On Friday, May 2 Pottsville’s Sovereign Majestic Theater will premiere the indie film “The Town That Was,” a portrait of life in Centralia, where an underground mine fire has been burning since 1962.
The premiere will be at 7 PM. Additional screenings are set for Saturday, May 3 at 2 and 7 PM.
Tickets are $5. Call the Pottsville Area Development Corp. at 570-628-4647 to reserve yours or for more information.
An article about “The Town That Was” appears in today’s Republican & Herald online.
Whichever presidential candidate you support, there’s no denying that the words spoken by Scranton Mayor Christopher A. Doherty in this NY Times video about Hillary Clinton are true: hard work is a trait of the Anthracite Region.
It’s important that you vote in Pennsylvania’s April 22 Primary Election.
For voter information click here to access PA’s Bureau of Elections.
Click on a candidates’ name to access his or her website:
Yesterday, we recognized the contributions and sacrifices of Pennsylvania’s coal miners as our State Legislature designsted Dec. 19, 2007, as Coal Miners Day.
The following is an excerpt from Governor Ed Rendell’s comments during a Coal Miners Day ceremony in Harrisburg:
It is my distinct honor to join with everyone in attendance today to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Darr Coal Mine Disaster and to recognize Coal Miners Day.
Coal has played an important role in both our commonwealth’s history and economy. Pennsylvania is a leading coal-producing state, and the only state in the nation to mine anthracite coal. For decades, coal was the fuel of choice for transportation and other steam-powered applications as well as an essential part of our commonwealth’s steel production.
The Darr Mine was the site of Pennsylvania’s worst coal mining disaster. On December 19, 1907—the same year that claimed more than 3,242 miners across the United States, including 1,514 from Pennsylvania—a dust and gas explosion took the lives of 239 miners at the Darr Mine in Van Meter, Westmoreland County, leaving behind countless widows and children.
As Governor and on behalf of all Pennsylvanians, I am pleased to join with you in recognizing December 19, 2007, as Coal Miners Day on the 100th anniversary of the Darr Mine accident. Today we remember these hard working, brave souls who lost their lives, but whose death was the impetus to sweeping changes in mine safety, both in the application of technology and in federal and state regulations.
Coal is in our nation’s awareness this week as the subject of an article and editorial in The NY Times.
Tuesday’s article Lawmakers Push for Big Subsidies for Coal Process says, “Even as Congressional leaders draft legislation to reduce greenhouse gases linked to global warming, a powerful roster of Democrats and Republicans is pushing to subsidize coal as the king of alternative fuels.”
Today’s The Coal Trap editorial discussed how the coal-to-liquids solution to America’s energy crisis could leave us “treading water” on the global warming front.
Nancy (Lewis) Moeller, a Minersville native who now lives in Pottsville, offers her opinion of the Anthracite Region’s coal heritage and her Coal Cracker pride in today’s Republican and Herald online. Read Nancy’s letter HERE.
The Schuylkill Mall made The New York Times on Friday, February 16, with a mention in an article about traffic snarls and highway closings following the Valentine’s Day snow storm.
Interstates 78, 80 and 81 will open today at 4 PM, according to a statement by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, who on Friday called the state’s response to the storm “unacceptable.”
Rendell has called for a formal review of the situation by former Federal Emergency Management Agency Director James Lee Witt.
President Bush’s proposed budget, presented to the public last Monday, offered no funding for Schuylkill County’s controversial coal-to-oil project, slated for Gilberton.
Read more about Bush’s decision not to recognize the project as well as the reaction of PA politicians and coal-to-oil advocate John Rich, Jr. in today’s Republican & Herald.
Learn more about our community’s opinions on the project at:
“Intensely fragrant steam rises from the simmering pot. Fruits, spices and honey swirl in a kaleidoscope of colors and holiday scents of cinnamon, cloves and caraway. Boilo-making has begun.” Thus begins CrackerBlog Contributor Sandy Long’s exploration of the Anthracite Region’s seasonal drink sensation—Boilo—in this week’s edition of The River Reporter.
Visit Long’s article online for a Boilo recipe, and a brief history of the holiday cocktail.
This week’s River Reporter, a weekly newspaper based in Narrowsburg,
Bundled against the buffeting winds, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary visitor
Nicholas Foley,
posted near one of the sanctuary’s lookouts. Thousands of children visit
environmental issues associated with raptor welfare.
Located along the Appalachian Flyway in east-central
Our prayers and support go out to the family and friends of Dale Reightler, a Schuylkill
Local news reports of the accident appear in today’s Republican & Herald:
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17368466&BRD=2626&PAG=461&dept_id=529074&rfi=6
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17368464&BRD=2626&PAG=461&dept_id=532624&rfi=6