Tarrs, Pennsylvania Explained

Tarrs
Settlement Type:Unincorporated community
Pushpin Map:USA Pennsylvania#USA
Pushpin Map Caption:Location within the state of Pennsylvania
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Pennsylvania
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Westmoreland
Unit Pref:Imperial
Population As Of:2000
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Elevation Ft:1158
Coordinates:40.17°N -79.5981°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP codes
Postal Code:15688
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:1189287

Tarrs is an unincorporated community and coal town that is located in East Huntingdon Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States.

Situated on Pennsylvania Route 31 approximately 3miles west of Mt. Pleasant,[1] it is the only location in Pennsylvania known to have an active and running ACA Allertor 125 Civil Defense warning siren.[2]

History

Tarrs has its own post office, with zip code 15688. It was established in April 1828.[3]

The town was the site of a coal mine, first developed in 1873 by D.A. Dillinger and Brothers. It was later acquired by the Southwest Coal and Coke Company and was known as the "No. 3" mine. Approximately 250 coke ovens were eventually located there.

In 1906, historian John Newton Boucher described Tarrs as being located along "the South-West Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad" between Ruffs Dale and Alverton. Boucher also mentioned a location in Westmoreland County known as Tarr Station, presumably related to the railroad.

By 1910, the population had reached roughly five hundred. The mine and coke works closed in 1923.[4] [5]

See also

ACA Allertor 125 warning/Civil Defense siren video on Wikimedia Commons.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Tarrs - Post Office . U.S. Postal Service.
  2. http://webpmt.usps.gov/pmt007.cfm{{Dead link|date=June 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}
  3. Web site: Postmaster Finder . USPS - Display Post Offices by County . United States Postal Service . 27 June 2022.
  4. Web site: Muller, Edward K. and Carlisle, Ronald C. . WESTMORELAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA: An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites . National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.. 1994 . 157–158 .
  5. Book: Boucher . John Newton . History of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania . 1906 . Lewis Publishing Company . 283, 390 . 25 June 2022.