The President Meets the Press

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on The President Meets the Press The road to glory traveled by Abraham Lincoln on his way to his inauguration took him in and out of Pennsylvania three times: first to Pittsburgh, then through Erie County along the southern shore of the lake, to Philadelphia, and finally through Harrisburg where he spoke to the state legislature. Throughout the trip he was well received by great crowds who thronged to the train depots and,...
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Dan Rice’s Monument: Patriotism or Circus Promotion?

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on Dan Rice’s Monument: Patriotism or Circus Promotion? On storied battlefields and at thousands of heroes’ graves and historic monuments, Pennsylvanians gather to commemorate the bravery and valor of the indi­viduals who made – and kept – this a free country. In the northwestern corner of the state, in a little town called Girard, Erie countians gather around a tall stone monument which claims special distinc­tion. The monument was...
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The Northwest’s Vintners

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on The Northwest’s Vintners From an early Old Crusted Port to today’s popular – if not ubiquitous – wine cool­ers, Erie County wines have been a significant Pennsylva­nia commodity since 1864. There has been trouble along the way, but the county’s grapes, grown in profusion along the south shore of Lake Erie, have over­come many obstacles and today are a ma­jor element in the Commonwealth’s...
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The Battles Bank: When Honesty Was Collateral and Chickens Paid the Interest

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on The Battles Bank: When Honesty Was Collateral and Chickens Paid the Interest On the day the pri­vately owned R. S. Battles Bank in Girard, Erie County, closed, it had been in operation for eighty-seven years. For nearly a century its owners had steadfastly offered services to their depositors despite panics, recessions, depressions, robberies, even a presidential proclamation. Oddly enough, the doors of the vine covered brick building were ultimately closed in 1946 by...
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The Home Kids Find a Place of Their Own

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on The Home Kids Find a Place of Their Own In 1912, Isador Sobel, born in New York in 1858, was an individual of considerable standing in Erie, where he had studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1888. Three years later he was elected to city council and during his second term served as president. President William McKinley appointed him Erie’s postmaster in 1898, as did President Theodore Roosevelt in 1902 and 1906, and...
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