Youghiogheny River Trail-Smithton

Coal mining played a big role in the lives of the people along this section of the Youghiogheny River Trail. The company towns of Van Meter and Jacobs Creek provided housing and jobs for miners and their families, many who immigrated from central Europe. Their quest for a better life in the US was instantly shattered on December 19, 1907 when miners deep in Darr mine encountered a pocket of methane gas which was ignited by their open flame headlamps. Above ground the explosion knocked people off their feet; underground, it killed 239 men and boys.

Today the rail line is a part of the Great Allegheny Passage which links Pittsburgh, Pa to Washington, DC., a distance of 334 miles. Despite the sad history of the area the trail is beautiful and historic with interpretive signs, memorials to the miners, and ruins of mining structures. It passes by the town of Van Meter where a couple dozen company houses are still standing and occupied.   

We parked at Smithton Beach Trailhead and walked/rolled south for 2.5 miles to the 1930 Banning Railroad Bridge before turning around. Along the way we passed an overgrown ball field and a coal yard before coming to the town of Van Meter. The trail parallels the backyards of the former company housing which were built as two family dwellings. Stop at the South Yard Depot for snacks, sandwiches, garden produce, and good conversation with the owner. If he's not around the refrigerator and freezer are self serve. 

Continue along the trail to the ruins of the coal washing station featuring murals on the concrete water tank. Farther along, a row of  beautiful mosaic circles on a concrete wall symbolize the numbered tags the miners hung on a rack when they went down in a mine. Once they were safe above ground they removed their tag. 239 tags weren't removed that December day.  

       

The trail is accessible, surfaced with hard parked, finely crushed stone and almost level.

 

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle. The entrance is a little hard to spot and looks narrow but it opens up after a couple hundred feet.  Overnight parking is allowed. Trail  40.15842, -79.74688

Thomas T Tabor Museum

Williamsport, Pennsylvania is not a large town so we were expecting a small and unsophisticated museum. Instead we found very well curated exhibits covering the history of the area from the first Native Americans to the 20th century. The basement houses one of the largest collections of model trains in the US. It was donated by LaRue Shempp and features over 300 trains including many rare and one of a kind prototypes. We had spent too much time meandering through the day and only had an hour to see the museum which wasn't enough time. 

    

 

The museum is accessible with an elevator to access the basement level.

The parking lot, located behind the museum, is small with overhanging tree branches. Large RV can be parked on the street.   Museum   41.24059, -77.02009

 

Corning Museum of Glass

Even if you have little interest in glass this is a must see museum! Over 50,000 incredible artifacts trace the history of glass through 3,500 years. The oldest pieces date from before 1500 BC and include containers, jewelry, and small busts. 

The Innovation Galleries cover the history of Corning Glass which has been headquartered in Corning, New York since 1868 and is a leader in the development of products used by millions of people such as light bulb glass, Pyrex, television picture tubes, CorningWare, window glass for spacecrafts, and glass for electronic devices. 

 

Several changing exhibit galleries feature amazing contemporary glass art.

Demonstrations are scheduled throughout the day in four different areas. Visitors can also make a variety of glass objects. We did not watch any demonstrations or participate in glass making but it looks like fun!

The museum is large and can be overwhelming but the tickets are good for two consecutive days so visitors can pace themselves and see it over the two days. The tickets are also good for the Rockwell Museum of Western Art which is small and doesn't take much time to see.

The museum is accessible but there are some long ramps - one at the entrance and on the second floor.

The RV parking lot is south of the other lots. Turn left off of Museum Way. Museum  42.14838, -77.05577

Rockwell Museum of Western Art

 The three floors of this small museum feature changing exhibits with a focus on western art. 

The museum entrance which is on Cedar Street is accessible. An elevator provides access to all the floors. 

The parking lot is small and was filled when we visited but we found two hour parking on a side street. The sidewalks and curb cuts are in good condition.  Museum  42.1427, -77.05345