Wednesday, September 13, 2023

PA & NY 2023: Frank Lloyd Wright - Usonian Homes in Polymath Park

The next leg of our two week road trip through New York State and Pennsylvania would engulf my husband Rich and I within the world of renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright.  We would be visiting five homes designed in his unique organic architectural style including his most famous creation, Fallingwater.  Our entire trip was planned around a visit to Polymath Park where we would stay one night in a house designed by a student of Wright.

Polymath Park is a resort located in a 125-acre forest in the Allegheny Mountains, about 1.5 hours south of Punxsutawney and an hour south-east of Pittsburgh.  It hosts four architectural landmarks that are examples of Usonian homes, which were mass-produced, pre-fabricated dwellings meant to conform with many of Frank Lloyd Wright’s design philosophies while being affordable to the middle class at around $15000 each.  In 1956, Wright designed three models of pre-fabricated houses that could be mass-produced in a less expensive manner than his traditional bespoke designs.  He partnered with builder Marshall Erdman, who intended to create multiple communities populated by these houses.  Usonian homes were relatively small (1800-2400 sq ft), single-story houses designed with simplicity in mind while still integrating with nature by using local materials including wood, stone and glass.  They were often L-shaped in configuration, featuring flat roofs, cantilevered overhangs that provide “passive solar heating and natural cooling”, and much use of glass with both large-paned and clerestory (above eyelevel) windows to let in natural lighting.

To limit costs, Wright used standard sheets of plywood, Masonite and drywall for the walls, and less expensive off-the-shelf windows and doors.  Interestingly, the Wikipedia entry about Erdman pre-fab homes indicate that only the major structural components including walls, floors, doors and cabinetry were included.  The buyer was responsible for providing the lot of land and the foundation of the property as well as all plumbing and electrical work.  By the time the smoke cleared, each Usonian property would probably cost over $30000 or almost double the average home price at the time.  To say that these homes were affordable for the middle class might be a stretch—upper middle class might be more like it.  The project never fulfilled its lofty goals and only around 60 houses were actually constructed.  Of the three pre-fab designs, the third one was never used to build any home.

The four houses currently located in Polymath Park include Duncan House and Mantyla House, which were designed by Wright himself, and the Balter House and Blum House, designed by his apprentice Peter Berndtson.  These four homes are available for rent and ever since I learned about this, it has been a dream of mine to stay at one of them.  The rates for two Frank Lloyd Wright houses are a whopping $675 and $825 USD per night (plus tax) while the ones designed by Berndston cost relatively less at $475 USD per night.  We opted for Berndston’s Balter House, which would expose us to the design philosophies of Frank Lloyd Wright while still giving us the opportunity to tour his two personally designed homes the next day.  The Balter House allows a maximum occupancy of four people, so we invited our friends Glen and Christiane to join us in this once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The prosperous Blum and Balter families were friends who wanted summer homes near each other in the Laurel Highlands. They contracted Frank Lloyd Wright to build them but unfortunately, he died before having the chance, so his apprentice Peter Berndston was hired instead.  Berndston originally planned for the Balter and Blum houses to be part of a community of 24 Usonian homes.  Only these two dwellings were built in 1963 and 1965 respectively.  In 2000, entrepreneur Thomas Papinchak purchased the two houses and the property surrounding them which he turned into Polymath Park, restoring the two homes to their original conditions.  In 2006 he purchased the Duncan House and relocated it from Illinois, deconstructing it piece by piece and reassembling it in Polymath Park.  In 2016, to save it from demolition, the park was donated the Minnesota-based Mantyla House from descendants of the Lindholm family after they could not find a buyer.  In 2019, Polymath Park acquired yet another Minnesota-based Frank Lloyd Wright home named “Birdwing” and is currently in the process of reconstruction and restoring it to add to the Polymath collection.  These efforts have possibly been delayed by the pandemic and soaring inflation since it has taken significantly longer for the completion of this endeavour than for the previous homes.

In addition to the houses which can be rented for overnight stays or toured during the day, Polymath Park includes the Tree Tops Restaurant which offers unique dining experiences immersed in nature.  The main “dining room” is a large, canopied outdoor deck where you can choose from a 3 or 5 course meal that includes a champagne toast and brief talk on the history of the resort.  Alternatively, you can dine in a private wooden treehouse accessed by strolling along a planked, tree-lined walkway to enjoy a 4-5 course tasting menu.  Blankets and heaters are provided for cooler nights.  The dinner options are quite pricey and require several hours to complete.  The restaurant was closed when we were there, which made the decision of whether to eat dinner there easy, but we probably would not have anyways.  Since we were only staying at our rental for one night, it was preferable to eat a quick meal off the resort so that we could have more time to enjoy our accommodations.

At the base of the restaurant is a small gift shop, café and visitor centre where we checked in and received the pass code that would open the giant gates to access the forested path leading to our rental property.  Reflecting the design principles of Wright, the building uses materials from nature including various types of wood and a bathroom sink made out of large stones.  The visitor centre was also the location where we would meet the next morning to take our tour of the Frank Lloyd Wright houses.  After our tour and before leaving Polymath, Rich and I bought a throw blanket to bring home as a souvenir which now lays prominently on our living room couch.

Nestled in a clearing within a forest of mature trees, Balter House is constructed with vertically placed boards of California Redwood and a stone pitched roof that helps with climate control and gives the structure an organic feel.  Large windows all around the exterior walls provide maximum natural lighting. Beyond the main living area is a covered, screened-in porch which is cantilevered, extending outward while propped up by stone pillars to account for the sloping ground.  A second stone porch can be accessed from the main bedroom and is covered by the sloped roof that extends beyond the main structure.

