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History Tour Brings Past to Life for Visitors

Encore presentation scheduled Thursday in Renzie

By Vickie Babyak
The Tube City Almanac
October 08, 2025
Posted in: McKeesport and Region News

(Vickie Babyak photo for Tube City Almanac)

Cemeteries are usually a solemn, serene place of final rest, but on Saturday and Sunday the McKeesport and Versailles Cemetery was alive with historical figures of McKeesport’s past, portrayed by local actors.

The McKeesport Regional History & Heritage Center presented its 11th annual Living History Tour featuring characters like Thomas Tilbrook the first mayor of McKeesport, trail blazing journalist Phyllis Garland, and Woodene Merriman, a longtime reporter and lifestyle editor for the McKeesport Daily News.

All together, 10 historical figures were represented by actors, Isaac Richardson as the gravedigger, Greg Nemchick as John Corey, Kim Moore as Woodene Merriman, Ellie Valentine as Jane Berry Smith, Ellis Michaels as Thomas Tilbrook, Wayne Minnicks as Russell Goetz, Ashden Burgman as B.B. Coursin, Isabel Newport as Sarah E. Johnson Phillips Means, John Patalona as John Sellman, and Nie’Zhay Jefferson as Phyllis Garland.

(Vickie Babyak photo for Tube City Almanac)

Sharon Soles, vice president of the heritage center’s board of directors, said the organization has planned the cemetery walk for the past 11 years with the help of staff and volunteers. “We depend on everyone and it's really a group effort,” Soles said.

(Vickie Babyak photo for Tube City Almanac)

John Hernandez, 79, and his girlfriend Barbara Woods said they have been attending the tour for the past three years. Hernandez said if it wasn’t for the Heritage & History Center in Renzie Park, he believes McKeesport's history would be off the charts and forgotten.

“What’s ironic, I grew up on White Street, was born in the hospital right here, worked across the street in the mill, then you die here, and it’s all within four square blocks. You don’t have to go anywhere else,” Hernandez said with a smile.

During the history tour, a number of guests complimented the professionalism of the actors and said they really enjoyed seeing the characters brought to life.

Isaac Richardson said he’s been involved with the Heritage Center in renditions for five years and has been acting since he was 11 years old. He explained that his performance this year was of a fictitious character who narrates the history of the cemetery through the eyes of a graveyard digger.   

(Vickie Babyak photo for Tube City Almanac)

McKeesport high school student Nie’Zhay Jefferson said she was proud to perform as Phyllis Garland who was a trailblazing journalist, author, and the first African-American journalism faculty member to earn tenure at Columbia University.

Jefferson said, “Phyllis Garland was definitely a character. She was super busy and kind of reminded me of myself. She wrote for the Red & Blue school newspaper and I do too, so there’s a connection.”

John Patalona reenacted John Sellman, a McKeesport patrolman in the early 1930s who served on the force for five years until he was killed in the 1936 flood. When word came in that some folks were stranded, he and a couple other officers went out to help, and a fierce twisting current tipped their boat. Sellman was caught in an undercurrent and was swept away into the Monongahela River, Patalona said.

To learn more about the history of McKeesport and surrounding areas, the community is encouraged to visit the museum located at 1832 Arboretum Drive in Renziehausen Park, the center is open on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, and Saturdays, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Please call (412) 678-1832 or email info@mckeesportheritage.org for further information.

Sponsors of this year’s event included:

Striffler Family Funeral Homes 
Minuteman Press 
Barrier Protection Systems
Frazier Contracting & Plumbing
Tube City Community Media
JoAnne Rodgers
The Minnicks Family
McKeesport Area Education Association
White Oak Rotary Club
Wilson Baum Agency
Di’s Kornerstone Diner

Originally published October 08, 2025.

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