Books

countnoble2Published in 2011 in cooperation with Sewickley Valley Historical Society, this book by Richard LeBeau concerns Count Noble, an English Setter so famous that his obituary appeared in the New York Times in 1891. Count Noble was owned by Glen Osborne resident B. F. Wilson, and his wife owned Mildmay Park Beauty, the first English Toy Spaniel registered by the American Kennel Club. In additon to the story of Count Noble, there is extensive information on the Wilson family and on Pittsburgh in their time.  Count Noble's bloodline has had a lasting impact on sporting Ehglish Setters and field trials in the United States.

Softbound, 2nd printing, revised, 8 1/2" x 5 1/2", 108 p., illus., maps

Price:  $14 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $4 postage/handling

historic houses

This is the second edition of Edgeworth Preservation's 1996 award-winning volume, long out of print. Containing text by Stephen Neal Dennis and 150 full color house portraits by photographer William J. Penberthy, this book is the definitive source on the remarkable domestic architecture of the Sewickley Valley. Published 2011 by Sewickley Valley Historical Society.

Hardbound, 10 1/2" x 10 1/2", 184 p., illus., map.

Price: $65.00 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $6.00 postage/handling

Sewickley Postcard History Series

Published in 2006, this new history of the Sewickley Valley is part of Arcadia Publishing's Postcard History Series. The book, written by the staff of the Sewickley Valley Historical Society, contains over 200 illustrations, most from the Society's collection, with captions that paint a portrait of the community and its environs.

Paperbound, 6" x 9" 128 p., illus., maps.

Price: $21.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Published in 2008, this book in Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series was written by Bettie Cole and Autumn Redcross. Beginning with Jim Robinson in 1823 and culminating in today's Come on Home annual reunion, the book documents the lives and ambitions of the African Americans who are a vital part of Sewickley's community today.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", illus.

Price: $19.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Published in 2009 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Sewickley Cemetery, this new history of the Sewickley Valley was written by Harton S. Semple, Jr., and designed and edited by Susan C. Holton, staff of the Sewickley Valley Historical Society.

Spiral bound, 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", 144 p., illus., maps

Price: $10 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $4.00 postage/handling

This is a 2006 reprint of the 1893 edition of Agnes L. Ellis's charming local history, with a new introduction by SVHS archivist, Dorothy M. Moore.

Hardbound, 6" x 8", 316 p., illus.

Price: $20.00 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $6.00 postage/handling

This is a reprint edition (Higginson Book Company, Salem, MA) of the book by Franklin Taylor Nevin (1867-1939), published by The Sewickley Printing-Shop in 1929. Most of these reminiscences appeared originally in the Sewickley Herald under the editorship of Daniel Eagle Nevin (1875-1947), a cousin of Franklin, who was also owner of the Sewickley Printing Shop. It filled the gap in local history that had existed since the publication of Agnes L. Ellisís Lights and Shadows of Sewickley Life, also for sale here in a reprint edition.

Hardbound, 6" x 9", 227 p., illus.

Price: $20.00 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $6.00 postage/handling

Walkers

Privately published in 2004, this book is a business and social history of two Scottish brothers who emigrated to Pittsburgh in the early 1830s and established a number of important businesses. One of them, the Harbison-Walker Refractories Co., dominated the U. S. market in firebricks. After being firmly established financially and socially, the Walkers built several mansions in Allegheny and the Sewickley Valley. Stephen Neal Dennis, author of Historic Houses of the Sewickley Valley, has sprinkled the book liberally with photos. Keep Tryst (the motto of the Walker Family) is available only at selected venues.

Hardbound, 7-1/2" x 10-1/4", 373 pages, illus.

Price: $25.00 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $6.00 postage/handling

Published by The Local History Company, Pittsburgh, in 2009, this volume is a reminiscence by James Oliver Goldsborough of his family, which includes military, political and industrial leaders of their time. Some names in the family tree are Shields, Crittenden, Oliver, Neville and Craig. Goldsborough spent the summers of his youth at the Crittenden home in Edgeworth, "Sucasa."

