E E R F he wind
as t
The Three Picassos Amigos Kudos to Dr. Frank! Fond Farm Memories Finger Lakes Boating Museum
www.mountainhomemag.com
Three of Our Finest Artists Reunite to Put on a Show, Including Mountain Home’s Own Tucker Worthington
By Cindy Davis Meixel JULY 2015
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Volume 10 Issue 7
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The Three Picassos Amigos
Dirty Doin’s
By Sarah Wagaman
By Cindy Davis Meixel Three of our finest artists reunite to put on a show, including Mountain Home’s own Tucker Worthington.
Come on in—the mud’s fine! (and it helps out a charity).
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The Why of Whiskers By Gayle Morrow
Ever wonder why your cat has ’em? Our columnist fills you in.
38
6 Memories Afloat
Don’t Touch That Dial!
By Don Knaus Hammondsport preserves the past in the new Finger Lakes Boating Museum.
By Cornelius O’Donnell
Feeling steamed by a hot summer kitchen? Here’s our cool solution.
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King Riesling
By Holly Howell
Dr. Frank’s Riesling rules the world.
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Back of the Mountain
25 Harvesting the Past
The ripple of freedom.
By Linda Roller Set in fertile soil, the Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum flourishes.
By Sarah Wagaman
Cover by Tucker Worthington; cover photo by Cindy Davis Meixel. This page (from top):Cindy Davis Meixel; Don Knaus; and Courtesy of Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum.
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w w w. m o u n ta i n h o m e m ag . co m
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Associate Publishers Dawn Bilder George Bochetto, Esq. D e s i g n & P h o t o g r ap h y Elizabeth Young, Editor Tucker Worthington, Cover Design Contributing Writers Maggie Barnes, Patricia Brown Davis, Alison Fromme, Holly Howell, Roger Kingsley, Don Knaus, Cindy Davis Meixel, Fred Metarko, David Milano, Gayle Morrow, Cornelius O’Donnell, Brendan O’Meara, Roger Neumann, Gregg Rinkus, Linda Roller, Kathleen Thompson, Joyce M. Tice C o n t r i b u t i n g P h o t o g r ap h e r s Mia Lisa Anderson, Bernadette Chiaramonte-Brown, Bill Crowell, Bruce Dart, Ann Kamzelski, Nigel P. Kent, Ken Meyer, Tina Tolins, Sarah Wagaman, Curt Weinhold, Terry Wild S a l e s R ep r e s e n t a t i v e s Brian Earle Michael Banik Linda Roller Administrative Assistant Amy Packard T h e B ea g l e Cosmo (1996-2014) Yogi (Assistant) ABOUT US: Mountain Home is the award-winning regional magazine of PA and NY with more than 100,000 readers. The magazine has been published monthly, since 2005, by Beagle Media, LLC, 25 Main St., 2nd Floor, Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, 16901, and online at www.mountainhomemag.com. Copyright © 2010 Beagle Media, LLC. All rights reserved. E-mail story ideas to editorial@mountainhomemag. com, or call (570) 724-3838. TO ADVERTISE: E-mail info@mountainhomemag.com, or call us at (570) 724-3838. AWARDS: Mountain Home has won 66 international and statewide journalism awards from the International Regional Magazine Association and the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association for excellence in writing, photography, and design. DISTRIBUTION: Mountain Home is available “Free as the Wind” at hundreds of locations in Tioga, Potter, Bradford, Lycoming, Union, and Clinton counties in PA and Steuben, Chemung, Schuyler, Yates, Seneca, Tioga, and Ontario counties in NY. SUBSCRIPTIONS: For a one-year subscription (12 issues), send $24.95, payable to Beagle Media LLC, 25 Main St., 2nd Floor, Wellsboro, PA 16901 or visit www.mountainhomemag.com.
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Cindy Davis Meixel
Repeat performance: Thirty years after their first joint exhibit, (left to right) Dale Witherow, Tucker Worthington, and Mike Biddison have reunited for Departures & Returns at the Gmeiner Arts & Cultural Center in Wellsboro.
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The Three Picassos Amigos Three of Our Finest Artists Reunite to Put on a Show, Including Mountain Home’s Own Tucker Worthington
By Cindy Davis Meixel
T
ucker Worthington’s first memory of painting reaches back to sixth or seventh grade. “We didn’t have any art classes then, but someone had handed me some supplies,” he recalls. “I’d been affected by reading something on World War II and I drew this downed pilot—a solitary soul in a rubber raft out on the open sea—all in pastels.” Seven decades later, recollection, reality, and obsession continue to move across the canvas as Worthington explores his world—and other worlds—from Stony Fork Creek to Guatemala to Mars. Movement is slower these days, though, and painful. A deteriorating hip has left the Whitneyville resident, 77, with bone-on-bone agony and difficulty standing in front of an easel. “I could sit, but I don’t like to do that. I prefer to stand to move the paint across the canvas,” he says. See Three Amigos on page 8
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Detail of Utterances, by Mike Biddison.