Walking into Balter House, you immediately see the signature “Cherokee red” tiled floors that are commonly used in homes adhering to Frank Lloyd Wright’s design principles. Also noticeable is Wright’s “compression and release” philosophy that dictates the areas where you shouldn’t want to congregate for long.  Areas such as hallways and foyers feel compressed due to narrow passageways, low ceilings and the lack of windows.  They then lead into a bigger, open spaces which provides a sense of release and freedom.  The long, narrow galley-styled kitchen with built-in counters, cupboards and drawers, as well as appliances on both sides is also typical of Wright’s homes.  Back in his day, the idea of the kitchen as a social gathering place was not yet in vogue.  Balter House’s kitchen does have a glassed ceiling to let in more light than the cramped entryway.  The major appliances all seem retro (circa 1970?) and the stove is probably just for show since cooking is not allowed, although we were permitted to store perishables in the refrigerator.  We also had use of a ProKing electric kettle and toaster as well as a Keurig coffee machine.

When we finally emerged into the main living space, the expanse and feeling of openness was magnified when contrasted to the cramped spaces that we just came from.  The resulting “release” was breathtaking, just as Wright intended.  Peter Berndtson learned his lessons well.  While the ceiling in the entry way is less than 7 feet high, the living room rises to 11 feet at the peak of its sloped ceiling with exposed redwood beams which flank two rows of roof-ridge skylights.  The glass along the ceiling adds even more natural lighting to an area that is already surrounded by two walls of large, single-paned glass windows which provide an unobstructed panoramic view of the surrounding forest.  The gigantic built-in stone fireplace is constructed from sandstone boulders harvested from a quarry on the property.  Although all the glass surrounding the space gives plenty of natural light during the day, there is little artificial lighting in terms of lamps or overhead fixtures, so it gets a bit dim at night.  While some of the furniture such as the large couch has obviously been replaced since Balter House became available for rent, there are still a few vintage pieces including a beautifully constructed table/chair combination that allows the chair to swivel out for use and swivel back into the table for compactness.  The coffee table and some of the armchairs seem vintage as well.

The feeling of being immersed in nature continues in the master bedroom which is oriented so that we could watch the sun rise behind the trees in the morning as we lay in bed.  It really was such a special experience to live in this space as opposed to just getting a brief tour of it, as we had in the past with Frank Lloyd Wright houses in other locations.  The windows are opened with a quaint system using a single portable crank that can be moved from window to window.  Our windows had screens on the outside so that we could get fresh air without allowing bugs in.  I’m not sure that Wright would have approved of this since he cared more about esthetics than function or comfort.  A desk and chair that is tucked into one corner of the bedroom provided the perfect setting for me to sit with my laptop, jotting down notes about our trip while marveling at my surroundings.

Table lamps with iconic Frank Lloyd Wright design patterns sit on both end tables and on the desk.  A set of glass doors lead from the bedroom out to the covered porch whose pillars and walls are built from stones similar to the ones found in the fireplace.  Like the kitchen, the ensuite bathroom has a very retro 1970s feel with its wood paneling and tan-coloured tiles.  The theme of the Cherokee red flooring, which is pretty much found throughout the house, carries on through the bedroom and bathroom.

In addition to the master bedroom, there are three more bedrooms in the Balter House including another fairly large sized one with a Queen bed, as well as two smaller rooms with single beds.  Regardless of the size, each bedroom has its own private exit leading outside.  These bedrooms contain intricate built-in furnishings that connect the floor to ceiling closets to a desk/vanity and shelving.  It is interesting that although there are enough bedrooms and beds for 6 people, the rental agreement only allows a maximum of 4 people.  This is possibly to limit the amount of wear and tear on the property.  The cantilevered screened in porch, with its slanted roof and windows on three sides, juts out into the forest giving the room a treehouse feel, albeit a very luxurious treehouse.  The built-in benches covered with large cushions provide an excellent space to relax with a book while enjoying the natural environment around you.

It would have been nice to be able to spend another day in this gorgeous home.  But even if we had the time and wanted to spend the money, logistically it would have been difficult since renters are required to hide their belongings and vacate the premises during the day to accommodate the guided tours.  So we just enjoyed our one evening and left the next morning, returning to the Visitors Centre where we would hop on a small van in order to tour the two Frank Lloyd Wright houses in Polymath Park.

The first stop in our tour was the Duncan house, one of the few Usonian homes constructed.  Originally located in a suburb of Chicago, Donald Duncan selected the Prefab design #1, a single-story elongated L-shaped dwelling with a pitched-roof wing containing three bedrooms, a flat-roofed living-dining-kitchen area and a large car port.  As one of the later “modified” versions of the first design, Duncan house had a walk-out basement which is very unusual.  After Duncan died in 2002, his house was in danger of being torn down by developers when it was purchased by Thomas Papinchak and painstakingly moved to Polymath Park.  Frank Lloyd Wright did not approve of garages since he thought cars were noisy, smelly objects that disrupted the natural aesthetics and harmony of his designs.  Begrudgingly he added minimalistic covered “carports” (a phrase which he coined) extending from exterior walls of his prefab houses in order to provide rudimentary shelter for vehicles.  Arriving at the Duncan House, we entered through a side door accessed under the carport to find the kitchen area.

