The City of Farrell celebrates its 100th anniversary this year with a celebration centered at the high school football field from July 10-14. But while the community celebrates its past, the future is somewhat unsure.

The once great steel mill town has seen its population drop from 15,586 in the 1920 census to 6,050 according to the 2000 census. There has been a huge loss of industrial jobs and a once booming downtown area has disappeared.

The city officials are now engaged in discussions with the municipalities of Hermitage, Sharon, Sharpsville and Wheatland for possible consolidation into one large city. Ironically, this is not the first time the prospects of merger have arisen in Farrell's past. In 1936, a proposal to merge Farrell and Sharon into "Buhl City" was voted down.

But this is only one highlight from the city's past 100 years which included some remarkable achievements during a time in which Farrell played a huge role in the development of the Shenango Valley.

The city was incorporated as the Borough of South Sharon on Nov. 15, 1901, under a decree handed down by Mercer County Judge Samuel Miller. The city's area was carved out of the much larger Hickory Township and centered on the Shenango River, which provided a fine setting for industrial growth.

It was the promise of that industrial growth that drew people of many nationalities, races and creeds to settle here.

Frank H. Buhl, one of the Shenango Valley's most renowned citizens, with his associates had broken ground for the Sharon Steel Co. plant in 1900 and they were looking for workers. People arrived from parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Sharon Steel Hoop, American Sheet and Tin Plate and the American Steel and Wire companies opened plants nearby and the building industry boomed. Boarding houses and hotels went up and many individual homes were built on the hill, the first reportedly constructed by Miles J. Patton at the corner of Emerson Avenue and Haywood Street (Roemer Boulevard today).

The city held its first election on Dec. 4, 1901, and elected William F. Mason as the first burgess. Councilmen were Peter D. Cameron, Benjamin Lewis, Charles L. Atwood, John J. Nolan and John Matta.

The town purchased land on Darr Avenue for $370 as the site for the borough's first jail, which also became a meeting place for council. In 1903, the city fathers approved construction of a fire station on Wallis Avenue. This building was used until the South Sharon city building was erected on Spearman Avenue in 1910. That building served the city until the present municipal building, on Roemer Boulevard between Wallis and Spearman avenues, opened in 1979.

The name of the borough was changed officially to Farrell in 1912 to honor James A. Farrell, then president of United States Steel Corp. The name was selected in a contest won by Mrs. John Leyshon. Some other names suggested included Buhl, Pargany and Radium.

The steel industry boomed during World War I and the growing pains were eased with the annex of 50 acres of property from Hickory Township, raising the total land of the city to 1,055 acres.

A slight depression hit after the war, but by 1924 the town was again booming when American Sheet and Tin Plate built four new hot mills. During the late 1920s the four plants of U.S. Steel and Sharon Steel Hoop employed about 10,000 workers and issued monthly payrolls of about $1 million.

Businesses also flocked to Farrell, to provide goods for mill workers.

The town however felt the effects of the national depression after the stock market crash of 1929. But as the city rebounded, there followed the opening of a new post office building, construction of a modern sewage plant, construction of a Broadway storm sewer, improvements at Farrell City Park and construction of playgrounds at Lincoln, Washington and Eckles schools.

When World War II broke out in 1941, the city once more rose to the occasion as the steel industry again was called upon to boost the war effort. As men went off to war, many women were went to work in the mills, including a small band of school teachers.

During the food rationing of 1943, the Mercer County Housing Authority was created with George J. Vermeire becoming its first executive director in 1944. In 1945, Steel City Terrace, a 150-apartment complex in the southwestern portion of town was built. One hundred additional units were added in the early 1950s.

In 1951, the new Farrell Public Library (later Stey-Nevant Library) was built at Beechwood Avenue and Roemer Boulevard. Prior to that the library had been housed (since 1935) in the Farrell fire station. Then in 1952, the Farrell Redevelopment Authority was established to help bring business to the town. It was an uphill struggle because the city was soon to experience what other towns would feel -- the decline of "center city". Plazas, followed later by malls, began to draw shoppers away from downtown stores. The city felt the effects as the once-busy stores, businesses and movie theaters began to close.

The city received a big plus when the Shenango Valley Osteopathic Hospital was dedicated on March 27, 1960. Located on a 15 1/2-acre parcel donated by the city, the 50-bad facility was constructed at a cost of just under $1 million. The hospital has undergone many renovations and expansions over the years, the last a multi-phase $7 million project that included a new main entrance and a major facelift to the front exterior. Today the hospital is known as UPMC Horizon -- Shenango Campus and is a member hospital of the UPMC Health System, which is affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences. UPMC Horizon (Greenville and Shenango campuses) has a medical staff of more than 250 physicians and employs more than 1,000 people.

During an economic downturn in the north during the 1960s and 1970s, as industry moved south to areas of the country which offered better climate and a non-union work base, the population of the town began to shrink as residents left to find jobs.

