A Pre-Labor Day Drive

The Labor Day weekend was in front of us and since we had no pressing obligations we decided to take a ride. After a little thought we decided to revisit the area around Uniontown.

    Ann Marie and I have taken many trips down (south) to this area. We have hiked in the near-by hills, searched out old industry, found a lot of geocaches and even done some rock climbing. Well, it was mostly me doing that last activity.

    Some of the nicest things about living in Pennsylvania are all of the beautiful scenery and the hills and valleys. Most of the smaller roads going through the countryside rarely go straight, there is always some variety. You never know when you might come to a peak on a hill and be exposed to an unbelievable view. There are just so many things to see and do!

    Uniontown is the largest city and the county seat of Fayette County. It sits not far from the West Virginia state line. Like all of Pennsylvania, the countryside around here is filled with beautiful sights. It is hard not to enjoy yourself whenever you’re here, no matter what you’re doing!

    We took rt.79 down to Washington, the county seat of Washington County. Most of that part of the drive was uneventful. There isn’t much exciting on high-speed divided highways. So, the fun part of our journey started when we arrived in Washington, that is where we got onto rt.40, the National Road.

    The road headed southeast towards Scenery Hill and eventually, Uniontown. It follows the tops of the hills providing numerous views into the distance. We saw lots of farms, fields and meadows. I couldn’t help but wonder if the people who live along this road ever get “used” to the views.

    Our first stop was when we saw an old barn that had been put on steel beams, ready to be moved. A little research later, told us that it had been lifted last month. It was going to be moved about a half mile away, to replace another historical barn which had recently burnt down. Inclement weather had stalled the move, enabling us to see the barn before it’s gone. The barn dates back to around 1910.

    Of course, we had some geocaches to find on our journey. The first couple were hidden near to the cast iron mileage markers spaced out along the road, like the one in the first photo.

    Coming down off of one of the numerous hills, we came across an old camper with a grand view. It was a 1967 Corvair powered Ultravan, placed on top of an old silo. The view would be wonderful, but that first step…that’s a doozy.

    Just past Beallsville, we came to a Madonna of the Trail statue. This is one of 12 statues like this in the United States. It is the only one in Pennsylvania. They were placed along roads that travelers used to go west, to honor the women that made the journeys. This one was put up in 1928; it is nearing its 100^th anniversary.

    We crossed the Monongahela River and entered Brownsville, which used to be a riverboat building center and a major trading post. It is also the birthplace of John Brashear, a fact that is more important to me than the numerous other historic things in this town. John Brashear grew up to be an astronomer and a premier telescope and optic maker. He captured the hearts of Pittsburghers, often being called Uncle John instead of Mr. Brashear. His and his wife's ashes are interned under one of the telescopes at Alleghany Observatory. One of his telescopes sits at the AAAP’s Wagman Observatory in Deer Lakes Park. A telescope that I have had the pleasure and honor of using many times! Every time we come through Brownsville, I have to stop by his birthplace, just to pay my respects!

    A stop was made near an old house built in 1796 according to the cornerstone. It was the Peter Colley Tavern, serving the tradesmen and travelers on the road. It was a part of the Underground Railroad. The back section was added on to the building in 1842. There was a geocache near-by; this was another interesting spot that caching brought us to! I read that there are or were coke ovens near-by but the roads were gated so we didn’t attempt to see them.

    Another cache was found near the gravesites of the Searight family. A little under a half mile down the road, we came to the Searight Tollhouse. Unfortunately, we couldn’t visit it because of “bees”. At least that is what the sign said. Situated on a rise in the roadway, it had a good view in either direction. To continue one, you would have had to pay a toll.

    This is one of six toll houses on the Pennsylvania section of the National Road. The road originally went between Cumberland, Maryland and Wheeling, West Virginia. It was built between 1811 and 1818. The government gave the road to the states in 1839 when it became too expensive to maintain. The states then erected these tollhouses, and the road became the first interstate toll road.

    Nearing Uniontown and seeing it was closing in on noon; we started looking for a spot to stop and eat lunch. We find that it is often best to just leave it to chance when we pick a spot. We drove past the Titlow Tavern and Grille and it looked like “our” spot. We circled the block and pulled into their parking lot.

