Whirlwind adventures fill our summers. We take a set chunk of time and cram in as much viewing of our United States as we can. Favorites of mine are Mills and Milltowns, Architecture, Cemeteries and the bodies that lie about them, and just random USA.
This year we did:
New York
Corning Glass Museum, The Church of Latter Day Saints Hill Cumorah Pageant, Lake Ontario State Park (CCC Camp/former POW camp post-WWII, Sanitariums, Old Folks Homes, Underground RR stops, Fossil digging (Penn Dixie), and a Frank Lloyd Wright home (Graycliff-Derby)
Indiana
***Kentland Meteor Crater*** (hubby's anchor visit)
South bend- a pop in to say hi to Mayor Pete
Springfield Illinois
Springfield Race Riots of 1908- I really got lost and wrapped up in this messed up affair. I had tracked down some identified perpetrator/instigators names and was going to go spit on their graves, but decided not to. This place also mad me profoundly sad b/c over 110 years have passed and seemingly so little has changed (except the revised history that keeps happening- just go visit this place and witness yourself the literature and signage that tries to convince you that a "riot" or attack and murder by a mob of white folks was good for the blacks b/c it instigated the formation of the NAACP) My stomach, heart, and soul hurt the whole time. I had to gently put it all down and travel on
Lincoln Home (National Park)
Kentucky
Ark Encounter
West Virginia
Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, Flatwoods Monster Museum and chair chase, Green Bank Observatory, Moundsville (Penitentiary + Indian Mound)
Pennsylvania
I pulled out this visit and teased it apart a bit. I have been to PA numerous times for various visits. This time was slightly different for it involved a more eclectic meander. The anchors here were these tiles our son had told us about (Toynbee Tiles: the legend, the myths, and the documentary which we haven't seen yet) in Philly, and some post modern famous architecture in the Chestnut Hill Northwest Philly area I have long wanted to see. From there it was truly a meander. So here it is:
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| Who knew that this is a place? I didn't. The community took its name in the 18th century from a local tavern named the King of Prussia Inn, which was named after King Frederick the Great of Prussia. That is not what makes it currently Kingly'ish. This is the factoid of the day: their mall is so big, it is the largest shopping mall in the US (gross leasable space) that has its own wiki page and calls itself a luxury mall with places like Neiman Markus and Lords and Nordstrom. We were underwhelmed about this but overwhelmed b/c we could not find our hotel in this mega-mess. |
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Saint David's
The community, on the Pennsylvania Main Line, was named for St. Davids Church, an 18th-century church in the area that was in turn named for St. David, the patron saint of Wales (the country of origin of many of the area's first European settlers). It was a big deal to say your peops were from Wales back in the day. We had just come from WVA, where the main peops were mostly Scots-Irish. |
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| Saint David's- Green Ave |
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| Leverington Ave |
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| Leverington Ave |
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| Leverington Ave Roxborough Home for Women- a nice little home for mom. Founded 1887 |
In 1694, Johannes Kelpius arrived in Philadelphia with a group of like-minded German Pietists to live in the valley of the Wissahickon Creek. They formed a monastic community and became known as the Hermits or Mystics of the Wissahickon. Kelpius was a musician, writer, and occultist.
He frequently meditated (some believe in a cave—the Cave of Kelpius along the banks of the Wissahickon and awaited the end of the world, which was expected in 1694. No sign or revelation accompanied that year, but the faithful continued to live in celibacy by the stream, searching the stars and hoping for the end. Other religious groups were also associated with the Wissahickon: On Christmas Day in 1723 the first congregation of the Church of the Brethren in America – often called Dunkard Brethren – baptized several new members in the stream. Around 1747 an individual with connections to both the Dunkards and the Ephrata Cloister built a stone house on land previously owned by Dunkards. The structure, used for church retreats, still stands today, and is known as The Monastery, a remaining witness to the Wissahickon's days as an isolated religious refuge. The sign points to Valley Green Inn, Centrally located within the park, this inn is the last remaining roadhouse of the many that once lined Forbidden Drive. Built in 1850
The old Monastery looks very much like this house (and many others all over Eastern PA). English and German settlers, especially Quakers, built these structures during the 18th and early 19th centuries.
