Avella Pa. A town with a Dark Spot and How it played a deadly part in the Cliftonville WV Coal mine Riot which killed a Brooke CountySheriff and 13 known Miners.and many to this day unknown

When you ride thru the town of Avella Pa. today its one of those sleepy post industrial coal mining towns  you can tell it was very prosperous town at one time when you see the large now abandoned Town Bank  But you would never know the dark spot this town would play in the Cliftonville Riot in nearby  Wellsville WV .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avella,_Pennsylvania

 

It was a hot July 17 when Union Miners would gather in the town of Avella  upset over the nearby Cliftonville mine being sold and now worked by Non Union Miners . They where supposedly going to peacefully remove them but it ended up a riot with the local Brooke County Sheriff Duval dead as well as 13 miners in the ensuing battle which saw the mines equipment and tipple destroyed. 

http://www.fortvance.org/FV_Docs/Cliftonville_Mine_Riot_of_1922.pdf

http://www.wvculture.org/history/labor/cliftonville05.html

http://www.brookecountywvgenealogy.org/cliftonville-mine.html

They marched the 4 miles to the mine from Avella that morning and what was suppose to be peaceful was anything but .

In the end several miners received jail sentences while the others got charges dismissed  and the total number killed as well as who murdered the sheriff is unknown to this day.
and it is an all but forgotten tragedy and case of union members using violence and intimidation instead of our courts system.

The Little known Tradition of Sharing a Shot of Whiskey with the deceased at their Grave

When I was young my Grandfather Markowitz Passed  in 1968  and he was buried at the local St Johns Ukrainian Catholic Cemetery . 

 One day our whole family including my dads sister Marie  and her husband Eli joined us as we went to visit my grandfathers grave .
My Uncle Eli who is of Serbian Decent talked about coming out and visiting pap as he called him and pouring a shot of whiskey on his grave for him as they greeted each other .

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libation

He said it was an old tradition went back to the old country as a sign of respect for the dead .

While this is well known with Mexican Heritage on the traditional Day of the Dead to offer food and drink I did not know other cultures at time did this .
I have since learned not only is it a Serbian Tradition But also an Irish Tradition to pour the dead a shot of whiskey on tier grave,

I have actually been able to witness this tradition a couple times because I love to explore old grave yards and cemetery so if your ever lucky enough to witness the ritual of alcohol on a grave know it is of great respect

Mad Mike The Ghost they Hired to Scare People on Mt Washington

Seems Pittsburgh has had its fill of phony ghosts over the years but one legend which some claims to still exist to this day is a character by the name of Mad Mike
who was hired by the Duquesne Incline supposedly to scare people into not using the 1300 step Indian path down Mt.Washington and instead use the newly Opened incline for 5 cents

You have to go back to May of 1877 and the newly opened incline was just not getting enough riders so the owners hired some local disabled people to make hissing and other noises at night  to scare people .Especially since the trail had no lights .

One such actor who became known as Mad Mike was so good many would run but if they did not he would jump down from the tree he was hiding and hit people with a stick.

http://www.phenomenalplace.com/2013/09/haunting-in-pittsburgh-is-mad-mike-for.html

Well it worked and soon the incline was making a profit..

But to this day they claim if you decide to check out the remains of the old trail near the big Sprit sign which shines down from mt Washington you can still here mike trying to scare you.


https://www.facebook.com/PghGhostTour/posts/scary-times-on-the-inclinethe-duquesne-incline-stranded-30-people-on-the-mt-wash/10156472222849072/

 

Even More Ghostly activites on Pittsburghs South Side

Another ghost story dug up by Donna Gunton  on Face Book Page  South side History Buffs

About the Fate of a  Poor Widow.





Pittsburgh Dispatch 1890

A Walking Ghost which Terrified Pittsburgh South Siders in the Late 1800's

Having spent a lot of time in the South Side in my youth I never heard of this story till now
which I found in a  Face Book Group  South Side Pittsburgh History Buffs  posted by Donna Gunton
Excellent research Donna. 


Seems Residents where frightened by the site of a ghastly ghost looking figure was tall and thin with heavy slouch hat and cloak   first seen at a local cemetery walking among the graves  at 15th street . While police where quick to dismiss it as some one playing games after the 2nd such time it appeared

 But not so fast He appeared
many other times and in different places mostly on moonless nights.
Never uttering a word and often accompanied with a ghost dog.

One man even supposedly striking the dog with a stone he threw at it and it made no noise as to indicate it was even hit. People got so scared there was a call for it to be shot.

 So who or what was this ghostly figure seen walking around the South side  was it a real ghost looking for something it lost  ? or some one playing games ?
Unlikely we will ever know as all those involved are now long gone and so is many of the areas the ghost walked being replaced by the steel mill and housing .
The South Side  has completely changed since the  mills are no more so many structures have been ripped out and replaced .

Update: The Strange Unused Tunnel along Carson Street in Pittsbughs Southside has an even Darker History and good reason why it was closed it became known as The Murder Tunnel

With some further research that mysterious Brown Tunnel as it was known along Carson Street which was closed  and bypassed with a set of stairs around 3rd street was done so for a reason.

It became known as the Murder Tunnel
after 2 Italians and 1 workman's remains where found in the tunnel which allowed people to get to homes on other side of railroad tracks to Manor St. which are now long gone.

According to a 1885 description in the Pittsburgh City Directory, Manor street ran from Brownsville (Arlington) ave. to South 17th. Manor street along with a school  was razed in 1932 to make way for the lower extension of McArdle Roadway, from the Liberty Bridge to South 10th Street.