Entering the kitchen area, we were immediately struck by the bold, beautiful colour of the countertops as well as the bright primary colours of the vintage Dansk cookware that hung from a ceiling rack.  Unlike the Balter House, the kitchen in the Duncan House is not a long, narrow, galley-styled and the floors are not the iconic “Cherokee red” although the countertops are close to that hue.  While the refrigerator and most of the cabinetry are laid out traditionally against two walls, the stovetop is positioned atop a central island that includes a seating nook with two stools underneath an overhang.  The oven is even more uniquely positioned as it is imbedded in an adjacent wall that is tiled with long flat stones.  Two large windows provide natural light and give the space a cheery, airy feel when the sun is out. The overall result is unique and stunning.

On the other side of the kitchen is a large, windowed area with a small table and four chairs that feel dwarfed relative to the size of the space. This seems like a setup for an informal breakfast area with a toaster oven, kettle, and microwave on the counter and a juice cart off to one side.  This room might have been originally designed as the main dining room since it could fit a much larger dining table.  Continuing on into the living space, there is found yet another slightly larger table that is more formal, positioned atop an area rug and against a wall with the same stone motif as is found in the kitchen.  The stone motif extends across the living room to form a large, masonry fireplace.  In this main space, the Cherokee red flooring finally makes its appearance, proving that Wright could not give up his trademark detail, even in less expensive versions of his homes.

As is typical of Usonian and Wright-inspired homes in general, Duncan House’s main living space features floor-to-ceiling glass windows, panels and doors.  The wall-less “living room” is delineated by a large stylish rug with a pair of what looks like replica Eames chairs and ottomans, since it is unlikely that valuable antique Eames furniture would be provided in a rental property.  To complete the living room space, there is also a glass and wood kidney-bean shaped coffee table and a funky bench-seating/end table piece that is so low to the ground that Frank Lloyd Wright would have approved.  Two red armchairs are positioned in a corner surrounded by glass, overlooking an outdoor patio furnished with wicker patio furniture.  While our tour did not take us into the basement, images on the internet show what it looks like.

Duncan House upholds Wright’s compress and release strategy with its narrow, windowless hallways leading to bedrooms and bathrooms.  The bedrooms all have large windows and often built-in wardrobes, cabinetry and shelving.  While we entered Duncan House through the back door from the carport, we exited through the front door and found the continuation of the Cherokee red flooring as well as the lowered ceilings in the entry way.

The second Frank Lloyd Wright designed house on our tour was named Mantyla, meaning “House among the pines” in Finnish.  It was purchased by the Lindholm family in 1952 and constructed in Northern Minnesota.  When the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy granted permission for the home to be relocated to Polymath Park, efforts were made to recreate the environment and view of the original site including planting more pine trees.  One of the larger Usonian homes at 2300 square feet, Mantyla is L-shaped with cantilevered overhangs and a carport like Duncan House.  It is constructed with painted concrete blocks and a roof clad with reddish tiles. Upon entry, we see the now expected red floors as well a wall made of similarly looking painted cement blocks with two passthrough openings that expose the small kitchen.  As with the Duncan House, the oven is imbedded into the kitchen wall, and the refrigerator and dishwasher are built into the cabinetry, as is the stovetop which sits on top of the red countertops.  The ceiling of the kitchen is lowered by a sizable bulkhead where pot lights are inserted.  As this seems to be another example of “compression”, I don’t think Frank Lloyd Wright believed much in the art of cooking.

The odd-shaped dining table is with built with interesting tilt as if it was crammed into the space that remained after Wright laid out his rooms.  One unique aspect about Mäntylä is that the home contains many of its original furnishings, ensuring you are seeing the home as Wright intended it to look, which seems to always favour form and style over function.  The living room is massive and stunning with high ceilings, an entire wall of glass panes looking out into the forest, built-in bookshelves and cushioned bench seating with clerestory windows along the top of the wall to let in more light.  The coffee table in the centre of the space is extremely low, as are the velour-covered foot stools surrounding it and also placed against the glass wall.  You would need very good knees to live in a Frank Lloyd Wright house.

The narrow hallways leading to spacious, light-filled bedrooms follow the now familiar pattern of these Usonian homes.  From the master bedroom, there is a lovely view of the outdoor patio.

It was wonderful to explore and experience the Duncan and Mantyla houses, but we remain happy with our choice to stay at the Balter House. It gave us all of the esthetic feel of being in a Frank Lloyd Wright inspired home but was also much more practical and functional as a place to actually live in, even for just one night.  As expected, our visit at Polymath Park and staying overnight was a special and memorable experience.

Tuesday, September 12, 2023

PA & NY 2023: Bradford, Punxsutawney PA

As we were heading towards Kane, Pennsylvania for our 2-night stay, we passed by the city of Bradford, Pennsylvania and were impressed by the architecture that we could glimpse from the highway.  Based on that alone, we had made the mental note that we would like to visit there if we had the time.  Then after visiting the Kinzua Bridge State Park and finding out that Bradford was home to the Zippo Lighter Factory and museum, this firmed up our decision to add a visit to our agenda.

Back in the late 19th Century, Bradford was a booming oil town.  Today, many beautiful buildings remain from that time.  At the centre of the main drag is the quaintly named “Main Street Mercantile”, a cooperative retail venture with over 80 vendors selling antiques and décor. Next to the mercantile is the “Tin Ceiling Gift Shoppe” which presumably features a tin ceiling, as did the “Moments to Remember” gift shop where we stopped in and bought several souvenirs.  On the sides of some of the buildings are the faint traces of “ghost signs”, which are old hand-painted advertising signs from days gone by.  There are also signs of patriotism everywhere including the huge American flag painted on the side of the building that includes the Army Career Centre (or recruiting office) as one of its tenants.  The doorway of another storefront has a sign posted that reads “To All the Bradford men and women who have served and are serving to help keep America independent and free .. Thank You!!”.  Humorously, and probably unintentionally, written in marker before the thank you is “Please Use the Other Door”, as if this was addressed to all the service men and women. One building on Main Street that is anachronous relative to the others around it is the PNC Bank building which seems to be a Mid-Century Modern building from the 1970s with its low footprint and abundance of glass.

