1911 PRR TRAIN DEPOT MONONGAHELA PA

This postcard recently sold on Ebay and the seller described it as “1911 PRR Train Depot Monongahela PA”. The 1911 date is most likely a postmark date. I assume that the photograph is earlier than that. Here you have a great view of both the second and third bridges that crossed the Monongahela River. The older bridge seen in the background crossed the river right behind where Lenzi Service station is located today (in fact, an original stone bridge abutment still stands there). The third bridge is the one many people still remember. The entrance to this bridge was located right where the former Right Aid building is.

The image above shows the area as it currently appears. There is only one railroad building remaining on the right.

Notice how there are no trees along the riverbank in the old picture. They used to build barges in this area so I assume that the trees would have gotten in the way. One thing I’ve noticed when taking these before and after pictures is how much worse the area or building usually appears today. See how sterile the current railroad building looks? You can blame plastic siding for that. Even commercial buildings were built with pride and style back in the day.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Monongahela PA – Then and Now

I came across an old post card showing St. Paul’s church as it appeared years ago when it still had a steeple. It’s always interesting to compare how things change over the years so here is a photograph of the church taken in 2010:

St. Paul Episcopal Church, Monongahela PA March 2010

And here is how the church appeared on a postcard with a 1909 postmark:

St. Paul's Church, Monongahela PA circa 1909

The the first thing that grabs your attention are the vines! My gosh, the place looks abandoned. Who would have guessed that the church was actually flourishing under the leadership of Rev. John Palmer Norman, M.D.  In fact the Historical magazine of Monongahela’s old home coming week: Sept. 6-13, 1908 refers to the church affectionately as the  “… ‘ivy walled’ St. Paul’s…” and since St. Pauls is an Episcopal church my guess is that Rev. Norman felt that the ivy gave it the appearance of Anglican churches back in England. According to the blog created to celebrate St. Paul’s 150th anniversary:

Norman was very keen to connect St. Paul’s to its Anglican roots and so started many English-themed organizations and events, including soccer and cricket teams.

At the time, Monongahela was being flooded with immigrants due to the booming coal industry and I’m sure St. Paul’s would have been a comforting sight to somebody arriving here from England.

The Rev. John Palmer Morgan, M.D.

Another thing I noticed from the postcard is how the steeple had developed a severe tilt. This tilt is apparent in other photographs at the time and eventually the steeple was torn down. According to the history section over at the Monongahela United Methodist Church website:

In 1925, a brick fell from the tower [of the Methodist church]. The Catholic church steeple had just been destroyed by lightning about the same year, and the steeple of St. Paul’s Episcopal, which had been leaning for years, had just been removed.

Now this is pure speculation on my part but I bet the congregation of St. Paul’s waited until after Dr. Norman’s retirement before tearing it down. I bet it would have broken his heart to witness its removal. (Rev. Norman retired in 1918 and moved to Cochranton Pa. where he passed away in 1923 at the age of 83 after serving at the church for 40 years.) It would have cost a tremendous amount to either repair or replace the steeple so removal would have been the most economical thing to do. It’s just a shame that they didn’t keep gables on the tower roof to give the tower a finished appearance. My guess is that the roof valleys at the base of the steeple failed and rotted the rafters.

Just a few other observations:

• Notice how similar the old and new lamp posts are. Kudos to whoever chose the new design when the sidewalks were replaced and electrical lines buried years ago. (just wish they would turn down the wattage – too much glare when you drive through town)
• Notice how the old steps have been removed and replaced. The building had a more elegant appearance with the old steps and its gently sloping yard. The new steps however are much more accessible with a wheelchair ramp on the left side.
• It’s a shame those trees are in the way. I wish I could have seen the building to the left of the church!

And finally, an aerial picture of the church and its surroundings:

St. Paul's Episcopal Church from above. Monongahela PA

Visit the St. Paul’s church website for information about church activities and to view pictures of the interior.

Reorganized and added photograph my earlier Monongahela Panorama post

I reorganized and added a photo to an earlier post I made last year

1909 Monongahela Panorama Virtual Scavenger Hunt.

As a side note, I spoke to one of the software engineers over at Gigapan and he complimented us on your participation in the comments area of the Monongahela panorama. Shortly after the panorama was posted, the image was ranked within the top 25 most interesting images on the whole Gigapan site! Gigapan is a partnership between Carnegie Mellon, Nasa and Google.

