Taste of the Past Along the Pennsylvania Trails of History One of the best ways to experience the Keystone State’s history and heritage is to travel the Pennsylvania Trails of History®, a network of two dozen exciting historic sites and museums administered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), the Commonwealth’s official history agency. PHMC has organized its popular destinations into four main trails – Military...
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