To celebrate its 175th anniversary on Aug. 17, St. Joseph Parish of the Panther Valley in Summit Hill invited a guest homilist – Monsignor Thomas Orsulak, a native son of the region and an expert on the area’s rich history.
He gave an early clue to the theme of his homily, and to the history of the parish in Summit Hill, when he hoisted a large rock into the air – a piece of anthracite coal.
Anthracite was discovered in Pennsylvania not far from St. Joseph, said Monsignor Orsulak, when a hunter on Sharp Mountain tripped over a piece of it. Originally known as “stone gold,” the energy-rich anthracite would soon be fueling homes and powering the local economy, creating thousands of jobs in Summit Hill and throughout the Coal Regions.
As mines were developed, immigrants began arriving to do the backbreaking and dangerous work of extracting coal from the ground: Irish, Slovaks, Italians, Poles, Lithuanians, and others. “They brought with them their language, their customs, their food, their music,” said Monsignor Orsulak, “but most importantly, they brought with them their Roman Catholic faith.”
It was the Irish who founded St. Joseph in 1850, he said. That was 11 years before the start of the Civil War. At that time, Pope Pius IX was just a couple of years into his record 32-year papacy, and in that year the United States had two presidents: Zachary Taylor until his death in office, then Millard Fillmore.
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St. Joseph Celebrates 175 Years of Faith in the Panther Valley - AD Today
To celebrate its 175th anniversary on Aug. 17, St. Joseph Parish of the Panther Valley in Summit Hill invited a guest homilist – Monsignor Thomas Orsulak, a native son of the region and an expert on the area’s rich history.
