One Small West Virginia Town two Great little Paranormal Museams on Flatwoods Monster and Bigfoot

 Sutton WV a small sleepy town of old and unique store fronts . The capital of Braxton County  and home to the Flatwoods Monster Museum and 2 blocks down The Bigfoot Museum  which is located in  an old General Store 

Which is set to move in the next few months to another part of Braxton County.

 

The Flatwoods is located in an old storefront along main street with a beautiful old metal tin ceiling and also serves as a tourist info center 

 







A very nice collection of articles and artifacts is displayed in old wooden display cases as well as knowledgeable staff. 

 https://braxtonwv.org/the-flatwoods-monster/visit-the-museum/

 

Down the street in an old wooden building  which sits on a corner across from Braxton Courthouse which also houses a general store is The Big Foot  Museum

 










 Which also includes a Bigfoot Research Library gift shop and all kinds of Bigfoot casts .

They are moving thou so if you want to see the original  before it moves get there now

 https://wvbigfootmuseum.org/

 

 

These Coal towns where known as Buckets of Blood and for good reason one of them being near me in Russelton Pa.

 As you drive thru the sleepy former coal mining town of Russelton Pa today you have no idea  the reputation it once had of being known as a Bucket of Blood  Town  because of the mining towns which went on strike .

The mine which was active into late 80s  is totally dismantled but you can still find the former company Store and other buildings now being used for various businesses . a large athletic complex and amphitheater now sits on the site of the mines former operations. 

Its quiet now in town but in 1927 a violent Coal Miners Strike broke out across Western Pa. and Russelton was right there with them. 

A Fictionalized  History of events in Russelton can be found in the book the Rag Mans War

https://www.pghcitypaper.com/news-2/how-cruel-was-our-valley-1336670/

But many of these events if they did not happen in Russelton they definitely happened in other coal towns. Because the Iron & Coal Police definitely ruled over and took liberty's with miners wives and family's as they evicted miners from their housing. Alot of the same civil rights abuses and  tactics used in Matewan WV where used in Pa  

At the bottom of the Allegheny River  when they where rebuilding the Hulton Bridge in Harmar they found many lengths of chain which where used to get rid of miners and union officials when Coal operators turned loose the Iron and coal police in Harmar as they went on strike .It was not until the 30s that Iron and Coal Police where gone and miners started getting a fair deal .

But many on both sides of the issue died to get those rights , Including Coal Operators their family members and Iron and Coal Police .

Many of the Iron and coal Police ended up joining the Pa. State Police when it was formed .

These where hard and desperate times for miners and only thing they had was a strike to bring attention to there plight .  


 

 

 

An often passed but missed memorial to a motorcyclist killed in a bizzare drunk driving accident in Etna Pa

When you ride up Washington Street in Etna as a short cut thru Cherry City to Millvale right at the split  with Friday Road sits a memorial many who pass every day do not even realize is there


 It sits all alone deep in the hillside and when you stop to examine it you will find it is a memorial to a well liked biker who was killed on that spot 


 Alan Brockelbank known by his Biker Buddy's as Silver fox was out for a ride when he was killed by a fallen tree which struck him

 August 9th 2008.

While this is tragic what makes it even more horrifying is it was 100% avoidable because the tree came down when a drunk man in a pickup truck hit it.  

https://www.carsandracingstuff.com/library/articles/5719.php

The drunk driver paid his debt to society but Silver Fox will never be able to pursue his lifers goals  .

If there is one crime where i believe the punishment is not harsh enough it is drunk driving .

My You rest in Peace  Silver Fox and the piece of shit who killed you be tormented about it for the rest of his life.  


An Old Mysterious Building on property my friend bought leads to rediscovery of early navigation system

 My Friend bought a property out near Greater Pittsburgh Airport but on far edge of property sits a mysterious small red brick building  with signs warning FAA  property .

But what did it do ? Its obviously much older than airport which was originally built in 1952 .

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_International_Airport

 


well one thing lead to another and old memory of mine from Baldwin Boro has discovered it was part of an early aerial beacon system  that guided airplanes to airports im talking the old Original Allegheny county Airport in W. Mifflin 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegheny_County_Airport

 


  My childhood memories of 60s  i remembered a strange field of antennas and a green buildings in Baldwin Boro off Streets Run Road  which is now housing . site was similar to image below 


 

It then when all this started coming together along with large arrows on tops of old buildings 

Before modern Radar and GPS   Radio Beacons where used to direct planes as well as arrows on tops of buildings and on ground. 

https://www.airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/guiding-light-airway-beacon-tower