HR students place 3rd at History Day

Pittston Area defeats Wyoming Area, 5-0

First Posted: 11/5/2013 Did you know:
Last week we asked the question, &#8220;Beside the Sunday Dispatch, what other unique newspaper had its start in Pittston?&#8221;
Answer:
The Polish American Journal was founded in Pittston in October 1911, as a small Polish-language newspaper, Zorza (The Dawn). Ignatius Haduch was its editor. According to a website, &#8220;The PAJ is the nation&#8217;s largest, independent English language monthly newspaper dedicated to the promotion, preservation and continuance of Polish American culture. It is now published by Panagraphics, Inc. in Buffalo, New York. The PAJ has readers throughout the world. It is the most referenced Polish American publication in the Congressional Record.&#8221; To read more about this publication, log on to www.polamjournal.com.
Question:
In 1927, what dangerous acts left Pittston residents terrorized and local and state police baffled?
1947 &#8211; 66 YEARS AGO
Members of the Greater Pittston Chamber of Commerce were waiting to hear the outcome of a situation concerning the Mercury Footwear Company in Exeter. The company failed to pay its 135 employees their weekly wages totaling $6,000 and rumors spread that Mercury planned to vacate the chamber-provided building which housed the operation. An effort by the chamber to contact company management produced little result. Union employees were not expected to return to work.
Robert McKane, of the Spanish-American War Vets, Charles Ferraro and Albert Loquasto, Pittston American Legion, and Arthur Werts and Frank Houser, of the John D. Stark American Legion Post, contacted students attending the Greater Pittston Vocational School, asking that they be a part of a 12-man detail that would welcome the bodies of fallen American soldiers being returned to the US after World War II. The detail would meet incoming trains bearing the war dead and serve as pallbearers, escorting the bodies to the funeral director&#8217;s &#8220;carriage.&#8221; According to the Department of Defense, in a six-year period, from 1945 to 1951, more than 280,000 war dead were identified and brought home to be buried. Of the 16 million Americans who served in WWII, more than 400,000 died during the war. At the end of the war, there were approximately 79,000 Americans unaccounted for. Today, more than 73,000 Americans remain unaccounted for from WWII.
1967 &#8211; 46 YEARS AGO
Navy Lt. Commander Ann A. Bernatitus, Exeter, welcomed Captain Linda and Major Nancy Christ to a meeting of the Pittston Business and Professional Women&#8217;s Club. The Christ sisters, spoke of their service in various Army hospitals and with the 3rd Surgical Hospital Unit stationed in Saigon, Vietnam. Bernatitus was familiar with their experiences as she had served as a United States Navy nurse during World War II. Known as an Angel of Bataan, Bernatitus was one of the last Americans to escape the Japanese invasion of Corregidor Island in the Philippines, &#8220;slipping silently out of Manila Bay beneath the waves in the submarine U.S.S. Spearfish&#8221; as she described in her on-line biography. For her bravery under fire, Bernatitus was awarded the Legion of Merit award by Chief of Naval Personnel Rear ADmiral Randall Jacobs, who stated, &#8220;Your excellent service in a time of stress and under such dangerous conditions is worthy of the distinction shown you in becoming the first person in the United States Naval service to be so decorated.&#8221; To read more about Bernatitus and her incredible journey log on to www.homeofheroes.com
1987 &#8211; 26 YEARS AGO
Before ventriloquist Jeff Dunham and his grouchy sidekick Walter became hugely popular, there was Pittston&#8217;s own Ed Klush and his &#8220;knee pals&#8221; Stanley Kilboski I and II, country bumpkin Chester Drawers and a furry three-foot rabbit. Klush, a well-known local master of ceremonies, took up the art of ventriloquism in the early 1960s for an initial investment of $35. Honing his craft at local events for all ages, Klush especially enjoyed performing educational and comic shows for children. Klush, who passed away in 2009, was a Naval veteran and WPTS radio announcer and the father of Shawn Klush, who was named the first-ever &#8220;Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist&#8221; by Elvis Presley Enterprises in Memphis TN.
Lori Appnell, of Avoca, broke ground in 1987 when she approached Pittston Area Patriot football coach Bob Barbieri about being a student manager for the team. One of only a few female mangers in the area, Appnell&#8217;s interest in sports medicine and experience as a member of the school track team, gained Barbieri&#8217;s confidence that she was a good match for his players.
ANSWER
In 1927, the Pittston Gazette reported a bomber was on the loose, leaving residents on edge and authorities with very few leads as to his identity. The newly-constructed West Pittston High School on Montgomery Avenue was damaged by an early morning blast that also affected nearby homes and a church. The school was the third in a string of incidents in which dynamite was used. During the month of October, a candy company in South Pittston was the target, A month later, a resident discovering a fuse linked to a mound of dynamite along the Laurel Line in the Oregon section summoned a police officer who cut the burning fuse with only seconds to spare. Many believed the violence was brought on by labor disagreements.
&#8220;Children shouldn&#8217;t believe that their dream has to take them to the big time. They should pursue an interest out of love. If they love it and feel it, it&#8217;ll happen for them. If you like to sing, don&#8217;t be afraid to try out for the choir. If you&#8217;d like to play guitar, give it a try, even if you wind up playing for yourself. That&#8217;s okay, as long as you enjoy what you&#8217;re doing.&#8221; - Ed Klush, from a Nov. 9, 1987 Sunday Dispatch article headlined &#8220;Ed, Stanley & Company.&#8221;

Peeking into the past