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Although the community of
Arnold was first settled in 1852 by Indian fighter Major
Andrew Arnold, it was not until January 14, 1896, that it
was incorporated as a borough. What is now Arnold was at one
time part of New Kensington. The land on which the city of
Arnold now stands was originally purchased by Robert McCrea.
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| A tract of land situated on
the east side of the River Ohio in Westmoreland County,
containing two hundred twenty-two acres, allowance of 6% for
roads and "accepting and reserving one fifth part of all
gold and silver ore for the use of the Commonwealth. The
community name of Arnold comes from Andrew Arnold after
purchasing the land from the Jack family. August 13, 1859,
by will and probated 1860, Andrew Arnold gave this land to
his daughter, Sarah E., wife of Colonel Robert Parks
Crawford. |
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For the first few decades
after Arnold was settled, life was peaceful and rather
uneventful. With the establishment of the Chambers Glass
Company in 1891, the quiet little village began its
transformationinto a thriving industrial town. This was at
the same time that other businesses and industries were
starting in New Kensington. Its population had risen with
the increase in work, and immigrants poured into the
community to make their homes. Naturally, with the
heterogeneous population, plus the ever increasing
industrialization, it's no small wonder that the community
generally accepted as a part of New Kensington, should
develop into political wards, each with it's own ax to
grind. |
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| According to the July 12, 1952
edition of the Daily Dispatch, on Monday, November 28, 1892,
Judge Doty issued an order which incorporated the borough of
New Kensington. It included Arnold, which at the time was
designated as New Kensington's second ward. An election to
select the first New Kensington borough officers was
scheduled to be held Tuesday, February 21, 1893. The date
was set by Judge Doty and the political campaign proved to
be a bitter contest. Two political parties were involved,
the Citizen's party and the People's party. The latter party
won the election. However, the election board while eturning
the correct tally, issued certificates of election to the
defeated candidates on the Citizen's ticket. The case was
again brought before Judge Doty, who issued a writ directing
the election officers to issue the proper certificates. |
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In October, 1895, a movement
was started to have the second ward (Arnold) incorporated
into a seperate borough. The move resulted in a long, drawn
out fight for control between the two powerful political
factions. the seperation of the second ward of New
Kensington and it's incorporation as the borough was
completed on January 14, 1896. On February 18, 1896, the
officers of the new borough were elected. |
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| The former second ward of New
Kensington kept growing, both residentially and on the
business front, and on July 31, 1939 was granted a city
charter, beginning operation as a city on January 1, 1940.
M. Frank Horne, who was serving as Burgess at the time the
city charter was granted, ran for Mayor and won. Others on
the first slate winning offices with Democrat Horne were:
John R. Baxter, Thomas Haser, J. J. Jasinksi, and Ted
Settlemeyer. Ted Capone was City Controller, Leo Sukala the
City Treasurer, J.J. Malick, City Engineer, and Tom Tannas
the City Clerk. |
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Mayor M. Frank Horne served
five consecutive terms from 1939 to 1960. Two mayors have
succeeded him, Alfred Colaianni from 1960 to 1963 and
William DeMao from 1964 to present. |
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| The
Arnold Station was so named because the land on which it
occupied was given by the Arnold family. At the time, the
area was covered with woods and orchards, and less than
fifty people, from a few wealthy families. As the Allegheny
Valley line extended it's tracks, a double line was laid to
Arnold and a single track continued on through. Through a
very unusual agreement signed by the railroad people and
W.H. Crawford, every train that passed through Arnold was
required to stop. The two dozen trains that came through
daily had to come to a halt; the conductor got off the train
to sign a registry and then reboarded. Even though Parnassus
and New Kensington were larger and more populous, they were
passed-by by the three daily Pittsburgh-Buffalo express
trains which never failed to stop in Arnold. |
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Arnold
has a long history of sports within it's city limits. They
had quite a sandlot football team long before the NFL. |
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| Arnold
had it's fair share of major businesses and manufacturing
during the past 100 years. |
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Arnold
has been a family oriented city since it's inception. Those
family values still show in the city today. |
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| Arnold
was not without it's emergency services while it was growing
up. |
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