Friends of Hanley Library to Present 'Pennsylvania Crude' Program

The Friends of the Hanley Library are sponsoring a multi-media presentation taken from the new book “Pennsylvania Crude: Boomtowns and Oil Barons,” by Paul Adomites with photos by Ed Bernik.

Bernik and Linda Devlin of the Allegheny National Forest Visitors’ Bureau will be on hand to discuss the book and its companion DVD at 7 p.m. Feb. 15 in the Mukaiyama University Room of the Frame-Westerberg Commons. The event is free and open to the public.

The 116-page coffee-table book takes readers on a pictorial tour of the oil industry in the Pennsylvania Field from discovery and boom eras through the resurgence occurring today.

Several Bradford-area residents are among those shown in the 201 photographs in the book, including Pitt-Bradford’s Isabelle Champlin, assistant professor of anthropology, and Dr. Assad Panah, director of the petroleum technology program.

The book includes stories of the oil industry in McKean County, including those of the legendary Lewis Emery, who fought John D. Rockefeller’s attempts to create an oil monopoly in Pennsylvania.

Bernik is an award-winning photographer from North East who took the photos for the well-received coffee-table book “Pennsylvania Wilds.” In addition to taking photos for “Pennsylvania Crude,” he provided images for the DVD, which includes various places of interest in Pennsylvania’s oil-producing counties, including museums, parks and other attractions.

Devlin is the executive director of the ANF Visitors’ Bureau and managed this collaborative project.

Following Bernik and Devlin’s presentation, there will be a book signing with books available for purchase from the Visitors’ Bureau.

For disability related needs, contact the Office of Disability Resources and Services at 814-362-7609 or clh71@pitt.edu.