The streets of downtown Bradford are full of history, and it is too bad that we did not stumble across a self-guided walking tour pamphlet until we got home.  Most of the other ornate buildings in the area are from the late 1800s to early 1930s and some of them still have the names of the original occupants emblazoned on them.  The C.L.Bradburn Building (1890) is a 3-story 7-Bay brick building with a cast iron façade  and Corinthian columns separating bay windows on the second floor that was occupied by Bradburn’s wallpaper store.  The upper story included lodge rooms and a dining room used by the Knights of Pythias, the Bradford branch of a benevolent and secret society which believed in a Supreme Being and performed charitable acts including aiding victims of National disasters and providing support for youth and the aged.  Members of the Knights of Pythias included Bradford himself, as well as jazz musician Louis Armstrong, President Franklin D, Roosevelt and Nelson Rockefeller.  The Neo-Classical building that houses Graham Florist was initially designed as a bank by builder Clinton W. Kinsella (1911) whose name is engraved in one of the concrete slabs of the façade.  A yellow “ghost sign” from when the shop first opened in 1927 has been restored and brightly advertises “Out of Town Orders Filled Promptly By Me”.  The former Hotel Holley, a historic hotel built in 1901 by Frank P. Holley has been taken over by new owners and is now the OYO Hotel with some of the historic elements still in place.  An old-fashioned elevator and reception desk are still in use and Joe’s Main Street Steakhouse as well as the Holley Express eatery are still open within the building.  An old commercial building with an elaborate façade has the name A.A. Caterina carved in stone at the top and is currently housing United Way offices.

The red-brick, Colonial Revival-styled Bay State Hotel was built in 1897.  The 36-room hotel was known for its fine-dining restaurant and had a room rate of $2/day.  Today, a clothing shop and Chinese restaurant are the occupants of the ground floor of the building.  The gorgeous Art Deco-styled Hooker-Fuller Building is the tallest building in this historic district of Bradford.  It was built in 1931 to house offices and the Main Street Movie Theatre which still seems to be running today.  Miss America attended the theatre’s opening in 1935.  The Old City Hall is a Romanesque Revival building built between 1897 and 1901.  It has intricate stonework in its main entrance and a 100-foot tower that houses a 4-dial clock created by Seth Thomas Company, America’s oldest clock maker.  The white glazed layers of recessed brick used in the 1930 Art Deco-styled Kubiak building stands out from the other red bricked buildings in the area.  It has ribbed corbeling and stylized corner blocks around the doorway flanked by sleek vertical lines on both sides.

A beautiful four-story, buff brick building called Option House (1903) has three columns of bay windows with a balcony above the first story, intricate stone carvings demarking the second and third stories, a row of lions' heads along the top cornice, foliated limestone trim and other decorations along the sides.  The Option House Hotel was equipped with an elevator, spacious dining room and a pub.  In 1935, a 62-foot-long oak bar and second floor night club called The Peacock Parlour was added.  Today the Mediterranean restaurant Kabob’s At Option House occupies the ground floor and apartments are found on top.

Veteran’s Square
was first created as a public square by the early settlers of Bradford back in 1837.  It was a community gathering place with a gazebo bandstand, park benches and flowers.  Starting with the Spanish American War, memorials were added along the walkways to honour Bradford’s fallen soldiers and the area was officially renamed Veteran’s Square in 1954.  Overlooking the square is a tall Art Deco building once known as the Seneca Building.  It is now the home of the Marilyn Horne Museum, celebrating one of Bradford’s most celebrated citizens, the world-famous opera singer Marilyn Horne.

The Marilyn Horne Museum was open in 2017 to honour Marilyn Horne for her accomplishments as a Mezzo-Soprano opera singer and is free to visit.  The museum displays describe Horne’s life, childhood in Bradford, career, and exhibits that teach visitors about music, singing techniques and opera.  Early on in her career, in 1954 she landed the gig to be the singing voice for actress Dorothy Dandridge in the musical Carmen Jones, a modern spin on the iconic opera Carmen.  Later on, she also sang in the movie musicals “Flower Drum Song” and “The King and I”.   As an opera singer, she performed with many opera companies around the world and performed in the actual opera “Carmen” with the Met in 1972.   Her voice is heard throughout the museum as you can put on headphones to hear her singing at various stages of her career.  Outside the museum is a bronze bust of Horne with the inscription “Internationally Famous Opera and Concert Singer”.

The highlight of the exhibits was seeing the colourful and wonderfully resplendent replica costumes from Marilyn Horne’s various roles including “The Barber of Seville”, “Aida”, “Orfeo ed Euridice”, and “Carmen”.

In addition to the interesting architecture of the commercial buildings in the historic district, we found some gorgeous houses as well with multiple turrets, decorative pediments, uniquely shaped balconies and even a crenellated tower attached to one house that was being renovated.