Three Amigos continued from page 7
An invitation by the Gmeiner Arts & Cultural Center in Wellsboro to hold a one-man show turned from exciting to overwhelming. “It became obvious that my physical disabilities were affecting the output I was capable of,” Worthington explains. He worried about filling the space. Enter two of his favorite artistic colleagues from the past: Mike Biddison, 54, a Wellsboro High School graduate now residing near Philadelphia, and Dale Witherow, 76, a retired Mansfield University art professor who lives near Olympia, Washington. Considered by many to be three of the most talented artists to ever call Tioga County home, the trio will stage Departures and Returns at the Gmeiner during the month of July. The exhibit opens on Sunday, July 5, with Worthington’s hip replacement 8
surgery following the next day. “It’s all coming together at one time,” Worthington says of his big July events. “The two of them are doing me a great favor by coming all this way to exhibit with me. They are coming to pick my ass up. They didn’t have to do this. I’m forever indebted to them. “I enjoy the idea of showing with Mike and Dale—they’ve had a profound affect on me, my life, and my painting. Dale is one of the best abstract expressionists and one of the finest designers I know, and Mike is equally talented and just a wonderful young man who helped open up my limitations years ago.” The last (and first) time the three artists exhibited together was thirty years ago at the Gmeiner when they took part in the Peeah Dey Woofda exhibition in May 1985 with a handful of other artists. Wildly
experimental in its day, the display centered on the fine art collection of an imaginary, mysterious character from Eastern Europe. Its opening was playful, profound—and memorable. “The most fun of all was people being assigned a name card with their relationship to Peeah Dey Woofda, and being asked to take on that role,” Witherow recalls. “And the opening ended with people dancing, which was a first in terms of art openings—for me, at least.” The exhibit was the result of a master class led by Witherow in the infamous “art hut” at Mansfield University (MU) in 1984. That was the first time the three men merged, although Witherow and Worthington were college colleagues (Worthington worked on MU’s public relations staff in graphic design and media capacities). See Three Amigos on page 10
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Morning Practices, by Dale Witherow. Three Amigos continued from page 8
The art hut proved to be a fertile meeting ground for the trio. At the time, the Mansfield artists were in their forties and Biddison was in his early twenties, fresh from attaining a B.F.A. in painting and drawing from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. “We explored not only painting but the underpinnings of our
explorations, indulging in the mysteries behind our visions and creations,” Biddison says of the intense master class. Worthington adds, “It was such a pleasure encountering a mind like Mike’s. We had a fundamental rapport. He was someone who could cut through all the crap I had—all
the veils and ways I had of disguising myself. Mike forced me to paint outside my edges—which, of course, Dale always did.” All three had migrated to Tioga County in the ’60s and ’70s: Witherow from western Pennsylvania, Worthington from the Philadelphia area, and Biddison as a See Three Amigos on page 12
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Three Amigos continued from page 10
boy with his family from Louisiana. “Wellsboro and Mansfield were a wonderful melting pot,” Biddison cites, “creating an inspiring and unusual mixing of local business folks, farmers, educators of all stripe, artists, poets, thespians, and musicians—a perfect place to encourage the wide open exploration of the arts. In this atmosphere, it was easy to have the impression that art can go anywhere and be for everybody to participate in.” From this free-thinking realm, the three explored their artistic processes, informed each other’s work, and diverged. Biddison has carved out an artistic life in Chester County, working as a restoration carpenter and crafting art from wood and reclaimed objects. He has created commissioned sculptures for businesses and was invited to
participate in an ode to the late Wharton Esherick, considered the godfather of the studio furniture movement. Sections of a large, dead poplar tree removed from Esherick’s property were distributed to artists, and Biddison’s resulting chair was featured in The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2012. Witherow has enjoyed great artistic success after retiring in 1996 and moving to the Northwest. He has sold over 600 paintings in that time and has had his work in galleries in Seattle, Portland, Sante Fe, and Scottsdale. His paintings have been purchased for private and business collections as well as for stage set art for television shows. “The act of painting keeps me connected to the present,” explains Witherow. “Painting for me is an exploration of the self, memory,
emotion, and the light and dark of all things. My painting keeps me in touch with my own life changes, and reveals new questions about how I choose to live my life. Everything is a self-portrait.” Because of the logistics of being 3000 miles away, Witherow has elected not to ship original works in for the exhibit, but will be displaying high-quality prints of original artwork. “Exhibiting with Tucker and Mike will be nostalgic and fun. They are such great guys with huge talents. I am honored to be asked to show with them,” Witherow says. “Returning to Wellsboro is always fun, and a great opportunity for me to check in with friends and family.” The exhibit’s title, Departures and Returns, reflects a variety of journeys and how the artists’ works have See Three Amigos on page 48
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Andy Worthington Art interrupted: Tucker Worthington has brought a forty-year-old encounter on the streets of Mansfield to the canvas—At the Intersection of a Vision and a Dream: Mace’s, One Chair, No Waiting (above)—for an exhibit at the Gmeiner in July. Below, his painting Dancers in a Field of Phlox.
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Three Amigos continued from page 13
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changed and deepened, and reflects their lives now. “Thirty years on, of course a lot has changed,” cites Biddison. “The obvious part is that we’ve aged and we’ve become a lot wiser, well, especially Tucker and Dale. Bodies have aged and are challenged in new ways. Family commitments and work have changed and require adjustment and adaptation. Some of us have departed the area. Some of us have departed from our usual way of making art. But, we return, making the old new again. And maybe this is not obvious, but we return because we relish the idea of gathering the wonderful menagerie of juicy humans that will come visit for a time.” Biddison will exhibit an array of “shrubbi”—the term he uses to describe his transformed rubbish. “I believe that intimate objects can remind us of soul and can still enchant us into falling in love with ourselves and each other. Falling in love even with the junk—especially the junk. Junk into enchanted beauty,” he offers. Worthington isn’t intending his portion of the exhibit to be a retrospective, but a glimpse into his current state—obsessions, reflections, frailties, and all. Also retired from MU, Worthington revels in the time now available for artistic adventures and forays into commercial art projects, including the monthly creation of Mountain Home magazine covers. He plans to exhibit works from his Stony Fork Creek series, a final piece from his Guatemala series, a forty-year-old “interrupted vision” encountered on the streets of Mansfield, and his recent two-year obsession with Mars. A dabbler in geology and See Three Amigos on page 16
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Three Amigos continued from page 14
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At the Gmeiner in July: These are among the works that will hang in the Departures & Returns exhibit in Wellsboro. (Facing page, above) Evening Meadow, by Dale Witherow, and (left) Muse’s Door, by Mike Biddison. (This page, clockwise from top) White Out, Conversing with the Cat, Memory Urn, and Stacked Cups, all by Dale Witherow.
