Manuscript Group 490
PETER C. WAMBACH PAPERS
1969-1985
19.5 cubic feet
Hear
Some of Wambach's Recordings
Peter Cyrano Wambach was a Harrisburg broadcaster-journalist for nearly 70 years,
and a self-made historian of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. His radio program,
"This is Pennsylvania," was heard daily on over 100 AM and FM radio
stations throughout the state from 1964-1985. His work earned him the name "Mr.
Pennsylvania," and millions of radio listeners knew him by his closing tag
line, "This is Pete Wambach. It's a beautiful day in Pennsylvania."
The 5-minute informative segments that he produced regaled listeners with many
little known facts about people, places and things throughout the state. During
his career, he produced a total of 2,470 show segments including such varied titles
as "The Caves of Pennsylvania," "In Philadelphia," "John
White Geary," "Fishing in Pennsylvania," "Farm Vacations,"
"'B' Dekta Bricka," "The Hiking Trails," "Scranton's
Shortstop," and "Merry Weekend in May."
"This is Pennsylvania" was awarded the George Washington Gold Medal
by the Freedoms Foundation for the best radio program by any governmental agency
and was supported by the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters, whose members
donated free air time for its broadcast. Wambach's radio series was a labor of
love that he lobbied the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce to fund. When funding
for the production, distribution, research and recording of Wambach's program
was no longer available in the budget of the Department of Commerce after July
7, 1978, the Department of Revenue briefly provided for the shortfall until June
15, 1979, when the show ended. House Resolution 120 of July 11, 1979 called for
the Department of Commerce to resume funding for the program in order to promote
tourism and to take advantage of a half million dollars of donated free air time,
but the funding was never restored. From 1980 through 1985 the program was, however,
returned to the air under the sponsorship of the Pennsylvania Rural Electric Cooperative.
Wambach worked in radio from the late 1930s through the 1980s, instituted the
first television-telephone talk show in the United States, and wrote a column
entitled "Around the Square" that appeared at various times in both
the Harrisburg Patriot News and The Paxton Herald for nearly 25 years. On the
political front, he was a statewide leader in the Democratic Party, served as
a press aide for Democratic Governor George Leader and for Lt. Governor John Morgan
Davis and was an information writer for Democratic Governor David Lawrence. In
1966 he ran unsuccessfully for the position of lieutenant governor, and in 1974
ran a close second for the 17th District Congressional seat won by Herman T Schneebeli.
Born on July 30, 1916 in Philadelphia, Mr. Wambach was the son of Karl and Magdalena
(Lena) Noheimer Wambach. Upon graduating from Girard College in Philadelphia he
began his public speaking career as a carnival barker and also worked for Canada
Dry Ginger Ale Company. He moved to central Pennsylvania in 1937 where he married
Margherita Carmella Zarbo on April 11, 1940 and together they had fourteen children--seven
boys and seven girls. During the 1950s he owned a restaurant in the Colonial Park
Mall and from the 50s through 1967 he owned Wambach Waxworks, a record distribution
company having five warehouses in Pennsylvania. Wambach was also an author, poet,
and composer, having written a musical entitled Anthracite! about the coal
regions. He was a member of St. Patrick's Cathedral, a founding member of the
Diocesan inter-religious council, and was known for his philanthropic endeavors,
his contributions of service to social and political causes and his lectures around
the Commonwealth. One of the first inductees into the Pennsylvania Broadcasters
Hall of Fame, he received numerous other awards during his lifetime, including
The George Washington Medal of Freedom, The B'Nai Brith Award and The Four Chaplains
Award. In 2005 he was honored at the State Capitol and recordings of more than
2,000 of his broadcasts were turned over to the State Archives to be remembered
as a piece of Pennsylvania history. Peter C. Wambach died on May 17, 2007.
"Don't be takers; give back," was the motto by which his children remembered
him. It was said of him by Dr. Michael Barton, professor of American Studies at
Penn State Harrisburg, that "[He was] one of a kind as a chronicler of the
community. He made history and wrote it at the same time. What he's left, we'll
refer to as long as we want to know anything about Harrisburg. His best memorial
is what he wrote." Today, Peter Wambach's name appears on the Hall of Fame
Honor Roll of the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters and many Pennsylvanians
fondly remember his broadcasts as an illuminating guide to the Commonwealth's
multi-faceted history and cultural landscape.
The transcriptions, tapes and records of Wambach's work held by the Pennsylvania
State Archives document his acclaimed radio series "This is Pennsylvania."
Included in the collection are original reel to reel raw tapes, 33 1/3 rpm record
discs containing the actual broadcast versions of the series, and transcripts
of the broadcasts. The audio material has been converted by Archives' staff to
.mp3 and .wav files, and can be heard in the Archives search room if prior
arrangements are made. Follow the link at the top of this page to listen to
episodes which have been placed online.
Many of the original audio tapes did not have titles recorded on their boxes,
but were documented by an inventory during the conversion process. The LPs were
used as audio sources if the tapes were missing and this is noted on the inventory.
If nothing was available to record, the presence of the title on the inventory
indicates that only the typed transcript is available. The transcripts for the
recordings made by the Rural Electric Cooperative are only available up to recording
#530, but the information from some of these shows may appear in earlier transcripts
because Wambach frequently recycled the same themes. A chronological
inventory of the broadcasts is available. From 1969 these records were produced
by the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce and from 1980 until 1985 they were
produced and sponsored by Pennsylvania's Rural Electric Co-operative.
For additional Wambach materials, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Archives contains the Peter Wambach, Sr., Library Collection, which includes over 200 bound volumes collected by Mr. Wambach. Many of the books are signed by their authors, with personal notes to Wambach included. To view these materials please contact the House Archives at 717-783-3866.
- LP Records, 1969-1985. (8 boxes) {#490m.1}
- Original Audio Tapes, 1969-1985. (12 boxes) {#490m.2}
- Transcripts, 1969-1985. (16 boxes) {#490m.3}