Tags
Bill Murray, Brookville, Gobbler's Nob, Ground Hog Day, Jefferson County, Punxatawney Phil, selfie hot dog quest, The Courthouse Grill and Pub
The adventure below is the latest in a series sharing my quest to explore Pennsylvania by visiting each of the sixty-seven county seats and eating a hot dog while in town.
We continued traveling north through Armstrong County in the direction of Brookville in Jefferson County. The county was established March 26, 1804, from part of Lycoming County and later organized in 1830. I think that means it took 26 years to decide who would be the team’s quarterback! President Thomas Jefferson gave his name to the county. No, I don’t know why!
Our first stop was in Punxsutawney and “Gobblers Nob”. Most of you know the name of this town because of “Ground Hog Day” when Punxsutawney Phil forecasts the beginning of spring.
As I type this on April 24th the temperature is in the 30’s and I have seen snow falling! I’m not very pleased with Phil right now!! You might have seen the movie starring Bill Murray entitled “Ground Hog Day”. I keep watching that movie over and over!! Punxsutawney is all about the ground hog with statues of Phil planted in front of most establishments. But, did you know that in May the town becomes home to “Hogtoberfest”? If you are a craft beer drinker this might be an addition to your travel calendar.
We left Phil behind and found our way to the county seat, Brookville along the Sandy Lick and Redbank Creek just north of Interstate 80. Brookville was big in the lumber business and home for two years (1905-1907) to the first four wheel drive car factory; “Twyford Motor Car Company”.
My Jane and I stopped at the court house and found the uniformed security guard Dean very hospital and helpful. We explained our quest and he shared with us that a guy named “Digger Dog” (Not as famous as Phil in Punxsutawney) sold hot dogs from a cart in the court house parking lot in the summer. Digger gives all his profits to charity. Of course, this wasn’t summer and I reminded Dean that we were here today. He gave us that same smile you see in the photo and suggested “The Courthouse Grill and Pub”. This turned out to be a fantastic recommendation.
SERMON ALERT: By the way, let me share another thought on uniformed security and law enforcement folks. There are some bigoted folks in uniform who have been operating outside the law for decades. Lets remove these blots on our society and allow the vast majority of uniformed security and law enforcement folks to serve and protect us in an outstanding manner. I have had a ‘few’ opportunities to relate to uniformed personnel in my ‘checkered’ past. (I have strayed from the straight and narrow on occasion!!) I also was the chaplain for several Security Forces Squadrons in my military adventure. In all my experiences with law enforcement I have only encounter one individual who I would place in the category of those needing to be removed. So, lets give credit where credit is do and lets eliminate that which does a discredit to our society. END OF SERMON
On the way to “The Courthouse Grill and Pub” we passed “Cash’s Collectibles”. You know by now that My Jane cannot pass an antique shop without looking over the contents. So, I left her to do her looking over and entered the “Courthouse Grill and Pub”. Gio, the owner, assured me they did sell hot dogs but where out of them. If I could wait five minutes he would go get some for me. Of course I could wait! Gio has owned this restaurant and bar for 8 years. I enjoyed the atmosphere. Andrea (a transplant from one of the Carolinas-if I remember correctly)thought the ceiling was even the original. While I was eating my hot dog in an onion sauce (stuff on my hands-fantastic) Gio shared some history with me. During a remodel the electrical power into the building had to be upgraded requiring some holes to be dug to connect the service to the main lines. In the digging process tunnels were discovered which were part of the Underground Railroad. Have you noticed how often we discover Pennsylvania communities which stood up against slavery? Pretty cool. I had to have a piece of delicious Hummingbird Cake for dessert. I ordered dessert because I liked the name and also because Gio’s Mom does all the dessert baking. I was reminded of Zach and his Mom in Laporte up in Sullivan County.
My Jane and I plan to stop in Brookville again this summer and try one of “Digger Dog’s” treats.
See you next time.
This book is available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Xlibris Publishing. The book is an irreverent romp through the book of Genesis (meaning ‘beginning’) found fortuitously at the beginning of the Bible.