– Good morning, guys.
Today we have quite an adventure
traveling through Rust Belt territory,
that being southwestern Pennsylvania,
where, from my understanding,
(train horn blaring)
we’re gonna see a lot of this,
a lot of decaying,
rundown, vacant steel mills
and remnants of the coal industry.
(train whistle blaring)
Now this is a part of the country
that really did build up
America during the Gilded Age.
A lot of the skyscrapers
in our great cities,
the steel comes from
this part of the country.
A lot of these towns,
from my understanding,
have somewhat carved out.
The jobs have gone, therefore
the people have gone.
But the beautiful architecture,
I’ve heard some beautiful
architecture remains
and also some of the people.
And that’s the most important part today.
Get in with the locals
and get a better understanding
of what this part of America is like.
Let’s do this.
(gentle guitar music)
(train whistle blaring)
(gentle guitar music continues)
So many churches in this
town, it’s called Brownsville.
And you can see all the communities
that originally came in here.
So Greek, Catholic,
I wouldn’t have thought Syrian Orthodox.
Greek for sure.
Italians, Irish, Eastern Europeans,
but Syrian, that was interesting.
(train rumbling)
Wow, look at the architecture here.
There’s so much potential in this town.
So not long ago, these
towns were thriving.
And you can imagine
these streets, you know,
everything was a business here.
I’m sure there was a strong community.
There’s Union Station, looks
like an old flower shop.
That one’s been demoed.
How are you doing, sir?
Is that someone’s house?
No, it’s Nemacolin Castle.
– [Peter] An old castle.
– [Brownsville Local] 235 years.
– [Peter] Who was up there?
One of the big business owners?
Jacob Bowman.
He was from Hagerstown, Maryland.
He came here in 1789.
And then that’s when he
started construction in 1791
on this.
– Is this a nice neighborhood up here?
– That is a colonial section, that’s-
– Colonial section?
– That’s where the
original houses still are.
Matter of fact,
you’ll still see a
couple streets like this,
the yellow brick.
– Yep.
– These are the original.
Now this you’re standing on right now,
This is Front Street.
When this town first started,
it came down, wrapped around,
went down to what they call the neck.
This is the original road right here.
– Oh cool.
Do many of the people that grew up here,
are they still here or they all leave
– The really old people,
I’m talking about people
in their 80s and whatever.
They’re probably still here,
but for the most part, they
grow up here and they leave.
– Just no jobs anymore?
– No. See we used to
have like Hillman Barge.
I mean they’re still in business,
but not like they used to.
We always see folks, you know,
carrying coal in that train.
You don’t see.
You see them, but not like you used to.
– [Peter] These old world details.
A lot of money came through
here back in the day.
A lot of industry.
Also a staging ground.
Philander Knox, his home for sale.
(truck rumbling)
How are you guys doing?
– [Student] Good, how are you?
– [Peter] You from Brownsville?
– Close by.
– [Peter] What’s going on
in Brownsville these days?
– Nothing. (laughs)
– Nothing. Not much.
We go to school in Cal.
– [Peter] Is that the next town over?
– Yeah.
– Okay.
– Don’t go there.
You’ll be disappointed.
– [Peter] So you come to Brownsville
for your off time, your fun time?
– Unfortunately. (laughs)
– No, we just go to the
sandwich shop over there.
I’m from Uniontown, so I
wasn’t from around here.
– [Peter] Uniontown, that’s
where I’m going next.
– Mm.
– [Peter] What’s that like?
– Oh, Uniontown’s cool.
It’s really small, but not
much happens there either.
– Guys, I’m making a video
on western Pennsylvania.
You cool with being in it?
– Yeah.
– Oh yeah.
– [Peter] What else do you got to say?
Tell the world what you think.
– You’re not gonna find much
in western Pennsylvania.
There’s a couple restaurants.
This Fresh Fuel Cafe is new.
– [Peter] Oh, cool.
So there’s a little bit of life
coming back into the place.
– Yeah.
– Slowly but surely.
– Yeah.
– Yeah.
– [Peter] See you guys.
– Bye.
Acai Bowls, wouldn’t have
expected to see that business
after what we just saw.
Fine cigars.
Cigar guy always has
interesting things to say.
How are you doing, sir?
You’re selling cigars.
– I sell cigars.
People come in.
It’s like an old smoke shop.
I bought this place after I
retired from the steel mill.
I put 46 years in the steel
mill down in Clairton.
– [Peter] How was that?
– That was, that was good to me.
– [Peter] Good job?
– Yeah, good pension,
naturally, Social Security.
And Brownsville was busy.
I remember, as a kid, living in Republic,
they always had buses going to Brownsville
like every 20 minutes, half hour or so.