One of the main reasons for our adding Bradford, PA to our itinerary was so that we could visit the Zippo Lighter Museum.  The Zippo lighter is a small rectangular, reusable meta lighter with a spring-levered hinged top, wick, windscreen chimney, flint wheel and flint that uses petroleum lighter fluid as the fuel.  American inventor George Blaisdell invented the Zippo lighter and founded the Zippo Manufacturing Company in Bradford, PA in 1932.  Thousands of different styles and designs have been created over the decades and in 2012, the company produced its 500-millionth unit.  The 15,000 square-foot museum and store opened in July 1997.  It tells the history of the Zippo lighter and displays a large collection of lighters that were created through the years.  Parked in front of the museum is the Zippo Car, a 1947 Chrysler Saratoga that was transformed to feature a giant replica of the Zippo lighter with its lid open, complete with flames.  The car would tour around the continent, appear in parades and generally promote the company in a fun and spectacular manner.

One of the first exhibits encountered in the museum is the large American flag that is 7 feet high and 11 feet wide.  On closer inspection, you can see that the flag is created with almost 3400 red, white and blue lighters.  The piece is titled “Old Glow’ry” or “Zips and Clicks Forever”.   An entire wall is dedicated to the history of the Zippo lighter relative to other historical occurrences that happened around the same time as each milestone.  The Zippo lighter differentiated itself from disposable lighters not only with its sturdy construction, refillable fuel cavity and vast choices of designs, but specifically by its unique feature of being a “windproof” lighter that will not extinguish if blown horizontally by wind or any other source of air current.  Zippo’s marketing gimmicks to highlight this feature include the “Fan Test” where a portable fan blows at the flame, people blowing at the flame, and flapping their arms.  The museum has “fan test” devices that demonstrate the lighter’s windproof capabilities by allowing people to hold their lit lighters in front of a blowing fan.  The lighter can be operated with one hand and the proper way to extinguish the flame is to snap the cap of the lighter over it.

During World War II, Zippo manufactured special lighters out of steel as opposed to the usual brass material that was required to manufacture arms and ammunition for the war effort.  The steel lighters were covered with black paint and a baked crackled finish to prevent premature rusting.  Working with war correspondent Ernie Pyle who lived in the trenches with the soldiers during the war, George Blaisdell donated many free zippo lighters to be distributed to among the service men and women.  When Pyle was killed in 1945, a special lighter with his name engraved on it was distributed to the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Cabot where Pyle had spent 3 weeks with the crew.  Zippo lighters and especially the Pyle memorial lighters were prized possessions of the military personnel and become a symbol of the war experience.

Zippo lighters were produced in Canada from 1949  through 2002 and had “Niagara Falls, Canada” stamped at the bottom.  About 500,000 units were produced per year, compared to 16.8 million annually in the United States.  Many of the Canadian lighters featured Canadian specific images like the Mountie, Canadian Flag, Loonie and iconic attractions from cities including Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Windsor.   Zippo’s policy is that their lighters are guaranteed for life and will be repaired/replaced for any reason.  A fascinating exhibit in the museum shows a series of mangled, crushed, chewed up or otherwise damaged lighters with the most hilarious causes including “garbage disposal”, “power lawn mower”, “ice crusher” and “6000 ton press”.  The one that appeared in the most separate pieces was the encounter with a “box trim shredder”.  In addition to the iconic lighters, Zippo also ventured into other products with varying success including the golf ball warmer that was supposed to make golf balls travel farther.  In 1993, Zippo merged with W.R.Case & Sons Cutlery Company so the museum also features displays of Case products.

One of the distinct features of Zippo lighters is the vast variety of designs that can be featured on a lighter.  There seems to be something for everyone including images related to politics, pop culture, historically significant events and news, music, movies and more.  A special exhibit related to movies shows images and videos of scenes from iconic movies such Die Hard where the character uses a Zippo Lighter either incidentally or as a plot device.  Lighters were made in a variety of materials including brass, chrome and the steel versions produced during WWII.  A few speciality lighters are decorated with texture print that give it a tactile feel while others may glow in the dark.  The permutations were innumerable.

In the nationality section of the museum are examples of lighters representing countries and cities from around the world.  Even in the gift shop, there were so many different designs to choose from that Rich had a difficult time picking one to bring home as a souvenir.  Some of the finalists included a Roy Lichenstein-esque cartoon bubble with ZIPPO written on it, the vintage image of the wind-test blowing woman, 60’s psychedelic flower power and old 45 records.  In the end, he selected an orange Art Deco-styled lighter and bought some lighter fluid to go with it.   We had so much fun spending an afternoon touring the Zippo Museum in Bradford.

After  two days touring around the vicinity of Kane, PA, we started our trek south for several days of visiting Frank Lloyd Wright designed or inspired houses including an overnight stay at one in Polymath Park.  En route, we made stop in Punxsutawney, PA to visit Phil, the famous groundhog who would predict whether or not we would get an early spring.  Phil is on display behind a glassed enclosure at the corner of the public library.  As it turns out, there are two groundhogs on display, Phil and his wife Phyliss although it was difficult to differentiate between them from behind the glass.  Tongue-in-cheek “facts” about Phil are posted around town and online, including Phil being the only true weather predictor (all others are imposters), that Phil is 100% correct in his predictions and that there is only one Phil who has been making predictions since 1886 when this tradition first started.

Punxsutawney Phil is obviously the main attraction of the small borough as his image is everywhere, from bronze statues to murals to painted gophers on crosswalks to everything imaginable in the Tourist bureau/souvenir shop/Chamber of Commerce building.  Here we found stuffed animals, t-shirts, toques, paper plates and napkins, soda pops, coasters, puzzles and more, all emblazoned with the iconic representation of Phil.  As a souvenir, Rich purchased a package of Groundhog Day napkins, so now we have to wait for February 2 to roll around over multiple years before we can use these up!

