NEW LOCAL BOOK: by the Side of the Road: the Autobiography of Miss Lillian Mccahan

NEW LOCAL BOOK: By the Side of the Road: The Autobiography of Miss Lillian McCahan

Lillian was a preservation champion of Ferncliff Park (Now Part of Ohiopyle State Park) and the Western Maryland Railway’s female Agent-Operator on the Connellsville, PA and the Thomas, WV Sub- Divisions from 1918 to 1968. Dunbar Historical Society members, Arnold and Phyllis Brubaker received the story from Lillian’s sister, Inez Dunaway. According to the Brubakers, when they received the manuscript, Inez told them that Lillian had wanted to publish her autobiography but Lillian passed away, September 18, 1979, before she was able to realize her dream. The manuscript was tucked away for several years, before the Brubakers came across it again. At that time, they believed her story should be told and the manuscript was donated to the Dunbar Historical Society with the hopes that it could be published. Lillian will be best remembered for her letter-writing campaign that saved Ferncliff Park which led to the formation of Ohiopyle State Park. In addition, her devotion, love and passion, as evidenced in this volume, was her dedication to her family and her work on the Western Maryland Railroad, where she was a “woman doing a man’s job and earning a man’s pay.” Readers may find the locations where she grew up and worked to be familiar ones: Fairfax, Elkins, Beverly, Huttonsville and William, West Virginia; Deal, Colmar, Confluence, Dunbar, Ohiopyle, Bowest, Connellsville, Rockwood and Garrett, Pennsylvania, most sub-division locations on the Western Maryland Railway. Her autobiography tells of her hopes and dreams and the life issues that intervened to keep her from realizing those dreams. The reader will follow the life of a woman from her youth through her later years and witness both the love and the frustrations she faced as her job of telegrapher and agent– operator for the Western Maryland Railway Company. The reader will find a woman who broke with the norm of what a woman’s role was perceived to be in the early 1900s. In these pages, they will find a young, shy, insecure girl whose life experiences moved her to form strong opinions of right and wrong and who, later in her life, ruffled some feathers with her strong opinions and work ethic. She loved and appreciated the beauty in the world around her, but believed a balance was needed between conservation and jobs for the local citizenry. Her stories of life in the railroad stations where she worked and the Bowest stories of the “souls who passed in the night” riding the trains during the depression, reveal historical glimpses into a bygone time. In addition to the autobiography, many pictures of the people and places mentioned in the book, were added to the text. Appendices include news articles, letters, genealogical information along with an extensive bibliography. Her story provides a unique female perspective into a “man’s job.”

For More Information or To Order a Copy Contact: The Dunbar Historical Society P.O. Box 366 Dunbar, Pennsylvania 15431 Phone: 724-277-8800 (Voice Message) Website: www.dunbarhistoricalsociety.com Email: [email protected]

Donation for Book: $25.00 Add $4.00 If Shipping Is Desired Make Checks Payable to: Dunbar Historical Society Note: McCahan Book in Memo Line

THIS BOOK IS ONLY AVAILABLE AT THE DUNBAR HISTORICAL SOCIETY. A 501 (C) (3) Non-profit Organization

PREFACE

CHAPTER 1: THE BEGINNING

CHAPTER II: FAIRFAX

CHAPTER III: GARRETT

CHAPTER IV: CONNELLSVILLE

CHAPTER V: THE LAST OF THE ‘20S

CHAPTER VI: THE THIRTIES CHAPTER VII: LIVING WITH HEARTBREAK CHAPTER VIII: ROLLING ON POSTSCRIPT APPENDIX 1 BOOK CHAPTER NOTES APPENDIX 2 EXPANDED BOOKNOTE RESEARCH APPENDIX 3 REMEMBRANCES, NEWS ARTICLES, OBITUARIES AND LETTERS

APPENDIX 4 BIBLIOGRAPHY