Recent Events:
During 2024, papers were presented to a number of groups with excitement building over the improvements to the gate entrance area and the November Historical Marker Dedication. These presentations largely included a discussion of the both the 19th and 20th century mining activity. An example of one of these presentations (to the Coopersburg Historical Society) is included below.
During 2023, a paper was presented at the annual conference of the Mining History Association on the work done to understand the miner's cemetery located in Colesville, Upper Saucon Township, Lehigh County, PA.
At a ceremony in Hayle, Cornwall in September 2022, Mark Connar was honored by being named a Bard by the Gorsedh Kernow. This organization was founded in 1928 to preserve the history and culture of Cornwall. This award was made to Mark in recognition of his work to restore to current memory The President Engine and his advocacy for the stabilization and repair of the Engine House ruins. Dr. R. Damian Nance, in 2018, was similarly honored for his role in this initiative. The button to the left provides more information on this recognition. On the following day, Mark was interviewed by Justin Leigh on BBC Cornwall radio. An audio copy of this interview can be accessed through the button below.
A presentation was made on March 25th 2022 to The Trevithick Society (Camborne, UK). Mark Connar, Damian Nance, Anthony Mount and Guy Janssen joined together to apprise members of the Society on efforts underway to preserve The President Engine House and to recreate the engine and its surroundings through visual artistry, model engineering and virtual reality technology.
Michael Kaas and Mark Connar presented a paper on the Friedensville Mines at the 150th Anniversary Celebration of AIME (American Institute of Mining, Mechanical and Petroleum Engineers) at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA on October 3, 2021. A copy of the presentation is attached below.
During the 49th Annual Meeting of the Society for Industrial Archeology (SIA) Recreating The President Engine was presented as a session paper on August 26, 2021. The conference was held in Bethlehem, PA, about four miles from the site of The President Engine House. During this event, Guy Janssen's movie on The President was presented. Damian Nance, Lauren Schmitz (of Keast & Hood) and Mark Connar presented and their powerpoint deck can be accessed in the button immediately below.
During 2024, papers were presented to a number of groups with excitement building over the improvements to the gate entrance area and the November Historical Marker Dedication. These presentations largely included a discussion of the both the 19th and 20th century mining activity. An example of one of these presentations (to the Coopersburg Historical Society) is included below.
During 2023, a paper was presented at the annual conference of the Mining History Association on the work done to understand the miner's cemetery located in Colesville, Upper Saucon Township, Lehigh County, PA.
At a ceremony in Hayle, Cornwall in September 2022, Mark Connar was honored by being named a Bard by the Gorsedh Kernow. This organization was founded in 1928 to preserve the history and culture of Cornwall. This award was made to Mark in recognition of his work to restore to current memory The President Engine and his advocacy for the stabilization and repair of the Engine House ruins. Dr. R. Damian Nance, in 2018, was similarly honored for his role in this initiative. The button to the left provides more information on this recognition. On the following day, Mark was interviewed by Justin Leigh on BBC Cornwall radio. An audio copy of this interview can be accessed through the button below.
A presentation was made on March 25th 2022 to The Trevithick Society (Camborne, UK). Mark Connar, Damian Nance, Anthony Mount and Guy Janssen joined together to apprise members of the Society on efforts underway to preserve The President Engine House and to recreate the engine and its surroundings through visual artistry, model engineering and virtual reality technology.
Michael Kaas and Mark Connar presented a paper on the Friedensville Mines at the 150th Anniversary Celebration of AIME (American Institute of Mining, Mechanical and Petroleum Engineers) at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA on October 3, 2021. A copy of the presentation is attached below.
During the 49th Annual Meeting of the Society for Industrial Archeology (SIA) Recreating The President Engine was presented as a session paper on August 26, 2021. The conference was held in Bethlehem, PA, about four miles from the site of The President Engine House. During this event, Guy Janssen's movie on The President was presented. Damian Nance, Lauren Schmitz (of Keast & Hood) and Mark Connar presented and their powerpoint deck can be accessed in the button immediately below.
Other News:
The President Pumping Engine Historical Marker Dedication Event the subject of a news story on Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN)
The November 20, 2024 Historical Marker Dedication Event can now be enjoyed as a special feature story under the channel's History Culture section. Above is a link to the segment (look for the photo of the engine house and click on that photo).
