Pennsylvania Ghost Towns: Uncovering the Hidden Past [Paperback]

Susan Hutchison Tassin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 10, 2007

Cemeteries, abandoned buildings, and roads to nowhere are all that remain of several once-thriving towns in Pennsylvania. This guidebook profiles 46 locations that have been abandoned or left to ruin, and some that have seen new life as historic sites, with discussions on their history, daily life, fall, and current condition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Susan Hutchison Tassin is a freelance writer who lives in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books (August 10, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811734110
• ISBN-13: 978-0811734110
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #319,593 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb explorer's guide to PA ghosts, August 21, 2007

By 

Bomojaz (South Central PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pennsylvania Ghost Towns: Uncovering the Hidden Past (Paperback)

This book can only bring delight to local history buffs, especially those in the Pennsylvania area. Susan Tassin has compiled a listing of 46 ghost towns (or near ghosts) from around the state, has given a little history of each site, and, best of all, has indicated what the present-day visitor will find at each place (there is something at all of them, from restored villages to foundation holes) and how to get to them. Towns are located by section of the state, and some are close enough to each other to make visiting more than one an easy single day adventure. I only have two small quibbles, and they involve directions: the directions to Dillow's Fort near Pittsburgh are missing just enough information (probably a typo) to make it nearly impossible to locate, and in the directions for Laquin, after turning right on SR 3005 one needs to turn LEFT (not right) onto Southside Rd. Modern day explorers in the Keystone State should find plenty of inspiration in this book. Hopefully Ms. Tassin is at work on a follow-up volume amassing another inventory of ghost towns to go along with this one.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very readable and useful guide to a vanished Pennsylvania, August 27, 2007

By 

E. Wallace (PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pennsylvania Ghost Towns: Uncovering the Hidden Past (Paperback)

I have read that Pennsylvania is home to more ghost towns then Colorado, but most have been completely destroyed and are hard to find. This is a very well researched book containing numerous facts and anecdotes about many of the better known, but long defunct, towns from PA's past.

The book is divided by region so that the reader can focus on a particular part of the state. The author also includes information on the current state of each town, the accessibility of each location, and driving directions for finding them. Further, there is a solid bibliography and list of useful websites for further research.

The one thing that would have made this book better for me is if it included photographs from some of the locations. That, however, is merely a personal desire and in no way detracts from the overall work.

A must have for history buffs, ghost hunters, and abandonment explorers.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!, August 12, 2007

By 

June Kosslyn (Boulder CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pennsylvania Ghost Towns: Uncovering the Hidden Past (Paperback)

I just got this book as a gift and really enjoyed it. I used to live in rural Pennsylvania and still learned a lot of history from this book.

It is extremely well researched and full of easy to read history about the various communities that went boom and bust in Pennsylvania over 100 years ago. It's well organized by geographic area and stuffed with hard data as well as personal history that really brings out a sense of place and time and people. I was expecting something a little dry and got the opposite.

This book will hopefully shortly be found in every museum and historic gift shop in Pennsylvania. Very well done!