September 20, 2010: Last night the Gambill Amusements trucks started rolling in, bring the carnival to town. They will be setting up and getting everything ready for the Fall Event of Shinnston – Frontier Days! Where?
Ride the Ferris Wheel
Adult rides are set up right in front of the Gillum House Bed & Breakfast in the Volunteer Fire Department parking lot and the Kiddie rides are set up across from the B & B side yard in the parking lot of the Orioles Club.
Family Fun at teh Carnival
Everything begins Wednesday evening about 5 P.M. with the Gospel Sing sponsored by the Shinnston Area Council of Churches that is followed by an event sponsored by many organizations and business in Shinnston – a FREE concert by Grammy-nominated DecembeRadio! One of their warm-up bands is called The Museum.
The Bice – Ferguson Museum will be open Thursday thru Saturday during Frontier Days from 2 until 8 P.M. They have an Art Show of Shinnston Artists in September. Vote for your favorite painting.
Lincoln NJROTC Color Guard leads the Parade
Saturday, September 25 there will be the Frontier Days Parade starting at 11 A.M.
Lincoln High School Band
At 2 P.M. a Special Olympics Bocce Tournament at Ferguson Park starts. All sponsor money and entrance fees go to Special Olympics. (Gillum House Bed & Breakfast is a sponsor!)
So come to Shinnston for fun, food, entertainment, and good works too.
September 19, 2010: Why do I like living in a small city called Shinnston? Because I like living in a city that cares.
Last week the Kiwanis did a trash pick-up along the streets of Shinnston. Our new banners are hanging on the poles though downtown. That shows we care about our city, but today I saw how we care about our people.
In this area, spaghetti dinners are fundraisers. I have attended spaghetti dinners that were benefits for people in the past, but the dinner today showed how much people care. A waitress at Jimmy’s Diner was diagnosed with throat cancer. There was a Help Our Waitress can at the register for the last month or so. OK, that is nice. This week there was a HUGE basket of goodies to be raffled off and a Lincoln High School tote bag full of goodies also for raffle. Today, from 11 to 5, there was a spaghetti dinner to end all fundraiser dinners. Jimmy closed the restaurant and moved his operation to the Moose Club. HUNDREDS, I am not kidding, hundreds of people came from all over the area for dinner @ $8 per for adults and most were putting their change in a Tip Jar for her. There had to be at least 10 baskets for raffle $1 for 1 or 6 for $5. There were 3 baskets with tickets 1 for $5 or 5 for $20. This is a city that cares. But you know what? This same thing is repeated in small towns and cities all over West Virginia. I wonder if there is a poll or survey out there for the State that cares the most about each other……. I think West Virginia be listed as #1 in the nation!
September 16, 2010:
Daily Mail – Charleston
SHINNSTON – One stop at a West Virginia bed and breakfast in the early 1980s was enough to convince Kathleen Panek she could open one too…
That is how an article in the Charleston Daily Mail began on September 15, 2010 (D.I.Y. means Do It Yourself – I had to ask a friend!). Lovely photos of the Gillum House Bed & Breakfast accompany the article. It does cover the Gillum House nicely but even more important, it covers the Thank You Veterans Project that started in West Virginia in 2009 and has spread nationwide in 2010.
There are currently (as of 9/16/2010) over 275 Bed & Breakfasts in 40 States and 1 in Ontario Canada who asked to join in who will be providing a minimum of 1 room free of charge on the night of November 10, 2010 to anyone with a current Military ID or ID from the Veterans Administration (ID will be required at check-in to avoid scammers). The Bed & Breakfast Industry wants to give a token of appreciation that will be meaningful to our military and their spouse/partner (the unsung hero who handles everything so our military can do their job). All reservations are to be made with the Bed & Breakfast of choice. Go here to find a participating B & B. Two participating inns are:
Carolina Oaks B & B, North Augusta, SC
Cottonwood Shores, Peshastin, WA
I am very grateful to the innkeepers at Thomas Shepherd Inn in Shepherdstown, West Virginia for securing the domain name, creating the web site, and serving as web masters for the B & Bs For Veterans web site.
August 17, 2010: Stydahar Field has new bleachers! The Harrison County Board of Education said the bleachers would be done before the first home game. And they are! HOWEVER the Press Box is NOT, therefore the first 6 Lincoln Football Games will be AWAY games!
