Photo Tour of Johnstown, PA - Downtown (Pittsburgh, Allentown: neighborhood, shop)

[mams1559]

I was taking a stroll through town last week and clicked some pics of landmarks and sites of interest (to me anyway ). Feel free to browse them and let me know what you think. (Be nice )

My Town Album

I'm planning on doing this for each neighborhood of the city, as well as the surrounding areas.

[ScranBarre]

Thank you very much for sharing your photos! I especially loved the one with your, the husband, and Taz in it along the river. Johnstown seems to very much be a city that time has truly forgotten. There's a lot of history in those images, and I truly do hope that the city is able to rebound and make an economic comeback someday. What do you think are the odds that Johnstown can "sponge" off of Pittsburgh in the coming years, much as how Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre are now "sponging" off of New York City?

[mams1559]

Originally Posted by ScranBarre

Thank you very much for sharing your photos! I especially loved the one with your, the husband, and Taz in it along the river. Johnstown seems to very much be a city that time has truly forgotten. There's a lot of history in those images, and I truly do hope that the city is able to rebound and make an economic comeback someday. What do you think are the odds that Johnstown can "sponge" off of Pittsburgh in the coming years, much as how Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre are now "sponging" off of New York City?

Firstly, I'm the "Mr. Mams" in the pic. My wife is the Mrs. But that's okay. My screen name can be deceiving... LOL Secondly, thank you for your comments. It's true, in many ways Johnstown hasn't changed. There are positive signs pointing to future economic improvement. The biggest changes have been occurring in Kernville, the neighborhood adjacent to downtown. And there have been businesses moving into the surrounding areas, so things are horrible, but they could be a lot better.

As far as sponging off Pittsburgh .. as long as the Burgh can keep growing economically, it may happen. Especially since they are finally widening Rte. 22 to 4 lanes from Murraysville to Ebensburg. Now, large parts are already done, like Ebensburg to Armaugh; Pleasantview Mt. to Blairsville; New Alexandria to Delmont .. but there are still sections needing completed. They're working on them now, so hopefully in the next 2 to 3 yrs it will be completed and cut the drive time from ~ 90 min to ~60 min, or less.

If they ever finish Rte 219 south to I-68 and/or north to I-80, that will benefit us greatly as well.

[PeterRabbit]

Is Glosser Brothers still around? What all did they have going on? I remember the Gee Bee stores vaguely. Last time I was in Johnstown, long ago, they had a big space in town.

[Ohiogirl81]

Wow! Thanks so much for posting these wonderful pictures. I bet it's been 30 years, maybe more, since I've been in downtown Johnstown.

Things look different, yet the same. Is that weird?

Especially since they are finally widening Rte. 22 to 4 lanes from Murraysville to Ebensburg.

I'm wondering if my dad up in heaven has had something to do with that ... LOL ... He hated that drive from Pittsburgh to Johnstown (and then we'd go on to Windber to my grandmother's house). You never heard such cussing!

[mams1559]

Originally Posted by PeterRabbit

Is Glosser Brothers still around? What all did they have going on? I remember the Gee Bee stores vaguely. Last time I was in Johnstown, long ago, they had a big space in town.

No, unfortunately, Glosser Bros is gone . Yes, they used to operate the Glosser store downtown (now county government offices) and Gee Bee stores in malls/plazas. For the last couple years before they sold the business, they also got into the dollar store business (G/B Dollar??). It never really took off. The downtown store shuttered in 1989, if memory serves. The Gee Bee stores were actually bought out by Schottenheims (sp?) - owner of Value City at the time - out of Ohio. Our Gee Bee store closed in the early 1990's, I believe.

The entire Glosser Bros department store bldg was the red brick building in the pic, plus the white building just to the left, and also, along Franklin St., there was a 2 or 3 story annex Glosser's used. It was quite the store.

I remember shopping in Glosser Bros downtown store. It was impressive on a youngster. The basement was their toy department and discount area. There was also a cafe in the annex on the 3rd floor, I believe. Oh, and Gee Bee's used to have a counter in the back where they served food and drinks. Good times, good times

[mams1559]

Originally Posted by Ohiogirl81

Wow! Thanks so much for posting these wonderful pictures. I bet it's been 30 years, maybe more, since I've been in downtown Johnstown.

Things look different, yet the same. Is that weird?


I'm wondering if my dad up in heaven has had something to do with that ... LOL ... He hated that drive from Pittsburgh to Johnstown (and then we'd go on to Windber to my grandmother's house). You never heard such cussing!

You're welcome for the pix. No, it's not weird. I still think of buildings by what I knew them by, not what they're called now. And I know what you mean about the drive. We used to go the other way, from Jtwn to Pittsburgh (Carnegie) to visit my grandmother .. and my dad hated the drive too! He's in heaven as well, so maybe they got together to make things happen .. LOL... you never know

[Retired Law 08]

nice pictures...

[FightinPhils]

Nice pics...Johnstown looks like a pretty nice city from I can see. Reminds me of Scranton. You can't beat the historic architecture in PA's cities.

[Ohiogirl81]

Mams, I was just a wee bit of a lass, but I remember when the GeeBee on Rt. 56 was fairly new. The older folks in my family (back then, that was everyone past the age of 25) would call a trip to GeeBee going "up the new road." Everything worth going to, to them, was "up the new road." My sister and I still joke about it.

Another thing my dad would cuss about was the traffic around there on Saturday afternoons.