The President Pumping Engine recognized by the local chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers
During the November 20, 2024 Historical Marker Dedication Ceremony, The President Pumping Engine was recognized by the Anthracite-Lehigh Valley Chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). The Chair of the local chapter, Tracey Carbonetto, presented a plaque to be installed with the engine display at the National Museum of Industrial History and a contribution to the Preservation Fund. The ASME has a National Landmark program and the local chapter has applied for recognition at the national level, however, the National program is currently under review and, therefore, not accepting new applications.
The President Pumping Engine highlighted in the Summer 2023 Bulletins of both Lehigh University and the International Stationary Steam Engine Society
Click the button above to view the on-line version of the Lehigh University Alumni Bulletin which highlights the President Engine. The President Engine was also the feature story in this Summer's edition of the International Stationary Steam Engine Society (ISSES) Bulletin. This UK based international organization is archived by the British Library and Science Museum (London). This story is also accessible above.
The President Pumping Engine was a story segment on The Peak TV (Channel 69) on July 10, 2023
Click the button above to view Episode 6, Season 22, of The Peak TV, a production by ASR Media. As a clarification, both Lehigh University students and Guy Janssen of Schelle, Belgium, have made animations of The President Engine. The clips shown in this segment are from the animation made by Guy Janssen.
The President Pumping Engine and Engine House Highlighted in January 22, 2023 Morning Call Article
Click the button immediately above to read an article by Paul Muschick of The Morning Call on the President Engine and Engine House preservation project.
National Museum of Industrial History Display on The President Engine
During a presentation to The Trevithick Society (Cornwall, UK) on March 25, 2022, it was announced that a operating scale model on The President Engine has been donated by Anthony Mount of Bampton, Devon, UK to the National Museum of Industrial History (Bethlehem, PA). The model is 1:38 scale. Since 2022 is the 150th anniversary of the dedication of The President, this is a most fitting recognition. The model is now at the museum and is the centerpiece of a display concerning The President Engine and the Friedensville Mines. The display is located in the hallway which connects the lobby to the main exhibit room.
In 2020 we received a grant from the Cornish Cousins of the South East in support of our plan to create the display at the museum and for signage at The President Engine House ruins in Friedensville. These grants represented the inaugural contribution to Lehigh University's recently established President Pump Preservation Fund.
Historical Marker Approved for The President Engine House site
On December 8, 2022, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission announced that the President Engine was selected for a roadside historical marker in Friedensville near the ruins of The President Engine House and the Ueberroth Mine. The following inscription was approved for the marker:
The President Pumping Engine
Once housed here, it was one of the largest and most powerful single-cylinder steam engines of its time. Designed by Lehigh Zinc Company's Cornish-born engineer John West to remove large volumes of water from the adjacent Ueberroth zinc mine. Manufactured in Philadelphia and said to be named for President Ulysses S. Grant, it operated 1872 - 1892. Its reliability, effectiveness, and innovative design attracted international interest.
See also the page on this website titled Historical Marker
Lehigh University Recovers Key Artifact from The President Engine
On January 10, 2023, Lehigh University recovered a 30-foot-long steam boiler which was part of the President Pumping Engine system. One of 22 boilers required to operate the engine, it was the only surviving metal component of the engine and its system. The former furniture factory basement where it served as a water tank for 120 years is scheduled for demolition. The property developer, working in tandem with Lehigh University and the National Museum of Industrial History, supported this successful recovery project. To learn more, click on the buttons below to read the news releases issued by the NMIH and the National Canal Museum:
Pencil Sketch of The President Pumping Engine by Alexander Karnes
In 2020 graphic artist and steam engine mechanical engineer Alexander Karnes created a large pencil sketch of The President Engine showing how it was positioned within the engine house. A copy of this masterpiece is attached below. It is now part of the display on The President at the National Museum of Industrial History.
Plaque commerating The Mine Master's House
A memorial plaque was placed in 2019 on the corner of Saucon Creek Road and Saucon Valley Road recognizing the Mine Master House which stood on this property until 2017. This house was originally owned by the Hartman family who had sold the farm land around the property to Lehigh Zinc Company. Later, in the 1880s, it was the home of John and James Eudy, father and son, who were successively the captains (superintendents) of the mines for the Friedensville Zinc Company in the last decades of the 19th century.
A memorial plaque was placed in 2019 on the corner of Saucon Creek Road and Saucon Valley Road recognizing the Mine Master House which stood on this property until 2017. This house was originally owned by the Hartman family who had sold the farm land around the property to Lehigh Zinc Company. Later, in the 1880s, it was the home of John and James Eudy, father and son, who were successively the captains (superintendents) of the mines for the Friedensville Zinc Company in the last decades of the 19th century.