– [Peter] Because this is
where things were happening?
– This is where things were happening.
– [Peter] Okay. The bars, the restaurants.
– Stores, clothing stores, restaurants.
GC Murphy, Oppenwright’s.
Then you got Fiddles down on
underneath the bridge there,
which has been there forever actually.
– [Peter] What is Fiddles?
– Fiddles? Just a restaurant.
– A restaurant.
– [Peter] I’ll check it out.
– It used to be a bowling
alley and stuff, I think.
– [Peter] Okay.
– They’ve been shutting
things down for a long time.
But it still seems to, you know, do well.
– Life goes on.
– Yeah.
– All right, so if someone’s
down this way in Brownsville,
they can come in, buy cigars,
sit down with you guys,
smoke away, talk story,
– Yeah.
– That’s right.
– Hang out, get some good
food across the street.
– Yes.
– Yes.
– All right, hopefully people will come.
– Thank you.
– Take care, you guys.
– [Patron] Thank you, see ya.
– Thank you.
– Uh-huh.
– [Peter] Okay,
Brownsville had its heyday.
– Yep.
– [Peter] Down on the ground.
– Yep.
– [Peter] Coming back, you’re saying.
– Coming back, yes.
– It’s making a big comeback.
We started this five years ago,
and there was nobody else in town.
Now there is brand new
docks in down at our wharf
to bring the boat traffic.
– Okay.
– We have an antique
shop across the street.
We have a deli and sandwich shop.
We have Fresh Fuel Cafe,
which is the healthy foods.
So here we are.
We’re up and coming.
Great customers like that.
– You got these guys in town.
– Bye, guys, see you later.
– [Peter] Did you grow up here?
– I did.
– What was it like when you were young?
– When I was young, you
couldn’t get on the streets.
There were people everywhere.
All the stores were open.
You had two women’s clothing shops.
– [Peter] Can you show me?
Can you show me out here?
– Yeah. I got two women’s clothing shops.
We started it all.
We put our money where our mouth is.
– [Peter] Yeah, so you grew up here.
So you had skin in the game.
– I left for 30 years.
– [Peter] Oh, okay.
– And then when I came back, we needed it.
So down this way that
you’re looking down here,
it was just full of shops.
A couple of the buildings
have been torn down now.
– [Peter] Yeah.
– But there was, back in the day,
there were movie
theaters, there were bars,
there were restaurants, there
were women’s clothing shop,
men’s clothing shops, shoe stores.
A peanut shop was right there.
I mean, it goes on and on and on and on.
– [Peter] You’re not even that old.
– No, I’m not, thank you.
When was this? When was this Charge?
– Well, that, that Charge
was before my time.
But in my time here,
it was still very busy
here in town.
– So these streets right now,
there’d just be people walking.
– There’d be people walking,
cars all over the place,
stuff going on.
There were things to do down
here for kids and families.
And the wharf was very busy at that time,
and it’s making a big comeback.
So it’s all good.
– [Peter] So you’re
fired up on Brownsville?
– I’m fired up on Brownsville.
– You’re feeling it?
– I’m feeling it, yeah.
– [Peter] And you came
back after 30 years.
– 30 years, I was away.
I was just in Pittsburgh for 30 years
and came back and bought
into this business
and here we are.
– Okay.
Your business, what’s it called?
– Pickers Pub and Grub.
– [Peter] Okay.
– Yep, right here too.
Established 2019.
We were the first ones here.
– Take care, ma’am.
– Thanks, man.
– [Peter] Thank you.
This old architecture is so impressive.
I wonder what this was back in the day.
Marble floors.
(upbeat rock music)
How you doing, ma’am?
– [Janice] Good. How are you?
– [Peter] Good. What was
this back in the day?
– It was a bank.
One of the first national
reserve banks in the country.
– [Peter] Do you have a vault?
– Uh-huh, it’s right back there.
– You want to check it out with me?
I’m making a video on the Mon Valley.
– Oh, you are? Okay.
– [Peter] Your name, ma’am?
– My name’s Janice.
– [Peter] Janice, did you grow up here?
– Yeah, in the area.
Over here, we have more
antiques and collectables.
– [Peter] Oh yeah, you got a lot going on.
– Yeah, okay, here it is.
– [Peter] Look at that.
– [Janice] And we have in
here our coffee and wine bar.
– [Peter] Oh.
– [Janice] (chuckling) You can go in.
– [Peter] Okay.
Safety deposit boxes.
– [Janice] Yeah.
We just had our grand reopening.
So that’s why the wine.
– [Peter] So Janice,
this is your business?
– Mm-hm.
– [Peter] So what made
you decide to do this?
– We’ve been doing this.
