The Nesquehoning Historical Society's last meeting featured a special display called What Is It?

Five unusual antiques were displayed and members were invited to guess how the artifacts were originally used.The items included a step that was attached to the side of a horse-drawn carriage and was used to help a rider climb onto the carriage; a manual hair clipper; a shoe button hook, which was designed to help a person who had lost the use of one of their arms to be able to button their boots; a homemade screwdriver and a Soap Saver, a little basket that collected the tiny bits of soap that were left over once a full bar of soap had shrunk down to a tiny nub and then shaken to create soapy water.During the business portion of the meeting, the discussion centered on ideas as to how the society could obtain a building to display its collection of artifacts.There was also an exchange on the topic of the proposed memorial for the West End Elementary School's bell.Various ideas were put on the table about conducting a bus tour, possibly to Gettysburg or to another history-rich site.Vice President Mark Gilkeson announced his decision to step down from his post to allow for rotation in the leadership of the society.Gilkeson has been serving in this role for the past 2½ years.During his tenure he has often led meetings when the president was not available. Professor Joe Roman Jr. of Lehigh Carbon Community College volunteered to serve as vice president pro-tem until the next panel can be seated.The historical society's next meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesdayat the Nesquehoning Borough Hall, 114 W. Catawissa St.Everyone is invited. Light refreshments will be served and a new display of "What Is It?" antiques will be available.The special speaker for the upcoming meeting will be Tim Sverduk.Sverduk has been serving as the president of the Nesquehoning Historical Society for 2½ years.He is originally from New Jersey, where he lived in Plainsboro and worked as a computer programmer.He moved to Nesquehoning in 2011 and has made an effort to become part of his adopted community. Although Sverduk is a relative newcomer to Nesquehoning, he has managed to accumulate a few stories and has become part of the town's shared history.He is a published poet and an accomplished musician and will be sharing some of his songs and poems with the members.Tim is currently employed as a math tutor at Lehigh Carbon Community College in Jim Thorpe.