The "These Are A Few Of My Favorite World Series Memories" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Getting ready for the upcoming World Series.  For those who don't follow sports or are from a country where baseball isn't played, the World Series pits the two best teams in baseball against each other at the end of the baseball season.  I have loved the sport of baseball all my life and have participated in it as a player, coach and fan.  Over those years I have watched the World Series every year except when my family didn't have television, and then I can remember listening to the World Series on radio.  So, today I will share with you my four most memorable moments from the World Series as I remember them.  PS - click on photo to enlarge.

1. 1954 and I was in elementary school. I had been following the Cleveland Indians the entire year since a few of my classmates were Indians fans. That, plus one of my best friends, Bill, loved the New York Yankees and I couldn't stand any team associated with New York.  Just loved to kid him about how bad teams from New York really were. Pitchers Early Wynn and Bob Lemon were the top pitchers for the Indians in '54.  They were playing the New York Giants who had this young center fielder named Willie Mays on their team.  Game one of the series was at the Polo Grounds in NY.  It was the top of the 8th inning and the score was tied 2-2 when Indians batter Vic Wertz hit a drive deep to center field. In most stadiums it would have been a home run, but the Polo Grounds had a huge outfield.  Willie Mays ran toward the fence with his back toward the batter and made what is now known as "The Catch" when he caught the ball with his back to home plate.  He spun around and kept both of the runners, who were already on base, from scoring.  The Giants won the World Series four games to none.  I must admit Willie Mays became my all-time favorite player after that catch. 
2. 1975 and the Cincinnati Reds were playing the Boston Red Sox.  
   
   The Reds won the World Series four games to three, but one of my favorite plays happened with the Red Sox at bat in the sixth game of the series.  Carlton Fisk was at bat for the Red Sox in a 6-6 tie game in the bottom of the 12th inning. Fisk hit a shot down the left field line that looked as if it may go out of play.  Fisk slowly started toward first base, urging the ball to stay fair with his body motions.  It fell just inside the foul pole for a home run and the win.  The following game was won by the Reds to win the series.
3.  1986 with the New York Mets playing the Boston Red Sox and once again it is the sixth game of the series that I remember the most.  
   
   Game was tied in the bottom of the tenth inning when what appeared to be an easy ground ball was hit toward Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner.  For some reason he missed the ball and the winning run crossed the plate for the Mets.  The Mets won the final game to win the World Series while Buckner will be remembered for the ball that got through him that cost his team the series.  It did make him a pretty big star on The Seinfeld Show when he was featured in a few episodes.
4. My final favorite memory of the World Series didn't happen while watching the game but flying a few thousand feet above the United States in 2008, listening to the pilot of our 747 give the play-by-play over the plane's audio system.  

   

   Just getting back from Barbados and
   walking past a Phils sign in the airport.

   Carol and I, along with traveling mates Jerry and Just Sue, were returning to the Philadelphia airport from a two week vacation to Barbados.  My beloved Philadelphia Phillies had a three game to one lead over the Tampa Bay Rays.  The game was being played in Philadelphia and I was half-hoping that the Phils would lose so I could watch them on television win the following day.  We were about half-way home when the pilot came on the speaker and said that since most of the plane was probably Phillies fans, he would give a play-by-play of the final inning.  The Rays were batting in the top of the 9th inning and if the Phillies got them out, the Phils would win their first World Series Championship in 25 years and their second one in their 126-year history.  The excitement grew with each out, but then Phils pitcher Brad Lidge gave up a single and stolen base.  The pilot added suspense as he gave a pitch-by-pitch accounting of Ray's Eric Hinske at bat until Brad Lidge struck him out with his patented slider.  The plane went berserk! I swear it must have dipped a few hundred feet due to the feeling in my stomach, but leveled off and got us back to the airport.  On our ride home we met with many cars beeping their horns and naturally I had to join in.  I did get to see the final strike-out on TV after getting home, but it wasn't half as much fun as a plane full of fans going nuts. Certainly wasn't as exciting as being in Barbados for two weeks, but sure was a close second. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.    

