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Pennsylmania

Pennsylmania

著者： Mark Smith
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Entertaining and informing listeners with stories of people and events in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, hosted by Mark Smith.Copyright 2026 Pennsylmania 世界
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  • Pennsylvania Lumber Incorporated (Ep24)

    Pennsylvania Lumber Incorporated (Ep24)
    2026/10/27
    The previous episode took us to about 1870, with Williamsport as the lumber capital of the United States. Challenges to the lumbering industry arose. The eastern white pine forests of Pennsylvania were being depleted, to the point that total forested land in the Commonwealth dropped to under 70% from the 95% that William Penn first encountered in the late 17th century. There was intense competition from the lumber industry in Michigan. North Central Pennsylvania’s forests were still full of hemlock, valuable because the bark was key to the process of tanning leather, but the wood had few uses, and the trees were deep in the mountains. The invention of railway locomotives that could operate on steep, substandard tracks enabled the creation of logging railroads that could reach into even the most remote locations in Pennsylvania. Furthermore, adoption of the round nail and new framing techniques made hemlock board more useful in construction. This led to more economic development throughout North Central Pennsylvania, based on harvesting hemlock, and the opening of major sawmills in towns far from Williamsport, such as in Austin and Galeton. Two large, vertically integrated companies emerged to dominate this trade – Goodyear Lumber and Central Pennsylvania Lumber (CPL). The hemlock was later named Pennsylvania’s State Tree. Timestamps for major events/discussions: [02:58] – Williamsport suffers three blows to its economic prosperity [05:49] – The advent of logging railroads [10:02] – The eastern hemlock tree becomes more valuable [14:27] – The workings of tanneries [18:33] – The Goodyear Lumber Company [22:31] – The founding and growth of Austen, PA [28:18] – Galeton, PA – a jewel in the Goodyear Lumber Company’s crown [31:51] – Central Pennsylvania Lumber [37:52] – No plan for the future [43:10] – Places to visit Books to read: • Lumbering Pennsylvania – Volume I and II by Thomas T. Taber III, reprinted in 2022 by the Lumber Heritage Region of Pennsylvania. Places to visit mentioned in or that inspired this episode: • Pennsylvania Lumber Museum – on Route 6 in Ulysses, PA, between Coudersport and Galeton. This is a fantastic museum, fun, exciting, immersive. They have lots of period lumbering outbuildings and equipment. Click here for Museum’s website: https://lumbermuseum.org/ • Austin Dam Memorial Park, where you can see the large concrete remnants of the Austin Dam which failed in 1911 and a marker dedicated to Cora Brooks. Click here for more information: https://austindam.mailchimpsites.com/ • Galeton, Pennsylvania, which has a really amazing view as you drive through town on Route 6. Click here for more information about touring Galeton: https://paroute6.com/heritage-communities/galeton-pa/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23327471948&gbraid=0AAAAACYRwfnYaN9zf32bs78Ibj_353V8m&gclid=CjwKCAjw_eLVBhBEEiwAeaYZfPTMHVqjg0lAlHFZiXMTPr6mo-2XyTZMpLYGip4S8Vghhx8zePygmxoCWc4QAvD_BwE and here for my quick video post on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/DcjfP2vhei3/?hl=en Calls to action: • Follow us on Instagram to learn when new episodes drop or to be a part of our chat community IG: pennsylmaniapod • Join our email list to receive news on the podcast by emailing us at producer@pennsylmania.com or signing up at our website • Provide feedback on this episode, or give us ideas for new episodes, by emailing us at producer@pennsylmania.com Link to website: www.pennsylmania.com
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    46 分
  • The Williamsport Boom (Ep23)

