Title: Memories and hearsay about Route 31 and Mendon
Description: This is a small-medium sized booklet stuffed with stories that will amazingly fullfill the curious history-buff.  Published in 1967, it was written by a school teacher about her childhood memories of Route 31 from Ruffs dale, PA to West Newton, PA and everywhere in-between.  
It is mesmerizing with vivid descriptions, useful information about how things were done in the early 1900's, and chock full of names and descriptions of real people who lived there and places they all spent time in. She tells how roads, especially today's Route 31,  were constructed by the local farmers from winter roads to summer roads, along with planks set in mud for roads--used by horses and buggies, along with the new  fancy motor cars that came later.   
I have a library of local history books of southwestern PA and this is one of my very favorites because reading it is like looking this lady in the eyes and hearing perfectly told stories described in sight, sound, smell and touch!  All tied together with her little-girl perspective that spurts with humor that catches you off-guard.  I absolutely LOVE this book!  I am NSH and this is one of the best local history books from a single-person perspective that I have EVER read.
Places: Southwest Pennsylvania, Mendon, Ruffsdale, West Newton, Tarrs, Madison, Waltz Mills, Willow Tree Farm
People: Albright, Sherbondy, Pore, Painter, Hughes, Bibby, Nickolls, Markle, Dr. Crise
Time periods: 1800's to first half of 1900's