On Harrisburg Cemetery: As Joan Bretz indicated, it is helpful to arrange to meet the caretaker first. His name is Bob Probst and he is one of the nicest people I have ever met. I have worked with him for about five years as a cemetery tour guide for the Camp Curtin Historical Society--we give organized tours in September--and he always seems genuinely pleased to be able to help, no matter how busy he is. If you can't contact him, he and his crew are usually at work somewhere in the cemetery Monday through Friday from about 8 to 4 (especially now that warm weather is here). Follow the sounds of the lawnmowers, or look for the white utility truck that Bob drives around. You can usually flag him down and ask questions. The records are in a card file in the basement of the caretaker's house. He also has general maps of the cemetery which he gives out. By the way, don't miss taking a good look at the caretaker's house. It is probably the best and possibly last great example of an authentic Gothic Revival house in Harrisburg. It exhibits nearly every classic detail of that style, was built in 1845 and has never undergone an exterior remodeling. The cemetery association used to claim that the house was designed by nationally renowned architect A. J. Downing, but they have since backed away from that claim and now note that the house is designed "in the style of Downing," which is still pretty significant. Unfortunately the cemetery association needs to keep the windows boarded up to prevent vandalism when the crew is gone, which detracts from the appearance, but this also helps to preserve the house. The two-thirds of the cemetery that surround the house are also true to the designer's style. Harrisburg Cemetery was originally named Mount Kalmia Cemetery, and was opened in 1845 as part of the new "rural cemetery" movement. This style emphasized hilly, wooded sites with broad picturesque vistas and a grand cemetery gate. Based upon European landscape gardening style that incorporated the Romantic period landscaping techniques of Humphrey Repton, these rural cemeteries became the forerunners of public parks in urban American society. Harrisburg Cemetery is one of my favorite spots in the city (can you tell?). Phone: (717) 234-8661 (you may need to leave a message, as the crew is usually outside). address: 521 North 13th Street, Harrisburg, PA 17103. Driving directions: North on Thirteenth Street to State Street. Proceed straight (north) through the traffic light at State Street to the cemetery entrance, directly ahead. From downtown Harrisburg, travel east on State Street across the State Street Bridge. At the traffic light at the east end of the bridge (Thirteenth Street), turn left to the cemetery entrance. George F. Nagle Editor, Afrolumens Project http://www.afrolumens.org/ -----Original Message----- From: Joan Bretz [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Sunday, May 09, 2004 9:11 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [PADAUPHI] TRIP TO HARRISBURG Susan, just remember that not all newspapers have all issues extant anymore prior to the 20th century and the State Library may not have all papers. Also keep in mind that prior to perhaps the 1930s or so, obituaries are not as we see them now - generally on the same page of the paper and with a fair amount of information on the deceased and his/her family. Early on the obits could be only a few lines and moved around in the paper as space permitted.. So if you are looking for obits prior to 1906, be prepared to spend a fair amount of time searching for each one. Oh yes, the per copy cost is still a quarter per page; if no one else is searching, you can just stay at the reader/printer. I was just at the library yesterday for the first time in a few months. The genealogy area has been rearranged a bit though it looks like pretty much the same material. Much of the reference material has been entered in the computer catalog so do check there. Also some of the older books that had not been shelved because of their age/condition are now on microfiche. As George Nagle suggested, have an idea what type of information you are looking for as different things are located at the different sites. In particular the State Archives has land records, hard copies of the PA Archive series (State Library has microfiche), military records; assorted county records; census records. State Library has published family histories; assorted county and regional printed references; census films; newspapers (not all papers and not all issues); passenger arrivals at a number of ports. >From Mechanicsburg to Harrisburg, there are probably two ways I would recommend. Either get over to I83 and take that to the Second Street exit just over the Susquehanna River - that takes you to downtown Hbg where you can park in a garage and walk to the places you are interested in or you can go to Market Square (the street opens into a wide square with some large structures on it - turn left and go straight to the Market Street bridge which would take you to City Island. Or have someone give you the directions so you can drive along the west side of the river til you pass a number of restaurants on your left to a light where you turn left onto the Market Street bridge which would take you to City Island from the other direction. Personally - I would pay $10-$15 to park in a garage so I wouldn't have to spend the extra time waiting for a bus to take me to and from City Island. Also, if you are going to go to the cemeteries: try to call the office in advance and make arrangements to meet the caretaker at the office. I know the office is not always open at the Harrisburg Cemetery but if you make an appointment, the caretaker will meet you and let you look through the records with him. Also this cemetery is right out the street from the back of the capital complex - not far from downtown. I'm not sure about Hbg East office policies. This place is farther from downtown. Happy hunting and enjoy our fair city!! Joan Bretz ==== PADAUPHI Mailing List ==== http://www.rootsweb.com