Friday, June 3rd, 2022 … Two Lane Adventures Continue!

Today, we departed Ives Run Corps of Engineer Campground in Tioga PA and are heading to the Albany area of NY. We departed the campground on Route 287 and crossed over onto PA 328. PA 328 begins at an intersection in Tioga Junction with PA 287. The route progresses eastward as a two-lane through woodlands, our favorite kind of road! As we drove, the route parallels the former right-of-way of the Erie Railroad's Tioga Division, serving as a residential highway. Soon after, the route enters Millerton and gains the name of Main Street. PA 328 passes a mix of commercial businesses and residential homes until leaving Millerton. There, PA 328 takes the right-of-way from PA 549 and progresses northeast to the New York state line, where the road continues northward as NY 328.

NY 328 picks up where PA 328 leaves off at the Pennsylvania state line in the southwestern Chemung County town of Southport. The route heads northeast, roughly paralleling Seeley Creek as it runs along the base of a large valley surrounding the waterway. The route continues along the western base of the valley, bypassing both Webb Mills and Pine City as it continues to parallel both CR 69 and Seeley Creek. Here, NY 328 transitions from a two-lane roadway to a four-lane divided highway, a configuration that remains in place for the final 3 miles of the route, where it terminates at NY 14 in Elmira.

Eldridge Park, located in Elmira, New York, was a famous amusement park around the turn of the 20th century. Covering roughly 15 acres, it was dedicated to the memory of a local physician and was in common usage late into the 20th century. Elmira’s premier family-friendly, open-air space where, thanks to Elmira Infinite Canvas and the Wallin Insurance Agency, the park has received a beautiful new welcome. As you turn into the park from College Ave, you’ll notice local artist Chris Eldred’s work which features a pair of ducks and a fish resident of Eldridge pond, a carousel horse, and a dragon. A dragon? Yes, a dragon. The dragon paddle boats at Eldridge Park deserve some time to shine along with their carousel animal partners, right? As the mural suggests with its large, multi-colored heart, the park’s commitment to being a source of love and comfort within the community deserves to be felt by all members of the park’s culture. Alongside the mural’s colorful characters is a sunny backdrop of the gentle slope of the area’s valley and the placid waters of Eldridge Lake. Eldridge Park has been a staple of the community throughout the past three centuries.

We left Elmira and headed to Horseheads on Route 13. Horseheads, how would a town get a name like that? Here is your answer. On September 1 1779, General George Washington ordered the forces of General John Sullivan to march north on a 450-mile journey through a wooded wilderness from Easton, Pennsylvania, over to Wyoming, Pennsylvania, and on up the Susquehanna River to Elmira to mount a raid on Iroquois. They continued north through what is now known as Horseheads to the Finger Lakes region and west to Geneseo. The journey had been particularly severe and wearing upon the animals, and their food supply was found insufficient. Arriving about 6 miles north of Fort Reid on September 24, 1779, they were obliged to dispose of a large number of sick and disabled horses. The number of horses was so great that they were quite noticeable, and the native Iroquois collected the skulls and arranged them in a line along the trail. From that time forward, that spot was referred to as the "valley of the horses' heads" and is still known by the name given to it by the Iroquois.

Ithaca has a public art project organized by Ithaca’s Public Art Commission. It involves 21 different artists who painted their images onto 21 of the city’s electrical boxes. The city of Ithaca is no stranger to public art, with many of the town’s walls bedecked with colorful murals and the streets surrounding The Commons lined with sculptures. The creators believe public art is a relatively cheap way to spread art throughout cities and increase tourism, and it can also increase the quality of life in a city. Public art opens up the forum for all artists, especially graffiti artists, to share their art with the community in a more mainstream way.

Also in Ithaca is the Sciencenter. It is a place that inspires excitement for science through interactive exhibits and programs that engage, educate and empower. The hands-on museum offers visitors of all ages more than 250 exhibits, educational programs, a gift shop, an outdoor science park and a seasonal miniature golf course.

Main Street in the Village of Dryden is a little bit brighter with a brand-new mural paid for by the Community Arts Partnership (CAP). The blank space just above the Dryden Community Center Café is the location. The village contacted Kayla Lane, the property manager for the building that hosts the café, who thought it was a great idea. Around 15 applications were submitted, but one artist, Joanne Murphy, specifically asked to submit for the space above the café. After the design was approved Murphy was put in contact with Lane to work out the details of getting the mural on the building. The applications were also judged on the strength of the artist’s concept, even if it was just a mockup. Murphy’s submission was just a drawing that evolved as it was made into reality. While creating the Dryden mural she added in elements that she had found within the community. Dryden Dairy Day took over downtown while Murphy was working on the mural and the festivities made their way into the art in the form of a young woman Murphy saw playing in one of the bands that performed at the annual community celebration. The barn pictured in the mural is based on a real structure that she spotted while driving around the area. While the mural is in Dryden, Dryden can also be found in the mural.

In the days before GPS and asking Siri for help, people actually talked on the phone to guide people to their homes. “Turn left at the cows,” they might say, though depending on how lost you were it wouldn’t help since Dryden has scores of them. In June, turn left is at the cows means staying on Route 13 on the way from Ithaca to Cortland. These aren’t the cows you see down on Fall Creek or farther on Rt. 13, though. These are cardboard, colorful and easy to get lost in while driving through. Every spring the Dryden Dairy Day committee brings the cows home to the town square where they stay and celebrate the festival’s theme and watch the parade roll through – though that doesn’t turn left. The cut out cows, which sold out this year to businesses who are asked to stick to the theme or promote agriculture.

