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It seems odd that John Schalcosky - the man behind two local historical societies, historical Facebook pages, a weekly radio spot and new interactive map - did not do well in history while in school.
"I got D's in history at North Hills," he said. "The history teacher who gave me those D's now has me come in and talk to his classes."
It took leaving Pittsburgh and spending five years in California for his love of history to bloom. While a music and film student at the University of California, Los Angeles, Mr. Schalcosky began scouting locations for films and delving into the history behind abandoned buildings.
"I couldn't believe I was walking through all these abandoned theaters," he said. "Even the building I was living in, there was so much history behind it."
He brought that energy home with him after college.
"I was always curious about the Harmony Route," he said of the electric trolley line between Pittsburgh, Butler and New Castle. "You start walking down these old paths, and you realize that people, generations ago, did the same thing."
He started going to meetings of Ross Township Historical Society and became its president in 2009 while still in his 20s.
"Local history was nonexistent when we started the Facebook group," he said. "We started it with 200 photos. Everything else was just dug out of attics and posted online from random strangers."
Historical Society member Beth Schellhaas said Mr. Schalcosky has rewritten some parts of history because he discovered more facts about the event.
"John is such a unique individual being as he is young, compared to me, and his passion and love for history is just so amazing to me," she said. "As he is telling these historic things about the city, you can just hear his excitement."
Mr. Schalcosky describes another Facebook page - The Odd, Mysterious&Fascinating History of Pittsburgh - as the "ultimate output for all things that are curious in Allegheny County."
"That [page] has grown beyond what I ever thought," he said. "I was impressed when it hit 1,000 people. Now, it has over a half-million [followers]. The coolest thing about it all is...