First Permanent Railroad in the Nation. Originally built in 1810, the Leiper Railroad transports stone from quarries on Crum Creek to the landing on Ridley Creek, a distance of ¾ mile. It stops operation in 1828. Pictured here is the second Leiper...
Henry Thomason was the Valedictorian of his P.M.A. class of 1879. He was trained as a doctor and served in the US Military. In 1898, he enlisted in the Spanish American War as Major and Surgeon in the Michigan Volunteer Infantry. He served as an...
“When Duty Calls, ‘Tis Ours to Obey”. The Hanley Hose Company, incorporated in 1869, is a Chester institution. In 1886 the city gives Hanley what is reportedly its first steam-powered fire engine.
Baldt Anchor Founded, 1901. The company’s first product is the Baldt Stockless Anchor, patented in 1896. Baldt Anchor becomes one of the nation’s leading manufacturers of anchors and chain.
PMA Mandolin and Guitar Club, c. 1890. Music plays an important role at the school, from the earliest days of the drum and bugle corps through the triumph of the PMC Marching Band when it wins first place as the best ROTC marching band at the New...
The Harvey Grammar School, 1906. Built in 1867 as the city’s first high school, in the early 1900s it is converted to a grammar school for the growing African American population. Most Chester schools remain in a state of de facto segregation...
Birth of the Hoagie, DiCostanza’s Grocery, 1925. Chester lore says that a hungry gambler requests a sandwich made of “everything you have in the case” and Mom DiCostanza obliges by creating the first hoagie.
Vacation Bible School, c. 1928. Pastor Abraham Lathem starts the nation’s first Vacation Bible School at the Third Presbyterian Church at 9th and Potter Streets. At its peak, approximately 700 people participate. PMC President Frank Hyatt rents a...
Captain Frank Spang graduated from Pennsylvania Military College in 1939. He distinguished himself as battalion captain of his class, and also as the first four letter athlete in the history of PMC ( he played basketball, golf, tennis, and...
World War, 1939-1945 -- Education and the war; Pennsylvania Military College; Army Specialized Training Program (U.S.)
On pages 199; 209-211, DelVecchio describes the ASTP and ASTRP Programs. DelVecchio, V. (1997). Beneath the Dome - The Story of Pennsylvania Military College. Santa Barbara, CA.
