Smock Heritage Museum

The Smock Heritage Museum is on the top floor of the Smock Community Recreation and Heritage Center, the old Company Store.

In most mining communities, the company store was the center of activity. Not only did the company store provide the miners and their families with food, clothing, tools, and other goods, but it also provided a place for them to foster friendships, which developed the community spirit that still exists today.

Three company stores served the Smock miners. The first store, built in the 1880s, was destroyed by fire, as was the second. In 1905, the third company store was opened by the Pittsburgh Coal Company and operated by the Federal Supply Company until 1911. The Union Supply Company, a subsidiary of the H.C. Frick Coke Company, managed the store after the H.C. Frick Company purchased the mines from the Pittsburgh Coal Company. The company store closed in 1944.

On January 27, 1961, the United States Steel Corporation sold the existing company store to the Smock Community Recreation Center. The U S. Postal Service now uses the front of the first floor. The remainder of the first floor consists of a kitchen and a hall where social events are held regularly. A central staircase leads to a large, open area on the second floor. Adjacent to this open area are seven small rooms. At various times, these rooms were used by the local doctor and dentist. During the mine strike 1922, scab workers were housed in these rooms. These rooms are now used to portray the rooms of a "Patch House" as they were in the coal and coke era.

Smock Heritage Museum is a trip back in time. We have an unmatched collection of things from life in a coal patch town. Visit our "Patch House," where we have recreated a patch kitchen, living room, and bedroom. We have also gathered landmarks from Smock, including the original bar from Cicconi's Union Tavern and the original barber chair and sign from Spooner's Barber Shop.