FEBRUARY Archives 2020 Wilkinsburg Historical Society Newsletter Volume 26, issue 1

SPECIAL LINCOLN’S BIRTHDAY ISSUE. PLEASE HELP CELEBRATE!

FEBRUARY IS LINCOLN’S BIRTHDAY MONTH, and we're celebrating all month long and during March. YOUR DONATION TO THE LINCOLN STATUE FUND WILL BE MATCHED, SO THE VALUE OF YOUR GIFT IS DOUBLED!

Due to the extreme generosity of an Abraham Lincoln fan, all Lincoln statue donations of cash/check gifts during February and March will be matched. This means that any individual or business who gives check or cash (not real estate or stocks), to the Wilkinsburg Historical Society to pay for the creation of a bronze statue of Lincoln will have that amount matched to the fund. This gift must be either through the “GoFundMe-Lincoln statue for Wilkinsburg”, or through the Wilkinsburg Historical Society, PO Box 17252, Pittsburgh, PA 15235, and memo “Lincoln statue fund”. Another donation method would be a contribution to our fiscal sponsor, Center for Civic Arts, 211 Bevington Road, Pgh, PA 15221, and clearly labeled Lincoln Statue Fund. ALL of these dedicated funds are strictly allocated to the Lincoln Statue project. Due to our amazing donors, the Lincoln Statue fund now has enough money to get the artistic process started. A bronze life-size statue of Abraham Lincoln is becoming a reality for Wilkinsburg. The first step in the creation of a bronze statue is for the artist to have an armature welded, basically a “skeleton” over which the clay is added and sculpted. This is the step we are in now.

THANK YOU TO ALL WHO ARE MAKING THIS PROJECT HAPPEN! ALL DONATIONS FROM $10. TO $10,000 WILL BE MATCHED! IF YOU HAVE DONATED ALREADY, THANK YOU VERY MUCH! PLEASE PASS THIS ALONG TO OTHERS WHO MAY WANT TO HELP.

The future monument to Abraham Lincoln will pay tribute to an amazing President who held the country together during the Civil War, abolished slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and was assassinated in April 1865 just as the War ended. This image shows the pedestal location in the distance, where Wilkinsburg has had a Lincoln statue since 1916. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mailing address: Wilkinsburg Historical Society, P.O. Box 17252, Pittsburgh, PA 15235. We meet at 7:30 PM on the third Monday of months March, June, August and November usually at the South Avenue United Methodist Church in Wilkinsburg. Meetings are always open to the public and free to attend. WE HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE! The Archives Historical Society newsletter is published monthly, March through November.

Wilkinsburg Historical Society yearly dues for the Wilkinsburg Historical Society are: $20.00 INDIVIDUAL Member, $35.00 FAMILY Membership $10.00 STUDENT or ASSOCIATE Members (for out of towners who usually can’t attend meetings) Please keep your membership dues up to date.

Wilkinsburg Historical Society is involved with preservation projects in the area as well as organizing the fundraiser for a new bronze Lincoln statue for the historic Lincoln Highway/ William Penn Highway intersection. Donations are appreciated, especially during February and March when they will be matched. Please send to: Wilkinsburg Historical Society, P.O. Box 17252, Pittsburgh, PA 15235 or check out the “GoFundMe Lincoln Statue for Wilkinsburg” online.

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The first meeting of the Wilkinsburg Historical Society for 2020 will be held on Monday March 16th at 7:30 in the evening. This meeting will be held at South Ave., United Methodist Church using the left Ross Avenue entrance. The doors open at 7 o’clock, meeting will start promptly at 7:30. Refreshments will be served. The program for the evening will be an update and overview of various projects that the Historical Society is involved in. There will be updates and progress reports for the various historical buildings, grants, projects that are happening in our historic Borough. FREE E-mail subscription to Wilkinsburg’s newsletter, The Wilkinsburg Sun.

Wilkinsburg Sun is a community newsletter about the GOOD news in Wilkinsburg. The newsletter is published 10 times a year and the print editions can be found at various locations, including the libraries, the Borough Building and the WCDC. If you want to ensure that you never miss another issue of The Sun, go to eepurl.com/v0iBP and sign up. You’ll receive a link to each and every issue via email -just as soon as they hit the street.

The Wilkinsburg Historical Society wants to be sure that everyone who loves Wilkinsburg will know about the effort to have a beautiful bronze Lincoln sculpted for the important intersection of the Lincoln Highway and the William Penn Hwy. This is often called “Ardmore at Penn”. On page 8 of the February issue of the Wilkinsburg Sun is a bright, eye-catching article about this ambitious project of the Historical Society. Please donate as you're able, and share this information with those you know. We would like everyone to have an opportunity to participate in beautifying Wilkinsburg with a handsome new monument to Abraham Lincoln. And the matching offer for February and March makes your donation twice as valuable. These are the three books that the Wilkinsburg Historical Society wrote and published during the past twelve years. They help to promote and preserve the history of Wilkinsburg and raise funds for the various projects of the Society. All three books are still available to purchase from the Society. Another way to support the activities of the Historical Society. On the far left is “Images of America - Wilkinsburg”, a 128 page soft-bound book printed by the Arcadia Publishing Company. It includes over 220 black and white photos depicting the history of our town from the early land patents in the late 1700s up to the 75th celebration of Wilkinsburg in 1962. The book is available from the Wilkinsburg Historical Society for $20.00, plus $3.00 for shipping.

The middle book above is “Wilkinsburg High School - Century of Learning 1911-2011”. This book chronicles the history of the local high school from its early start in the late 1880s, the creation of the magnificent structure in 1910, and each decade since with highlights of the events that were important in the lives of the students and the Wilkinsburg community. For over 100 years the Wilkinsburg High School served the Borough of Wilkinsburg students and this book has several hundred photos showing much of this important history. This Century of Learning book is available from the Wilkinsburg Historical Society for $15.00, plus $3.00 for shipping. The book on the far right is “Wilkinsburg - 1887-2012, Celebrating the Past, Present and Future”. This book was produced by the Historical Society in 2012 to recognize the 125th anniversary of Wilkinsburg’s incorporation as a Borough. This soft-bound book has 196 pages and includes chapters on the history of Wilkinsburg, the celebrations from the past, information about Wilkinsburg’s government, and all the events that occurred during the 125th celebration. There are several chapters about the clubs and organizations in Wilkinsburg as well as the churches and worship centers in the Borough. The “future of Wilkinsburg” section recognizes advertisers and sponsors who helped to fund the creation and printing of the book. This book, originally $15.00, is now available for $10.00, plus $3.00 for shipping.

Make check or money order payable to: Wilkinsburg Historical Society Orders can be mailed to: Wilkinsburg Historical Society, P.O.Box 17252, Pittsburgh, PA 15235

Images of America - Wilkinsburg ($20.00 + $3.00) = $23.00 Quantity____ Total ______

Century of Learning 1911-2011 ($15.00 + $3.00) = $18.00 Quantity____ Total ______

Wilkinsburg 1887-2012 ($10.00 + $3.00) = $13.00 Quantity____ Total______

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