Fire official says change smoke alarm batteries with clocks tonight
From staff reports With daylight savings time starting at 2 a.m. Sunday, state officials are once again reminding people to change the batteries in their…
Around The County
OC team finishes first at regional STEM event
From staff reports The Oil City Area team took first place for its project at the regional PA Governor’s STEM Competition held last week at…
Venango group offering garden beds for summer
From staff reports Community members may sign up with Venango Area Community Gardens to request a raised bed for the summer for the use of…
Sugarcreek Council OKs 417 tank work
From staff reports A water tank in Sugarcreek Borough will receive some much needed love this year. Borough council members voted at their meeting Wednesday…
Venango bridge rehab projects resume April 1
From staff reports A two-year project to preserve and rehabilitate three bridges over Interstate 80 in Clinton and Scrubgrass townships in Venango County will resume…
CLA students raise $3,270 for ‘Ultrasound Program’
From staff reports Ninth- and 10th-graders at Christian Life Academy decided to raise money for a program that would benefit people outside their school, and…
Grove students to sing anthems at Otters game
From staff reports Valley Grove School District students from the sixth grade and junior high choirs will sing both the Canadian and U.S. national anthems…
Fetterman will be at OCHS Sunday on listening tour
From staff reports Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman will bring what is billed as a statewide listening tour on the subject of legalizing recreational marijuana…
Advance Auto coming to former East End Thorne’s
By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer A two-year effort to find tenants for a pair of sprawling supermarket buildings in Oil City has paid off…
Titusville business creates wildlife habitat garden
From staff reports The National Wildlife Federation, America’s largest wildlife conservation and education organization, announced McMullen House Bed & Breakfast in Titusville has created a…
Franklin church starting GriefShare program
From staff reports Community members who have experienced the death of a family member or friend may register for a GriefShare program at Atlantic Avenue…
Northwest Commission seeks input on transportation plan
From staff reports The Northwest Commission has launched an online survey to gauge public input and opinion as it advances on an update of its…
Children’s Day at Cranberry Mall set
From staff reports Children’s Day at the Cranberry Mall will be held from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 7. This year’s theme is “Children’s…
Franklin hears more health center opposition
By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer Franklin School Board members heard discussion again Monday about the health resource centers that are being proposed for schools across…
Clarion University expands nursing program to Somerset Co.
From staff reports Clarion University will begin offering its associate of science in nursing degree in Somerset County in the fall semester. Administrative offices and…
OC Main Street seeks new vendors for farmers market
From staff reports The Oil City Main Street Program is seeking vendors for the Oil City farmers market, which has typically operated on Thursdays from…
Get on the Trail Business Contest to kick off Tuesday
From staff reports The Get on the Trail Entrepreneurial Business Plan Contest, which rewards new and expanding businesses that submit business plans to provide goods…
Venango planning commission approves Cranberry tire store
By JIM MEYER Staff writer The Venango County Planning Commission on Tuesday gave conditional approval to the construction of a retail store, Chris’s Tire Service,…
Hoops fundraiser for moms battling cancer now set for Monday
From staff reports The fundraising event that had been scheduled Wednesday at Venango Catholic High School to help the families of two Oil City elementary…
Radio station signals in new era, keeps familiar presence
By RANDY BARTLEY Staff writer For nearly 60 years, Clarion County residents have been entertained by WWCH, the sole AM-radio station in the county. However,…
Cranberry students win press awards
Cranberry High School students, from left, Lindsay Perry, Jenna Seigworth, Sara Uddin, Ava Fischer and AJ Howard were winners in the Student Keystone Press Awards….
7 siblings in area bluegrass band are making their mark
By ROSEMARY FIELDING Staff writer Echo Valley is a bluegrass band consisting of seven close-knit siblings from New Galilee who live on a farm, are…
Cranberry looks at police tax
By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer An entry in Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed 2019-20 budget could wallop Cranberry Township residents with a $50 per person…
5 area students earn Clarion scholar-athlete awards
From staff reports Five area residents were among the 174 Clarion University students who earned scholar-athlete status. They are: Taylor Moltz, of Oil City, a…
OC will conduct North Street survey for CDBG application
From staff reports The City of Oil City intends to include a North Street reconstruction project in the city’s 2019 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)…
Nominations open for FLEX Young Professional of Year
From staff reports Future Leaders and Entrepreneurs Exchange (FLEX), the young professionals organization of the Venango Area Chamber of Commerce, is accepting nominations for the…
Kelly introduces Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act
From staff reports U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-16th District, along with other members of the House from both parties, introduced the Craft Beverage Modernization and…
Hawthorn Pottery Co. helped shape a community
By RANDY BARTLEY Staff writer The small southern Clarion County community of Hawthorn was built around a gristmill but found fame around a potter’s wheel….