This gravel road follows Wissahickon Creek from Northwestern Avenue to Lincoln Drive and is the main thoroughfare through the park. It was constructed between 1823 and 1856 and originally operated as a turnpike. It was named Forbidden Drive when it was closed to motor vehicle traffic in 1924.
Wissahickon Creek rises in Montgomery County, runs approximately 23 miles. At one time mills of Wissahickon Creek made paper, cloth, gunpowder, sawed lumber, milled wheat and corn, and pressed oil from flax. A sizable population worked at the mills and lived in the valley in small villages. he quest for pure water affected the Wissahickon's subsequent history. The mills were razed; the last active mill was demolished in 1884.
Take a careful look and you’ll see that different types of stone, and different masonry traditions, are in evidence. House walls are generally made up of rubble, not large dressed stones. (Stones most often came from farm fields being cleared.) The local reddish sandstone and bluish granite are most common. But there is also limestone, mica schist, and a gray-green stone called serpentine. German masons used techniques slightly different from those of the more dominant English, whose work is a reminder of an ancient Cotswold vernacular. The pitch of the roof, pent eaves (between floors), and the design of windows and door are all clues. One part of the house may be stone; another brick or wood-framed, as additions were common. Despite looking old, this house is circa 1852 and costs $1,350,000.
I became quite enamoured with all this stone and the gorgeous and solid looking structures. I tried to ascertain the differences, often too hard to call. I would say this one is definitely dressed stone.
The Commonwealth Chateau at SugarLoaf is a lovingly renovated stone manor home surrounded by landscaped gardens. Nestled on a hillside above Chestnut Hill’s scenic Wissahickon Valley, this sophisticated private estate is an equally ideal setting for your joyful wedding celebration or important corporate or social event. Originally founded by the Sisters of Saint Joseph and named Mount Saint Joseph College, it was opened in 1924 as a Catholic four year liberal arts college for women. In 1938, it was renamed to Chestnut Hill College. Stone Manor home sounds dressed to me. Lots and lots of swank up on this hill!
The village of Chestnut Hill was part of the German Township laid out by Francis Daniel Pastorius and came to include the settlements originally known as Sommerhausen and Crefeld, as well as part of Cresheim. It served as a gateway between Philadelphia and the nearby farmlands. Germantown Avenue’s cobblestone blocks where trolleys once ran, feature shopping, antiques and dining of all sorts and are known for walk-ability and charm. Chestnut Hill was designated one of the top seven urban enclaves in the USA by Forbes.com and selected as a 2010 Distinctive Destination by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
A Chestnut Hill Denizen and another stone building! Chestnut Hill became part of Philadelphia in 1854 when the state legislature annexed some 129 square miles to the old city of Philadelphia, which occupied the land between the Schuykill and the Delaware Rivers. The village of Chestnut Hill lay ten miles north of city hall and served as a way station for travelers and a gathering place for the surrounding farms and the mills operating on the Wissahickon Creek.
Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, 1850- 1990, prosperous Philadelphians first headed to Chestnut Hill to escape the summer heat of the low-lying old city. When the railroad provided a link in 1854, suburban development took off. The village provided services to the new suburbanites and the new commuters lived in the comfortable, breezy enclave of Chestnut Hill while they depended on the city for their livelihood and culture. It was originally built by the Philadelphia, Germantown and Chestnut Hill Railroad between 1883 and 1884, and later acquired by the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1918, when the line was electrified, the station was rebuilt to accommodate the upgrade.In 1984 the Chestnut Hill National Bank leased the station building and made alterations (architect Dagit/Saylor in association with Luther Ginkinger, architect). All of the original building is now utilized by the bank.
This was my anchor place to visit on the trip (hubby and I switched back and forth between choices). This street was made famous by an architect that I have long admired, and the whole reason we ended up in Northwest Philly.
This isn't the house! It is an older, neat and clean example of what is at the top end of the street before the modernist moved in.
