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Letters from War: 1861 | A Pittston correspondent on Washington’s war fever and the “Peace Party”

Posted on by Jake Wynn

A constant rumble of baggage wagons, night and day" | Washington at war, August 1861 A Pittston correspondent spent a week in Washington in late August 1861 and sent back a portrait of a city transformed — cavalry clattering through the streets, tent villages visible from the Capitol, and two armies drawing closer by the day. He also had some sharp words for the "Peace Party" back home. Read the letter.

An account of the Second Battle of Bull Run written by a veteran of the 48th Pennsylvania

Posted on by Jake Wynn

Shot in the foot at Bull Run — and too stubborn to stop moving When a Confederate bullet hit Josiah Wildermuth in the foot during the Second Battle of Bull Run, he got up, fell down, got up again, and kept going. What followed was a days-long ordeal on improvised fence-rail crutches that took him from a field hospital to Centreville, Virginia to Washington. He told the story 38 years later at a veterans' reunion in Pottsville, PA. Read the story.

Illustration of Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers amassed in Shenandoah, PA | 1900

Posted on by Jake Wynn

Bayonets in the streets | The National Guard occupies Shenandoah during the 1900 Coal Strike After a fatal shooting during the 1900 Coal Strike, the Governor sent hundreds of National Guard troops into Shenandoah. This Philadelphia Inquirer illustration shows them massed in the streets — and the striking miners said it amounted to being threatened back to work at bayonet point. Read more.

A letter written by a US Marine from Japan during the “Boxer Rebellion” | August 1900

Posted on by Jake Wynn

Five hundred Japanese laborers coaled the US Navy transport in Nagasaki harbor, working for twenty-five cents a day. Watching from the deck was Philip Messner, a Marine from Loyalton, PA, bound for China. Forty-five years later, an atomic bomb erased the city he described. Read the Full Story.

Letters from War: 1861 | Martin J. Byrne guards the Chain Bridge above Washington

Posted on by Jake Wynn

From his post guarding the Chain Bridge above Washington, Lieutenant Martin Byrne watched General McClellan and President Lincoln ride through a grand review of the division on August 21, 1861. Lincoln, he noted, had "that lofty, though care worn appearance." Read the full letter.

A town under watch | A photograph of the National Guard in Shenandoah, PA during the 1902 Coal Strike

Posted on by Jake Wynn

When the Coal Strike of 1902 turned violent, Pennsylvania sent armed troops into its mining towns. This photograph from Leslie's Illustrated captures the 8th National Guard patrolling the streets of Shenandoah, a Coal Region flashpoint, caught on camera by a local photographer. Read more.

The World War 2 letters of Private Lewis T. Jobe of Muir, PA

Posted on by Jake Wynn

Lewis T. Jobe fought through North Africa and Sicily and was invaded in the Invasion of Normandy on D-Day. Several letters he wrote in 1943 were published in a Tower City, PA newspaper and provide an eyewitness account of the Second World War. Read the letters here.

Photograph of V-J Day celebrations in Girardville, Pennsylvania | 1945

Posted on by Jake Wynn

V-J Day comes to Girardville | The Coal Region celebrates the end of World War II | 1945 When the news broke on August 15, 1945, Girardville took to the streets. This photograph captures the celebrations — and the moment a coal mining community exhaled after four years of war.

Reflection | Williamstown, Pennsylvania at 200

Posted on by Jake Wynn

On Sunday evening, I had the chance to lead a walking tour of Williamstown, PA to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the community. It was a great time despite the heat and we explored two centuries of stories from this Coal Region community. Read the full article.

Letters from War: 1861 | Martin J. Byrne describes the armed camp of Washington in August 1861

Posted on by Jake Wynn

Martin Byrne arrived in Washington on August 6, 1861 and found a city locked down by mounted police, drilling soldiers, and the weight of a war gone badly wrong. He wrote home to say his health had never been better — and that he'd gained twenty pounds since leaving Carbondale. Read the letter.