Fear not! Citizens of Shinnston who cannot go to the away games can still share the excitement of the games. Reuben Perdue will be broadcasting the Lincoln Football games on WFBY (102.3) every week. If you have not heard Reuben broadcast a game, you have missed a lot. Reuben gets into the game and the excitement of it so you feel you are there. So whether or not you can physically get to the games, you can, thanks to the many Shinnston businesses sponsoring the broadcasts, hear the games and the excitement of that Friday night activity! Please remember to stop in and thank the sponsoring businesses!
August 13, 2010: In a little over one month Shinnston Frontier Days 2010 begins. The Miss Frontier Days Pageant takes place September 11 with a 5K Run earlier in the day. Then on Sunday, September 19 the Car Show kicks off the Frontier Days celebration at the Lincoln High School Parking Lot.
The celebration will continue on Wednesday, September 22 with a performance by DecembeRadio at the Lighthouse.
Lincold Hihg School Band 2007
The Gospel Sing sponsored by the Shinnston Area Council of Churches will take place Saturday, September 25 after the Parade. The Parade starts at 11 a.m. and Lee Martin will be the 2010 Grand Marshall.
Lincoln NJROTC Honor Guard 2007
Come on out to the Carnival and activities.
Carnival 2007
Ferris Wheel 2007
July 27, 2010: The Lord’s Pantry Food Bank is doing a Music Fest Saturday, July 31 as a fundraiser – it is going to be a “Pass the Hat”. We hope you come and enjoy the music. Bring your lawn chairs to the practice field for Lincoln High School – across from the State Police Headquarters. Ample free parking is available.
The Lord’s Pantry Music Fest
Line up
(Times are approximate)
11am———————–Nettie Southern
11:25am——————-Anna Clark
11:55am——————-Russ Harbert
12:10pm——————–4Given
1:15pm———————–I’m Free
2:00pm———————–Break
2:15pm———————–The New Prophets
3:15pm————————Followers of the Faith
3:45pm—————————–Break
4:00pm————————Dominion Quartet
5:00pm———————— Break
5:15pm————————–Psalm 150
6:15——————————Sticks of Fellowship
July 18, 2010: You know how you have those days that start off with joy to be alive and then discover a sadness? But then when you want to be sad, you cannot because there are too many happy things happening – all TODAY!!
This morning reading the obituaries online of my “home area” newspaper I was saddened to see the name Gino Quatrocchi, my 8th grade teacher. Our class was special – we were his first class as a teacher and we were the last 8th grade class to ever graduate from that school. He was a good teacher and rose through the ranks to be Superintendent of Schools in the district we had moved to in Ohio when I was a freshman. He was a good teacher.
Sad as that made me, I had to get ready for the Shinnston Community Band performance at the Glen Elk Festival in Clarksburg today. As we were about halfway through unloading the new Band Truck of chairs, stands, and large instruments the sky opened! It was a drencher for about 15 minutes (long enough to wet the back seat of my car with the slightly open windows) and then blew over. So we then set up for the band and played a very good concert!
As if that were not enough happiness for one day (getting to blow my brains out with my bari sax is wonderful!!!), I was notified about the Hungry-for-road-trip Blog by Claiborne House Bed & Breakfast (Rocky Mount, Virginia) innkeeper and blogger extraordinaire, Shellie who sent me a link to the blog she wrote after inviting innkeepers from around the Country to send her info about foods of their regions. Of course Gillum House had to send information about our own local region, the pepperoni roll. We invite you to take a Hungry-For-Road-Trip by visiting Shellie’s blog. http://claibornehouse.blogspot.com/2010/07/hungry-for-road-trip.html.
Mr. Q, you will be remembered caringly as you left us today with the things you thought of as being quite important – music and food. Please tell that lovely Mrs. Q I said hello.
July 12, 2010 : During the 4th of July holiday we had guests from New York who came in on a motorcycle for our And Awaaaaay We Go Special and they attended our annual Independence Concert. Mike wrote a ride report for his biker buddies and gave me permission to post it here:
This being my first ever ride report, I trust everyone will cut me some slack if it’s boring or too long (or both)…
This was the first real road trip for my wife and I on the bike, although I had done long rides before. In fact, I actually participated in the 2006 Utah 1088, but shamefully I wussed and got a DNF…I had a few good excuses reasons, but that’s a story for another time. This was her first time sitting pillion for extended periods, with an overnight or two away from home.