Robert Venturi, born in Philly and raised as a Quaker, built this home, which is widely regarded as the building that started the Postmodern movement.
The Vanna Venturi House on Millman Street in Chestnut Hill was designed by Robert Venturi for his mother between 1959 and 1964 and has been the topic of many essays and even been featured on a postage stamp. More recently, it was listed as one of the “10 Buildings That Changed America” by PBS. What a cool Quaker dude is what I have long thought. But more recently I feel- damn his more wife/mate/partner, Denise Scott Brown. Denise Scott Brown is an American architect, planner, writer, educator, and principal of the firm Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates in Philadelphia. Notice the present tense? Yup, she is still alive (87) and still at the firm. The woman BEHIND the man, married to him for 51 years, a principal in the firm since 1969, yet HE gets all the glory. It is/was time to move on.
KENNETH MACKENZIE DAY (1901-1958), a native of Chestnut Hill, designed 8220 Millman. It is International-Style house on Millman Street. The house was built in the 1939 for Charles Woodward. It has since been enlarged with an addition. Hubby liked the fence, I liked the font used for the numbers.
A modern face to the old stone. This property was built in 1925 and last sold for $1,301,000.. Architect unknown, although suspect Robert Rodes McGoodwin, who built several other, similar houses in the same time period for the Woodwards (the name just drips with pedigree). In 1910, he was commissioned by Dr. George Woodward to design about 180 houses in Chestnut Hill.
1885; Houston-Sauveur House; G. W. and W. D. Hewitt, architects St. Martins neighborhood of Chestnut Hill
The Houston-Sauveur House initially served as a rental for Houston and was purchased two years after its construction by Louis Sauveur. While the building has undergone several alterations since construction, including a small rear addition in 1927 and conservatory addition likely in the 1960s, it largely reflects the original Hewitt design.
Modernist House. Louis I. Kahn built the Margaret Esherick House, 204 Sunrise Lane, in 1960 for the niece of artist Wharton Esherick, who designed the kitchen. Constructed of concrete and Apitong wood, the house is one of only a few Kahn home designs that were actually built. It is praised as a masterful blend of natural light and geometry, clarity and tranquility. Peter liked it, I didn't.
Chestnut Hill Sign. It made me feel soooo welcome in this exclusive and elite neighborhood.
Couldn’t get enough of thee stone houses. It puts our visit to Hurley, NY to shame!
Chestnut Hill Denizen
Another Chestnut hill denizen. We saw lots of folks walking their dogs. They don’t poo in the yard like ours do.
Big ole knotty tree
Roman Doric gatehouse created by John Notman, a Scottish immigrant who also designed other bldgs. in the Philly area. Historic plaque observed. Provenance confirmed (founded in 1836). Not quite Mount Auburn, which was the first rural cemetery in the United States, founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1831 (just saying, not that I am a proud MA resident).
Here's how they describe themselves:
Historic West Laurel Hill is a privately owned, non-denominational, non-profit cemetery with 187 acres of rolling hills adorned with magnificent flowering trees, plants and shrubbery offering families and visitors a place of tranquility and comfort
This place is a historic cemetery with Quaker roots. Founded in 1836 as an alternative to the overcrowded churchyards of rapidly growing Philadelphia, the cemetery was the first rural cemetery for the city and the second in the United States. With monuments designed by the era’s most prominent sculptors and architects, it served as elite Philadelphia’s preferred burial place for over a century. Originally, burial lots were priced at $50 to $150, limiting interment to the city’s wealthier classes.
By 1876, there were more than twenty rural cemeteries in the Philadelphia region, many catering to specific religious and racial groups. Among them were Cathedral and New Cathedral- Cemeteries for Catholics; Lebanon and Olive for African Americans; and Mount Sinai and Montefiore for Jews. This cemetery is now integrated and I wonder how and why families chose this one over the many others.
More than a cemetery, Laurel Hill has become an outdoor art museum and tourist attraction. We were tourists and we were attracted so we went in!
Philly fauna! Actually this area is Bala Cynwyd, still on the Main Line!
