I'm in Edinboro today and it's very hot. I want to tell you a story about something that was erected here in 1913. A place where man and beast would come and get a refreshing drink. It's not a saloon. It's a fountain and it has a fascinating history.
I’m standing beside the Edinboro Fountain. Jay Marcinowski, Vice-President of the Edinboro Area Historical Society, is filling me in on that history. He says the fountain goes back to the days when downtown Edinboro had all wooden buildings, all dirt streets, and horses were the main source of transportation. After the third major fire in nine years, water lines were finally installed downtown in 1909.
"In 1910, the Conneautee Brotherhood, kind of a downtown economic community at that time, decided We are going to put in a fountain,” says Jay.
This is a beautiful cast iron fountain, built in Boston. It’s a three-tiered fountain. When it was dedicated in 1913, it had a trough for horses on top, in the middle was a smaller fountain where people could drink, and on the bottom was a water bowl for dogs.
"In the 1930s during a winter storm, a fire truck skidded into the fountain and dislodged the dog bowl. We've never been able to find one to replace it,” says Jay.
The fountain was THE downtown meeting place for many decades even though it was moved several times throughout the diamond-shaped intersection where several streets come together. In the 1980s and 90s, the fountain was deteriorating and basically was used as a large flowerpot. In the year 2000, borough council decided to repair the fountain. It finally returned to its past glory. However, in May of last year, a vehicle jumped the curb and crashed into the fountain. The beloved fountain split into four pieces.
"Those all had to be welded back together. If they couldn't be fixed, they would have to be re-cast,” remembers Jay.
There were no local companies that could do the work. It was feared this iconic symbol of Edinboro would be no more. But wait!
A re-dedication ceremony for the repaired Edinboro Fountain was held on May 30 almost one year after the crash. A company from Alabama heard about the mishap and told Edinboro officials it could do the repairs. The fountain is back at “The Diamond” where it belongs. In fact, some people have already poured bubble bath soap into the fountain carrying on a time-honored prank that has continued for generations.
Over 200 people attended the re-dedication ceremony on May 25. They were very happy to see the fountain return. The fountain is owned and maintained by the Borough of Edinboro. It is placed in storage during the winter months. The fountain is especially dear to the Edinboro Historical Society. The organization sells fountain t-shirts, lapel pins, and other merchandise. And...the society's annual magazine is called The Fountain.