What To Do When You Visit California, Pennsylvania

"People tend to forget that the word 'history' contains the word 'story' (Ken Burns). Situated in the southwest corner of Pennsylvania, along the Monongahela River, California, Pennsylvania has many stories to tell.

According to records found at the California Historical Society, the town itself was officially named California in 1849 by Miss Elizabeth Wilkins of Greenfield (now Coal Center). However, before then it had been named Columbia and Sagamore (in memory of the Indian Chief). California officially became a borough on November 26, 1853 and shortly thereafter began assuming all the duties of a borough. A town that has it's beginnings before the start of the Civil War is bound to have a rich history. California boasts some of the oldest and most unique homes and businesses in the area.

Take for example, the California Public Library. It is actually housed in a genuine train station, with a genuine caboose displayed on the lawn. According to an article published in the California Focus, in 1881 when the Pittsburgh, Virginia, and Charleston Railroad was completed trains ran through California everyday from Pittsburgh, and made as many as 25 scheduled stops. These trains carried both passengers and baggage. Local woman Pat Cowan said that she remembered her mother taking the train to Roscoe and Brownsville. When the Pennsylvania Railroad ceased its passenger service in the 1950's, the building stood empty until 1958 when the California Public Library decided to rent it for a sum of $10 per month.

On the library website, www.calpublib.com, on July 18, 1979, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission notified the mayor of California that the train station, and essentially the library, had earned its spot in the National Register of Historic Places. Although the train no longer stops to take a rest or pick up passengers at the station, they can still be heard whistling and rumbling past on the same tracks various times throughout the day.