[xzmattzx]

Pottsville is the county seat of Schuylkill County in central Eastern Pennsylvania. The area is known as the Coal Region, for the anthracite coal found in the mountains. Anthracite coal is believed to have been discovered by Necho Allen on Sharp Mountain, which straddles Pottsville. Necho Allen was furtrapping and made a fire for the night, and woke up the next day to find that the fire had caught onto a coal seam.

Anthracite was so important to Pottsville and the Coal Region that residents of Pottsville erected a monument to Henry Clay on Sharp Mountain. Henry Clay had advocated protective tariffs on manufactured goods imported, in cluding coal. The monument to Clay was built in 1852 after Clay's death.

Many Irish miners were involved with the Molly Maguires, who had a very strong foothold in Pottsville and Schuylkill County. The Mollies used intimidation and violence in order to get better rights from coal barons and work bosses. The Mollies also fought against discrimination against Irish and Catholics in politics and in society. The most famous Molly Maguire incidents took place in 1876 and 1877 when several men were hung at the Pottsville Jail for the murders of constables and mine bosses.

After World War II, Pottsville began to go into decline as manufacturing became less important. Pottsville has never recovered since. Pottsville is trying to lure technology businesses to the city through various incentives.


The old Miners' National Bank building on Centre Street. This was built in 1909 and is now home to a Sovereign Bank.

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Businesses on Centre Street.

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Looking up 2nd Street at the Schuylkill County Courthouse.

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The Good Intent Fire Company on the left and another old building on the right on 2nd Street.

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Businesses at the corner of Centre and Market Streets.

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Pottsville has a few midrises. In the foreground is the old Schuylkill Trust Company Building, built in 1925, and behind it on the other side of Market Street is the Thompson Building.

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The Lawton's Hill neighborhood sits on the top of a hill in the northeast corner of the city. This neighborhood was likely the home for hundreds of poor Irish coal miners.

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The Thompson Building on the left, Market Street in the middle, and 101 Centre Street (the old Schuylkill Trust Company building) on the right.

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The old Necho Allen Hotel at the corner of Centre and Mahantongo Streets. Other businesses line Centre Street.

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Businesses on Centre Street.

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Looking south down Centre Street at the neighborhood of Morrisville. Beyond Morrisville are the towns of Palo Alto and Mount Carbon.

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The Yuengling Brewery on Mahantongo Street. Yuengling is my favorite beer. Yuengling gives brewery tours, but I didn't go on the tour because I plan on going with family members some time.

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Rowhouses on Norwegian Street.

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More rowhouses on Norwegian Street.

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Houses and St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church along Mahantongo Street.

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Looking out over the West End neighborhood of Pottsville from a park at 10th and Mahantongo Streets. On the right, along the hill, is the neighborhood of Mount Hope.

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Houses along Mahantongo Street.

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Looking down at the neighborhood of Quintown. The 12th Street Hill neighborhood is on the other side of the valley.

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Houses on Schuylkill Avenue along Sharp Mountain.

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Houses along Mahantongo Street in Sharp Mountain.

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The Yuengling warehouse at the northeast corner of 5th and Mahantongo Streets.

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Looking north at the Schuylkill County Courthouse from 2nd Street in Sharp Mountain.

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Businesses along Centre Street.

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Houses on 2nd Street in the 7th Street Hill neighborhood north of the courthouse.

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More houses in the 7th Street Hill neighborhood.

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Rowhouses on Laurel Blvd in the Minersville Street neighborhood.

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The Schuylkill County Courthouse at the corner of Laurel Blvd and 2nd Street.

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The neighborhood of Lawton's Hill from the county courthouse.

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Looking out at central Pottsville from the courthouse. Sharp Mountain rises in the background.

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Central Pottsville.

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[theWatusi]

The Yuengling Brewery on Mahantongo Street. Yuengling is my favorite beer. Yuengling gives brewery tours, but I didn't go on the tour because I plan on going with family members some time.

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Awesome pics. Ive always wanted to head out to Pottsville for the Yuengling tour. Yuengling is so reconized as the beer of choice all you have to ask for is a "lager" anywhere in SE PA :cheers:

[mrherodotus]

Very Pittsburghish. I had wondered what this town was like.

[gsgeorge]

A beautiful American small city. I'm glad to see that a large portion of its older housing stock and downtown area has been preserved. Thanks for sharing!

[Ex-Ithacan]

Great tour of a cool little city. Has a very urban feel to it, and a great setting in those hills. Driving down from I-81 and boom, there it is. Glad you got so many of the neighborhoods too. Thanks Matt.

[excel]

Cool town.

[ColDayMan]

Thanks!

[Wheelingman04]

It could almost be a city in West Virginia.

[PhillyRising]

Don't forget that Pottsville once had an NFL team...the Pottsville Maroons who won a championship in the early 1920's that was taken away from them. Governor Rendell had lobbied the NFL after he took office to get them to recognize that title for Pottsville.

