Although most of the stages are "virtual" because you rely on existing objects in the environment, such as signs and plaques, to provide the clue for the next location, each stage EXCEPT the R&P Coal Building has a hidden object. Most are micros. Keep in mind that these physical caches are "just for fun" and not required to proceed along the Adventure Learning Trail. You ARE required to find the final cache (a micro) to be able to log it as a completed find. ! BYOP.
Stage One: Vinegar Hill
This historic staircase has been an enduring feature of downtown Indiana, PA since it was founded nearly 200 years ago. The sites name has a few different origin stories, demonstrating multiple versions of our history.
- That an early Scots-Irish settler believed that the hillside strongly resembled a hillside in Ireland, called Vinegar Hill, where a battle between the United Irishmen and Great Britain took place, therefore “nick-naming” it Vinegar Hill.
- That a farmer who once settled on the land at the top of the hill, decades before it was divided up into smaller lots, had a barn that he worked from, pressing apples—both his own, and those of local citizens as well—primarily to make cider with. The remains of pressed apples, referred to as pomace, were then discarded outside of the barn over the hillside. After laying out in the open environment, taking in sun and decaying, the hillside would eventually begin to wreak of apple cider vinegar. So much so, in fact, that it would often stink up the entire downtown area.
- While the apple cider vinegar explanation has a significant amount of historical evidence to substantiate it, and the Scots-Irish settler “nick-naming” it after a battle site in Ireland can only be verified by oral accounts, it is fair to say that both explanations could indeed be simultaneously correct.
Once the farm land at the top of the hill had eventually been divided up and sold off through a Sherriff’s sale, many years later Alexander Stewart—Jimmy Stewart’s father—purchased one of the homes situated at the very top of the hill to raise his family in. It is historically noted that Alexander Stewart was curious to know the origins of the name Vinegar Hill, so he wrote a letter to the Irish government inquiring about the validity of a Vinegar Hill also existing in Ireland. The Irish government responded only by verifying the existence of such a hill in Ireland, but could not comment on whether that was the reason why the one in Indiana, PA was named as such.
Regardless of the origin of the name “Vinegar Hill,” the site has remained an important landmark in downtown Indiana and the county seat. So much so that in 2014, new reconstructed steps were dedicated to the town, honoring the site.
This cache is a medium size cache located at the beginning co-ordinates that blends in with nature. Your hint is "Indiana Rocks!"
The coordinates to Stage Two are N 40 37.50X W 079 09.32X. X= the number of large, concrete balls flanking the bottom of the stairs.
Stage Two: Extra, Extra, Read All About It
In a society where cell phones, computers, and television are the biggest distributors of the news, we tend to lose our appreciation for the printed word. Newspapers have been an integral part of our community. The Old Indiana Gazette building is no longer in existence. The original building was built when the Gazette was founded in 1890. Print media continues to connect people in rural communities across the nation.
This cache is a micro located at these co-ordinates. The signs have it! BYOT.
The coordinates to Stage Three are N 40 37.3XX W 079 09.426. XX= six less than the last two digits of the year the Gazette was founded.
Stage Three: The Gates Hospital (Virtual)
The third historic site on the ATL used to reside on the busiest streets in Indiana, 923 Philadelphia Street. It was built in 1929 by Dr. William Dunn Gates who named the ‘hospital’ after himself. Dr. William Dunn Gates was a part of the Indian Medical Society and at one point he was the president of the Society. One of the benefits of his hospitals was that it gave patience the privacy they need, hence the name ‘Gates Private Hospital.’ Dr. Gates only worked at the hospital for a short period when he died in 1935. It was then taken over by his colleague Dr. Jesse W. Campbell. From the information that we have gathered we know that the hospital was in business up to 1953, but we believed that it could have been still running later than this. There is some historical documentation indicating that the ‘Gates Private Hospital’ was actually a small doctor’s office.
This cache is a micro located at these co-ordinates. The signs have it! BYOT.
