Lititz, Lancaster County

I can't say for sure that creating an Instagram for the blog has definitely impacted the traffic. However, according to Blogger's stats, the numbers are much better than they were at this time last year, so at the absolute worst, the Instagram isn't hurting anything. Maybe these newfangled apps have their uses.

One thing that Instagram has definitely done, at least, is connect me with a lot of historical organizations across the state. The exciting part is that not only am I following them, but some of them are following me back! One of those, which is admittedly what kind of inspired me to do today's post, is the Lititz Historical Foundation. I've done all but one of the markers in Lititz, which was once voted the "Coolest Little Town in America," and by sheer happenstance the one remaining is the official marker of the community. I've only spent one day in Lititz, but I was completely delighted with it (apart from how cold it was, being late winter) and hope to go back.

Nazareth, Northampton County

Well, the verdict is in - I've been battling an upper respiratory infection since the new year started. I'm doing much better now than I was these past two Wednesdays, and I'm easing myself back into the blogging saddle. I still have some lingering symptoms, so this update is a slow process.

I took the pictures in this blog post a few years ago when it was quite cold and the ground was covered with snow. As I write the post, it's actually even colder and, once again, the ground is covered in snow - meaning that the photos remain very accurate for the moment.

Bellefonte, Centre County

It always throws me off a little when there are five Wednesdays in a month, because it means one extra blog post sneaks in there. Next week is my birthday, and I'll be taking some time off from work for the occasion - not so much to celebrate getting older, but in order to get moving on a couple of projects I've been trying to get underway. If all goes well, I should be making an announcement in the next few weeks that I never expected I would be making, but here we are.

Go ahead and indulge your imaginations. No, I'm not having a child or getting another pet, but beyond that, feel free to go wild.

Anyway, for this final quest in August, we're heading out to almost the exact middle of the state for another visit to the adorable borough of Bellefonte. This time we'll just find out why the community itself is significant - it actually has two (identical) historical markers of its own.

Goshenhoppen, Bally, Berks County

Happy New Year! It felt so strange not to be updating this blog throughout the past month, but I definitely am glad that I took the time off. It's great to be back in the saddle, though, and we're just going to dive right in with a visit to Berks County.

When I visited the Indian Jasper Quarries marker last fall, I had a little extra time following the event, so I took a drive down the local highway to collect a few additional markers. This one was my actual objective, though I was pleased to grab two others along the way. As of this writing, it's the only historical marker in the borough of Bally, and it all has to do with the origins of that municipality.

Altoona, Blair County

I say it a lot, and think it even more frequently, but I really do believe we live in one of the most beautiful states in the entire country. My recent trip with my husband was a perfect example of that, since out to the west there is so much open space and woodland and mountainous territory. Kevin and I had such a good time on our trip that I've really been looking forward to doing the next several blog posts - most of August is being dedicated to "county firsts"! 

To kick off that plan, I'm going to share a bunch of what I learned about Altoona. Although it's not the seat of Blair County (that honor goes to nearby Hollidaysburg, with its gorgeous courthouse), it does have the distinction of being the only incorporated city in the county, and has a number of interesting aspects to it - historical and otherwise.

Allentown, Lehigh County

I am once again trying to unsubscribe from weather. This time it's Tropical Depression Fred, which is crawling over Pennsylvania and threatening to dump rain on us. Hopefully it passes without much incident.

While I'm attempting to move as little as possible, let's take a virtual visit to my husband's hometown. The third-largest city in the commonwealth has, unsurprisingly, multiple markers to its name, all of them with the same information, and we'll take a look at what was originally just a little rural village. However, I must apologize - I only have a picture of the marker in this post at the moment, because I'm having difficulty uploading images to Blogger. I'll come back and edit in the future to add some more pictures.

Emmaus, Lehigh County

October is here, which means that this utterly bizarre year is slowly drawing to a close. I've been trying to get out and enjoy the autumn sunshine while I can - this is actually my favorite time of year, in most respects - but it isn't always easy.

A fun little sidebar for my readers, before we get into the meat of this week's post. If you weren't aware, the PHMC has its own channel on YouTube, where they share a lot of videos related to Pennsylvania history. I recently participated in their webinar about how markers are selected and created. It was hosted by Karen Galle, my direct contact in the organization, and you can watch it here. It was really very interesting! Thanks Karen!

Now, about today's marker - it's a first for this blog. The majority of communities don't have their own specific markers, as the markers are more likely written about a person or location within the community's borders. There are some which do, however, and our subject today is one of them. I deliberately chose to write about this one today because yesterday, if he were still with us, would have been my beloved grandfather's 90th birthday, and this particular community has a connection to our family tree.