My husband and I had been
doing this for about 30 years.
– [Peter] I’m sorry, at Fiddles.
That’s a restaurant?
– Yes.
– [Peter] Your husband and
his old girlfriend, what?
– They used to carve in the,
they used to carve their
names in the booths.
You’ll see it.
I mean, you’re not gonna
actually see my husband’s,
but you’ll see a bunch of them.
– [Peter] Do you and your
husband eat at that booth?
– We used to,
but he passed last March.
– Oh, I’m sorry.
– That’s okay.
– I’m sorry.
– Yeah, he was very sick.
– [Peter] So do you love the town?
– Mm-hm.
– [Peter] Nice people?
– A lot of nice people, yes.
Brownsville’s coming back.
It did go down a little,
but it’s coming back.
– [Peter] This is new, all new?
– Just like two weeks ago.
– [Peter] This is sweet.
– When I first moved down
here, it was not too much done.
I’m like, “Wow, this is really,”
and then they started
fixing up year after year.
I was like, “Okay, it’s getting better.
It’s getting better, ” like yeah.
– [Peter] What do people do for jobs here?
Do they go to Pittsburgh or what?
– It’s all, everywhere.
I work at the bar right across the street.
– Oh, nice.
– Yeah. I’m there.
– [Peter] What’s the name of the bar?
– Pickers Pub.
– I was just there, back to work?
– I’m actually surprised I’m off today.
I’m usually almost never off.
Well, I’m head chef.
(train horn blaring)
– [Peter] How’s the food?
– I make it really good.
They haven’t had somebody
make it as much as I make it
like I did.
– [Peter] What do you
think people don’t know
about this part of the country?
– They probably think
there’s nothing to do,
but there’s plenty of things to do.
I get more outside out here
than I did anywhere else.
I used to take photos.
Whenever I would walk to certain places
at certain times of the day,
used to take photos, and they’d be like,
where’d you get that photo?
I’m like, it’s right here.
You just didn’t notice it.
Like you just wait till
the right time of day.
– [Peter] You don’t miss Pittsburgh?
– No, I grew up out there.
That’s where I was born and raised.
I just seen way too much
when I was out there.
– [Peter] Any violence here or not really?
– Not like out there.
That’s why I moved here.
My high school that I went
to was Woodland Hills.
I’ve had way too many of my friends
that I went to school
with get shot and killed
before we even got outta school.
Way too many.
One of my best friends got
execution-style shot and killed
right in front of my house.
– Oh man, I’m sorry, brutal.
– [Peter] Gang stuff or what?
– There was two police
stations that I’ve seen
that they did a drive by on
and shot the police station up.
– [Peter] In Pittsburgh?
– There was one that was in the Project,
’cause it was supposed to be
like a little police station
just for in the Projects.
It got shot up,
and then they shot the next
one on the next borough,
which was connected to it.
They shot that one up too, same day.
– Here’s an observation I’ve been making,
let me know if you think it’s true,
’cause I’ve moved outta the cities too.
In these smaller towns,
you have more friends,
you’re more connected,
even though there are way less people.
– Yeah.
– Where in a city,
you might not even know
your neighbor, right?
– Yeah, yep.
When I was out living in Pittsburgh,
I only had a few friends or
just a handful, maybe five.
And that was it, the only people
I’ve ever sat and talked to
and hung out with.
Out here, I can’t walk from
here to the gas station
and not run into at least
like 10 people that I know,
see them, like, “Hey, how you doing?”
Da da da.
Everybody’s, “Hey.”
I’m like, “Hey, what’s up?”
That’s pretty much, like,
I like that, you know?
Everybody recognizes everybody they see.
They say, “Hey, how you doing?”
You know, I’d rather take it
like this than anything else.
– [Peter] You grew up here?
– I did, born and raised.
There wasn’t much here, but
they’re actually redoing it,
and it’s gonna look much better.
I mean, this was always here, of course
– [Peter] This has been
here the whole time.
– This has been here since 1910.
– [Peter] Fiddles Diner.
– Mainly everything in
here is still original.
– [Peter] Still original.
Oh, right here are the booths
with the carved up names.
– [Fiddles Owner] Yeah,
every single booth.
– [Peter] So since 1910.
– Walls too.
Look at our wall.
– [Fiddles Owner] The booths
have been here since 1920.
– [Tina] Oh, have they?
– [Peter] 1920.
A lot of dates have happened here.
A lot of marriages have started.
– Yes, yes.
I worked one place up on Hill.
– Everything.
– It’s not there now,
but there was a, my boss lady,
she was like, “I used to date your dad,”
like before I was even born.
She told me that her name and his name
is in one of these booths
with like hearts all around it and stuff.