Of the select few folks we visited, wanted to say hi to this accomplished black woman (and her family). Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander (January 2, 1898 – November 1, 1989), was the first African-American woman to receive a Ph.D. in economics in the United States (1921), and the first woman to receive a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. She was the first African-American woman to practice law in Pennsylvania. I wondered where she lived when she and the judge were alive. Here's what I could find: Sadie Tanner Mossell's father, Aaron A. Mossell (1863-1951) (LL.B. 1888), was the first African-American to graduate from Penn's Law School. Her uncle, Nathan Francis Mossell (1856-1946) (M.D., 1882) was the first African-American to graduate from Penn's Medical School. In 1895 Dr. Mossell was a co-founder of the Frederick Douglass Hospital, which later merged with Mercy Hospital to form Mercy-Douglass.
When Sadie was a child, her mother and siblings frequently alternated residence between Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. When she reached high school, she went to live in Washington with her uncle, Lewis Baxter Moore (Ph.D., 1896) who was dean at Howard University. I know they practiced law together and I found out this: In the late 'twenties, Raymond established his own offices in rented quarters on Chestnut Street, remaining there until 1935, when he moved into the new building he had built at 1900 Chestnut Street in Center City. Center City was a predominately black section of the city at that time.
Sadie’s husband. Sadie Tanner Mossell married Raymond Pace Alexander (1897–1974) in her parents' home on Diamond Street in North Philadelphia, with the ceremony performed by her father. Alexander, the son of slaves, grew up in Philadelphia. He attended and graduated from Central High School (1917, valedictorian), Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (1920), and Harvard Law School (1923). At the time of this marriage, he had established a law practice in Philadelphia. An interesting tidbit about the good judge: In 1924, he was excluded from a Chestnut Street theater showing a movie "The Ten Commandments." He took the theater owners to court and won from them a pledge never to discriminate again. Another cool factoid: Raymond Pace Alexander is a main character in George Cooper's 1999 book, "Poison Widows: A True Story of Witchcraft, Arsenic, and Murder." In this case, he became the first black lawyer in Philadelphia history to defend a white client successfully. Maybe someday I will read it.
Also, Published in 1899 by UPenn, conducted by W. E. B. Du Bois, The Philadelphia Negro: A Social Study was the first sociological race study of the African American community in the United States. Wonder if Sadie or Raymond's families rubbed elbows with Mr. Du Bois?
Sadie’s sister. Dean of Women at Virginia State College, a historically black college. College where my Uncle Howie graduated from.
While these black folk lay quiet and unobtrusively on their little plot, another, contemporary plot purposely stood out here in this cemetery:
In the background you can see one of the mausoleums that dot this place. The cemetery features a special section, nicknamed Millionaire’s Row, for all of the most wealthy residents that it holds. It’s characterized by a row of mausoleums that lead down a curved road. That's mostly the Victorian era. Teddy Pendergrass sits, seemingly proud to stand out as a black man who indeed was himself a millionaire (especially to myself and all the other ladies of the 70's + 80's who loved to be crooned to by him). Not only did he make it up here on this hillside, he made it to the Main Line of Philadelphia too! At the age of 28 he had purchased a mansion in Gladwyne, PA (that at one time had belonged to some other aristocratic folk). Rest easy Teddy.
My husband is a huge fan of the Calder grandson, so we just had to stop here (even though Sandy Calder is not buried here). From Alexander Milne Calder’s William Penn atop City Hall, to Alexander Stirling Calder’s Swann Memorial Fountain in Logan Circle, to Alexander “Sandy” Calder’s Ghost suspended from the ceiling of the Grand Stair Hall in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, there exists a physical and ancestral line of “Calders” and two of them are buried at Laurel Hill. Also, Alexander Milne created a sculpture for a family plot here (the Warner Monument) and Alexander Stirling as well (Henry Charles Lea tomb). The proginator, A.M. hailed from Aberdeen Scotland, hence the Scottish Gaelic spelling of the family name on the grave marker.
Maybe this grave marker has all kinds of heritage meaning as well, but I could not find any information on it.
