About this blog
I've been editor of the York (Pa.) Daily Record/Sunday News for 8 years and managing editor of the newspaper for 15 years before that. So, York Town Square explores the rapidly changing world of journalism. And I studied York/Adams' history in graduate school, have written six books about these fascinating southcentral Pennsylvania counties and serve on the York County (Pa.) Heritage Trust board. So, this blog deals with regional history. Often, journalism and history meet here. They're part of a continuum anyway. My hope is that this site intrigues readers on both accounts in giving a daily dose of journalism/history. Or history/journalism. Contact me at jem@ydr.com or become friends on Facebook or follower on Twitter, @JamesMcClure.
Monthly Archives: January 2007
‘The Bridge’ marks the spot along the Codorus
York County labor leader Dick Boyd named his recent memoir “The Bridge,” to mark the secluded site where workers secretly met to organize in the 1930s. They convened under the western end of the railroad bridge across the Codorus, not … Continue reading
Playland plays nostalgic note for York countians
After the 1985 blaze in which 100 children and teens safely escaped, Donald Sternbergh, son of longtime owner David Sternbergh, recalled that people came from all over to skate at Playland: ‘They’re like roller coaster nuts,’ he said, ‘who go … Continue reading
Bury’s burger memories far from buried
Betty Bury Harmon, here at a recent York Fair, looks at herself in front of her family’s hamburger stand in an old fair book. “They just developed it,” Harmon said about her father and his brothers. “They came up with … Continue reading
Gitt and his Gazette sported same eccentricities
J.W. Gitt A visit to J.W. Gitt’s former mansion overlooking Hanover last week said much about the longtime owner of the Gazette and Daily. There was a putting green near the house, that reflected his love of golf. Solar panels … Continue reading
York’s William H. Shank, noted transportation author, dies
York has lost one of its most widely circulated authors. William H. Shank, 91, died over the weekend. The engineer-turned-author did not write high profile, easy-to-read romance novels or children’s stories. His topics focused, literally, on where the rubber meets … Continue reading
With all those stills, the York County hillbillies?
York County residents better not place the hillbilly label on the likes of West Virginians and Kentuckians. Consider this: By 1840, York County had more distilleries – stills – than any other county in Eastern Pennsylvania. And only Lancaster County … Continue reading
York native reached lofty status at New York Times
Emanuel Freedman, William Penn High School class of 1927 and Columbia University graduate, perhaps achieved more as an editor than any other York County alumnus. Manny Freedman rose through the ranks at The New York Times, including copy editor, deskman … Continue reading
York native Frederick Woltman won Pulitzer in 1947
Composer Dominick Argento is not the only achiever with York County roots to win a Pulitzer Prize. Frederick Woltman, a native Yorker and reporter for the New York World-Telegram, gained the coveted prize in journalism 60 years ago. This makes … Continue reading
‘Sandpaper Sisters’ rubs readers right way
A recommended New Year’s resolution is to read some of the fine books put forth by York County authors. Such books often tell much about our county, its people and the way they interact. Michele McKnight Baker’s “Sandpaper Sisters” is … Continue reading
President Buchanan’s fall reflected his presidency; other chief exec visits listed
John F. Kennedy campaigns in 1960 for the presidency in York. (See list of known presidential visits below.) Background post: Ted Kennedy’s visit to York comes almost 50 years after JFK’s and Hillary Clinton’s rally site in York, Pa., a … Continue reading
