Harvest Festival 2025 and NAPS

by: Felicia Duffy
The Greene County Historical Society

With the leaves changing color and the feel of Halloween in the air, there has been a lot of activity at 918 Rolling Meadows Road in Waynesburg, PA this month.

Greene County community members and history buffs rejoiced together for the Greene County Historical Society (GCHS) and Museum’s 54th annual Harvest Festival. It took place the weekend of October 4th and 5th from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

With live music playing on the front steps of the museum, the grounds were decked out with vendors, reenactors’ campsites, food trucks, demonstrators and self-guided tours. It was free for individuals and family alike to attend and walk around inside the museum. 

Some of the vendors included: face painting, homemade crystal candy, a collection of baked goods, Halloween spirit, wine, and paranormal information and more. 

The GCHS, with director Matt Cumberledge and an array of helpful volunteers assisting, strives to keep the appreciation of history alive and thriving. Preserving artifacts and stories, while educating the public with live interpretations helps keep future generations aware of the rich, local heritage surrounding Greene County. 

The annual success of the Harvest Festival is a direct result of how much the public enjoys the organization and the over 30,000 artifacts in exhibits. Cumberledge, in an interview for Observer Reporter, explained how the Harvest Festival is a signature event in town and very well attended.

“You will not see another historical society in the state that is of this scale and at this level of preservation,” Cumberledge said.

This year, many visitors were intrigued with the Waynesburg & Washington Railroad Second No. 4 locomotive, which was brought out of the shed for all to climb aboard and ring the bell. The crowd enjoyed the refurbished antique clock that takes up a room on both the first and second floor of the main building. It is visible out the second floor window and still functions when powered on. 

The Dungeon basement was a hot spot of conversation, too, but it was closed for the weekend. Patrons are encouraged to return back during future paranormal things to see it.

Luckily, the investigative team from New Alexandria, PA, Northern Appalachian Paranormal Society (NAPS) had access to it for the Poorhouse and Paranormal introduction. As per their Facebook page, they are “Trying to find the answer of why. Why are they still here? What is keeping them here?”

On the morning of October 11th, the museum was open for individuals to learn about those who lived on the grounds many years ago. A few exhibits were changed to hold an array of items closely related to the original building. 

This included an Admissions Leisure listing inmates and books of expenses of construction of the Greene County Poorhouse. The property cost $13,981.49 to purchase in 1861, which translates to $514,734.91 in today’s money. 

There was the original dinner bell used to inform inmates it was time to eat, photos from the 1930s of unknown individuals, pictures of the building from 1885 and papers of several inmates writing notes or commitment papers to live in the Poorhouse. 

To keep the conversation going, panels took place throughout the morning hosted by Matt Cumberledge, NAPS’ lead investigator Jay Blackburn, and members of the Marshall County Historical Society from West Virginia. 

The night investigation started at 8 p.m. on the second floor of the West Wing in the women’s quarters. It then moved into the Dungeon. The group of around 20 learning investigators and assistants then split in two; one group went to the famous ‘Baby Oven Room’ first, while the other went to the master bedroom located on the second floor in the front of the house. The group reconvened to debrief and ended the night at a very quiet 1 a.m.

GCHS is currently closed for the season from general admission until the last weekend in April of 2026 but stay tuned for updates! Happy Halloween!