Wheeling Waited
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Day 5: July 5, 2008 Wheeling Waited |
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Even if it maintained a due west course from Philadelphia, the Lincoln
Highway
would miss my home well to the north. And it doesn't even do that. In the
middle of Pennsylvania it starts edging north. The National Road does just
about the same thing at just about the same point. Bob, at the Lincoln
Motor Court says it's because everybody wanted to go to Michigan. Could be.
Whatever the reason for the swing, I've switched from LH to NR more
than once just to stay even and I did that today. This time, instead of
the convenient I-70, I used mostly PA-136 to move from the Lincoln Highway
at Greensburg to the National Road at Washington.
These shots are from the town of Monongahela which sits on the banks of the river by the same name. My path did not quite go by the front of the post office but the soldier's unusual pose caught my eye and pulled me down the side street. As I was photographing the statue, a resident walked by and offered the information that "There are only three like that." The other two, he said, are in New York City and Pittsburgh. This article on the statue in NYC's Tompkinsville Park says there are more than twenty of them but the only other one that a brief web search turned up is indeed in Pittsburgh. |
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More than once I've driven by an 84 Lumber yard and thought it a strange
name for a company. I've even wondered about its origin but I guess the curiosity faded
quickly. Today I drove through the place called Eighty Four and thought it a
strange name for a town. Then, in a stroke of undeniable brilliance, I thought
the two might be connected. They are. The mystery of the lumber company's
name is solved but the origin of the town's name remains a little murky.
Some Wikipedia editor thinks a story involving the year
Grover Cleveland was elected is the "most plausible" but that's
not my pick. My vote goes to the story about mail drop #84.
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On the campus of Washington
and Jefferson College, George & Tom stand arm in arm but it wasn't
always so. Jefferson College was chartered in 1802 and Washington College
in 1806. It took the hard times of the Civil War to bring them together.
In downtown Washington, the town's namesake oversees the work being done
on his pedestal (a.k.a. the Washington County Courthouse).
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I thought you'd like to see what the well dressed National Road mile marker
is wearing this year in western Pennsylvania.
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I had unsuccessfully looked for this building in Triadelphia but found it
easily once I learned that it's actually in the unincorporated town of
Roney's Point. The Heimberger House was built in 1820 and is in much
better shape than the newer motel behind it. It even has a
DAR plaque. Curiously, the blog that brought the
building to my attention (http://ryan4gopackgo.blogspot.com/) seems to
have gone missing but a blog entry that that blog led me to is still
here.
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After lunch at Ye Old Alpha (recommended), I drove into downtown Wheeling
intending to drive across my favorite bridge and head home. My heart sunk
when I saw the yellow tape across the entrance. Had the 150 year old bridge
suffered some damage? Nope, I learned when I stopped to ask. Last night's
fireworks had been rained out and had been rescheduled for tonight. The
suspension bridge was blocked off because it is used as a launching pad
for many of the rockets. That was two pieces of good news. First, the bridge
was safe and, second, I would get to see some fireworks. And not only
could I see fireworks, the Wheeling Suspension Bridge would be part of the
show. How cool is that?
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I booked a room within walking distance and headed to the riverside just
before dusk. A good sized crowd was gathering and it would continue to grow.
Boats were tied up along Heritage Port with the early arrivals getting
spots barely a couple hundred yards from the bridge. The whole scene was
reminiscent of the early years of the WEBN Fireworks in Cincinnati. That
event has become so large that it's almost too much for this old man. The
crowd in Wheeling was just the right size.
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Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Ahhh.
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The bridge is still there when the smoke clears and looks quite pretty as
the boats head home.
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