I'm on a quest to photograph and research all of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission's historical markers. This is my quest journal so you can join me on my adventures every Wednesday! Blog owned and written by Laura Klotz. Marker images used with permission of the PHMC. Header image created by Rachel Peeples.
It was my hope, for this week's post, that I'd get the chance to drive into Berks County and pick up a couple of markers there. Unfortunately, once again, my plans were upset by the arrival of more snow. I'm starting to run out of my backlog of saved markers, so hopefully the worst of winter is behind us now.
Instead, we'll take another nip back to Schuylkill County. Did you know that Pennsylvania is home to the oldest Lithuanian community in the world outside of Lithuania itself?
February is running rampant in Pennsylvania right now. The groundhog has promised six more weeks of this nonsense. I'm unfortunately very affected by weather changes, especially cold and damp ones, so this has been less than entertaining for me.
Very wistfully, I'm thinking back to last June, when my best friend Andrea and I took a day trip to Lancaster and I collected several markers for this blog. Lockdown had just been lifted, social distancing was in full force, and we were enjoying the beautiful sunny weather in one of our favorite cities. So for today's post, I'm going to remember the warmth and take you all on a visit to one of Lancaster's oldest churches.
Today, we're taking a look at the most famous resident of my Lehigh County hometown of Catasauqua. He had two different houses, and thus has two different markers, but I've never actually managed to see the one in Northampton County. Despite living in the same county, I don't get to Easton very often. Luckily, my biggest fan was in Easton some weeks ago and took some pictures for me, so I get to add another name to my list of guest photographers.
Happy New Year, friends and readers! I hope that this year, there will be more opportunity for me to get out and about to photograph subjects for this blog. I meanwhile have had some people inquire about being guest photographers - if that's something you'd find interesting, thank you! Please send a message to me at markerquestblog@gmail.com and let me know what you have in mind.
Now, let's head for the coal country.
When I wrote my 2019 post about what I hoped to do in the next year, I never could have imagined that 2020 would be... well, 2020. Then again, nobody could have seen that coming.
As I write this, my region is feeling the effects of Winter Storm Gail. Jim Cantore, famous fan of "thunder snow" from The Weather Channel, has traveled over to Bethlehem to experience the storm firsthand. When he shows up, you know it's serious. I've got chili in the slow cooker and we're planning to basically just graze and try to relax. I hope everyone affected by the storm is warm and safe.
Before I get into today's quest, a quick word of thanks to everyone who has sent congratulatory messages on the publication of Laury's Island. The response has been more than slightly overwhelming - I was even interviewed by my local TV news station! (It will air next Monday, December 21st. Details are on this page down at the bottom.)
I had planned, as my last quest for 2020, to talk about the two historical markers dedicated to George Taylor. However, I seem to be missing a couple of the photographs I need for the post; I know I took them, but for the life of me I cannot find them. So we'll leave Mr. Taylor until the new year, by which time I should have either found or replaced the pictures, and today I'll add one more new guest photographer to this blog. My parents were in Harrisburg some weeks back, and while they were in the vicinity, they were kind enough to send me a few pictures of markers they encountered.
Last time, I said that I thought I'd be able to make an announcement in my next blog post. Those of you who follow the blog's Facebook page may have already seen it, but I've published my first history book! I'm altogether pleased with the results and I look forward to hearing what my readers think of it. You can read all about it on this page.
In an effort to keep myself organized (my friends can tell you how very good at that I am not), I made a list of the subjects I was going to cover for the remainder of the year. I kind of chuckled when I checked the list and realized that I would be heading back to Lancaster County for this week's entry, because I was thinking about it recently. The Allentown Farmer's Market has an Amish bakery, where I got some pies last week for Thanksgiving, and their sign proudly mentions that their goods come from Lancaster County.
Anyway, I collected the pictures for this post when my best friend Andrea and I were in the city earlier this year, so with December being as dismal as it is currently, it's good to go back to that sunny day in June. (All social distancing cautions were observed, I assure you.) We had smoothies and saw a lot of dogs.
