Ghost Town of Lapidum, Maryland

Scattered along the western bank of the river in the Susquehanna State Park, rests crumbling canal walls, corroded railroad tracks, foundations filled with earth, and overgrown pathways that may have once been roads. Not too long ago these homes were occupied, horses galloped along the streets, while trains and canal boats brought merchandise.

Lapidum, Maryland first saw settlers occupy the area in the 17th century. It's fertile farming land and access to the river helped the humble town grow in a short period of time. Corn and tobacco were the chief crops grown in the area, while shad and herring were fished from the local waters. The young community became a local commercial hub for northern Maryland, and southern Pennsylvania. Several ferries operated throughout the area, delivering goods to neighboring river town Port Deposit, as well as upstream to Peach Bottom, Pennsylvania.

By the 19th century the meager territory was growing in size. The town profited greatly through the canals, and the community began to flourish. A three story Victorian style hotel was built. Also a masonic hall, a church, a mill, a school and several warehouses and wharves. As the town was growing the country was changing. Less commerce was being traded by canal routes. Trains and the automobiles were replacing the antiquated method. Eventually stiff railroad competition forced a halt on most of the commerce in the area. Gradually the residents began to leave and the prosperity washed away. Both figuratively and literally, several ice jams along the river caused much damage to the warehouses of the town, ending any future commerce forever.

Over time the homes and businesses were knocked down and the foundations back filled. The canal boat no longer passed through. The mule paths became overgrown with weeds. The canal walls grew over with ivy, and moss. And the area of Lapidum became a ghost town, as well as a grim reminder of what can become of a town when commerce and economics fail to keep up with a rapidly changing world.

"The Town that Was" Centralia, Pennsylvania

"The Town that Was" is an intriguing and thought provoking documentary on the small mining community of Centralia, Pennsylvania. A town that has lived and died with the coal industry. Centralia was once a bustling borough that thrived on the anthracite coal buried deep beneath the surface, but on the surface was a town of dedicated, hard working individuals. This film mainly pays it focus on them, instead of the fire that burns deep beneath the surface of this near ghost town.

Centralia was once a standard mining community. Row homes with well manicured lawns dotted the streets, while local churches and taverns served as meeting places, and homes away from home. But since a warm Summer day in 1962 the times have been a changing. A controlled trash burn on Labor Day weekend, escaped into an underground mine and ignited the slow burning coal. Since then the fires been spreading and the residents have been fleeing, but not all.

The documentary shares stories of past and present, from current and former residents. As well as their concerns and grievances about the town and the controversy that surrounds it. The picture mainly pays attention to Centralia's youngest resident, John Lokitis. The film follows him through his daily routines of helping to maintain the small town charm that still remains there. The passion he shows for his hometown shines through immensely. Being one of less than a dozen remaining citizens, John thrives to keep the "Town that Was", a town that's never forgotten.
Watch "The Town that Was" free on Hulu

Hanover Junction, Pennsylvania

Miles outside one of the nation’s first capital, York, Pennsylvania, lies the remains of a small railroading town that almost was. In 1838 the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad started a rail line connecting Baltimore to York. In 1851 the Hanover Railroad ran rail line westward connecting the Hanover Rail line to the Baltimore Susquehanna Railroad. In 1852 Hanover Junction was born, being the intersection of the railroads. The rail line was originally run by the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad, though the Hanover Railroad owned the trains.
A station was set up including living quarters for the station master and his family. Several small businesses and homes, and even a hotel were built. The hotel also had telegraph service, which would prove to be very important. During the Civil War the hotel’s telegraph dispatching service, proved to be vital to Union Soldiers. The wounded would pass through here on their way from Gettysburg to larger cities such as York and Harrisburg. On June 27, 1863, Confederate soldiers attacked the small town destroying homes and businesses. Somehow the station and hotel survived the ambush. On November 18, 1863 President Lincoln switched trains at the historic station en route to delivering his famous Gettysburg Address. Unfortunately Lincoln would pass through the small town again on April 21, 1865, this time in his funeral procession.

After the war the small town began to flourish again with a small industrial market, so much so there was a large coal yard nearby used for the fueling of the trains. After the demise of railroad traffic during the middle of the 20^th century, industry came to a halt and the town was abandoned. In 2003 the County of York reopened the station house as a museum, giving it a similar appearance it had a century ago. Also on the property are 4 Civil War era cannons and a Lincoln bust.