See Three Amigos on page 48 17
Dirty Doin’s
Come On In—the Mud’s Fine! (And It Helps Out a Charity) Story and Photos by Sarah Wagaman
S
linging mud, roaring engines, and the hollers of spectators explode as the large metal structures emerge from the chocolate-colored mud pit. The loud exhausts and smoking engines build excitement as the racers try to elude the mud trap, and that energy never stops throughout the weekend, once a month at Wolf Springs Off Road Park in Knoxville. The mud races and numerous other events are ongoing from May through November, as owner Dan Riley provides activities for the whole family: face painting for kids, bicycle give-away for girls and boys, mud runs for women and children, tug-of-war, hill climbs, food vendors, bands (in the evening hours), and more. It’s not unusual to see a big yellow “swamp bus” with oversized tires stopping to drop off and pick up passengers of all ages throughout the park. “People love it,” explains Joyce, a dedicated staff member (and mother of the park innovator). A change of clothes, a tent, and a few towels are the bare essentials for a funtastic and dirty weekend. Oh, and Alexander Hamilton (a ten dollar bill) not only covers the entry fee, but the majority of the profits for these well-attended events is donated to a charity of the month! It’s a win-win-win event—except, of course, for the contender who lost their muck boot in the knee-high swamp during the race. For more information call (814) 367-5418 or go to their Web site (www.wolfspringsoffroadpark.com) or their Facebook page. See Dirty Doin’s on page 20. IRMA and Keystone award-winning photographer (and medalwinning runner) Sarah Wagaman is an art teacher in the Wellsboro Area School District, currently finishing her second master’s degree, this one in educational leadership.
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Mother Earth
The Why of Whiskers By Gayle Morrow
M
y dad told me the following story that his mother, my Grandma Morrow, told him. She was working down in Tiadaghton, doing something for the railroad, I think. I don’t know the year. There was a cat hanging around her work area and Grandma, for some reason, wondered what would happen if she pulled the kitty’s whiskers. Not hard—just a little tug (don’t try this at home!) to satisfy her curiosity. So she did, and what happened was that the kitty threw up. Interesting. Nowhere in my search for information on animal whiskers did I find anything about that being the reaction to a tweak on the aforementioned body hair, although I did see stern warnings against trimming/ cutting. And Dad told me the story when I was really little, perhaps to forestall any desire on my part to experiment with that kind of activity.
He was successful in that regard, so I can’t tell you from first-hand experience if that’s what happens or not. Grandma could have been pulling both our legs as well as the cat’s whiskers. What I can tell you is that many, if not most, land mammals, as well as some who live in and around the water (think otter or walrus or seal), have cranial vibrissae. These tactile hairs are on the bristly side—stiffer than body hair/fur but still flexible, with a range of thickness. If you have cat or dog companions you may occasionally find a shed whisker. Pick it up and examine it—its texture and malleability are really quite unique. A cat’s whiskers are rooted more deeply than body hair and grow from special follicles that have sensory nerves. The number, length, and even the color of whiskers varies from cat to cat, but the arrangement of them on the part of
the face called the whisker pad is not random. Vibrissae are multi-functional; I saw them referred to as GPS units, radar, and the Swiss Army knife of the kitty’s sensory tool kit. Obviously they help with navigation in tight spots or when sight is compromised, but feline and canine whiskers may also indicate state of mind or mood. Watch your dog or cat closely and you’ll see that while most times whiskers stand fairly straight out they do every now and then go flat against the animal’s face. If you’re familiar enough with your friend’s persona you will be able to determine what that flattening behavior means in frame-of-mind terms. Just remember—no whisker pulling allowed! Keystone Press Award-winning columnist Gayle Morrow is the former editor of the Wellsboro Gazette. 23
WELCOME TO
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WELLSBORO
Kathleen Gaffney
Safe harbor: Home to the crafts that have plied the Finger Lakes for centuries, the Finger Lakes Boating Museum inhabits the former Taylor Wine Company buildings in Hammondsport, donated by CEO Bud Meade and his Mercury Aircraft Corporation.
