Crawford County Messenger and CCHS News

With the recent opening of Cussewago Square, it seemed appropriate to take a moment to bring attention to the history of the location, as well as to take advantage of the opportunity to highlight one...

Leonard Graves was an expert blacksmith who learned the carpentry trade by building carriages as a hobby for family and friends. During the post-war period following the Civil War, business was booming, and demand for...

Crawford County has rarely stifled its opinions regarding national politics. The tone was set by residents in 1807 who burned an effigy of Federalist, Aaron Burr outside the courthouse. And this was hardly the county’s...

Gate House at the Pymatuning Reservior – 1930’s While in recent times the imposition of man’s power over nature has come under much needed scrutiny, there are situations where the total destruction of one area...

Clarence F. Underwood – 1905 Clarence Frederick Underwood [1871-1929] was one of the leading illustrators and commercial artists of his generation, providing work to a range of books as well as highly circulated publications such...

Coach John Heisman (center) with his 1909 Georgia Tech team. The name Heisman has become synonymous with the best in college football, however it is often forgotten that the man behind the trophy found his...

Front view of the Saegertown Inn with French Creek along left side. With the overwhelming interest in photographs of the Saegertown Inn recently posted on the Crawford County Historical Society’s social media pages, what better...

Ohio race horses helped bring about the county fair With the excitement of the Crawford County Fair upon us, it’s worth taking a belated look at the origins of the what arguably is the county’s largest...

From a 1907 postcard, Conneaut Lake’s main thoroughfare (Water Street) facing west. With summer now if full swing, many area residents and vacationers have already made their way to Conneaut Lake to enjoy the many...

Oakwood Park, Meadville PA In the late 1890’s, after acquiring a parcel of approximately 35 acres, the Meadville Traction Company established Oakwood Park as a destination resort. Located in what is now West Mead Township,...

As colorful balloons fill the skies over Crawford County for the annual Thurston Classic, it’s always a worthwhile venture to dig into the histories of father and son, Samuel and Alic (sometimes Alex) Thurston, the...

Ray Harroun 1879-1968 The winner of the first Indianapolis 500, Ray Harroun was born on January 12, 1879 in Spartansburg, Pennsylvania in northern Crawford County. Harroun was the youngest of Russell and Lucy Harroun’s four...