But I never even really looked for it.
– [Peter] Here it is. I got you.
There’s the heart.
(Tina laughing)
Trey, is that your dad?
– That is not my dad.
– [Peter] I like how they had
the mirrors back in the day.
– Yeah.
– Like sit down and, right?
– [Tina] Yeah.
– Look at the other person that way.
– See if I can get out.
I never sat back here.
I can, yes.
– Hey.
– Instead of looking
at you directly, yeah.
– [Peter] Yeah.
– What made you want to film Brownsville?
– [Peter] I didn’t even plan
on stopping here, to be honest.
I’m on my way to Uniontown,
and I went over the bridge.
It looked really cool.
– Okay, hold on one second.
You can take it.
I’m recording that burger.
– Oh, okay.
– [Peter] Look at that.
Okay, how much is that
here in Brownsville.
– How much is this burger?
– [Peter] $10.
– Less than $10.
It’s a double burger.
– [Peter] Less than 10. Nice.
– It’s a half-pound burger,
hand-breaded onion rings.
– [Peter] Look at that.
It’s a tower of burger. Beautiful.
– [Fiddles Owner] See
that building right there?
– [Peter] Yep.
– It’s the first cast iron
bridge in the United States.
It’s a must stop.
– [Peter] So you guys
are proud of your town?
– We’re very proud.
It’s very historic.
Do you know the first
steamboat was made here?
– It went to New Orleans.
– It did. It did, on its own, hot dog.
– Somebody read their plaque.
– Ah, I like it, I like it, see.
– Okay, so you’re super
proud of your town,
the history here.
– Yes.
– You know, is a big part
of the Industrial Revolution,
building the country.
– Yes.
This was supposed to
be another Pittsburgh.
Did you know that?
– I did.
– Yeah.
– I wish I could go back to the day
just to see what my dad used to see here.
– Your dad was making out
in one of those tables
over there.
– He probably was.
– I think that it
would’ve been cool to see
how cool this place was
back in the ’50s in here.
We just recently took over in November.
So we’re building this back up.
– [Peter] Who’s we?
Me and my daughter, my husband,
and my Tina girl over here.
– Do you know about all the
movies that happened here?
– [Peter] No I didn’t.
– Oh.
– So there’s been “Maria’s Lovers.”
– The house is up there.
– And the “Maria’s Lovers”
house is up the road.
There’s been “Riddle” with Val Kilmer.
– [Peter] Oh nice.
– “Abduction” with Taylor Lautner.
– That’s that over there.
– Oh wow.
– They did a Netflix series
called “I’m Not Okay With This.”
And then “How to Tie a Tie.”
And I’ve never seen that one yet,
but I’ve seen all the other ones.
– [Waitress] Good, how are you?
– [Peter] You know what
it feels like here.
– What’s up?
– 1987.
– Yeah.
– In a good way.
– Yeah.
– Like the vibe, it’s a
little bit slower going.
– So they’re starting to renovate
and revitalize this town.
They’re putting in a tap house
in that building right there.
– [Peter] Yep.
– They built some penthouses in there.
– Isn’t there a doggy
little thing down there.
– Yeah, there’s a dog thing down there.
– I did not see that process,
when did they put that there?
– I’m really excited,
’cause it’s starting to draw
more attention to Brownsville.
– All right.
– So that’s a good thing.
– Oh, the furniture store?
– I know. I wish I did,
– You know they built barges.
– But he passed away.
– Right down Water Street,
they built the barges.
– [Peter] They’re still building them.
– They’re still building them,
and they go up and down
the river all day long.
– [Peter] So that’s
hiring a lot of people.
– Very much so.
– [Peter] Cool.
– Very much so.
– Good paying jobs?
– Very, yeah.
Like $37 an hour I do believe
to start out.
– Starting?
Out of the gates.
– And they paint and weld
and build the barges.
– Oh yeah, there’s a sign down
there starting at 37 an hour.
– [Peter] Oh that’s great.
Sir, did you grow up in this area?
– More or less.
I used to come here probably 25 years ago.
That wasn’t really in the
heyday, in the ’80s maybe.
I knew a guy.
He used to around here all the time.
– [Peter] Okay.
– His name was Junior Sitony.
He had the supply yard down at
the road there about a mile.
He was a guy that sold coal.
I used to have a dump truck,
and I was in the coal business.
But anytime I needed to find Junior,
and he wasn’t answering his
phone at the yard, he was here.
So I’d call here, and he would be here.
You ever heard of Sam
Thompson Rye Whiskey?
– [Peter] No.
– It’s a pretty good drink on the rocks.
– [Peter] Okay.
(diner laughing)
– Trying to get this off.