The architecture is stunning in Cortland! The Lawrence J. Fitzgerald House which is a good example of the Queen Anne style of architecture. It was erected in 1885, at the peak of Fitzgerald's career as owner of the world-renowned Cortland Wagon Company. He was also the former president of the village and state treasurer for two terms. Fittzgerald is credited with casting the deciding ballot giving Grover Cleveland the state's delegation, which in turn gave Cleveland the nomination for president in 1884.

It was built in 1890 for industrialist Chester F. Wickwire (1843–1910), and was designed by architect Samuel B. Reed. Chester Wickwire lived in the home from 1890 until his death in 1910. He made his fortune by founding and managing the Wickwire Brothers Company in Cortland, NY, which produced wire products such as horse muzzles, seed spreaders, insect screens, and similar products for rural Americans. In 1974, the 1890 House Museum formed a part of the Tompkins Street District's listing on the National Register of Historic Places, and in 1975, the 1890 House became a museum after campaigning from Cortland County leaders. The museum offers guided and self-guided tours for visitors, who can view 14 rooms on three floors, as well as a cupola. The 1890 House offers monthly educational programs and special events, and film a monthly YouTube series called WickWired, focusing on the Victorian age and the lives of the Wickwire Family.

The 9-11 Memorial in Cortland was created by Tino Ferro, an artist from Little York. He was assisted with the creation of the monument by Mike McKinney, a local mason. The memorial uses pieces of the NYC iconic buildings salvaged from the wreckage.

We took 26 to 80 to US 20. We had seen signs along the way, but when we arrived in Bouckville I was impressed with the Ye Olde Landmark Tavern. The history of the beautiful and historic Landmark Tavern building begins with the efforts to procure a canal route from Binghamton to Utica.  This route would join the coal fields of Northern Pennsylvania with the recently-opened Erie Canal.  The farms, hamlets and villages of the Chenango and Oriskany river valleys, through which the proposed canal was to be constructed, had the potential for great prosperity if this new transportation route were built. The construction of a canal offered the chance to drain the swamps and create lowland farms that could use the rich alluvial soil of the Bouckville area. When news of the pending passage of the canal bill became known many people began to plan new business ventures along the canal route.  Local farms were producing an abundance of grain and the grain could be sent to market by wagon, but that was a slow and laborious process.  A better way to transport the grain was to process it into whiskey and then send it to market in barrels on the new Chenango Canal.  As a result, a fine cobblestone building was erected around 1837 on the west side of the canal and a distillery was born. The building was purchased and converted into a vinegar manufacturer. Another story tells that the Cobblestone Store had a way to hide runaway slaves during the Civil War time period.  The slaves were supposedly hidden on the Chenango Canal boats by the boat captains.  When the boats docked at Bouckville, the runaways were secreted to the Cobblestone Store and hidden in a cavity just to the right of the fireplace, which is located in the second dining room of the Landmark Tavern.

At one time, it was the friendly neighborhood dinosaur museum. And now it's extinct. If you grew up in Richfield Springs, Petrified Creatures was a place you were proud of. It was cheesy, but charming. Not many towns in Central New York can claim to have their very own dinosaur museum. Well, "museum" might be somewhat of an overstatement. Not sure how informative it really was. It was a kitschy roadside attraction from a bygone era, akin to something you might see along the deserted Route 66. Only this was along Route 20, and just a short drive from town. Petrified Creatures closed some time in 2016. For years after, you used to be able to see those bright-colored lumps beyond the fence when you drove past. But at some point, you couldn't see those colors anymore. And so all the town has left is the memories and the remnants of the Petrified Creatures sign.

We arrived at Back Barn Brewery, our Harvest Host home for the night. Back Barn Brewing is a renovated old barn located off historic Route 20 in Duanesburg, NY. A Duanesburg native returned to town and opened the county’s newest and oldest brewery. Back Barn Brewing occupies barns from 1700s and 1800s. Back Barn Brewing makes its beer in a reclaimed 1700s barn and serves it in an adjacent 1800s barn along Route 20, one of New York state’s earliest through routes.

Owner Brenda Schworm opened the tap room Feb. 23, 2019 after more than three years of preparation. Brew master Klaus Kuhland put the first batch in kegs Feb. 15, after more than a quarter century with brewing as either a hobby or a job. Schworm, 64, is a fourth-generation Duanesburg native who left her hometown decades ago but returned recently with hopes of building a brewery after two other careers. She served 23 years in the US Air Force, retiring as an LTC. In late 2015, she bought the two barns. In 2016, she moved back to town and began working on them. Rough-hewn elements of the past remain visible in the barns, which are thoroughly modernized for sanitary production (and comfortable consumption) of beer. 

Along with being one of the few craft breweries based in a 200-year-old barn, Back Barn is one of the few wholly owned by a woman. Schworm and Kuhland have the same fairly straightforward goals: make good beer, serve it in a pleasant setting and have fun in the process. We have to agree with all three of their goals, we had good beer and a great time there!

It was a relaxing night, after a tiring driving day with awesome friends!

Stay tuned for our next leg of our Two Lane Adventure!