When I learned to write letters many, many years ago in grade school, we were taught to include friendly questions for the other person. So, how are you? I am fine. Have you made any “big finds” to put in your family history ? I have two ancestors that I’ve been researching for 15 to 20 years. Just in case, I’ll mention their names: Rachel (Paxton) Barr, (31 Oct. 1785 – 1856) and Keziah (Hawke) Snyder (No not German), (1823/24 – 1887/1900)
If you are reading this, you must be a member or someone interested in the genealogy of Armstrong Co., PA. or Western Pennsylvania. If so, here are some web sites of the other Historical Societies in Armstrong Co.:
ACGC doesn’t meet during the winter. Its first meeting will be March 6th at 2:00 p.m. in the Lankerd Thomas Genealogical Library in Kittanning at the McCain House Museum.
A new slate of officers is in place for 2005. We will try to have three speakers for the year and will also focus on the French and Indian War. Our first speaker will be on April 3rd and will be member, Mickey Cindrowski. Mickey’s topic will be, “World War 1 Draft Cards”. Oh my, that is almost 90 years ago. Check out Mickey’s “Roll Call Mania” on rootsweb.com.
Our entire area will be scheduling events concerning the 250th Anniversary of the French and Indian War for the rest of this year. The big re-enactment of Col. John Armstrong’s March from Shirleysburg to Kittanning will be held in September 2006. Our own Gen. Club and Gen. Library made a test run in September of 2000 along with Lane Savage and his group of re-enactors featuring, Col. John Armstrong’s militia attack of 1756 on the Delaware Village of Kittanning. One site you might like to check out is the “War for Empire Consortium” at http://www.frenchandindianwar250.org/ .
Since the Kittanning Borough Council and the Tourist Bureau committed to manage the events of September 2006, our library and club will focus on member re-enactment. The Council failed miserably in 2000 and our club and library managed the entire event. We certainly had to scramble at the last minute.
As librarian, I am going to write a grant to ask for help to educate the local historical societies on period dress and what our area was like in 1756. This was before the Revolutionary War and Armstrong wouldn’t be a county for another forty-four years. Monica Coleburg from Wachtschu Ehachping, already has all that information in place. She was speaker for the club and for Dayton Historical Society, and is excellent. Her programming allows participants to ‘Enter the Exhibit’ by providing actual primitive implements, materials, tools and dress. Wachtschu Ehachping sets a template to touch, feel, smell and do, to sample life as lived by our early ancestors. She also offers programs, and workshops. Monica brought a huge supply of materials and wonderful narrative when she did the program at ACGC.
Monica will be doing programs at the other historical societies in Armstrong County. We will be learning how to make Native American Indian clothes of the Early Woodland Indians. Their clothes would be of some skins and mostly trade cloth.
Cindy Venturini along with Mary Alice Wecherly, both members of our club, will be helping with the colonial dress and patterns. Cindy and Mary Alice also are members of our 2006 Armstrong Trek Committee.
I would like to encourage as many as can, to dress in period costume of whatever choice. Of course in 1756 there weren’t to many “white” people in the area. Some were in Kittanning as prisoners of the Delaware. Lane Savage and his re-enactors will “allow” us to mill around the area. The re-enactors are a very serious group about trying to keep everything historically correct. We also have Greg Rearick on our Trek committee. Greg is a long time Delaware Indian re-enactor and will keep us historically correct to the Early Woodland Indian dress. So, we do have a number of learned experts to keep us on the straight and narrow.
As you might be able to tell, I am very enthusiastic about the upcoming year and the events for September 2006. I hope the club members will take advantage of these historical events. Our Trek committee will study hard and try to keep ACGC members historically correct. I just think it is going to be a real exciting time for the county and some of you out-of-town folk might want to vacation around Kittanning in ‘06 and witness the entire spectacle. Keep an eye out for a chubby Irish girl in blonde/gray braids running around as a Delaware Native, that will be me.
Connie Mateer, ACGC President.