Yup, dig it! In 2018 they rolled this baby out in hopes of additional revenue since us silly Americans spend gabazillions on our pets. Here's what they have to say about the place:
The Laurels is a beautifully designed cemetery and center specially created to honor your pet’s memory.
Conveniently located on the grounds of West Laurel Hill in a distinct area, The Laurels is a private serene sanctuary; a perfect resting place for your special family member. This three acre landscaped and wooded property includes a walking trail for loved ones to enjoy while visiting and remembering
In case you are wondering (as was I), at West Laurel, operators are selling burial packages per pet that range from $1,095 to $2,499 depending on the size of the animal.
There were much more interesting living animals roaming the grounds though:
West Laurel Hill Cemetery
Two young bucks meandering around West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
So then we continued on home. We were wending down our summer stroll by going directly North on a smaller Pennsylvania route, 611. We had already become fascinated by the incredible homes built from stone. In fact here is a link that I will return to in the long days of New England winters and explore some more:
As we drove along Route 611, we were hugging the Delaware River that straddled the two states of PA and New Jersey. I love the unexpected. I love looking at the topography as well as the history of our land. Sad sometimes that the ancestral people's' history is buried, lost, or often forgotten, but I know paths we traverse so easily were paths they forged through a millenia of travels. So when we came to all this preserved history, of course we had to stop.
I spent so much time learning all about and visiting the Erie Canal pathway years ago, was pleasantly surprised at this little stumble upon in Northern PA. The Delaware River is the longest free-flowing river east of the Mississippi River in the United States. The Delaware Canal runs from the mouth of the Lehigh River in Easton along the Delaware River south to Bristol. The land along the canal is a mixture of private property and state park lands, with the state park covering some 830 acres (336 ha) along the 60 miles (97 km) of the canal.
It was used to haul coal and other products from the Lehigh Canal beginning in Mauch Chunk (today Jim Thorpe) to the industrial centers of the Philadelphia area near Bristol, Pennsylvania. The canal was built in the mid-19th century and ran its last commercial traffic on October 17, 1931.
The Delaware Division of the Pennsylvania Canal and its towpath became Theodore Roosevelt State Park in the early 1950s, when the berms were restored and the canal was refilled with water. The park was renamed Delaware Canal State Park in 1989. The U.S. Congress designated the Delaware Canal as a Registered National Historic Landmark and its towpath is a National Recreation Trail. Once upon a time, from the mid 1950s until 2006, visitors to the park were given the chance to explore the canal in mule-drawn canal boats operated from a landing at Lock 11. Sure wish I had been around for that.
It was a gray, intermittently raining day, but these creatures didn't mind! They were so cute, I just had to film them waddling about:
https://youtu.be/tbqN3wnkFM0
We were curious about the buildings in the park, where they originally homeowners? One we discovered to my delight was a bathroom! Peter Uhler was a local farmer who capitalized on the canal building on his land. I wonder if any of these buildings are from his lost town? Or perhaps they belonged to two other key people from the area and era. Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company owners, Josiah White and Erskine Hazard, gained control of the Delaware Canal from the state of Pennsylvania and immediately undertook engineering and construction renovations designed to make the canal operable and profitable. All of these men were involved in the buildup of the area for its brief Mill history. At one time there was a distillery, sawmill, and a paper mill.
Check out the address of this state park: 11 Lodi Hill Rd, Upper Black Eddy, PA. There is often so much history behind just the naming of streets, places, and spaces. The hills you can't see because they are on the western side of the road. At one time there was also trolleys along the hillside!
Just imagine the work done to build these canals! Also, this is what they had to say about this park as well, "Unfortunately, the Delaware Canal State Park has frequently fallen victim to flooding." The brown water was rapidly flowing and also quite high. In fact, as we walked this towpath, we could see some pretty major erosion on the side of the road we had just traveled over! A few more factoids: At its peak, Pennsylvania had almost a thousand miles of canals in operation! By 1840, over 3,000 miles of canals had been built in the United States.
Welcome to Locks 22-23
also known as Groundhog Lock and Uhlersville – the village that vanished.
