Andy Warhol Museum

  Campbells Soup cans and Marilynn Monroe are the images that we’ve always associated with Andy Warhol so this museum really opened our eyes to the depth of his artistic talent. Warhol was born in Pittsburgh, PA into a family of working class Slovakian immigrants who recognized his talent early and made sure that he received a good art education at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. After graduation he moved to New York City. By the time he was 24 he’d become a successful commercial and advertising artist with drawings in magazines, newspapers, store windows, and on album covers. Shortly after that he began exhibiting and selling his work in galleries.

        

  Warhol was eccentric, hardworking, and always experimenting. Artists, writers, musicians, and celebrities gathered at his studio, The Factory, to collaborate on giant silkscreens, films, and sculpture.

  The museum follows Warhol’s life and artwork from his childhood to his death in 1987 from an irregular heartbeat after gallbladder surgery. Exhibits include early drawings, advertising art, silk screen art, photographs, films, television clips, and personal memorabilia.

         

  The museum is accessible.

  Parking is very limited. A small parking lot is located across the street from the museum – cars and vans only. On-street parking where RVs will fit is available a few block west near PNC Park. Museum  40.44844, -80.00226

Shenango Recreation Area–COE

  With over 300 sites finding an open campsite is never a problem even on a summer weekend. The electric sites fill fast however 2/3rds of the sites are no hookups and many look as if they get little use.

  Three sites are marked as accessible. They have large paved parking pads but unfortunately the pads are very slanted. The sites directly across the street are much more level so we chose to camp in a one of those. The regular campsites have narrow, graveled parking pads. The gravel makes rolling difficult but the grass area of the sites is hard packed and rolling is fairly easy.  Campground 41.29842, -80.43798

Presque Isle Downs Casino

   Easy access from I-90 and the close location to Erie, PA makes this casino a good spot to overnight if you want to visit the city or are just passing through. The RV is lot is large enough for any RV and trucks are prohibited. Some truck drivers ignore the signs but since the lot is large it’s possible to park away from any noise. Follow the casino road and turn into the lot on the right just before the bridge.

  The lot is fairly far away but shuttles come through on a regular basis. Some are accessible. There’s a sidewalk on the bridge but after that the only place to walk is on the road which is pretty steep. Parking in the lot on the other side of the bridge may be okay, however the walk from there (if you park in the less desirable spots farther away from the casino entrance) to the casino is also uphill. The casino is accessible.  Casino  42.06624, -80.03389

Erie Maritime Museum

  The War 1812 between the United States and Great Britain lasted from June 1812 to February 1815. The causes of the war are disputed but some of the conflict stemmed from a British blockade enacted to stop the US from supplying France during the Napoleonic Wars. Britain naval officers were also boarding US ships and impressing sailors (deserters from the British military, new American citizens, and even native born citizens) into the British military. Britain supported Native Americans raids on settlers in the newly acquired Northwest Territory that would become Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. On the US side some political leaders believed that it would be easy to invade Canada, gain control of Canadian cities on the Great Lakes, and annex part of the country.

  Major conflicts occurred in the Great Lakes and St Lawrence River region; on sea and land in Baltimore and Washington DC; and along  the Gulf coast and in New Orleans. The war ended as a stalemate with the Treaty of Ghent.

  Since we knew very little about the War of 1812 this was an interesting stop for us. The small town of Erie, PA which is protected a large bay formed by the Presque peninsula became a ship building city for the US Navy. On September 12, 1813 the Americans lead by Oliver Hazard Perry defeated the British Navy on Lake Erie. This ensured American control of the lake for the rest of the war and allowed the Americans to recover Detroit and break the Indian confederation of Tecumseh.

  The museum has good exhibits about the US and British Navies and the battle on the lake. Don’t miss the second floor exhibit on the USS Michigan/Wolverine, the US Navy's first iron-hulled warship, built in 1830 and used to protect the lake and for training cruises until it was decommissioned in 1912. Visitors can also explore a replica of the US Brig Niagara (if it’s in port) that fought in the Battle of Lake Erie.

  The museum is accessible. The US Brig Niagara is not accessible but the dock, with the exception of some high thresholds, is accessible so it’s possible to get a close look at the ship. 

       

  RVs will fit in the museum lot or on Holland Street. Museum  42.13618, -80.0858

Erie Zoological Society

   A very nice small zoo with great landscaping and a good mix of animals. It was hot the day that we visited so a lot of the animals were snoozing but still in full view. :-)

           

   Although the paved walkways and boardwalks are in good condition, very little is level so wheelchair users may need assistance. The enclosures are designed for easy animal viewing from a wheelchair.The carousel and train are wheelchair accessible.

   The parking lot is large enough for RVs.  Zoo  42.0983, -80.0765

Asbury Woods Nature Center

  After making a fortune in the early 1900s in the paper industry, Otto Behrend bought 100 acres of land south of Erie, PA to be used as a country retreat and a working farm with horses and dairy cattle, fields planted in corn, hay, wheat and oats and orchards producing apples, cherries, pears and peaches. When he died in 1957 the farm and his cottage were bequeathed to the Millcreek Township School District. An addition was added to the cottage in 2005 which allowed expansion of the nature center exhibits and classrooms.

  One small room houses the exhibits. The rest of the center has classrooms with programs for kids of all ages and adults too. The farmland which is now forest includes 4.5 miles of trail.

 

   The center is accessible but do not try to go over the little bridge in the inside exhibits. It is dangerously steep. The short boardwalk trail outside is accessible. The trails that loop off of the center parking lot and the boardwalk trail are hard packed dirt with minimal obstacles like small roots and short slopes. These trail are accessible with help. The rest of the trails in the woods are marked as moderate or difficult.

  RVs will fit in the lot if parked across the spaces. Woods  42.06121, -80.17256

Linesville Spillway

  In the 1930s, shortly after Pymatuning Lake was created, visitors began throwing bread to the ducks and carp that gathered at the Linesville Spillway. It’s actually illegal to feed fish in Pennsylvania lakes but an exception is made here due to long standing tradition.

        

  Bread seems like a very unhealthy food for fish but as soon as the tourist season is over they head back to the lake and their natural diet. We feed them a few slices of rye bread. Maybe that’s a little better? :-/

  A wide, paved walkway with interpretive signs leads to the spillway and a snack bar/souvenir stand where bread can be bought.

   Everything is accessible.

  The parking lot is large enough for any RV.  Spillway  41.63077, -80.44027

Merry-Go-Round Museum

The centerpiece of the museum is a fully restored 1939 Herschell Carousel. When the museum acquired the carousel all of the animals were missing so the animals on it are from other carousels or are newly carved. Other exhibits include many beautifully restored animals, posters, and carousel memorabilia. Most of the restoration work is done in the basement workshop which is not opened to the public however a small area on the museum floor is set aside for volunteers to explain the process of making or restoring a carousel animal. Visitors may also watch a carver at work. Every year a themed horse is carved to be raffled off as a fund raiser.

                     

   The accessible entrance is in the rear of the museum. The museum exhibits are accessible. Admission includes a ride on the carousel which we didn’t do because we get dizzy so I don’t know if it’s accessible.

  RVs will fit in the lot if parked across the spaces. Parking spaces are also available on the street.  Museum  41.45371, -82.71284