POTTSVILLE, Pa. — "We wanted to show the diversity of Schuylkill County beyond just anthracite, which most people know about," said James Haluska of the Schuylkill County Historical Society.
Every day for the past year, the Schuylkill County Historical Society has sorted through its archives of around 30,000 photos to post one picture a day for its "Trips Around Schuylkill" Facebook movement, highlighting different parts of the county's history. It could be a map of Girardville from the late 1800s, Muhammad Ali training at Fighter's Heaven near Orwigsburg, a throwback of downtown Tamaqua during its heyday, or various pictures of coal mines. The black and white memories add a nostalgic touch to it all.
"Our numbers have exploded. We've gotten around 100 followers per month over the last year with this feature. People are really responding to it because with our posts being so diverse, there's a little something for everybody."
The following is especially important because the historical society is a nonprofit organization, so any boost to bring attention to this encyclopedia of a place on North Centre Street in Pottsville goes a long way in keeping this resource available to people.
"We are a 501(c)(3), so we really need to raise awareness of what we do here and like so many other 501(c)(3)s, we do need financial support, so this sort of helps raise that awareness," Haluska said.