Hardbound, 6 1/4" x 9 1/4", 308 p., illus., maps

Price: $27.95 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $6.00 postage/handling

Written by Dennison Daniel Moore and William L. Moore, Jr., this book was published in 2010 in cooperation with the Sewickley Valley Historical Society. It is a charming illustrated history of the caves beneath Sewickley Cemetery and across the Ohio River in Coraopolis, most of which are now inaccessible.

Spiral bound, 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", 120 p., illus., maps

Price: $10 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $4.00 postage/handling

Walkers

Established in 1784, Allegheny Town was incorporated as Allegheny City in 1840 and became home to such prominent Americans as Andrew Carnegie, Mary Cassatt, George Ferris and Mary Roberts Rinehart. In January 1907 it was the third-largest city in Pennsylvania; by the end of that year it had been annexed by Pittsburgh. Many of Alleghenyís citizens built summer ìcottagesî in Sewickley Heights. This book by The Allegheny City Society was published in 2007 in Arcadia Publishingís Images of America series.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", 128 p., illus., map.

Price: $19.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Archivist and historian Larry R. Slater wrote this 2008 book, part of Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series, which chronicles the diverse history and evolution of Ambridge, from its beginnings as a meeting place for colonial and Native American leaders, to Legionville, to its role as the final home of the Harmony Society at Old Economy Village, to its heyday as the home of the American Bridge division of U. S. Steel.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", 128 p., illus., maps

Price: $19.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Walkers

The Coraopolis Historical Society and Gia Tatone produced this pictorial history of the town of Coraopolis in 2007. Originally a land grant of 300 acres, the community officially became a borough in 1886. This book documents one hundred years of history, highlighting such events as the opening of the Sewickley-Coraopolis Bridge, the great flood of 1936 and the days of Consolidated Glass. It is part of Arcadia Publishingís Images of America series.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", 128 p., illus.

Price: $19.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Dixmont State Hospital History Book

Published in 2006 in Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series, this book by Mark Berton uses historic photographs to open up the world of the 1859 complex named for famed mental health care reformer Dorothea Dix, who was instrumental in choosing the hospital's site. Dixmont was razed in 2006 for a commercial development.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", 128 p., illus., maps, plans.

Price: $19.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Walkers

Moon Township was formed in 1788 as one of the seven original townships of Allegheny County. Its history crosses borders into neighboring Findlay and Crescent Townships and includes Glenwillard (Shousetown) and Stoops Ferry. Its story is told in vintage photographs by Mark Benton. The volume is in Arcadia Publishingís Images of America series.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", 128 p., illus.

Price: $19.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

Gia Tatone and Dan Holland, with Neville Green, the island's environmental group, wrote this 2008 book, part of Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series. This five-mile island in the Ohio River was officially named in 1856. Because of its fertile soil, it became known as the market basket of Pittsburgh. The Dravo Corporation, which moved there in 1901, became the largest inland boat works in the United States.

Paperbound, 6" x 9", illus.

Price: $21.99 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $5.00 postage/handling

This is a reprint edition (2006, by Higginson Book Company, Salem, MA) of the book by Adelaide Mellier Nevin, published in Pittsburgh by T. W. Nevin, Publisher, in 1888. Adelaide, society editor of the Pittsburgh Leader, was a daughter of Daniel Eagle Nevin. In the words of Robert Burton, digital production librarian at the University of Pittsburgh, the book is "not politically correct by today's standards, [but it] provides a wonderful insight into gender and social status of the era." Several Sewickley women are delightfully described.

Hardbound, 7" x 8", 199 p., illus.

Price: $20.00 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $6.00 postage/handling

Written by Philip D. Zimmerman, this handsome volume was published by The Friends of Old Economy Village, Ambridge, PA, in 2010. It represents an innovative approach to furniture history. Old Economy's extensive collection, most of it dating from 1805-1835, is used, along with written records, to identify core features that distinguish Harmonist-made furniture from that made by craftsmen elsewhere.

Hardbound, 9 1/4" x 12 1/4", illus., maps

Price: $60 (PA residents add 7% sales tax), plus $10.00 postage/handling

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The mission of the Sewickley Valley Historical Society is to promote interest in and to record, collect, preserve, and document the history of the Sewickley Valley.

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