Williamsport Photo Tour (Reading, Scranton, Back Mountain: hair salon, real estate, city hall)

[ScranBarre]

All I can honestly say right now is "Wow!" I was only ever to Williamsport (a.k.a. "Billtown") once back in high school to catch a performance of RENT at the Community Arts Center. At that time we simply parked our vehicles at a nearby parking lot, headed to the show, and then high-tailed it home, as a snow storm was forecasted for later that evening, and we didn't want to get stranded on the way home. Back at that time we never truly got to appreciate what this fine city has to offer to people. As such, I've just relied heavily on "hearsay" from others about Williamsport being crime-ridden, decaying, hopeless, "Little Philly," etc., and took those words literally. I can now see that, overall, the city appears to be a wonderful place to call home, and the "Chicken Littles" in that area may simply be blowing things out of proportion after all, as they do in Scranton. I know for a fact that the city has some crime issues to overcome, but depictions of it being "decaying" or "run-down" are largely-exaggerated; I actually saw very few blighted areas in the city, and most people seemed to take pride in their properties. The "hopeless" reference towards its economy is also false---how can the city's economy be doing poorly if just about every vehicle on its roadways is a later-model one? Low-income people certainly aren't driving around in nicer vehicles than my own, so please explain to me, you Chicken Littles, just how Williamsport's economy can be as stagnant as you all make it out to be?

Overall, I must apologize to you all in advance. This is my largest photo tour yet (nearly 200 images). However, my digital camera's memory card was all filled up before I could fully capture as much of the town as I had hoped. I conquered downtown pretty well, along with the residential neighborhood just north of the downtown in the Brandon Park area, Lycoming College, and the Historic District of West Fourth Street. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough memory space to cover neither the Pennsylvania College of Technology along Maynard Street nor the Newberry section of the city just to the west of the historic district. Sorry! I figured I might as well apologize for these omissions in advance before I get nitpicked and attacked for their absence by a few members, as did happen with my Binghamton, NY tour.

The drive out to Williamsport was one of the most relaxing, scenic, breathtaking stretches I've ever been on. Once you leave the ugly urban sprawl of the Back Mountain of Luzerne County and head west on Route 118, you pass through farmlands, meadows, Ricketts Glen State Park (which will be the focal point of another upcoming photo tour), and wildlife areas. I passed through the quiet farming community of Lairdsville, in Eastern Lycoming County, before rolling into Hughesville, a town that I ended up getting lost in. Route 118 ends apruptly in Hughesville, and a sign points you to the right to Williamsport along Route 220 North. As soon as I saw mileage indicators for Laporte, I knew I was headed in the wrong direction, so I turned around on a side street, where I saw a sign pointing to the left for Williamsport. I don't know if PennDOT and/or the people of Hughesville think it's funny to confuse we wayward tourists like this, but I wasn't amused. I followed this road right into the wonderful little "all-American" town of Muncy, which I also made a mental note to return to for another upcoming photo tour. Once again, the road ended abruptly, and I just "guessed" that taking a right-hand turn onto Main Street would steer me on the right path. I then saw a sign for I-180, so I decided to stick to the "highway", since I knew that would lead me right to Downtown Williamsport in the long-run (even though I had hoped to take backroads the whole way out). I once AGAIN got lost on I-180 when I saw a sign that said "Business District," and took that exit, thinking it was the downtown. Instead, I ended up in a suburban area to the east of town, so I hopped back onto the highway and FINALLY made it to Downtown Williamsport, where I promptly parked in a conveniently-located downtown garage to begin my adventure.

I hope you enjoy your visit to Williamsport as much as I was blown away by its beauty. I'll definitely be returning soon for a second photo to capture the last block of the historic district, Newberry, and PA College of Technology, all of which, as I said, I didn't have the memory capacity to take today.

(PHOTOS TO COME BELOW)

[ScranBarre]

The Pine Street United Methodist Church and I Would Both Like to Welcome You to Beautiful Downtown Williamsport!




Some dwellings just north of the business district. Pine Street, 6th Street.


One of the many old-fashioned brick alleyways in the city. This one runs between Dubois and 6th Streets.


