2023 Year in Review
Those of you who grew up in New Brighton understand the love we have for our town. We, here at the New Brighton Historical Society, are working to shine a spotlight on the remarkable history and accomplishments of our little corner of western Pennsylvania.
We've made some great progress over the years and want to share what we've accomplished in 2023. Let's keep the momentum going in 2024!
The Irish-Townsend House
A grant from the Keystone Historic Preservation Construction Grant Project was obtained
The restoration of the house’s front porch was completed (read more about it here!)
Underground Railroad Walking Tour
We held our third biennial event with the help of 33 spectacular volunteers
The event hosted 587 walkers from near and far
New programs were added to this year’s 2-day event, including:
A Friday evening guest lecture by University of Pittsburgh’s Dr. Laurence Glasco at the Merrick Art Gallery (a sold-out event for 90 people)
Historical actor Steven A. Cole entertained guests throughout the weekend with his portrayal of Frederick Douglass
A huge thank you to this year’s five main event sponsors:
Heritage Valley Health System
J&J Spratt Funeral Home
Carver Construction
Merrick Art Gallery
Santicola, Steele, & Fedeles P.C.
Community Involvement
The Historical Society participated a number of local events, including:
Beaver County Maple Syrup & Music Festival
Beaver County History Weekend
New Brighton’s Fall Festival
New Brighton’s Fire & Ice Festival
Our fundraising committee held two successful fundraising sales through Chesnut Hill Candles and Rosalind Candy Castle, and reined in a number of monetary donations and supplies to complete the front porch through our paint supplies campaign
Thank you to all of those who donated to our organization throughout the year of 2023!
Online Engagement
Our social media channels and engagement grew significantly:
Website engagement soared with 8.8k visits and 13k page views
General Society Updates
We welcomed a number of new members to our historical society
27 historic artifacts were acquired
Six guest speakers were hosted throughout the year at our standing monthly program
Two new officers were appointed:
Mike Spratt as President
Jane Mihalko as Treasurer (previously serving president)
Two officers were reinstated:
Carol Ripper as Vice President
Robin Watson as Secretary
Two new committees were formed:
Fundraising
Marketing & Communications
One new position was created:
Andrew Glover as Archivist
One new book was published:
Did You Know? by Odette Lambert
Join us in 2024!
Help to make 2024 our best year yet by joining the New Brighton Historical Society. Dues are $20 per person for those 16 years of age or older, or $30 per family. Purchase your membership at our next monthly meeting.