Local Historia Community

Local Historia is all about connecting the public with local history through engaging walking tours and events. The Local Historia Community is a collaborative network of local and public historians who create walking tour opportunities in their respective communities. This select group of historians are uniquely qualified and bring a wide range of experience and knowledge to their communities and beyond. Learn about our team of contributing historians and their upcoming tours/events!

Contributing Historians

Jared Frederick

Community: Altoona, Pennsylvania
Historian Jared Frederick collaborates with Local Historia to offer walking tours in Altoona, Pa. Jared Frederick has a lifelong passion for American History. Prior to his current position as an Instructor of History at Penn State Altoona, Frederick served as a park ranger at Gettysburg National Military Park and Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. He is the author of several books including Dispatches of D-Day: A People's History of the Normandy Invasion, Hang Tough: The WWII Letters and Artifacts of Major Dick Winters, and Fierce Valor: The True Stories of Ronald Speirs and His Band of Brothers. He has appeared on C-SPAN, PBS, numerous National Park Service productions, and various online documentaries. In 2019, he acted as a guest host on Turner Classic Movies for the channel’s 25th anniversary. He is also the host of the popular YouTube channel Reel History.
Find Jared's books on Amazon
Learn more at Jared's website

John Heckman

Community: Frederick, Maryland
John Heckman is best known to online audiences as The Tattooed Historian. John earned his M.A. from Shippensburg University in 2013 and since then has wanted to create a welcoming atmosphere for all who wish to learn about the past. Having previously collaborated with the National Park Service, the Boy Scouts of America, the U.S. Army, and more, John comes to Local Historia with a desire to make the past come alive for the masses. You will be challenged to think about larger issues affecting local lives, and how you would have handled similar events had you been there when history was made.
Find John on Facebook
Watch The Tattooed Historian YouTube Channel
Listen to The Tattooed Historian Podcasts

Jake Wynn

Teresa (Tess) Mull

Community: Pennsylvania's Anthracite Coal Region
Jake Wynn is a public historian who grew up in the mining towns of eastern Pennsylvania. A native of Williamstown, on the border of Dauphin and Schuylkill counties, his historic interests have long focused on the industrial and labor history in the region. He is a 2015 graduate of Hood College in Frederick, Maryland with degrees in Communications and History. He is the former Director of Interpretation at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine and currently works as a tourism marketing professional in Frederick County, MD where he presently lives. Jake's passion is sharing stories from the communities across Pennsylvania's Anthracite Coal Region - from his hometown to the mining cities of Pottsville, Shamokin, Wilkes-Barre, Scranton, and everything in between.
Check out Jake's Public History Facebook and Instagram feeds for new stories every day.
Read more on his Wynning History blog.

Teresa (Tess) Mull

Community: Philipsburg, PA
Teresa (Tess) Mull was blessed to have grown up in the house of Hardman Philips, who helped found Philipsburg, built in 1813. The house, now known as “Halehurst” after Tess’ Hale ancestors, has been in the family since the Civil War. Having been reared in a home literally full of history, preserving and sharing Philipsburg’s rich heritage comes naturally to Tess. After moving away to Texas to earn her bachelor's degree in Comparative Literature at the University of Dallas, stints in Washington, DC and Teton Valley, Idaho, Tess got homesick. She moved back to Philipsburg five years ago and fell in love with her hometown. Tess is now president of the Philipsburg Historical Foundation, a member of the Philipsburg Revitalization Corporation, and the part-time editor of the Philipsburg Journal. She works full-time as a writer/editor for The Spectator; she is also a freelance writer for Town & Gown and State College magazines, where she often pitches stories on how great Philipsburg is. When she isn’t telling the “romantic and bogus” story of Philipsburg’s beginnings for the 900th time to anyone who will listen (there’s a duel involved!), Tess enjoys exploring other parts of the region and collaborating with Local Historia!
Find Tess on Facebook

Jonathan Rowell

Teresa (Tess) Mull

Jonathan Rowell

Community: Boalsburg, PA
Jonathan is a native of Boalsburg, Pennsylvania. He's a graduate from PennWest Edinboro where he studied History. He is currently contributing to the field of public history as a living historian and tour guide.

Dustin Elder

Teresa (Tess) Mull

Jonathan Rowell

Community: Tyrone, Pennsylvania
Dustin Elder is the co-owner of Local Historia. He is a public historian, educator, and guide. B.S. Secondary Education Social Studies (PSU). Dustin is a High School History Teacher and columnist for Town & Gown.
Dustin also offers private tours in Tyrone, Pa. Make your tour request here.

Matt Maris

Community: Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
Matt Maris is the founder of Local Historia and is a public historian, educator, and guide. He earned his M.A. in History (ASU) with emphasis on Public History and has a B.S. in Secondary Education Social Studies (LHU). Matt is a High School History Teacher; Columnist for Town & Gown; Volunteer at the Centre County Library & Historical Museum; Member of the Centre County Historical Society; 2020 recipient of John H. Ziegler Historic Preservation Award (Excellence in Historic Preservation in the category of Education and Advocacy) from the Centre County Historical Society; 2020 recipient of #LoveBFT Award from Bellefonte.com and Downtown Bellefonte Inc.
Matt also offers private tours in Bellefonte, Pa. Make your tour request here.
Learn more about Matt and Local Historia, listen to the Happy Valley Hustle Podcast