The trip was from our home in Eden, NY (about 30 miles south of Buffalo), down to Shinnston, West Virginia and back. The trip down on Saturday included a stop in East Liverpool, Ohio, to visit the Museum of Ceramics there (the wife collects Halls china and Halls was once made there). The goal was to hit the road by 9am…so we left around 10:30. Since I was aiming to get to Shinnston before it got terribly dark (it would be my first real experience with twisties in unfamiliar territory), we slabbed all the way to East Liverpool to save some time. Once there, we found ourselves in the middle of the town’s annual all-year high school reunion weekend! They were expecting 15,000 for this, and as the GPS tried to navigate us to the museum, we found streets cordoned off for the big parade.
Of course, the parade route started right in front of the museum…
Reunion Parade, East Liverpool, Ohio
We managed to find our way and were treated to a personal tour of the place. Not that ceramics and china are my thing, but it was actually a very interesting museum.
From there we headed down Route 7 along the Ohio River and then took highway 250 just south of Martin’s Ferry into West Virginia. We started running into some real twisties, and Laura managed to snap this going around one of them:
Just a few marks there, thankfully I didn't add any of my own along the route.
Some great views
and some really nice roads:
We stayed on 250 south until just short of Farmington, WV, where we picked up 218 south to cut down to 19 south and on into Shinnston. Now, I hadn’t really had the opportunity to ride really ‘good’ roads on the FJR since my abortive attempt at the 1088 (didn’t own a bike until just last fall, and there aren’t a ton of twisties around Eden), so as I started into the turns in the hills, I had to remind myself of a few things here and there (don’t fixate on traffic in front of you, look ahead at where you want to be, speed kills, etc). I managed not to scare my wife or myself too terribly (really only clenched once or twice) and enjoyed some really tight turns as well as great sweepers. We arrived at the bed & breakfast that was our destination just around 7pm. The Gillum House B&B is a motorcycle-friendly inn run by Kathleen and John Panek, whom we can’t say enough of. They planned our route from East Liverpool for us, gave us a great day ride on Sunday along with a packed picnic lunch and even suggested a routing for the return on Monday that included my favorite stretch of pavement for the whole weekend. John used to be an owner/tuner for his BDA Gold Star flat-track racer back in the ’50s and will gladly talk BSAs and racing in general with anyone who shows an interest. He’s also a tremendous artist in several mediums, and vintage motorcycles are a favorite subject. Kathleen provides some of the best routing directions I’ve seen, plays a mean baritone sax in the Shinnston Community Band and provides some fantastic meals (including warm, home-made pretzels just before bed time!)
On Sunday, we set off on our ride around 11am (again, right on time for our 9am launch… 
) Kathleen provided a route that included several covered bridges. The first was the bridge at Phillippi, WV. This was the site of the first land battle of the Civil War.
Philippi Covered Bridge from Park
The bridge still carries traffic today
and we made our pass through it:
This wooden bridge has been restored, burned, restored again and flooded, but it’s still kickin’.
Another stop on Sunday was the West Virginia State Wildlife Center in French Creek. It was originally established to help repopulate endangered species into the wild, but since pen-raised animals don’t develop any real survival skills, that program wasn’t successful. Now it serves as a recreational and educational facility with examples of many native WV species, including elk, otters, bobcats, bears and more. We took several photos of the animals, but I won’t post them here for fear of exciting certain forum members’ prurient interests. 
We did take advantage of the picnic areas there to enjoy our packed lunches.
also managed to get a great shot of my Sweetie, together with my Baby:
The rest of the day included more great roads, and even an out of the way stop at a local winery in Weston. I of course refrained from any samples while there…now if this had been a brewery, I might have caved, but I stood firm for safety’s sake…
That evening we walked down to the town park and enjoyed an outdoor concert that included local artists and the aforementioned Shinnston Community Band, followed by fireworks.
It was a great small-town 4th of July celebration.
Monday morning we loaded up and said goodbye to our hosts,
then made our way north again following Kathleen’s excellent routing, up the slab on I-79/I-68 until changing to 119 North just north of Morgantwon, WV, then onto Route 857 to Uniontown, PA, where we got on US Route 40 East towards Farmington, PA.
Saying goodbye
We stopped at Fort Necessity State Park and spent an hour or so going through another nicely executed museum.
Fort Necessity was the site of the battle that started the French & Indian War in 1754 and it was George Washington’s first defeat as commander at 22 years of age.
And if we thought it was hot in our full gear in the 95 degree temps along the way, these guys had to be hating life just as much. At least we could crank it up to 60 or 70 to create a breeze.
