West Overton blends own WWII exhibit with traveling exhibit
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
An old journal of saved newspaper clippings from World War II will be on display at West Overton Museums.
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
Aaron Hollis, director of education at West Overton Museum, looks at a newspaper clipping from World War II that will be displayed at West Overton.
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
Andy L. Newsome, a miner with Colonial No. 3 near Smock, is pictured during the World War II era.
This memorabilia from the Connellsville Canteen was loaned to West Overton Museums from a Mt. Pleasant resident’s collection to display in their upcoming World War II exhibit.
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
Aaron Hollis, director of education at West Overton Museum, puts together a display of newspapers and magazines from the World War II era.
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
This compilation of World War II-era magazines and newspapers will be on display at West Overton Museums.
Rachel Basinger/For the Observer-Reporter
Aaron Hollis, director of education at West Overton, shows off a picture of a welding school in Everson during World War II where women were being trained to take the place of men in factory jobs. The picture was lent to the museum by Scottdale Historical Society.
A local institution that has been a donation-accepting entity for nearly 90 years, West Overton Museums has myriad items from pre-Civil War and beyond.
The museum’s director of education, Aaron Hollis, said they were contacted recently by the Senator John Heinz History Center to see if they would be interested in hosting their World War II traveling exhibit, “We Can Do It! WWII.”
“We are a member of their affiliates program and we had hosted some of their other exhibits in the past,” Hollis said. “We are primarily an 1800s site, but we do have a collection of things from the World War II era that have been donated to us.
“I thought this might be the perfect opportunity to display some of those items that we don’t normally get a chance to display,” he added.
With that, they agreed to host the exhibit and then began to make a move to put together their own complementary display.
“We actually have about 10 different organizations who have contributed and helped to make our exhibit possible,” Hollis said. “Their (the Heinz history center) exhibit tells the local story of the World War II era from Erie to Uniontown, but I thought if our exhibit could zoom in a bit further to focus on the life here between Mt. Pleasant and Connellsville as a rule of thumb, it would be of interest to our community.”
Besides their collection, Hollis said they have items to display that are on loan from area historical societies as well as private collections.
They have partnered with Brew: The Museum of Beer, the McCarl Coverlet Gallery, and several other local museums to curate an exhibit that explores Southwestern Pennsylvania’s homefront during the war.
“Through our exhibit, visitors will learn the war’s impact on local coal, distilling and brewing industries; the value of rationing, scrapping and buying war bonds; and listen to oral interviews with local homefront soldiers,” Hollis said.
Brew: The Museum of Beer, which hopes to open in the Pittsburgh area soon, will be contributing a display that will include information on the Yuengling family out of Pottstown as well as telling the story of what part beer played during World War II.
The 500-square-foot We Can Do It! WWII exhibit will explore Western Pennsylvania’s impact on the home, industrial and battle fronts during World War II.
Kim Roberts, communications coordinator at the Heinz History Center, said they created the exhibit to explore Pittsburgh’s role on both the homefront and the battlefield during WWII.
It was on display at the history center from April 2015 through January 2016, as the nation commemorated the 75th anniversary of the start of WWII.
Roberts said that as of now, West Overton is the only institute in Westmoreland County to host this traveling exhibit. The closest is the Donora Historical Society & Smog Museum, which is scheduled to host the exhibit beginning in February 2020.
“The history center’s Smithsonian-quality traveling exhibitions are provided free of charge to members of the History Center Affiliates Program, a collection of more than 125 historical organizations throughout the region,” Roberts said.
Both the traveling exhibit from the Heinz History Center and the exhibit put together by West Overton will be open for visitors beginning Feb. 9. While the traveling exhibit will be at West Overton until March 26, their exhibit will be on display until Oct. 31.
An opening reception will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. Feb. 9, in the distillery museum. Admission is $10 and includes two complimentary adult drinks, and light hors d’oeuvres will be served. Tickets can be purchased at westovertonvillage.org/events/, 724-887-7910 or at the door.