''The Width of Waters'' is a novel by the American writer

Alfred Kern Alfred Kern (born Alfred Cohen, August 8, 1924 – June 2, 2009) was an American novelist and professor. Formative years Born in Alliance, Ohio, he served in the U.S. Army Air Forces from 1942 to 1946 during World War II. He legally changed h ...

. The story is set in 1953 in Buchanan,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

(a fictionalized Meadville, north of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

). The town is celebrating its

sesquicentennial An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints. ...

and Jack Gaitz, a young public relations man, is in charge of the festivities, all in the shadow of the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

as well as that of the Wolfe family, owners of the

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

that is Buchanan's sole industry.

References

1959 American novels Fiction set in 1953 Novels set in Pennsylvania {{1950s-novel-stub