2019 Retrospective, 2020 Plans

Hi everybody, and thanks for being so patient. When I wrote about Hawk Mountain a few weeks back, I mentioned having missed a post due to being extremely sick, and that I was still "not quite firing on all cylinders." As the blog's Facebook followers learned not long afterward, it turned out that I had a pretty serious case of pneumonia, which is not the way I had planned to spend Thanksgiving. I've been doing a lot of resting these last few weeks and I'm getting better, although the cough lingers. I was sorry to keep everyone waiting so long for a new post, but I'm grateful for how much attention the Hawk Mountain article received in the meantime.

Because I'm still recovering, it's been hard to conduct any real research since my doctor handed down the diagnosis. It's also the holiday season, which is busy enough on its own, and I have a job in retail so my time is at an even greater premium. So what I thought I'd do to wrap things up for 2019 is to take a look at where this blog has been, and talk about where I'm planning to take it in the new year. No pictures, just a bit of a chat with your intrepid blogger.

I officially launched MarkerQuest™ in May of 2018 with a brief welcome to my fellow history enthusiasts. At the time I had only a vague idea of what I was planning to do; the PHMC's markers had caught my interest since I was a child, when blogging was not a thing that existed, but that was really all I knew. It was a bit of a challenge to figure out how I was going to approach it because, to be perfectly honest, I hadn't really expected to be given permission to begin the whole project - so when I was, it caught me a little off guard! Ultimately, I just sort of jumped in headfirst. Your mileage may vary on whether or not that was a good idea, but sometimes, the quests in my video games don't come with a whole lot of guidance and neither did this.

The best part about making things up as you go along is that, technically, there are no rules to be broken.

Over the ensuing year and a half, this blog and I have made quite a few friends who have enthusiastically supported our efforts. The members of the PHMC themselves, of course, have offered plenty of encouragement and shared my words with their own followers on Twitter and in their newsletter. Not only that, but we've managed to catch the attention of various local historical groups who have joined the fun. Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites has taken an interest in MarkerQuest™ since the first time I wrote a piece about Bethlehem, and the Quakertown Historical Society made sure that I knew to be on hand when their town's second marker was erected to honor abolitionist Richard Moore. Responses to individual posts often vary, but many groups related to the subjects have graciously helped to share my work and bring new readers, including the folks at Hawk Mountain, the owners of the Old Jail Museum in Carbon County, and the staff of the Sun Inn in Bethlehem, Northampton County, as well as the members of the Berks History Buffs group on Facebook. Another consistent supporter has been Andrew Ruppenstein, a contributing editor at the Historical Marker Database.

I've had some helpful contributions made to this blog. Guest photographers have included my friends and former coworkers Rachel Durs and Sheila Clever, and my sister Liza Shankar. I've also been in contact with people who have corrected my own errors or have added valuable information to various posts, including Ric Rupnik, Scott Nagy, Karen Galle of the PHMC, and the social media manager for Rock Ford in Lancaster County. I'm trying very hard not to overlook anyone who has helped me along the way, but forgive me if I miss a name. I appreciate all of you so much, including every single reader, and I particularly want to thank those who have shared the blog on their own social media. That kind of support is invaluable.

What are some facts about this blog?

Thanks to the setup offered by Blogger, I'm able to take a look at where MarkerQuest™ has been the most successful. As of the writing of this post, the blog has received more than 12,000 page views, which I think is pretty good considering how young it is and how relatively niche the subject matter could be perceived.

As of this writing, these are the top ten most popular posts on the blog:

10) First Cement, Coplay, Lehigh County
 9) Molly Maguire Executions, Carbon and Schuylkill Counties
 8) Gnadenhuetten, Lehighton, Carbon County
 7) Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Kempton, Berks County
 6) The Old Waterworks, Bethlehem, Northampton County
 5) Ben Austrian, Kempton, Berks County
 4) The David Thomas Mansion, Catasauqua, Lehigh County
 3) Moravian Cemetery, Bethlehem, Northampton County
 2) The Sun Inn, Bethlehem, Northampton County
 1) The Fries Rebellion of 1799, Quakertown, Bucks County

I will admit that I'm very surprised by the popularity of the Fries Rebellion post, which presently has more than 1,600 page views. I'm not complaining, of course, but it does surprise me. If I'd been asked which post I thought was likely to be my most popular, I don't think that's the one I would have guessed.

I'll also admit that I was curious to know which is the least popular post I've written, and I'm not completely surprised to find that it's the one and only blog post which is not actually set in Pennsylvania. The Markerless Quest is one of my personal favorites, mostly because it's a reminder of two of the best weeks of my life; I was in London, England, and happened upon the church where William Penn was baptized. It was such an unexpected find that I couldn't resist sharing it with my readers when I came home.

What's coming up for MarkerQuest™?

Both of my sisters and our stepfather have offered to make road trips with me in the coming year. My youngest sister wants to go with me to Latrobe, in Westmoreland County, to collect the marker for (and pay homage to) one of my childhood heroes, the legendary Mr. Rogers. My middle sister is a big fan of Kinzua Viaduct, in McKean County, so I'm hoping to take a drive with her as well when the weather is nicer. Our stepfather, meanwhile, is eager to visit Harrisburg and we're planning on at least one day in the capital. Another trip which is definitely in the works is to Fort Everett, named for one of my ancestors; my husband and I moved earlier this year, and one of the results of that move is that we now live pretty close to the fort. We actually passed it on our way to Hawk Mountain, so when spring decides to show up it's on our to-do list. And, as I do every year, I'll be attending Zenkaikon in March, which means I'll be roaming around the city of Lancaster to collect a few more markers there.

I'm also keeping an eye on the PHMC dedication calendar, so that when the 2020 marker recipients are chosen, I can hopefully get to a few of the ceremonies. I really enjoyed the one in Quakertown and am eager to see another.

But most of all, you can expect 2020 to contain more of my excitement about Pennsylvania history. I will be kicking off the new year with the blog back on schedule, and keeping to that schedule means that the next post will actually be on New Year's Day itself. By then I should hopefully be completely recovered and able to spend hours reading and researching again, and maybe Santa will bring me a few new occupants for my bookshelf in the meantime. I've been a pretty good little historian, on the whole.

To all of my readers, my supporters, and the friends which MarkerQuest™ has gained over the last year and a half - thank you for joining me on this adventure. It wouldn't be nearly as much fun without you and I hope you'll continue to be a part of the MarkerQuest™ crew in the coming year. 

Whatever you celebrate this holiday season, I wish you joy and peace, and I'll see you back here on New Year's Day!