A very nice church that I can't quite recall the name of (help from a local?) It was along the easterly side of Market Street at the intersection of 6th Street.







Some homes on or near Market Street between that church and Brandon Park.




Welcome to Brandon Park!


The scenic mountain view looking west from the five-points intersection near Brandon Park.


The Flatiron Building. This unique triangular building is wedged between Hepburn Street and Market Street at the five-points intersection and is home to the "Flatiron Hair Salon" and the "Brandon Perk" coffee shop (named after the "Central Perk" coffee shop from "Friends," I'd assume).

From this point I headed north on Hepburn Street for several blocks, where I turned right onto Huffman Avenue. From here I took a right onto Packer Street and then a left onto Parkwood Street to a right onto Elizabeth Street. Here are the residential images I captured from this neighborhoood.

























(PHOTOS TO BE CONTINUED BELOW)

[ScranBarre]

At the bottom of Elizabeth Street, I was dumped out onto the campus of Lycoming College, which was just across Washington Boulevard. This compact college within walking distance of downtown is one of two colleges in the city (the other being the PA College of Technology, which I couldn't photograph due to memory card limitations).

The college was founded in 1812 and is among the 50 oldest institutions of higher learning in the United States. Over 1,500 students from 22 states and 12 foreign nations attend Lycoming College. The college offers 34 majors that range from Accounting to Theatre to Physics. It seems like a wonderful school to attend, even though it is expensive at about $33,000 per year for tuitition and room & board (and I thought King's College was steep!)



Welcome to Lycoming College!


This map was quite helpful for me! (Ignore my nerdy self in the reflection!) LOL!


The "Quad." Back in the 1930s, this used to serve as the campus football field. Now, it is home to frisbee matches, sunbathers, and iPod mellower-outters.


Wertz Student Center. This is the home of the campus cafeteria and post office.


Rich Hall. Female-only dormitory.


Clarke Hall, home to the campus music department.


Fine Arts Building.


Lamade Gymnasium.


Snowden Library


The Drum House, built in 1852, houses the campus admissions office.


Crever Hall


Williams Hall






Some more scenes from on and around the Lycoming College campus.

(PHOTOS TO BE CONTINUED BELOW)

[ScranBarre]

I have to take a brief hiatus for dinner, but photos of downtown and the historic district will be posted within a few hours. Enjoy what I have posted for now, and let the excitement build, as the best, by far, is yet to come!

[ScranBarre]

Welcome to Downtown Williamsport, home to the crazy banana dance party!
(Okay, so maybe I made that one up, but I just love bananas!) LOL!

Anyhow, here's the scoop:


The old Williamsport City Hall, which has since been converted into an office building. Pine Street.


The old Rialto Theatre, which has since been converted into a church. Pine Street.


Aspen Square, a downtown redevelopment project with retail space.
NE Corner of Pine St. & Little League Blvd.


A peace monument, SW corner of Pine St. & Little League Blvd.



Two views of the downtown skyline taken from the northeast.



Market Street


Old Corner Hotel, Pazzo, Peachie's Court. Court Street.


Sovereign Bank Building, East Third Street



Lycoming County Courthouse


Downtown Office Building


M&T Bank Building, Parking Garage Where I Parked. East Third Street.


Stearns & Sons Plaza, Cafe, The Transit Scoop, East Third @ Pine (Notice the creepy-looking guy on the corner staring at me). Come to think of it, a lot of people in this town had a serious staring problem as I did my photo tour, including a woman who stood in the middle of the street gawking at me like a deer stuck in headlights! Am I really that drop-dead sexy, or are the people who live in Williamsport just too nosy for their own good and/or easily-entertained?


Transit Center Building. Apparently, there's also a small playhouse inside of here. I saw it on the first-floor as I headed upstairs to chit-chat with people at the Chamber of Commerce on the third-floor about possibly obtaining a brochure about the historic district for a walking tour. I found the people there to be very friendly, and the guy upstairs actually came running after me when he found an extra one of the brochures after initially telling me they were all out.


On the way downstairs from the Chamber of Commerce, I just had to snap a photo through the window of this neat trolley parked across the street. These trolleys ferry tourists around downtown and the historic district in style.


