While hiking on a ridge high above the hollow, Mark Huwalt of Liberty Borough spotted an unsual hole in the middle of the woods. At first, he thought that is was nothing more than a groundhog burrow. However, upon further inspection, Huwalt found his discovery to be quite puzzling. The hole appeared to be some type of well. It was between 18 to 24 inches in diameter with a drop that went straight down into total darkness. Curiosity led the avid outdoorsman to return a short time later with a few items from his garage. The items included a spool of string, a lead weight and a tape measure. After the weight was attached to the end of the sting, it was dropped into the opening. The weight quickly decended into the unknown. Seconds later, the sound of a splash instantly revealed that there was water hidden below. After pulling the line back to the surface, Huwalt was able to estimate that the hole was roughy 40 to 50 feet deep to the water level. With that, the Liberty Borough man went home and shared the news with his family.
After realizing that the hole was a potential danger to unsuspecting hunters and hikers, Huwalt returned to the well a third time to cover it with a few boards. He followed this action by contacting Allegheny Land Trust to alert them of the problem. A short time later, ALT dispatched Dead Man's Hollow site steward Stephen Bosnyak to investigate. Once Bosnyak saw the unusual hole, he too felt that this was a threat to anyone wandering through the conservation area. He also began to question if the Liberty Borough man had found the location of the Snee Oil Well that operated above the hollow in the late 1800s. It was quite possible that the open well was all that was left of the forgotten operation.
Currently, ALT officials are looking into the situation. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has also been notified. In addition, an effort to construct a permanent cover for the old well is underway. Once this is complete, the DMH Fellowship volunteer network will further examine the site to determine if it truly is the Snee Oil Well. In the event that any historical artifacts are recovered, they will be shared with the public at the McKeesport Heritage Center.
More information and photos of this discovery will follow as soon as they become available.
After realizing that the hole was a potential danger to unsuspecting hunters and hikers, Huwalt returned to the well a third time to cover it with a few boards. He followed this action by contacting Allegheny Land Trust to alert them of the problem. A short time later, ALT dispatched Dead Man's Hollow site steward Stephen Bosnyak to investigate. Once Bosnyak saw the unusual hole, he too felt that this was a threat to anyone wandering through the conservation area. He also began to question if the Liberty Borough man had found the location of the Snee Oil Well that operated above the hollow in the late 1800s. It was quite possible that the open well was all that was left of the forgotten operation.
Currently, ALT officials are looking into the situation. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has also been notified. In addition, an effort to construct a permanent cover for the old well is underway. Once this is complete, the DMH Fellowship volunteer network will further examine the site to determine if it truly is the Snee Oil Well. In the event that any historical artifacts are recovered, they will be shared with the public at the McKeesport Heritage Center.
More information and photos of this discovery will follow as soon as they become available.