– [Peter] Perfectly white shirt.
– I said bye.
(Fiddles owner and Tina laughing)
– [Peter] All right, guys.
– [Fiddles Owner] Thank
you for everything.
– That’s my cue to leave.
Take care.
– [Fiddles Owner] We’ll see you next time.
– Oh, that was great.
(birds chirping)
What do you guys got here?
– The blue raspberry lemonade.
– I’m making a video.
Is that cool if you’re in it?
– [Kids] Yeah.
– [Peter] Is that cool?
You got a cash register even?
– (chuckles) Yeah.
– [Peter] All right,
how much for a lemonade?
– $2.
– $2.
– [Peter] Okay. I’m in.
How many lemonades you sell a day?
– Around like 20.
– [Peter] 20?
– Yeah, probably.
– [Peter] So you’re making 40 bucks a day.
– Yeah.
– That’s really good.
Did your mom make it?
– No, we made it.
– [Peter] You guys made it.
– Yeah.
– Nice.
That’s a blue lemonade.
Yeah, Brownsville.
Total ladies town.
It’s pretty cool.
Very simple.
(gentle guitar music)
Entering Uniontown.
Looks like a megachurch
crossed with a prison.
Another fascinating historical town,
which from the first glance,
this looks really well taken care of.
Clean streets, fresh paint.
I read that it was one of
the most prosperous towns
in the late 19th, 20th centuries
during the industrial boom.
It was a coal mining town
and provided coke for steel production.
Look at all these abandoned places,
that one’s actually not looking too bad.
I think it’s abandoned, this
one with the big columns.
Over here that looks like
a courthouse or something,
former courthouse with a dome on top.
That would be a cool house.
Really mixed up place as you can see.
And so guys, I just looked on the map
and realized there’s this place
that most of us have all seen.
I can’t believe it’s close to here.
It’s 30 minutes away and it closes soon.
So we’re gonna blast
through Uniontown here.
And that’s what happens
when you leave a little
slack in your road trips
and can be spontaneous
and take the road that looks interesting
and get lost for a bit.
So definitely check out
Uniontown if you get a chance.
I need to get back here.
This place looks fascinating,
but we gotta get to our next stop.
(gentle guitar music)
(gentle guitar music continues)
What an absolutely stunning
part of the country.
So from those super interesting
towns we just went to,
I’m gonna show you something here.
This view is iconic.
This is Fallingwater,
designed by Frank Lloyd Wright
in 1935 as a vacation home
for the Kaufmann Family.
It was originally a summer camp
complete with cabins, tennis court,
running track, clubhouse
and swimming pool.
The main house, this one,
was built mostly by local craftspeople
for a grand cost of $35,000
to build that house.
You can see it’s just
built right into the rock
and the river going under us.
There we go.
It’s gotta be amazing
when it’s raining hard
and this things really flowing.
Unfortunately we can’t get in.
I didn’t get the ticket to go inside
’cause they’re sold out.
What a place to spend your summer.
– We’ve been very busy,
and the tours are full usually every day.
And especially since we’ve
become a World Heritage Site
in July of 2019,
along with seven other
Frank Lloyd Wright sites
like the Hollyhock House,
Taliesin East and West,
the Unity Temple.
– [Peter] Okay.
– And these were all bundled together
to make a a bundle of eight
Frank Lloyd Wright sites.
– Awesome. All right.
– So we’re very proud to
be a World Heritage Site,
but no funding comes with that.
Just a pat on the back and
good luck to you. (chuckles)
– [Peter] Are they paying you, Rod?
– This is a paid position, yes.
– [Peter] Good, good, good to hear.
– Then that’s a World Heritage position.
– No, not the World Heritage.
– No.
– They’re not doing it.
Okay.
– So if you can’t make it
to the pyramids,
you can say you’ve been
to Fallingwater at least.
(water rushing)
– Well this town has a
totally different vibe
than what we’ve seen today.
Name of the town is Ligonier.
And who knew that Southwestern
PA was so mixed up.
I thought it was honestly gonna
be more down-and-out towns.
We’ve seen a little of that today.
You gotta learn what the economy is here,
or what it was ’cause, wow,
what a different type of place.
Downtown Ligonier, quiet Street.
You guys from here?
– Yeah.
– [Peter] Why is it so nice?
Do you know?
It seems pretty wealthy.
Like the buildings look good
and no closed down storefronts.
– Mellons, the Mellons keep it that way.
– [Peter] The Mellon Trust
supports a lot of this stuff.
– The Mellon Trust supports a lot of it.
– [Peter] Okay.
– The fire departments.
– But beyond that-
– The people care for it.
– People care for it.
– So the Mellon family
from the banking days, right?
– Yeah.
