Pennsylvania - Keystone State
We went to Pennsylvania in June of 2017, right after our grandson Owen’s graduation from Regis High School in New York City. Pennsylvania is a large state, and there is so much to do there that we spent 9 days exploring without even visiting Philadelphia since we had both been there before. We spent the first night in Stroudsburg, which is part of the Pocono Mountain Area. We drove south on the Delaware River Scenic Drive to the small town of Delaware Water Gap, in which there is one of the access points to the Appalachian Trail. Because of its strategic location, Fort Penn was built in this town in 1776. The scenic drive meandered through valleys and ridges providing views of the river, waterfalls and historic structures along the way. Turning north we arrived at Bushkill Falls, which is not one but eight waterfalls that we saw via a series of rustic trails, wooden stairs and bridges over a two-mile area. The source of the falls is Bushkill Creek, which descends through the Pocono Mountains to the Delaware River passing rocky walls, rushing through gorges and over boulders. Lush foliage, mosses, ferns and wildflowers lined the pathways. It was quite spectacular, and I took countless photos.
At this point, after our hike, we were very hungry, so we had lunch on the front porch at Hotel Fauchere, established in 1852 in the town of Milford which has numerous historic buildings, treelined streets, and country inns. We loved seeing Grey Towers, a lavish 1886 estate which was the summer home of conservationist Gifford Pinchot, a former Pennsylvania Governor and first chief of the USDA Forest Service. Designed to resemble a French chateau, the stone mansion is built of native materials and furnished in 1820’s style. It is now a National Historic Site.
On the way to Pittsburgh, we stopped in Dreher Township where there was a farm open to the public. I have several photos plus a video of a large collection of brand-new baby chicks, squirming and cheeping and looking adorable. It’s always fun for us to visit these very rural towns and villages to briefly experience such a different way of life.
Andy had never been to Pittsburgh, and I had only been there once before for a conference. It surpassed our expectations in several ways, and we had a wonderful time there. The weather was very warm, and we ate our first dinner outside in a plaza. Crab cakes and onion rings, and what’s not to like about that? Absolutely nothing! Point State Park is situated at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers forming the Ohio River. A fountain, the largest in the United States, is located at the tip of the Point. It has a 200-foot basin and when lit up at night it is spectacular. From the park, there are beautiful vistas of the rivers’ confluence and the city.
The next day, we took the Monongahela Incline to the top of Mount Washington, a 450-foot-high hill, where from the overlook we had fabulous views of Pittsburgh’s Golden Triangle, the bustling downtown area. We visited St. Mary of the Mount Catholic Church, a beautiful 19th-century neo-Gothic Roman church on Grandview Ave. It is reportedly very popular for weddings because it has a long aisle and many brides like taking the long walk to the altar.
Returning to Point State Park on the Incline, we walked over to Fort Pitt, an indoor/outdoor museum. The fort was originally built in 1758 by the British during the French and Indian War. During the American Revolutionary War, it served as the headquarters for the western theater. A small brick building called the Blockhouse remains the only intact remnant of Fort Pitt. It was erected in 1764 and is reputed to be the oldest building in western Pennsylvania.
We had great fun visiting the Andy Warhol Museum, on the north shore of Pittsburgh. It is the largest museum in North America dedicated to a single artist. Andy Warhol was born in Pittsburgh and the museum is a great tribute to this pop art icon. Portraits of Elvis, Jackie Kennedy and his self-portraits were among our favorites.
As a baseball fan, I couldn’t leave Pittsburgh without seeing PNC Park. The giant Hall of Fame Slugger Willie Stargell (1940 – 2021) statue at the entrance is powerfully captivating. Too bad there wasn’t a baseball game happening that weekend, but the stadium was impressive, as was all of Pittsburgh.
We were there during a Gay Pride celebration, which surprised us, thinking that Pittsburgh would not be liberal enough for this kind of event. We were wrong. The city was diverse, lively, a very “happening” place and we could easily have spent more time there.