Nature Art Showcase winner announced
From staff reports The Council on Greenways and Trails announced the top vote-getter at the Fourth Annual Nature Art Showcase and Sale was “Fox in…
Venango Chamber Orchestra to begin rehearsals Sunday
From staff reports The Venango Chamber Orchestra will begin rehearsals for its spring concert set for Sunday, April 7. This will be the orchestra’s 27th…
Softball association receives AED
Heidi Boitnott, left, unit director of the emergency room at UPMC Northwest, presented an Automated External Defibrillator to the members of the Cranberry Girls Softball…
Franklin pub gets new owners
From staff reports FoxTales Pub in Franklin is under new ownership. Longtime employee Kevin Myers and his wife, Rebecca Myers, purchased the pub after the…
Trampoline turmoil
With Thursday night’s rain and plummeting temperatures came flooded and icy roads causing accidents. With Friday’s high winds came this — a trampoline caught by…
No word on when water issues at Polk Center will be cleared up
By ROSEMARY FIELDING Staff writer Polk Center is dealing with the contamination of some of the facility’s water system with Legionella bacterium. The contamination of…
Oil City Subway restaurant closes
From staff reports The Subway restaurant in downtown Oil City has closed. The restaurant’s last day of business was Tuesday, and some employees were inside…
Venango group offering garden beds for summer
From staff reports Community members may sign up with Venango Area Community Gardens to request a raised bed for the summer for the use of…
New owners look to reopen Grove City’s Guthrie Theater
By JIM MEYER Staff writer The new owners of Grove City’s Guthrie Theater are seeking to reopen the local landmark with some new flavor. Veritas…
Sander’s Market eliminating round-the-clock hours
From staff reports The owners of Sander’s Market in Franklin confirmed Monday that the store will no longer be operating 24 hours a day. “It’s…
Agriculture workshops set in Clarion, Venango counties
From staff reports Free workshops on manure management for people with farms of all sizes are scheduled in Clarion and Venango counties. The programs are…
Groundhog Day more than a celebration of early spring
By RANDY BARTLEY Staff writer It may seem unusual to have a wedding on Groundhog Day, but for Kelsey and Thomas Stark, of Murrysville, it…
Free cancer support group to meet monthly
From staff reports UPMC Northwest is offering a free cancer support group for cancer patients and survivors as well as their family members and caregivers….
Weather Discovery Center is science’s answer to Phil
By RANDY BARTLEY Staff writer Thousands of people were expected to make the trek to Gobbler’s Knob on Saturday morning to witness Punxsutawney Phil’s predication…
Forest County 4-H seeks volunteers
From staff reports The Forest County 4-H program is in search of adult volunteers to lead clubs. The Forest County program averages 50 members who…
National Fuel customers to see rate increase
From staff reports National Fuel customers will see an increase in their latest natural gas heating bills. National Fuel Gas Distribution Corp. announced Thursday that…
Many offices up for election in Venango County
By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer 2019 primary election listings in Venango County number in the hundreds with the open slots ranging from county row…
Franklin board terminates contract with sheriff’s office
By SARAH TITLEY Staff writer Franklin Area School Board members voted unanimously Monday to terminate their school sheriff officer contract with the Venango County Sheriff’s…
Grove wins twice in Paint the Plow contest
Rocky Grove High School won two awards in a Paint the Plow contest sponsored by PennDOT. Rocky Grove won the Fan Favorite award, which was…
Plans already taking shape for OC BridgeFest
By JUDITH O. ETZEL Contributing writer Oil City will have a BridgeFest in 2019 as city council approved a request Thursday to allow the use…
Pointe making warming shelter available
From staff reports An Oil City agency will make shelter available over the next several days of frigid weather for individuals and families who need…
Allegheny students get up-close view of border situation
MEADVILLE (AP) — Amid the politics surrounding negotiations between President Trump and Congress regarding a wall along the southern U.S. border, a group of students…