| SWEET
OPEN HOUSE
Who would think to tie a
set of egg beaters with a bow and decorate a Christmas tree
with it? The talented Inzana sisters, that’s who.
Kathy and Mary, and this year brother Joe and wife Sandy,
all got creative using the theme “Gingerbread.” From the
“sweet” tree to the gingerbread jail (complete with escaping
prisoner) to the Gingerbread Man, the Inzanas really outdid
themselves this year.
And the response from
our visitors was great. Approximately 20 confectionary
carpenters entered the gingerbread house contest. Among the
top winners was an Alpine chalet complete with ski lift. The
Inzana family also exhibited the gingerbread jail and a
gingerbread lighthouse.
Thanks also to Betty Seymour and Dorothy Liphart who
decorated other rooms in the museum.
If that weren’t enough
for the children, Joe Cameron brought his display of local
Indian artifacts which he had talked about earlier at one of
the Society’s evening speakers programs.
Joe Umholtz, an Eastern
long rifleman, donned his 18th Century garb and greeted the
holiday visitors who puzzled Joe by wearing “funny”
breeches.
^Top
|
EBENSBURG GATEWAY
INTERPRETIVE KIOSK
The Lumber Heritage Region (LHR) of Pennsylvania, the state's newest and largest Heritage Region, consists of all or parts of 16 counties. The northern half of Cambria County is included in the project and Ebensburg has been designated as one of the nine "Gateways" to the LHR.
The Cambria County Historical Society Museum was chosen to house the lighted, state of the art rotating kiosk. The kiosk was designed by Associated Custom Exhibits, Inc. of Pittsburgh and includes three informational panels, two of which are common to all exhibits in the Gateway Communities. The third panel, designed by Jack Bartock, Lumber Heritage Committee member, features the local contribution to Pennsylvania's lumbering history.
Cambria County's important role in this colorful era is displayed with vintage lumbering photographs and related historical information.
|
|
Recent
Accessions
Artifacts
·
Metal toys – stove, sink,
refrigerator, and wringer washer - Joan Bonanno Ballash
·
William H. Sechler collection – 1861
Journal, personal letter and family photographs - Robert C.
and Susan J. Simpson
·
WWII Army clothing and helmets of James I.
Benedict – Jean Benedict
·
Portrait of Dr. A.D. Martin - Evalyn Martin
·
1920 photograph, Committee Who Formed the
Cambria Co. Fair - Mildred Harvey
Books
·
A Romp Through Early
Cambria
County
Pennsylvania
- Jim Miller
·
Pictures
From Our Past: A Visual History of
Johnstown
- Robert Freidhoff
·
Roll Of Honor – Numbers I–IV - Robert
Freidhoff
·
Otzinachson: A History of the West Branch
of the Susquehanna - Richard Rhody
·
History of the Early Settlement of the
Juniata
Valley
- Richard Rhody
·
Historical Collections of the State of
Pennsylvania
- Richard Rhody
·
Pennsylvania
Archives, Second Series-Volume II - Richard Rhody
·
Annals of the
Buffalo
Valley
,
Pennsylvania
, 1755-1855 - Richard Rhody
·
The Book of History 1852-2002,
Commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the
Cambria
County
Medical Society -
Cambria
County
Medical Society
Genealogies
·
Descendants of Thomas Hughes and Margaret Todd of
Cemmaes,
Wales
– Ike and Lois Hughes
·
The Descendants of John Campbell of
Carrolltown (
Cambria
County
),
Pennsylvania
- Joseph Campbell
·
A Journey Through Time:
The Story of Johann Adam and Catharina Werner of
Massenbach and
Nordheim
,
Germany
and their Descendants - Melvin Singer
Wilkinson
& Herbert Family from Munson Area - D. Elaine Wilkinson
^Top
|
|
CAMBRIA
COUNTY’S FLYING POST
OFFICE
Throughout the 1940s, the U.S. Air Postal Service planes flew through the skies over Cambria County at speeds up to 120 miles an hour scooping up sacks of outgoing mail.
Between 1940 and 1949 the Postal Service's planes, operated by All American Aviation (AAA), the predecessor of US Air, brought the innovative airmail pick up system to Cambria County’s small communities. For years, larger cities had already been benefiting from direct postal airmail service, an advantage that had been denied to many small communities.
This innovative and amazingly reliable delivery and pick up system was devised so that a small plane would pick up and deliver sacks of mail without ever touching the ground. Two sites in Cambria County--Johnstown and Portage--were selected.
A plane, equipped with a four-fingered grappling hook attached to a long cable, flew above and over two upright steel poles. The poles, with flags mounted on top, ranged from twelve to twenty-five feet high, and sat about twenty feet apart. A three-quarter inch thick rope was loosely suspended between them, attached to the poles with breakaway tension clips.
The out-going mail was placed in a 30-pound rubber-reinforced canister on the ground between the poles. Another long rope was tied to it and attached to the suspended rope above. The single engine Stinson Reliant plane would approach the pickup site, or "ground station,” at a speed between 90 and 120 miles per hour. At the right moment, it would swoop down to an altitude of about 100 feet or less and simply drop the incoming canister of mail then hook onto the suspended rope with the attached out-going canister.
