About WBPS
Wilkes-Barré Preservation Society was founded in the Fall of 2003 to promote the architectural and social history of Wilkes-Barre. In December of 2003 and 2004, Tony Brooks, Betsy Bell Condron, Lisa Griffiths and Harry Haas hosted Victorian themed tours of the downtown mansions. Over the years, thousands have enjoyed architectural walking tours of Wilkes-Barre’s River Street Historic District, Luzerne County Court House and social history tours of Hollenback Cemetery. In 2016, the Preservation Society hosted a public meeting to save Irem Temple. From that meeting, the Irem Temple Restoration Project was formed and a team assembled to restore, preserve and program the 1907 built one-of-a-kind architectural gem. In 2017, the Preservation Society saved the oldest house in Wilkes-Barre (the Zebulon Butler House) from demolition, and is in the process of funding its restoration. In 2020, the Preservation Society launched a YouTube channel of local history tours, entitled Diamond City: Trail of History. In 2022, the Preservation Society is collaborating with the Times Leader Media Group and NEPA Camera Club to publish: Great Historic Houses of Wilkes-Barre, a beautifully designed coffee table book featuring 100 historic houses. WBPS is also collaborating with the Osterhout Free Library to publish a children book on Wilkes-Barre history.
Board of Directors
Gordon L. Williams, Board Chairman
Ann R. Lewis, Vice Chair
Linda R. Joseph, Secretary-Treasurer
Advisory Board
Richard J. Jenkins
Vaughn D. Koter
Dr. Wesley & Patricia Parks
Joel Zitofsky
Anthony T.P Brooks, Director & Curator
Why the É?
In 1829 when George M. Hollenback ordered banknotes for the new Wyoming Bank of Wilkes-Barre from a Philadelphia printer, he asked that the accent aigu be included on the é in Barré for proper pronunciation. Over time, the é grew in popularity and was a means of showing respect to half of our city’s namesake. (Col. Issac Barré may have been born in Dublin, Ireland, but was the son of French immigrant parents after Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes in 1685.) Since Barré spelled his name with an accent, so did our city’s leaders and institutions, particularly around the time of the city’s centennial in 1906. The é, the beehive and the nickname “Diamond City” all became immensely popular and remain so to this day— except the é. It appears that the Times Leader was the last to use the accent in 1978, when it was sold to out of town investors.
Videos and Podcasts
“A Live History of the Market Street Bridge in Wilkes Barre, PA With Host Tony Brooks.” Jonathan Edwards, Medium, 10/1/18 (video)
“Luzerne County Courthouse Tour" DiscoverNEPA, Facebook, 6/3/20 (video)
“Tony Brooks WB Preservation Project” Newsmaker Interviews, WILK News Radio, 6/5/19 (podcast)
“Guest Tony Brooks from Wilkes-Barre Preservation Society” On the Couch with Dr. Kuna, June 2020 (podcast)
Press
“Oh deer” Sunday Dispatch, 7/2/17
“Luzerne County Courthouse to be featured in historic building series” The Dallas Post, 1/29/18
“Residents join in on the Wilkes-Barre historical walk” Fox56, 10/1/19
“Our View: WB’s languishing train station holds promise” Times Leader, 7/8/20
“All aboard for WB depot’s next chapter” Times Leader, 7/11/20
“Children’s book about Wilkes-Barre in the works” Times Leader, 8/28/22
Contact
Zebulon Butler House
313 South River Street
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18701
Tony Brooks, Director
tony@wbpreservation.org
570-793-3631