Sports on display in Bridgeville
Mary Weise with a megaphone from Bridgeville High School. The megaphone is on display as part of the sports exhibit at the Bridgeville Area Historical Society.
Mary Weise leafs through a scrapbook, which is part of a sports exhibit on display through the holiday season at the Bridgeville Area Historical Society.
Sports have been an important part of Pittsburgh for more than a century. The same holds true in the South Hills. And, the Bridgeville Area Historical Society has preserved that rich history in an exhibit on display throughout the holiday season.
Located in the Kathleen Banks Building at 441 Station Street, the society is open from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Admission is free.
The exhibit, which takes up most of the historical society’s space, includes memorabilia, photos and personal collections of athletes hailing from local areas including Bridgeville, Heidelberg, Scott Township, Kirwin Heights and South Fayette among others.
“We were all one at one time,” said Mary Weise, president of the Bridgeville Area Historical Society.
Weise said the historical society decided to do a sports exhibit because “that’s what the members wanted to do.”
She said it took about a week for volunteers to gather sports-related items from the society’s archives and set up the display.
She added a lot of the items on display, including sports scrapbooks, are on loan from area residents.
Some of the photos date back to the 1920s. There is one of Pittsburgh Beadling, a soccer club founded in the late 1800s located near Bridgeville and Mt. Lebanon.
Weise added that years ago most of the area communities had their own soccer leagues.
There’s an old megaphone from Bridgeville High School as well as jackets and sweaters dating to the 1930s.
Included in the exhibit is a display dedicated to Suzy Semanik. The Bridgeville native competed in the 1988 winter Olympics in ice dancing.
Another is of Paul Danilo. A member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame, he hailed from South Fayette Township, and at one time played for the Morgan Soccer Club.
Aldo “Buff” Donelli, is the subject of another display. Donelli also played soccer for the Morgan Soccer Club and was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame. He was played football and coached at Duquesne University and with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1941.
Former Steeler Huck O’Neil of Bridgeville is also highlighted. Prior to his pro career, O’Neil played for Bridgeville High School and Notre Dame. He also served a tour of duty with the Air Force in France during the Korean War.
To volunteer at the Bridgeville Area Historical Society or to donate any local sports-related memorabilia call 412-221-4052.