He was a cabin boy at eight, a midshipman at nine and temporary captain of a captured ship at twelve.  He served his country for nearly sixty years and would  retire as the firs

Location(s) Tyrone History MuseumTyrone, PASee map: Google MapsSanta Claus is comin' to town!

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Every once in awhile a teacher actually can say, " Wow!  I knew that celebrity way back when!"  or " I hope he remembers me when he's rich and famous!"  I can pro

Maria Molson, born January 30, 1825, to James and Betsy Cook of Lycoming County, lived at 19 East Water Street, Lock Haven. During the Civil War, she operated a station on the Underground Railroad at this address, allowing the slaves to stay in her house before their next stop in Renovo. From there, they went to Olean, new York.

The Bucktail Regiment was a renowned Civil War fighting unit.  More than six decades after the end of the war, the unit was recognized in the name of Route 120, between St. Marys and Emporium, PA.  At that time, the first days of the organization of this unit were recounted in a local newspaper.

Between 1861 and 1865, the St. Andrew Bay Saltworks, one of the largest producers of salt in the South, contributed to the Confederate cause by providing salt, fish and cattle for southern troops and citizens. A necessary preservative in those times, salt sold for as much as $50 per bushel, and was produced in wood-fired saltworks on the perimeter of the West Bay, East Bay and North Bay and Lake Powell (a.k.a. Lake Ocala). An estimated 2,500 men, primarily from Florida, Georgia and Alabama, were exempted from combat duty in order to labor in the saltworks. The salt was transported to Eufaula, Alabama, then to Montgomery, for distribution throughout the Confederate states. Because of the importance of St. Andrew Bay Saltworks to the Confederacy, acting Master W.R. Browne, commander of the U.S. Restless, was instructed to commence a series of assaults beginning in August 1862. In December 1863, additional Union attacks occurred, which Confederate home guards could not resist. The attacks resulted in the destruction of more than 290 saltworks, valued by Master Browne at more than $3,000,000. The St. Andrew Bay Saltworks employees promptly rebuilt them, and they remained in operation through February 1865.

Sanderson, FL was used by both Union and Confederate soldiers as a camp during the campaign of 1864. The camp was used as a Confederate supply depot but it was abandoned on February 9, 1864. From the 9th to the 13th, it was held by Federals and used as a base for raids on Lake City and Gainesville. On February 20 the site was by Federals attacking Olustee. In retreat from Olustee the camp again fell into Confederate hands.

Location(s) McKean CountySmethport, PASee map: Google MapsMcKean County, PA was formed on March 26, 1804 out of Lycoming County. Named for Pennsylvania Governor Thomas McKean. Smethport, the county seat, was incorporated in 1853.