About the Journal

History of Westmoreland History

First published in 1995, Westmoreland History is the scholarly journal of the Westmoreland County Historical Society. Established to encourage original research and to provide a permanent record of scholarship relating to Westmoreland County, the journal has become an important forum for the study of one of Pennsylvania's oldest and most historically significant counties. Since its inception, the journal has reflected the Society's commitment to preserving, interpreting, and disseminating knowledge of the region's past through rigorous historical research and thoughtful interpretation.

The founding of Westmoreland History represented an important milestone in the Society's publishing program. While the Westmoreland County Historical Society had long supported historical inquiry through exhibitions, educational programming, lectures, and archival stewardship, the creation of a dedicated scholarly journal provided a venue for sustained academic research focused on the county and its surrounding region. The journal was envisioned as a publication that would preserve original scholarship while encouraging new avenues of research into the political, social, economic, cultural, military, architectural, industrial, and environmental history of Westmoreland County.

Over the past three decades, Westmoreland History has published original articles by professional historians, museum practitioners, archaeologists, archivists, genealogists, educators, graduate students, and independent scholars. Contributors have drawn upon a wide range of primary sources, including archival manuscripts, government records, newspapers, maps, photographs, oral histories, archaeological collections, and material culture preserved by the Westmoreland County Historical Society and other repositories. Collectively, these articles have documented the lives of individuals and communities while placing local experiences within broader regional, state, and national historical contexts.

The journal recognizes that the study of local history contributes meaningfully to larger historical conversations. Westmoreland County's history encompasses Indigenous communities, colonial settlement, the American Revolution, westward expansion, industrialization, immigration, agriculture, labor, transportation, education, religious life, civic institutions, and the changing cultural landscape of southwestern Pennsylvania. By examining these subjects through careful research and critical analysis, Westmoreland History seeks to demonstrate the significance of local history as an essential component of American historical scholarship.

Illustrated with photographs, maps, documentary materials, and images of artifacts from public and private collections, the journal serves not only as a record of original scholarship but also as a lasting resource for researchers, students, educators, genealogists, preservationists, and members of the public. Each issue contributes to the documentation of Westmoreland County's historical record while supporting future research by preserving new interpretations and previously unpublished source material.

Editorial Mission

Westmoreland History publishes original, unpublished scholarship that advances knowledge of the history of Westmoreland County and the surrounding region. The journal welcomes submissions addressing all periods and topics, including political, social, cultural, economic, military, architectural, archaeological, environmental, and public history. Interdisciplinary approaches and studies that connect local history to broader historical themes are particularly encouraged.

The editorial staff is committed to maintaining high standards of historical accuracy, documentation, and interpretation. Articles are evaluated on the quality of their research, use of primary and secondary sources, originality, and contribution to the existing body of scholarship.

Open Access Policy

The Westmoreland County Historical Society believes that historical scholarship should be as widely accessible as possible. In support of this principle, Westmoreland History is committed to expanding public access to research on the history of Westmoreland County while ensuring the long-term preservation of its published scholarship.

Authors retain copyright to their individual works for content published prior to 2026, unless otherwise agreed upon in writing, and grant the Westmoreland County Historical Society a non-exclusive license to publish and preserve their contributions in both print and digital formats. Beginning in 2026, authors retain copyright, simultaneously licensing their works under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0). This license allows others to copy and redistribute the work so long as they provide reasonable attribution and do not use the work for a commercial purpose. This license applies to the submitted version of the work (preprint), the accepted version of the work (postprint), and the final published version.  

Proper citation is requested whenever articles are referenced or reproduced in accordance with applicable copyright law. Ideal attribution for a work published in this journal consists of the work’s title, the title of the journal, the name(s) of the author(s), the DOI (digital object identifier), and for articles published in 2026 and forward, a link to the CC BY-NC 4.0 license deed. The journal encourages those relying on the CC BY-NC 4.0 license to consult the Best Practices for Attribution on the Creative Commons wiki.   

As they retain copyright, authors are entitled to distribute any version of the article and to grant other licenses to use the work, subject to the CC BY-NC 4.0 license. The journal encourages authors to include the ideal attribution described above when they distribute their works after acceptance by the journal.   

Authors are encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and after publication, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (see SPARC's "Open Access" article). Current and future issues may be made available in digital form through the Society's online platforms and institutional repositories as resources permit.

By promoting open access to historical research, the journal seeks to support scholarship, education, public history, and lifelong learning while extending the reach of the Society's collections and research beyond the walls of its archives and museum.

As Westmoreland History continues to evolve, it remains guided by the principles that inspired its founding in 1995: careful scholarship, thoughtful interpretation, and a commitment to preserving and sharing the history of Westmoreland County for future generations.