A few CVRR pictures and some other related pictures....

[webenda]

Rufus is a rubber duck.

I was told by my ophthalmologist my funny vision was caused by cataracts. Cataracts are clearly not the cause in my case. WebMD says my problem is "dry eye." I am lucky, both for finding WebMD and for lubricating eye drops. Vision problem solved, at least for now. I am supposed to return for my yearly eye exam. I wonder what he will have to say when I relate this to him?

Carrick Iron Furnace (1828-1884)
30 square feet at the base, 30 feet high.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrick_Furnace

Wiki says Carrick Furnace was built in 1828, Rufus' image says 1835. Who ya gonna believe?

It is a blast furnace for smelting iron ore. After the ore is melted, iron settles to the bottom and slag floats on top.

Wikipedia says, "Good coking coal was only available in sufficient quantities in Great Britain and western Germany, so iron furnaces in the U.S. were using charcoal. This meant that any given iron furnace required vast tracts of forested land for charcoal production, and generally went out of blast when the nearby woods had been felled."

Early attempts to use anthracite as a fuel had all ended in failure, as the coal resisted ignition under cold blast conditions. In 1831, Dr. Frederick W. Gessenhainer filed for a U.S. patent on the use of hot blast and anthracite to smelt iron. The Carrick Furnace was converted to hot blast in 1879.

I think the wooden building contained the blower. The furnace went out of blast in 1884, and was donated to the Franklin County Historical Society-Kittochtinney in 1935.

"Out of blast?" Why don't they just say, "Shut down?"

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Rufus is a rubber duck.

Not just a rubber duck but a giant rubber duck in the harbor with laser beam eyes! Bwaa- Haa-Haa-Haa!!!! Harrumph!!!

Carrick Iron Furnace (1828-1884)
30 square feet at the base, 30 feet high.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrick_Furnace

Wiki says Carrick Furnace was built in 1828, Rufus' image says 1835. Who ya gonna believe?

Hmmm......I really don't know, but I may have the means to look that up as I do have a copy of The History of Cumberland Valley which covers both Franklin and Cumberland Counties.

It is a blast furnace for smelting iron ore. After the ore is melted, iron settles to the bottom and slag floats on top.

Indeed. And, one of the reasons for the CVRR to have run a line up through to that end point.

Wikipedia says, "Good coking coal was only available in sufficient quantities in Great Britain and western Germany, so iron furnaces in the U.S. were using charcoal. This meant that any given iron furnace required vast tracts of forested land for charcoal production, and generally went out of blast when the nearby woods had been felled."

The Carrick Furnace was converted to hot blast in 1879.

I think the wooden building contained the blower. The furnace went out of blast in 1884, and was donated to the Franklin County Historical Society-Kittochtinney in 1935.

"Out of blast?" Why don't they just say, "Shut down?"

Sounds more interesting?

[rogruth]

Wayne,
I'm taking your word that Rufus is a rubber duckie.

[webenda]

Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman created a giant yellow ducky and is taking it all over the world, photographing it, with the mission of simply bringing people together through the presence of art.

Some people are going nuts over it, photoshopping it into, "War Ducky." The nuts are even adding lasers to the eyes of their little bath tub rubber duckies.

If there was ever any doubt about Rufus' sanity, his Rubber Ducky avatar should remove all doubt.

Do we have a spelling issue here: ducky or duckie, duckys or duckies?

[Rufus T. Firefly]

And now you have the rest of the story......

Just ducky, ain';t it?

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Now it's time to go back to school............in Fort Loudon.



We don't need no education
We don't need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone



You! Yes, you behind the bike sheds, stand still laddy!



If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding. How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?

[rogruth]

The way kids think and what they think about may have changed but how they act for school class photos hasn't.

Teachers sure have changed.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

The way kids think and what they think about may have changed but how they act for school class photos hasn't.

Those caps and just about every head..... I have to look to see if that building still stands - don't recall ever seeing it.

Teachers sure have changed.

Say no more! Nudge, nudge.

[rogruth]

I notice it had /has a bell steeple.

The schools in my hometown were all built in the early 1900s.
They did not have actual steeples but had a compartment on the roof for the bell.
The morning opening bells would be tolled at 8:00, 8:15, and 8:25 AM.
All eight schools in town were on the same schedule. There were no school buses.
All except the high school, which is still in use, were replaced by two consolidated
larger schools, elementary and middle, which now require the use of buses.
The buildings were sold and have been re-purposed.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

I notice it had /has a bell steeple.

The schools in my hometown were all built in the early 1900s.
They did not have actual steeples but had a compartment on the roof for the bell.
The morning opening bells would be tolled at 8:00, 8:15, and 8:25 AM.
All eight schools in town were on the same schedule. There were no school buses.
All except the high school, which is still in use, were replaced by two consolidated
larger schools, elementary and middle, which now require the use of buses.
The buildings were sold and have been re-purposed.

Yes. It's a good sized building and that's a fair number of students - I think that Fort Loudon would be hard pressed to have that many students living there now - everything is now centralized and buses roam the roads picking up kids.

I suspect it's long gone now, but maybe next time I pass through I'll look for it - last time I passed through I showed my daughter the old CVRR station that was restored and preserved for use as the library.

[rogruth]

That would be a nice find.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Up the road a bit to Willow Hill - town (village?) is actually up Rt 75 a bit from the Willow Hill PA Turnpike exit. I think some of these might still be there but the main road where 75 is now by-passes this area.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Up to Concord (and no, Dennis Moore is not there....)...

[Rufus T. Firefly]

And over the bridge....

[Tony-h]

Last night I did some snooping on Google looking for the Ft. Loudon school house. Unless it was far outside town it does not appear to exist now.

The two houses on the left in the Willow Hill photo are still present. The house on the far right is not readily identifiable on the present day Google because trees along Rt. 30 show only portions of the rear of a house, but I suspect it is still one and the same.

Tony