ALPINE: Another local person had information to share about the Alpine, an ice cream shop and restaurant that had been on Main Street in Bradford at one time.
The reader, who did not identify himself or herself, wrote, “I was looking at my 1949 year book and I knew the owner of the Alpine’s name was Curtis Tracy.”
Curtis’ daughter, Audrey, was in our reader’s class in school.
The reader told us Curtis “was a department head at Bradford High School.”
We’re surprised at just how popular discussion on the old ice cream shop has been. It certainly made quite an impression on our readers. We were wondering, are there any other former hang-outs in our area that people remember — theaters, restaurants, skating rinks, parks, etc.? We want to hear stories of why these places stuck in your mind, too. What was your favorite family outing destination? Where was your first date? Where did your school friends go to hang out?
GROUSE: A Pennsylvania woman took third place in a photography contest sponsored by “Pennsylvania” magazine for a photo she snapped of our state bird.
Pam Baumann of Royersford, Montgomery County, took the photo of a male ruffed grouse on a forest road in Elk County.
And a distinguished looking bird he certainly is.
According to the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission, “The Ruffed Grouse is the state game bird, as enacted by the General Assembly on June 22, 1931. The Pennsylvania ruffed grouse, sometimes called the partridge, is distinguished by its plump body, feathered legs, and mottled reddish-brown color. The protective coloring makes it possible for the ruffed grouse to conceal itself in the wilds.”
The ruffed grouse is just one of a number of symbols for the commonwealth.
Other state symbols include the state animal, the whitetail deer; the state dog, the Great Dane; the state fish, the brook trout; the state flower, the mountain laurel; the state insect, the firefly; the state beverage, milk; the state tree, the hemlock; the flagship of Pennsylvania, the United States Brig “Niagara”; the beautification and conservation plant, the Penngift crown vetch; and the state fossil, the Phacops rana — a species of trilobite, according to the Historical & Museum Commission.