The "So ... What Are The Chances?" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Pulled into the parking lot of the Physicians' Surgery Center, parked the car and Carol and I entered the front door.  After checking in and being told to take a seat in the waiting area, I began walking toward the seating area with Carol behind me.  Just when I was about to sit down, I looked to my left and thought I recognized the guy sitting a few seats away.  "Bobby!" I said after realizing who it really was.  Then he looked and saw Carol standing next to me and said, "Larry ... and Carol."  Bobby is one of Carol's cousins and we hadn't seen him for over 20 years.   Bobby is ten years older than Carol, but at one time we were fairly close to him.  When I first began coaching youth baseball, I got to know Bobby through Carol and finally asked if he would like to join me in coaching the Hamilton Watch team I had.  Bobby was a standout athlete in high school and was drafted by the Kansas City Athletics out of high school.  A big lefty, he played for quite a few years, reaching the AA level before hurting his arm and leaving baseball.  He and I and my cousin's husband Lance coached for a year together and managed one of the best Jr. Midget teams (ages 13-14) in Lancaster County.  

Bobby Nonnemacher is pictured in the rear row in the
center of the photo.  LDub is on the left rear and Lance
is on the right side in the rear.  The team was the Hamilton
Watch Jr. Midget Team from Lancaster, Pennsyvania.
Ted Groff is middle row, far right. Click on to see larger.

One of the players we had that year was a young pither by the name of Ted Groff.  Ted was a lefthander and Bobby naturally took him under his wing and made him a great pitcher.  Bobby coached him, privately, throughout his high school career and Ted was drafted by Minnesota out of high school.  Not quite sure how far he went in the system, but it was fun to see him from time to time when he would return to Lancaster.  Well, Bobby, Carol and I sat in the waiting room and talked until someone called out, "Bobby Nonnemacher to see Dr. Rommel."  We parted with the intent to get together soon and talk about the good ole times.  Then, after being taken back myself, Carol and I saw him in the cubical next to us.  Seems I was next in line to see Dr. Rommel.  Dr. Rommel finally made a visit with me to tell me what he was going to do today and after some conversation I mentioned his patient in the next cubicle was Carol's cousin.  And, asked him if he knew Bobby played in the minors years ago.  After some time, as Carol and I waited for me to have the my procedure, Bobby walked into the cubicle and we talked some more.  He said that he has been a patient of Dr. Rommel for years and was in for a checkup.  Told us he knows that Dr. Rommel is a fan of Cleveland Indians' third base coach Mike Sarbaugh.  Mike is a friend of Bobby and played in the Cleveland organization from 1990 to 1994.  The next year he became a coach in the organization. Bobby calls Dr. Rommel when he knows that Mike will be in Baltimore or Philadelphia so he can go and watch him play. Then Bobby said I told the Doctor that he had played at one time.  I told Bobby I couldn't believe he wouldn't have known that already.  Well, we parted one more time and I was taken back for my time with Dr. Rommel.  He thanked me, just before I went under the spell of the anesthesia,  for telling him about Bobby and his pitching career.  Seems he never knew and would now have one more reason to visit with Bobby, other than as a patient.  Hey, what are the chances of something such as that happening that made a day that I was dreading, turn out to be much more pleasant.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Memories Of My Youth Come Alive At The Pedal Car Museum: Part II - The Pedal Cars" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Posting the second part of my trip through the Seiverling LLC Car and Pedal Car Museum.  The museum is located in a rather nondescript extra-long garage at 66 Lancaster Ave. in the town of Ephrata, Pennsylvania. I had made arrangements with Darren, the director of the museum which was opened in mid-1990s, for a private tour and am enjoying his full attention as I walk from one pedal car to the next, asking questions that he is able to fire answers back as fast is I ask them.  The museum is now open one Sunday a month, March to November, but when Darren's great uncle Richard and aunt Ethel, founders of the museum, were alive, a few busloads of patrons would visit weekly.  At first Richard would share his collection with smaller groups and would tell stories about every one of the 162 pedal cars in his collection.  Tours could last as long as three hours if he got too windy. I should tell you that each pedal car I viewed had a teddy bear driver in it courtesy of Ethel.  Most of the bears are color coordinated to the exterior paint color of the pedal car.  Eventually Darren reduced the collection to 140 pedal cars due to duplicates.  It allowed for more space to show the rest of the collection.  Well, time to walk through the museum with me and take a look at a few of my favorites from my trip to the Car and Pedal Car Museum.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Perhaps my favorite is the replica of Richard's 1932 Chrysler Roadster that was made especially for him.  The one-of-a-kind was made using 8 Polaroids that were sent to the builder of the pedal car.  Remarkable duplication of the original Classic car.

