Harley-Davidson workers examine a tentative agreement between the company and the union Friday morning at the York (Pa.) Expo Center. Also of interest: York workers traditionally have made big, heavy things and York County chainsaw artist about Harley carving: 'I had an inspiration for the bike and America' and All Made in York posts from the start.

York, Pa., is locked in mortal battle with Shelbyville, Ky., over who will win rights to assemble Harley-Davidson motorcycles.

Harley's union in York is viewing a tentative contract with the company that is considered key to retention of work in its current Springettsbury Township plant.

A pundit in the York Daily Record/Sunday News newsroom pointed out an interesting twist.

Harley workers were perusing their new tentative agreement in and around the Toyota Arena.

So workers who proudly make these venerable American-made bikes were finding out about a piece of their financial futures at a venue sponsored by a Japanese automotive manufacturer... .

Phineas Davis' coal-burning locomotive "The York," in the foreground of the West Market Street mural, points to the transition in the 1800s from York County, Pa., agrarianism to industrialization. (The photo used by the artist of this mural is posted below.) Also of interest: Susquehanna River, shallow and rocky, fends off 19th-century navigation attempts and Don't know much about York County history? and Often forgotten: Achievements of people named on building facades.

York City School Board's study of the future of the 1930-vintage Phineas Davis school leads to the question.

Who was Phineas Davis?

I give a brief summary adapted from "Never to be Forgotten":

The Cookes house, one of York County's oldest structures, is shown in a photograph from about 1890 to 1900. New owner Michael Helfrich is laboring to learn more about the history of the historic house, on the bank of the Codorus Creek in York City. Also of interest: Two hundred years after Thomas Paine's death, the pamphleteer is due a marker in York and Worker saved key historical surveys from Glatfelter pulping machine and York's housing stock not that revolutionary.

A major mystery surrounds the Cookes House, the 1761 stone structure that is easily overlooked to the rear of Martin Luther King Jr. Park in the western part of York.

Did Thomas Paine live and work there when the Continental Congress met in York in 1777-78? ... .

Allen J. Smith, seen here inside his restoration, shows the caboose he worked on for years so that, 'It's better than new.' The rail car wil be moved from New Freedom to Wellsboro and Corning Railroad in Tioga County. (See York Daily Record/Sunday News' photographer Paul Kuehnel's video of the caboose below.) Also of interest: What it was like aboard the Stewartstown Railroad and Mason-Dixon Line hugging New Freedom playing host to a new museum and Is mystery railroad the old Shrewsbury narrow gauge?

Yorkblogger Scott Mingus fielded a query from a reader about the origin of the name Pickett Road in Washington Township.

Scott explained that it likely didn't come from the presence of Gen. George Pickett's men in the Gettsburg Campaign in the Civil War summer of 1863... .

In 1995, Mark Spotz spits during his arrest after a killing spree, which started after an argument over a gerbil. He is one of eight defendants who committed crimes in York County who is on death row. (See details below.) Also of interest: A list of traumatic, painful incidents that rocked York County and Witman murder among York County's most notorious crimes and Exonerated death-row inmate Ray Krone of York County hopes book will open eyes about capital punishment.

Even investigating police officers shed tears at the trial of what history will remember as the torture death of a 2-year-old York girl with a video game cord.

On Monday, a jury agreed to the death penalty for Harve Lamar Johnson in connection with his fatal beating of Darisabel Baez, his girlfriend's daughter on April 6, 2008. In addition to the video game cord, Johnson's weapons included one of the girl's hiking boots and his fists. The girl died at Hershey Medical Center the next day.

York Daily Record/Sunday News court reporter Rick Lee provided those details as well as the following concise summary of this horrific case:

The Stewartstown Historical Society is looking for photos of side streets in the southeastern York County, Pa., borough. This is a rare shot of such street, showing the intersection of present-day Route 851 and West Pennsylvania Avenue in Stewartstown. This photo came from the estate of John Denney of Columbia. Also of interest: 'Yesteryears' Stewartstown-area York County sites - Part I, 'Yesteryears' - Part II and German POWs: 'They worked cheaper than We did'.

The Stewartstown Historical Society is working on a new photo book, similar to the the 'Yesteryears' books it published a few years back.

The group is getting lots of photos but not many showing Stewartstown's side streets.

Early photographer Oram Bell took many shots of Main Street, but if he moved with his camera off the main drag, none of his work is known to exist.

Society member Doug Winemiller provided this information and photograph and went on to explain a rare photo of one side street, pictured above... .

Milkweed pods are opening about now around York County, Pa. They're largely ignored nowadays, but in World War II they were coveted. Also of interest: All World War II posts from the start and World War II torpedo, bomb loader, made in York, Pa., turns up in Tennessee museum and Explosions heard around York County after World War II-era 'experts' give canning advice.

For years - decades - York Daily Record/Sunday News photographer Bil Bowden has captured visual moments in and around York County.

In the last post, his work is displayed after he visited remote Wildcat Falls along the river road, north of Wrightsville.

Now he has grabbed a milkweed pod opening.

Of course, there is a story from history - World War II, to be specific - surrounding this little-noticed plant, and my "In the Thick of the Fight," gives a summary:

The Wildcat Falls Hotel is marked as such in this undated photo. The falls (see photo below) was a popular picnic destination. Its water rushed down a York County, Pa., hillside across the Susquehanna River from Marietta in Lancaster County. The river road is at left. Also of interest: The things you learn from reading local history and Opportunities in York County to feed your sense of discovery and Absorbing photo and overlay shows locations of six Susquehanna bridges.

York Daily Record photographer Bil Bowden was doing some sleuthing recently, looking up the once-popular-but-now-little-known Wilcat Falls area, north of Wrightsville.

A picnic area and hotel once operated there, and among other tourists, people crossed the river from Marietta to enjoy the destination... .