Mill Run is a small town in the Laurel Highlands area of Pennsylvania and is famous for the location of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural masterpiece, Fallingwater. Constructed in 1935 of reinforced concrete and native stone, the house is dramatically cantilevered over a waterfall. The famous house blends so well with the mountainous terrain that it seems to grow out of the site. It has been acclaimed by the American Institute of Architects and is, indeed, a work of genius. Since Mill Run is very much off the beaten track, we were surprised at how many people had come to visit the house and how expensive the tickets were. Nonetheless, it was worth the effort. Having read the book called Loving Frank several years ago, I have very mixed feelings about Frank Lloyd Wright; however, seeing his creations here, in Oak Park, Illinois, and the County Court House in Marin County where we live, one cannot deny his talent. We learned at Fallingwater, however, that his homes were not necessarily practical. They were not well insulated, so it was difficult to keep them warm in the winter. When one owner complained to Wright about this, his famous reply was, “Wear a sweater!”
Our good friend Jill Spicer was born and raised in western Pennsylvania and her parents live there to this day, not very far from Mill Run. We decided to pay them a visit, which was a lot of fun. They took us to a nearby pub in Manns Choice, a borough in Bedford County with a total population of 300! We had a beer as we chatted about Jill during her growing up years in this area. They could not have been more charming.
We headed back to Pittsburgh and visited the next day the University of Pittsburgh in a lovely residential neighborhood called Oakland. This beautiful campus includes various historic buildings but most noteworthy is the 42-story Gothic Revival centerpiece, the Cathedral of Learning. It houses theaters, computer laboratories, language laboratories and classrooms. We loved walking through the 31 Nationality Rooms, designed by members of Pittsburgh’s various ethnic communities in the styles of different nations and cultures. The building also contains noted examples of stained glass, stone, wood and iron work. While I have visited many college campuses all over the country, this is undoubtedly the most beautiful campus building I have ever seen, both inside and out.
The following day we drove to the Penn State campus in State College, Pennsylvania. This is also a beautiful campus, and it is huge. It includes several parks which were wonderful for strolling on the picture-perfect day we were there. We were admiring a lovely pond replete with flowering lily pads when we noticed two adorable twin girls, dressed in matching floral dresses and straw hats, on the opposite side. They were kind enough to let me photograph them. We saw people walking with ice cream cones and asked where they had gotten them. We were directed to the Berkey Creamery, in the Department of Food Science, within the College of Agricultural Sciences. We watched the processing procedures from the observation room, but the best part was eating the ice cream. Yum!
The National Civil War Museum is in Harrisburg, the capitol of Pennsylvania. Inside is a Walk of Valor consisting of red bricks bearing the names of Civil War veterans who have been honored by their surviving descendants. After dinner that evening, we walked around Harrisburg admiring the lighting on the Capitol dome in the Pennsylvania Historic District. Also located in that area is the Cathedral of St. Patrick. While its façade is rather unremarkable, the interior is majestic. Just a few steps away is the magnificent Capitol building, dedicated by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. The building covers 2 acres and contains over 600 rooms. The 272-foot dome, grand chandeliers and bronze doors are notable features. The marble grand staircase is designed after the one in the Grand Opera House in Paris. The overall architecture is in a Beaux-Arts style with decorative Renaissance themes throughout. It is sometimes referred to as a palace of art because of its many sculptures, murals and stained-glass windows. With all the capitol buildings we have visited throughout the United States, this is certainly one of the most beautiful.
During the Revolutionary War, Lancaster was the largest inland city in the Colonies, and is today known for its Amish and Mennonite populations, its picturesque and productive farms, and its heaping platters of Pennsylvania Dutch food. We had limited time, so we decided to take a guided walking tour which was very interesting and informative. We visited, for example, the site of the Conestoga Indian Massacre which took place in 1763, a devastating example of the shameful way the colonists treated the Native Americans during this time. In front of one building was a historical marker which read, “On February 22, 1861, while journeying to Washington for his Inauguration, (Abraham) Lincoln stopped at the Jones House, on this site. From the portico of the hotel, he addressed a large crowd gathered in Market Square.”
Leaving Lancaster, we drove through a very rural area and for a while, followed a horse and buggy carrying an Amish man and his daughter. It transported us to another slower, more unhurried and simpler time which was the perfect way to end our sojourn in Pennsylvania.