Around The County

Billy Blankenship, of Maryland, grandson of Steve and Patti English, of Henry’s Bend, enjoyed fishing Thursday with his grandfather on the Allegheny River under the…

Vivianne Hartman, 12, Penelope Niemie, 3, Sofia Niemie, 10, and Leiv Harman, 10, (not in picture) planted flowers on an unknown Civil War soldier’s grave…

From staff reports The Oil Valley Film Festival held annually in Oil City will take place digitally this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer WS Packaging Inc., a commercial label and packaging plant purchased by Multi-Color Corp. and located in Sandycreek Township, is…

From staff reports The Oil City Catholic Community festival that was scheduled July 23-25 during the Oil Heritage Festival has been canceled. This year’s event…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer As Oil Heritage Festival organizers scurry to figure out how to reconfigure the celebration because of coronavirus-related directives, one…

From staff reports The state Department of Health and state Emergency Management Agency will partner with CVS Health to offer COVID-19 testing services to skilled…

By KARA O’NEIL Staff writer Oil City School Board members heard from the Oil City Middle School News team during Monday’s board meeting. The team’s…

By KARA O’NEIL Staff writer Oil City School Board members on Monday unanimously approved the district’s budget for the 2020-2021 school year and hired an…

By DILLON PROVENZA Staff writer River Ridge Golf Course has received some patriotic new paint jobs. Patrick Hughes spent most of last week spray painting…

By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer As many events are canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic and crowd restrictions, the Franklin Area Chamber of Commerce and…

Oil City firefighter Scott Attenborough collects a donation at the corner of Petroleum and First streets Friday for the Jolly July 3rd fireworks display over…

By DILLON PROVENZA Staff writer Franklin is the focus of a new crime-thriller novel “Ace of Diamonds” that was released last month. Jim Bushee, of…

By DILLON PROVENZA Staff writer Valley Grove School District served more than 50,000 meals to the local community over about a two-month period after COVID-19…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer The owners of Red Express, a family-owned convenience store chain with three locations in Venango County, have asked the…

From staff reports In order to protect the health and safety of guests and volunteers due to COVID-19, and in compliance with state-mandated regulations, the…

From staff reports The Oil Region Library Association is launching “SummerQuest – Imagine Your Story” today for patrons of the Oil City, Franklin and Cooperstown…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Oil City’s annual summer playground program, temporarily put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, will open Wednesday, June…

By KARA O’NEIL Staff writer All CATA buses are being treated with a disinfectant coating, PermaSafe, that kills germs and is designed to be long-lasting….

From staff reports UPMC Northwest recently began directing patients who received physician consultation and referral for symptoms consistent with COVID-19 to its outpatient specimen collection…

From staff reports A multigenerational retail store in Titusville is closing its doors after 88 years in business. Day’s Home Furnishings, at 315 S. Franklin…

From staff reports Oil City Middle School students won third place in a statewide video competition. The “What’s So Cool about Manufacturing” video contest gives…

From staff reports The third round of grant applications for the COVID-19 Relief Fund are open until June 17. The relief fund is a result…

From staff reports The Oil Region Alliance of Business, Industry & Tourism’s annual Get on the Trail business plan contest seeks to award up to…

From staff reports Oil City Main Street Program has announced the return of its Music on the Square summer outdoor concert series. The first concert,…

By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer Sugarcreek Borough manager Joe Sporer says the borough is taking some revenue hits because of coronavirus-related shutdowns. Sporer told borough…

After a several week break, a group of veterans has resumed its Friday ritual of waving flags at the corner of Petroleum and Front streets…

By DILLON PROVENZA Staff writer Valley Grove Elementary School is holding a parade today to send students into summer break. “It’s kind of a bittersweet…

From staff reports St. Patrick Church in Franklin will begin its regular weekend Masses at 4:30 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sunday….

From staff reports Community Blood Bank will hold an emergency blood drive from 2 to 6 p.m. Tuesday at the former Verizon store in the…

Franklin Library patron Andrea Reed (left) picks up her pre-ordered selections Tuesday from Debra Houser, a library staff member, as part of the library’s new…

From staff reports The state Department of Agriculture has received approval to continue operating the Disaster Household Distribution program, through The Emergency Food Assistance Program,…

From staff reports The two public parks in Cranberry Township will open for the season Monday. Township supervisors agreed at a meeting Thursday to open…

From staff reports The Small Business Jump Start program held spring graduation for its Franklin group on May 21. SBJS participants learned about business goals…

Oil City residents Jeannine Guth (left), a Marine Corps veteran, and Mary Kay Johnson, an Army veteran, are packing up boxes of personal hygiene and…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Venango County’s three public libraries are working out the details this week to prepare for a limited opening to…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Cranberry School Board gave its unanimous approval Monday to a tentative 2020-21 budget that doesn’t include a property tax…

From staff reports Child Development Centers announced it will reopen care to children under 12 months of age on June 1. The age group had…

From staff reports A total of 217 Venango County veterans have died since Memorial Day 2019, according to Fred R. Weaver, director of the county’s…

From staff reports Kaylee Knapp, the Venango County Dairy Maid, has partnered with the United Way of Venango County to bring three dairy product giveaways…

From staff reports The Venango Museum of Art, Science and Industry will conduct tours of the Sibley mansion in June. The tours of the former…

From staff reports The Oil Region Alliance is looking into the possibility of an ATV/OHV trail. According to an ORA news release, the first step…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer A sheriff’s sale of the Days Inn hotel in Oil City set for Wednesday has been postponed until next…

From staff reports The state Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) on Sunday announced the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program to provide an additional…

By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer What had appeared to be a rather straightforward directive by Gov. Tom Wolf to allow some non-essential northwestern Pennsylvania…

From staff reports The Pennsylvania Game Commission is offering the following advice for people who may encounter young wildlife while they’re enjoying the great outdoors:…

From staff reports Franklin High School has postponed its graduation ceremony from June 7 to Thursday, June 18. The FHS Class of 2020 will be…

From staff reports Roadwork will begin next week on Siverly Avenue and Oak Grove Street in Oil City. Milling and paving work will be done,…

Today a woman was spotted at UPMC Northwest surrounded by signs outside of the Cancer Center. She said her friend has metastatic breast cancer for…

From staff reports Venango County Suicide Task Force will hold its annual “Shine a Light on Suicide” 5K walk/run on Saturday, June 20. The event…