Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has so many firsts I can’t come close to listing them all. Philadelphia had the first escalator in the US in 1901, Lititz had the first pretzel factory in the country in 1861 and Pittsburgh had the first World Series in 1903 between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Boston Red Sox, below.
I could go on, the list is long. In any case Pennsylvania is the 33rd largest and 6th most populated state in the US. But in some people’s eyes the western third of Pennsylvania, west of the Allegheny Mountains and the Appalachian divide, can be considered a separate geographic unit. In fact, in the 1700s it caused some to rally for the formation of a 14th state in this region (with part of West Virginia) named Westsylvania.
Several important, complex factors set western Pennsylvania apart from the east – but who cares about the complex stuff?
Culturally, western Pennsylvania is known for a unique local dialect called “Pittsburghese” or Pittsburgh English, sometimes affectionately called “yinzer” dialect because of its use of the term “yins” as the plural form of “you.”
Yins probably didn’t know that about Pittsburgh, below, did ya?
But here’s the biggest difference between east and west: Western Pennsylvanians refer to soft drinks as “pop” while those in the east call them “soda.” Yikes!
There are other factors but suffice it to say they all make western Pennsylvania sometimes seem like a virtual state within a state.
In any case, some of the country’s prettiest landscape can be found here and what a place to dream up some scenes for your layout. Just take a look at some of the photos Wes Shankland and his group have provided.
