ST. ALBANS HISTORICAL SOCIETY
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Our Mission
Preserving Our Heritage, Cultivating Legacy
At the heart of the St. Albans Historical Society lies our mission to rekindle the public’s enthusiasm for our storied heritage. We aspire to inspire successive generations, nurturing a profound sense of patriotism and a drive for even greater accomplishments as we celebrate the heroic achievements of our forebears.
Coalsmouth Chronicles
St. Albans Recollections from Glenn Miller (1918-1920)
Enjoy this story from Glenn T. Miller. This was originally published in our “Blue Book” – “St. Albans History”. The stories were from around 1918-1920. “Around the age of 8 or 9 years old, around 1920, I would visit the Hoboes when they would congregate at the mouth of Coal River to take a much-needed bath and wash their clothes. They would cook up a beef stew of “slumgulleon”. First, they would detail someone to go to Miller’s Meat Market on Main Street and get a large soup bone, a few chunks of beef, and some suet, as well as a 50-pound lard can. They bought several cans of vegetables and all the stale bread available there. I would make my contribution by going home and sneaking potatoes, onions, and anything I could get away with. They always needed salt. I had to supply my own spoon. They served the stew in tin cans. I thought it was the best I had ever eaten, which was not true. The novelty of it was an experience I will never forget.”