SME Pennsylvania Anthracite Section Members,
We are launching a campaign to erect a Mining Engineers' Memorial in Wilkes Barre near the North River Street site of the founding of AIME and the first meeting of the PA Anthracite Section.
I am of the opinion that the monument should be representative of not only mining but NE PA and the anthracite region, and I am proposing a sculpture done by Frank "Wyso"Wysochansky (1915-1994) Wyso, son of a miner was born in Monessen and lived most of his life in Blakey, and Wyso's intimate knowledge of miners and their families influenced his art throughout his life. His paintings and sculptures document the tools and working conditions of the anthracite coal mines of Northeastern Pennsylvania, as well as the modest means and simple lifestyle of the coal miners' families. Steve Lichak, of the WYSO Foundation www.frankwyso.org/ designs, sculpts and erects bronzes at any scale using the WYSO's original sculptures. One sculpture that has been enlarged is shown in photo 1. http://www.frankwyso.org/site/bronze.html and can be seen in Olyphant on the levee at the corner of N River Street and W Lackawanna Avenue (41.470755,-75.606023).
Steve attended our 100th anniversary meeting last week and had four potential sculptures there. (1, 2, 3, 4 below) There is also an exhibit of WYSO at the Anthracite Heritage Museum in Scranton, and three other candidates are on exhibit there (5, 6, and 7).
Please vote by responding to mkorb@pa.gov.
vote for 1-2-3-4-5-6 or 7
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5
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7
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Michael Korb
Section Chair Elect
(570) 826-2371
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