Hollidaysburg Heritage Guided Tours

05/14/2026

in 1997

The Lemon House opened as a restored 1840s tavern on May 10, 1997. Prior to this, the building served as the visitor center at Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site. When the current visitor center opened in 1992, subject matter experts began studying the building to determine paint colors, uses, etc. (es)

https://www.nps.gov/.../learn/historyculture/lemon-house.htm

Image: Lemon House

05/14/2026

The South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, Part 3 of 4

Club House and Cottages

The Club House was the center of activity for members and guests at Lake Conemaugh. The club's first summer season at Lake Conemaugh was 1881. The structure was built in two sections. The original portion of the Club House contained 17 bedrooms and was open for the first season. It contained a kitchen, dining room to fit 150 people, and bedrooms. An addition was completed around 1887. David Knox Miller, nephew of member Philander Knox, was the architect for the addition. It was three stories and had 30 rooms. In all, there were 48 bedrooms in the clubhouse. Sixteen cottages lined the shore of Lake Conemaugh. Cottages were owned by individual members, but the land was leased from the club.

https://www.nps.gov/jofl/learn/historyculture/the-club-house.htm

Image: Club House of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club. Louis Semple Clarke Collection.
https://www.nps.gov/.../historyculture/the-club-house.htm

05/14/2026

This unique event happened at 10:40 at night on October 21, 1954. A momentary burst of lights unequalled in the annals of photography turns night into day for this history making picture marking the centennial of the world famous Horseshoe Curve of the Pennsylvania Railroad near Altoona, an engineering marvel to this day and the 75th anniversary of the incandescent lamp. The photograph was snapped through the collaboration of the railroad and Sylvania Electric Products Inc. Six thousand photo flash bulbs were mounted around the Curve on the wooded slopes above it, in the valley below it and even under the surface of the Altoona Reservoir, which the tracks encircle. Their simultaneous flash bathed the 2,000,000 square foot area in more light than the combined output of 15 million 60 watt household lamps. In the foreground is The Trail Blazer en route to Chicago from New York. Across the valley a freight train is moving toward Altoona. The diesel locomotive of another freight is moving on the Curve in the right foreground. The 6000 flash lamps were connected by 31 miles of wire to 3 huge generators and a central control point. The flash was synchronized with camera shutters atop a specially built 154 foot tower by telephone lines and a loudspeaker system. The brief flash was the climax of months of planning and preparation for what Sylvania officials said is a photo flash picture unprecedented in magnitude of area and illumination. Although roads were closed to private cars to avoid traffic hazards, special buses from Altoona brought throngs of amateur photographers and others to the scene.
(Photo from http://www.billspennsyphotos.com/)

05/12/2026

in 1852

On May 12, 1852, the northern stationary steam engine at Plane 6 exploded, killing three men and caused $3,780 in damages. (SJL)

Image: Engine House Number 6, as seen from Inclined Plane No. 6. The northern side is on the right.

05/12/2026

If you’re interested in Pennsylvania’s industrial history, the Drake Well Museum and Park in Venango County is a fascinating place to explore.

This 240-acre museum complex marks the site where Colonel Edwin Drake drilled the world’s first successful oil well on August 27, 1859, launching the modern petroleum industry. With both indoor and outdoor exhibits—including a detailed replica of Drake’s original well—it’s like stepping back to the birthplace of the oil boom.

Details/directions in first comment 👇

05/07/2026

05/06/2026

Long before European arrival, the land that is now the United States was far from empty.

This map shows estimated population density in 1492, revealing a landscape shaped by Indigenous societies with diverse ways of life. While large areas appear sparsely populated, clusters of higher density emerge along rivers, fertile lands and trade routes, particularly in the Mississippi Valley, parts of the Southeast, the Southwest and the Pacific Northwest.

These patterns reflect advanced knowledge of the environment, agriculture and settlement, rather than absence of population.

05/05/2026

https://railroadcity.org/admission