The main reason for our visiting the Tourist centre was to get the map that would show us where all the giant Phil sculptures could be found, all around the few streets surrounding the main drag.  Each sculpture has a different name and design, often reflecting the business or organization who sponsored it.  In front of the Tourist centre, we found “Tourist Phil” wearing a toque and a shirt displaying a map of downtown Punxsutawney, as well as some of the other attractions to be found here.  It was a bit of a scavenger hunt following the map to find more Phils.  The Police Department, Fire Department and Post Office each had their own appropriately clad Phil sculptures, named “Officer Phil & Fury”, “Phil The Flames” and the punny “Philatelic Phil” respectively, with Fury being Policeman Phil’s canine partner.

We found “Freedom Phil” dressed as the Statue of Liberty in the main square.  Many local shops had sculptures reflecting their businesses including “Breakfast Sounds Good” Phil wearing a chef’s hat and holding eggs, bacon and toast as sponsored by Gimmicks restaurant.  The Phil in front of the florist shop was covered with flowers while the one by Wendy’s was dressed like the iconic red-headed girl on the fast food chain’s logo.  “There’s Work to be Done” Phil in front of Ragley’s True Value Hardware wore safety googles, overalls, a tool belt and headphones while holding a rake.  Scottish bagpiper “Presby MacPhil” stood in front of the Presbyterian Church of Punxsutawney in honor and recognition of the Scottish heritage of the Presbyterian Church.  We saw countless more wonderfully quirky sculptures, but there were so many Phils and so little time that we sadly were unable to get to them all.

While searching for the Phil sculptures, we passed by some beautiful old mansions with Doric and Ionic columns, multiple levels of verandas and balconies, turrets of varying shapes and lovely decorative features.  Some of them were a bit run down but you could see that there used to be money in this area.

We also saw some interesting churches including the First Baptist Church and the tiny Christ Episcopal Church whose façade was covered with field stones and seemed more like a house than a church.  These two churches did not seem to be open to the public, but the Journey Church was, so we wandered in to get a look at the giant stained glass windows from the inside.

Punxsutawney was a fun stop enroute to Polymath Park where we would start our two day immersion into the world of architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

Monday, September 11, 2023

PA & NY 2023: Griffis Sculpture Park, Rim Rock Trail, Kane, PA

 

Moving on from East Aurora, the next destination on our New York State/Pennsylvania road trip was a two-night stay in Kane, Pennsylvania.  Our plan was to make two stops enroute to Kane including the Griffis Sculpture Park in New York State and the Rimrock hiking trail in the Allegany Forest in Pennsylvania.  We ended up making a couple of extra impromptu stops along the way and spied another location to return to the next day.

As we were driving south towards Pennsylvania, we unexpectedly came across a collection of quirky sculptures at the front of a rural property in New York State.  I wasn’t sure exactly where we were, but a sign next to the property indicated that Big Buffalo Vapors (“Home of Your Tax Free Vapor Supplies”) in Irving NY, was just a short distance away.  The outdoor pieces included what looked like a giant metal dragon, Sponge Bob Square pants next to multi-coloured metal aliens and more.  The loud sounds of barking dogs kept us in our car, so I just took some photos from the car as we drove by.

A bit further south, we came across the village of Ellicottville, NY, known for its proximity to ski resorts including Happy Valley.  The first indication of this was the Christmas tree made from the tips of downhill skis that sat prominently in the main square.  This seemed like such a quaint and sweet little village that we decided to park our car for a quick walk around the main drag.  We saw a sign for the first frame house, dating back to 1817 which was once used as the county courthouse.  Next to it is the picturesque St. John’s Episcopal Church and nearby, we spotted a community gazebo that seemed right out of the musical “The Music Man”.  Some of the shops on the main street including The Old West Co. are covered with wooden verandas that reminded me of storefronts in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Finally we arrived at our first planned stop, which was Griffis Sculpture Park, a 425 acres outdoor art museum situated on a huge property that includes open fields, wetlands, alpine meadows, ponds, valleys, tree-lined woods, hiking trails, wildflowers and other flora.  The park consists of two parcels of land between Rohr Hill Road and Mill Valley Road, divided by a private roadway.  It was created by artist Larry Griffis Jr., who filled the Rohr Hill Road site with huge 25ft-tall sculptures made from welded steel.  He gave the mostly humanoid figures names such as Oracle, Flat Man, Round Man, etc.  They stood looming into the sky and could be spotted from a distance as we approached.  There also seemed to be a giant goose or some sort of bird.  We stopped quickly to look at some of these works before heading to the larger section of the park which contained the bulk of the sculptures as well as a parking lot, toilets, and gift shop (open only on the weekends).

On the edge of an open field next to the parking lot of the Mill Valley Road section sits a series of three ultra-lifelike bronze sculptures paying tribute to a trio of extraordinary women.  Tracy Caldwell Dyson is an American chemist and astronaut who flew in Space Shuttle Endeavour in 2007 and is one of the most prominent women in NASA. There is also sculptures of 3-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas and novelist/feminist activist Cheryl Strayed who chronicled her 1,100-mile solo hike on the Pacific Crest Trail.  The three sculptures are by the Australian artist collective duo Gillie and Marc Schattner and are part of a larger public exhibit called #StatuesForEquality that consisted of 10 sculptures displayed near Rockefeller Centre in 2019, each depicting an iconic female figure.  The purpose of the exhibit was to address in gender inequality of sculptures commemorating nonfictional figures in New York City.  Other sculptures in the collection include Oprah Winfrey, Nicole Kidman and Jane Goodall.  After that exhibition ended, these three works were donated to Griffis Sculpture Park.  The team of Gillie and Marc  is known for their “Dogman and Rabbitgirl” sculptures including one found in the Yorkville area in Toronto.

