Seagulls Over The Delaware ...

“The gull sees farthest who flies highest.”

 ~ from “Jonathan Livingston Seagull”

   ~ 1970

  ~ by Richard Bach

   ~ born 1936

Seagulls take flight over the Delaware River on a beautiful & mild mid-December afternoon facing the historic town of Phillipsburg, New Jersey.

The historic Northampton Street Bridge, commonly called the Free Bridge, can be seen from my vantage point across the river at Delaware Canal State Park, Easton, Pennsylvania near the Forks of the Delaware Trailhead of the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor (D&L Trail). The iconic Jimmy’s Doggie Stand can be seen to the right of the bridge and a portion of the Delaware River Toll Bridge at left.

The Free Bridge that spans the two states was completed in 1896 and survived massive flooding from Hurricane Diane in 1955. It underwent a thorough restoration in 1990 and is one of my very favorite places to photograph.

Phillipsburg and Easton are both historic Delaware River Towns. Phillipsburg was established March 8, 1861 and was named for William Phillips, an early settler of the area. Easton was founded in 1752.

  

The Forks of the Delaware is the confluence of the Delaware and Lehigh Rivers where Phillipsburg and Easton meet; it is where the Lehigh River merges into the Delaware River.

The trail is positioned between the Delaware River and Delaware Canal, which was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1978. The site possesses national significance in commemorating the history of the United States of America.

Running from Wilkes-Barre to Bristol, the D&L Trail passes through the Lehigh and Delaware rivers and their canals in Pennsylvania.

 

Haines Mill Dressed In Snow ...

“Kindness is like snow. It beautifies everything it covers.”       

                 ~Kahlil Gibran

                      ~1883-1931

The historic Haines Mill is the hub of a picturesque scene on a December afternoon a week before Christmas in the Borough of Cetronia, Allentown, Pennsylvania, reflecting a quite beauty a few days after 11.3 inches of snow blanketed the area.

 

Also known as Haines Mill Museum, it is an historic grist mill built circa 1850. It produced flour processed by an old-fashioned water-powered mill located just off the banks of the Cedar Creek. It remained in full operation until 1957.

 

A mill has stood here on the banks of the Cedar Creek since colonial times. The current circa 1850 Haines Mill offers a trip into the world of the early technology that supported farm life.

 

The sign on the front of the building says: “Haines Bros. Flour Mill, The Home of Gilt Edge Flour,” with a sack of flour etched with the words, “Cetronia Flour Mills, Gilt Edge Flour, 50 lbs. net, Allentown.”

 

It is a four-story, stone building with a slate covered gambrel roof. It is three bay by three bay, 42 feet by 46 feet, 9 inches. The interior was rebuilt after a disastrous fire in 1908. A three-story brick addition was built in 1930, with a lean-to roof. Atop the main roof is a cupola.

 

Today, Haines Mill is operated as a partnership between the County of Lehigh, which owns and maintains the site, and the Lehigh County Historical Society, which provides public tours. It is located in a serene 37.5 acre park.

 

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.