Mount Gretna, Pennsylvania (AP) – A 54-page brochure is required. We list all classes, concerts, outdoor recreation and other self-improvement and entertainment that are taking place at Pennsylvania Shorta on Mount Gretna this summer.
The area breathes life into June, July and August every year. This will more than double the annual population of about 1,000 or more, creating a crowd of thousands more for the big event. The picturesque front porch that defines the town will be amazed by the energetic cottages that divide the days with cooking lessons, nature walks, yoga, teaching lectures, music and theatre.
In short, it’s like summer camp for things you’d like to match Marquis de La Fayette’s lectures between a birdwatching walk and a bluegrass duo performance on a random July day.
“It won’t last long, but most people who understand it love it,” said Bonnie Harvey, who has lived full-time on Mount Gretna since she and her husband Dave sold the bed and break first inn in a nearby town. “If you’re bored, it’s your own fault.”
As many habits as people do
Summer gatherings known as Chautauquas were practically popular over a century ago. The program for teachers at Christian Sunday School, along Lake Chautauqua in New York, quickly became a movement and energized by the demands of early alcoholism, book club reading circles, and scientific and literary awareness. Ultimately, they brought education, entertainment, and religion to the Northeast Lakes and Great Lakes communities in Canada and beyond.
John Schmitz, an archivist and historian of the former Chatoa Society in Chatoaca, New York, said what they all had in common was “a valid use of leisure.”
Traveling “tents” Chatoukas quickly developed, and on one account, the program reached millions of people before the movement peaked in 1907, largely vanishing as priorities changed during the Great Repression.
The majority of Chautauquas have long gone, but Mount Gretna won the second wind in the 1970s with the successful art shows and the establishment of the highly acclaimed Chamber Music and Jazz Concert Series. now Listed in national historic locationshas been thriving ever since.
Nowadays, Mount Gretna appears to have as many quirks as people do. The wooded topography of the mountainous region about 84 miles (135 km) west of Philadelphia, known as “Cultural Gulch” in newspapers decades ago, includes around 200 privately owned cottages, most of which remain the same as they were in the early 1900s. But it’s not some private clubs – some cottages have been kept within families for generations, while others are bought and sold, with a small percentage rented under limited local regulations.
“When most people say, ‘I’m interested in buying a house,’ one of the first things I say is, ‘How patient are you?’ says Michelle Shay, a real estate agent who lives in Mount Gretna, “I’m interested in buying a house.” “Some of them are 100-year-old cottages built on a tree stump. You really need to know what you’re buying.”
Commit to lifelong learning
The imposing 1909 Philosophy Hall building is the place where many lectures and classes are held. The old prison on Mount Gretna is on the second floor and has a wooden bar. The cottage has quaint names such as Lazy Dog. The benches are scattered and invite conversations. There is no postal delivery in some towns, so the post office serves its dual duties as a kind of community hub. The ice cream shop, which has been in operation since the 1890s, has been active throughout the summer.
“The community is really great. Something’s going on all the time,” said Reed Flets, a university student who grew up on Mount Gretna and rented a canoe in Lake Conewago. “You can then get out of it what you want, you can.”
The atmosphere of the summer hideaway is nurtured by restrictions on the operation of lawnmowers and other power equipment and strict regulations on tree trimming. But running away from each cheek of the cottage doesn’t necessarily mean running away from each other. Parking can be an elusive challenge and privacy. Volunteer activities are being extended.
John Weaver, chairman of the Pennsylvania Shokakua Foundation, said Mount Gretna has a “pure talent concentration.” “You have a group of really, really smart people who are committed to lifelong learning that all sorts of things hang out in the same place.”
A few of this summer’s events: Nature Week’s Rachel Carson re-establisher. Playwrights are discussing their work. Dancer giving flamenco lessons. The annual art show is extremely popular, with out-of-towners taking shuttle buses from miles away. And for two hours at the end of August, International will make music on your porch day.
It’s ingrained in American history
Mount Gretna was founded along the railroad built in the 1880s by Robert Coleman, great grandson of Irish immigrants who supplied munitions to the Continental Army during the American Revolution and became the great grandson of Irish immigrants known as Pennsylvania’s First Millionaire.
Coleman directed the construction of the picnic ground along his new railway line and expelled the parcel. We went to a group inspired by “mother” chautauqua in New York. By 1892, the Romi had been laid out and work began on public buildings and cottages in Chautauqua, Pennsylvania.
According to Mount Gretna of Jack Bitner’s comprehensive history in 2012, it was an instant hit. Classes held during the inauguration season include Bible studies, botany, zoology and music. The Faculty of Education organized lectures on history, art, language, literature, psychology and mathematics.
Approximately 8,800 people participated. They will be at home on Mount Gretna today.