Outta the Way recommends visiting this little Railroad town that almost was, yet still thrives to be.

Abandoned Route 61 in Centralia

The Route 61 highway traverses travelers approximately 81 miles north and southbound through the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Though there's a small stretch of this road that hasn't been used for travel in over 15 years. Though it's still a hot spot... literally! In 1994 the department of transportation rerouted a mile long stretch of this road after being severely damaged by the underground mine fire in nearby Centralia.

Today the road is a popular destination for urban explorers and apparently aspiring graffiti artists,though I wouldn't call much of it art. The road has an extremely haunting appeal to it, I personally kept feeling as though someone was following behind me. Walking down this lost highway gives you a very eerie feeling, not sure if it's from the noxious fumes emanating from below the asphalt, or the buckling of the highway but I kept getting the feeling of vertigo. Seeing the man-made destruction that's taking place here is a sight to behold, both from the obscene graffiti, to the mammoth coal industry that helped to build a town and also destroy it!




Zine featuring Centralia & other nearby Outta the Way places.

Video of Route 61

Fricks Lock

Located near the banks of the Schuylkill river, in Chester county lies a historic town with a futuristic presence. Fricks Lock was once a booming canal town and later a central hub for the railroad industry. Now the town resembles a post-nuclear holocaust. Homes dating back to the 1700's sit boarded up, left to crumble back into the environment. It's unlikely these homes will ever be restored and lived in again. Would you want two large cooling towers staring at you through the windows?

When the Limerick power plant was built the remaining few residents of the town were bought out and forced to re-locate. PECO owns the town and keeps it under surveillance due to those who can't appreciate history, and instead of helping to restore choose to destroy.

Hopewell Furnace

The commonwealth of Pennsylvania is full of small ghosts towns. Peppered throughout the state are small reminders of towns who strived to survive, yet fell into non-existence. From the little mining towns of western Pennsylvania, to the timber rich villages of northeastern Pennsylvania, all had aspirations of putting together enough industry to put their names on the map. Unfortunately after the industries washed up, and dispersed with technology, most of these towns vanished into state game lands. Leaving nothing behind but small reminders of what could have been, decaying foundations overrun with vegetation, and the occasional town cemetery hidden eerily in the woods leave constant reminders.
Though the most famous ghost town in Pennsylvania still attracts thousands of visitors every year. In fact the federal government helps to keep it that way.

The town of Hopewell was established due to its lucrative iron making furnaces. The Hopewell furnace was established in 1771 and would quickly become the largest iron making producer in the country. The industrial town shortly followed. The employees of the furnace would receive notes for their work, which could than be cashed in to local merchants for goods.

The furnace prospered most in times of despair, the civil war proved to be the most profitable time for the furnace. The furnace supplied goods and ammunition to both Union and Confederate soldiers. During times of peace the furnace maintained by supplying the nation with kettles, machinery and their famous pot-bellied stoves. In the year 1883 the entire town was left abandoned, leaving behind homes, furnaces, workshops, and even a church. Today the furnace and town are maintained by the United States parks department. It is considered to be the best preserved iron making town in all of North America.

Historical Berks County Pennsylvania

In the July zine we take a historic stroll through Berks county and western Chester county in Pennsylvania.

We'll take a visit to two historic company towns which nearly faced abandonment forever. One was at the foreground of the industrial era in America. Today the town sits with no residents and the remnants of an iron making giant. Another town was built around the mining and quarrying industry that grew around it. Today the small village is a weekend retreat area. We'll also pay visit to a few historic homes in the area, including the childhood home of a very prominent figure in American history. Lastly we'll take a walk over a bridge that was originally designed to carry boats.

So get ready to head outta the way, cause we're going "Outta the Way!"

Centralia, Pennsylvania: The End

The already nearly abandoned town of Centralia is getting a little smaller. Since the underground mine fire started in 1962, the once prominent town of nearly 1500 has been slowly dwindling. Most residents moved out in the 1970's and 1980's. In 1991 the state bought all the remaining properties. Initially the townspeople were allowed to stay as long as they kept up on their property taxes. Now the state is forcing the few remaining citizens out.
On a recent visit to Centralia we saw only one home standing. A lot of the small town charm the town once held seems to be stripped away like the coal seams that brought the town to life.
Go Outta the Way and get a last look at this nearly abandoned ghost town sinking closer to it's demise.