By Saxon Daugherty – Staff Writer
Two people from Ohio have teamed up to write a book about a love that they share – Forest County.
Joseph Pavlansky and Paula Hanahan, both natives of Youngstown, are co-authors of the book “Images of America – Forest County,” which is set to be released July 24.
Despite not growing up in the vast wilderness and rolling mountains of Forest County, both Pavlansky and Hanahan have become attached to western Pennsylvania.
Hanahan is a local artist and she enjoys the architecture of the third least populated county in the state.
She has owned a home in Tionesta for the past five years.
The co-authors came into contact completely by chance, Hanahan said.
Hanahan met Pavlansky’s girlfriend at a bookstore in Ohio when she was visiting family, and the two chatted about Forest County.
Hanahan had been wanting to write a book about the county, and it made sense for her and Pavlansky to work together on the project.
“We decided it would be a good idea and she was pretty well versed with the history, and she knew a lot of people at the historical society,” Pavlansky said.
The idea was pitched to the Forest County Historical Society board of directors, which gave the authors full access to its resources.
“They literally gave us a key to the historical society and said ‘use whatever you need to,'” Pavlansky said.
The authors combed through text and photos to construct the historical book.
The piece was finalized in January, and now it is a waiting game to get it in the hands of local readers.
Hanahan said the book primarily focuses on the lumber industry that was a staple in the area.
“It’s bizarre to think Forest County was such a booming area,” Hanahan said.
Hanahan said it was important to put across the fact that Forest County is more than just the county known for having one traffic light within its borders.
“It’s like a charmed, lost in time, special place,” she said. “For me, that is the grand appeal.”
“It’s everyone’s fear that (the history) could be lost,” Pavlansky said.
