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On the path of history
That was the message of a recent trail interpretation workshop at Penn State University's Fayette campus.
The conference was sponsored by the Allegheny Trail Alliance, which is made up of representatives of the seven trails that form the Great Allegheny Passage: the Three Rivers Heritage Trail, Steel Valley Trail, Montour Trail, Yough River Trail North; Yough River Trail South; the Allegheny Highlands Trail in Pennsylvania; Allegheny Highlands Trail in Maryland.
"A Passage Through Time and the Mountains," a new ATA brochure written by Bill Metzger, of Confluence, tells part of the story of the corridor.
"The Great Allegheny Passage crosses the Mason-Dixon Line and the Eastern Continental Divide and cuts through spectacular water gaps and gorges. It passes the sites of long-cold iron furnaces and coke ovens and an active steel mill, of worked-out coal mines and working dairy farms," it states.
Speakers at the conference emphasized the national significance of the corridor to four strands of American history: the westward movement, The War for Empire (French and Indian War), the industrial revolution, and the recent revitalization of the rivers.
Bob Gangewere, editor of Carnegie Magazine, explained that trail interpretation is simply "knowing what to do with a trail."
In his keynote address, historian Doug Reynolds of the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Trail, stressed interpreting for self-interest.
"Trail stewards should protect the integrity of the history associated with their resources," he said. "A cheapened past is one that wilts under the light of scrutiny and diminishes the significance of both the resources and the people. Thus, George Washington needs to be discussed in context, not just celebrated for having been there at some point."
He advocated setting priorities according to the significance of a place. Reynolds spent eight years at the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, where he worked on a survey of more than 200 coal mining towns and reviewed them for possible listing in the National Register of Historic Places.
He praised the ATA brochure about the Great Allegheny Passage.
Linda McKenna Boxx, president of ATA, expressed surprise at the number of conference participants. "We expected maybe 15, but ended up with 60," she said.
"Trail building has been our top priority. It has taken us several years to get to this point. The National Park Service has pushed us to do an interpretative concept plan and now we have finished with it. It was only when we did the plan that we knew what we were about," she said.
Good signage is an important part of trail interpretation.
"I love making signs," Gangewere said. "There's a template for doing it right. NPS limits the wordage to 80 words. The ATA limit is 120."
Today's technology has contributed other media to interpretation: Internet information, cell phones, and GPS (Global) systems. "But there is still room on the trails for signs," said Reynolds.
Several speakers stressed the importance of uniformity in signs along a trail so that users will not be confused. Average cost for an ATA sign is $2,500. They are embedded in a Plexiglas plate to protect against vandalism.
Mary Shaw, a professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University, and Roy Weil, a civil engineer for Baker Engineering, co-authored two books about the trails, "Freewheeling Easy in Western Pennsylvania" and "Linking Up," donating proceeds to the alliance.
Their presentation highlighted the four stages of trail-building: acquisition, public acceptance, construction and interpretation.
Shaw stressed the importance of consistent design and themes at wayside exhibits. She said consistency in signage involves the use of exact text, images, layout, site design and construction. "Signs need a great image and good locations," she said.
Geology also plays a role in interpretation.
"The Blackstone Project in New England gave me an understanding of landscape," said Reynolds. "Every foot of the Blackstone was turned to mill power. Villages were built around small ponds. They involved agrarian traditions and Jacksonian democracy."
In a local example, Weil described Boxxwork, a series of coke ovens near Adelaide.
"It's a geological structure looking like post office boxes sometimes called Indian post offices, very unique in the world," he added.
"Between Dawson and Adelaide, the Pittsburgh Coal Seam outcrops and you can take a close look at old coke ovens and the rock formation that fueled the Industrial Age in western Pennsylvania," Metzger's brochure notes.
Representatives of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Regional Trail Council and the Sheepskin Trail also attended the conference.