– Is the same Mellon family?
– From Pittsburgh.
– Yeah.
– [Peter] Okay.
– All the people in Pittsburgh
that used to wanna get out
of the city when it was hot,
there was actually a train that came.
– [Peter] Oh, okay, okay.
– For the weekends they
would come here to-
– [Peter] So old Pittsburgh money
is keeping this place
going or built it up?
– Yeah, I think that’s probably-
– In part.
– In part.
– In part, okay.
– And I think the people that live here
keep the money here.
Does that make sense?
– [Peter] Yeah.
– Like if you need a contractor,
you find somebody here that does the work.
– But there are no jobs
here really, are there?
Other than gift shops
and little businesses.
– Well you got Greensburg
and Latrobe.
– Okay.
Latrobe Steel is working overtime for now.
– Oh it’s highly active, huh?
– Just up the road, Latrobe Steel.
– Or you have a lot of people
that work from home here.
– [Peter] Okay, work from home.
But the steel jobs are good right now?
– Yeah.
– [Peter] They pay well, right?
– Usually those are union
jobs, and they’re well paid.
And last I heard, guys
were working overtime.
– [Peter] They can’t find people?
– As like most places I understand.
You know, they can’t.
– Yeah.
But you also have a couple
company headquarters
up out there near the airport in Latrobe.
– [Peter] Okay.
– You have the airport.
You have, I mean, so this
isn’t bereft of industry.
– [Peter] You know what I’m
realizing in this part of PA
or maybe all PA,
every town has a totally
different identity.
– True.
– Like a totally different life.
– This is very Hallmark-like.
– Yeah.
– I mean, this is especially
when you come into the diamond,
it looks like a Hallmark movie.
– You call it The Diamond.
– Right now it’s a little oily.
’cause there was
a little bit of
– Like there was
an oil spill today. (laughs)
– An oil spill today.
– [Peter] What do you mean oil spill?
– In town, they closed
the Diamond for a bit,
because there was an oil spill.
– Just past the circle.
When it was founded,
at one point, it was actually
shaped like a diamond,
I understand, why it was-
– And the Mellon Trust rebuilt that area.
– Yeah, the Mellon Trust,
probably been forty years.
– [Peter] Okay, so they’re
popular then around here.
– Yes, when we bought our house here,
they had first right of refusal.
– [Peter] What do you mean by that?
– That they watch.
They don’t want things to change too much
is what I get from that.
– Oh, okay.
Okay, gotcha.
(birds chirping)
Mystery solved, it’s is
because of the Mellon family,
a lot of old money in this town.
That sounds like that
money is carrying on.
How you doing, sir?
All right, next town, Johnstown.
Just got some intel,
was told by the locals,
very industrial, sorta
having a renaissance,
sort of on its knees.
We’ll see.
(gentle guitar music)
(gentle guitar music continues)
That’s still operating?
– Yeah, still operating.
There’ll be like security
there and everything.
– [Peter] Oh, okay.
– To get in there.
And I think this is the
only one around here
that’s still operating,
but yeah. (laughs)
– Okay.
– [Peter] Do you work here?
– I work crisis.
So I work in the Central Park complex.
This is the old Glosser building.
– [Peter] Oh, that’s cool.
Are you helping kids or
what are you doing there?
– Well, I crisis,
so like suicidal, homicidal,
they call me and I go out and-
– [Peter] Okay.
How are things for you these days?
– It’s actually gone down.
– [Peter] Has gone down.
– Yeah, has actually gone down.
– [Peter] That’s great.
– No, I mean it’s absolutely great.
I do think that we help,
because I’ve only worked
here about like a year now.
But that’s probably like one
of the saddest things to me
is coming to like kids.
There’s way more than I thought.
– [Peter] Really?
There were like, you know what I mean?
Because if you’re not
involved with it, yeah.
Yeah, kids, like not a lot of kids,
but like, you know, like some, like sad.
– [Peter] Small town like this.
– Yeah.
– [Peter] How many people here?
20,000 maybe?
– Yeah.
– [Peter] It’s quiet down here.
Where is everyone?
– It’s almost like
after like five o’clock-
– [Peter] It’s a ghost town.
Well thank you for the work you do.
– Yeah, no, I appreciate it.
Listen, good luck around here.
– It’s very important.
– Yeah.
– I didn’t have much to say.
But yeah, that was some operation.
And the trains are pretty cool to look at.
– Okay.
– When they all come by.
– [Peter] All right, take care.
– [Crisis Worker] Good luck!
– [Peter] Look at this.
We got an old United States post office.
And when they built them
back in the day like this,
I’m guessing this was built in the ’20s.
That’s just a wild guess
by the looks of it.