So far the Monongahela Gigapan has been viewed 4200 times and has received 43 comments.

4th and Main Streets, Monongahela PA Then and Now

 

Monongahela City Postcard 1930′s (click picture to enlarge)

Corner of 4th and Main Streets, Monongahela PA, October 2011 (click picture to enlarge)

Here are two pictures taken about 70 years apart looking southeast at the corner of 4th and Main Streets Monongahela. As I mentioned in an earlier post, it would be interesting to identify who built the original buildings and list what businesses occupied them over the years. I received some help in a comment from Don who said regarding the earlier picture:

“I believe building on right is First national bank. Next to it was Pansino cigarette vending repair shop and pinball machine. Next to Polaski [news store] was Inserra barber shop.”

Does anybody know of other businesses who occupied the buildings pictured over the years?

(By the way, do you have any old pictures of Monongahela you would like to share? If so email a copy to me and I would be happy to post them here on Lost Monongahela.)

 

1909 Monongahela Panorama Virtual Scavenger Hunt

Have you ever heard of a Gigapan? It is a photograph comprised of sometimes hundreds of small snapshots, all stitched together by computer software to create one incredibly detailed high resolution image. When the image is uploaded to Gigapan.org you can view it and keep on zooming and zooming to see all kinds of interesting details.

Click this image visit my Gigapan page. (Once there, click on the panorama image on the upper right side to view it full size)

The image above is a panorama I made by stitching together two old postcards of Monongahela which were postmarked back in 1909. Click here to view the photograph over at Gigapan.org. (You have to double click the image to get it to zoom in)

The original postcard  photographs were shot from two close but separate positions on Cemetery Hill so it was impossible to get a perfect stitch (due to parallax error) but it’s good enough to make a decent panorama. Unfortunately you can no longer photograph from the same vantage point today because the view is now blocked by large trees. But this aerial picture below can give you some idea what the area looks like today:

A modern view of the same area where the original postcard photographs were shot. Though now Monongahela, this area was once known as Catsburg. The Catsburg mine was located off the picture to the right. Click image for larger view.

Ok, lets go on a virtual scavenger hunt. To participate you need to create a Gigapan.org account (free). Then navigate back my Gigapan Monongahela panorama page. Then zoom in and take a “snapshot” and then leave a comment on my Gigapan page.

In the panorama you will find:

(strike throughs mean the item has been identified by somebody as of Monday, March 15, 2010 – 3:19 pm)

- at least two people
- at least two horses or mules
- train cars (aka railroad cars lol, I couldn’t remember the correct term, It’s hell getting old)
- Gregg’s Warehouse (This is the warehouse for the A.M. Gregg Hardware store as seen in this 1908 photograph. You can also see an old ad and picture of the proprietor here.
- 3 and possibly 4 churches (extra credit if you can name them) (two have been found)
- a ladder
- my girlfriend’s old house
- two coal mine tipples (extra credit if you name the coal mines to which they belong)
- two houses with rain barrels (one found so far)
- a barn
- at least 1 coal barge
- another barge (not necessarily a coal barge)
- a saltbox
- three bridges
- Whiskey Point
- an outhouse
- this railroad tower: http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4427907903_66f481e672_o.png
- a factory
- laundry
- the McGough Residence (oldest part built in 1802) was the oldest brick building in town until it was replaced by the architectural masterpiece known presently as the Monongahela Senior Center
- the Hotel Main
- the village of Axleton
- worker houses built by Liggett Spring and Axle Co.
- a gas lamp
- River Hill

I will reveal the location of several of the items above each day until March 20, 2010 unless you all find things first. Also, don’t be afraid to snapshot something you discover that isn’t on this list.

Beehive Coke Ovens, Shoaf PA

I always thought coke was made at huge facilities such as US Steel’s Clairton Works or Kopper’s coke battery in Monessen:

Clairton Coke Works circa 1950 by Howard Fogg. Print available from Coalingstation.com - click the picture for a larger view.

But would you ever think that as late as 1972 it was still made like this?

That video is of the beehive coke ovens in Shoaf PA. I was surprised to learn that you can find beehive ovens all over the place in Western Pennsylvania. (There are some as close as Belle Vernon although they are not in nearly as good condition.)

