Eating up History
BRADY TWP — Even history has a sweet spot.
Participants at Saturday’s Cherry Pie Hike were treated to it at Jennings Environmental Education Center, 2951 Prospect Road. After a half-hour hike in the surrounding woods, they enjoyed a slice of cherry pie and cup of hot cider to commemorate George Washington’s 290th birthday, which was Tuesday, as well as his trek through what is now Butler County in December 1753.
The event, which began two decades ago, has been held at Jennings for a number of years.
“”Previously, it was held at Moraine State Park and Harmony,“ said Rodney Gasch, president of Harmony Museum, one of several groups that sponsored the event. ”Jennings has worked out to be a great partner for us.“
Hikers could also choose to take part in one of three 75-minute nature hikes or a 7-mile hike that began at Moraine and ended at the education center. In all, about 200 people took advantage of one of the treks.
Those who took part in one of the six history hikes were treated to a re-enactment of Washington being shot at by a Native American as Washington was making his way back from Fort Le Boeuf (in present-day Erie County) to Williamsburg in colonial Virginia.
Washington, just 21 years old at the time, was not harmed in the attempt on his life, which took place near what is now Evans City.
Hikers also learned how Washington and his guide, Christopher Gist, survived the elements during their journey.
“I can’t imagine trying to make camp every night in the winter, trying to keep warm. It boggles my mind,” said Jamie Daugherty, a resident of Ohio and director of music at Mars United Presbyterian Church. “I was never interested in history as a kid, but I’m getting into it now.
“This is a great way to learn history and get some exercise. Don’t hibernate, celebrate!” he said.
Bob Shaner is a Leechburg resident and for the last 20-plus years a member of the Campbell Company of Light Infantry, a group that takes part in 12 military re-enactments every year. He had several items on display Saturday. Most of them are replicas, but also included were a tin cup and fork dating to the mid-1700s.
“I’ve always been into history,” he said, “but it was mostly just reading about it until my doctor told me to either get a hobby or a hospital bed. I figured a hobby would be cheaper.”
Slippery Rock resident Amy Tedeschi brought her two daughters, Pippi, 8, and Josey, 6, to experience the history hike and of course, sample the pie.
“We home-school our kids and like to do as many things involving history as we can,” Tedeschi said. “We saw information about this online and it turned out to be really interesting.”
Other groups who sponsored the Cherry Pie Hike include the Butler Chapter of North Country Trail and Washington’s Trail 1753, for which Gasch is on the steering committee.
“Our main objective with that is to build awareness for Washington’s trip through Butler County,” he said.
Washington’s mission was to deliver an ultimatum to French forces to leave the region, which the British Empire wanted for itself.
The French remained, however, leading to the French and Indian War, fought between 1754-63. It was the North American Theater of the Seven Years’ War, a global conflict.
Freeport High School and Slippery Rock University graduate Brady Crytzer, now a history professor at Robert Morris University, has authored six books. The French and Indian War plays into all of them and events that occurred in what is now Butler County served as a key prelude.
“It was a global conflict, but also local,” he said. “I grew up here, but learning about that war made me look at this area very differently.”
