History

Cemeteries

Forest County has over 20 cemeteries.  Among the best maintained is the Riverside Cemetery in Tionesta. You can find evidence in small  community  cemeteries  reflecting the determination of early settlers, entrepreneurs and adventurers  who shaped the area's history. There are also many well- tended burial plots adjacent to area churches, and others that may have grown from family plots into village cemeteries, such as the historic cemeteries at Roses and at Guitonville.




Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

Duhring, Seldom Seen, Beaver Valley, Muzette, and Bucks Mill are 5 of the 14 Civilian Conservation Corps camps that existed throughout the Allegheny National Forest during the Great Depression. Camp Duhring is one of just a handful of CCC camps in the United States with original, surviving structures.  CCC crews planted trees, built infrastructure and left a legacy of public works.

CCC #1 Duhring - the first operational camp in the USA. (8/25/1933). Mess hall, storage building and barracks are still standing.  After the war, Duhring served as home to conscientious objectors to military service. During WWII, it was a POW camp for German prisoners who occasionally turned up in subsequent decades to express gratitude for the way they were treated here.  Other CCC Camp sites are CCC # 2 Bucks Mill;  CCC #6 Seldom Seen;  CCC #8 Beaver Valley.


Forest County Courthouse
526 Elm Street, Tionesta
Monday through Friday from 9:00 am until 4:00 pm.

Forest County was created on April 1, 1848, from part of Jefferson County and part of Venango County. It was named for its extensive forests, which were known for containing many important Indian trails and paths. Tionesta was named the county seat in 1866 and was named for the Tionesta Creek. 

The Forest County Courthhouse, designed by Keene Vaughn, was completed in 1870.  The second-floor courtroom features the restored historical paintings of Justice and Liberty. 



Historical Markers

Most of the trail of markers in Forest County follow the banks of the Wild & Scenic Allegheny River. The complete list of existing markers reveals a storied past.

Historic Places
Forest County is home to four listings on the National Register of Historic Places, as well as important historic sites of the Civilian Conservation Corps (above). 

 
Historic Sites
Local Immigrant History
German Hill (aka Dutch Hill) was settled by German immigrants in the 1840s.  Also located on this hill is Bellisle, named for the first Irish settler who built a cabin there. The Zuendel Cemetery is an important resource for the historical imprint of this community.


Re-enactments

French & Indian War Encampment (Cook Forest)

Highlights of this full two-day encampment include children’s programs, woodland natives, cannon and musket firing demonstrations, sutler camp, council and trading events, nationally renowned living historians, French & Indian War era artisans, and live tactical engagements. Every battle is different! Take a walk back in time at the Sawmill Center for the Arts to view British, Colonial, French, and American Indian re-enactors as they portray lifestyles of the 18th century.
Burke Beach Re-enactment      (Photo by H Bumper Bauer)