Memories Afloat
Hammondsport Preserves the Past in the New Finger Lakes Boating Museum By Don Knaus
I
was eleven-goin’-on-twelve and sound asleep in my trundle, dreaming of the pretty redhead who held my hand while we danced around the May Pole. It was four o’clock a.m., and my old man rousted me out of bed to go fishing. The Old Man had been bitten by the lake trout bug and, after a number of trips to Crooked Lake, he decided to drag me along. It would be my first outing and
trouting on Keuka Lake. I had dozed for an hour when the car came to a stop. Dad scurried to the trunk of the car, lifted his 5-horse Evinrude motor, and raced to a boat. Another sprint and his handhammered Seth Green rig was aboard. “Hurry up! Get in the boat,” he hissed. The Old Man acted as though we were stealing the watercraft. I felt like I did the night the East-End
Nature Club raided the neighbor’s garden. I learned later that Dad and his buddies apparently had an arrangement with Clark’s Boat Livery, where they could take a boat before daybreak and pay for the rental when they returned to the dock. I didn’t know that. I muttered to myself, “This lake fishing might be fun.” Once on the lake, Dad motored to just the right spot, throttled the See Memories Afloat on page 27 25
WELCOME TO
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CORNING’S GAFFER DISTRICT
Memories Afloat continued from page 25
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engine down to trolling speed, and began dropping silver lures into the drink, one by one, as each spoon took its turn on the rig. When that was done, he handed me a spinning rod that held a small gold Rooster Tail spinner. “Here,” he growled, “you can use this to fish with.” Talk about boring. I let out about a thousand yards of line and closed the bail on the reel. Before long, I had devised a method of securing the rod while I closed my eyes. Every once in a while, the Old Man stirred. He furiously yanked the line up until a nice lake trout appeared, was netted, and was boated. I watched the fish flop on the bottom of the boat and closed my eyes again. With the steady, easy rocking of the boat and the comforting lull of the trolling motor, I was fast asleep in no time. Now, had they offered college degrees for foul language, my Old Man would have earned a PhD in profanity. So I was not shocked when he…understand, he had a progression whenever he used the Lord’s name in vain. Jeez was level one. Next was Jee-zus! Then Jesus Christ! The top level was when he gave the Son of God a middle initial. And I heard him scream, “Jesus H. Christ!” I opened my eyes and saw what looked and sounded like a jet skim past our boat. The speedster set up a surge of swells and sprays that threatened to swamp our dinghy. I murmured to myself, “Wow! What a boat.” Another fisherman trolled copper wire about fifty yards away, and the speedster had zoomed between us. He corrected the Old Man, shouting, “No, that wasn’t Jesus. That was a Penn Yan Swift…the fastest boat on the Finger Lakes.” It was my first day in a boat of any kind, but I vowed to see a Penn Yan Swift up close one day. Two hours later, after basking…no, broiling, baking, and burning in the hot sun as it beat down upon the occupants of our boat, I felt a tug. “Dad, I’ve got one on.” And I reeled in the first lake trout I ever caught. I started to enjoy the lake fishing. But the 5-horse died and the Old Man went back to wet flies and brown trout on Pine Creek. Just last week, I finally fulfilled that sixty-year-old vow. I saw a Penn Yan Swift, looking like it had just rolled off the factory floor. And I saw a lot more. I was at the Finger Lakes Boating Museum. The place is in Hammondsport on Pleasant Valley Road. Some folks might remember the site as the former Taylor Wine Company. My lovely bride and I enjoyed a personally escorted “cook’s tour” led by museum Executive Director Andrew Tompkins. And what a tour. We both whispered, “Wow!” when we entered the lobby. The reception area was impressive and board member Pat Etter was working See Memories Afloat on page 29
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Finger Lakes Boating Museum 607-569-2222 www.flbm.org
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Memories Afloat continued from page 27
A Legacy Four Generations in the Making
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the desk. Pat told us that it was once the accounting office for Taylor Wine Company and that museum volunteers had torn out scores of cubicles to create the wide-open greeting space. Etter gave us a detailed history of the museum and took us next door to view a professionally produced video. The words “Wow,” uttered by my wife and I, and “volunteers,” spoken by Tompkins and Etter, would echo throughout the museum while we were there. Each of the various halls is dedicated to a specific type of boat. Wow! A score of wooden canoes, restored to “brand new” condition by volunteers. Wow! Thanks to the hard work of volunteers, several dozen fishing rowboats shine like the day they were built. Wow! In the speedboat hall, I finally saw that Penn Yan Swift, it’s brass and chrome reflected in the varnish on the wood…restored by volunteers. Wow! The boats in the sail room looked ready to tack down the lake, thanks to the cadre of unpaid experts who breathed life back into them. A leisurely stroll through the museum tells a tale of the history of watercraft on the Finger Lakes. The oldest canoe is an actual birch bark Indian craft. It is followed by a host of wooden canoes in a myriad of styles followed by aluminum and fiberglass, the latest renditions of those vessels. Each hall mimics the canoe display, taking the visitor through a history. There are over a hundred boats on display, and a like number of watercraft is stored in adjoining buildings to be rotated in and out of the display halls. Visitors may watch volunteers carefully caressing the mahogany, teak, elm, and pine, the steel, copper, and brass as they work at restoring boats. Currently, the major project is the restoration of the thirty-nine foot launch, Pat II. The boat was built in 1924 and served as the mail boat on Skaneateles Lake up to the 1960s. The plan is to use the boat as an educational tour boat. It was in the workshop that we met Ed Wightman. If the museum has a patron saint, Ed would be it. Perhaps the real story is the history of the museum. As early as 1995, Wightman recognized the need to preserve the boating history of his beloved Finger Lakes. Ed cautioned, “If we don’t try to save these boats, they’ll rot away and be gone forever.” The seed for the Finger Lakes Boating Museum was sown. A group of trusted restoration experts and a number who were willing to learn, step by step…well, stepped forward. Soon, they had gathered more than a hundred antique boats in need of love. One by one, the boats were restored and unceremoniously stored in garages and barns all around the Finger Lakes. The directors referred to the See Memories Afloat on page 30
29
Docked in Hammondsport: Canoes and their history—from an actual birch bark Indian craft to wooden canoes in a myriad of styles to the latest renditions in aluminum and fiberglass— are on display at the Finger Lakes Boating Museum. Memories Afloat continued from page 29
disparate collection of craft as “the museum without walls.” It was nearly a score of years before they partnered with Geneva, New York, to build the museum using grants. That process took time, but, for the first time, all the boats were gathered in one place. Funding and construction projections were cut dramatically, and the Geneva site began to fade from possibility. To add to the disappointment, the city of Geneva was forced to ask for rent. What to do? Ed Wightman met with Bud Meade, the CEO of 30
Mercury Aircraft Corporation, and convinced him to loan the group some space. On a single Saturday in April, forty volunteers moved more than eighty boats to the old Taylor winery, then owned by Bud and his Mercury Aircraft. Impressed with the concept of preserving Finger Lakes history and the enthusiasm of the workers, Meade made the museum a gift of the fourteen acres and twenty buildings that comprised the long abandoned Taylor winery, and the Finger Lakes Boating Museum had a
permanent home. The museum still relies heavily on volunteers, as Andrew Tompkins is the only paid full-time employee. T h e Fi n g e r L a k e s B o a t i n g Museum is a great treasure. The place is kid friendly, with a special children’s section where youngsters can draw pictures of boats, construct rudimentary boats, or even stamp sailor tattoos on their arms. Education plays a key role in the function of the Finger Lakes Boating Museum. Seminars and workshops are
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scheduled regularly. Even when it was a museum without walls, classes were offered in boating safety. A workshop demonstrated how to build a nine-foot Penn Yan Dinghy from lines to lofting to building the mold. Novices were taught how to winterize outboard motors. Other lectures and presentations featured the history of steamboats on the Finger Lakes or how to replace ribs on a wooden rowboat. If you’ve ever floated aboard a craft on the Finger Lakes…if you are remotely interested in boating history…the museum is a must-see. You won’t be disappointed. Book author and award-winning writer Don Knaus is a lifelong enthusiast of outdoor sports and the wilds and is president of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Association. 31
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Courtesy of Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum
Out of the mouths of babes: The Children’s Church, a chicken coop that twelve-year-old Charlie Rockwell created and preached in, was moved to the Heritage Village. The little church was photographed by Life magazine in the late 1930s, and is open for special events.