A neat elevated pedestrian walkway.


An old jail turned into a bar. East Third Street.


Downtown Office Building


Williamsport Federal Courthouse


A building on the SW corner of East Third & Hepburn.


Another view of the west end of downtown.


Looking up West Fourth Street from Hepburn Street. Shown from left to right: Williamsport Sun-Gazette Newspaper Building, Community Arts Center, Genetti Hotel, Side Entrance of City Hall


Sun-Gazette Building



Another urban revitalization project.


The view looking south along Hepburn Street towards the mountains.


Williamsport City Hall




West Fourth Street Streetscapes


Bullfrog Brewery. I had a great barbecue burger and garlic & chives mashed potatoes here for lunch for the reasonable price of $8. I left a $20 bill anyways to make the waitress just a bit happier. I figure since the community gave me such wonderful memories to hold onto for a great first visit, I should return the kind favor.


A vivid, vibrant mural on the side of the brewery building.


Community Arts Center. This is where my friends and I saw RENT a few years ago just before a snow storm. We had a wonderful time!


Genetti's Hotel. West Fourth Street @ William Street




Some images from William Street. I couldn't figure out why everyone was so oddly-drawn to the Department of Environmental Protection building in the bottom photo. Perhaps they were holding an anti-SUV rally (in which case I should have joined them!)


A modern office building along West Church Street that houses SmithBarney and Blue Cross/Blue Shield. See the cars in the parking lot, folks? Does it look like Williamsport is "struggling" to you?


First Baptist Church along West Fourth Street in the block between downtown and the historic district.

(PHOTOS TO BE CONTINUED BELOW)

[goodgirl49]

A most beautiful city! It looks very prosperous and clean.

[ScranBarre]

Just two blocks from downtown along West Fourth Street lies the Williamsport Historic District. I was given a self-guided walking tour brochure with a map from the local chamber of commerce, and I'll use the information provided in that pamphlet to the best of my ability to give you some background information on these buildings. P.S. If anyone would like me to mail this brochure to them in case they wanted to hit up the historic district themselves on foot to see the structures I missed, feel free to send me a PM, and we'll arrange something.


The entrance to the historic district is rather impressive with a gate-like structure. Unfortunately, the first red home in the middle of this picture was badly-damaged by a fire in 2005 and has yet to be restored.


What the street signs in the historic district look like.


405 West Fourth Street. "Hermance House." Built in 1885. Architect: Eber Culver, father-in-law of Albert Hermance, homeowner. Romanesque Style.



407 West Fourth Street. "Peter Herdic House." Built in 1855. Architect: Eber Culver. Italian Villa Style.


411 West Fourth Street. "Ulman House." Built in 1880. Architect: Eber Culver. Queen Anne and Romanesque Styles.


420 West Fourth Street. "Cornell House." Built in 1875. Gothic Style.


424 West Fourth Street. Built in 1910. Colonial Revival Style.


436 West Fourth Street. Church of the Covenant. Built in 1893. This structure contains the largest expanse of Tiffany stained glass in North Central Pennsylvania.


501 West Fourth Street. Built in 1890. Colonial Revival Style.


507 West Fourth Street. Built in 1885.


508 West Fourth Street. "Lewis Jamison House." Built in 1875. This is a clapboard "stick style" home with Gothic and Queen Anne influences.


509-511 West Fourth Street. "R.D. Berry House." Built in 1870. Currently houses a real estate office.


514 West Fourth Street. "J.A. Beeber House." Built in 1873.


519 West Fourth Street. "J.N. Kline House." Built in 1910. Neo-Classical Style.


522 West Fourth Street. "Hiram Rhoads House." Built in 1888. Architect: Eber Culver. First residence in the area to have a telephone. Queen Anne Style.


525 West Fourth Street. "Dubois House." Built in 1870. Architect: Eber Culver. Italianite Style.


531 West Fourth Street. "Embick Cottage." Built in 1880. Architect: Eber Culver. This home was built for a Civil War colonel. Queen-Anne Style.


