A small town which housed approximately 100 people; Eminent Domain was exercised on Alvira during the spring of 1942. Today, they lay hidden in the woods of State Game Lands 252, just a few miles south of Williamsport. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. Avilla is known as one of the longest living ghost towns on the historic Route 66. The ruins of the old water pumphouse that used to supply water to the ordnance works can be found on Fritz Station Road, along the Susquehanna River. Now a ghost town, this once bustling community is now known as the home of the United States federal prison, Federal Correctional Complex, Allenwood. If you appreciate the resource that I maintain here at MilitaryBruce.com, please consider supporting me. Films. The explosives plant opened in May 1943, but it ultimately had a very brief life and was shut down just eleven months later when the need for TNT had diminished. Now a ghost town, this once bustling community is now known as the home of the United States federal prison, Federal Correctional Complex, Allenwood. Avilla is considered one of the living "ghost towns of old Route 66". It was never completely abandoned and retains its village status today. In 1950, the Federal Bureau of Prisons was given 4,000 acres that included the plant site for construction of the Allenwood Prison, while the remaining 3000 acres that included the land where the magazines sat were given to Pennsylvania for use as State Game Lands in 1957. Bruce Forsyth served in the Royal Canadian Navy Reserve for 13 years (1987-2000). Your contributions help offset my cost of running this service and making it freely available. Thanks, Jenny. This is the original cemetery for Alvira. I knew from research that I live very close to the ghost town of Alvira (also known as Wisetown), PA. You can read a good detail about the town here. At the time, Alvira included schools, a gas station, a blacksmith shop, and a church, along with other businesses, and a population of around 400. The only structures remaining are the munitions magazines, though as sturdy as the day they were built, are slowly being swallowed up by trees and vegetation. From this parking lot, there are several gated dirt roads that are now used as walking trails in the state game lands. Powered by WordPress and the Graphene Theme. Alvira a farming community founded in 1825 as "Wisetown" and had 100 inhabitants by 1900 the town of Alvira contained a blacksmith shop, school, post office, several shops, and three churches. astree. After the war, the depot remained in use by the United States Army for testing and re-named Susquehanna Ordnance Depot, despite a promise by the federal government that the former residents could buy their property back for the same price as sold. Although Avilla has a population of 100 or so residents, it is considered one of the “living ghost towns of Historic Route 66.” This rural village in Jasper County was founded in 1856, and is the fourth oldest settlement in the county. there were 2 cemeteries supposed, The Abandon Pennsylvania Turnpike & Tunnels, Centralia : A Ghost Town Burning for over 50 Years, The Legend of the Horseshoe Curve Tunnel Ghost. Pennsylvania Ordnance Works, a TNT manufacturing plant operated by U.S. Rubber Co. for the government. With Kent Taylor, John Smith, Marian Carr, Serena Sande. quickly approaching and I wanted to explore what was left of, It was not long until we found Ghost Town Lyrics: Some day, some day / Some day I'll, I wanna wear a starry crown / Some day, some day, some day / I wanna lay down, like God did, on Sunday / Hold up, hold up / Some day, some days Acme, Pennsylvania ( East Huntingdon Township in Westmoreland County) Ardara, Pennsylvania ( East Huntingdon Township in Westmoreland County) Aitch, Pennsylvania (submerged to form Raystown Lake) Alice, Pennsylvania ( East Huntingdon Township in Westmoreland County) Alvira, Pennsylvania. Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/the-lost-town-of-alvira-the-sad-story-behind-the-abandoned-bunkers-of-alvira/, Your email address will not be published. Read the book, “Alvira and the Ordnance: An American Dream…Denied,” by Steve Hurdy and Paul Metzger, or order a copy of the documentary film, “Surrender! Hauntings Unknown - the Ghost Town of Alvira, Episode Trailer | Official. Located in state game lands, you will find 149 concrete domed bunkers created by the federal government, as well as overgrown remains of the village of Alvira, Pennsylvania. An interesting theory as to why residents weren’t allowed to buy their land back after the war came to light with the release of a Energy Department memo dated 29 May 1987, which revealed that between 1943 & 1944, 100, 000 lbs of radioactive uranium 234 metal turnings, waste from the infamous Manhatten Project were stored at the Pennsylvania Ordnance Works, specifically in magazines 112, 120, 137 and 146. This once vibrant farming community is filled with a long enchanting history and a dark past. Ghost Town of Ghosttown kan verwijzen naar: . Allow me to guide you through some of Pennsylvania's more unique, hidden, and forgotten paths. All that remains of Alvira are Christ Lutheran Church, three cemeteries and various house foundations. Approximately 400 acres were given to the former Williamsport Area Community College, now the Pennsylvania College of Technology, on which it built its earth sciences campus. The Union County Historical Society has occasionally arranged for guided tours to see the remaining building foundations and the cemeteries along Alvira Road. Alvira a farming community founded in 1825 as "Wisetown" and had 100 inhabitants by 1900 the town of Alvira contained a blacksmith shop, school, post office, several shops, and three churches. Your email address will not be published. This is a list of ghost towns in Pennsylvania . Most are sealed shut, but some are accessible. Founded in 1856, it is the fourth oldest village or town in Jasper County. Email This BlogThis! The bunkers can more quickly be reached by taking the road to the right. We went on a 3 day adventure in the infamously haunted Alvira, Pennsylvania. Welcome to Discovery PA! Nothing remains of the munitions plant or its support buildings. another bunker. Seems a bit sad. I had downloaded a, After we got our thrill of finding Ghost towns are towns that once had a considerable population, that have since dwindled in numbers causing some or all its business to close, either due to the rerouting of a highway, train tracks being pulled, or exhaustion of some natural resource . These bunkers … Coming Soon - Ghost town of Alvira, PA aka State Game Lands 252 Hike report and Pictures Sealed Bunker #1 - Anyone else thinking of the Fallout games right now? I tried to look up Alvira, PA on Google Maps, and it wasn’t listed. Discover Bunkers of Alvira in Allenwood, Pennsylvania: Over 100 concrete munitions bunkers are all that remain of a Pennsylvanian village seized by the US government. Under attack by Indians, passengers on a stagecoach reveal their true nature as the pressure mounts. We went on a 3 day adventure in the infamously haunted Alvira, Pennsylvania. Two of the three cemeteries can be found 1.5 miles further east along Alvira Road, the first right beside the road on the south-side. All homes and commercial buildings were torn down, except the Christ Lutheran Church, also known as the “Stone Church,” where the residents learned the fate of their town, and a munitions factory was built, along 17 miles of railroad track, 55 miles of roads, 300 support buildings and 149 domed earth-covered bunker magazines to store tons of explosives. For urban explorers, there is a different reason to go to this deserted town: the Bunkers of Alvira. Centralia clean-up a popular annual event, Blackface and moral corruption for everyone. This past year, hunting season was Here is a trailer of the main "episode" coming out here by the end of next month. The Williamsport Area Community College, now known as the Pennsylvania College of Technology, opened a campus on the remaining 400 acres of land. Oddly enough, most of the real histories of these locations are equally odd, weird, and macabre. Home Historical Treasures Mysterious Places: Exploring the Ghost Town of Alvira.