Lattimer Canal Street Archaeology Project Starting Today!

We started posting blogposts from our archaeological fieldschool starting on the 29th of May, 2012. We will be posting regularly there throughout the field season.  Please visit us here.

Lattimer Massacre Monument erected at National Labor College

As mentioned in the last post, a monument to the Lattimer Massacre was erected at the National Labor College last Friday at their yearly Worker’s Memorial Day event.  The sculpture was made by Timothy Turnbach, who I learned has lived in and around Hazleton his entire life.  In fact, his family has been in the area since the 19th century.  I was lucky to speak to Tim and his family about Hazleton and labor history.

I was really moved to hear Tim describe how, as a welding teacher, he used the construction of the monument to teach his students the craft of welding as well as to talk about the sacrifices of organized labor.  Below is a picture of Tim and the monument, and a close-up of the plaque describing the piece. It is fantastic to have a memorial to the massacre near Washington DC, ensuring this history gets the national attention it deserves! Looking forward to meeting with Tim and his family this summer when we start our project in Lattimer, exploring the lives of the folks involved in this tragic event.