Taber Museum will welcome an award-winning author | News, Sports, Jobs
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The Lycoming County Historical Society’s Taber Museum will host PJ Piccirillo at its Coffee Hour on March 10, 2022 at 10 a.m. in the museum’s Community Hall. In recognition of Black History Month, Piccirillo will discuss his research into the history of African-American pioneers in the West Branch Valley, culminating in his historical novel The Indigo Scarf, according to a press release. The Coffee Hour is free and open to the public.
Based on the true story of two slaves who fled their owners with white women in the wilderness above Williamsport, The Indigo Scarf interprets the little-known legacy of enduring slavery in the north during the 19th century. Meticulously researched, the author’s work is informed by Lycoming County historians, scholars of early American slave laws and northern black codes, experts in postcolonial customs, and descendants who live in the fugitive colony established by their ancestors. Many scenes take place in a nascent Williamsport. The Indigo Scarf chronicles the secret workings of Muncy Hills Quakers sympathizers, the cruelty of a slave hunter, and the irony of a Revolutionary War veteran forced to face his daughter’s love for the slave Jedediah James. The novel deals with the deeper theme of the harrowing impact that slavery has had through the generations since abolition.
Elk County author PJ Piccirillo is a two-time winner of the Appalachian Writers Association Award for Short Fiction. The Indigo Scarf was awarded the 2019 Sunbury Press SUNNY Award. PJ’s fiction and articles have appeared in journals, magazines, newspapers and syndicates. He is literary artist in residence for the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. An advocate for the region’s under-recognized literature, PJ worked to build a name for its authors and a brand for its books by founding the Writers Conference of Northern Appalachia (WCoNA)™ (wcona.com) and the Northern Appalachia Review, of which he is the current editor. A professor of English and social studies at Butler County Community College, PJ holds an MFA from the University of Southern Maine and a BA in English from Saint Francis University.
The author and the historical society hope to turn the program into a more comprehensive event with the African-American community to commemorate rural African-American history in Pennsylvania during the upcoming June 19 observance.
The museum is located at 858 West Fourth St. in Williamsport. Parking is available on the lot behind the museum as well as street parking. For more information regarding the museum, visit our website at www.tabermuseum.org or call 570-326-3326.
