In May 1871, fire swept Pittston’s Knight Shaft. Eleven-year-old mule driver Martin Crahan turned back from safety to warn miners, was refused behind their barricade, and chose to die beside his teams. Nineteen others perished. A poem immortalized his courage in the face of a disaster similar to one that ravaged Avondale, PA two years earlier. Read the full story.
In the lead-up to the Election of 1860, young Pennsylvanians rallied behind Abraham Lincoln as part of the Wide Awakes, a political movement determined to confront slavery and disunion. This poem, published in the Pittston Gazette, captures their enthusiasm and commitment. Learn more about how these young men supported Lincoln in this pivotal election. Read the full story.
When the Civil War broke out in 1861, the bravery and courage of the volunteer soldiers of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania immediately became the stuff of legends. The famed "First Defenders," a group that included a sizable number of men from Pottsville and surrounding communities, were among the first to arrive in Washington to protect the … Continue reading “Our Pottsville Volunteers” – A song about Schuylkill County’s brave Civil War soldiers
In 1897, a former breaker boy penned a poem in remembrance of the child laborers of the Coal Region.
Private Samuel Veatch used poetry to record the final words of comrades at Camp Curtin in Harrisburg in January 1862.
Soldier-poet John T. Boyle writes home to the Pottsville Miners' Journal with this poem about the emotions of the mothers on the Northern home front.