    We had just walked in the door and sat down when a storm hit, complete with thunder and lightning. We had timed it just right! We both had delicious fried fish sandwiches. By the time lunch was finished, so had the storm. Timing is everything!

    Leaving Uniontown behind, we climbed Chestnut Ridge, stopping at the observation pull off to check out the view of the city below. We continued on to make a quick stop at the Wharton Iron Furnace. This was built in 1839, finally shutting down in 1873. During that period, it went out of blast for a while due to the difficulty in shipping its products to its customers. The Civil War brought it back with the need for cannon balls and such.

    From the furnace we headed over to Jumonville to see the huge cross erected on Dunbar’s Knob. 2480 feet above sea level, it can be seen from three states. It is 60 feet high, and was erected in 1950. We had to do some walking to get there. (I did mention that it was on the top of a hill, right?) We aren’t as sprite as we used to be, I admit, we/I took a couple breaks on the way up. I noticed large black birds circling above and sitting in the trees…watching us maybe?

    It was a beautiful view from the base of the cross. We could easily see the road (rt.119) that we’d be traveling on in the near future. We took a nice curvy, scenic back road to the bottom of the ridge. We made one more caching stop, this one in a Polish Cemetery. It was an easy find in a nice, peaceful setting.

    After that, to top off our journey, we stopped for an ice cream cone and a banana malt milkshake at Tastyland. This wasn’t the first time we stopped at this spot, and it probably won’t be the last! We drove home happy and content. It is always fun revisiting places we’ve enjoyed before. It was a great way to start the coming Labor Day weekend!

Star Party Season is Almost Here!

If you are at all like me, you remember the two bright objects, very close to each other, in the western skies a few weeks ago. They weren’t stars, they were planets. The brighter one of the two was Venus and the fainter one, Jupiter. Since then, Jupiter is neared the horizon in the evening skies while Venus still stands strong in the twilight.

    Did you know that the planet Uranus will be close to the bright planet Venus towards the end of the month? You can see the pair from your backyard, use binoculars to see the fainter Uranus, OR, you can come up to the Wagman Observatory and see them there.

    The Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh will be holding star parties on the last day of March, (the 31^st) and the first of April. (no joke!) Being held at the Wagman Observatory in Deer Lakes Park, the club members will show you these objects and many others during the nights. Star parties are held in the warmer (?) months of the year. The March/April parties will be the start of the 2023 Star Party Season.

    The club holds these events to allow the general public to come and look through the telescopes belonging to the club and its members. There are two permanently mounted scopes at the observatory, an 11” refractor built by the prominent Pittsburgh optician John Brashear (above) and a 21” reflector. The mirror for the reflector was made by the same company that John Brashear founded over a century ago. (We are a very Pittsburgh oriented club!)

    There is no charge for these parties; they are open to anyone who wants to see more of the sky above them. Bring the family, please! The observatory is in a darker portion of the county and almost everyone will see many more stars than at home in their light polluted neighborhoods.

    Are you thinking about getting a telescope and aren’t sure how to go about doing it, not sure what kind or what size to get? There are lots of options available. At a star party there are always a variety of scopes, different styles and sizes, you can browse among them and see how the views differ and ask the owners what their opinions are.

    Have you recently gotten a telescope and aren’t sure how to set it up or how to use it? Bring it with you and chances are someone will be there that can give you a hand or some advice. Ask at the desk to see if someone can help you. Just setting up a scope will bring club members over to see what you have! You can also join the club if you're interested!

    The kids enjoy being able to look through the scopes and seeing planets they’ve read and learned about. There are a couple programs available for the kids to participate in. Those between 2^nd and 6^th grades can work on the Passport to the Universe Program. They are given a passport and the idea is to find the various astronomical things listed in it. After finding them, they are awarded a certificate and a book. For the older kids there is the Junior Messier Program. After finding some things a little bit harder, they also can get an award and a certificate. Club members are happy to help them find the objects they are searching for.

    Weather permitting, (a big condition here in Pittsburgh) during these star parties, we will be able to see Jupiter and Mercury, very close to the western horizon. They will be setting soon after sunset. Higher in the sky will be Venus and beside it, the planet Uranus. Since Uranus is so much dimmer than the brilliant Venus, you’ll probably need some binoculars or a telescope to see it. Club members will direct you to it, it won’t be hard to find, especially when you have a bright planet to lead you to it!

