Being Western PA Tourists

Some of the Great Western Pennsylvania Fall Foliage

The new cover over the rockshelter. You can see the rock jetting out over the top.
Under the cover you can see the tags where the archaeologists have dug down to bed rock. Artifacts found at the bottom have been dated to be 16,000 years old. Part of the site has been left undisturbed for future excavation as new techniques are developed.
The Indian village under construction.
A young girl throws an atlatl.
The Westmoreland American Art Museum

The Pittsburgh skyline and the fountain at The Point which is flowing pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
A group of dignitaries, including the president of Slovakia, on a Pittsburgh street.

Our stay in Wash, PA hasn't been just all work and dining out with friends and family. We have also done some of the tourist things that we so enjoy while travelling. One of the great things about western PA is being here to see the trees turn all their beautiful colors. There are very few places where you can see the variety of fall foliage you see here. I went with my friend, Mike Sharp, to the Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Museum of Rural History in Avella. Since 1969, the Miller brothers, Albert and Delvin, have operated the site that includes a one-room schoolhouse, covered bridge, blacksmith shop and many other buildings related to rural Pennsylvania life. In 1973, archaeologist, J.M. Adovasio, started a dig in the rockshelter that had been discovered by Albert in 1955 who kept the site a secret until 1973. In five years of digging, artifacts including flint chips, arrowheads, pottery pieces and fire pits were found that have been Carbon 14 dated to be 16,000 years old. This has totally changed the timeline for when humans arrived in North America by several thousand years. The site has been featured in National Geographic and is under consideration as a World Heritage site. A huge cover has recently been built over the site to protect it and enable them to open it to the public. Recent and ongoing development includes an Indian village where you can use an atlatl (spear thrower) used by prehistoric people. On Sunday we went with friends, Georgie and Tom, to the Westmoreland Museum of American Art to see an exhibit of 1940's American art that had originally been displayed at the Carnegie Museum. This was a great little place that also offers a excellent permanent collection. We have been to Pittsburgh a couple of times and were again reminded what a beautiful city it is with the hills and rivers surrounding it.