I just confirmed some travel arrangements for a trip back to the West Mifflin-Duquesne
area. I will be spending 5 days in the area next week. April 7th through April 11th. During that time, I will be visiting some familiar haunts in Duquesne and the surrounding areas.
I am hoping to be able to spend some time with Jim Hartman at the Mifflin Township Historical Society and hopefully, a visit with Rosemary Denne at Duquesne’s City Hall. For the remainder of the time, I plan on trying to dig up some artifacts from around the town that will relate to my childhood in Duquesne. Undoubtedly, The Daily News building in McKeesport will be on my “must visit” short list!
A good part of the time that I am visiting will be spent trying to capture some photos of special places and special things. I have already thought of a number of places, homes, and buildings that I’d like to photograph, but I am sure there are a lot more. For that reason, I would like to invite you to give me your suggestions for places you’d like to see on my blog. If you have any ideas, just click on the camera below and send me your thoughts. On the form, be sure to let me your name and in the comment section, let me know what you’d like to specifically see! Be sure to click the “submit” button at the bottom of the form. I will do my best when I’m in Duquesne to try to photograph your suggestion. Be as specific as possible when you tell me what you’d like to see.
In closing, I wanted to share the lyrics of a very special song from the musical “The Wiz.” It puts into words, some of the feelings that I am sure we all have about our hometown.
Home
When I think of home
I think of a place where there’s love overflowing
I wish I was home
I wish I was back there with the things I been knowing
Wind that makes the tall trees bend into leaning
Suddenly the snowflakes that fall have a meaning
Sprinklin’ the scene, makes it all clean
Maybe there’s a chance for me to go back there
Now that I have some direction
It would sure be nice to be back home
Where there’s love and affection
And just maybe I can convince time to slow up
Giving me enough time in my life to grow up
Time be my friend, let me start again
Suddenly my world has changed it’s face
But I still know where I’m going
I have had my mind spun around in space
And yet I’ve watched it growing
If you’re list’ning God
Please don’t make it hard to know
If we should believe in the things that we see
Tell us, should we run away
Should we try and stay
Or would it be better just to let things be?
Living here, in this brand new world
Might be a fantasy
But it taught me to love
So it’s real, real to me
And I’ve learned
That we must look inside our hearts
To find a world full of love
Like yours
Like me
Like home…
The Duquesne Hunky 
I would like to see a picture of the large metal drinking fountain that was in the middle of City Park which was on the corner of 2nd & Grant. It had 4 drinking fountains on it’s 4 sides, & the statues of 2 soldiers on it’s top. One soldier faced upstreet & the other faced downstreet. One held a rifle at attention & the other soldier was blowing a Bugle. It was a memorial for WW l. My Uncle Hud Lott was the dough-boy who posed holding the Bugle. It always bothered me that Uncle Hud didn’t hold the gun. The fountain was about 15 feet high & was melted down during one of WW II’s many SCRAP drives. The concrete step remained in the center of the Park & the large hole where the fountain stood was covered with 2×12 planks. It remained that way until I left Duquesne in 1953. Maybe it’s still that way?
Barry, I vaguely remember the fountain that you describe. I don’t think its in place any longer. Right at the corner of Grant and 2nd is a clock tower. I visited Duquesne in December and as always, they had the manger in place.
As I said in my request’ the fountain was melted down during WWII’s scrap drives along with some muzzle loading cannons & several machine guns from the corner of 3rd & Grant. The round concrete bases they were mounted on were still in the ground in 1953. Possibly,could there be a photo in some archive you visit? It was a WWI memorial. This is a great blog.