To preserve, perpetuate, promote and disseminate knowledge of the history of the County of Jefferson and the City of Steubenville, Ohio,
History is important! Those who care nothing of the past will not leave anything worthy of being remembered by the future. We can travel back in time by reading the wonderful history books left by Doyle, Sinclair, Hanna, White and many others who felt the need to preserve their history for us to enjoy. Each time we conduct a tour through the museum our history comes alive with the displays of the pictures of the eight presidents from Ohio; the Dining Room with the displays of dishes and china products made locally; the the Civil War period; the riverboat models in the Transportation Room; the displays of World War I and World War II artifacts and the desk used by Edwin McMasters Stanton.
The JCHA operates a museum and library in the Jefferson County seat of Steubenville, staffed by volunteers, and displaying the donated items relating to our history. The library is primarily a genealogical and local history research library containing over 5000 books, pamphlets and records on people, groups, organizations and industries with connections to Jefferson County. Artifacts and documents from the 1700s to the 2000s are displayed for visitors and researchers. We do have books on most of Ohio’s 88 counties and we place emphasis on early settlers from Virginia and Pennsylvania where most of our earliest residents had roots.
For the young students who visit, this is sometimes their first opportunity to see artifacts from the Civil War, a flag from the Spanish American War, a soldier’s uniform from World War I, a war ration coupon book from World War II, a memorial for an Airman who died in Vietnam or a picture of a Marine killed in Iraq..
The first floor of our museum is decorated with furniture and antiques from the 19th and 20th Centuries and a large portrait of Baron Frederick William von Steuben is displayed.
The “Children’s Room,” on our third floor contains desks from a one room school house, children’s clothing from the 1800s and toys used by children of this era. Pictures of Jefferson County adorn the walls throughout the museum showing buildings that no longer exist such as the Female Seminary and Stanton Park.
As a historical organization, we have an obligation to preserve, protect and promote the artifacts and history of our area. We advertise by sponsoring events each year that are of interest to our members and citizens. Our annual “Open House Celebration” each spring announces our opening to members and friends. We have an annual banquet every year and engage a speaker to relate some historical event about our area. Our visitors are given a pamphlet with pictures of the interior of the museum and a complimentary newsletter. The Vivian Snyder Library contains over 5000 books on local, state and national genealogy and history.
If we didn’t exist, some historian would invent us.