The coordinates to Stage Four are N 40 37'24.4'' W 79° 09'0X.0. X= the number of letters on the name of the street sign that crosses Philadelphia at this stage plus 2. You are tops!
(Hint: the name happens to be a signer of the Declaration of Independence).
Stage Four: Lifted Up by the Arts!
The building that is the Indiana Theater was opened in July of 1924 by Mrs.Elkin, one year after the purchase of the structure, formerly known as the Marshall building. She opened the theater to commemorate her late husband, John Pratt Elkin, who passed away in 1915, but whose dream it had been to open a live theater. The theater thrived with four live acts a week and soon required a bigger venue. Mrs.Elkin then purchased The Ritz Theater, which was across the street from the Indiana Theater, which primarily showed films, silent at the time. The two theaters went back and forth in competition for several years. After the death of Mrs.Elkin in September of 1934, both theaters were sold to Michael Manos, who ran both together successfully into the 1980’s. The Ritz Theater was eventually taken down for other public works projects, but the Indiana Theater was saved in the late 1990’s from demolition. The art community in Indiana has a long history of influence, as community theaters were once a central meeting place for our community members. Laurabel "Jane" Blue (born 1924), a long-time residents of Indiana, recalls seeing "Gone With the Wind" at the Indiana Theater when it first premiered in 1939. This cache is a micro located at these co-ordinates. HINT: You can drive into the parking garage and not pay if it is less than 15 minutes, but be careful because if you're there longer, it is cash only. BYOT.
The coordinates to Stage Five are N 40 37.30X W 079 09.148. To find X count the number of bolts (ignore the nuts!) on the 'Gears of Industry' panel on the mural located on the side of the Indiana Theater. We recommend that you look at the entire mural created by young, local artists. It is good stuff!
Stage Five: When Coal Was King!
In the last 100 years, the coal industry has played a significant role in the communities of Northern Appalachia, including Indiana. The Rochester and Pittsburgh Coal and Iron Company (R&PC&IC) was the backbone of the coal industry in Western Pennsylvania, bringing with it the prosperity and industrialization. The Rochester and Pittsburgh Coal Company (R&PC) was incorporated in 1881 with the beginning stages of planning and developing its mines in 1882. On July 1, 1883, the first commercial sales of coal came out of Jefferson County. The year 1885 brought the purchase of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh Railroad after it went into receivership. This brought even more economic prosperity to the company, by the means of owning their own transportation source that linked the mines and the great lake region. In 1899 the plans for the company's headquarters to be moved to Indiana were the company's mining had been focused.
In the late 1940's after the second world had ended the company had an all-time high of coal shipped in 1947. Many peaks and valleys of production went on through the 50s and 60s with alternate fuels being developed and the non-union mines causing prices on coal to drop. R&PC&IC had switched sales strategies concentrating on long term supply sales. Penelec and R&PC&IC came to a coal supply agreement for the two electrical power plants in 1964 securing long term supply contracts.
The 70s and 80s brought many hardships to R&PC&IC with the steel mills closing due to international computation. The R&PC&IC went on to celebrate over 100 continuous years of mining in 1981 and the company had remained in the Iselin family financial control from 1885 until 1998 when the company was sold to CONSOL Energy. This was a great feat for the company considering the nature of the industry. The beautiful, old R&P Coal Building now houses many different businesses, including a dentist's office and a fitness center. This historic building continues to serve our small, Appalachian community and reminds us of the day when coal was king.
No physical cache here.
The coordinates to Stage Six are N 40 37.16X W 079 09.080. X = the number of stairs under the R&P arch at stage five.
