Old Main, the Nittany Lion, and the phrase "We Are Penn State" all have interesting storylines. One includes the dark days of 1940 segregation in the South.
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The book "Old Time Tales of Warren County" was written by newspaperman Archibald Bristow. His reason for writing the stories caught my attention. Many counties in the Susquehanna Valley could be substituted in his preface, describing the lives that the early pioneers experienced, and the hardships that they faced.
John Boyd was one of three brothers from Northumberland County who served during the Revolutionary War. His brothers, William and Thomas, died in the conflict. Thomas died an atrocious death while being held captive by the Indians. John, held captive by Indians and Tories in southern New York, was saved by an Oneida woman just moments before being burned at the stake.
James Scarlet came to Danville at a young age. Following his early years as a blacksmith's apprentice, he carved out the career of a nationally respected attorney. The avid sportsman and accomplished storyteller also provided untiring support for the Geisinger Memorial Hospital.
Snyder County businessman and politician Ner Middleswarth lived through the administrations of 16 Presidents of the United States, from Washington to Lincoln. He acquired 17 farms and left one to each of his 12 children. He also owned and operated a grist mill, three other mills, two distilleries and was part owner of the Beavertown furnace, a business venture in which he lost a great deal of money, reportedly through the mismanagement of his partner.
Wood-hicks, jill pokes, hitting your feet, and calked shoes were all part of the terminology of lumber camps in the upper regions of the Susquehanna Valley. Hiram Cranmer, a veteran lumberman from Clinton County, shares his experiences once again in the dense hemlock and pine forests of Pennsylvania.
Alexander Billmeyer's love of animals and farming made his 30-acre farm for elk, deer, wild turkey, and other animals a popular destination, and considered as one of the top attractions in the Susquehanna Valley near Washingtonville, Montour County.
In the middle Susquehanna Valley, people knew a professor of German at Penn State University as the Sunbury “Nix Nutz,” and a radio program featured him every Sunday over WKOK AM for a number of years in the 1940s and 50s.
The stories of how Pennsylvanians celebrate Christmas are similar in some ways, but unique in others. A 19th Century celebration of Christmas in Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, looks at the traditions found in an area settled by many families who settled there from the German Palitinate region.
Aaron Kern Gift from Middleburg, Snyder County compiled the "Genealogical History of the Gift, Kern and Royer Families" in 1907. "Glimpses of Early Pioneer Life" is the title of one chapter. Included is a westward journey from Snyder County to Illinois, and an incident involving a Revolutionary War soldier by the name of Frances Ditto, who lived on a farm in Musser’s Valley, Adams Township, now part of Snyder County.
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