HISTORY: Enon valley celebrates its past

By Jenna Staul
New Castle News

July 21, 2008 09:50 am

— Residents of Enon Valley gathered Saturday to celebrate the borough’s roots.
Enon Valley Community Day saw residents of the southern Lawrence County village throwing a borough-wide get-together in recognition of its rich history and newly established historical society.
Although the borough has had an annual community day every summer since 1976, this year’s festival assumed a decidedly historical theme, explained Jerry Stone, Enon Valley Historical Society president.
In May 2007, the former Enon Valley Community Organization made the switch to become the Enon Valley Historical Society, and this year’s history-minded festival, complete with Civil War re-enactors and a horse-drawn shuttle — paid tribute to that.
“It’s basically the same thing, but we want to focus more on the history,” said Florence Braden, historical society treasurer.
“We started by celebrating the bicentennial here, so that developed into a community day and the Enon Valley Community Organization. It’s just grown and grown.”
Civil War re-enactors from the Battery “B” regiment, based in Lancaster, were on hand at the celebration, launching canons into an empty field and giving attendees a glimpse into Civil-War era warfare.
During the Civil War, Enon Valley boasted the only passenger railway in Lawrence County, where men from Enon Valley, New Castle and other nearby communities would board trains taking them south to the battlefields.
“We are trying to preserve the past, present and the future,” said Stone, standing inside the society’s newly purchased building, Zich Garage, a rustic 19th century structure he said originally had been used as a shoe store.
The day also featured music from the Pittsburgh Banjo Club, crafts, art and food sold by local vendors, lawn tractor races and a rousing chicken poop contest held in the yard of Enon Valley resident Frank O’Neal.
“I live in town so I might as well join in,” O’Neal said.
“You see a lot of the neighbors that you don’t normally see. It’s like any small community just getting together.”
As he placed his bets for the chicken poop contest, Robert Tonge said going to the festival is the natural thing to do for any Enon Valley resident.
“You get to come out and see people you don’t normally see and check out the events,” Tonge said.
“It’s a laid-back quiet town.”

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