This is a tandem pedal car that can be powered by two people.  Both riders have pedals that work together to power the car.  

This pedal car is the only one I saw that was made in Russia.  A 1960 MockBN4 with rear suspension.

This is a green 1929 Marman Wash that was played with by Mickey Rooney when he was a child.
It was made by the Gendron Company.

A 1994 White-Grey Roadster that was made just for Richard.

What kid wouldn't have loved a Corvette pedal car.  This 1957 is #10 of 36 made.  It actually has a body made of fiberglass and has pneumatic tires.

This is a 1939 Buick made by the Thistle Company which is located in Canada.

This is a tandem-truck combination.  It is a 1955 Ford Cab with a Low Boy trailer.

This is the Caterpillar Diesel dozer that is held on the trailer of the above truck cab.  It can be taken off the trailer and can be pedaled just as the cab can.

My final choice I just had to include since it looked so much like the pedal car I rode up and down the last block of North Queen Street in Lancaster, PA when I was a child.  My car didn't have a boat behind it as this one does.  This boat can be placed on the ground and it too can be pedaled.  This is a 1957 Dodge pedal car.

   

The "Memories Of My Youth Come Alive At The Pedal Car Museum: Part I - The Classics" Story

Darren standing next to the 1932 Chrysler Series
CP Cabriolet Classic Car with the replica of the
car done as a children's Pedal Car. Click to enlarge.  

It was an ordinary day. Talking to Darren at the Seiverling LLC Car and Pedal Car Museum in Ephrata, Pennsylvania.  Wasn't more than a minute or two ago that I entered the door of the museum and was surrounded by one of the most outstanding collections of memorabilia I have ever seen.  The museum, which is housed in an extremely large garage that at one time belonged to Richard and Ethel Seiverling, before they both died, and is now administered by their great nephew, Darren.  This place has 140 pedal cars as well as three of Richard's Classic cars from his collection.  The building was constructed in 1991 to hold Richard's five classic cars.

One of my favorite pedal cars, a 1925 Hudson.

Three years later he found a pedal car he loved and purchased it which led to his selling off a few of his classic cars to be able to afford and house his new love of pedal cars.  The majority of the pedal cars I am viewing have been restored by restorers from all over the country.  There is one original car as well as a few new cars in the collection that takes up the majority of space in the museum.  

These are pedal planes that hang from the ceiling in the museum.

Word got around that Richard enjoyed pedal cars and as restorers would complete a car, they would send him a Polaroid photo of it, and if he liked it, he would call them and buy the car.  They would package it and before long it was sitting in this garage.  Collection began to grow so much that he had to get rid of the classic cars to allow more space for the pedal cars.  

This is a complete collection of Classic Hallmark Miniature
 Kiddie Cars that can be seen at the Museum.

Pedal cars from the United States are joined by cars from France, Italy, Great Britain, Canada and even Russia in this wonderful display.  Brought back memories of the Seinfeld episode where Jerry had a girlfriend who collected old-time items and Jerry, George and Elaine sedated the girl so they could play with her collection.  

I enjoy this car since I had a full size 1958 Chevy Impala
convertible just like this pedal car.  Wasn't the same color though.

How I would love to be able to ride a few of these pedal cars around the museum.  I had several pedal cars as a child and can still remember them and the fun I had riding them along the sidewalk on North Queen Street in Lancaster, PA.  I have so much I would love to share with you from my visit, but fear it would be too lengthy, so today I will tell you about the three magnificent Classic Cars that remain in the museum and tomorrow will show you my favorite pedal cars I had the honor of viewing today. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

This is a 1930 Graham Special 8 Sedan.  It has an Inline 8 cylinder with a four speed transmission.  The company began in 1927 when the Graham brothers, Joseph B., Robert C. and Ray A. Graham purchased the Paige-Detroit Motor Company.  This car is amazing and the trophies standing in front of it tell the tale of its success.  I love the chrome louvered vents on the side of the engine compartment. The car has a built-in rumble seat and cost $1,495 when built.  Only 396 were built and this car is one of only 13 remaining. 

This is the hood ornament on the car.

