A Dynasty Tumbles

Posted by Jan Habecker on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on A Dynasty Tumbles The saga begins and ends with two com­monplace scenes: a teenaged immigrant alighting a ship in colonial Philadelphia with but two letters of introduction and three guineas to his name, and a gravesite ringed by a half­-dozen black-clothed mourn­ers. But during the century and a half that encapsulates these vignettes, a Pennsylva­nia dynasty rose and fell- and rose and fell again. From Robert...
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The New Taste in Pennsylvania

Posted by Anita Schorsch on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on The New Taste in Pennsylvania Like the nation itself during the so-called “Federal” period, the arts in Pennsylvania reached a crescendo in their development that had an unexpected unity, a strong purpose, and a national style. Despite great varia­tions in the Germanic and English traditions, Pennsylvania emerged from the revolutionary period reasonably cohesive. City and country perspectives, naive and...
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Blair County: Center of Transportation

Posted by Robert Blackson on Nov 28, 2013 in | Comments Off on Blair County: Center of Transportation Blair County was among the last counties created by the Pennsylvania General Assembly. One factor which delayed the establishment of an additional county in the southern portion of central Pennsylvania was geography. The rugged, eastern slopes of the Appalachian Mountains, in which Blair County was eventually located, diverted settlers to other areas. Only after the discovery of iron ore...
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A Blast from the Past: Cornwall Iron Furnace

Posted by Sharon Silverman on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on A Blast from the Past: Cornwall Iron Furnace Driving on narrow sinuous back roads through lush, verdant forests – just a half dozen miles north of the busy Pennsylvania Turnpike – unsuspecting travelers can’t help being struck by an odd-looking complex of Gothic Revival-style buildings and structures. This place, this curious collection of buildings, both large and small, appears to have been literally plucked from a far...
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