    Chances are, the moon will be the first thing the telescopes will be pointing towards, since you can easily see it while the sky is still bright. As the sky darkens, Venus and Uranus will come under scrutiny by the observers. Then things such as Mars, Orion and it’s nebula, star clusters, galaxies and double stars. If we are lucky, we will see a pass or two of the International Space Station or maybe the Chinese space station, Tiangong. There is also the possibility of seeing a couple “falling stars”. You never know what you might see at a star party till you get there and see for yourself. That’s part of the fun of them, what new things will I see tonight?

    Bring your binoculars; you’ll be amazed at how much you can see with them! Leave your flashlights at home, the moon will be providing more than enough light to see. Bright lights are frowned upon because the darker the area is, the easier it is to see the fainter objects and to see more details. So being, please, turn off your car headlights as you enter the grounds.

    For more information about star parties or the A.A.A.P., click here, 3AP.Org. Directions to the clubs two observatories can be found there along with the dates of future star parties. If the weather looks doubtful, call the observatory (724- 224-2510) to see if the party is still on. Inclement weather, clouds, rain or snow will be cause to cancel the event.

    It is a great way to spend a Friday or Saturday night, after a hard week of work, relaxing under the stars in the fresh air. Best thing of all…it’s free!

    If you come, look me up. Hope to see ya there!

Ghosts of the Past

The November meeting of the Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh was held at the Allegheny Observatory, perched on a hill in Riverview Park. We haven’t had a meeting there in quite awhile. There were about 18 members that braved the downpours outside. The early darkness of Standard Time along with the pounding rain made the drive difficult. The other club members attended via the wonder of Zoom.

    The original observatory was built in 1859, on a hill overlooking Allegheny City, now Pittsburgh’s Northside.  

The present observatory was built in 1912 a few miles away. 

    This month’s meeting was devoted to the club's annual photography contest. It was extremely hard to pick your favorites out of the submitted shots. The members have a lot of skills, and the photo contest shows it!

    As the pictures were being shown, I noticed someone in the shadows, in the back of the auditorium, I thought I recognized him. It looked like Albert Einstein, could that be…maybe it was just one of the ghosts of the observatory!

    After the meeting, a few of us stayed behind and got a quick view of the new telescope in the Keeler Dome. Behind a locked door, we climbed a narrow set of stairs to another locked door which led us up a smaller set of stairs into the dome. The telescope towered above us as we climbed up the steps. A 24” PlaneWave telescope, it is the 4^th scope to take residence in this dome.

    Since it was still raining outside, we didn’t get to see anything through the scope but we did get to see how quickly it can slew from one side of the sky to another! While looking at the telescope and the 100 year old dome it is under, I was reminded of all the ghosts that roamed these halls. John Brashear served as the Acting Director of The Allegheny Observatory when it was located closer to the city. He and his wife Phoebe’s ashes are interred beneath the Thaw Telescope at this location. The halls here have been walked by hundreds of famous and learned scientists and astronomers, I’m happy to say that I know a couple of them!

    The ghosts are also memories of times spent here. The time I viewed Saturn through one of the big scopes, club meetings that were held here and the Christmas/Holiday parties held in the basement. Being taken on tours and seeing the multi-storied library and wishing that someday I’d have one just like it. Seeing the offices and workrooms, the machine shop and of course, being able to see the telescopes and the equipment used to do the research, soaking in the history that exists in the building!

    John Brashear’s statue sits in the hallway, greeting visitors as they enter the building. Like many before me, I rubbed his foot for luck as I passed the statue. John Brashear is a man that the people of Pittsburgh looked up to, the same way as many of the members of the AAAP do!

    Before we left, we squeezed through a small wooden door and a narrow unfinished corridor and went out onto the roof of the observatory. The biggest dome of the three, the Thaw dome was in front of us. The rain had slowed down a bit and we went out and looked around and then hurried back inside.

    After that, I returned to the main floor, got my hat and jacket and went out to the car, leaving the history and the ghosts behind.