Stage Six: Memorializing the Past
As its name implies, Memorial Park is home to statues and plaques that commemorate war veterans from Indiana, PA from the time of the American Revolution up until recent conflicts, as well as contains numerous graves of both civilians and soldiers. This historic park carries a heavy importance for our community. Memorial Park’s history begins in 1774 with the purchase of much of the land that Indiana resides on today by Thomas and John Penn, and these 267 acres were referred to as “Colforgie”. One year later in 1775, Colforgie is purchased by Revered John Smith. The land remained in the Reverend’s possession for approximately twenty years before it was yet again sold, this time to John Conrad Reis (also spelled Rice) in 1795. John Reis himself was a veteran of the Revolutionary War, and his sons Phillip and Conrad became the first two blacksmiths to reside in Indiana. Before churches were built in the town, John Reis would hold services in one of the barns on his property, and then in 1804 his son Conrad Rice gave two acres to the county to use one half for the German Lutheran Congregation to build a church and cemetery, and one half for the English Presbyterian Congregation to do the same. The first burial in the cemetery was for the child Amelia Shryock in 1808.
As years passed, the cemetery fell into disrepair and become incredibly overgrown with thorn bushes and other thick vegetation, and it was remarked that cows were often seen on the property. Because of its overgrown nature, three fugitive slaves hid there while fleeing the south via the Underground Railroad in 1845. The three slaves were Charlie Brown, Anthony Hollingsworth, and Jarred or Garret Harris (the truth of his name is contested among local historians because sources refer to him as either).
By 1875, locals had begun to refer to the cemetery as “Skeleton Park” because of its unclean appearance. It wasn’t until 1923 that the county gave permission to the Mothers of Democracy to clean up the property and install a memorial for soldiers. The community was in support of this, but it took some convincing for the Lutheran Church to agree to it. Initially, the church had planned to cut down the trees to sell for lumber and then sell the property. Alex Stewart adamantly opposed this and enforced the memorial’s placement, even going to the lengths of being jailed for a few nights because he cut down the “no trespassing” sign that the Lutheran church had put up outside the park. Eventually, the Lutheran church caved to the demands of the community, and the statue of the doughboy was placed in Memorial Park. By 1927, the park had fallen into disrepair once again. Clair Weaver, Commander of the American Legion, appealed to the county to have a “beautification project”. The park, which had previously sunk below street level, was filled with soil, and the graves were carefully cleaned and maintained.
In 1957, The Mothers of Democracy had a bandstand build in the park upon which there could be speeches or musical performances given to honor veterans, and the bandstand was given a roof in later years and other plaques were places to honor the veterans of World War II, Vietnam, and Korea. In 2006, IUP Archaeological Services used ground-penetrating radar to examine the contents of the park. With the information they discovered, they were able to estimate the original size of the park and the number of graves present. Today, the park serves as a community gathering space for summer concerts and the annual Memorial Day ceremony held to honor all of our community’s veterans.
This cache is a micro located at these co-ordinates. Hint: "It's (not) electric!
The coordinates for Stage Seven are N 40 37.380 W 079 09.0XX. XX = the last two digits of the year that Mary McCleary died plus 15. (Hint: her grave is flat just off the path)
Stage Seven: Freedom and Justice
The Old Indiana Courthouse is the iconic building of our community. The courthouse was built from 1869 to 1870 and designed by local architect James W. Drum. A jail and sheriff's residence were constructed next to the original building in 1879. In 1845, 12 year-old Anthony Hollingsworth had followed the Underground Railroad from Virginia to our town to escape his enslavement. He was saved by Indiana residents when they surrounded the hotel where he was held and demanded his release from the bounty hunters who were holding him. A local abolitionist named Dr. Robert Mitchell hired a lawyer to file a writ of habeas corpus on Hollingsworth’s behalf. The Judge in the case, Judge Thomas White, decided in favor of Hollingsworth and he was freed from the Old Courthouse on this site. Hollingsworth made it to Canada where it is believed he lived a long life. This incident, known as the “Kidnapping” is an important part of our town’s rich history.
This cache is a micro located at these co-ordinates. Relax and reflect on your journey! BYOT.
Thanks for exploring the history of Indiana along the Adventure Learning Trail!