    The Williamsport Boom (Ep23)
    2026/10/13
    The story of Pennsylvania, first as a colony and later as the Commonwealth, is in many ways inseparable from its trees. The name Pennsylvania, which means “Penn’s Woods,” is itself an indication of the fact that, when William Penn arrived in Pennsylvania in1682, over 27 million acres – or about 95% – of what is now the Commonwealth was heavily forested. Those trees were a highly valued resource, especially the expansive stands of eastern white pine that stretched across northern Pennsylvania. One might say that, in this case, money does grow on trees – or, at least, from trees. Although the lumber industry was present throughout the state, it was especially foundational to the development of North Central Pennsylvania. This episode highlights the Susquehanna Boom, the innovative structure that held the huge numbers of felled trees – primarily eastern white pines – that had been floated downriver to the sawmills of Williamsport. Williamsport became the lumber capital of the United States, with a population that increased more than ten-fold from 1850 to 1870. This episode details the wood hicks, boom rats and sawmill workers whose labor built the industry, and the lumber barons who controlled it. We also talk about Williamsport at its Gilded Age height, with its Millionaire’s Row of mansions. Finally, Williamsport was the scene of the only large labor strike of the Pennsylvania lumber industry – the Sawdust War of 1872. Timestamps for major events/discussions: [03:05] – Pennsylvania settlers cut down trees for four reasons [04:22] – The high value of eastern white pine trees [07:31] – The four eras of lumbering in Pennsylvania [10:07] – The western branch of the Susquehanna and the founding of Williamsport [14:19] – What is a log boom? [21:40] – Introducing the wood hicks [27:35] – Meet the boom rats [31:45] – Say hello to the sawmill workers [41:08] – Peter Herdic and the lumber barons of Williamsport [48:02] – The Sawdust War of 1872 [54:04] – The lumber industry on the verge of a shift Books to read: • Lumbering Pennsylvania – Volume I and II by Thomas T. Taber III, reprinted in 2022 by the Lumber Heritage Region of Pennsylvania. Places to visit mentioned in or that inspired this episode: • Williamsport’s Millionaire’s Row – take a walking tour of this historic district consisting of 263 contributing buildings. Click here for more information: https://lumberheritage.org/heritage/discover-the-splendor-of-williamsports-millionaires-row-historic-district/, and here for my short video post on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/DdCY1JfhoYI/?hl=en • Thomas T. Taber Museum in Williamsport – the museum of the Lycoming County Historical Society. Click here for the Museum’s website: https://www.tabermuseum.org/ • Pennsylvania Lumber Museum – on Route 6 in Ulysses, PA, between Coudersport and Galeton. This is a fantastic museum, fun, exciting, immersive. They have lots of period lumbering outbuildings and equipment. Click here for Museum’s website: https://lumbermuseum.org/ Calls to action: • Follow us on Instagram to learn when new episodes drop or to be a part of our chat community IG: pennsylmaniapod • Join our email list to receive news on the podcast by emailing us at producer@pennsylmania.com or signing up at our website • Provide feedback on this episode, or give us ideas for new episodes, by emailing us at producer@pennsylmania.com Link to website: www.pennsylmania.com
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    58 分
  • The Pennsylvania Navy Part 2 (Ep22)

    The Pennsylvania Navy Part 2 (Ep22)
    2026/09/29
    In the previous episode, we described how the Pennsylvania Assembly’s Committee on Safety established the Pennsylvania Navy, developed three forts along the Delaware River, and installed a series of underwater hazards to big ships sailing up the Delaware. These were all meant to defend Philadelphia from the powerful British Navy. It worked until the British Army sidestepped the River defenses in their efforts to reach Philadelphia. They landed at the top of Chesapeake Bay in Elk Head, Maryland, and marched the 50 miles north to win the Battle of Brandywine Creek and occupy the American capital. The forts and navy positioned south of the City suddenly found themselves with a very different objective. If the forts could be held, and the Pennsylvania navy and its line of underwater spikes – known as chevaux de frise – could be maintained, then the British Navy would be unable to resupply General Howe and the British troops in Philadelphia. The Brits would be starved out and forced to evacuate the City. The patriots just had to hang onto the choke point they had created until the Delaware River froze in winter. Both sides were frantic to beat the calendar. The British tried to seize the forts, destroy the Pennsylvania Navy, and remove the underwater spikes. The Americans tried to stop them. In this episode, the British and Americans square off in two major Revolutionary War clashes – the Battle of Fort Mercer (also known as the Battle of Red Bank), and the Battle of Fort Mud Island (today known as the Battle of Fort Mifflin). By the end of both, one side is clearly victorious. Timestamps for major events/discussions: [03:22] – The Hessians march on Fort Mercer [07:56] – The attack on Fort Mercer begins [10:21] – The British retreat [11:58] – General Howe resigns his commission [13:13] – The HMS Augusta and Merlin are lost [19:07] – The attack on Fort Mud Island begins [25:46] – Evacuation of Fort Mud Island [31:16] – The fall of Fort Mercer [33:00] – The fate of Fort Mud Island (Fort Mifflin) [34:36] – Places to visit [36:09] – Books to read Books to read: • Fighting for Philadelphia: Forts Mercer and Mifflin, the Battle of Whitemarsh, and the Road to Valley Forge, October 5, 1777 - December 19, 1777 by Michael C. Harris, Savas Beatie LLC, 2025 • The Pennsylvania Navy, 1775-1781, the Defense of the Delaware by John W. Jackson, Rutgers University Press, 1974 – which is sadly out of print • Robert Morris: Financier of the Revolution by Charles Rappleye, Simon & Schuster, 2010 Places to visit mentioned in this episode: • Fort Mifflin (the renamed Fort Mud Island) – a terrific Revolutionary War and early American historical site, located in the City of Philadelphia, right off the grounds of Philadelphia International Airport. • Remnants of Fort Mercer -- visit Red Bank Battlefield Park, where the fort once stood and where, as the name indicates, the battle of Red Bank was fought. The park is owned by Gloucester County, New Jersey. Note: dogs are not allowed in this park. Calls to action: • Follow us on Instagram to learn when new episodes drop or to be a part of our chat community IG: pennsylmaniapod • Join our email list to receive news on the podcast by emailing us at producer@pennsylmania.com or signing up at our website • Provide feedback on this episode, or give us ideas for new episodes, by emailing us at producer@pennsylmania.com Link to website: www.pennsylmania.com
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    40 分
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