Starting at the Trailhead that would lead us deeper into a wooded area, we found a few more of the over 250 sculptures that are scattered throughout the property, each placed with the setting in mind so that the work blends in with its natural surroundings.  The sculptures vary in material, size, colours and subject matter.  It was too bad we could not find a map that listed their descriptions and creators.  There was just a small map that roughly indicated their locations, so it was a bit of a treasure hunt to find them.

Emerging from the woods into an open clearing, we found ten aluminum bathers situated around a small pond.  Five of them are lying prone on the grass while five more are perched at the edge of the pond in various poses as if ready to dive in.  A sign indicates that these are also the works of Larry Griffis Jr. who was obviously very talented and worked with multiple styles and materials.  I later read online that originally all ten sculptures were positioned upright around the pond, but some deteriorated over time and so the broken ones are left lying on the field.  This actually provided a more interesting overall perspective and was reminiscent of ancient ruins.

Continuing on, we found sculptures of giant insects and large Adonis-like male figures in various poses, mushrooms, strange hollow pod-like shapes that you can enter, and a fun metal sculpture of a Crusader holding a shield and flag while riding a red horse. Wandering into another wooded area, we came across what one website designated as the “Griffis Family Heads”.  These seemed to be busts of females wearing strange alien-like headdresses, but the facial features were quite specific, so it is possible they are based on real family members. Then we discovered the Castle Tower, a spiral structure with ladders allowing you to climb to the top observation deck.  The ramps were slanted and slippery, so I had to traverse up the various levels with care.

We saw so many wonderful sculptures as we made our way to the far end of the park.  There was the colourful yellow and red metal maze made out of found objects, a hooded figure that seemed to be from a Fantasy novel, a creepy giant claw reaching out from the ground by a pond and a couple of glamorously dressed female sculptures that contrasted with the many nudes that we passed by earlier.  Three new sculptures of silvery, long-haired hippy-ish male figures created by New York City artist Trevor King were installed late spring 2023, set in a meadow of yellow wildflowers at the top of a hill.  There was so much to see at the sculpture park that we were not able to get to all the works, especially in the first section near Rohr Hill.  I would love to return for another look if we are ever in the area again.

After leaving Griffis Sculpture Park, we moved on to our next adventure in the Allegheny Forest where Rich had planned a short but strenuous hike for us at the Rimrock Hiking Trail.  The trail started up on a ridge just above Kinzua Beach.  From the base, we had a scenic view of the Allegheny River and the Kinzua Beach Bridge.

The Rimrock trail consists of a steady uphill climb for 1.3 miles along a forested path surrounded by mature oak trees.  The 1.3 mile ascent is only moderately steep but unrelenting as we marched upwards for over an hour.  We were thankful for the bench that we found just past the halfway mark and for the fact that it would be downhill all the way on our return trip.  The goal at the end of the trail was to get to the Rimrock Overlook, which is reached by climbing up a series of stone steps.

The final portion of the stone staircase runs through an extremely narrow crevasse that actually cuts right through the middle of the giant sandstone boulders.  Once we reached the top, we emerged onto a platform with a gorgeous lookout with views of the Allegheny River, Reservoir and surrounding hillsides.  Looking over the edge of the outlook, we saw the steep cliffs, rock outcrops and the trail below.  The unique access to the outlook made this one of the most unique hikes that we have taken.

Following our hike, we made our final trek to Kane, Pennsylvania, where we had booked a two-night stay at the Kane Manor Inn with our friends Glen and Christiane who we would meet there.  Dating back to 1896 and called Anoatok (Inuit for “the wind-loved spot”) at the time, the manor is now named after the American Civil War general Thomas Kane who served as “Peacemaker with the Mormons” during the Utah War of 1857-58 and played a large role in the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863 and founded the eponymous community of Kane.  Built in 1896, the mansion was commissioned by his widow Elizabeth Kane, who was one of the first women in Pennsylvania to attend medical school.  Their son Evan was a pioneer of local anesthesia, so great achievements run in the family.   Kane Manor Inn is a three-storied Georgian Colonial Revival-styled, 18,000 square foot brick-framed residence erected on a sandstone foundation with at least four chimneys that we could see as we approached.

Our timing was good since we met our friends in the parking lot, as they had finished their morning mountain-bike ride just as we finished our hike.  Accessing the manor through the first entrance that we found after parking our vehicles, we picked up our keys and instructions at the desk for how to find our rooms.  Rich and my instructions indicated to go up the stairs and go to the “Blue Room” which would be the first room on the right of the stairs.  We missed a crucial word in the steps which was to take the “main staircase”.  We had ascended the first staircase that we encountered (noting how narrow it was for such a big house) and then could not find our room.

All the rooms had cute little cartoonish signs on them and the first room on the right of the stairs seemed to be a locked closet that did not fit our key.  The one next to it indicated a bathtub (??).  It took us several minutes of walking along the hallway to realize that we had taken the servants’ staircase.  The grand “main” staircase was further along and once we came across that, our Blue Room was exactly where it was supposed to be.  The room was huge with a four-post bed, a large wooden wardrobe, an armchair and bench-seating along the window and a non-functioning fireplace with a plant placed in the hearth (so that no one would try to use it?).  The "Blue Room was aptly named as it was definitely was blue, from the wallpaper to the armchair, the cushions and the tiles in the bathroom.  There was even a little “call-bell” on the wall underneath a wall sconce, but we did not try to push it.

