Alan Mays' photos with the keyword: Susquehanna River

"Steamboat Mary, Wrightsville and Columbia, Pa. B. D. Beittel , Columbia, Pa." An early postcard of Steamboat Mary, which evidently ran on the Susquehanna River between Wrightsville, York County, and Columbia, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The card dates to the first decade of the twentieth century (circa 1907, based on the postmark of another copy I spotted elsewhere on the web). In the background is the Pennsylvania Railroad Bridge , a steel truss bridge that was built in 1896. It carried railroad and automobile traffic over the river until it was dismantled in 1963.

That's John C. Kindler, who was the fire department chief in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in the driver's seat of his 1913 Studebaker-Flanders automobile. His passenger is Edward Halbert, assistant chief. Note the fire gong and the two fire extinguishers mounted on the side of the vehicle. The setting shows Front Street in Harrisburg , with the benches and trees of Riverfront Park across the street and the faint blue of the Susquehanna River barely visible in the background.

Printed on the back of this postcard: "The Broadway Limited, the Aristocrat of the Rails, is America's foremost train. It makes the daily run over the Pennsylvania Railroad between New York and Chicago in 20 hours; Philadelphia and Chicago in 18¼ hours. Direct connections in new Union Station, Chicago, for Pacific Coast and points West." As Wikipedia explains, "The Broadway Limited was a passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad between New York City and Chicago. It operated from 1912 to 1995." The illustration on this advertising postcard comes from a 1920s painting by Harold Brett entitled Speed and Security . It shows the Broadway Limited traveling over the Rockville Bridge , which crosses the Susquehanna River a few miles north of Harrisburg, Pa.

"McCall's Ferry Hotel, C. F. Quade, proprietor. Opposite Columbia & Port Deposit Station. P.O. address: Bon View, Lancaster Co., Pa. The popular summer resort along the Susquehanna. Good fishing at all times. First-class accommodations." A photo of the McCall's Ferry Hotel and links to other historical photos from the surrounding Martic Township area are available on the Conestoga Area Historical Society's Web site (thanks to Rita over on Flickr for locating the hotel photo).

Although "TMI" simply means " too much information " to most of us, residents of central Pennsylvania also use it to refer to the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station , a nuclear power plant situated on an island in the Susquehanna River that's three miles downriver from the borough of Middletown and twelve miles from the city of Harrisburg, the state capital. Thirty-five years ago--on March 28, 1979--one of TMI's two nuclear reactors experienced a partial nuclear meltdown , which the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission still calls the "most serious accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power plant operating history." The partial meltdown resulted in a release of radioactive materials, and pregnant women and young children living within a 20-mile radius of the plant were advised to evacuate the area. It took several days until plant operators were certain that the situation was under control. Gary and the Outriders, a local music group, recorded an original song, "Goodbye T.M.I. (The Ballad of Three Mile Island)," and released it as a 45 rpm record. Its catchy melody contrasts with its dire refrain: "Goodbye, goodbye to your life, T.M.I." To hear the song, check it out on YouTube: Gary & The Outriders - Goodbye T.M.I. (1979) . For another musical reaction to the TMI accident, see the cover of the record album, Potter County Was Made by the Hand of God But the Devil Made Three Mile Island , on Flickr.

"Fort Hunter Park Service Station, Wm. Penn Highway (Routes 11 and 22), 6 miles north of Harrisburg, Penna. Luncheon service in an atmosphere of dignity. Unusually complete touring camp and picnic facilities." The Fort Hunter Park Service Station building is now part of the Fort Hunter Mansion and Park , which is a division of the Dauphin County Parks and Recreation Department .