Harvesting the Past
Set in Fertile Soil, the Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum Flourishes By Linda Roller
E
very museum tells a story, and the Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum in Troy tells a rich and varied story close to the home and the heart of this rural county. Its authentic nineteenth and early twentieth century buildings and exhibits give visitors a walk through a portal to life in rural Pennsylvania before electricity and automobiles. Wilmer Wilcox, a Bradford County
farmer who witnessed all the changes of the last eighty-plus years, planted the seed of this complex. He was a collector of antique farm implements, many bought at local auctions. By the late 1980s he had over 700 items. But collecting was not enough. He wanted people to have a chance to see all the farming tools that were passing from memory, now that so many jobs were done with power tools and automatic
devices. The search to find a home for his collection ended in a building erected on an acre of land leased by Troy Fairgrounds and adjacent to the Alparon Park in 1991. The Farm Museum was born. The seed was set in good soil, as the community embraced the museum. According to Dale G. Palmer, historian, and Ralph Knapp, president of the Heritage Village and Farm Museum, See Harvesting on page 35
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Courtesy of Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum
It takes a village: Community donations—including entire buildings and complete furnishings—have helped create the Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum in Troy.
Harvesting continued from page 33
the Wilcox collection initially filled half of the building. But many other people had antique items that were used in the area, and they, too, wanted others to be able to see them. And so the collection grew to fill the building, then to fill an addition. Now, Knapp says that they have more local artifacts than the building can hold, and are working on a rotation process. The variety grew as well. The museum has expanded from farm implements to farm machinery, kitchen utensils, looms, dairy processing, uniforms, wedding dresses, scouting, the Grange, hunting and wildlife, and more. The murals of the First Bank of Troy decorate the walls, along with many signs and banners that used to be everyday sights in the area. Not only are the exhibits created from donations by local people, but all the work done,
including landscaping, groundskeeping, and construction, is done by volunteers. And, in less than ten years, this band of volunteers set their sights on collecting a bigger crop—this time of buildings. In 1999, they moved and restored a sugar shack from a nearby farm, and created an exhibit that included early tree taps, wooden yokes, buckets, and a vat for maple sugaring. A building from the fairgrounds was moved next to the museum and sugar shack, and restored to contain the collection of carriages, sleighs, and tractor seats. There are over fifty horsedrawn vehicles on display, including a hearse on a bobsled, and the gray horse-drawn school bus that was used to transport students from Farmer’s Valley to the Troy schools. The Thomas one-room schoolhouse was disassembled and reconstructed on
the site in 2007, then filled with desks from the time, a primitive blackboard, and many school materials used in one-room schoolhouses throughout Pennsylvania. The Children’s Church, a chicken coop that twelve-year-old Charlie Rockwell created and ministered to, was also moved to the growing Heritage Village. The little church was photographed by Life magazine in the late 1930s, and the little chapel is open for special events. And, in 2009, Porter’s Barber Shop was moved from Columbia Cross Roads to the village, and outfitted with both barber’s tools, and, in the rear, a small medical office. But the cornerstone of this village is the Gregory Inn. It was built in the Greek Revival style, and was the inn that served first stagecoach travelers, and then later train travelers from Elmira to Williamsport. According to the See Harvesting on page 37
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Courtesy of Bradford County Heritage Village and Farm Museum
Golden rule days: The Thomas one-room schoolhouse was disassembled and reconstructed on site in the Heritage Village in 2007, then filled with desks from the time, a primitive blackboard, and school materials used in one-room schoolhouses throughout Pennsylvania.
Harvesting continued from page 35
Bradford County Heritage Association, it was also a stop on the Underground Railroad, beginning in the 1840s. The gardens, including a dye garden for cloth dyeing, are maintained by the garden club. Dale Palmer added, “When we purchased the property, we couldn’t afford the furnishings [in the inn]. At the auction, local people bought the contents, and some of them donated the Gregory furnishings back to the association.” The inn is used for Victorian teas, so a visitor can sit at the old boarding table of the inn, or relax in the parlor. What once was a collection has become a time machine that whisks the visitor to the late nineteenth century, through the efforts of a dedicated volunteer staff and a generous community. And there is something for every age to see and do here. Many activities for younger museumgoers wait in the corners, ready to be tried
by young and old hands alike. History becomes alive, and it is a history that is just on the fringes of living memory. It’s hard to stand here and not remember stories from a grandmother, hear the sound of the threshers, see the old milking parlor, or hear the whistle of the train as it brings weary travelers to the inn. Open from late April to mid-October, one of the best times to visit is during the Pennsylvania Heritage Festival September 19 and 20. This year’s theme for the festival is timber and the timber industry, and the weekend will be filled with living history demonstrations, food, music, and crafts. Or, you can make a side trip when you visit the Troy Fair from July 27 through August 1.