Farrell, with the largest African-American population in Mercer County, also felt the effects of the race riots during the "war for civil rights" during the late 1960s, which followed shortly after the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King. Although there was some minimal violence in the city, it was nothing compared to that felt in many areas of the country.

During 1969, Mayor John E. Giroski and city leaders met with leaders of the black community and together they bonded a community that stands for equal opportunity and promotes the welfare of all its residents, regardless of race, color or creed.

Helping to ease the tension was the Shenango Valley Urban League which was founded in 1968 and helped find jobs for many blacks. The League offices currently are located on Indiana Avenue, with James Long the executive director.

However, in 1971 Mayor Francis N. Petrillo suggested eliminating night football games because of security problems and Farrell later went to afternoon football for a decade. This ended the nickname "Night Riders" as the football team, like the other sports teams, became the Steelers.

During the struggle to maintain business and industry, the city hired Charles Nath as community development director in 1974. In 1976, the people of Farrell voted to become a "Home Rule Charter" community, with more power to govern themselves. Part of that charter was establishing a part-time mayor position, with the city run by a professional city manager. Nath was the first named to that role.

That same year the city began work clearing property for its new municipal building in the 500 block of Roemer Boulevard between Wallis and Spearman avenues. The building cost about $1.5 million and was finally occupied in 1979.

The city embarked on a housing program, which included construction of an elderly housing project, under the auspices of the Mercer County Housing Authority, located between Indiana and Stambaugh avenues and Idaho and Union streets. The $1.9 million project includes 75 units of federally subsidized housing.

The city also began a housing rehabilitation program to provide low-interest loans and federal grants for restoration of homes in various areas of the city.

In 1977, the process was under way to develop the city's first industrial park on the east side of Broadway. In 1981 the second industrial park on the east side of Broadway was completed.

The Southwest Gardens Economic Development Corp., which completed construction of the Henry W. Richards Southwest Gardens Memorial in 1980, also played a role in development of the city. The organization is headed today by Executive Director Dr. Kimberly Richards. In 1987, Southwest started its Unity House to assist recovering drug and alcohol addicts.

Despite progress in the southwest area of the city, the business area declined and Sharon Steel -- which in its heyday employed more than 7,000 -- continued to drop in production and many employees were let go. In 1987, the city applied to the state for status as a "Distressed Municipality" under Act 47. This followed Sharon Steel's filing for bankruptcy. The city received a $651,000 loan to operate under the "distressed" program.

The city began to cut costs everywhere possible and was operating with a minimum of employees. In 1990, a feasibility study was done to form a regional police department with Shenango Township, Wheatland and West Middlesex. In 1992, the city took formal action to form the consolidation with Wheatland. West Middlesex joined in 1993. Former Farrell Police Chief Joseph Timko was named to head the unit, which operates under a commission made up of representatives from the participating communities.

In late 1992 the city suffered another setback as Sharon Steel Corp. once again filed for bankruptcy and finally closed its doors. The state was called upon to rescue the city with another loan.

Unlike many steel towns with a closed mill, Farrell has been fortunate that Sharon Steel was bought, first by Caparo Steel, and later by Duferco Farrell Corp. and is operating today.

In 1996, the city built a new public works garage and in 1998, work began on a $2.1 million upgrade of the Water Pollution Control Plant. Also in 1998, the city authorized a loan for the first developer in the Hillside Industrial Park.

The Gargano Towers, a 36-unit senior apartment building, was opened in 1997 and is owned by the Farrell Housing Limited Partnership. A project of the Mercer County Community Action Agency, Gargano Towers is located behind the Centre Plaza, just off Sharon-New Castle Road.

The "Hope VI" project is still in the formative stages, under the Mercer County Housing Authority, working through a 2000 grant from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. In 2001, the Steel City Housing Limited Partnership was formed as a vehicle to use different sources of funds to develop Steel City. These include Hope VI grant funds, HUD Capital Fund monies and Low Income Housing Tax Credits. This redevelopment will link to the existing neighborhood strength to the east and provide a physical buffer from the light industrial use to the west and south.

The first phase of development includes the demolition of all 20 present structures at Steel City. This will be done in phases so that 45 households will remain on-site during the entire project for temporary housing. The new construction will consist of a total of 65 units: 35 public housing units, 18 tax credit unites and 12 for-sale homes. Phase II will involve acquisition and demolition of selected parcels in the surrounding residential neighborhood. The 70 units to be constructed will include 39 public housing units, 18 tax credit units and 13 for-sale homes.

During the 1990s, the city operated with LaVon Saternow as city manager, Eugene C. Pacsi as mayor and a dedicated group of council members. Progress continues today under Mayor William A. Morocco, who took office in 2000, and the current council of Robert Burich, Louis A. Falconi, Rudolph Hammond, Helen Marenchin, Mark Petrillo and Peter Stephanopoulos. Jeanette Wright-Hooks was elected this year to begin a term on council in 2002.

While what the future holds for Farrell is uncertain, the city this year celebrates a glorious past 100 years and invites everyone to the party from July 10-14.

Much of this history was compiled from the Farrell Golden Jubilee and Centennial Celebration books.