What Did I See Today (April 1, 2022) -- Harrisburg, Pennsylvania To Binghamton, New York

Haines Falls, New York

April 3, 2022

I am writing this post two days after making this drive. Which means I have probably forgotten some of things I saw on this drive, but I am hoping the photos will remind me.

One thing I realized is that my knowledge of the geography of this part of our country is woefully lacking. I was surprised that Elmira, New York is so close to Pennsylvania -- I thought it much further north on the eastern side of Lake Ontario. So I created this map with my "hand drawn" outline of New York state to help me with my bearings. (Note: you try drawing lines with a trackpad -- it is harder than it looks!). New York state is much more rural than I expected.

A summary of my observations from my drive:

It is so cool to drive the rural two-lane roads. Most of today was in the mountains. Remote, somewhat desolate. Much of my drive in Pennsylvania was on roads through hollows where the road followed the path of a stream.

Absolutely no sign of spring. 🙁. Gray and overcast. Depressing.

It was noticeable how close houses were built to the highway. No subdivisions in the old days. I assume that the proximity of the houses to the roads was to make it easier to get on the road in bad weather?

Williamsport was pretty and bigger than I expected with a number of Victorian houses -- some well kept, others showing their age.

I came up with several words to describe most of what I saw today -- weathered, worn and rugged. Not ugly but not pretty either.

I perhaps knew this fact but had forgotten -- Mark Twain summered in Elmira for more than twenty years at the home of his wife’s sister, Susan Crane. The house is located on the outskirts of Elmira and is named Quarry Farm. Twain once called Quarry Farm “the quietest of all quiet places,” and it was in his study, when it was located here, that he wrote some of his most famous books. (Quarry Farm is closed to the public and is currently used by Elmira College.). It was in Elmira that Twain wrote portions of some of his most famous books, including “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”

I spent a couple of hours listening to the beginning of Arthur Brooks' new book entitled, From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life. I am not yet convinced that it is worth my time but I like Brooks' ideas in general so I am going to give it a full listen. Until I prepare my summary here's how Amazon pushes the book (from 644 reviews, it has a 4.3 star rating):

INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “In this book, Arthur C. Brooks helps people find greater happiness as they age and change.” - The Dalai Lama

The roadmap for finding purpose, meaning, and success as we age, from bestselling author, Harvard professor, and the Atlantic's happiness columnist Arthur Brooks.

Many of us assume that the more successful we are, the less susceptible we become to the sense of professional and social irrelevance that often accompanies aging. But the truth is, the greater our achievements and our attachment to them, the more we notice our decline, and the more painful it is when it occurs.

What can we do, starting now, to make our older years a time of happiness, purpose, and yes, success?

At the height of his career at the age of 50, Arthur Brooks embarked on a seven-year journey to discover how to transform his future from one of disappointment over waning abilities into an opportunity for progress. From Strength to Strength is the result, a practical roadmap for the rest of your life.

Drawing on social science, philosophy, biography, theology, and eastern wisdom, as well as dozens of interviews with everyday men and women, Brooks shows us that true life success is well within our reach. By refocusing on certain priorities and habits that anyone can learn, such as deep wisdom, detachment from empty rewards, connection and service to others, and spiritual progress, we can set ourselves up for increased happiness.

Listen to this book and you, too, can go from strength to strength.

Now to the photos from the drive:

Look, more -burgs!

Gray and snowy in Pennsylvania:

The Susquehanna River along US 15.

Every little leaguers' dream:

Beautiful old church in Newport in a rather sad state is repair. Could use a fresh coat of paint. In this part of Pennsylvania, the churches make a statement as they reach toward the sky.

Google Maps put me on some backroads. The dots in the photo are snow flakes.

The name Loyalsock is derived from the Native American name Lawi-Saquick, meaning “Middle Creek,” because the creek now known by that name is situated between Muncy Creek and Lycoming Creek. Loyalsock Creek rises in Wyoming County and empties into the Susquehanna River at Montoursville.

Loyalsock Township was formed from Muncy Township in February 1786 by the Northumberland County court. This was nine years prior to the formation of Lycoming County. The township was originally bounded by the West Branch Susquehanna River to the south, Loyalsock Creek to the east, and Lycoming Creek to the west.

In the American Revolutionary War, settlements throughout the Susquehanna valley and what was to become Loyalsock Township were attacked by Loyalists and Native Americans allied with the British. After the Wyoming Valley battle and massacre in the summer of 1778 (near what is now Wilkes-Barre) and smaller local attacks, the "Big Runaway" occurred throughout the West Branch Susquehanna valley. Settlers fled fearing more attacks by the British and their allies. Homes and fields were abandoned, with livestock driven along and a few possessions floated on rafts on the river east to Muncy, then further south to Sunbury. The abandoned property was burnt by the attackers. Some settlers soon returned, only to flee again in the summer of 1779 in the "Little Runaway". Sullivan's Expedition helped stabilize the area and encouraged resettlement, which continued after the war.

Isaac and William McKinney, father and son, built the McKinney Iron Works along Lycoming Creek in western Loyalsock Townshop between 1825 and 1830, when they built a forge, in an area known as Heshbon Park. Their operation was expanded in 1836 with the construction of an iron furnace and further still in 1841 when a rolling mill was added to the complex. Iron ore was transported from Centre County down the West Branch Susquehanna Valley and up Lycoming Creek to the iron works. The McKinneys' effort was ultimately unsuccessful. The efforts of two more iron masters also failed. The iron works was largely destroyed by a flood in 1865.

Daniel Hughes was a conductor in the Underground Railroad based in Loyalsock Township. He was the owner of a barge on the Pennsylvania Canal and transported lumber from Williamsport down the West Branch and main stem of the Susquehanna River to Havre de Grace, Maryland. Hughes hid runaway slaves in the hold of his barge on his return trip up the Susquehanna to Lycoming County, where he provided shelter on his property near the Loyalsock Township border with Williamsport before they moved further north and to eventual freedom in Canada. Hughes' home was located in a hollow or small valley in the mountains just north of Williamsport. This hollow is now known as "Freedom Road", having previously been called "Nigger Hollow". In response to the actions of concerned African American citizens of Williamsport, the pejorative name was formally changed by the Williamsport City Council in 1936.

Today, the floodplain between Williamsport and Montoursville is densely populated with family residences and a shopping district known as the "Golden Strip" along East Third Street. The northern and western parts of the township are less heavily populated but still there are many family homes and small businesses. The population of Loyalsock Township has grown to 11,026 as of the 2010 census, up from 10,876 at the 2000 census.