So the winner for the best P of York County is…
Pinchot State Park, which edged out Pfaltzgraff by only a few votes! Mike, Dianne and Lorie all suggested Pinchot, and I admit it won my vote, too.
Jo made a good point; she wrote: “P voting is the hardest one yet. Each choice reflects a part of York’s history. Poor ol’ ponhaus and puddin’ deserve at least one vote!”
Well, about our winner, Mike found on Wikipedia: “Gifford Pinchot State Park is a 2,238-acre state park in Warrington Township. The park contains wooded hillsides, reverting farm fields, and 340-acre Pinchot Lake. … The park is named after former Pennsylvania Governor Gifford Pinchot. … The park was dedicated in 1961 by Governor David L. Lawrence. There are more than 18 miles of marked, maintained trails within the park. Most of them interconnect.” The article goes on to talk about the lake’s good fishing (I have caught a ton of sunfish there!) and the beach at Quaker Race Day Use Area.
Now it’s time to start voting for your favorite Q and to post comments with suggestions for the best R for next week’s poll, if you haven’t already.
My name is Joan and I'm a lifelong Yorker. Throughout high school and college, I swore I was getting out of here as soon as possible. Now, a few years later, I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be. I love my town. And, as a local editor, I hear every day how much you love your towns, too. So please, connect with me and let's share what makes life in York County great. I'm here to help you enjoy this place as much as I do!
Reservoir Hill. I grew up close to York College and Reservoir Hill was one of our favorite places to hang out year round. We often went hiking, sledding, and we even played baseball to the left of the water fountain when we weren’t allowed to play at the College fields back in the sixties.
From Jim McClure on http://www.yorkblog.com: Many folks have never been back to the twin reservoirs off Grantley Road, the impoundments that give Reservoir Hill its name… .
Before the mid-1990s, these reservoirs overlooking York resembled large swimming pools. But government requirements caused the construction of covers, impairing the beauty of the setting and costing more than $1 million.
And post 911, razor wire has been raised up atop fences. Interestingly, post Pearl Harbor, watchmen rushed to the reservoirs lest conspirators sabotage York’s water supplies.
Anyway, even with the water covered, there’s much to see atop Reservoir Hill:
– The view of York is about as good as it gets from the ground.
– The water company’s works has interesting architectural touches, including round windows, a beautiful oval-shaped window, ornamental turrets and stonework with keystone above the windows.
– A much-carved pavilion made of twisted logs, a donation from China to the Philadelphia Exposition of 1876 and brought to the hilltop in 1930, offer shelter in case walkers are caught in the rain. It formerly was located in the garden of Samuel Small, replaced by the York Water Company’s main office at 130 E. Market St.
– A large flag flaps from a pole dedicated in 1982 by the water company, remembering the principles of freedom.
A recent visit (current hours are 7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.) revealed something I had missed before:
York Water Company gives out free samples of its product. A water fountain is available to quench the thirst of the many walkers who circle the reservoirs each day.
Many walkers bring their dogs, and a bucket filled with bowls hangs from the fountain to give Fido a slurp.
Oh yes, wear old shoes because Fido’s owner sometimes forgets his pooper scooper.
Rehmeyer’s Hollow – with 1 book written about it, 2 loosely based on it and a RAP song based on the events.
the following is from Wikipedia:
John H. Blymire, a pow-wow doctor — or Pennsylvania Dutch witch — had, for years, been suffering from illness and bad luck. When another pow-wow doctor (the River Witch of Marietta) told him he had come under the hex of witch doctor Nelson D. Rehmeyer, Blymire decided to retaliate by breaking into Rehmeyer’s home in search of a book of spells. The River Witch also informed Blymire that burning the book or burying a lock of Rehmeyer’s hair would remove the Hex. Upon arrival to his farm house in North Hopewell Township, they encountered Rehmeyer himself.
Blymire and his two young accomplices (John Curry and Wilbert Hess) murdered, mutilated, and then burned Rehmeyer’s body. The murder took place exactly one minute past midnight on November 28, 1928. They were unsuccessful in locating his copy of Long Lost Friend, however, Blymire felt the hex lifted when Rehmeyer died. In the trial that followed, the country was shocked to learn of the existence of 20th-century witchcraft, especially in the quiet county of York, Pennsylvania.
Rehmeyer’s house where he was murdered still stands on Rehmeyer’s Hollow Road. Many locals believe it to be haunted. Teenagers can usually be found down in the hollow ghost hunting.
For the full story, accounts, and trial information, read the book Hex by Arthur Lewis. (1969)
Rutter’s Dairy