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PITTSBURGH, Dec. 4, 2024 – The La Roche University Literary Society invites the community to two engaging presentations led by distinguished authors and historians this spring.

 

These free events offer an opportunity for guests to engage in scholarship, discussion and a deeper exploration of literary and historical topics. Both presentations will be hosted in the Ryan Room of the Zappala Campus Center at La Roche’s campus in McCandless Township.

Author and historian Carleton Young has spent over a decade unearthing the story of two Civil War soldiers after discovering an enormous collection of letters in his family attic. In his book, “Voices from the Attic: The Williamstown Boys in the Civil War,” Dr. Young shares the remarkable story of two brothers who served in the celebrated Vermont Brigade within the 6th Corps of the Army of the Potomac. This presentation will explore the surprisingly detailed and insightful letters that preserved the brothers’ personal histories as well as a powerful narrative of the Civil War.

Dr. Young has undergraduate degrees in economics from Westminster College and in English from Point Park University, a Master of Arts in history from Ohio University and his Ph.D. in the history of education from the University of Pittsburgh. For 37 years he taught AP American history at Thomas Jefferson High School in Pittsburgh. He also has taught classes as an adjunct professor at the Community College of Allegheny County, the University of Pittsburgh, Eastern Gateway Community College and in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.

Award-winning author Thomas White ’97 will discuss his book, “The Witch of the Monongahela: Folk Magic in Early Western Pennsylvania.” This presentation will explore the legend of Moll Derry, a woman said to possess mysterious magical powers in the hills and hollows of Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Known as the Witch of the Monongahela, she has captivated writers and folklorists for over two hundred years and is featured in tales like the Lost Children of the Alleghenies and Polly Williams and the White Rocks.

Mr. White is the university archivist and curator of special collections at Duquesne University. He is an adjunct lecturer in Duquesne’ s History Department and an adjunct professor of history at La Roche University. He is the author of several books chronicling and preserving Pennsylvania’s folklore, legends and obscure history.

The Literary Society, initiated at La Roche in the early 1980s, serves as a forum for scholarship and discussion on literature and related issues, fostering a vibrant exchange of ideas and community engagement. The upcoming presentations continue the Society’s tradition of offering opportunities for dialogue and learning.

For more information, please contact Sister Rita Yeasted at 412-536-1216 or rita.yeasted@laroche.edu.