Author: Robb Helfrick

The story of Hagerstown’s architectural legacy begins with founder Jonathan Hager. The German immigrant came to America in 1736, and three years later, Hager purchased 200 Maryland acres near a bubbling spring. There, he built a traditional limestone home. As a community formed around it, he named the settlement Elizabethtown to honor his departed wife. Eventually, the growing city officially became known as Hagerstown in 1814. Due to Hager’s non-stop boosterism, his community was eventually named the seat of the newly created Washington County. Hagerstown later grew into a vital center for Maryland transportation and industry. The town was along…

Most 2024 election races were settled on Nov. 5, or soon after, but a few regional contests were so closely contested that projections were just recently announced for several Pennsylvania and Maryland offices. In Washington County, Md., ballots are still being counted, delaying official results on local races until Friday, Nov. 15, ten days after voting completed. In Western Maryland, all eyes focused on the photo-finish between Republican Neil Parrott and Democrat April McClain Delaney for the sixth Congressional seat. Election night numbers showed both candidates earned 50 percent, with Delaney hanging on to a razor-thin advantage of 200 votes.…

As Pennsylvania prepared to vote in the 1924 presidential election, specific political topics and pressing economic concerns were prominent in Waynesboro residents’ minds as they entered voting booths. Some of those voting factors reflected American life during the “Roaring Twenties,” while other 1924 ideals, such as judging conservative versus progressive agendas, were similar to issues debated during the modern 2024 national election. Leading up to the 1924 contest, a local conservative women’s group hosted an event at Republican Party headquarters, inside Waynesboro’s Anthony Wayne Hotel. A trio of female speakers told supporters the “principals of our party are right,” urging…

Maryland voters went to the polls on Nov. 5th and chose candidates for a slate of offices, from municipal to county, state and national offices. The results of some races were clear before the evening ended, while other contests are still undecided. In Washington County, that selection included elections for Hagerstown City Council members, a new mayor, a group of school board members, picking a congressional representative from Maryland’s 6th District and electing a U.S. Senator. Area voters also weighed in on a Maryland constitutional amendment for reproductive rights. In the marquee 2024 matchup, the state also voiced its choice…

Election Day 2024 offered no local surprises as conservative candidates easily swept three races for Pennsylvania House and Senate seats. Voters re-elected two Republicans to new terms in office, while a third conservative ran unopposed and won his first seat in Pennsylvania’s 90th District. Area voters also retained their Republican U.S. Congressman from the 13th District by an overwhelming margin. However, in statewide races, Republicans also won the three major row offices contested, albeit by closer vote tallies, which reflected more parity in Pennsylvania’s Democrat and Republican party registries. Doug Mastriano earned his second full four-year term as the 33rd…

On a tragic Tuesday in May 1911, a volatile romance turned deadly, and two lives ultimately ended. That horrific day triggered the end of an era in Franklin County’s criminal justice system. Sarah “Sadie” Hurley was born on Valentine’s Day 1881. At age 17, shortly after her father died, she married Reuben Mathna in Hagerstown. They had one daughter together, but Sadie’s husband deserted their marriage after 18 months. Sadie was a petite woman with dark hair typically gathered in a bun atop her head. The attractive and spirited woman was described by friends as energetic and industrious. Born in…

Central Pennsylvania voters go to the polls on Tuesday, Nov. 5, to vote for candidates seeking local, state and national offices. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. In local races, the highest-profile contest is for the Pennsylvania State Senate District 33 seat, which represents Franklin and Adams Counties. Republican Doug Mastriano is the incumbent, elected to a full term in 2020 after winning an earlier special election for that seat. Mastriano faces challenger Cameron Schroy, who is seeking his first political office. After retiring as a colonel from the U.S. Army in 2017, Mastriano entered politics, winning…

The earth belongs to the living, but sometimes, parcels of land belong to the dead. After the American Civil War, a progressive era brought new burial practices and post-mortem customs, offering citizens alternate choices to bury and remember their loved ones. The concept of the cemetery was born. During earlier 1800s periods, the dead were interred adjacent to churches in cramped graveyards. Those small city lots were limiting, but burials were concentrated around a deceased person’s religious faith and respective properties. Then, in 1831, a resting place called Mount Auburn Cemetery was established in Boston, setting a trend that eventually…

During the 1800s, a local company emerged to become an industry giant. This success was influential throughout the Cumberland Valley and gained worldwide respect. In addition, a group of businessmen associated with this firm formed three additional enterprises, perfecting products sold around the globe. That original company and founding father of Waynesboro’s industry was the Geiser Manufacturing Company. Then, during the 20th century, Geiser’s mammoth enterprise vanished. The story of Geiser Manufacturing began at a Smithsburg family farm. The Geisers birthed 11 children, seven of whom were boys. Peter Geiser was the youngest son, born March 26, 1826. He showed…

Devout Christians built Harbaugh Church amidst rolling fields of fertile farmland. Surrounded by orchards in a picturesque Appalachian valley, this Washington Township architectural landmark is still a striking structure, 132 years after it first welcomed the faithful. The building’s enduring presence has been a blessing. However, preserving Harbaugh Church required more than divine intervention. This church survived because charitable individuals and a diligent organization deemed it too important to lose, and they acted. On this Franklin County pastoral site, locals built a simpler first church in 1846. Farmer George Harbaugh donated the land. His two brothers, Jacob and Henry, were…