The 200 ovens in Shoaf were still profitable when they were shut down due to air pollution laws in 1972. The trend for several decades however had been to move coke production to larger plants closer to where steel was being made. Those large coke batteries were more efficient and were able to extract valuable chemicals and gasses which were impossible to collect using the older beehive style ovens.

I think the picture below was taken shortly after the coke works closed.(click the photo for a larger image, once it loads then click again for an extreme closeup)

Coke ovens at Shoaf with larry cars on top. The larry cars carried the coal from the mine, the cars then were emptied by dropping the coal through an opening in the roof of the oven. The coal was fired and then after about 72 hours became coke. Next water was sprayed into the oven to cool the coke down enough for it to be removed through the arched openings on the side. Then finally the coke was put in railroad cars for transportation to the steel mill.

What do the Shoaf ovens look like today?

Check out these links for more information:

Coal and Coke Heritage Center, Penn State Fayette Eberly Campus – A terrific site which is dedicated to coal mining and coke making. I would check out this site first for a general overview of the processes and culture which grew up around these industries. You will find several references to the Shoaf works there.

Manufacture of Coke at Salem No. 1 Mine Coke Works - Although this link is not related to the Shoaf complex, it is the the best description of the coke making process that I could find. Very interesting and easy to understand. Good illustrations.

Shoaf Cokeworks in Operation – Here you will find blueprints of how the coke ovens were designed, old photographs of the Shoaf Coke works in action and a memorial page. Be sure check out the links at the bottom of the page.

SWPA Rural Exploration – More pictures of what the Shoaf ovens look like today.

Coalcampusa.com, Shoaf PA – plenty of pictures of the mine, company town, coke works along with a great description of what it was like to live and work in Shoaf.

Hope to make a trip this summer to photograph the ovens at Belle Vernon, Shoaf and some really cool ones down near Penncraft PA. Let me know if any of you would like to go along. It would make a fun day trip!

Transfiguration Parish, Monongahela, PA. Then and Now

Transfiguration Parish Postcard Dated August 1912, Monongahela PA

Transfiguration Parish, Monongahela PA February 2010

Although the top picture is postmarked August 1912, the original photograph was probably made several years earlier. It’s interesting to compare the difference 100 years makes. Most obvious is the loss of the steeples to the church, and replacement of those terrific porches on the church rectory to the right.

Notice too the complete disappearance of the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church right next door! It’s funny because the Bethel A.M.E. Church was built in 1871, and the Transfiguration Parish church building wasn’t dedicated until February 23, 1908. It does make for a prettier picture with parkland in the distance though.

Here is a scan of the reverse of the post card shown above:

Transfiguration Parish Church Postcard Reverse

Transfiguration Church Illustration circa 1908

Above is the illustration of Transfiguration Parish Church you will find in The Historical Magazine of Monongahela’s Old Home Coming Week. Sept. 6-13, 1908. (click to read more about the history of Transfiguration Parish) I am assuming that a photograph of the completed church wasn’t available at the time the book was printed.

Have any thoughts or pictures of Transfiguration Parish that you would like to share? If so, leave a comment!

A Brief History of Liggett Spring and Axle Co.

I’ve been doing some research about Liggett Spring and Axle Co. and will be making several posts over the next few days. (If you want to see all articles on this topic just click on the tag in right hand column.) Most people around here don’t refer to the company as “Liggett Spring and Axle Co.”, they just shorten it to “Liggetts” so for the sake of brevity I’ll do that too.

The first bit of information I found about Liggetts was this excerpt from the Directory To The Iron And Steel Works Of The United States, 16th ed. August 1904:

Liggett Spring and Axle Company, Pittsburgh. Works at Axleton, Allegheny county, opposite Monongahela. Built in 1903-4 utilizing machinery from former works at Beaver ave. and Fayette st., Allegheny; rolling mill not put in operation down to May 25, 1904; other departments started in January, 1904; equipped with about 60 large and small heating furnaces, 26 hammers 9 from 500 to 1,000 pounds,) and one 16-inch train of rolls used to reroll iron and steel into shapes for the manufacture of axles; product, buggy and wagon axles and springs; annual capacity 7,500 tons. Fuel, coal. O.C. Hall, Vice-President and Manager; George W. Wright, Jr., Treasurer.