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Don’t Touch That Dial
Feeling Steamed by a Hot Summer Kitchen? Here’s Our Cool Solution By Cornelius O'Donnell
I
remember those glorious days of radio dramas when the announcer on one of the three major networks would exhort listeners to stay on NBC, CBS, or ABC to hear the next program in their lineup. Quaint, eh? Well it is my goal to suggest ways for you to not turn that dial, only this one is on your oven and range-top. On steamy days, why heat up your steamy kitchen? Even with central air or groaning window units, why bother?
38
Freezers, big and small, are commonplace now, but during those radio drama days pre-1960s, the home cook had to turn to salads, room-temp leftovers, cereal, or perhaps a trip to pick up a pizza or, in our case, a foray to a Howard Johnson’s for maybe a fried clam roll (of blessed memory). And I can still see my dad struggling with our brick outdoor fireplace attempting to grill burgers or hot dogs without turning parts of them into cinders: anything to
avoid using the oven or the stovetop.
Options Galore Today there are more drive-throughs than McDonald’s Roy Kroc or Wendy’s Dave Thomas could have ever imagined. But for folks who’d like to relax in their own home of a summer evening (more appealing than ever with central or room air conditioning), you can assemble a pretty darn good meal with help from a
supermarket or high-quality take away from nifty restaurants. And here I must digress with a little story that I’ve chuckled over for years. Many moons ago I was visiting friends who moved from upstate back to England. I was on holiday over there, and they invited me down to their place in Kent for a good old American barbeque—with all the fixin’s, including a small American flag in a jug as a centerpiece with roses and cornflowers to carry out the U.S.A. theme. An “auntie” and uncle from Australia were visiting and observing all the prep the couple hosting was going through. “My dear,” said Auntie, “we have all that hot weather in January and February and even March, and I just serve my favorite summer meal.” “I’m curious, what is your favorite food?” I asked. She said, with excitement in her voice as if divulging the splendid secret to her entertaining, “Why, tak-ay ah-way, my dears.” It took a few seconds for this to sink in, thinking it might be an Australian speciality—a kind of kebob, maybe? Of course it finally sunk in after she began describing the venues in her suburb: “There’s Chinese, Italian, Thai, fish and chip joints—just oodles of possibilities.” We roared. I still call places such as that “take-aways” but pronounced as she did in her faultless classy English. I wonder if Harland Sanders, the Colonel, had ever heard this take on take-out. Here are a couple of no-cook recipes that are spattered and dog-eared. The first is a soup that, with one or two of those Parmesan crackers, fills me up, ready to face a bowl of cut-up watermelon cubes, peaches, blueberries, blackberries, or a bowl of chilled cherries. (I also ought to mention a starter I love: a handful of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved and tossed with a bit of olive oil and chopped fresh herbs and a final sprinkle of kosher or sea salt. It is so good and a snap to do.) I’m cribbing this recipe from a year-old issue of Real Simple. I did change it, however. I don’t peel the zucchini, I just wash it well and dry it with a paper towel that I drape over a glass bowl and reuse when it’s dry. Waste not…
Zucchini Gazpacho with Basil and Yogurt 4 chopped scallions, white and light green parts 1 long seedless cucumber (or 3 regular cukes), trimmed 2 medium-sized zucchinis, ends removed 3/4 cup good fruity olive oil plus a bit more for drizzling 1/3 cup lemon juice 1/2 cup plain yogurt (not Greek) or crème fraîche, divided Salt and fresh-ground black or white pepper to taste About 8 large basil leaves or equivalent tarragon leaves About 2 tsp. fresh rosemary Add scallion pieces to the bowl of a food processor. See Don’t Touch on page 41 39
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Don’t Touch continued from page 39
Peel the cucumbers, quarter them, and remove seeds (even seedless have a few) by running the edge of a spoon over the centers. Chop them coarsely and add to the scallions. Cut the wiped zucchinis into 1-inch pieces. Add to the processor (you might need to pulse the vegetables in two batches). Dump in the olive oil, the lemon juice, half the yogurt, and the salt and pepper. Process until well combined. Chill. Just before serving, stack the basil leaves, roll them into a cigar shape and finely cut across in thin stripe. Add the rosemary, if using, to the remaining yogurt or crème fraîche. (You could also add finely chopped parsley.) Spoon the zucchini mixture into four soup bowls (if it’s a warm day you could chill these in the fridge). Sprinkle the basil strips evenly over the soup, top with the yogurt or crème fraîche and serve. My old friend Lynn Rossetto Kasper featured this next recipe in her book How to Eat Supper. This is certainly how to serve a marvelous salad during a heat wave—or any time.
No-Cook Chicken and Bibb Lettuce Roll-Ups 1 3-pound rotisserie chicken (a supermarket godsend) 1 medium red onion, cut in 1/4-inch dice Grated zest of one lemon Juice of 2 large lemons, or more to taste 2 jalapeno peppers seeded and minced, or Tabasco to taste One (9-oz.) jar Major Grey Chutney, fine chop any pieces 1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use Hellmann’s Light) Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 3 large celery stalks, peeled if coarse, cut into 1/4-inch dice 1 cup whole salted almonds, coarsely chopped 1 large head Bibb lettuce, leaves
carefully separated, washed and dried 1 bunch fresh basil, washed and dried 1 bunch fresh coriander (a.k.a. cilantro), washed and dried 8 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced 1 large cucumber, peeled, halved, and seeded, in 2-inch pieces Pull the meat from the chicken carcass, discarding skin and bones (or freeze these and use for chicken stock). Cut chicken into bite-size pieces. In a large bowl combine the onions, lemon zest and juice, jalapenos, chutney, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. Fold in the chicken pieces. Taste the mix and add more lemon or mayonnaise to taste. Let this stand for a minimum of 20 minutes or refrigerate, tightly covered, overnight. You want the flavors to blend. To serve, mix the celery and nuts into the chicken mixture—best done with a rubber spatula. Mound the mixture on one side of a big platter. Pile up the lettuce leaves on the other side. Pull off the leaves of the basil and trim the stalks from the coriander (cilantro). Coarsely chop and cluster the herbs in the center of the platter. Tuck the radishes and cucumbers next to the herbs. Serve dinner on trays to folks out back in deck chairs—so very al fresco— or perhaps use a table set under the trees. I would surround the site with one of the myriad citronella candles now available, or bug-off incense sticks. (And I do get particularly incensed over mosquitos.) Good-bye and “shoo fly.” Now there’s inspiration for a make-ahead dessert. Count me out on that one, and make it an apple pan dowdy.