At Farmington we picked up 381 North and I was initially unhappy to find miles of relativley fresh chip-seal, so the seemingly endless row of loose gravel in the center of my lane lead to seriously-sub-light speeds. However, after a while the surface changed and 381 became my favorite stretch of the whole weekend. Nothing too tight, just lots of excellent sweepers, and great scenic vistas in between.
We made a short traverse of 30 East at Ligonier, PA over to Route 219 North just south of Johnstown, which we were able to ride all the way up through PA and into NY, just about to our own back yard by around 8:45pm. Total mileage for the weekend was about 875 miles. No Iron Butt, but an otherwise great weekend with my wife and a memorable celebration of our nation’s independence.
July 6, 2010: Have you ever wanted to learn about the rifles Davy Crockett and Dan’el Boone carried on the Frontier? Have you ever wanted to experience a black powder, muzzle-loading rifle? The Appalachian Rangers Muzzleloading Club Ltd. Is making it possible for you – and children 12 and older – to have that experience.
On Saturday, August 7, 2010 from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p,m, will hold a basic introduction to muzzleloading and black powder shooting. LIMITED PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED!!! There is a maximum of 60 registrations.
This is a basic introduction to muzzleloading and black powder shooting. It will be offered in a group setting, with information on the correct principles of properly loading, handling, and shooting black powder firearms.
For information and registration (PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED) contact Jeff Mills (304-672-2104) or John Lamb (304-622-1036). Remember the maximum limit is 60 people. This event is open to men, women, and children 12 years old and over however, any child under age 18 MUST have a parent or guardian present and WITH THE CHILD at all times!
When: Saturday, August 7, 2010
Time: 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Appalachian Rangers Muzzleloading Range – located on Lambert’s Run
Pre-registration required. Refreshments available.
Rifles and accouterments will be supplied for this event!!
July 6, 2010: July 18 will be a day of mixed feelings in Shinnston. That is the day The Wright Stuff Works will be auctioning wookworking and stained glass tools and inventory. For more details www.wrightstuffworks.com.
Sunday, July 18, 11:ooam
229 Pike Street
We wish them a good auction as we are saddened to see the auction taking place.
July 4, 2010: I got to thinking that people may not know how to get to the Bice-Ferguson Memorial Park (Shinnston City Park) for the Concert and Fireworks tonight. So here are the directions.
From I-79, take Exit # 125, turn WEST toward the Exxon station and turn LEFT at the Exxon onto WV Rt 131 (Saltwell Road). Drive to the traffic light and turn right onto US Rt 19 north. Go to *
From US Rt 19 (Fairmont and the north) – go south on US Rt 19, cross the West Fork River Bridge then STOP at the STOP sign before going straight at the Veteran’s Memorial. *
From US Rt 19 (Clarksburg and the south) – Go north on US Rt 19 then Go to *
* At the Veteran’s Memorial turn right (do NOT cross the bridge over the West Fork River) and then left at the top of the hill. Turn left at NORTH ST and this will lead you into the Park or to wherever parking is available.
The opening act is Kelsey Jeffries at 7:20 p.m., followed by the Demotivators at 7:30, and Chelsea Boyles at 8:00. The Shinnston Community Band will perform at 9 p.m. with fireworks starting with the final bars of Stars and Stripes Forever!
The Pool Concession Stand will be open and the Swim Team will be having their annual Bake Sale.
June 26, 2010: The Shinnston Community Band has had to change the date of the annual Independence Concert and Fireworks. The concert will take place at Shinnston City Park as usual but it will be on Sunday, July 4! The band has a great program planned with a good mix of music, from the traditional annual favorites to some soft music to some special themes. Suffice it to say, this will be a great event. Expect to have to walk a few blocks because parking in the area will fill quickly.
There will be food for sale at the pool concession stand and the Swim Team will have its annual bake sale. Come to the concert and fireworks for a pleasant ending of out Nation’s Birthday! (and yes, once again, Gillum House guests will be attending!) Psssst! Come to the Glen Elk Festival on Sunday, July 18 for another opportunity to hear a Shinnston Community Band performance.
June 15, 2010: I just had an e-mail from the Marion County Convention and Visitors Bureau about an event that is coming in July!
Gillum House Bed & Breakfast is located one block west of US Rte. 19 just 10 miles south of Fairmont State University (also located on US Rte. 19). It takes approximately 15 minutes to get to the campus! Check availability and make your online reservations or call us 888-592-0177.
