Smethport, PA & Port Allegany, PA
Smethport (pop. 1,655) is the seat of McKean County (pop. 43,450) in north-central Pennsylvania, located on US Route 6. Smethport was incorporated as a borough in 1853. In the late 19th century, oil, gas and lumber spurred Smethport's boomtown growth. However, like much of the Northern Tier, Smethport stagnated in the early 20th century as lumber was depleted and other parts of the U.S. superceded Northern PA as centers of oil and gas production. The town sustained itself with glass production and administrative functions.
The wealth generated by resource extraction endowed Smethport with an impressive collection of mansions. The town remains attractive and well-preserved. Smethport has experienced a couple notable weather events. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Pennsylvania was recorded in Smethport: -42° F on January 5, 1904. Smethport is also home of the U.S. record for 24 hour rainfall from a non-tropical system at 34 inches of rain. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...County.svg.png http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...hip_Labels.png The McKean County Courthouse was built in 1942 after the 1881 version burnt down. Smethport's Mansion District Hamlin Lake .... Port Allegany (pop. 2,157) is located in eastern McKean County along US Route 6, 10 miles west of Smethport and 17 miles east of Coudersport. Port Allegany is located along the Allegheny River (yes, multiple spellings persist... with Allegany popular in Northern PA and Southern NY) 30 miles west of the headwaters. Incorporated as a borough in 1882 during the McKean County resource extraction boom, Port Allegany grew as a center of sawmills, tanneries, chemicals and glass production. Two glass plants continue operating today. Port Allegany is known as the "Glass Block Capital of the World"! They love their "diners" on Rt 6! St. Gobain Glass Container Factory Pittsburgh Corning glass block factory... supposedly the only such facility in the Western hemisphere... |
Once again, charming towns surrounded by outstanding scenery. And both towns appear to have a good diner!
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Glass Block Capital of the World. Huh.
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Nice pictures. You captured more of Smethport than I did when I was there. Port Allegany looks nice, and the school that you showed matches with some other Frank Lloyd Wright-style buildings in the area, including a house outside of town that's nestled amongst the trees.
The diner in Smethport reminds me of the one in Wellsboro. You're right, they love their diners on Route 6! |
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http://www.smethporthistory.org/port...nhalltoday.jpg http://www.smethporthistory.org/port...lynnhall3.html |
^Wow, interesting structure.
Smethport looks like a very cute town; Nice buildings, beautiful scenery. I would go insane from the cultural isolation though. I'm sure the internet has had a profound effect on townsies who reside in places like this. They must be looking at things online that are blowing their minds even right now. |
More awesomeness in Perry's Ice Cream territory. Thanks
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In fact, you'll find more redneck white trash whose minds would be blown by what they would see on the internet (if they had cable) in close proximity to Pittsburgh, than you'll find here. It's real easy... northern tier towns are just miles from New York, towns around Pittsburgh are just miles from West Virginia... both are Appalachia, but there is a big difference. |
Thank you very much for your pictures, Evergrey!
I like very much these kind of towns, surrounded by woods, lakes, nature... It must be fantastic to live in one of these towns. They look to be very quiet and pleasant. I´ve liked very much the houses and the green of the grass and trees around them. Congratulations and greetings from Madrid, Spain!:tup: |
Smethport is quite a bit more attractive than the name would suggest.
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The name comes from a family of Dutch bankers named "de Smeth" who invested in this area in the early 1800s. A descendant, Matthew de Smeth, visited last month. http://www.smethportpa.org/images/Ma...eth_060311.jpg http://smethportpa.org/news/mayor-ro...-to-smethport/ |
I like the old mansions in Smethport.
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Another great job, Evergrey!! Both towns had a decent stock of older large homes!! Must be a great place to retire!!:)
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What an interesting part of the country!
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Gorgeous shots!
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I am in Warren, PA - a hick town to PAPride, but we have more of a NY (Buffalo) influence up here. People here even have office jobs and cell phones. lol. |
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Wow - great tour. Very impressive towns. Thanks!!!
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