Road Rally South

Country Fox went on the “Road Rally South” adventure this weekend. Created and hosted by the Cambria County Historical Society, Road Rally South takes adventurous history seekers on an expedition. Participants travel along the Southern Tier of Cambria County to specific historic sites. Once at these sites, seekers look for clues to the questions.

This isn’t an actual race. Please obey all traffic laws and be careful. Directions are provided. I will write about the locations, but I will not give out the questions or the answers. If you would like to know more visit the Cambria County Historical Society Events page. Participants have until 11:00pm on September 2nd to turn in results.

The Southern Expedition Begins

Site 1: Base of Plane #4 Jones St. Lilly, PA

The first stop is in the small town of Lilly, PA. Following the directions, participants will travel along two planes and “Level” road. During the early days of transportation, inclined planes were used to move cargo and people. Railroad cars or canal boats were pulled up or lowered down the inclines by stationary steam engines. Hemp rope approximately 7 inches in circumference were used until replaced by wire cables. The stationary steam engines were located at the top of the incline and the hitching sheds were at the bottom.

To see an engine house and an incline plane visit the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site. There are three questions for our first stop.

Site 2: St. Bartholomew Church Wilmore

This was a little tricky to find. There is a sharp hairpin turn that could be easy to miss. Once you are on the road the church is easy to find. There is cute little cemetery across from the church. Finding the answer to one of the two questions does require a good eye, however, you can utilize your phone’s camera to zoom in and find the answer.

Site 3: Tunnel Street Summerhill

Head back down the hill and through the light. Turning onto this road is like stepping back in time. Travelers can actually see the original concrete roadbed as they drive along.

It was a nice drive traveling along a historical route and under some historic tunnels. The tunnels are still in great shape and interesting to look at. There are two questions for this Site.

Site 4: The Clubhouse at the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club -St. Michael

This stop brings participants to the Clubhouse of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club. In the early part of the 1800’s the Western Reservoir (later Lake Conemaugh) was constructed as part of the Pennsylvania Canal system. Just after completion, the canal system became obsolete. After a few years the area was sold into private ownership.

In 1879 Benjamin Franklin Ruff purchased the lake, dam and 160 acres under the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club. Ruff wanted to create an opportunity for members to get away from the noise, heat and filth of Pittsburgh. Initially there were 16 members, but it hit its height at 61 members.

The members were some of the most wealthy and elite. A few of the famous members included: Henry Clay Frick, Andrew Carnegie, Andrew W. Mellon, Henry Phipps Jr., Benjamin Thaw, Robert Pitcairn, and Philander Chase Knox to name just a few. All members were well-to-do. Leaders in the steel industry, businessmen, members of Congress, attorneys and more.

An integral part of the Club was the Clubhouse. The Clubhouse is three stories with 47 rooms. It had a large dining room that could seat up to 150 people. During its use it housed most of the members of the Club. There were also 16 privately owned “cottages”. It was located along the shore of the Conemaugh Lake.

If you have some extra time I would suggest visiting the Dam Site and the National Flood Museum. To find out more information you can visit the National Park Site and JAHA’s page. There are three questions for this site. One is a bit tricky.

Site 5: Buzz Wagner Plane -Johnstown Airport

Lieutenant Colonel Boyd David “Buzz” Wagner was the first Flying Ace of World War II. He grew up in Nanty-Glo and attended the University of Pittsburgh before joining the service. He died on November 29th 1942. This is a life size replica of his P-40 Warhawk. If you would like to see his monument, you can visit it at Grandview Cemetery (an upcoming stop). There are three questions for this site.

Site 6: Johnstown Train Station – Johnstown

The Train Station is a wonderful historic location that I plan to cover in a future post. This train station is the second station built in Johnstown. The first station was built in the 1850’s and operated until 1914. The original station was decided to be outdated and the town desired a new station designed to show off the intellectual social and spiritual values of the growing Johnstown.

The building was designed by Kenneth MacKenzie Murchison, a renowned New York architect. Murchison used the Beaux-Arts style with neoclassical elements. The building was dedicated on October 12th 1916. There are three questions for this site. The third question is a little tricky.

Site 7: Bottle Works Art Center – Cambria City

This location is home to a dynamic arts organization. After life as a factory faded, it became the Bottle Works in 1993. In January of 2014 it acquired another building and grew to become the Bottle Works Campus for the Arts.

Bottle Works is located in the historic cultural district of Cambria City. They are a location where artists can exhibit, create, teach and sell their work. A roof garden was added recently. The Bottle Works also hosts art and wellness classes. To learn more about the Bottle Works or find a class visit their site here. You will have two questions to answer here.

Site 8: Our Lady of Mariapocs Shrine -Cambria City

This lovely roadside shrine can be found up a few blocks from the Bottle Works. It is dedicated to Our Lady of Mariapocs. It is open to the public, but it is private property. Please be respectful when visiting this stop. Many of the early inhabitants of Cambria City were of Eastern European culture. The newly arrived immigrants brought with them their deep religous practices.

Anyone who has been through historic Cambria City has seen the many churches that had been in use. The shrine represents the variety of ethnic groups found in Cambria City’s history. Participants have two questions to answer here.

Site 9: Grandview Cemetery – Westmont

Grandview is definitely worth a visit. A large sprawling cemetery holds many sites to see. I wrote about a visit to Grandview Cemetery in a previous post. For a more full description please visit my page here. The Plot of the Unknown is the destination for this trip. Visitors here will see where the unknown victims of the Johnstown Flood of 1889 were buried. We had two questions to answer here.

Site 10: Johnstown Inclined Plane – Westmont

The last stop on our adventure takes participants to the World’s Steepest Vehicular Inclined Plane. I cover the Inclined Plane in a previous post. To learn more visit here. Participants have two questions here.

Road Rally South: In Conclusion

Country Fox had another wonderful history adventure thanks to the Cambria County Historical Society. Each site holds a wonderful amount of history. I have acquired some more locations to cover in future blog posts. Keep an eye out for the Historical Society’s “A Local History Pop Quiz” in September.