Kevin Patrick, Pennsylvania Caves & Other Rocky Roadside Wonders. Stackpole Books, 2004. Photographs, maps, diagrams, visitor information, bibliography, index, 248 pages, paperback $19.9 5.
Who could ever forget a cave tour that began in a souvenir store where admission was paid and assurance was given by the clerk that the guide would join the couple at the cave entrance, and then the couple was met by the same clerk sporting a jacket and introducing himself as their guide for the tour? He confidently and professionally ignored the possibility that the couple had met him only moments before in another incarnation. That was only the beginning of the special charm of Woodward Cave at the eastern end of Penns Valley in the center of Pennsylvania. The great appeal of visiting caves in the state is that not only can you be awestruck by geology, but also you can be entertained by the Americana of their operators. This guide by a professor of geography at Indiana University of Pennsylvania perfectly captures such a dual appeal.
Every operating show cave of Pennsylvania is covered in well-written detail with full advice on visiting, and seven more caves that were once open for tours are described as well. The geologic stories are comprehensive and interesting, as are the human stories of the people who found, exploited, and cared for the caves over the years. The author also includes as part of his "rocky roadside wonders" balanced rocks, ice mines, open coal mines for touring, and other educational opportunities. Small, undeveloped caves such as Carlisle's Cave Hill are not included, no matter the hoary accumulation of legends surrounding it, but it was surprising to read of a former cave complex in nearby Franklin County, Baker Caverns, discovered in 1830 and run as a tourist attraction from 1932 to 1954. Every chapter in the book, including the appendices, is loaded with fascinating adventures, science, and local historical twists and turns as engaging and mysterious as any subterranean trail. Period photographs and postcards help tell the stories in our brief human span, while dozens of maps and diagrams tell the stories in million-year stretches of geologic time. The bibliography is a model to behold: thorough, relevant, and suggestive of future independent research.
Hermann Wellenreuther and Carola Wessel, editors, The Moravian Mission Diaries of David Zeisberger 1772-1781. Penn State University Press, 2005. Maps, appendix, register of persons, index of place and river names and other geographical terms, bibliography, and index, 666 pages, hardcover $65.00.