The most helpful source of information I’ve found about Liggetts Spring and Axle Co. is this article by Tom Headley. In it he writes:

In 1903 the Liggett Spring & Axle Company moved from Pittsburgh’s North Side and built a factory to manufacture buggy springs and axles. To provide raw material for this plant, the owners also constructed an adjoining foundry to supply castings.  Business boomed during World War I from the manufacture of springs and axles for army vehicles.  At this time the plant was reported to be the largest spring factory in the country. In 1916 the company built two rows of identical brick houses (still standing) to house their employees which became known as Axleton. With the shift to automobiles, the axle plant was separated from the foundry and began doing business as the Coshocton Iron Works engaged in the manufacture of parts for stoker furnaces.  This plant later combined with others to form the Combustion Engineering Company which continued to operate the plant until the 1980’s.

Here’s are two aerial photographs of the plant/s taken 40 years apart:

Liggett Spring and Axle Co. and Combustion Engineering Co., Monongahela PA. circa 1967 (click image to enlarge)

Liggett Spring and Axle Co. and Combustion Engineering Co., Monongahela PA. Today (click image to enlarge)

Click on this link to view the best interactive map of the plant. The link takes you to Microsoft’s Bing map service where you can not only zoom in, but also rotate the maps using the circular “rosette” on the bottom. This will enable you view the building from four different angles. (Note that you can increase the viewing area by removing the advertisements on the left side – just click on the “<” arrow.)

It was mentioned in the first article above that the plant was fueled by coal. What is interesting is that Liggetts owned a mine just across the street under River Hill. I wish I could locate the mine entrance. Somebody recently told me it was located between Liggetts and C.E. I wonder if there is any remains of the mine entrance.  (If you know why not leave a comment.)

It’s funny but as a kid I never heard of Liggetts. I thought this whole complex was occupied by Combustion Engineering. I guess part of the reason is that my mother worked for C.E. in the office and she never really had a reason to mention Liggetts when we would drive by on rt. 136. Also I remember that C.E. had a rather impressive water tower (visible in the black and white map version) with it’s logo painted on it. I don’t remember seeing any signage for Liggetts though.

I would like to hear what you remember about Liggett Spring and Axle Co. I would be especially interested to know:

• Where the Liggetts mine entrance was.
• When was the foundry sold to Combustion Engineering?
• Before the foundry was purchased by Combustion Engineering, it known as Coshocton Iron Works. What was the relationship between Coshocton and Liggetts? Did Liggetts own Coshocton right from the start or was Coshocton formed sometime after the complex was built (as Hadley’s the article above seems to indicate) I found this article stating that a Coshocton Iron Co. existed in Ohio before the Liggetts Monongahela plant was built so I am a little confused.
• Do you have any pictures of Liggetts or Combustion Engineering you would like to share?

Anyways, I’ll be posting a few more pictures of the people who worked at the Liggetts/C.E. complex along with some pictures of the company houses that Liggetts built for their workers.

Intersection of Park Ave. (Rt 481) and Main St.

Intersection of Main St. and Park Ave. circa 1980

Intersection of Main St. and Park Ave. Monongahela PA today

I am guessing first photo was taken around 1980. What do you think? From left to right you can see the Hotel Main, Bidzilla’s Market and the Turners building.

I used to work at Bidzilla’s Market when I was in high school (although at that time it was called Jerry’s Market) I remember this area used to be pretty run down. It is in a flood zone so it would have been petty expensive to get a mortgage and pay flood insurance premiums.

Do you have any memories or pictures of this area of town?

The Alexander House

The Alexanders were a prominent family in the early history of Monongahela. Joseph Alexander came to Williamsport (Monongahela) in 1828 and started his career as a Merchant. He also founded the first bank in Monongahela. Click here for more information about the Alexander Family.

Here is a home that was owned by a member of the Alexander family on Meade Street circa 1908:

(click here to view a larger image)

This is what the house looks like in 2008:

(click here to view larger image)

Side view:

(click here for larger image)

Notice how rough the street was back in 1908. The house looks surprisingly the similar in both pictures. There are several major differences though. Look closely and leave a comment letting me know what differences you see!

Click here to view a satellite image of the Alexander House