Visit during June & July with this ad $10.00 off two bottles of bubble Riesling
Chef, teacher, author, and award-winning columnist Cornelius O’Donnell lives in Elmira, New York. 41
Courtesy of Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars
The Best of the Best: The Riesling grape has flourished in the Finger Lakes since Dr. Konstantin Frank brought vinifera vines from Europe in the early ’60s. Now, the vineyard that bears his name is besting all competitors for their 2013 Semi Dry Riesling.
King Riesling
Dr. Frank’s Riesling Rules the World By Holly Howell
D
r. Konstantin Frank will forever be known as the father of Finger Lakes wine. When he emigrated here from the Ukraine and started his own winery in 1962, it changed the entire course of the region’s winemaking history. His determination and perseverance to grow European vinifera vines in our cooler New York State climate ultimately set us on a path to greatness. Today, the Finger Lakes appellation is known worldwide for its crisp and refreshing white wines, with Riesling proudly leading the pack. So it couldn’t be more deserving
that a Riesling wine from the Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars would set all kinds of records this year with the awards it has been receiving. The Dr. Frank Semi Dry Riesling 2013 has hit it out of the ballpark, and the kudos just keep on rolling in. It all began the minute this wine was released to the public, just over a year ago at an annual Riesling Release party at the New York Wine and Culinary Center in Canandaigua, New York. The event was a showcase for all of the newly bottled 2013 wines, and event attendees were allowed to vote for
their favorites. The lineup was excellent, and all wines were thoroughly enjoyed, but the Dr. Frank Riesling brought in more votes than any other. It was just a small sign of the big things to come. Soon thereafter, the 2013 Semi Dry Riesling won gold medals at the Indy International Wine Competition, the Long Beach Grand Cru Competition, the Eastern Exposition Wine Competition, and the New York State Fair Wine Competition. It then went on to garner a 92-point score by the Beverage Testing Institute World Value Wine Challenge in October of 2014, See King Riesling on page 44
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King Riesling continued from page 42
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where it was also named as one of the Top 10 White Wines $15 and Under. In January, the new year kicked in with one of the biggest wine competitions in the country—the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, held in California. Over 6,400 wines were entered from twenty-eight states, making it a competition record. A diverse array of professional wine judges set out on a task to evaluate each wine and select winners in each category from best Chardonnay, to best Riesling, to best Sauvignon Blanc and beyond. Of all the top winners, a sweepstakes award is given to a wine that stands out from the rest in categories of best white, best red, best sparkling, and best dessert wine. These wines are the tops in the country, setting the bar from coast to coast. Dr. Frank Semi Dry Riesling 2013 came away with a Double Gold Medal and a tie for the Best White Wine of the competition. Not too shabby, considering they tied with a Napa Valley Chardonnay that retailed for double the price of the Riesling. As an aside, over the past six years of the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, a Finger Lakes wine has been awarded Best White Wine of competition in four of those years. And all four have been from Keuka Lake in the Finger Lakes. Keuka Spring Gewürztraminer 2008 took top honors in 2010. Dr. Frank Gewürztraminer 2010 nabbed it in 2012. Then Keuka Spring Riesling 2011 stole the show in 2013. Now, Dr. Frank’s Semi Dry 2013 has come out on top in 2015. These are great honors for the wineries, the winemakers, and the region as a whole. And we continue. A few weeks later, at the Florida State Fair International Wine Competition, the impossible happened. The Dr. Frank Semi Dry Riesling 2013 pulled off another “Best White Wine of Competition.” Keep in mind that these are all “blind tastings,” where the wines are rated without the judges knowing where the wine is from. Earning two consecutive “Top Awards” in the wine industry is practically unheard of. Yet, this was just another testimony to the incredible quality of a wine that consistently impresses the palates of professionals in every possible setting. As if that wasn’t unprecedented enough, the aforementioned wine was then awarded the coveted John Rose Award as “Best in Class Riesling” at the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition held in Rochester in March. This event included 3,708 wines from 940 wineries, twenty-seven countries, six Canadian provinces, and all fifty United States. Somehow, this spectacular Riesling (which is how I will now refer to this wine), once again showed itself to be in a class by itself. As a judge at this event, I can attest to the incredible quality and quantity of Riesling
REAL ESTATE wines that were entered in this competition. To stand out amongst all of those wines is truly a feat. When informed of this prestigious accolade, Dr. Frank winery owner and president, Fred Frank, grandson of the founder, was in awe. “In our fiftythree years of winemaking, I can’t recall another year in which our Rieslings have won so many top awards,” he said. “We are honored.” To follow that, this spectacular Riesling then took gold medals at the Pacific Rim Wine Competition, the Amenti del Vino International Wine Competition, the Tasters Guild International Wine Competition, the Los Angeles International Wine Competition, and the Great Lakes Wine Competition. Any questions? As a Riesling lover, I find this wine to be as versatile as they come. A touch of sweetness, balanced by that classic Riesling acidity and lots of rich fruit flavors, makes it easy to sip and great to pair with food. It can please any palate it meets, from dry wine lovers to sweet wine lovers. The wine also carries the unique flavor of its home, or “sense of place.” This is referred to as terroir in wine speak. The geological makeup of Dr. Frank’s vineyards finds its way into each glass, and you’ll notice a hint of slate minerality that sings through the ripe peach and apricot fruit flavors in every sip. Maybe Wine Enthusiast Magazine puts it best: “Plump white peach and yellow cherry flavors are plush and pure, but braced by an exhilarating stream of lime and lemon zest. Deftly structured, and nuanced by hints of dust and mineral, this is a widely accessible yet deeply satisfying Riesling.” Oh, and this was accompanied by a very applaudable 90 point score. Ho hum. But the most amazing thing of all about this record-setting wine is that it is still available for you to purchase. As for me, I have stocked up on provisions to last me for some time. No need to drink up quickly either, because this quality of Riesling has an inherent longevity that can conceivably make it better with age (if that is even possible). And I look forward to revisiting this treasure in the years to come to see what kind of magic actually occurs in that bottle. In the meantime, I am happy to savor and celebrate the success of a Finger Lakes legend, and toast to many wonderful years ahead!
