Orwigsburg Historical Society & Museum

Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life.

May Is Historic Preservation Month: Embrace It! Celebrate It! May is Historic Preservation Month! While the focus of this month is generally on preserving historic buildings and sites, it is an excellent opportunity to appreciate local history in all of its forms. There are fewer historical buildings than there used to be in Schuylkill County. Without local preservation efforts & local history education, all historical structures face a very uncertain future. More than just ...old buildings, these structures help to tell the story of both Orwigsburg and Schuylkill County. All of these buildings have earned & deserve a special place in our future. The headquarters of the Orwigsburg Historical Society & Museum is a perfect example of historic preservation in action. It’s been 27 years since the society was created by a small group of industrious individuals, and it all began with the rescue of the former Friendship Hose Co. No.1 building, built in 1890. This building, now the Society’s headquarters, had fallen into major disrepair after many years of abandonment and was on the list for demolition. It was through the efforts to save and revitalize this beautiful building, that the Orwigsburg Historical Society & Museum was born.

Joe Jordan of The Jordan Brothers has passed away...... he and his brothers gave us many fond memories and some great music.

Can you guess where this beautiful piece of Victorian architecture is located? Hint....the finial "dances" on top of a corner turret in Orwigsburg.

Due to Governor Wolf's most recent COVID 19 restrictions, the Orwigsburg Historical Society & Museum will be temporarily closed beginning today, December 12, 2020. Inquiries, historical, and genealogical research will still be conducted. Contact us via email ([email protected]), phone (570-366-8769/570-617-7809), our Facebook page, or regular mail. Thank you all for your continued support and please stay safe!

December 7th, 1941, a date which will live in infamy.

We pay tribute to all the men and women who have served our country. God Bless America!

Here is an interesting Orwigsburg photo from the early 1890's that I found in my dad's (Evan Bowen) collection. If you study it closely, you will see familiar factories, churches, and even a glimpse of the original Schuylkill County Courthouse cupola in the distance. In the foreground is our beautiful Lehigh Valley Train Station. Built in 1890, the Lehigh Valley Railroad train station in Orwigsburg was one of the most ornate of all stations built by the Lehigh Valley Railro...ad. This beautiful, Victorian style passenger station was a three-story structure, located near what is now known as Station Road in Orwigsburg. The station master and his family lived on the second and third floors of the station. A freight station and loading dock were both located near the passenger station. Passenger service ended in 1925, due to mediocre usage and less than desirable profits for the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company (there are several theories as to why passenger service in Orwigsburg was never lucrative). Freight service continued until April of 1953.

History Behind the "Jack-O'-Lantern"...........a Turnip?? Believe it or not, the original jack-o’-lantern wasn’t a pumpkin; it was a turnip! According to Irish folklore, a fellow nicknamed Stingy Jack played a trick on the devil and was condemned to wander the earth, forever, without a resting place. Armed with only a glowing ember from the devil to light the way, Jack put it into a carved-out turnip and created a tiny lantern. The Irish called him Jack of the Lantern,... or jack-o’-lantern for short. On All Hallow’s Eve, or Halloween as we all know it, people in Ireland and Scotland would carve scary faces into turnips and potatoes and place embers inside of them, in the hope of warding off evil spirits and Stingy Jack. Irish & Scottish immigrants adapted this tradition when they came to the United States, soon discovering that native pumpkins made perfect jack-o’-lanterns. Today, the carved jack-o-lantern pumpkin is a traditional and familiar sight on windowsills and doorsteps every Halloween.

The Orwigsburg Historical Society & Museum needs YOU! Could you please volunteer an hour or two to help??? We need assistance with yard work, moving museum displays, and cleaning. Can you help????

Well, after more digging I discovered additional information about the token, itself. I still have not uncovered the location of Orwigsburg Gardens, but we now know that many tokens, similar to the one for Orwigsburg Gardens, were issued across the United States for the development of different regions. According to collectors of Black History memorabilia, the tokens were issued during the time of segregation, probably during the 1940’s/early 1950’s. I have bee...n told by one collector that there were Black Race Only tokens also issued, although no one had a photo of this type. All of these tokens have one thing in common: to develop various areas of land and to restrict who would live there. These tokens are the same size with printing on both sides, all indicating that the bearer had a limited amount of time to redeem the token in order to garner a building lot in order to build a home. Some of the tokens also include an additional amount of money required for title transfer costs. Two questions still remain: 1. Where was this proposed Orwigsburg Gardens development (perhaps due to very few responses, the development was never realized)? AND 2. Since so many similar tokens have appeared, did one Mega Development Corporation (with a hold in each state) seek-out land across America, for the purpose of creating many housing developments while ensuring racial segregation? Our original search continueswhere was the proposed location of Orwigsburg Gardens?

This unusual "Orwigsburg Gardens" token was brought to our society's attention as a query. After much research, we have found nothing that indicates any further information as to where the proposed "Orwigsburg Gardens" development was located, who owned the property, did the project even get close to happening? Anyone out there know anything about "Orwigsburg Gardens?" It was obviously issued during an early period of Orwigsburg's history, as indicated by the statement of restrictions on one side of the token (near the bottom).

"Amazon Prime Day" is back starting October 13th and will run through October 14th! This is a great opportunity for the Orwigsburg Historical Society to increase AmazonSmile donations during these two days of deals and promotions. You can make a difference while you shop Amazon Prime Day deals on October 13th & 14th. Simply shop at smile.amazon.com/ch/23-2775187 or with AmazonSmile ON in the Amazon Shopping app and AmazonSmile donates to Orwigsburg Historical Society. Thank you for your kind assistance!

Here are a few more photos taken at St. Francis Orphanage (located along Route 443 W near Orwigsburg), shared with the society by Stanley (Szymanski) Haley. Stanley resided at St. Francis between 1958 and 1962. The photos were taken by a professional photographer from Pottsville, who was hired by the "sisters." Copies of the photos were then sold to relatives of the children when they visited. One photo shows the Bishop with a St. Francis Confirmation Class in which Stanle...y, his brother, and sister were all Confirmed (circa early 1960's). Thank you to Stanley for sharing these memories with us! :)