The 1932 Chrysler CP Series Cabriolet, Inline 8 Cylinder with a four speed transmission with freewheeling.  There are very few of these vehicles remaining.  My favorite item on the car were the spoked wheels.

The hood ornament of the Chrysler.  

This is a 1967 T-5 Ford.  You probably recognize it as a Ford Mustang, but is wasn't called that when it was built in 1967.  This is #1 of 167 that were produced.  The name T-5 originated when Ford decided to export their Mustand to Europe, primarily to Germany and France, and found they could not use the name Mustang since a European trucking manufacturer already had that name in use in Europe.  This is one of a very few fastbacks that exist since most were coupes or convertibles.  U.S. servicemen, stationed in Europe, bought many of them and returned them stateside when their tour of duty was finished in Europe.

This car had the 8-cylinder, 289 c.i. engine which yielded 225 hp.

You can see the T5 logo on the side of the car where the Mustang logo usually would be seen.

If you look closely you will see a split down the rear window.

The original bill of sale for the car which was sold to a U.S. serviceman.  Click on the photo to enlarge it.

The "I Could Have Been A Saffron Millionaire!" Story

Mosemann Spanish saffron on sale at the grocery store.

It was an ordinary day.  Going through the check-out line at our local grocery store and there at the end of the line, as Carol and I entered, was a yellow piece of cardboard with packets of Pure Spanish Saffron attached to it.  She said to me, "Remember when I made chicken potpie and added some saffron to it for flavoring?  You told me I ruined it!"  For those who have never tried it or used it in cooking, saffron has a very subtle flavor and aroma and gives a golden hue to that which it is added.  For me, living in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, home of the Pennsylvania Dutch Mennonites, saffron is a centuries-old tradition.  It's use is well-known for chicken potpies, egg-noodle chicken soup, bread stuffing and even salted chicken hearts.  

The crocus flower that produces saffron.

Saffron is actually the dried red stigma (the part of the flower's pistil where pollen germinates) of the autumn-flowering Crocus sativus and is still grown in Lancaster County by Justin Hulshizer who is neither Pennsylvania Dutch or a farmer.  He grows it mainly for his family, but when the weather yields a bumper crop, neighbors and other Lancasterians share in the crop.  Prior to the Revolutionary War, saffron traded on the Philadelphia commodity exchange at a price equal to gold. When I worked as a cashier for my local Acme Supermarket, I remember the packets of saffron that we kept under the cash register due to its cost.  

Showing the red stigmas on the edge of the plate.

Always hated the odor when a bag would break open.  The price today as we entered the check-out line was $2.19 for 3 grams!!  You better believe you would use this spice sparingly if you use it. Justin can still remember when his grandmother moved from her family home to a nursing home and insisted that he take her saffron corms and start a crop of his own.  The corm resembles a tulip bulb that reproduces by spawning smaller, daughter corms that can be detached and replanted.  The corms are unearthed and divided in July and by mid-October send up shoots that bloom purple-lilac flowers.  Each flower yields three stigmas or threads which must be harvested in the early morning before the sun wilts the blooms.  The saffron threads are then dried in a convection toaster for two minutes which activates the oils and enhances the aroma.  

Mosemann saffron sold on market.

Justin has seven beds of flowers which yields 10 to 15 grams of saffron each year.  Yes, you read that right!!  10 to 15 grams per season which is about 5 of the bags that were on the board at the grocery store.  Labor intensive?  You've got to be kidding! What a pain it must be to grow saffron.  How can anyone make a living if they are a saffron farmer?  Perhaps that's why Justin is one of the few people in Pennsylvania that still grow the stuff.  I was recently at Lancaster's Central Market and saw containers of saffron packaged by Mosemann from New Holland, PA and found out that Mosemann sells saffron procured from a broker and not raised in New Holland.  If I had known what I now know, I would have scooped up all that stuff that spilled from those bags in the Acme and put it in a safe deposit box.  I might have become a Saffron millionaire by now! It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.   

The "Lighter Than Air Mail" Story

LDub soaring high above Lancaster, PA in a hot-air balloon.

It was an ordinary day.  Talking to my wife about the hot-air balloon ride that her friend Debbie had just made.  We talked about the time she gave me a gift certificate for a hot-air balloon ride and while landing we crashed on a county road, just missing an Amish horse-drawn buggy.  

Finally crashed landed in a cornfield.

