Crawford County Messenger and CCHS News

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...

The morning after – charred remains of the fire’s path. The Hotel Conneaut stands untouched in the background. As the morning darkness of December 2, 1908, dissolved into daylight, a scene of utter destruction revealed...

One of John Leech’s Original Illustrations for A Christmas Carol  With the Baldwin-Reynolds House Museum hosting their annual “Fezziwig’s Christmas Dinner” in just a few short days, some readers might be curious “what’s in a...

Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton Duel Crawford County does not have much of a history of domestic strife. The county was largely unsettled during the time of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 never...

A Passion for a New Art Much of the world’s first oil boom was captured in the photography of one John A. Mather, an English immigrant whose love for his art allowed such a vivid...

The colors of the 150th, on display at the state capitol The year is 1862. The War of the Southern Rebellion has flooded field after field with blood and the dead. Though volunteers had already...

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...

The Unitarian College, 1908 From the mid 1800’s up through the early 1900’s Meadville had not just one college in the city, but two–Allegheny College and the Meadville Theological School. This was unique as most...

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...

GW Depot with McHenry House to the left in 1869 As with most establishments in the hospitality industry, success could not have been attained without competent management. The same holds true for the McHenry House,...

A crowd gathered to greet one of the inaugural A & GW trains. Note the Depot in the background. As time progresses forward it becomes increasingly difficult to imagine the grand structures that once dominated...