About
The Allegheny Chronicles is a significant digital project initiated in 2006
by the Warren Library Association to preserve and provide worldwide access to
archival materials portraying the history of the Allegheny Watershed and the
important role the Allegheny River has played in the genesis of settlement and
continued growth in western Pennsylvania. The Warren Public Library is among
the oldest public institutions in northwest Pennsylvania and as a result it
owns a wealth of special materials mirroring the history and growth of the region.
Chartered in 1873, the library is located in the Historic District of the city
of Warren, a community whose history is intertwined with that of the Allegheny
and whose future plans continue to embrace La Belle Riviere – the Beautiful
River.
The initial collection of the Allegheny Chronicles, concerns the era of early rafting and lumbering and contains historic photographs documenting early life along the upper reaches of the Allegheny as well as historic charts of the river detailing the islands, bars, creeks, runs, eddies and low water channel from Warren to Pittsburgh. Moreover, this collection includes texts of early rivermen and lumbermen including reminiscences of places, colorful biographical highlights and many incidents that transpired in the early history of the region.
Part I of the Allegheny Chronicles, the Rafting and Lumbering Collection, consists of over 300 never before published digital images from the library’s Historic Warren Photograph Collection as well as books, pamphlets and links to additional resources.
It is envisioned that many other archival items from the Warren Public Library’s
Pennsylvania Collection will be added to the Allegheny Chronicles as funding
resources become available. This inaugural project was funded in part through
a Federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant administered by
the Pennsylvania Office of Commonwealth Libraries.