Webster, Pa.
A sprawling junkyard greeted motorists when they drove into Webster from the south end of town in the early 1960s.
Former postmaster Bee Hodgson poses outside the old Webster, Pa., post office.
A home in Webster in 1917.
Incorporated in 1833, the tiny town of Webster was once a bustling place with a population of 2,000. Located on a sharp bend on the Monongahela River in Westmoreland County, its decline began in 1901 when United States Steel began constructing a mill across the river in Donora. The ensuing pollution, peaked by the Donora Smog of 1948, was of no help to the waning town. The pollution was so bad, in fact, that nothing grew on the grounds in Webster, giving it a barren and dusty appearance.
While the closing of the mills and air cleanup has helped vegetation return to the area, that’s about all that’s returned. The Donora-Webster Bridge, once a vital artery to both towns, closed in 2009 because it wasn’t structurally sound. It was demolished in 2015, and by that time wasn’t even safe for pedestrians to walk across or for boats to travel under.
The 2010 Census listed Webster’s population as just 255.
The photos are from Observer-Reporter staff writer Scott Beveridge’s Flikr page.