Members of the Dalton Historical Society from left, are Bill Guest, Carissa Butler, and Greg Palaskas.
Submitted Photo
DALTON — The public will soon be able to learn about Dalton’s history thanks to the efforts of the newly formed Dalton Historical Society.
The members, who first met in 2023, formed the organization with a mission statement to articulate, celebrate and share the history of Dalton and the contribution of generations of citizens to the evolution of the history.
“The community needed it,” said member Greg Palaskas, who wrote the mission statement.
The historical society was founded by Carissa Butler. The Dalton Historical Society also preserves and organizes written materials and artifacts, which were once housed in the home and office of the late Norm Brauer. His documents are from raw material that he used for his research as well as information he received from Dalton residents along the way.
Dalton Historical Society member Marylee Schirg, who is also the president of the Dalton Shoemaker Cemetery, has a trove of original historical material dating back to the 1800s. Historical documents include original material written by the Rev. William A. Lewis, who was a clergyman who had notebooks filled with the history of Dalton.
“I was able to use that to do the history of Dalton,” said member Bill Guest, who wrote a book called “Bailey Hollow and Dalton – A History.” He originally wrote a brief history of Dalton for the borough’s new website.
“One of the councilmen at the time said, ‘what we want you to do is make it longer, do it book-length,’” Guest said. “What started as a new website for Dalton became a book.”
Palaskas shepherded the book by publicizing it in order to earn money to make the Dalton Historical Society — or, as Guest puts it: “legally existent.” The book includes Dalton’s past dating back to the 1700s. Dalton was once called Bailey Hollow, named after one of its first settlers, George Anson Bailey. The book is available at the Dalton Pharmacy and Amazon.com.
The Dalton Community Library will have a book signing with light refreshments at 4 p.m. Friday. Guest will read an excerpt from the book. This event will also introduce the Dalton Historical Society to the public. Anyone interested should contact the library at 570-563-2014.
In addition to the grand reveal, the historical society is planning to have a historical walking tour with a map highlighting historical buildings. It is working in cooperation with the Dalton Community & Commerce Association to plan a celebration of America’s 250th birthday next year. Palaskas is producing a series of podcasts titled “Stories from the Hollow.” It will feature interviews with individuals speaking about Daltons’ history and people who are active in the community today. It will be posted on YouTube.
Other members of the Dalton Historical Society are Elizabeth Bonczar, Brad Reid, Keith Loughney and Jeff and Mary Cornell.
