Crawford County Messenger and CCHS News

Many think of the 1960s in America as a time of peace, love, and understanding. But, during the time the country was nearing the end of the decade, turmoil crisscrossed the United States. By 1968,...

On the fifth of April, I803, Jesse Moore was appointed President Judge of the Sixth Judicial District of Crawford County by Governor Thomas M’Kean, succeeding Judge Alexander Addison who was the first Judge of this...

The homes at Hillcrest in Meadville, Pennsylvania, have become such a part of the fabric of the community that one could almost take them for granted. They seem to have always been there. Like a...

Dorothy Thurston was born on July 31, 1896, in Meadville, Pennsylvania, to Alic and Jessie May (Hill) Thurston. She was one of five children in a family well known for its contributions to local and...

2025, marks the 117th anniversary of one of the more gruesome episodes in the long history of Crawford County’s old jail. It all begins on Christmas Eve, 1908, when Jack Cronin uses a .32 revolver...

At a time when vaccines against the coronavirus are being produced by multiple companies, an interesting bit of Meadville history comes to our attention.  First, it is important to remember why and how “immunization” and...

Meadville’s Diamond Park as it may have looked in the early 1800s In the central part of a letter headed Meadville, Dec 18th, 1842, my great, great grandmother Agnes Kennedy (née Craig), described her life...

Timothy Alden Jr., the founder of Allegheny College, was by all accounts a charismatic and motivated man who pursued opportunities to expand education throughout his life. He was descended from John Alden, who landed on...

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...

A turnpike being raised Today, a trip from Meadville to Pittsburgh takes about an hour and half. The worst travelers have to deal with today are the occasional storm, constant road repairs, and the terror...

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...