They did ’em really well,
usually Art deco style,
very interesting interiors.
Can we see in?
No, we’re not gonna get in there.
Look at this town.
Churches, of course,
and then it’s just a ghost town down here.
Just imagine what this could be.
There are no new cities that
will be built like this.
It’s impossible with the
collection of architecture,
how things are laid out.
You know, everything is, even
if it’s nice, it’s for profit
and you know, a post office
or these old buildings,
you know, it’s so
expensive to do these days.
But imagine right here what
this was maybe 40, 50 years ago.
Just people coming out of
shops, going to restaurants,
kids, laughter in the
park, and a bustling city.
– But I heard someone go-
– [Peter] What’s up guys?
You guys from J-Town?
– Yeah.
– How is it?
– I’m from Pittsburgh.
He’s from Johnstown.
– Oh I’m sorry. J-Town’s the place.
– Yeah, it’s the best I think.
Yeah, I’m used to it.
’cause this year’s my
10th year working here.
– 10th year?
– Yeah.
– Yeah.
– How do you like it?
– I like Johnstown.
– I’m gonna break it down for you.
’cause I’m my own person
and I’m a nice person.
I like Pittsburgh better,
because it is a bigger city.
It’s way more stuff to do in Pittsburgh
and way more stuff to look at.
But Johnston’s more quiet. more peaceful.
More quiet.
– Okay.
– And I like the quiet and the peaceful.
Crime wise, the crime level got worse now.
– [Peter] In Johnstown?
– Yeah.
It got worse over the years,
and it’s not getting better.
The majority of Johnstown,
it’s mostly people who, you
know, who grew up in Johnstown
and who knows Johnstown very well,
better than I do.
And I used to work for
the city of Johnstown
on some post I still do now,
but it’s people from out of town
that’s making Johnstown bass.
– Okay.
For the crime,
– Okay.
– The drug line alternate Johnstown,
Pittsburgh, Philadelphia,
people is bringing in drugs
and cause overdoses and all that stuff.
– [Peter] What’s your name?
– Kevin.
– Peter.
Yeah, yeah, nice to meet you.
– Yeah, nice to meet you too.
– Yeah, Kevin.
All right, what are you up to tonight?
– I’m about to go to one of
my old neighborhoods here
with Johnstown to go to Pizza Hut
to get my food for tonight.
– You excited?
– It’s a pizza, yeah.
– What are you getting?
I’m getting my stuffed crust pizza.
– [Peter] It’s a big night tonight.
– Yeah, basically.
– I’m happy.
I haven’t wanted pizza
in a long time in months.
– You don’t.
– What’s up, Kev?
– What’s up?
– [Peter] Is Kev sort of
a legend in these parts?
– 10 years.
– Lots of people know me.
– Yeah.
– Yeah.
– In a good way.
– Yeah.
– I can tell.
– Yeah.
– You got a great way about yourself.
– Yeah, definitely.
– Don’t stop.
– I help people every day.
– [Peter] You help people every day?
– I do.
That’s part of my job for
the city of Johnstown.
I help people every day.
I’m nice to everyone.
I respect everyone, I try to.
Because in my hometown Pittsburgh,
I grew up in the rough neighborhood,
in the most dangerous
neighborhood in Pittsburgh.
So I had to learn to make some adjustments
to be nice to everyone.
– Yeah, you’re putting
out good vibes, Kev.
– Yeah, definitely.
I try to.
– For sure.
And the vest, just to be on the safe side,
is that what that is?
– Correct.
– [Peter] Okay.
– I’m out almost all the
time, daytime and nighttime.
It’s reflective.
So I’m out in bad weather,
so people can see me in the bad weather.
Crazy driver.
– So I could see blocks away,
I’ll be like, “That’s Kev.”
– Correct, yep.
– Because nobody rolls like that.
– Correct.
– All right, take care guys.
– You too.
– All the best.
We have an old grocery store,
Chinaware, Willow Ware?
What is it now?
Okay, game and hobby shop.
– I’ll take you on the whole tour.
– [Peter] Let’s do it.
– So retail space up the front.
We got game space back here.
Tables filled with terrain.
You can come and play board games.
We have board games that
you can just come in
and take off the shelf.
– [Peter] Okay. Awesome.
– These guys are playing
a game of BattleTech.
– [Peter] What’s up, you guys?
Do you mind if I video your game here?
Is that all right?
– Yeah, no.
– So large pulse hit,
so we’re gonna roll for
hit locations again.
– And then we’ve got more
tables here for like card games.
We have people that just
come in and have like lunch
or you know, some of the members,
they’ll come in and be like,
“Hey, can I just sit and have lunch.”
– Memberships here?
– Yeah, yeah.
