Founders Day

The Greater Monessen Historical Society wishes to thank everyone who came to the annual Founders Day in historic Monessen City Park on August 19. The event was held in honor of the one 175th anniversary of the birth of Monessen Founder, Colonel James Schoonmaker, the hero of the Third Battle of Winchester and a Medal of Honor Recipient.

Reenactors from the 11th P.V.I. Company K, Inc. set up authentic Civil War camps to showcase a living history view of camp life during the War of the Rebellion. The Monessen/Rostraver Rotary sponsored a car show with prizes this year. Featured at the car show was a 1937 Packard convertible one owned by the late Monessen High School teacher, Cecilia Kasper. The car currently is owned by Chuck Speicher, of Greensburg, who restored it to original condition. Supposedly, the car also was once used by the students of Monessen’s auto mechanics class at the Vocational School. Former students may also remember the car during home football games, when it carried the cheerleaders around the field of Memorial Stadium to rouse the crowd.

Fundraising Dinner and Dance

A fundraising dinner and dance will be held on Saturday, October 7, 2017, at Jozwiak Hall in the St. Vincent DePaul Society building on Grand Blvd. The theme will be the “Life of Colonel Schoonmaker.” Guests are encouraged to dress in costume from the time period of the Colonel’s life (1842-1927), which encompassed the Frontier Age, Civil War, Victorian Age, Edwardian Age and Roaring Twenties.

Limited tickets are available by contacting the Heritage Museum at 724-684-8460. The dinner will be catered by Bruno and Sons and feature roast beef, baked stuffed chicken, coleslaw, oven-browned parmesan potatoes, carrots, dinner rolls and cake. Tickets are available for a $30 donation. Come dance the night away.

Autumn Exhibit

The Autumn Exhibit at the Monessen Heritage Museum is called “Treasures from the Archives.” It showcases individual panels such as Presidential visits, the life of Colonel Schoonmaker, river transportation, firefighting history, early baseball, local art, radios, and the burning of the second Monessen High School. The display will be open through the end of the year during regular business hours.

Follow Us Online

The Greater Monessen Historical Society has a Twitter account. Follow us at @MonessenHistory. We are also on Facebook and have over 3,000 followers worldwide! We can be located on Facebook under “Greater Monessen Historical Society.” See our latest events, news and photos of previous events. Google us and find our webpage filled with all the necessary information to visit, donate, join or learn about us!

The museum is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. The address is 505 Donner Avenue, Monessen, PA, 15062. The phone number is 724-684-8460.