Wasn't more than a day or two later I was reading about John Wise being the first person in the United States to make a flight in a hot-air balloon to deliver local airmail.  Interesting story, especially since John was born in Lancaster on February 24, 1808.  He originally worked as an apprentice cabinetmaker from age 16 and at age 21 became a piano maker.  He was always interested in hot-air balloons and at the age of 27 decided to construct his own balloon.  

John Wise

He made his first ascent in Philadelphia on May 2, 1835 with his balloon which had been made from muslin sheet coated with birdlime suspended in linseed oil.  His ascent was short and uneventful.  His second flight was from neighboring Lebanon County on Independence Day of the same year.  The balloon burst, but he safely descended.  Then, on October 1 he once again lifted off from Lancaster, but was thrown from the basket and was knocked unconscious while the balloon ascended alone.  May of the following year saw him ascend once again from Lancaster and land in Harford County, Maryland which is about 75 miles away.  While he was emptying the basket an explosion of the gas occurred and burned him.  One more try on September 18 of the following year saw him make a voyage from Philadelphia, landing in the Delaware River where he had to be rescued.  

Lifting off from Penn Square in Lancaster, PA

Finally he was more successful when he lifted off from Philadelphia and landed 40 miles away in New Jersey.  In 1838 he developed a balloon that if ruptured or deflated would fold upwards into the top half and form a parachute.  Mr. Wise is perhaps most famous for the ascent he made on August 17, 1859 when he left from Lafayette, Indiana in his balloon named Jupiter.  He intended to carry 123 letters and a few circulars to New York City.  

Lifting off from Lafayette, Indiana.

John, who was 51 years old at the time, took off at 2:00 PM with the air temp- erature at 94 degrees.  The balloon lifted straight upward to about 12,000 feet where it hung there in mid-air.  Eventually he released some of his ballast and rose another 3,000 feet.  After about two hours a slight breeze picked up.  Enough air to get him close to Crawfordsville, about 25 miles away.  After landing he put the mail on a train headed to New York.  

The only remaining piece of air-mail that was on the
Jupiter.  It is now on display in the Smithsonian.

He had made the first air-mail delivery, only not to his intended destination.  Finally on September, 1879, at the age of 71 and after 462 balloon ascensions, including the two ascentions from Lancaster's Penn Square and the Lancaster County Prison yard and a tour of duty in the Civil War as a balloonist for the Union Army, he was last seen alive suspended beneath a balloon at 11:14 PM 20 miles west of La Port, Indiana, headed north over Lake Michigan with a paying customer, George Burr.  Burr's body was washed ashore several days later, but John was never seen again.  Not a very good ending for my story, but neat to know that the very first air-mail delivery of the U.S. Postal Department was made by a Lancastrian.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "A Man Named Bricker, His Town And His House" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading yet one more story about the history of Lancaster County and it's surrounding towns and boroughs.  Now, I must admit, it pales in comparison to Europe or other parts of the world and it's history, but I wasn't born in Europe or other ancient cities, so all I have is US history and I find it rather interesting.  My story today will take a look at an early 1700 settler named Peter Bricker, the town of Brickerville named after him and his home which is now known as the Brickerville House Family Restaurant.  

Tombstone of Peter Bricker

I pass the place many times going to or coming home from by brother's house in Ephrata.   Well, Peter, a Mennonite, was born in Germany in 1700 and in 1732 boarded the ship "Pink Plaisance" in Rotterdam along with his wife and two young daughters and traveled to Philadelphia.  The next year he received a grant of 290 acres of land in Cocalico Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  Eight years later he was granted an additional tract of land which brought his holdings to over 800 acres.  

The original John Bricker Stone Inn

The second acquisition became known as "The Bricker Tract."  I never found out who granted him the land, but many grants in this area of Pennsyl- vania were from William Penn and his ancestors.  Anyway, his wife died, he remarried and built a large sandstone, two and a half story house on his tract of land.  The house was known as "the spotted house" since it has different colors of sandstone used in it.  A date stone lists the structure as being built in A.D. 1759 and a marker located in the town of Brickerville says that the area was named after Peter Bricker in 1741.  

