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Renzie Ramble Takes Walk Through Local History

Presidents, philanthropists and a saloon-keeper will have their stories told

By Kristen Keleschenyi
The Tube City Almanac
June 24, 2021
Posted in: McKeesport and Region News

Kate Hester, a 19th century McKeesport saloon-keeper, is credited with coining the word “speakeasy” to describe an illegal bar. Hester’s story and that of other local and national celebrities will be told this weekend in Renziehausen Park, McKeesport. The photo is not of Hester’s saloon but depicts a 1919-era tavern. (Library of Congress collection)


Some of the best stories to come out of the 15132 zip code will be told with a dramatic flair this Saturday within the trails and landmarks of Renziehausen Park.

The first-ever “Renzie Ramble Walking Tour,” presented by the McKeesport Regional History & Heritage Center and the McKeesport Little Theater, will go beyond the Living History Tours that have taken place for the past seven years in the McKeesport & Versailles Cemetery.

“It’s stuff we would like to do on the cemetery tour but can’t because either they are not buried there or we don’t have the exact facts,” said David Moore, museum director at the MRH&HC. “When we do the cemetery tour a lot of research goes into every single one of those characters, whereas for this we did the research but if we couldn’t confirm it we had to fill it in.”

“George Washington” slept here and other fascinating stories will start at the schoolhouse at the heritage center and will end at the Lions Band Shell. The tour will visit the Garden Club of McKeesport’s Rose Garden and Arboretum, the Nettie Stone Fountain, the lower circle and bridge, and McKeesport Fire Station No. 2.

It will pull people in with probably the most famous character to traipse around the Mon Valley but there are many lesser-known narratives, when paired with a little creative interpretation, that will keep the audience wanting more.

“What famously happened in McKeesport that we don’t know about?” said Teresa Trich, development director at the MRH&HC. “Everyone knows the word ‘speakeasy’ but do they know it was (coined by) Kate Hester in McKeesport?”

The event is the first collaboration between the MRH&HC and the McKeesport Little Theatre.

The theater has struggled due to its low-profile location, tucked away on Coursin Street, and the MRH&HC has struggled with having a high-profile location but sometimes getting lost among the other amenities of Renzie Park.

“I think that’s the really good thing about this. People that wouldn’t necessarily come to the museum will be able to come to the museum,” said Moore, who adds many people don’t know about the exciting changes that have happened at the center in the last couple of years.

And for the McKeesport Little Theater, this is a chance to let people know they are preparing their first post-pandemic show “Dracula, a Musical” which will run in July.

“With acting opportunities having been few and far between over the past year or more, I think our actors are happy to share their talents with the Renzie Ramble visitors while raising awareness that our theater is up and running again,” MLT Vice President Jennifer Vertullo said.

The cast includes MLT actors of all ages including Colleen Boatright as the school teacher; Heather Atkinson as saloon-keeper Kate Hester; Sadie Mitchell as 1935’s Miss America, Henrietta Leaver; Phil Boatright as philanthropist Henry Renziehausen; Tom Arliotta as George Washington; Luciano Lanz as former McKeesport fire Chief Fred Bray; and Connor McGrew as John F. Kennedy.

MRH&HC Board Member Andi Cartwright said the stories being told are what she would share if someone asked her, ‘What are your seven most favorite things about McKeesport?’ “I like that they are a bit rough. I like that the stories aren’t clean and tidy.”

Tickets for the 30-minute tour are $15 ($12 for MRH&HC members) and $6 for kids 12 and under. They can be purchased online at mckeesportheritage.org or by calling (412) 678-1832. They can also be purchased the day of the event. Tours will run from noon to 4 p.m.


Kristen Keleschenyi is a freelance writer in North Versailles Twp. and one of the hosts of the Kristen & Amber Show on WMCK Internet Radio at 5 p.m. Saturdays, 9 p.m. Mondays and 4 p.m. Thursdays. She also writes a column for The Valley Mirror. She may be reached at kbishop25@hotmail.com.

Originally published June 24, 2021.

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