A flight mechanic aboard reeled it into the plane with an electrically operated winch. Workers sorted the mail en route, recorded the number of pieces picked up at that station and prepared the next station's mail pouch to be dropped.
Two Pickup sites were located in Cambria County. One was on the Piatak family's farm near Portage. The Johnstown site was in Westmont, just off Goucher Street, on farmland that today is Sunnehanna Drive as it leads to the Sunnehanna Country Club. Other regional pickup sites were in Latrobe, Clearfield, Philipsburg and Bellefonte. State College's site was on a farm close to today's Beaver Stadium.
The AAA planes, often referred to as "Flying Post Offices" and "Aerial Ponies,” served mainly Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Due to the often treacherous flying conditions over the Allegheny Mountains, the region was also referred to as "the graveyard of the Alleghenies." Buzzing in and out and over many small communities and mostly using high ground pastures these "Winged Mailmen" left an enviable 94% reliability record with their twice-a-day, six days a week
service during those nine years.
^Top
|
|
Serving Millions from Atop the Alleghenies
In 1953, the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat featured in its 100th anniversary edition, a series of articles on the newly emerging television industry. In Johnstown WJAC-TV had been in operation for four years and WARD-TV (UHF) was planning to open presently.
Having received a construction permit from the FCC in 1946 and having bought $150,000 worth of equipment from RCA in 1948, WJAC-TV began operations on September 15, 1949. Its motto from the beginning was “Serving Millions from Atop the Alleghenies.”
In the early years, viewers tuned into WJAC-TV on channel 13. Offices were in Cambria City on the corner of Chestnut Ave. and 10th Street. The TV station was owned by the Tribune-Democrat Newspaper with Al Schrott as the station manager and Walter J. Krebs owner. The station featured films or kinescopes which only ran three hours daily to the 3,000 local people who owned television sets. Johnstown became the 47th city in the nation to have a TV station. WJAC-TV was the 79th television station in the county. Like other pioneer stations, WJAC-TV was not affiliated with any network. In fact, it choose programming from the four networks– ABC, CBS, NBC and Dumont. It became primarily affiliated with NBC in 1954 but also kept a secondary affiliation with ABC as late as the 1980’s.
Within a few weeks of beginning operations, WJAC-TV broadcast the 1949 World Series. “Live” pickups with the networks were possible after June of 1950. Some of these early telecasts included: UN sessions on Korea, Gen. McArthur’s address to Congress, the coronation of Queen Elizabeth and Eisenhower's inauguration.
By the end of 1949, local television set owners had grown from 3,000 to 11,000. By the time of the Tribune-Democrat article in 1953, local television sets numbered 675,000. During the same time period, national ownership of TV sets had grown from 60,000 to 25 million. In 1949, the average TV set had a screen size of 7” to 16” and cost $199. By 1953, screen size had grown to 27” and the cost reduced to $159.
In 1952, the FCC re-assigned the station to operate on channel 6. A year later, WJAC-TV was the first station in the nation to receive a permanent license to operate at full power. It was then operating at 17 hours per day and was planning to have color broadcasts by 1955. NBC had already been experimenting with colorcasts.
WJAC-TV was able to broadcast “live” from its studio after the purchase of a special camera in 1953. Movie Quick Quiz with host Rod Wolf aired weekdays from 2:45PM to 3:00PM. Also debuting in 1953, was Matinee Melodies, a disc jockey program, and the DuBois-Budweiser News, with Ron Rininger.
WJAC-TV’s 1953 daily schedule began at 7:00AM with Dave Garroway’s Today Show and signed off around midnight after Lullaby Theatre. Most programs, including the soap operas, were 15 minutes in length.
The 1953 Tribune-Democrat special edition on television also included headlines such as:
Tips to Televiewers: Don’t Sit in the Dark
Color TV Coming; But Not Overnight
Here are Some Tips for Tuning a Television Set
TV is now available to 80% of Population.
One particular article discusses the ill-effects that TV might have on the “kiddies.” But it concludes that once the novelty has worn off; the children will get back to reading books and doing their homework. It also points out that nationwide there has been a sharp drop off of fans at sporting events. Movie attendance and radio listening were also down.
Dick Schrott, the present station manager, remembers those early years at the station. He said that WJAC was prepared to broadcast in color as early as 1953 and that it had purchased a color camera in 1956.
The station moved into its present studios on Old Hickory Lane in 1962-63. Roger Wood was the first Atlantic Weatherman. Ray Scott was the first sports broadcaster and Bill Wilson was the Atlantic Weatherman before he began his long career as a sportscaster.
Dino Tessary and Ron Miller, former program managers, remembered some of the early on-air personalities such as newscasters Ron Rininger and Rod Wolf. Bill Wilson, known to most as a sports broadcaster, began his career as the Atlantic Weatherman. He was followed by Roger Wood. Ron Stephenson also got his start reporting the weather.
Tessary also recalled Herald Scott as an early sports announcer. Miss Sally was the first of many Romper Room teachers but Miss Patty, who had a tenure of 10 years, is most remembered in the role.
^Top
|
|
The
Heritage is published quarterly and mailed to CCHS Members. A few
of the articles will be published here.