Visits from my ex-student and long-time friend Kevin Abt are always red-letter days; a recent one was no exception. He had suggested we spend a day exploring history in Fayette County, hoping we could locate some old beehive coke ovens. Kevin knew that there was a battery of coke ovens in Smock (near Uniontown) twenty-five years ago, but we were unable to find any trace of them. We had passed a building with a sign “Smock Historical Society Museum” in the village, so we returned there hoping to find someone there who could help us.
This was a wise decision. There we found Nadine Sethman, Society President. She confirmed that the ovens Kevin remembered had been demolished, then invited us in to inspect the museum, located on the second floor of the Smock Community Recreation and Heritage Center. The Center was originally the company store for the company town which was built and maintained by a succession of companies mining coking coal in the rich Connellsville Seam – J. D. Boyd Coal Company, Buffalo Coal Company, Pittsburgh Coal Company, and H. C. Frick Coke Company – until World War II.
Our guide gave us an excellent tour. In addition to a large collection of local memorabilia, primarily focused on coal mining and coke production (including a sheaf of engineering drawings for the construction of a battery of beehive ovens), it included half a dozen rooms depicting life in Smock a century ago. The most interesting artifact displayed is a framed photograph of a young Franklin Delano Roosevelt, with a bullet hole in it. According to her story, the Union Beer Garden was used as a meeting place for the United Mine Workers during the early days of its organization. Some anti-union faction (surely not the Frick Company!) tried to intimidate the union organizers by firing a “tommy-gun” into the establishment from a passing vehicle. Fortunately, the only fatality was FDR’s portrait. I made a point of putting my little finger in the bullet hole.
Our next stop was Perryopolis, just a few miles to the north. It is a lovely, well maintained village, featuring a classic town square where eight radial streets converge. After several false starts we were successful in finding the “George Washington Grist Mill”, a faithful reproduction of the original mill constructed by Gilbert Simpson for Washington in 1766. The first building collapsed a century ago and was reconstructed in 1999. It apparently is maintained by the local historical society, but has never been sufficiently outfitted to become a legitimate tourist attraction. It certainly would be impressive to see the dam on Washington Run rebuilt and a millrace full of water turning the water wheel.
We then crossed the Youghiogheny at Layton and drove a few miles to “West Overton Village”. There a non-profit organization maintains and operates nineteen historic buildings on a 40-acre site, providing an excellent opportunity for visitors to get a taste of the early days of the Industrial Revolution in western Pennsylvania. In 1800 Heinrich Oberholtzer brought his wife and twelve children west to the Jacobs Creek area to settle with a group of fellow Mennonites. Three years later, now known as Henry Overholt, he acquired 263 acres of prime farmland between Scottdale and Mount Pleasant. He died in 1813 and was succeeded by Abraham Overholt as family patriarch.
In the next six decades the family business prospered, primarily because of the production of “Monongahela” rye whiskey. A combined distillery and grist mill, a village composed of workers’ houses, and the (1838) Overholt mansion were constructed. The next generation of Overholts diversified into coal and coke production, enhancing their prosperity. One member of this generation was Abraham’s grandson, Henry Clay Frick, born in 1849. Henry apparently developed his business acumen while working as a book-keeper in the family business. He incorporated the H. C. Frick Coke Company, acquired coal properties and built beehive coke ovens, and was wealthy enough by 1880 to purchase the Clayton mansion in Pittsburgh. The Overholt family continued to prosper until Prohibition shut down their distillery in 1919. Henry died that same year, leaving his massive fortune to his daughter Helen Clay Frick. She acquired the current West Overton property in 1922 with the intention of maintaining it as a memorial to her father.
We began our visit in the main building, which was originally their grist mill. It is well outfitted and full of interesting artifacts and information dealing with the many operations of the Overholt Village a century and a half ago. We then joined a guided tour, where we were blessed with another gifted tour guide. The tour immediately exited the museum and moved across the road and into the aforementioned Overholt Mansion. She explained that Abraham had built this ostentatious house as a wedding gift for his wife, Maria Stauffer. Inside is a wide center hall with a pair of rooms on each side. The guide explained that, except for a parlor on the first floor and a dining room and food preparation room in the basement, all of the other nine rooms were bedrooms. And, sure enough, the very first room on the first floor was the mansion’s master bedroom. The mansion is filled with family portraits and exquisite period furniture. The parlor has a marvelous fireplace with a custom-made “surround”, illustrating Lord Byron’s “Don Juan”. The cooking, baking, and laundry were all handled in a separate outbuilding, which we also visited.
All told, it was a memorable day – good weather, good company, and very interesting things to see. The contrast between living quarters for immigrant coal miners in Smock and industrial barons in West Overton is significant. Each of the three venues warrants a visit; I wish Perryopolis was well enough funded to develop the Washington Grist Mill site to the extent Ms. Frick did West Overton. We western Pennsylvanians are fortunate to have so many historical sites available to visit.