Impact 

Official Biography of Millicent Hammond Fenwick

Through research, Mr. Richard McDonough found that the United States House of Representatives official biography of Mrs. Millicent Hammond Fenwick, former member of Congress, was incorrect.  The official biography for years had indicated that Miss Millicent Hammond married Mr. Hugh Fenwick in 1934.  Mr. McDonough was able to confirm that the actual marriage took place in 1932.  In March of 2018, the House of Representatives updated its official biography of Mrs. Fenwick to reflect the correct year of marriage. You can view the official biography prior to its update by clicking here, and you can view the official biography after it was updated by clicking here.

Official Record of Dedication of the Edward Hector Historical Marker

The official records of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania indicated that the Edward Hector Historical Marker, designed to recognize an African-American hero of the American Revolutionary War, was dedicated on September 19, 1967, in Conshohocken.  Through research, Mr. Richard McDonough found that the actual dedication took place on September 19, 1976.  The records, which had had the incorrect date of dedication for more than forty years, were then corrected by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. You can view the details about this historical marker before the Commonwealth updated its files by clicking here, and you can view the details about this historical marker after its update in February of 2018 by clicking here. Wikipedia continues to include the incorrect date for the dedication of this historical marker. You can view the Wikipedia entry by clicking here.

"A Tree Growing In Plymouth"

Since 1966, the Plymouth Meeting Mall has had a display called "A Tree Growing In Plymouth" to recognize important historical events that occurred during the life of a tree that had been cut down during the construction of the shopping mall.  Mr. Richard McDonough found that a number of the items listed in the exhibit were incorrect.  Some were simple typographical errors, like the notation of what became the largest employer in Plymouth Township - the Alan Wood Steel Company;  the exhibit spelled "Alan" as "Allen".  Other incorrect items reflected incorrect dates.  For example, the founding of the Borough of Conshohocken was listed as occurring in 1849; the actual incorporation of this municipality took place in 1850. It is not yet certain that this display has been updated to reflect accurate spellings and dates.

Plymouth Meeting Mall Fire

Important details about the fire that engulfed the Plymouth Meeting Mall in 1970 were first reported 48 years later by Mr. Richard McDonough. This included information about the individual who likely started the fire - accidentally - at this regional shopping center and what happened during the first 23 minutes of the fire. You can view a seven-part series of news columns on the Plymouth Meeting Mall Fire by clicking here.

Pet Adoptions

Mr. Richard McDonough produced a series of news columns highlighting the needs of animals in shelters needing permanent homes. Of the eleven animals that were introduced in these news columns, seven of the animals were placed in permanent homes. One of the animals was placed without any direct involvement of these news columns. Six of the animals, pictured above, may have found permanent homes because of the news columns highlighting their needs. You can view the news columns focused on pets needing permanent homes by clicking here.

Official Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Maps Updated

Mr. Richard McDonough produced a series of news columns highlighting the facts that the Borough of Conshohocken and the Commonwealth Pennsylvania were likely using incorrect maps of the Borough and a neighboring municipality, Whitemarsh Township. Based on those news columns, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation updated its official maps for both the Borough of Conshohocken and for Whitemarsh Township to reflect land that was annexed by the Borough from the Township in 1968. The incorrect maps had been utilized by the Commonwealth for 50 years. The Borough of Conshohocken has not yet updated likely incorrect maps that the local municipality has been using for a number of decades. You can view the news columns detailing these maps by clicking here.

The Freedom Valley Chronicles: Year One

Credits:

The photo of the Edward Hector Historical Marker is provided courtesy of Mr. Noah Lewis.

The photo of "A Tree Growing In Plymouth" exhibit is courtesy of the Plymouth Meeting Mall, 2017.

The photo of the Plymouth Meeting Mall is provided courtesy of Harmonville Fire Company and Plymouth Township, 1970.

The photographs of the pets are provided courtesy of the Montgomery County SPCA, 2018 and 2019.

The map of the Borough of Conshohocken is provided courtesy of the
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), 2018.

The photo of the Millennium Fire is provided courtesy of the members of
Conshohocken Fire Company #2, August 13, 2008.

© 2019 Richard McDonough