Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for pennsylvania
All Things Warhol
By Linda Tancs
A leading figure in the pop art movement, Andy Warhol was an American visual artist and cultural icon. At The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (the city of his birth), you’ll find the largest collection of Warhol art and archives in the world. Paintings, drawings, commercial illustrations, sculptures, prints, photographs, wallpapers, sketchbooks and books cover the entire range of his career, from his early student work to pop art paintings and collaborations. You’ll also find the entire output of his work in video, comprising more than 4,000 videotapes. Museum admission provides access to seven floors of art and archives.
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A Little Magic in Scranton
By Linda Tancs
A popular attraction in Scranton, Pennsylvania, is the Houdini Museum, where the magical legacy of the legendary escape artist and illusionist, Harry Houdini, comes to life. The museum tour features artifacts, rare photographs and interactive exhibits that recount Houdini’s extraordinary career. The experience also includes a short film with rare footage of the magician and a live magic show after your tour. Visit the gift shop for magic kits and souvenirs.
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Music for the Ages in Pennsylvania
By Linda Tancs
There’s a musical treasure trove in the small city of Franklin, Pennsylvania. It’s where you’ll find DeBence Antique Music World Museum, which houses a collection of more than 200 antique mechanical musical instruments dating from the mid–1800s to the 1950s. The collection is the brainchild of Jake and Elizabeth DeBence, who started amassing their treasures in the 1940s. Among the exhibits are music boxes, band organs, player pianos, nickelodeons, carousel organs and musical toys. A guided tour includes the chance to listen to and play instruments; the basement has quarter machines to watch and listen to music so make sure you bring some spare change.
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Three Stooges in Pennsylvania
By Linda Tancs
The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team best remembered for their short-subject films. Still entertaining audiences over 100 years since they first started performing, their fan club is one of the nation’s oldest and largest clubs. It’s headquartered at The Stoogeum, the world’s first and largest museum of Three Stooges memorabilia. Containing around 100,000 artifacts, the museum also contains a research library, a 16MM film storage vault and an 85-seat theater used for film screenings and special events. The facility is located at 904 Sheble Lane in Ambler, Pennsylvania. Visits are by appointment only.
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A Grand Estate in Philadelphia
By Linda Tancs
Many of Philadelphia’s first families built their country estates on the banks of the Delaware River. One of those estates is known today as Glen Foerd, named for owner Robert Foerderer. Visiting the mansion includes access to areas on all four floors of the house, where pieces from Glen Foerd’s historic collection are on display alongside American and European art and contemporary art installations. One of the home’s prized treasures is the 121-year-old Haskell pipe organ, which was recently restored. Equally appealing are the grounds, a public park comprising 18 acres including a formal rose garden, vineyard and riverfront oaks that date back over 300 years. The estate’s entrance is at the crossroads of Grant Avenue and Milnor Street in Philadelphia.
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New Year, New Travels!
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The Conrad Weiser Homestead
By Linda Tancs
The Conrad Weiser Homestead is a Pennsylvania state historic site in Womelsdorf that interprets the life of Conrad Weiser, an 18th-century German immigrant who played a major role in the history of colonial Pennsylvania. He was particularly notable for his knowledge of the Iroquois and in conducting matters of diplomacy with them. His efforts led to fairly stable relations between the Pennsylvania government and the Iroquois Nation during the 1730s and 1740s, and he later negotiated the Treaty of Easton, which concluded the vast majority of Indian insurrection in the eastern third of Pennsylvania. All visits to the homestead begin at the Visitor Center, which recounts Weiser’s many achievements in Native American diplomacy. In addition to the family home, the property includes his gravesite and an old springhouse.
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American Helicopter Museum
By Linda Tancs
The American Helicopter Museum in West Chester, Pennsylvania, is home to one of the world’s largest collections of rotorcraft. Its assets include a fully restored Sikorsky UH-34D Seahorse, a Boeing CH-46E Sea Knight and a McCulloch J-2 Gyroplane. Several aircraft allow visitors to enter and experience what it’s like to operate it. A mobile unit called “Stubby” travels to schools, camps and community events and allows guests a chance to sit in the cockpit, operate the controls and learn how a helicopter works.
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The Life of William Penn
By Linda Tancs
Philadelphia’s Welcome Park is the only site in the city dedicated to celebrating the life and contributions of William Penn, who founded the Commonwealth in 1682. Named for Penn’s ship, Welcome, the park features a marble layout of Penn’s city plan for Philadelphia and boasts a statue of him that is a miniature of the one atop City Hall. The site once hosted the Slate Roof House, where Penn resided from 1699 to 1701. The park is located at Second Street and Samson Street Alley.
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The Jewel on Millionaires’ Row
By Linda Tancs
Millionaires’ Row in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, is a historic stretch of Victorian mansions and landmark churches built by lumber barons in the 1800s. Once the Lumber Capital of the World, Williamsport had more millionaires per person than any other city in the nation. The jewel in its crown is Rowley House, one of the best maintained mansions and arguably the finest example of Queen Anne-style architecture in the Commonwealth. One of its most breathtaking features are the Tiffany-style stained glass windows. Located on West Fourth Street, the house was built for E.A. Rowley, one of the wealthiest men in Pennsylvania.
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The Cranberry in Pennsylvania
By Linda Tancs
Known locally as “The Cranberry,” Tannersville Cranberry Bog Preserve in Pennsylvania is a remnant of the Ice Age, producing the southernmost boreal bog east of the Mississippi River and a unique ecosystem. It boasts some of North America’s most beautiful native orchids, including rose pogonia and the state-endangered heart-leaved twayblade. The Boardwalk Trail is open only with guided access, but other trails are open to self-guided visitors and feature a mature oak hardwood forest and wetland habitats.
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