June 14, 2010: Yesterday we took a ride to Charleston, West Virginia – to the Cultural Center located across the lawn from the Capitol and the Governor’s Mansion. The reason we went was the opening of a Motorcycle Show that will be there for 2 weeks – until July 8, 2010.
One side of Lobby from balcony
There are many vintage and antique motorcycles on exhibit and a great video on the evolution of the motorcycle, especially in West Virginia. As Governor Manchin says, “West Virginia has great motorcycling roads…” (And Gillum House knows where many of them are!)
And the other side of the Lobby
Frank and Janet Roberts 2010
In the video there is a clip of Frank “Buzz” Roberts as a young man riding his motorcycle in a bit of an unusual way – standing on the seat. His Father had been involved in motorcycles early on and passed the love of bikes on to Buzz.
The Charleston Motorcycle Exhibit is basically a precursor to the Vintage Motorcycle Show at MountainFest July 22-25, 2010. This exhibit is just a fraction of the exhibit at MountainFest – but this is worth going to see. The price cannot be beat – it is FREE. Held in the Lobby of the Cultural Center, the hours are Monday thru Saturday 9 to 5:30 and Sunday, Noon to 5.
Tom McKee and his wife Debbie are among the major organizers of the Vintage Motorcycle Show at MountainFest and they brought many of their vintage motorcycles to the Charleston Exhibit. John and Tom talked for quite a while and then Debbie joined them and talked with some other visitors as Tom and John found something new to say. They were probably discussing the exhibit of John Panek 2-Wheel Classics (paintings) that will be seen at MountainFest.
Tom McKee and John Panek dicessing motorcycles - Again!
Debbie McKee also talks motorcycle.
While we were there, Jane Bostic, Administrative Assistant to Tourism Commission Betty Carver visited with us and introduced us to her brother, Jack who works at the Cultural Center. They actually convinced John to use a Jazzie. The State Museum has a few wheelchairs and a couple Jazzies available for mobility challenged people – like John. We had been talking about seeing the State Museum that has been open for almost a year now, but just never had the time (and I did not relish trying to enjoy it while worrying that he was tiring himself out with all that walking). I do wish I had taken a photo of it. Jeff Morrison brought the Jazzie to us, showed John how to use it, and then took us down on the elevator to the entrance of the State Museum. Once he got the hang of that “joystick”, John was off to the races! We had such an enjoyable afternoon. We were short on time so we did what for us was a “skim” of the museum. The folks at the Museum say it takes about 2 hours (we are of the variety of museum attendees that would normally take all afternoon). All I can say is if you have a couple hours (or make the time – it is worth it) go see it. Starting from the beginning of plants and rocks all the way to modern times and everything in between one gets an overview of the history of West Virginia and its involvement in the world.
West Virginia is full of culture, history, industry, the arts, politics, military, space…. Go see it and take the kids and grandkids. Then take them around the State to see its beauty and the places exhibited in the Museum. Show them why West Virginians are such a proud people. We have a right to be!
June 12, 2010: What a beautiful day! We had a short cloudburst but it did not dampen the afternoon at the bocce courts! Willard and the Silver Foxes (his helpers) built the bocce courts at Shinnston City Park and said from the beginning there would be a roof, lights, and a fence around it to keep it nice. With about $2000 seed money for materials from the City of Shinnston, Willard West and 20 of his best volunteers using borrowed or donated equipment/time started the bocce courts Fall of 2009. Then they had to “winter”. The Courts were finished in May 2010.
Willard West - Bocce Court Builder & WV Volunteer of the Year
Willard went to the County Commission for money – and got it. He sold plaques to be affixed to the inside of the roof for $100 each until he had enough money to pay for materials. Lee Reger Builds, a local contractor, supplied the labor to put up the roof and fence. Jimmy Scudere and the Orioles Club purchased two sets of bocce balls. The courts are beautiful. Willard West was nominated for West Virginia Volunteer of the Year in the Senior Category – and he won the award! He certainly deserved it.
Today was bocce sign-up and lessons day. There was a nice crowd. The innkeeper at the Gillum House Bed & Breakfast, for the first time in her life, played bocce! And won a couple games!!!
The Men watch the scoring for the ladies
Green Wins - closest to the white ball
The Italian Heritage Festival will hold a Bocce Tournament at the Shinnston Bocce Courts on Sunday, August 29.
Come to Shinnston! We have something for everyone!