A later photo of the property

He died in 1760 and was buried on his original plot of land.  A very modest sandstone headstone marks his place of burial.  As for the Brickerville House Family Restaurant, it was built in 1797 on a tract of land warranted to Valentine Stover and which made its way into the John Bricker family.  John built a stone inn on the tract which was located at the intersection of today's Routes 322 and 501 where teamsters, heading from Philadelphia to Harrisburg on what then was known as Horseshoe Pike, would stop to feed their horses and remain overnight.  

Interior of the inn after it was also made into a tavern

The place was also used for township meetings, voting and public gatherings.  Tax records from the period list John Bricker as the innkeeper until 1844 when he died.  The property was then listed the following year as part of the John Bricker estate.  The tavern was approximately eight miles from Peter Bricker's sandstone house.  

Photo I took today showing the same building which is
now known as the Brickerville House Family Restaurant

Records also show that the two men weren't related.  John's wife, Barbara took over the inn and obtained a license to add a tavern.  Eventually the little town at the intersection gained a distillery, cigar factory, carperter's shop, mason's shop, blacksmith, physician,  shoemaker and post office to go along with the many nearby farmers.  Eventually the Bricker's son, Evan took over the inn/hotel.  I have found since then a variety of owners of the 55 by 35 foot house with three rooms and kitchen on the first floor, six rooms on the second floor with a large stone barn, 54 by 40 feet, a stone shed over 100 feet long, a stone wash house and 38 acres of land.  Today, Mihalis and Asimima Agadis own the property and serve breakfast, lunch and dinner at the Brickerville House Family Restaurant.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.       

The "Swimming At The Water Works" Story

The Water House and pumping system at the Lancaster Water Works.

It was an ordinary day.  Passing under the railroad bridge heading west on SR23 near the Lancaster Water Works.  This extension of Rt. 23 was a needed addition for the flow of traffic years ago, but it ruined some really good swimming holes in the Conestoga River.  During my Jr. High and Sr. High school years I found my way many times to the Conestoga River to swim and swing on the long rope that hung from the railroad bridge above it.  

The railroad bridge added along the Conestoga River.

There was a small dam along the river that ran directly under the bridge and made it a great place for sliding down the running water and swinging on the rope, dropping into the water hole under the dam.  It was back in 1837 that Lancaster City created the Water Works on the Conestoga River.  It was back in the mid-1800s that many cities throughout the nation began to develop their infrastructure.  A new Water House, pumping system and reservoir were built at the east end of East King Street on the Conestoga River which had been the primary source of water for the city for many years.  

Bathers gather to swim at the Water Works.

A second reservoir was added in 1851 with a higher pressure steam pump added five years later.  About ten years later the city installed the latest in turbine and steam engine technology which led to quite a few stories and myths as far as water usage in the city.  Seems that Mr. Jacob Demuth installed a bathtub in his home which created arguments about the usage of the amount of water used.

Another view of swimmers dated 1938.

Eventually Jacob was accessed an annual tax $30 for having the tub.  Boy did that create a big stink.  Local Doctor, John Atlee claimed that bathing in the tub was a healthy practice, so the tax was lowered to $16.  When all systems and the reservoir were completed the city supplied water to 305 city dwellings.  Needless to say, this was only the beginning of many years of providing water to the city of Lancaster from the City Water Works that sat near my swimming hole near the railroad bridge.  

Train on the main line passes over the Conestoga River.
In the background you can see the pumping station.

The bridge, or Conestoga Creek Viaduct as I have found it called, was built in 1887-88 and is a five-span, two-track stone arch railroad bridge which originally was a 1,412 foot series of 11 wooden Town lattice trusses constructed in 1829 for the Columbia and Philadelphia Railroad.  This railroad was purchased in 1857 by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) and incorporated into its main line.  

More recent view with SR23 on the right. In this photo
the water is running high, perhaps from a recent storm.

The PRR shortened the viaduct and replaced the wooden trusses with iron Whipple trusses in 1863.  The 1887-88 stone arch replace- ment was supposed to be four tracks wide, but only half were constructed which left an unfinished spandrel wall on the southern side of the bridge.  In 1930 tie rods were added to brace that wall.  It is the neatest bridge and has given me many beautiful photographs over the years as well as many pleasurable moments while swinging from the rope into the waters of the Conestoga.  The new SR23 has made it so much harder for youth today to enjoy the same pleasures that my generation did years ago in the waters of the Conestoga river. Funny how alleged positive changes can ruin things!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.