Fight on for Site of Army's Birth, Preservationists Want 204-year-old Camp as Historic Site
by Judith A. Oliver
The 50-acre site in Harmony Township where the U.S. Army was born remains a battleground. Preservationists and developers remain at odds over the property, locally famous because Maj. Gen. "Mad" Anthony Wayne founded the army there. Wayne died 200 years ago this Sunday in Erie. Remembrances of him always stir discussion in Beaver County over the idea of transforming Wayne's Legion Ville camp into a national historic site. Established in 1792 on the Ohio River near Ambridge, the camp eventually consisted of 500 structures and housed about 2,500 soldiers. Several archaeological investigations were conducted on the property between 1989 and 1994. Seventeen soldiers are interred somewhere on the grounds, but the exact location of the cemetery has not been identified. The Legion Ville Historical Society of Sewickley has been trying since 1973 to preserve the site.
The site was placed on the National Register of Historic places in 1975. Robert Dyson, chairman of the group (Task Force), said its goal is to see Legion Ville developed as a national attraction such as Gettysburg. "We see it as having a tremendous economic impact on Beaver County," he said. "The first step is to acquire the site, and then we'll turn it over to a national or state organization for development and management. We can't do a whole lot, however, until we gain control of the site." Jerart Inc., owns about 27 acres. Paul Mouradian, an accountant from Ambridge, owns 16.3 acres. LeRoy Friend of Northwest Chevrolet/Geo owns the remaining 5.86 acres. Early this year, The Legion Ville Task Force was formed to seek ways to obtain the 50 acres. Beaver County has committed $115,000 of community development grants, $15,000 of which is being spent on two independent appraisals, Elaine G. Kirsch of Pittsburgh and Kelly Reilly and Nell Associates have been hired to determine the fair market value of the property. Their report should be completed this month.
Mouradian is willing to sell to Beaver County, but said his asking price is $1.75 million. "If they can't meet my offer, I'll tell them to go pound salt or I'll sell them a smaller portion," he said last week. Mouradian has no interest in preserving the site. He called historians "hystericals" and members of the Legion Ville Society "radical jerks." In 1995, he removed truck loads of soil from the site (i.e. he destroyed part of the area where the richest archaeological remains were located, Ed.) to use as fill on another piece of the property he owned on Ohio River Boulevard. Jerart Inc., is more interested in the historic project. It has been mining slag dumped in a ravine on the southern edge of the property by the A.M. Byers Co. Jerart co-owner Jerry Peckich has promised that, after his company completes its work, it will donate all its 27 acres to the historical society. Even with Mouradian fighting the project, Dyson said his group hopes top negotiate, "a price and a payment plan over a number of years." Mouradian has indicated a willingness to negotiate. He said he recently turned down a proposal from a New York company because its offer of $2,000 for a one-year option to buy was too low. "I told them to get lost," Mouradian said, "but if they had increased their option, I would have thought about it."
The 5.86 acres owned by LeRoy Friend might be difficult to obtain. Mike Kuga, (who is adamantly against the preservation effort, Ed.) president of the Harmony board of commissioners, said Friend plans to start construction in the spring on a garage for a new car lot. Kuga said the plans are not approved yet, but added that Friend will be "ready to go as soon as the weather breaks." Dyson said he has not had any discussions with Friend yet. The Legion Ville Historical Society, Inc., has issued a statement saying it would be "a mockery" to have a car dealership on the site. U.S. Rep. Ron Klink, D-Murrysville, said creating a historic site is important for a variety of reasons. "The best value-added business is tourism," said Klink, who pledged to donate $1,000 to the project personally once "an appropriate fundraising mechanism is in place with the ability to acquire the site." Regardless of today's political struggles, Wayne's memory will live on in one way or another. Members of the Legion Ville Historical Society will conduct services in Erie this weekend to commemorate the anniversary (200th, Ed.) of Wayne's death. The society has begun a homepage on the World Wide Web. Its Internet site is http://tristate.pgh.net/~bsilver/legion.htm
Judith A. Oliver is a free-lance writer.