[boden]

The overcast adds to the impact of your photos. Thanks for posting them.

[Austinlee]

This thread makes me thirsty. If only I had some kind of cold, refreshing beverage.....

[Ex-Ithacan]

Don't forget that Pottsville once had an NFL team...the Pottsville Maroons who won a championship in the early 1920's that was taken away from them. Governor Rendell had lobbied the NFL after he took office to get them to recognize that title for Pottsville.


I passed by a neighborhood tavern north of downtown which had a mural of that team. I snapped a quick shot of it, but I'll be damned, it didn't turn out at all.:hell:

[HooverDam]

Don't forget that Pottsville once had an NFL team...the Pottsville Maroons who won a championship in the early 1920's that was taken away from them. Governor Rendell had lobbied the NFL after he took office to get them to recognize that title for Pottsville.

That whole situation is confusing, if you read up on it, its hard to say who was the legitimate champion that year. But as a Cardinals fan, I'd be happy to give/build a trophy to Pottsville if thats what its going to take to get this endless pox off the Cardinals organization.

[Evergrey]

brilliant photos, matt... excellent coverage, great composition, interesting subjects... and you found so many fascinating lookout points... and the grim weather adds character...

Very interesting city... intensely urban...

[ItsConanOBrien]

That's a lovely little city, thanks for the introduction!

[passdoubt]

My mom grew up in Minersville, a small borough a couple miles west of there, and lived in Pottsville for a couple years when she worked for Yuengling. It put her through college.

The house she lived in is today a bait shop. They sell bait right out of her old living room window.

Her dad (who was a miner of course) was in the Irish gang in Minersville that would fight with gangs in Pottsville, and the Lithuanians and Polish also had gangs. Many weekends there'd just be mass hysteria in the streets as people fought eachother.

She didn't learn to drive until she was in her 20s, and learning to drive in Pottsville (with clutch of course), people always said "if you can drive here, you can drive in San Francisco!" Pottsville is one of the hilliest towns in Eastern PA. I think that's why it looks more like Pittsburgh.

It's sad that although those people used to cling to their own white ethnic identities, and apparently faced descrimination and racism themselves from natives and white supremicists back in the day, today Pottsville has pretty strong white supremicist groups, much like a lot of those parts of Pennsylvania. The last time I was up there the street signs on the road between Pottsville and Minersville were covered in swastikas.

[xzmattzx]

My mom grew up in Minersville, a small borough a couple miles west of there, and lived in Pottsville for a couple years when she worked for Yuengling. It put her through college.

The house she lived in is today a bait shop. They sell bait right out of her old living room window.

Her dad (who was a miner of course) was in the Irish gang in Minersville that would fight with gangs in Pottsville, and the Lithuanians and Polish also had gangs. Many weekends there'd just be mass hysteria in the streets as people fought eachother.

She didn't learn to drive until she was in her 20s, and learning to drive in Pottsville (with clutch of course), people always said "if you can drive here, you can drive in San Francisco!" Pottsville is one of the hilliest towns in Eastern PA. I think that's why it looks more like Pittsburgh.

It's sad that although those people used to cling to their own white ethnic identities, and apparently faced descrimination and racism themselves from natives and white supremicists back in the day, today Pottsville has pretty strong white supremicist groups, much like a lot of those parts of Pennsylvania. The last time I was up there the street signs on the road between Pottsville and Minersville were covered in swastikas.

Driving in Pottsville is rough. When I took that picture of the courthouse from 2nd Street near downtown, I parked in a tiny parking lot that was on the side of a hill. My door closed on my leg pretty hard because the angle of the hill was so steep. Also, I explored the Morrisvile neighborhood, and drove along Hotel Street. I wanted to get back onto a main road, and took Shuman Street to get Centre Street. The bottom of my car scraped against the pavement as I started to go down the hill onto Shuman Street, and I was afriad that my old minivan, which had lots of engine problems, would get brake problems at the very worst time.

I'm surprised to hear about the swastikas and everything. My dad grew up in Pine Grove and I've spent lots of time in that town while visiting grandparents and I never saw anything. I'm also surprised about this because everyone in that area seems to be German. I would be less surprised to hear that WASPs were intimidated by the surrounding community.

[GVNY]

A beautiful, dense, urban town. A remarkable little city, it is one of favourite places in Pennsylvania.

[JackStraw]

I like Yuengling!

[zigzag]

Never heard of it, very nice.:banana:

[Chelsea Spy]

Interesting thread - very attractive town, if rather gloomy looking (probably the weather!).

[wanderer34]

It's picturesque, but it's also disheartening to hear about the swatsikas in Pottstown. I guess I'll have to watch my back when I go up there!!! And bring a gun, just in case!!!

[Rufus]

What's remarkable is that Pottsville has a population of only 15,000, more or less. Thanks for the pictures. I've been through there; it's an intriguing place.

[denveraztec]

Some wonderful historic buildings there!

[volguus zildrohar]

Mmm.

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