535 West Fourth Street. "Emery Cottage." Built in 1888. Architect: Eber Culver. Queen-Anne Style.


605 West Fourth Street. Built in 1950. Art Deco Style.


610 West Fourth Street. "Lamade House." Built in 1890. Queen-Anne Style.


614 West Fourth Street. Built in 1860. One of the oldest structures in the district, it was extensively renovated with modern materials in 2001. (Basically, the brochure was trying to skirt around saying "Nice way to screw up its architectural integrity and heritage!")


619 West Fourth Street. "Walton Bowman House." Built in 1894. This home has a carriage house in the rear (that looked to be larger than my own home!) The home was built for J.W. Bowman, for whom the nearby Bowman Field baseball stadium is named.


629 West Fourth Street. Built in 1880. Queen-Anne Style.


633-635 West Fourth Street. Built in 1880.


634 West Fourth Street. "Smith/Ulman House." Built in 1866 by Isaac Hobbs. The largest Second Empire Styled home in the district.


637 West Fourth Street. Built in 1880.


700 West Fourth Street. The Anunciation Church. Built in 1886. This church as 43 arched stained-glass windows. The center tower was capped and construction of a planned spire stopped when three builders fell to their deaths. The interior has marble altars and Tiffany windows. Designed by Amos Wagner on land donated by Peter Herdic. Romanesque Styling.


707 West Fourth Street. "Rowley House." Built in 1888. Architect: Eber Culver. Queen-Anne Style.


711 West Fourth Street. "Deemer/Maneval House." Built in 1880. Architect: Eber Culver. Queen-Anne Style.


715-717 West Fourth Street. Built in 1880. The front porch is a recent reconstruction. Queen-Anne influences in styling.


723 West Fourth Street. Built in 1885.


727-729 West Fourth Street. Built in 1890.


735 West Fourth Street. Built in 1875.


736-750 West Fourth Street. Built in 1929. "Starlight Ballroom." Built after the 1927 Link Block Fire. The facade contains 243 window panes. Currently, the building sits vacant.


741 West Fourth Street. "Addison Candor House." Built in 1888.


747 West Fourth Street. "LaRue Munson House." Built in 1888. Gothic Style.


754-770 West Fourth Street. "Herdic/Weightman/Opera Block." Built in
1871. Architect: Eber Culver. A U-shaped complex commenced by Peter Herdic and finished by Weightman after Herdic's bankruptcy, it has Italianite stylings. It was built without steel beams with 16-inch thick plaster walls and 18-foot high ceilings.


757-759 West Fourth Street. Built in 1890. Queen-Anne Style.


761-765 West Fourth Street. Built in 1880.


800 West Fourth Street. "Herdic House Hotel." Built in 1865. This brick Italianite-styled Railroad Hotel once had four stories and rooms for 700 guests. The building was designed by Eber Culver for Peter Herdic and was saved from demolition in 2001.


801 West Fourth Street. "The Berkshire." Built in 1905.


807 West Fourth Street. Covenant Central Church. Built in 1906. Richardson Romanesque Style.


821 West Fourth Street. YWCA. Built in 1920. Georgian Revival Style.


829 West Fourth Street. "Parsons House." Built in 1865. Queen-Anne Style.



Site of the most extravagant residence in Williamsport, the house was demolished by Roman Way in 1913, and the land was given to the city as a park with the provision that no money be exchanged within the park boundaries.


West Fourth Street @ Trinity Place. Trinity Church. Built in 1875. Architect: Eber Culver. Built with stone from the Bald Eagle Mountain in Muncy and brownstone from Hummelstown, it has the first nine bell Westminster chimes in America and a mural by Westly Little. The church was paid for by Peter Herdic and given to Trinity Parish for $1 as long as the pews remain "forever free." The spire is 265-feet tall. Gothic Style.


844 West Fourth Street. "Trinity Rectory." Built in 1916.


848 West Fourth Street. Built in 1917.


Thomas Taber Museum.


870 West Fourth Street. "Hinckley House." Built in 1880. Queen-Anne Style.


878 West Fourth Street. Built in 1876. Architect: Eber Culver. Second Empire Style.


884 West Fourth Street. Built in 1890. Queen-Anne Style.


901 West Fourth Street. "Johnson-Lamade House." Built in 1890. Architect: Amos Wagner. Queen-Anne Style.


904 West Fourth Street. "Taylor Carriage House." Built in 1873. Queen-Anne Style. Currently used as a physician's office.


