Westmoreland commissioners return to county's roots at Hanna's Town

Westmoreland commissioners returned the county’s roots on Thursday.

Historic Hanna’s Town, the site of the county’s original courthouse at its founding in 1773, served as host to the commissioners’ public meeting where they commemorated the county’s 250th birthday.

“I thought it was a great idea to do this out here. We had a gorgeous day,” said Commissioner Doug Chew.

Thursday’s outdoor meeting was conducted under a pavilion a stone’s throw away from the ground’s modern visitor’s center and in the shadow of reconstructed Hanna’s Tavern, three relocated log houses, a reconstructed Revolutionary War-era fort, and a wagon shed home an authentic late-18th century Conestoga wagon.

A town crier, dressed in period garb, announced the start of the commissioners’ meeting that saw officials issue a handful of proclamations noting the county’s 250th birthday and a full 16-page agenda that included millions of dollars in contracts approved for services and programs.

Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher, who grew up just up the hill from Hanna’s Town, said she was excited to participate in a public meeting in the original seat of county government.

She also observed that she would not have been permitted to participate at a similar session back in 1773, as women were not allowed to participate in the official business of government.

“The solicitor, chief clerk and myself (as women), we wouldn’t have been here if it had been back in the day,” Thrasher said.

And Kertes acknowledged the lack of inclusion in those early years.

“We’d be asking questions and we’d be lost, Kertes said.