Roundtable committed to celebrating county’s rich heritage | Echoes

Hats off to the Huntingdon County History & Roundtable for its efforts in promoting history throughout the area. This group of dedicated and talented individuals, headed up by roundtable chairman Lonnie Smith Jr., are doing their part in remembering the past and sharing it with those in search of history.

Since the organization’s beginning a few years ago the roundtable has committed itself to celebrating our rich heritage that includes the entire county. From southern Huntingdon County and the Broad Top to Mount Union and Huntingdon and other parts of the area, the exciting stories of the past come alive thanks to the involvement of the roundtable which is composed of representatives from numerous history and heritage organizations and attractions.

Through the efforts of the roundtable, coupled with the assistance of the Huntingdon County Historical Society and the many other heritage groups in the area, the story of the county comes to life. The roundtable activities also help shape our understanding of where we are coming from and, hopefully, where we are headed.

On the mountain, the Broad Top Area Heritage Partnership continues to coordinate planning for preserving and promoting the area’s history that focuses on steam railroading, coal mining and iron-making.

Created several years ago, and headed up by Alan Smith of Saxton, the all-volunteer organization is a joint venture of representatives from Broad Top area organizations and government officials.

To date, these organizations have left their marks on in Huntingdon County: Broad Top Area Coal Miners Historical Society, Broad Top Township, Saxton/Stonerstown area, Friends of the East Broad Top, East Broad Top Railroad Foundation, H&BT Rail Trail, Keystone Foundry Museum at Hopewell, Riddlesburg Coke Ovens, Dudley H&BT Historic Site, Thomas White Memorial at Evans Cemetery and the Captain Phillips Rangers Memorial in Liberty Township.

Since organizing, the partnership has sponsored Heritage Days in the Tussey Mountain School District, published a Heritage Map & Guide of the area, participated in several area seasonal activities and events and sent representatives to meetings of other heritage groups in the tri-county area.

The partnership welcomes new participants and will be announcing upcoming meetings for 2024.

My involvement in the study and promotion of local and regional history involves a wide area of interests and communities. As a young child I was introduced to the subject through television, movies and reading materials that focus on the nation, state and eventually my homeland of the Broad Top.

Abled historians like the late Albert Rung helped to draw me into the subject via The Daily News while local Broad Top area historians like the late Johnny Young of Robertsdale and the many coal miners from the region sparked my interest in the topic. It was men like my coal mining grandfather, the late John Watkin who had a first-hand connection with the local steam railroads and the mines.

My journalistic colleague and fellow historian, the late Jon Baughman and I had the honor of promoting the Broad Top area as part of Bedford County’s bicentennial celebration in 1971, followed by the American Revolution Bicentennial observance in 1976. Through the penmanship of numerous Broad Top area books, Jon and I helped rekindle the area’s history including the ongoing preservation of the East Broad Top Railroad.

Another local colleague, Adam Watson, followed in our heritage preservation footsteps and has joined the ranks of the Broad Top Area Coal Miners Historical Society in telling the story of the mountain and the many communities comprising it.

It is our hope that by working closely with school districts and other organizations like the roundtable, young people might commit themselves to the study of history, particularly in their individual communities.

One of the most impressive preservation endeavors this writer was involved in during the late 1980s and 1990s was the America’s Industrial Heritage Project (AIHP) which linked numerous southwestern Pennsylvania counties in telling the story of the southern Alleghenies including the tri-county area of Huntingdon, Bedford and Fulton.

As a result of the AIHP and related efforts…