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Office/Retail Space For Lease! Newly Constructed Professional Building on S. Main Street in Mansfield. Situated between Walmart and Lowes, and visible from Route 15/I99. Only one unit still available. Building offers public water & sewer, handicap access, central air, and plenty of paved parking. Perfect opportunity to start your own business! Call Chris Gilbert today to check out this magnificent new location!
Distinctive Colonial-style casing & baseboard molding Hybrid “dual fuel� heat pump provides year-long comfort and energy savings
Our Current Smart FREE Incentives:
Beautiful granite kitchen countertops at no additional cost
Upgraded flooring in specific high-traffic areas
www.BrooksideHomes.com/Smart5 EACH OFFICE INDEPENDENTLY OWNED & OPERATED
BH001-44-120355-4
Our Smart Standard Features Include:
Mansfield: 570.662.7900 | Lycoming Mall: 570.546.5707 | Selinsgrove: 570.374.7900 47
Three Amigos continued from page 17
NEW SPACE NEW LIGHT
Contemporary Art + Design Wing Now open! cmog.org/contemporary
astronomy, Worthington became transfixed with an image he saw on NASA’s Web site two years ago that was captured by the high-definition camera on a robotic rover appropriately named Curiosity. “It was a machined tool—a key— embedded in a rock underneath a slate ledge on Mars,” he says, adding that NASA dismissed the visual as an anomaly. But, Worthington couldn’t stop thinking about it as well as the likelihood of water and the possibility of life on the planet. Closer to home, he’s been mesmerized by another landscape that also holds, for him, infinite mysteries: Stony Fork Creek. “That creek really did open up my soul,” he says. “The moment I stepped into that creek, it was like stepping into church—it was really profound.” Worthington says he has worked Stony Fork Creek “from top to bottom,” and it has enlightened him in the concepts of quantum physics. “The creek refined that for me,” he offers. “I could see the principles underlying all that, and why I was getting a reflection here and not a refraction there. I could see how everything is connected; everything influences everything else. Once I understood all that, I could just sail into the interior of the thing.” Regaining his mobility and getting back to the creek is one of his fondest wishes. “I try to look forward,” he says. “I want to get back to walking normally and hiking the creek with my dog—I love that part of life.” Hope continues to float. The opening artists’ reception for Departures & Returns is 2 to 5 p.m., Sunday, July 5, with the exhibit running through July 26. The Gmeiner Art & Cultural Center, 134 Main St., Wellsboro, is open daily 2 to 5 p.m. Admission is free. Wellsboro native—and award-winning writer and photographer—Cindy Davis Meixel lives near Williamsport.
CORNING, NY
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SERVICE DIRECTORY Now you CAN find a primary doctor who’s the right fit. Pick your primary today at arnothealth.org/primary or by calling 607-737-4499.
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Three museums featuring
Pioneers, Native Americans Victorian Era, Industry Steamboats 107 Chapel St, Penn Yan Open Tues-Fri. 9-4 July & Aug. Sat. 10 am-2 pm
www.yatespast.org (315)536-7318
RESTAURANTS
Mountain Home
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
See our new exclusive puzzles and games by local artists! 25 Main Street Wellsboro, PA 16901 570-723-4263 • www.popscultureshoppe.com 49
B A C K O F T H E M O U N TA I N
The Ripple of Freedom By Sarah Wagaman
T
he art of photography is filled with many facets, exciting experiments, and a huge learning curve. After setting up support structures that would comfortably accommodate a large plastic bag full of water, I poked a hole in the bottom corner so that the water would release at a steady drip into a three-quarters-filled container underneath. After setting up my tripod and shutter release cable to seize the droplets, I used one of my favorite themes—the American flag! Draped carefully over a nearby panel, I captured its reflection as the drop created a rippling effect and vaulted upward. I experimented for hours, with different images reflecting onto the water’s surface, but this was one of my favorites, and it was easy to come up with the title.
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Same day access available to patients. Keeping you Susquehanna Health
Drs. Jill Burns, Christopher Domarew, Walter Laibinis, Anthony Nespola and Certified Registered Nurse Practitioners Olivia Mays and Amy Miller of Susquehanna Health Internal Medicine at Wellsboro provide patients with same day appointments for easy access to care. When you need a healthcare provider, we don’t want you to wait. Same day access can be used for: • • • •
Sprains and minor fractures Bladder infection Cough, sore throat and fever Dehydration
• Earache • Eye infection • Flu symptoms
If you have symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath, severe or uncontrollable bleeding, symptoms of stroke or major trauma, call 911 or go to the closest emergency room. Now accepting new patients! We are located at 103 West Avenue, Wellsboro. (570) 724-3744 | SusquehannaHealth.org