Around The County

From staff reports A former Venango County man facing more than 30 charges that accuse him of raping and sexually assaulting a now 16-year-old girl…

From staff reports Masses at St. Patrick Parish in Franklin have been canceled until further notice while Msgr. John Herbein, the parish pastor, awaits the…

By DILLON PROVENZA Staff writer The Pointe in Oil City is experiencing low usage of its warming center. “Our numbers seem to be down this…

By KARA O’NEIL Staff writer The timber company that owns the former Singing Hills Girl Scout camp between Oil City and Dempseytown has put the…

From staff reports Over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day several vehicles were involved in weather-related incidents in Venango and Clarion counties. A Venango County 911…

By DILLON PROVENZA Staff writer A Christmastime tradition at the Cherrytree Township Volunteer Fire Department station challenges residents to “keep it safe” during the holiday….

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Cranberry Township supervisors adopted a 2021 budget, a spending plan that maintains all services and does not include a…

From staff reports The Venango County Democratic Committee has expanded its reach to provide free Christmas dinners to area residents as a result of a…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer The Oil City Arts Council, bedeviled by a string of public event cancellations in 2020 because of the COVID-19…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer UPMC Northwest is a little brighter this holiday season because of the generosity of a local couple. A quartet…

From staff reports Franklin state police have released more details of a UTV crash in Canal Township that fatally injured one man and seriously injured…

From staff reports In what has been a less than cheerful year, a trio of Oil City organizations want to bring some of that merriment…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer There is what some weather forecasters describe as a blockbuster winter storm tracking along the Atlantic Coast and due…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer The surge of patients being admitted to the UPMC Northwest hospital in Seneca because of COVID-19 infections is relentless….

From staff reports The Catholic community in northwest Pennsylvania united in a day of generosity Dec. 1 through the #iGiveCatholic day of giving. A total…

By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer Venango County Toys for Tots will hold its annual toy distribution Saturday at the Oil City VFW. Organizers are asking…

From staff reports The United Way of Venango County will offer the use of learning hubs to any student in the county who needs assistance…

From staff reports The University of Pittsburgh at Titusville’s Education and Training Hub has moved from guarded to elevated risk posture, which imposes some additional…

One person was injured in a one-vehicle crash Sunday in Oil City. Noel Bartlett, of the Oil City fire department said a vehicle hit a…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer The annual In the Nick of Time campaign, a community project designed to provide area teenagers with holiday gifts,…

From staff reports Three new recreation opportunities in the region are a little richer thanks to the Get on the Trail business plan contest. The…

From staff reports The Oil City Main Street Program’s annual Jingle Bell 5K Run/Walk set for Saturday as part of the city’s annual Christmas Past…

From staff reports The Victorian Christmas bazaar held for 16 years at the Oil City Knights of Columbus as part of the annual Christmas Past…

From staff reports The tri-county area’s unemployment rate continues to fall, with both Venango and Clarion counties showing seasonally adjusted rates for October below the…

From staff reports The American Cancer Society will offer local residents an opportunity to symbolically light a bulb on its Tree of Hope located in…

By KARA O’NEIL Staff writer The James M. Henderson American Legion Post in Oil City is looking to replace the American flags on the bridges…

From staff reports City crews will pick up leaves next week in the following areas: Oil City Monday – Palace Hill area Tuesday – Siverly…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Cranberry Township supervisors took a strong stand on coronavirus-related health directives at a brief meeting Tuesday. “We emphasize that…

From staff reports The Oil City leaf collection schedule for this week is as follows: Today – Pearl, Washington, Bissell (Harriott to Plummer), Hoffman (East…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Love for their childhood neighborhood combined with cooking talents and a big supply of food are prompting two Oil…

The coronavirus pandemic has forced the cancellation of some South Side Neighborhood Association activities, but it didn’t stop the organization from launching a project to…

From staff reports The City of Franklin street department will pick up leaves with its vacuum machines next week in the following areas: Monday –…

From staff reports Valley Grove School District will remain closed to in-person learning through Friday, Dec. 4, as elementary and high school students continue remote…

From staff reports U.S. Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pa., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., are introducing a bipartisan bill to enhance accountability among the nation’s poorest performing…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission has directed parties involved in a dispute about what might be unsafe electric utility…

From staff reports The Oil City leaf collection schedule this week is as follows: Today – East Second, East Third, East Fourth (Wilson to dead…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer The Transit Art Gallery and gift shop on Oil City’s North Side is ramping it up for the holidays….

From staff reports The Oil City Ministerium is conducting a clothing drive to assist the Salvation Army. Congregations within the ministerium are asked to contribute…

From staff reports The City of Franklin street department will pick up leaves with its vacuum machines next week in the following areas: Monday –…

From staff reports All in-person services and gatherings have been suspended in Episcopal churches within the Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania and Western New York. The…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Just as 33-year-old Scott Kennedy was getting his new business up and running in Oil City, the COVID-19 pandemic…

By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer There will be no rate increase for Franklin water and sewer customers in 2021. Franklin General Authority members unanimously approved…

By KARA O’NEIL Staff writer As the Assumption BVM Church building in Oil City was reduced to a heap of bricks and boards Monday, several…

By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer Thirteen bicyclists made their way through the foggy streets of Oil City on Saturday to kick off the first ever…

From staff reports Franklin Franklin city workers will pick up leaves next week in the following areas: Monday – Gurney Road side of Franklin Heights…

A longtime Oil City restaurant and tavern, operated by the third generation of the founders and nestled into a small neighborhood on the North Side,…

From staff reports The first year of the $32.6 million project to repair and reconstruct nearly 10 miles of Route 8 from Georgetown Road in…

Demolition began Tuesday on the landmark Assumption BVM Church building on Oil City’s North Side. BKI, the company hired to tear down the building, was…

From staff reports Venango County will sponsor a collection for both household hazardous waste and electronics from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov….

From staff reports The start of the annual Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) application process has begun. The program, which provides home heating bills…