BACKROADS • JUNE 2021
Page 14
Thisilldous Eatery presents
GREAT ALL AMERICAN DINER RUN Port Clinton Hotel 231 Center Street, Port Clinton, PA 19549 610-562-3354 • www.facebook.com/ThePortClintonHotel In these days of chain restaurants that fill almost every exit of the Interstates, it is refreshing to come across something that still serves up a welcoming bygone flavor as well as some great and tasty food. When we had a few glorious late winter days a lot of riders came down with a mid-week illness and the only real vaccination was to get on your motorcycle and go for a sunny and warm ride. We did just that, with the plan of meeting up with friends out in Port Clinton, Pennsylvania at Hermy’s, a very neat BMW and Triumph motorcycle shop. For us, we love walking around bike shops and Herm and his crew are always friendly, open, and very easy with us spending time just browsing and taking all that they offer. They have been big supporters of Backroads for years and we always enjoy heading out this way. Drop by – it is a great shop and, with this month’s Great All American Diner Run, an even more delicious destination. The Port Clinton Hotel served as a stagecoach stop between Sunbury and Philadelphia in the early 1800s. Stagecoaches stopped at the Port Clinton Hotel, which was a great social center where news from other states and even foreign countries was exchanged. In fact, it became customary when signing
tasty places to take your bike
the hotel register to add any news that they thought might be of common interest. The hotelkeeper and his family cared for the driver and passengers stabled the horses and entertained with a fiddler and dances. The hotel’s birth name was the “Gately Hotel” and is now named the “Port Clinton Hotel”. Situated in southern Schuylkill County, the unique little town clings on the hillside and embraces the peninsula between the Little Schuylkill and the main river. Port Clinton takes its name from De-Witt Clinton on the Erie Canal and was laid out in 1829.
A thriving community for many years, for large shipments of coal was brought to Port Clinton by the primitive railroads and was loaded on canal boats for shipment. The Schuylkill Canal passed through Port Clinton and many of the residents of the little borough received employment on the rail-