907 West Fourth Street. "Clark House." Built in 1890. Gothic Style.


912 West Fourth Street. "Foresman House." Built in 1907. Colonial Revival Style. The four Ionic columns are 18 feet high. This is one of the last mansions built in the district.


915 West Fourth Street. "Harrar House." Built in 1870. Architect: Eber Culver. This house was a wedding present for Lucy Filbert Eutermarks and purchased by the Harrar family in 1901. The original street address of 913 was considered unlucky and changed to 915. A cupola was removed in the 1920s, and the front porch is much smaller than the original. Italianite Style.


918 West Fourth Street. "Moore House." Built in 1865.


921 West Fourth Street. "Lyon House." Built in 1888. This was the home of Henrietta Baldys, a militant advocate of womens' suffrage.


925 West Fourth Street. "Gleason House." Built in 1890. Queen-Anne Style.


928 West Fourth Street. "Snyder House." Built in 1875. Gothic Style.


936 West Fourth Street. "Bentley House." Built in 1870. Second Empire Style.


942-944 West Fourth Street. "Herdic Double." Built in 1875. Architect: Eber Culver. To attract families to West Fourth Street, Peter Herdic built many double houses. They typically have a mansard roof and protruding center bay with a cupola on top. Second Empire Style.


949-951 West Fourth Street. "Foresman/Cleveden House." Built in 1865. This fifty-room brick mansion was originally Second Empire style. A third story and a Queen Anne roof were added after a fire in 1885. The stained glass windows feature portraits of Milton and Mozart.


953-955 West Fourth Street. Built in 1873.


967 West Fourth Street. "The Stonehurst." Built in 1868. Blend of Italianite and Greek Revival stylings.


1022 West Fourth Street. "Mussina House." Built in 1883. Architect: Isaac Hobbs.


1025 West Fourth Street. "Reading House." Built in 1865. Second Empire Style.


1051 West Fourth Street. "Howard House." Built in 1885. Queen-Anne Style.

(END)

[tviz25]

Wow you do some great photo tours. I tried doing a small one of ELmira today but I don't think I did one that is as good as one you would do. I took some of my pictures off of a big parking garage and not as many as I should have from street level. I would hope to see you do one of Elmira in the future because they are quality.

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by tviz25

Wow you do some great photo tours. I tried doing a small one of ELmira today but I don't think I did one that is as good as one you would do. I took some of my pictures off of a big parking garage and not as many as I should have from street level. I would hope to see you do one of Elmira in the future because they are quality.

Thanks for the kind words. I truly appreciate them after feeling "brow-beaten" by being chastised and admonished for another photo tour I did of West Pittston, PA, in which a resident of the town and WeLuvPA are apparently now teaming up to bash me. I might actually stop doing my photo tours altogether now. Not only are they eliciting less and less interest from people in terms of "views," but the interest they do seem to capture anymore seems to be spiteful. Why should I even bother driving so far out of the way all the time to do a photo tour that benefits nobody and does nothing but irk others?

I think I'm moreso just upset right now to hear that WeLuvPA is going behind my back to bash me with another new member after I thought he and I were finally extending an olive branch by my attendance at last week's Scranton city council meeting, my photo tour of the Daron bio-health hazard in his neighborhood, and my upcoming attendance at this week's meeting. Apparently, that was a fluke, so any attempt at "breaking bread" is over between us.

If you people don't want these photo tours to continue, then you've all got your wish!

[Dawne]

Paul, I'm sorry you're feeling bashed by some on this forum. I for one enjoy your photo tours. One of your early pictures captured the house where I lived on the second floor when I attended Kindergarten. We moved to Montoursville the following year and I've always felt that, being fairly close, I knew a lot about Williamsport. WRONG!

I learned so much from your photo tour that I didn't know about Williamsport, and it was fun to see places that I remember but haven't seen for a while. I hope you continue to do the tours, but of course that's entirely up to you. I for one appreciate your efforts and the work you put into taking beautiful pictures for the rest of us to enjoy.

Thanks so much.