When I used to pick up my daughter from college in upstate New York, we’d sometimes come up with ways to keep the conversation going for the three-to-four hours it’d take us to drive home. One trip we thought of doing a parody of “Sweet Home Alabama,” namely, “Sweet Home Pennsylvania” (same number of syllables). We sketched out some verses by her asking me what Pennsylvania was known for. Now, I was born and reared in this state, but my ancestral states are more properly New York, North and South Carolina, and the District of Columbia. Still, I feel at home in PA, but I’ve always felt it was one of those places that people think “Philadelphia” then call it quits. Pittsburgh used to be much larger than it now is; it was the 16th largest city in the country when I was in high school. So, the Liberty Bell/Declaration of Independence, and steel (also in Bethlehem), were obvious gimmes. But what else?
The Amish. Yes, they have colonies in many states, but Pennsylvania has Lancaster County. The state may not be widely known for this, but it is the second biggest supplier of fossil fuels in the lower 48, right after Texas. Indeed, the petroleum industry was born right here, not far from where I grew up. So we have the Mennonite farmers and heavy industry. It is really quite a varied state, my home. We have lakefront property on Erie, and a tiny part of the Atlantic in Philly. We have a good dose of the Appalachian Mountains. Lots of forests, even some with elk. We were the second state, after Delaware, and Pennsylvania is properly a commonwealth instead of a state. Our European founding was by means of the Quakers. Pennsylvania housed several Indian tribes. It was known for religious tolerance. Daniel Boone was born here. So was Stephen Foster. And two US Presidents. Not bad. Not bad at all.
Only recently did I learn that the covered bridge was invented in Pennsylvania and that we have more still standing than any other state. The current count is about 209. Now, there’s a romance to covered bridges. During this summer of staycations, we started to visit some. You can’t go shopping there, and you can’t stay overnight or even order food, but these old-timey structures are a draw all on their own. Part of the fascination is that we don’t build them anymore. We have cars to keep the rain off and our vehicles don’t get spooked by the sight of open water or slip unduly on wooden planks. Back when we were trying to make up alternatives to Alabama’s charms, I wasn’t aware we had so many covered bridges. I saw a few growing up, of course, but paid little attention. Now they’re another part of what makes this a sweet home.
