Penn Pilot offers showcase aerial photography of Pennsylvania’s landscape from the 1930’s to the 80’s. This tool was started by the Pennsylvania Geological Survey, according to Maurie Kelly, Director of Informatics with the Institutes of Energy and the Environment at Penn State University.

“They are part of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and they had thousands and thousands of paper photographs that were in file cabinets, essentially. And they approached Penn State about scanning those and then putting them online for people to access. So now people have limited access to the paper photographs, but now anyone can access the digital photographs, said Kelly.

The photos come from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service. A lot of the photography was originally done for agricultural reasons, now the data is utilized for planning and development, solving cold cases, and more. According to Maurie, the site is used 15 million times a year.

“These people who originally took those photographs in the 30s and 40s had no idea how meaningful and how useful this data was going to be almost 100 years later, “said Kelly.

Scott Hoffman, Retired USGS Scientist and Geographer who also worked on imagery to investigate real world problems for USGS- funded problems in Pennsylvania, shares about the equipment used to capture NHP images.

“A lot of the cameras used were the best at the time. I'm thinking it's a memory for me, but I think it's a Zeiss camera was one of the best cameras in the world at that time. And they were able to collect really detailed imagery far better than anyone could have imagined. The aircraft varied from high altitude jets to turboprop aircraft, but just using the best of what was available at the time within the budgetary constraints, “said Hoffman.

Some of the photos on Penn Pilot came from a project called the National Altitude Photography Project.

“That project was really designed to, I think, for lack of a better way, really try to coordinate something nationally and be used in conjunction with what Maury just described with the agricultural program. And just take it maybe a little further, perhaps give a little bit more detail, create a system where the photograph overlaps in a certain percentage, 30%, let's say for each photograph, there's duplication along the flight path. But it was really a nice step to combine with what the agricultural program was doing, “said Hoffman.

Towards the end of the interview, Scott shared the impact of Penn Pilot, and the importance of preserving those photographs.

“Working with one of the if not the leading mapping agency in the world. But that resource is so, so valuable that it's just so important that we keep it. And as Mari said, you know, funding is everything. And this is a valuable resource that, you know, if there's a legislator that's listening to maybe take a really good look at this and say, hey, look, this is something that we really need to keep going and preserve. “I just think it's so important, “said Hoffman.

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Adam Zurn, Executive Director of Uncharted Lancaster offers kayak tours to see the petroglyphs at Safe Habor. The petroglyphs are so significant because they are probably one of the oldest artifacts in all the Susquehanna Valley. There used to be thousands of petroglyph sites in the Lower Susquehanna, but with the buildings of dams they have been submerged.

“There's a series of about six rocks with like significant carvings on them. The two big standouts are little Indian rock and big Indian rock. This cluster of rocks represents one of the two largest concentrations of petroglyphs in the northeast United States, which is cool.”

Little Indian Rock is said to have the best panel rock art east of Mississippi. Zurn says this rock is really unique as it is full with all sorts of carvings.

“There are three serpent carvings on the rock, and so there is a single carving a serpent and it lines up with the solstice sunrise. And so, you can go out there on the first day of summer and the first day of winter and the sun will come up right where its tail is, it is pointing. And then at a slightly different angle are two squiggly lines, again, representing serpents and those two squiggly lines, the on the equinox or the first day of spring and the first day of fall, the sun rises directly between those two.”

The rock tells a story about their natural environment.

“They know where the sun is going to be on, you know, very specific days. And they're and they're marking these things on the rock. And so, for me, that's just one of the things that make little Indian rock so special. You can go out there and you can see, you know, that these carvings are somewhere between 800 and 1200 years old.”

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Central Pennsylvanian's have been experiencing bitter cold conditions this past week. ABC 27 Meteorologist Dan Tomaso says it's due to the artic outbreak which was a huge area of cold air.

"It's almost like a big blob of cold air that came across the Arctic Ocean, ultimately into Canada and then into the United States."

Tuesday morning's weather broke a record of the coldest morning since 1994, which was the coldest day in Harrisburg being recorded at -22 degrees.