I think there were many towns that became lost as the canal systems in all of the US became obsolete when the railroads became the new mode of transportation (another venture that required back-breaking work). Some of the names in this, Northampton County section near Easton, PA. Names usually were "Ville's" of the prominent people living in the region. Who was Uhler? There was also a Carpenter, Raubs, and Riegel, to name a few.
We spent what brief moments we could outside exploring. The last leg of the journey this year was filled with Thunderstorms and rain. In fact, later down this road we had to be detoured d/t downed wires and landslide. In W.VA we also had a similar situation.
This structure was just past the park and at the intersection of Rt. 611 and MILL St. (I could just smell it). It is more in the Raubsville area. Many Germans up in this area as the name alludes to. Here is a little bit more on Raubsville from "Tales of the Towpath":
http://www.delawareandlehigh.org/talesofthetowpath/delaware-canal/raubsville/
This poor building is going to ruin. It was once some sort of railroad facility, I think making trolleys. Try as I might, I could not find any more information on this building.
The Alpha Portland Cement Company, was founded in 1895. One year after Alpha purchased the cement plant in the Martins Creek section of Lower Mount Bethel Township in 1902, the plant barely survived the Delaware River's worst flood in reported history. This flood was the catalyst of the plant's bankruptcy.
In 1955, Hurricane Diane sent 600 million gallons of water into the Martins Creek plant, and in 1964 the plant closed.
The demise of the company followed. In 1982, Alpha discontinued its cement and aggregates division. They were the biggest company around for a long time.
The former Alpha cement plant casts an eerie presence. There once was a place named Alpha, PA. Cement was yet another form of rock (the theme of our summer sojourn 2019) that PA used for economic gain.
The Northampton County village of Martins Creek, nestled on a saucer-like plateau along the western edge of the Delaware River. The headline of the day from 1991: ONCE A CEMENT TOWN, MARTINS CREEK SETTLES INTO QUIET VILLAGE LIFE. Traveling north from Easton on Route 611, there's a small sign announcing the village along the eastern edge of the road. A crumbling cement mill, still in use but not for cement making, is the sign's immediate backdrop. Several hundred yards before the sign, on the opposite side of Route 611, another, smaller cement plant stands. ConAgra, the agricultural concern, converted it from a cement plant to a flour mill in 1973. Martins Creek, has one characteristic in common with other small towns and villages in the area of our drive North along Rt. 611= it is small in population, with about 800. The first settlers arrived around 1734 in Martins Creek and were Scotch-Irish, or Ulster Scots, descendants of Scotch colonists whom the English government relocated in northern Ireland. German settlers were the second wave of European immigrants who settled the area. Italians arrived around 1900.
Across the Delaware River, we then started South through this area, Bushkill, PA. The Delaware Water Gap is a water gap on the border of the U.S. states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania where the Delaware River cuts through a large ridge of the Appalachian Mountains. By the late 19th century, what is now known as the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area was already booming as a resort town. It is 70,000 protected acres run by the NPS. Hooray for National Parks! We did not recreate, just passed through.
And finally, as we left Pennsylvania, we traveled through the Pocono Mountains. We tried to go to camp, but alas, we are too old. Just happy to have a Pocono shot to say we’ve been to the Poconos (it made us feel special).
A little history (cuz that's what I do/like to learn about):
Long before the Pocono Mountains became a destination for families, honeymooners, nature-lovers and relaxation-seekers, the area was inhabited by the Delaware, Iroquois, Shawnee, Minisink, Lenape and Paupack Native Americans. In 1659, the Dutch established settlements near the famous Delaware Water Gap, but were forced to leave by the English in 1664. By 1742, English and German settlers were arriving in the Pocono Mountains and the first permanent residence was established by Nicholas Depui in 1725 at Shawnee.
This summer we really enjoyed ourselves being rockhounds! We collected history, miles (about 6,000 of them), and specimens for our midden and collections. Pennsylvania was but one leg of the trip, but one I really learned a great deal about. Enjoy and may you have
Peace and Pleasant Journeys!
