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When I was young, I pretty much knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. Those who have been reading this column during the nearly five years I have been writing it will not be surprised that I knew I wanted to work with history, specifically in museums. I remember as a child getting really into the Titanic, before the movie came out. For a birthday gift one year, my parents got me a box with replica Titanic artifacts, like a menu, brochures, post cards, etc., and one day I set up a "museum" using these objects. I practiced showing my parents around while explaining the exhibits I had made. Talk about a kid who knew what he wanted to do.
I have been very lucky to have worked in a variety of historic sites from the national parks to science museums and historic house museums. At each of these sites, I have had the experience of working with some cool objects, too. But my start in museums was right here in our valley.
My first foray into the museum world was when I was 15 years old. I was not able to drive yet but I wanted to go to the Hancock County Museum in New Cumberland to help as a museum docent. My grandmother tells the story that I asked her to drive me, and she agreed, eventually joining the group. The Hancock County Museum is in the Marshall house on Ridge Avenue in New Cumberland. It is a beautiful Victorian home built in 1887 for Sen. Oliver S. Marshall and his family.
Marshall is said to have designed the house for his first wife, Elizabeth Tarr. She loved the river, so he was careful to make sure every room had some view of the river, and most do. Oliver is someone who shows up a lot in local history. Often, I encounter his picture in some of our early photographs. Two come to mind specifically. One features him standing at the top of Avenue B in Weirton around the time the neighborhood was laid out and the other is him throwing out the first pitch of a baseball game in 1915.
The Marshall family lived in the house for more than 100 years. Oliver passed away in 1934, but his daughter, Virginia, a well-known teacher, lived there until 1997. According to lore, Virginia wanted the home demolished after she passed away, but, luckily, it was saved from that fate by a group of dedicated volunteers who wanted to establish a county museum. Today the museum hosts lectures and exhibits and is the home to a large local brick collection, among other important local artifacts. One of my favorite objects is a pair of field hockey sticks that were found in the attic of the home and were used by the Marshall children at the turn of the last century.
The Hancock County Museum is a rare survivor of early life in Hancock County.
Going down the river a bit, the Weirton Area Museum and Cultural Center is another place that houses a lot of local history. The bulk of the museum's objects are made up of what we call the Weirton Steel collection, and that includes much of the company's archives throughout its history. The collection is made up of so many things important to our city that it would be impossible to single out any one thing. Some of my favorite artifacts are the 8-inch howitzer shells produced at Weirton Steel during World War II; a piece of pig iron cast from Weirton Steel's first blast furnace on July 23, 1919; and the tens of thousands of photographs taken by the Weirton Steel Bulletin staff during the decades that captured the history of our town. I think one would be hard pressed to find another town with such a photographic record of its history.
The best part about the photograph collection connected with the publication is that the staff of the bulletin office kept detailed ledgers listing all of the pictures they took, whether they appeared in the final publication or not. Each of these books is now at the museum in addition to the corresponding photo negatives. A group of volunteers works hard to maintain the collection and keep this history alive.
Historic Fort Steuben is another gem in our crown of local historical sites. The fort is a reconstruction of the original 1786-1787 structure that was located at the same site in downtown Steubenville.
I won't get into the history of the fort here, but what is absolutely unique about the site is how the reconstruction and founding of the organization got its start.
In 1985, Jack Boyde, an archaeologist at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, gave a talk about Fort Steuben and the digs he had completed on the site since 1978 to a group from the American Association of University Women. In the audience was Elizabeth King who, along with others, was inspired to rebuild the fort as a historic site. With a lot of hard work and determination, that dream was realized with the reconstruction of the fort, the building of the visitor center, amphitheater and park, and later the inclusion of the First Federal Land Office into the complex. Historic Fort Steuben also has incredible collections, too, like a large local Native American projectile point collection that is certainly worth the trip to see. A trip to the fort is a trip back in time to the past in our area.
What is important and vital at all of our local museums is that they all rely on the work of volunteers and limited funds to stay open. So many folks have given so much of their time and money to make sure we have these places to keep our history alive.
Recently we lost an important volunteer, former board member and supporter of Historic Fort Steuben. Andy Celestin, who died on July 15, had been a board member of the fort for decades. He was a docent, led tours and talks and was a woodworker, crafting many of the objects and furniture one sees when they visit the reconstructed buildings today. Even though Andy is no longer with us, his legacy will be felt at the fort for many more years to come because of his gifts of time and talent.
At the center of it all, these institutions would not be here without dedicated people working hard to make it possible.
If you have any extra time, I would encourage you to stop by, learn a thing or two about our past, and maybe you might feel inclined to donate a few bucks or, better yet, a few hours to help keep our local museums here for a long time to come.
(Zuros is a historian and Ohio Valley native)