"So to put things into perspective, no records being set, but some of the coldest air we've seen in about 30 years time. And so now looking ahead, we're going to start digging out of that. Temperatures in the middle 30s, upper 30s, as early as Sunday and early next week. And I do think we're going to be out of this extreme weather pattern looking at things kind of flattening out with the jet stream, which means not as cold but also not as warm kind of average."

As for another round of snow, Tomaso believes there is not a huge chance for another snowstorm.

" I think it would be more snow showers and not necessarily accumulating snow, but that's when temperatures are getting into that middle. To upper 30s range. That could be, again, a situation where it's snowing, but maybe it's not accumulating. It's melting on contact. But again, something we're watching, nothing significant. And then beyond that, still not a whole lot going on. We may go into February. Kind of quiet in the snow department as of right now."

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Harrisburg-based A Miracle 4 Sure is an organization which provides services to formally incarcerated individuals, mainly women of color, to allow them the opportunity to resume their lives as productive members of society.

Marsha Curry-Nixon, Executive Director of A Miracle 4 Sure, founded the non-profit organization in 2010.

“I was really looking to find a way in which I give back. I am a formerly incarcerated mother of eight and I paroled to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, after serving time in a state prison. And I struggled tremendously.”

Marsha realized there needed to be a structured program that would help woman who were just released from prison. One of the main services the organization provides is mentorship.

“That whole idea of assisting someone who is not familiar with our area and guiding them through their journey and becoming self-sufficient was very important to us. So, we guide individuals on a very individual level to connecting the dots for them and their families so that they could be successful in their journeys.”

Since its inception in 2010, a lot has changed. Marsha realized there was a huge need for urgent essential services like transportation, housing, education, recovery support, and communication with family members.

“We are noticing younger participants coming into our office for assistance. Many elderly people are looking for supportive services, so we've had to tweak a lot of what we learned. I always say we are as strong as our resources, so we make sure that we are conscious of what's available as it pertains to support.”

Thank you so much Lois Saylor, for recommending this topic to The Spark.

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Charles Stewart is the Host and producer for the podcast, Itsnothistory.com. Stewart was always fascinated by history and worked on numerous documentary films. He began his journey with a podcast series called Conestoga Town.

“I'm from Lancaster County. And growing up there, I was always fascinated by the Conestoga and subsequent rivers. And so, I thought, you know, hey, let's you know, and what happened to the people who those rivers are named after.”

He began his podcast by asking one question.

“What happened to the people the rivers are named after. And, you know, the people being the kind of stoker and Susquehanna Indian tribe. And, you know, so I thought this would be a nice, easy way to start a podcast because I naively thought I pretty much knew about what the answer to this question was, which was that the, you know, the last of the kind of stoker and systematic people were tragically massacred in the mid-1700s by a in Lancaster by a group of vigilantes from what's now the Harrisburg area called the Paxton Boys, or the Paxton Rangers.”

Stewart interviewed historians and native Americans for his podcast series, and realized he didn’t know as much as he thought he did. The Conestoga Town series was supposed to be one episode, but as he completed more interviews, he realized there was so much more to the topic.

“And so when I started to dig deeper into this and to talk to, you know, historians and Native American activists, I discovered that this was a very, very far reaching topic with, you know, very, very deep roots in the area. And it had a broad impact, not just in, you know, central Pennsylvania, in Dauphin County, what's now Dauphin County and Lancaster County, but really had far reaching impact on American history as well. And that this was actually a very, very active topic among both professional historians and Native American to Native American communities as well.”

The Conestoga Town series currently has 22 episodes.

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The Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County is a non-profit organization that advocates for the preservation of architecturally and historically significant buildings in Lancaster County. Danielle Keperling, Executive Director of The Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County has been working with the trust since 2001.

“We are a county wide organization that advocates and educates about the importance of historic preservation. It was founded in the late 60s as a response to the urban renewal, where all the buildings in town, in the downtown center and then also in the southeast portion of town were being torn down in the name of progress.”

For Keperling, historic preservation is important for Lancaster County due to it’s history attached to the buildings.

