Of Soldiers And Sailors ...

"Freedom is the last best hope of earth."

                               ~ Abraham Lincoln

                                                         ~ 1809-1865

                                ~ 16th President of the United States

                                                          ~ 1861-1865

Valor is celebrated as the Soldiers and Sailors Monument stands in 

the heart of downtown Allentown, Pennsylvania a few days before

Veteran's Day 2015. The statue of a rebel Confederate soldier (second from left) stands

beside a Union soldier with the phrase "One Flag, One Country" imprinted beneath them.

The rebel soldier was included on the monument as a gesture of reconciliation when

it was erected in 1899, only three decades after the Civil War, or the

War Between The States.  It is reportedly the only municipal monument in the North

honoring a Confederate soldier.

An inscription reads: "This column commemorates the valor and patriotism of the

Soldiers and Sailors of the County of Lehigh in the War of 1861-65." 

A World With Octobers ...

" I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."

                                                                      ~ L.M. Montgomery

                                                                                  ~ 1874-1942

          This man's thoughts could well be echoing the words of L.M. Montgomery as he soaks in the October beauty at the picturesque Hopewell Furnace, Elverson, Pennsylvania.

           Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site in southeastern Berks County near Elverson, Pennsylvania is an example of an American 19th century rural “iron plantation.” The buildings include a blast furnace, the ironmaster’s house and auxiliary structures including a blacksmith’s shop, a company store and several worker’s houses. 

            Hopewell Furnace was founded in 1771 by ironmaster Mark Bird for whom Birdsboro was named. The site’s most prosperous time was during the 1820–1840 period with a brief boom in production during the American Civil War. In the mid-19th century changes in iron making, including a shift from charcoal to anthracite rendered smaller furnaces like Hopewell obsolete. The site discontinued operations in 1883.

            Today, Hopewell Furnace consists of 14 restored structures in the core historic area, 52 features on the List of Classified Structures, and a total of 848 mostly wooded acres. Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site is located in the Hopewell Big Woods and surrounded by French Creek State Park on three sides and the State Game Lands to the south which preserves the lands the furnace utilized for its natural resources.

Trimmed In Twilight ...

"Sweet memories of ... twilights trimmed in purple haze
And laughing eyes and simple ways
And quiet nights and gentle days with you
Memories, pressed between the pages of
my mind ..."

                       ~ "Memories"
                   ~ recorded by the great Elvis Presley
                                                                                                                    ~ 1968

Twilight trims the spring sky over Easton, Pennsylvania as viewed from across the Delaware River in Phillipsburg, New Jersey next to the historic Northampton Street Bridge, commonly called The Free Bridge.

The bridge that spans the 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.

                                         

                

Spring At Geiger's Covered Bridge ...

"On the first warm day in May
I hope you'll come a-callin' ...
We'll climb the hill ...
where all is still ..."
                                    ~ "The First Warm Day In May"
                                                   ~ recorded by Rosemary Clooney
                                                                            ~ 1952

A sun dappled afternoon at Geiger's Covered Bridge is the perfect
place to spend the first warm day in May. This is one of my very favorite
places to be and to photograph. There's a simple beauty and tranquility here 
in the stillness and I love to capture that essence in my photography. 

Geiger's is an historic wooden covered bridge in North Whitehall Township,
Pennsylvania. It is a 112-foot-long Burr Truss bridge, constructed in 1860.
It has vertical plank siding and an entry portal of stepped square planks.
It crosses the Jordan Creek and was listed on the National Register 
of Historic Places in 1980. It can be accessed from The Covered Bridge Trail
of Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.

The Art Of Nostalgia ...

"We do not remember days, we remember moments."
                                                  ~ Cesare Pavese
                                                                 ~ 1908-1950

Afternoon shadows of the early spring dance
tranquilly in the April sunlight at Schlicher Covered Bridge,
an historic wooden covered bridge in North Whitehall Township,
Pennsylvania. Schlicher's is a 108-foot-long, Burr Truss bridge 
that crosses the Jordan Creek and was constructed in 1882.
It has vertical plank siding and a gable roof. It was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It recently reopened
after needed renovations. 

Bridge Over Frosted Water ...

 

"How many lessons of faith and beauty we should lose,
if there were no winter in our year!"
                                                            ~ Thomas Wentworth Higginson
                                                                                          ~ 1823-1911
                                                                        from "April Days"
                                                                                             ~ 1861

The historic Geiger's Covered Bridge crosses the frosted waters

of the Jordan Creek, painting a scene of quiet beauty 
just before a winter sunset.

Geiger’s Covered Bridge is an historic wooden covered bridge in North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. It is a 112-foot-long Burr Truss bridge, constructed in 1860. It has vertical plank siding and an entry portal of stepped square planks. It crosses the Jordan Creek and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It can be accessed from The Covered Bridge Trail of the Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.