History

Revisit early 20th century Lebanon, its leatherheads and its land surveyors, in this month’s Past Calling, brought to you by LebTown and the Lebanon County Historical Society.

A solitary monument along Route 117 is all that’s left to remind us of the Colebrook church founded by the first male American to be canonized, St. John Neumann.

Joshua Pusey is typically credited as the inventor the matchbook back in 1892, but Lebanon businessman and inventor Charles Bowman also holds a claim to the title.

Veterans Day, as we know it, dates back to 1954 and has roots in the celebration of World War I’s Armistice Day in November of 1919, but some of Lebanon’s prominent veterans were being recognized long before that.

The Samler Building has been making necks crane for over 125 years. Have you ever wondered about its story? Here’s our history of this iconic Lebanon building.

Past Callings: this is a phrase—not so much used anymore—to describe former occupations that one had. It is also going to be the name of a new monthly feature brought to you jointly by LebTown and the Lebanon County Historical Society.

A local legend set at Colebrook Furnace tells of a cruel ironmaster and his pack of hounds. Here’s our retelling, just in time for Halloween.

John Heisman, whose last name lives on for college football fans in the form of the Heisman Trophy, once ran a football camp in Mt. Gretna.

Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church, also known as the Old Salem Lutheran Church, will be commemorated as an important site in the history of Mid-Atlantic Lutheranism on October 12.

Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes story “The Red-Headed League” was inspired by Lebanon, Pennsylvania’s infamous Blue-Eyed Six murder case of 1878.

One of the country’s first culinary celebrities settled down in the Colebrook area in her later years, and continued to educate and influence the community around her.

Take a trip back into the Golden Age of roller skating and see how Lebanon’s take on the pastime changed through the years.

Penn State’s biggest blowout ever took place against none other than Lebanon Valley College.

The Street Fair celebrated its 70th and final occurrence last year, but the community spirit that drove the fair from the start is alive and well in its successor event, the WGSH Auxiliary Festival of Theme Baskets.