Norman Gasbarro | July 1, 2011
Just about everyone in the Lykens Valley area of Pennsylvania knows the story of Gratz baseball star Carl Scheib and his quick ascent to the big leagues, becoming the youngest person ever signed to a American League baseball contract when he joined the Philadelphia Athletics at the age of 16 during the 1940s. Now a […]
Norman Gasbarro | June 18, 2011
Today we begin a series of posts to try to determine what Gratz looked like during the Civil War, 1861-1865. One of the purposes of this series will be to determine what buildings remain from the period. We begin with some of the available maps. The first map is of the “Lot Plan” of Simon […]
Norman Gasbarro | May 8, 2011
On this Mother’s Day 2011, it might be interesting to reflect on what we know about the mothers of Civil War veterans, particularly those who died in the war during the first full year of the conflict. Using the Veterans List that was recently compiled and posted here, a quick search was made for those […]
Norman Gasbarro | May 5, 2011
Today is Cinco de Mayo (Fifth of May), a holiday that had its origins during the American Civil War. It commemorates the Mexican army’s victory over the French forces of Napoleon III at the Battle of Puebla. The holiday was actually created by Mexicans living in California who supported the cause of Mexican freedom. Ironically, […]
Norman Gasbarro | April 29, 2011
Christopher Gist, an immigrant from England around 1682, settled in the Baltimore area of Maryland in 1891. His marriage to Edith Cromwell had connected him to one of the prominent lines of English descent, that of Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector. The son of this marriage, Richard Gist (1684-1741), was the father of western explorer […]
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