On Sept. 14, 1959, Pittsburghers woke up to a dramatic headline splashed across the front page of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “ROCKET HITS MOON, REDS CLAIM.” In the middle of the night, after 33.5 hours of flight from Earth, a Soviet spacecraft crashed into the surface of the Moon in a region ominously named the Palus Putredinus, or “Marsh of Decay.” For the first time, a man-made object had landed on another body in space.
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September 20, 2017
Manufacturing Thrills: The Legacy of Western Pennsylvania’s Roller Coaster Pioneers
The photograph of Pittsburgh-based T. M. Harton Company’s Scenic Auto-Dip is a great reminder of the remarkable legacy of multiple people from this region who manufactured the thrilling ups and downs of roller coaster rides well into the 20th century.
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September 6, 2017
Last Ride of Summer: West View Park and the Nostalgia for Lost Amusement Parks
In September 1977, West View Park closed for the last time. What is it about lost amusement parks that evokes such nostalgia?
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