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Tours set for Mauch Chunk Cemetary

Sunday, October 24th, 2010

From the Times-News:

“The history of a town can be found in the history of its cemetery,” noted Jack Sterling, a Jim Thorpe historian whose great, great grandfather, Henry Sterling, was the first sexton at the Mauch Chunk Cemetery from 1847 to about 1866. “That’s especially true here. It’s a great example of a Victorian-era cemetery.”

“My grandmother said that the Mauch Chunk Cemetery was busy, especially during the 1918 flu epidemic,” said Keith Bellhorn. “The cellar was full. They couldn’t dig the graves fast enough. My grandfather, his brothers and all of his friends worked in the mines for 12 hours-a-day digging in the dark and damp. They came home, ate supper, and went out here in the dark and damp, digging all through the flu epidemic to bury as many as they could-as fast as they could.”

Sterling and Bellhorn will lead a unique tour of the Mauch Chunk Cemetery and Chapel on October 30 and 31 from noon to 4 p.m. The tour will start at the Mauch Chunk Cemetery entrance gate in front of the Chapel at the intersection of South and Walnut Avenues in Upper Jim Thorpe.

Read the full story here >>.

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Civil War reenactment comes to JTHS

Sunday, October 24th, 2010

From the Times-News:

Johnny comes marching home again at Jim Thorpe High School, where from Thursday evening, Oct. 28 though Sunday morning, Oct. 31, its surrounding woods become the encampment of a troop of Civil War reenactors.

The Civil War Reenactment Encampment, which will be open to the public on Saturday, Oct. 30, features: Union and Confederate soldiers, a Surgeon’s Display, Quartermaster’s Tent, Recruiting Lieutenant and Sanitary Commission Kitchen will be set up.

There will be displays inside the school demonstrating news from the homefront, a Lady’s Aid Society display, children’s games and clothing, a period school and parlor pastimes including an array of popular fortune telling games and devices. The Multipurpose Room will house a mini-museum of original Civil War memorabilia and artifacts. On Friday, Jim Thorpe High School history and English classes will visit the encampment.

Read the full story here >>.

Visit Camp Geiger Lehigh Valley Civil War Days Web site here >>.

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Drury, Weller honored for service

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

From the Times-News:

Broadway Grille & Pub in downtown Jim Thorpe, a location that has undergone much historic preservation, was the site of the annual Mauch Chunk Historical Society Membership Banquet.

The location for the event seemed all the more appropriate as many of those in attendance have been the driving forces over the years in restoring the Architecture and History of Jim Thorpe.

The banquet was not only a way of saying thank you to their members, but also the occasion to honor two people for their work in historic preservation in Jim Thorpe.

The honorees that evening were John Drury for his work at the Inn at Jim Thorpe, at the Mauch Chunk Museum, and at other properties in the borough; and Ed Weller who has done a lot of rescue work on buildings in Jim Thorpe including the restaurant they were in.

They were each presented with framed plaques which were “Restoration/Preservation Awards” that read in part “given in recognition of outstanding efforts toward Historic Preservation of the architecture of Carbon County”.

Read the full story here >>.

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Saving the Kemmerer Carriage House

Sunday, August 8th, 2010

From the Times-News: 

Two years ago, the Kemmerer Carriage House, located at the end of Kemmerer Park in Jim Thorpe, was on the verge of destruction.

Vandalism and the degradation of time had transformed the once beautiful structure into a health and safety hazard. The Jim Thorpe Borough Council was weeks away from demolishing the structure, when John Drury stepped in with a plan to save the building.

Drury, who is a local entrepreneur and preservationist, also sits on the board of the Kemmerer Memorial Park Association. When he learned of the borough’s plans to raze the Carriage House, he told the Kemmer Park Board that he was willing to put his own money toward securing the building.

Read the full story here >>.

Posted in Borough Council, History | No Responses »
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