While away the Winter Blues with Cultural Heritage Workshops!  

Explore the heritage of Southwestern Pennsylvania as well as your own during the Rivers of Steel Cultural Heritage Workshops. Take classes such as Telling Your Story: Oral Histories Step-by-Step or Pittsburgh's Food Treasures, among others. Workshops begin Saturday, Feb. 19 and will be offered Saturdays through May 16. Each two-hour workshop includes light refreshments. Bring a friend or family member and make a morning of it! Limited seating so sign up online now!

Cultural Workshop Schedule:

Telling Your Story: Oral Histories Step-by-Step

10 a.m. to noon Feb. 19 at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Genealogy: How do I Start?

10 a.m. to noon Feb. 26 at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40  

Beautiful Writing: History and Hands-on Calligraphy  

10 a.m. to noon March 5, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Photo Detective: Deciphering Pictures to Uncover Your History

10 a.m. to noon March 12, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Heritage Scrapbooking: How to Creatively Preserve Family Photographs

10 a.m. to noon March 19, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Pittsburgh's Food Treasures or How We Got the Pierogi

10 a.m. to noon March 26, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Repurposing Your Handheld Heirlooms

10 a.m. to noon April 2, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Here Comes the Bride: Pittsburgh Wedding Rituals

10 a.m. to noon April 9, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Beginning Digital Photography

10 a.m. to noon May 7, at The Bost Building, Homestead; $40

Digital Photo Safari

10 a.m. to noon May 14, at The Pump House, Munhall; $50

For more information, click here or call 412.464.4020, ext. 32.

2011 Dates for Carrie Furnace Hard Hat Tours

Public tour dates have been set for the 2011 Carrie Furnace Hard Hat Tours. Take the tour and learn about the furnaces, constructed in 1906, that were at the heart of U.S. Steel's Homestead Works. At one time, the furnaces produced more than 1,000 tons of iron a day. Now, these 92-foot-tall structures stand as sentinels to our region's steel heritage. Choose from six dates: April 30, May 21, June 18, Aug. 20, Sept. 17 and Oct. 15. The tours are approximately 1.5 hours long. Gift Certificates are available. For more information, click here or call 412.464.4020, ext. 32.      

Routes to Roots

Exploring the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area

(Excerpts from the "Routes to Roots" Driving Guide)

Ruff Creek General Store

720 Washington Road, Prosperity, Pa

724.627.9122

Located in Greene County, the Ruff Creek General Store's claim to fame is being the oldest continuously operating general store in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Opened in 1925 and located just north of Waynesburg off Interstate 79, the general store sells penny candy, hunting gear, feed, boots and hardware, along with a grocery store, a deli and a gas station. Open daily. The town of Ruff Creek is located in the Monongahela Route of the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area, the "Fueling a Revolution" journey area, and encompasses parts of Greene, Washington and Fayette counties. An abundance of coal patch towns were located near the river, providing much needed fuel to create steel. According to a recent Greene County comprehensive plan, a coal heritage park is in the works for the Ruff Creek area. The Routes to Roots driving guide is available at the Rivers of Steel Museum Shop located at 623 E. 8th Ave., Homestead. 
  

Allegheny County's Riverfronts by the PECPA

Have you read a story or written a blog about Carrie Furnace or Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area? Let us know and we may include it in our next newsletter! Email [email protected]