A Johnstown Jaunt
p.1 #1A Johnstown Jaunt
Johnstown, Pennsylvania is a fascinating city to wander. Perhaps not quite known for being a vacation hotspot, it is certainly a town worth walking around and admiring with a camera for a few days. Out in western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh tends to get much of the attention, but in many ways, Johnstown is equally as interesting, both from a historic, architectural, and photographic perspective. The heydays of Johnstown have long since past; gone are the once numerous blast furnaces and many of the expansive rolling mills remain idle or have been demolished altogether. Today, Johnstown is a much more quiet city, a place where one can admire the river as it winds its way through a channelized concrete cut. A place where Sheetz is now the most popping place in town. The quintessential Rust Belt poster child, a place worth being examined.
A. Out of Business District
B. A Shadow of Your Former Self
C. Leave off the last S for savings.
D. An Aging Face
E. Like A Good Neighbor
F. Go With the Flow
A. Out of Business District
B. A Shadow of Your Former Self
C. Leave off the last S for savings.
D. An Aging Face
E. Like A Good Neighbor
F. Go With the Flow
Jun 28, 2026 at 09:57 PM
p.1 #2A Johnstown Jaunt
An interesting set of introspection.
D and B are my fav's.
D and B are my fav's.
Jun 29, 2026 at 06:37 AM
p.1 #3A Johnstown Jaunt
I understand these images completely, although I have never set foot in downtown Johnstown. A quintessential mid-western, rust-belt town. My wife’s family is from NE Ohio, around Alliance, and having visited often when her grandmother was living, much is familiar. These cities were once beacons of American industrial might, then the factories closed, money moved out, and the blue collar workers were too poor, and sometimes too proud and stuborn, to follow.
The Johnstown flood of 1889 is also part of the haunted history of the area.
Have to agree with B and D. Just came back from a short business trip to Boston, where old factory buildings, like in image D, are converted into expensive and trendy loft housing.
The Johnstown flood of 1889 is also part of the haunted history of the area.
Have to agree with B and D. Just came back from a short business trip to Boston, where old factory buildings, like in image D, are converted into expensive and trendy loft housing.
Jun 29, 2026 at 07:40 AM
p.1 #4A Johnstown Jaunt
Taperwing wrote:
I understand these images completely, although I have never set foot in downtown Johnstown. A quintessential mid-western, rust-belt town. My wife’s family is from NE Ohio, around Alliance, and having visited often when her grandmother was living, much is familiar. These cities were once beacons of American industrial might, then the factories closed, money moved out, and the blue collar workers were too poor, and sometimes too proud and stuborn, to follow.
The Johnstown flood of 1889 is also part of the haunted history of the area.
Have to agree with B and D. Just came back from a short business...Show more →
Thanks and well put. Johnstown was most certainly an industrial power house. It’s interesting to see how certain rust belt cities have stagnated while others have evolved. A great example of a success story is Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. A large steel city that seems to have reinvented itself as an art, music, and culture hub after the mills closed. Granted, being a day trip driving distance to both NYC and Philly helps a great deal too. But places like Johnstown are almost so far removed from any larger metro centers that they wind up sort of becoming forgotten industrial time capsules.
I understand these images completely, although I have never set foot in downtown Johnstown. A quintessential mid-western, rust-belt town. My wife’s family is from NE Ohio, around Alliance, and having visited often when her grandmother was living, much is familiar. These cities were once beacons of American industrial might, then the factories closed, money moved out, and the blue collar workers were too poor, and sometimes too proud and stuborn, to follow.
The Johnstown flood of 1889 is also part of the haunted history of the area.
Have to agree with B and D. Just came back from a short business...Show more →
Thanks and well put. Johnstown was most certainly an industrial power house. It’s interesting to see how certain rust belt cities have stagnated while others have evolved. A great example of a success story is Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. A large steel city that seems to have reinvented itself as an art, music, and culture hub after the mills closed. Granted, being a day trip driving distance to both NYC and Philly helps a great deal too. But places like Johnstown are almost so far removed from any larger metro centers that they wind up sort of becoming forgotten industrial time capsules.
Jun 29, 2026 at 03:01 PM
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p.1 #5A Johnstown Jaunt
Very nice set - thanks for posting!
Johnstown is indeed a very interesting place - kind of a rust belt microcosm.
I had an uncle and several cousins who drove trucks for the steel mill, and I have a strong teenage memory of helping to clean up after the catastrophic Johnstown flood of 1977 (I can smell the post-flood mud to this day), so your series has a strong resonance for me.
Johnstown is indeed a very interesting place - kind of a rust belt microcosm.
I had an uncle and several cousins who drove trucks for the steel mill, and I have a strong teenage memory of helping to clean up after the catastrophic Johnstown flood of 1977 (I can smell the post-flood mud to this day), so your series has a strong resonance for me.
Jul 01, 2026 at 08:59 AM
p.1 #6A Johnstown Jaunt
photonoclast wrote:
Very nice set - thanks for posting!
Johnstown is indeed a very interesting place - kind of a rust belt microcosm.
I had an uncle and several cousins who drove trucks for the steel mill, and I have a strong teenage memory of helping to clean up after the catastrophic Johnstown flood of 1977 (I can smell the post-flood mud to this day), so your series has a strong resonance for me.
Thanks for looking. The various floods in Johnstown over the years are yet another interesting aspect of the city’s history and certainly explain why the river is channelized and brutalist looking.
Very nice set - thanks for posting!
Johnstown is indeed a very interesting place - kind of a rust belt microcosm.
I had an uncle and several cousins who drove trucks for the steel mill, and I have a strong teenage memory of helping to clean up after the catastrophic Johnstown flood of 1977 (I can smell the post-flood mud to this day), so your series has a strong resonance for me.
Thanks for looking. The various floods in Johnstown over the years are yet another interesting aspect of the city’s history and certainly explain why the river is channelized and brutalist looking.
Jul 01, 2026 at 04:36 PM
p.1 #7A Johnstown Jaunt
Great looking compositions of an iconic small Pennsylvania town!
Looks like "B&D" have it! Black and Decker?
....Just funnin' ya!
Stay cool!
Welcome also!
Dan
Looks like "B&D" have it! Black and Decker?
....Just funnin' ya!Stay cool!
Welcome also!
Dan
Jul 03, 2026 at 10:00 AM