Bubley by Greyhound: Photographing Wartime Rationing

Posted by on Feb 3, 2020 in | Comments Off on Bubley by Greyhound: Photographing Wartime Rationing Most photographs from World War II document industries or overseas military activities. Rarely do we get a look at daily life on the home front. One young woman who was documenting ordinary lives at that time was Esther Bubley (1921–98), who became known for taking intimate photos of people despite lugging around a large camera. There’s no better example of that than a story from her niece Jean...
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Kennywood in the Space Age: How a Traditional Amusement Park Raced into the Future

Posted by on May 11, 2015 in | Comments Off on Kennywood in the Space Age: How a Traditional Amusement Park Raced into the Future Every year, at any amusement park, the first thaw of spring brings excitement for the new season. As the days got longer in 1990 Kennywood Park began tearing off the bright blue front of its Racer roller coaster. The goal was to rebuild it in the style of the 1927 original, with lattice work around an archway fronting a curved roof that extended back over the loading platform. For three decades...
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The Ship Hotel: Afloat with the Lincoln Highway’s Most Unusual Landmark

Posted by on May 8, 2015 in | Comments Off on The Ship Hotel: Afloat with the Lincoln Highway’s Most Unusual Landmark In 1931 the first and only baby was born at the Grand View Point Hotel, 18 miles west of Bedford, Bedford County. Little Clara was the pride of her grandfather Herbert J. Paulson (1874–1973), a Dutch immigrant who had built the hotel on the side of a mountain along the winding, two-lane Lincoln Highway. Clara grew up in the hotel, which “Captain” Paulson turned into the ship-shaped...
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Moonbeams and B-Movies: The Rise and Fall of the Drive-In Theater

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on Moonbeams and B-Movies: The Rise and Fall of the Drive-In Theater In June 1933, J. Borton Weeks, president of the Keystone Automobile Club, wrote to Richard Hollingshead, Jr., a Camden, New Jersey, businessman, congratulating him on a project “finely conceived and splendidly executed for the convenience, comfort, and entertainment of the motoring public.” Weeks predicted that Hollingshead’s brilliant venture would be copied across the country...
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Larger than Life Along the Lincoln Highway

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on Larger than Life Along the Lincoln Highway What are unsuspecting motorists’ typical reactions when they encounter a seven-foot praying mantis standing alongside a highway? Or a giant shoe, three stories tall? How about a huge steamboat, complete with paddlewheels, miles from navigable waterways? They might range from exclamation – “wow!” – to sheer dis­dain – “tourist trap!” – but the...
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Heinz – Much More than 57 Varieties

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Heinz – Much More than 57 Varieties The World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago captivated spectators with dazzling sights and sounds. Among the innovators showcasing their celebrated products was a trio of Pittsburghers: George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. (1859-1896), George Westinghouse Jr. (1846-1914), and Henry John Heinz (1844-1919). A bridge engineer, Ferris built his famous wheel-shaped ride, this first one...
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