Richard Fulton

(1/9) The Emmitsburg commissioners voted at their January 6 meeting to table further consideration of four proposed wayside markers until the February 3 meeting to allow edits to be made to the Emmitsburg Press signage.

Four new historical wayside signs are pending the board's approval, including signage denoting the histories of the “Great Fire of 1863,” the Vigilant Hose Company, the Carriage House Inn building, and the Chronicle Press building.

While the board had no issues with three of the four pending signages, that concerning the Chronicle Press building produced some concerns.

Commissioner Joseph Ritz, III, said, “At the last meeting I had a question prepared for Scott Grove, wherein I was going to ask him, 'Who verified all your historical records.' Before I got a chance to even ask it, he offered that Mike Hillman went through all four of the signs to review.”

Grove is the owner of Grove Public Relations and the project's designer. Hillman is an Emmitsburg historian and is the publisher of the Emmitsburg News-Journal.

“Well, low and behold,” Ritz said, “Mike only saw three of the signs. He did not see the Chronicle Press (sign), and then he (Hillman) brought it to my attention.”

“The last sentence states, 'The Emmitsburg Chronicle ceased publication in 1971, following a run of 87 years.', he said, adding, “Emmitsburg Chronicle was alive and well in 1976,” while in fact, “It did cease operations in 1977.”

Ritz stated, “The Chronicle started in 1879... It was in publication all the way into 1918.” After 1918, he said, there was a brief period in which the Chronicle was not printed until the 1940s, when it is believed the Elders took over the paper and published it until 1971. After 1971, Ritz commented, there were a few other owners, including Eric Glass.

“This sign is going to go out in front of the building where the Chronicle Press is currently located... It kind of skims over the beginning of it,” Ritz said. “I think that we need some more information regarding the Emmitsburg Chronicle, not just the reference to its run with the Elder family.”

In addition, Hillman noted, “contrary to other signs, the Chronicle Press Building sign glosses over the history of the building as Emmitsburg first public grade and later high school to focus on only a single business that utilized the building.”

In order to allow for the incorporation of the proposed changes, the board voted to table the approval of the four waysides until their February meeting.

The total cost of the four wayside exhibits will be $22,024, according to Town Manager Cathleen Willets, 50 percent of which, or $12,062, was obtained as a Maryland Heritage Areas Authority grant, the rest paid for with town funds.