Descending the main staircase on our way to dinner, we found the pretty “half-landing” with the Gothic-styled window and the large portraits on General and Elizabeth Kane facing one another on the two walls of the enclosure.  Continuing down to the ground floor where we first entered, we found a ground foyer and a 19th Century parlour where we could sit and read the books or play board games that were provided.

Many of the rooms have fireplaces which was apparent by the number of chimneys that we saw emanating from the house.  It is unclear how many are still in use. I was fascinated by all the beautiful table and floor of various shapes and design.  There was an enclosed porch that acts as a bar and an outdoor terrace that would have been nice to spend time on had it been a bit warmer.

We had access to a community kitchen where the guests could get tea, coffee or hot chocolate at any time and share in the use of a common refrigerator.  There was a cool antique Hotpoint Automatic Electric Stove (circa 1920s) that was probably mostly for show.  The actual kitchen where our daily breakfasts were prepared was in a second sealed off area.  We could choose from two different dining areas to have our meals before starting off each day.  I presume that in the summer months, the terrace would be an option as well.  Staying at the manor for two nights, we had breakfast in each of the areas.  One was bright and cherry and we scored a table right by large bay windows with a view of the terrace and grounds.  The other was a bit more formal.  On the wall next to a photograph of a younger General Kane than we saw on the stairwell was  a coat of arms with 3 fish pointing up ward and the words “Fide et Animo” (loyalty and affection) written underneath. 

Our breakfast on the first day included French toast with a home made strawberry compote, sausages, home-fried potatoes and a fruit salad served with juice and coffee.  The next morning we had a delicious berry yogurt, waffles, eggs and bacon.  Our meals were served on dinnerware with a Kane Manor logo emblazed on the dishes and bowls.  Once again, the crest with the 3 fishes were printed on these wares.  It is unclear if the fish are part of the Kane coat of arms but the fish icon is said to represent “Generous mind, virtuous for himself - symbol of Christ and spiritual nourishment.” We really enjoyed our stay at Kane Manor, reveling in the history of the place.

While the main attraction of Kane, PA is its proximity to the Allegany Forest and the trails for hiking, biking, cross-country skiing and snowmobiling, there is not much to see or do on the actual main drag of Kane. This wasn’t the place to go for shopping or fine dining but it made a good base to access several areas of interest within a short drive.  On our way out of Kane, we spotted a small drive-in with a small spaceship sitting on top of the sign announcing the movies, dates and times available.  The featured movies were quite recent including Grand Turismo and Equalizer 3, both released in 2023.

Less than 30 minutes drive from Kane is the Kinzua Bridge State Park, which is a 339-acre park with hiking trails and a tourist attraction that has an interesting history.  Found in the park is the Kinzua Bridge or Viaduct, once a 2052 feet-long, 301-feet high railway bridge that spanned Kinzua Creek.  Originally built in 1882 by the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railway’s president Thomas Kane, it was used by trains to ship coal, lumber and oil.  It was the world’s tallest and longest bridge at the time.

By 1900, the original bridge could no longer withstand the weight of newer, heavier locomotives, so it was rebuilt with stronger materials, only reusing the original bolts.  By the late 1950s, the bridge became part of the route for tourist sightseeing trains which ran from Kane through the Allegheny National Forest.  These excursions continued until 2002 when the bridge was closed for restoration after it was determined that high winds made the structure unsafe.  On July 21, 2003, when construction was well underway, a freak storm with winds of almost 100 miles per hour, classified as an “F1 Tornado”, touched down and caused 11 of the 20 towers to collapse in less than a minute.  Miraculously there were no injuries or deaths.  Imagine if the tourist trains were still running when this happened?!?  It was determined that those old bolts holding the bases of the tower together were the weak links that caused the bridge to give way.

Costing too much to rebuild the bridge after its collapse, the state decided to turn it into a tourist attraction to show the force and power of nature.  In 2011, the Kinzua Bridge Skywalk was unveiled, allowing tourists to walk out onto the 600 feet of remaining bridge up to the point of collapse.  At the end is a large platform that is partially made of frosted glass.  From there, you can look out onto the wreckage or peer down below from the glass portion if you are brave enough.

It was quite windy as we strolled on the Skywalk but when we returned to the gift shop and commented on this, the clerk said that this was actually a “mild day” relatively speaking and that once on a really windy day, she saw a small dog on a leash be blown into the air!  From the edge of the platform, we had an excellent view of the damage of the storm and the debris left in its wake.  Returning to the base of the bridge,  there is a second observation deck with a telescope to look through to survey the wreckage from a different angle.  Next to the Kinzua Bridge Skywalk is the entry point to the Kinzua Creek Hiking Trail which is 1.2 miles return, marked as steep and difficult in parts, and leads to the bottom of Kinzua Gorge with stunning views of the collapsed bridge.  The trail continues uphill to provide a view of the rest of the gorge and valley. Unfortunately we did not have the time to do this hike as we had other destinations on our agenda to explore.

In addition to the gift shop, the tourist site also features a visitor’s centre that acts as a small museum with family friendly, hands-on exhibits that showcase the flora and fauna of the area.  One machine illustrates the change of the forest over time while another features the call of wild animals including a porcupine, bobcat and more. The centre describes the history of the construction of the Kinzua Bridge including some of the components such as a roller bearing to relieve impact of the westly winds, couplings that connect the footprint of the viaduct, and rivet drivers for pounding in rivets that  joined the iron and steel.  Another exhibit highlights the region’s logging and railway legacy.  A large plaque describes local innovations including the Zippo Lighter, whose factory we would visit on our side trip to Bradford, PA.  That will be a topic for the next blog.