“It has, you know, over 300 years of agriculture or that agriculture architecture. So, there's, you know, there's, you know, from the very early 1700s all the way to modern times. And there's a variety of architecture that you can see just in a one block span downtown.”

The trust has saved many buildings. They also work with property owners to protect historic sites.

“So we do have easements on a little bit over 30 properties. So those are properties that we actually monitor and and work with the homeowners to maintain that go. That goes with the deed. And, you know, its input into perpetuity so it goes with the deed. No regardless of who the owner is. But if people call us and need advice on, you know, this is what we want to do the contractors recommend. We will definitely, you know, send information or, you know, I've even gone out to look at different projects just to help because that's what we're here for. We're here to educate and help people make good choices.”

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The Lafayette Bicentennial Tour planning committee in Lancaster County is preparing for a tour this summer. Kathleen Hood, Coordinator of the Lafayette200 Bicentennial in Lancaster and Western Chester Counties, says this is part of the nationwide commemoration that is the brainchild of the nonprofit, The American Friends of Lafayette.

“The whole goal of this commemoration is to celebrate, commemorate Lafayette's triumphant farewell tour of America in 1824 and ’25. This nonprofit reached into various communities that Lafayette actually visited to identify coordinators who would assemble planning committees. Hundreds of events are being planned nationwide to trace Lafayette's footsteps and the exact dates in the exact order in the 24 states Lafayette visited on his tour here in Lancaster County.”

The commemoration will take place July 27-29. The committee will host multiple events showcasing Lafayette’s journey through Lancaster.

“Well, our committee has been planning for the past three years the events that will basically be walking in the footprints of Lafayette by mirroring where he went, with whom he met, what he did while visiting our very area in 1825.”

Hood shared the importance of remembering and honoring the history of Maquis de Lafayette and his moments in Lancaster.

“I would say that it's absolutely no wonder that Lafayette's 13 month farewell tour of the then 24 states in 1824 and 1825 has become called the Triumphal Tour. Wherever he went, his journey along the Lafayette Trail, he was treated like the biggest celebrity that this country had ever seen. He was a true rock star in 1825 here in Lancaster County. And we're looking to recreate that excitement, that passion and that true understanding of what this American hero actually gave to each and every one of us.”

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PEW Research Center conducted a study to explore if college was worth it in 2024. Richard Fry was the Senior researcher on that project. As costs are rising, the college debate is always a huge discussion.

Also, on the program Asia speaks with David T. Miller about a Martin Luther King Jr. Event taking place January 20th, and the importance of Dr. Kings work.

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Our Journalist Roundtable segment for January 17 included WVIA’s Rural Government Reporter Isabela Weiss and WPSU Sydney Roach.  The roundtable segment focused on Sydney’s reporting on schools and hospitals in rural communities struggling to remain financially solvent. Isabela shared about her report on the newly formed rural population revitalization commission working to address those problems.

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The Interdenominational Minister’s Conference (IMC) of Greater Harrisburg is preparing to host their 47th annual Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Prayer Breakfast. The event is sold out, however IMC President and Pastor of Wesley Union AME Zion Church in Harrisburg, David T. Miller sat down with us on The Spark to share the impact of this event.

“The things that we do to really make it effective is when we come together, we go across denominational lines just like Dr. King there. We have individuals who are Baptists, Methodists, Pentecostal, Jewish, Protestant, Presbyterians all come together for this breakfast. And by doing that, we show the community, according to the Greek word, that how we can all come together no matter our religious background. Dr. King even once said the most segregated hour of the day is Sunday morning because people go to their respective churches and the nominations.”

Breakfast brings the community together regardless of their denominations, while showcasing local non-profit organizations in our area. This year, IMC will also honor educators in our community.

“As we come together, we recognize people in all their faiths. We have rabbis pray during our breakfast, speak during our breakfast and communicate and connect with other nonprofits. Now, here's the great thing about how we get together with other nonprofits. Have them come and set up booths and tables to let other people know how they can get involved with outreach in the local area, in the community and abroad.”

Listen to the podcast to hear the full conversation with The Spark Host Asia Tabb and David T. Miller.

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