Formal flag & founding

Bedford marks special anniversary

By Wendy McCardle, wmccardle@altoonamirror.com
BEDFORD — Roger Kirwin stood in the center of the courtyard at Bedford County courthouse Sunday dressed in period clothing from the late 1700s.

He loaded an 18th-century gun, faced the new county flag and fired one shot into the mostly sunny sky, sending a loud boom through the quiet county seat to celebrate a long and important local history.

Kirwin, executive director of Old Bedford Village, joined several community members for Bedford County Day on the anniversary of the 1771 breaking apart from what was then the western part of Cumberland County.

The event was made possible through the Bedford County Historical Society and featured patriotic singing, a flag-raising of the county’s first formal flag, poem-reading and various speeches.

“Is there anything else you could want today?” Society president Glenden Casteel asked the nearly 100 residents crammed inside of the commissioners’ meeting room.

Children were kneeling on the floor while adults and students lined up against the walls and windows after the seats were filled.

Commissioner Steve Howsare spoke about the importance of Bedford County being set up as the state’s ninth county, giving residents a shorter trip to the county seat, among other things.

“When I was first approached about Bedford County not having a flag, I was a little shocked that over our lengthy history, that one had not been adopted by the county,” Howsare said in regards to the burgundy-colored flag with an outline of the county and the motto, “Crown of the Commonwealth.” The crown refers to the shape of the county and its prominent role in the state.

The flag was contributed through a contest offered by the historical society, beginning with advertisements in 2005 and leading to 35 entries, including the winning design by Todd Greenawalt, who is described by society Vice President Joseph Gardner as a “10th-generation native son” of the Snake Spring Valley area.

One of the many Bedford natives present was state Sen. John H. Eichelberger Jr., R-Blair, who began his speech with a simple, “Happy birthday, Bedford County.” Eichelberger said that his family settled in the area in the late 1700s from Germany. He caused a ripple of laughter in the room when he suggested that the county seat become Eichelbergertown, a small village on Route 26 near Hopewell.

“There’s just a tremendous amount of history that we have here,” Eichelberger said. “The flag’s just great. The people here are second to none.”

Sharon Payne of Bedford brought her family to the event. Her daughter, Bailey, was one of the fifth-graders entered in a contest to read the poem, “Bedford Town.”

“We came to support our community,” Payne said during a birthday party at Methodist Church on John Street, complete with cakes, candles and balloons.

Donna Price of Clearville brought her grandson, a Scout who took part in the celebration.

“I thought it was excellent,” she said.

Bedford County Day will be celebrated every March 9. This weekend’s event lead off a yearlong celebration of the 250th anniversary of the French and Indian War, in which Fort Bedford and the local area played a big part.

Mirror Staff Writer Wendy McCardle is at 946-7520.