Spent the afternoon at Browns - for one last cleanup and planting. A special thanks to the West End Improvement Group.
They were thinning out their Haws Pike Garden and we were the lucky winners - so we planted everything they gave us and it should all be very beautiful come Spring - all along the fence lines on both sides.
And since the colors are fading fast - just one more look up the mountain and the beauty of the Alleghenies. This is Sons of Italy Road.
This lovely lady of the forest sits right next to the cemetery.
With one last look at the cemetery on a glorious fall afternoon.
Just took the flag down for the winter.
My favorite view up the mountain. This is what you see when standing at the cemetery looking up towards the Cambria-Westmoreland County line. The three apple trees on the left hand side - over 150 years old - I call the Three Sisters - remnants of the original Harshberger Grove. Family members would hold picnics - play the fiddle then drink and dance until dawn...
The pond at Browns.
And we finish up with one final look at the cemetery - on what was a lovely fall afternoon.
Had the pleasure to host a living history lesson up at Browns (Laurel Hill Settlement). In the above picture - that is my research partner - Elaine Adams giving a talk on the Smiths, Harshbergers, Dormans and Browns.
I kicked things off explaining how the families came to call the mountain home. Twenty-two people made the trek up (no easy task for some) including: members of the Brown family - which I have to say - it was truly an honor to be with them, members of the Johnstown Branch of the NAACP and three DCNR Rangers - Kim Peck, Jeremy Peck and Bob Hook - that was special to me because the site is also part of Laurel Hill State Park and they walked up with us. It was great to see that lots of kids were also there - for some of them - I am known as the storyteller - for years I have been passing down all the tales I know about the mountain to them.
Along with a poster board of pictures from Browns - I also had some light refreshments on hand since we were there for a couple of hours. The project of restoring the cemetery to its former glory is ongoing and will continue to be so for a while. The hardest part is done - this fall we will be putting in a native flower garden and hopefully next spring will be planting a heritage garden at the site which is another thing I have always wanted to do and with both of those projects we will be working with the state. There are some people that I want to thank: Roger Edwards, RJ Edwards, Kelly Edwards, Elaine Adams and Joann Mock - without all of us working together - this project would never have gotten off the ground. Also a special shoutout to the folks that helped the day of the hike - Misti Piskura and Linda Marker.
This day meant a lot to me - I'd started work on the cemetery in April - and this quickly put together tour started taking shape in early June - so I have to admit that I enjoyed showing the place off - especially given the date - June 19th - which is Juneteenth Day - fitting for the two Black Civil War Veterans buried in the cemetery. Alan Cashaw, President of the Johnstown Branch of the NAACP led everybody in a circle of prayer.
There were five members of the Civil War Group - Susanna Cook, Tent 61 with us including: President, Deedee McGowan and her daughter Julie (members of the Brown family), Linda Marker and her granddaughter Jeannette Metz and Dr. Barbara Zaborowski from Penn Highlands Community College. To wrap things up, Linda Marker played a very fitting tribute - 'Amazing Grace'. She says she picked the number because it's been intertwined with Black culture in many ways - it's was written by John Newton - CLICK HERE to learn more about the British Sailor and Anglican clergyman. But she adds, there is a movie from Nigeria called 'The Amazing Grace' that claims that the tune is a Nigerian tune that he heard on the slave ships.
I think the spirits of the mountain were happy with the fact that they are not forgotten. I'd remarked the next day - if anyone else felt a cold chill in the air (I had goosebumps) for a brief time - others said yes.
I think it's fitting to end this post with a comment from one of the Brown descendants who walked up with us - she says: "I believe they were thankful and appreciate the love and respect shown . The very fact that they still have an impact on their family, even to this day proves that everyone of us has an impact on the world around us. It up to us what that impact is.."
Spent the day giving a tour Browns - as part of the celebration - Linda Marker from Somerset County did a beautiful job on "Amazing Grace" - which was most likely sung and played in this same way over 100 years ago.
You are looking at a painting done of old Elmer Brown's log cabin by Helen Price. She was a founding member of Allied Artists. And anyone that went to Bheam School, she was a friend of old Miss Paul (who looked like Lady Elaine) - my first art teacher who was also a member of that group.
This picture is hanging on the wall down at JAHA. Price painted a whole series of old log cabins thru out the area. This picture gives a great snapshot view at the lay of the land in and around the site.
The cabin was built in the early 1800's by William Harshberger - a free black man who brought his family over the mountain from Lancaster County and settled up Laurel Hill. If you look on the left hand side of the cabin (behind the tree) - that addition was called "The Ballroom". In the early days (before 1840) this was a stage coach stop on the way thru to Ohio. The family says that George Washington danced in that ballroom and I believe them. I think both sides of their family knew Washington (for a lot of different reasons).
Unfortuately the cabin burnt to the ground in the 1970's - a case of arson.
If you know anyone that has any pictures from up at Brown's - please let me know: cacicia@hotmail.com.
Obituary for Elmer Brown. Note: some of the information listed is slightly incorrect. There is a bit of family confusion when it comes to who is who - that I won't explain here - for family privacy issues. Double click to enlarge.
