By Katherine Joyce
Photos by Bethany Haag
I am a native Pennsylvanian, but I’m writing this article from northern Kentucky, where I’ve taken an internship for the summer. Just approaching this piece reminds me of my stomping grounds, and while I love Kentucky with a special piece of my heart, I feel an awful lot like clicking my floral sneakers three times and uttering a proverbial “there’s no place like home.” Pennsylvania has a unique flavor, I’ve found, a cross between history and pierogies, and there’s no place like it. The mountains just have a way of calling that seems all their own, a song I only hear on the drives back home.
Originally, I’m from a little town in Schuylkill County called Cressona, but for nine months of the year, I live in Happy Valley. For those nine months, it’s home.
Farmlands. Football. Fruit stands on Friday. Christmas lights in December. Flowery explosions in May. Bar lines that remind me of Disney World. Book shops and coffee shops on every corner. Yes, this is home away from home.
During my first year living in State College, I wandered back past the downtown area on a walk. Ironically, I was working on another article for Hearts on the Highlands, this one a biographical sketch of the local artist, Stuart H. Frost. It was cold that day – I remember shivering as I walked. But even in the cold, I couldn’t seem to stop walking. I needed to see more.
Houses. Old houses. Old houses with the magnificence of the ones back home that once belonged to the coal barons of my region. Later I learned that these houses belonged to the Highlands Historic District. Just like the murals I was currently writing about, these homes were part of a much larger story. I shelved my interest for another year, but always enjoyed the opportunity to walk past these majestic homes and oh-too-pretty-for-frats houses, never quite losing the awe or interest I’d gained on that first adventure. And a year later, when I was asked to write another piece for Hearts in the Highlands, I returned to my favorite thing about that beautiful neighborhood: the homes.
At the beginning of May, just as spring was dawning over State College, I set out with my friend, Bethany, on a walking tour of the historic neighborhood, which can be found on the Hearts in the Highlands website. She was armed with a camera; I carried a pocket-sized notebook as my weapon of choice (which I promptly dropped in a puddle a few hours later, but that’s another story. Anyway, the notebook survived).
Neither of us had ever fully explored the neighborhood, let alone read about the history of these houses. I’d approached my friend about collaborating on the project because she’d recently taken up photography, and after seeing the stunning photos she snapped during our trip to Philadelphia for the Flower Show, I thought a visual aspect might be the perfect complement to my writing. Like me, Bethany also has a love for old buildings and history – we’re from the same area – and when I asked her to photograph the neighborhood, elated was too small a word for her reaction. Satisfied that I had found a collaborator who was just as excited as I was to showcase the neighborhood’s beauty, we set a date for the walk.
The goal: take the tour and note our observations through writing and photography. The ultimate hope: create a piece that would do that beautiful neighborhood proper justice. And so, with graduation coming soon and dark rain clouds threatening to come sooner, we were off.
Spring in State College is perhaps my favorite season for the town… with the exception of Christmastime, of course. There’s just a vibrancy to the area in spring that makes every step outside exciting. As Bethany and I walked down Locust Lane to begin the walking tour, I kept an eye on the sky, which had been generous enough to give us a brief respite from the rain (we’d spent at least twenty minutes before the walk hiding in her car and hoping to catch a break). The gray clouds, however, did provide a beautiful backdrop for spring’s vibrancy. Many front yard trees, proud and vivacious, teemed with life, blooming in vibrant shades of white and pink and green. The grass was bright and glistening and well-kept, not yet scorched by the heat that would certainly make an appearance later in the summer. The ground was still damp with rainwater, and whether it was because of the lateness of the semester, the timing of our walk, or the rainstorm that was surely not over just yet, we mostly had the streets to ourselves.
It was almost funny how our walk seemed to follow a pattern. I would start by consulting the walking tour PDF, which can be found on the Hearts in the Highlands website here, to determine our next house. However, I was viewing the map on my phone, so I’d have to scroll around rather chaotically each time to find the right house. Meanwhile, Bethany was already a few steps ahead, meandering down the road to whatever address I’d mumbled uncertainly. Once I’d caught up, we’d both stare at the house for a moment, marvel over its beauty, and start yapping about whatever we found lovely about it. Camera clicks and pen scratches were soon to follow.
As Bethany busied herself with taking many, many, many photos from many, many, many angles, I’d walk down the street, admiring the little details that set each house apart. Occasionally, I’d jot something down in my little notebook, but more often than not, I’d just look at the house and admire it for a few minutes. Quietly soaking in the beauty of our world is one of my favorite things to do, and the historic neighborhood was just overflowing with beauty that day in early May.
There was the house with the teal door and shutters. And the one with a bright American flag fluttering proudly by the front door. Old houses stamped with Greek symbols. Red brick with white columns. Vines that crept up stone exteriors. Students packing up a car to move out. Arched doorways. Stained glass. Each house’s stubborn refusal to look the same as the house beside it.
So much beauty! It all just about took my breath away.
Not all was quiet and serene, though. Many of the houses listed on the walking guide serve as fraternity houses for Penn State, and the first week of May is an ideal time to enjoy the outdoors with little schoolwork keeping you at a desk. Music floated over the fences and into the street in a lazy, last-week-of-the-semester fashion, causing Bethany and I to laugh a bit as we thought about these beautiful homes being used for such a purpose. And then…
Thunder.
We kept walking, hoping to make as much progress on the tour as we could before Mother Nature intervened. But as we were admiring the Three English Cottages on East Fairmount Avenue, the thunder returned, and this time with more vengeance. A bit of lightning flashed against a charcoal gray sky. Raindrops settled on our shoulders. Bethany and I finally admitted defeat, stealing a few moments for last-minute photos before making a wild dash back to the car. It was a good decision: shortly after, the heavens opened up and rain poured down on State College.
Bethany and I will be returning sometime in late summer or early autumn to finish the walking tour. It’ll be great to see the neighborhood in a different season – I’m looking forward to it. Until then, I’ll just marvel at the beauty of those houses in photos and memories. There’s just something about State College, and by extension, the Highlands Neighborhood, that immediately makes a stranger feel at home. The architecture and culture of the area welcomes everyone into the fold, inviting visitors to explore the beauty and history that has certainly withstood the test of time.
What a blessing it is to long for home.
Katherine Joyce is a graduate student at Penn State studying English with a Creative Writing concentration. Though she hails from Schuylkill County, PA, Katherine is proud to come from a “Penn State family” and has fallen head over heels for State College. She loves finding new coffee shops and driving around to explore the natural beauty of the area. When she’s not working or wandering State College, she enjoys movie nights with family and friends, buying flowers, and writing her novels. She can be contacted at kpj5192@psu.edu.
Bethany Haag is a graduate student at Penn State, majoring in Biobehavioral Health. Her research focuses on identifying brain-related structural biomarkers of alcohol use disorder. Born and raised in Pennsylvania, Bethany enjoys reading, hiking and drinking coffee. Bethany is an amateur photographer who loves to capture the beauty in the great outdoors of Pennsylvania. She can be contacted at beh5367@psu.edu.