Jermyn Historical Society to hold online auction Saturday to support its upcoming museum

JERMYN — From a turn-of-the-century glass bottle to a never-used 1950s General Electric iron, the Jermyn Historical Society will auction off some history on Saturday to help fund its new headquarters.

After 4½ years of work and about $100,000 raised from a state grant, donations and fundraising, the historical society is on the cusp of opening a museum, library and research center inside a 140-year-old former church-turned-house at 710 Madison Ave., society founder and President Bruce Smallacombe said. If all goes to plan, Smallacombe hopes to open the museum in late June.

Before it opens, though, the society is partnering with Nostalgia Auctions LLC of Mayfield to host a virtual auction at 11 a.m. Saturday that will be streamed live on Facebook.

Smallacombe hopes to raise about $1,000 to $1,500, which will go toward finishing the building’s bathroom and kitchenette, plus covering some utility bills.

On Wednesday afternoon, hundreds of donated items spanning from the late 19th to 21st centuries filled the society’s building ahead of Saturday’s auction.

A preserved copy of the May 26, 1942, edition of The Scranton Tribune with an above-the-fold headline of “Nazis launch massive attack” sat atop a stack of newspapers documenting historic events, including the moon landing and President John F. Kennedy’s assassination. Nearby, a red velour lampshade estimated to be from the 1920s sat ready for sale next to a pair of ice skates. Other items include a large number of glassware, especially crystal glass, that Smallacombe estimates to be from the 1940s to 1960s, dishware, tchotchkes, appliances, “tons of books,” vinyl records, appliances, some vintage radios, exercise equipment and at least two bicycles, among numerous other items.

“We have everything,” Smallacombe said.

When the auction items are cleared out, the society’s building, which will be free and open to the public, will have computers for genealogical and family history research, a place to sit and read by a fireplace, and a library and museum containing a comprehensive history of Jermyn families, businesses, fire companies, churches, organizations and local U.S. armed forces members from World War I and beyond, as well as other history books and a collection of books from local authors. The building will be replete with local memorabilia spanning from the mid- to late 1800s to modern times, Smallacombe said.

“I’m hoping it becomes like a hub for the community,” he said, envisioning residents of all ages using the building, whether it’s students stopping by after school or senior citizens playing board games and holding a book club.

A lifelong history buff, Smallacombe, 70, founded the Jermyn Historical Society just over two decades ago. He served 16 years as Jermyn’s mayor, from January 2002 to June 2011, when he became a Lackawanna County commissioner — a position he held until January 2018.

The society was supposed to have a room on the second floor of Jermyn’s Borough Building. When that fell through, they used a room in the nearby Jermyn Methodist Church’s parsonage, though the society quickly outgrew that space.

The society found its permanent home in November 2019 when it purchased what was once the Welsh Congregational Church for $20,000. Built in 1884, the building was used as a church until 1916 before alternating between being a single-family home and apartments, Smallacombe said.

As soon as he got the deed, Smallacombe started working on the building. Since then, he estimates he’s spent thousands of hours restoring it.

To give it a more church-like appearance, they removed the second floor of the building to reveal its arched ceiling and installed two donated stained glass windows from the 1860s, among a slew of other work, Smallacombe said. He also restored the building’s original tin ceiling. Former Pennsylvania Department of Transportation spokesman and state representative candidate James May donated the windows, he said.

Smallacombe is optimistic the society will soon receive a $100,000 state Local Share Account grant to fund a new front sidewalk, a driveway and rear parking area, a wheelchair-accessible sidewalk along the building to its rear entrance, new siding and fascia, stonework, security cameras, a large-screen television and audio-visual equipment to hold programs and a printer and copier, Smallacombe said.

If the grant is approved in June, Smallacombe hopes to complete the additional work in September or October, although the museum will be open in the summer.

He estimates the entire project will cost around $250,000.

“I can’t wait to see it open,” Smallacombe said. “I can’t wait to see the people use it.”