Welcome to Ashland
Borough of Ashland 150th
Anniversary of Incorporation 1857-2007
Ashland is the western gateway into
the Upper Schuylkill Region along PA's Route 54 and 61, which traverses
through the heart of anthracite coal culture.
The borough is named after Henry Clay's lush estate
near Lexington, Kentucky. Ashland was the site of Jacob Rodenberger's
old log hotel in 1820. Burd S. Patterson, a prominent citizen of the
county, had predicted that some day an important mining town would
cover the slope of this mountain. In 1845, Patterson with John P.
Brock of Philadelphia and James Hart purchased the land to develop
Ashland. The Borough of Ashland was formally established in 1857.
Ashland's rolling Main Street features many fine examples of 19th
century architecture currently undergoing an exciting renovation and
revitalization effort.
Not
far off the borough's main thoroughfare is the must-see bronze monument
of Whistler's mother, visible from the intersection of PA Routes 61
and 54. The statue was commissioned in 1937 during the annual Ashland
Boys Association (ABA) homecoming, and is based on James McNeil Whistler's
famous 1871 painting, "Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait
of the Painter's Mother."
A plaque at its base proclaims that the statue-completed
as part of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Work Projects Administration
- "honors all mothers, past and present, and is the only one
of its kind in the country."
The Ashland Boys Association, established circa 1901,
remains active in the borough, and continues to host its annual Labor
Day parade based on the association's age-old tradition of inviting
its boys back to their stomping grounds to celebrate fond memories
of growing up in the Anthracite Region.
Local folk stories tell how scores of Ashland boys,
mining lanterns illuminating the evening streets, would disembark
from the train at the base of Main Street and make their way home
in a procession, which eventually become the annual ABA parade.
Our region's anthracite history is further interpreted
through the Ashland Museum of Anthracite Mining and Ashland's Pioneer
Coal Mine and Steam Train - originally the Pioneer Colliery - where
today visitors can enter this authentic coal mine by rail, and learn
how anthracite was mined. Guests can also ride the Lokie Henry Clay,
a steam locomotive, which once hauled coal and now carries passengers
along Ashland's Mahanoy Mountain to experience what life must have
been like for the hardworking coal miners of the Upper Schuylkill
Region. Pioneer Tunnel Coal Mine and Steam Train is A
Pennsylvania Top 10 Attraction visit www.pioneertunnel.com.
Ashland Downtown, Inc.
Main Street Program
Gregory Fisher, Main Street Manager
733 Centre Street
Ashland, PA 17921
570-875-3571
adi@upperschuylkill.com
Ashland Borough Hall
501 Chestnut Street
Ashland, PA 17921
570-875-2411
Dennis J. Kane, Mayor
Michael Groody, Council President
Steve Ulceski, Manager
Elementary,
Secondary and Special Education
North Schuylkill Schuylkill District
Trinity Academy at the Father Walter J.
Ciszek Education Center (K-6)
Schuylkill Intermediate Unit #29
St. Joseph’s Center for Special Learning
Ashland Annual Community Events
| Ashland Rotary “Pet Walk” – 1st
Saturday in May |
| Ashland Downtown “Farmers
Market” – Saturday mornings May through October |
| "ABA Car Cruise" – 2nd Sunday in
July |
| Borough Recreation “Flicks
at the Field” – Memorial Field during Summer Months |
| Catholic Churches of Ashland “Block Party”
– Friday and Saturday last weekend of June |
| American Hose Company Annual
"Fireworks" - July 3, Raindate July 4 |
| "Pioneer Day" – 3rd Saturday in
August at Pioneer Tunnel/Higher-ups Park |
|
"ABA Mummers Parade" – 1st Saturday
September
|
| Ashland Downtown “AppleFest” – 3rd
Saturday October |
| Rotary"Halloween Parade"
– 3rd Sunday October |
| Rotary Christmas Parade" – Saturday Thanksgiving
Weekend |
| Ashland Downtown “Holiday
Decorating” 3rd Friday December |
| Ashland Downtown “Old Fashioned Christmas”
3rd Saturday December |
| “Six Great Town Food Pavilion”
– Upper Schuylkill Homecoming - 1st Saturday September |
| “Ashland Downtown Wine and Food Pairing”
– Upper Schuylkill Homecoming - 1st Sunday September |
| Veteran’s “Memorial
Day Parade and Service” – Memorial Day |
| American Hose Annual "Chicken BBQ Sale"
- 2nd Saturday September |