So $20 a month gets you a membership,
waives all your table fees.
You can play as much as you want.
And then it also gives you access
to our members only room
that we have in the back.
And then this is rentable by the hour.
So this is our Dungeons and Dragons room.
– D&D purist out here.
– Absolutely. (laughs)
– [Peter] Okay, this is when
you take it very seriously.
– Very seriously.
Flickering candles like these,
they turn on, and they’re
like the candlelight effect.
– [Peter] Is there a big
following here in town?
– So far it’s all right.
We’re doing all right with it.
– [Peter] That’s cool, good for you.
How long have you been open?
– April 5th.
– Okay.
– So not long.
Hey, how’s it going?
– Good, how you doing?
– Doing all right. Doing all right.
– Good.
– Do you want people
to come in from Pittsburgh
and other places?
– I’d love for people to come in
from Pittsburgh and other places.
– [Peter] So you’re born and raised here?
– Yep, I love my life here.
I love this town.
I’ve never had the desire to move.
– [Peter] Yep.
– It’s small enough for me,
but it’s also close enough to Pittsburgh,
like getting to Pittsburgh’s
an hour and a half.
– Oh is that it?
– Yeah.
– I’ve been zigzagging all day long.
Yeah, no, I mean hour and a half
to Pittsburgh
– I’ve been traveling all day.
– Is about it.
If you want to go to Pittsburgh
for like fine dining,
Pen’s game or a Steelers game,
like it’s not far.
– Yeah.
– You know, you can make a day of it.
– Architecturally, it’s a gem.
This place is a nugget.
– Yeah, yeah.
A lot of the buildings
spend time being unoccupied,
’cause everybody knows.
Everybody knows what if this
town was fully revitalized
what these properties could be worth.
And they’re hoping that someday
they’ll be able to sell it
for what they think it’s worth.
And it’s like, unfortunately,
when so many of them are sitting
vacant, it doesn’t happen.
– What do you think a
building like this is worth
in Johnstown?
– So I actually originally
looked into buying the building.
– [Peter] Okay.
– And when the bank did the appraisal on,
or I should say the insurance company
did the appraisal on it,
– Yeah.
– They said to rebuild
this building as it stands,
if it would like burn to
the ground, $2 million.
But in this town it sold for 125,000.
– [Peter] This sold for 125,000.
– Yep.
– Wow.
– It’s beautiful, too, all
this stone work and the bricks.
– So yeah, like it’s doable.
It’s just we’re not a metropolitan area
just yet.
– Yeah.
– So what do most guys your age do?
Do they stay in town or they take off?
– I would honestly say it’s about 50/50.
– 50/50, okay.
– I think there’s a lot that
leave for a period of time
and then they eventually come back.
Like there is a charm to this place.
– Yeah.
– There is honestly a cost of living.
– Yeah.
– You can make significantly less money
than living in Pittsburgh
and live much nicer here,
– So what’s an example of a house?
Like a modest house?
– So like my wife and I
– Not the worst, not the best.
– My wife and I’s house,
it’s a four bedroom, three bathroom house.
When we bought it, now it was
a little bit of a fixer upper,
but not that much.
We were at 105,000.
– That same house.
– How many years ago?
– 2021.
– Okay.
– So three years now.
– Okay.
– Honestly, you probably
try and buy that house
in like a place like Pittsburgh,
you’re probably talking a
quarter million or higher.
– So you’re living the American dream.
You have your home,
you have your business.
– I would say so far.
– You’re doing things
– So far.
– On your terms.
– Yeah, yeah.
– Oh that’s cool.
– We like to think that.
We like to think that. (chuckles)
– The growth that I see
for this town specifically
and how much opportunity is here,
not only in like the housing markets,
but like business
markets, everything here,
like if you’re looking
to start a business.
– [Peter] You’re fired up.
– Yeah, I care about this town.
– Okay, so the whole steel, coal history.
– Yeah.
– Sort of on the outs
– Way on the outs.
That’s old news.
– Okay.
– So you’ve gone through that cycle,
now you’re coming back into this.
– Yeah, we’re trying to
find our renaissance,
our new place to go.
And really, I think it’s
gonna be small businesses
and the hospital system is something else
that we really have to bank on too.
Like the Cambria system here,
the amount of like doctors,
nurses, nurse practitioners
that are coming to this area
and investing in this area
is very, it’s up there I would say.
– Okay, so your guys’ sentiment,
is that common or are you guys outliers?
– We’re outliers.
People think that this town’s dead,
but I really think that
a lot of people are stuck
in the coal mining days.
But there used to be big industry here,
there used to be big everything here
and now it’s not anymore.
And that means that it’s dead.
– [Peter] What do you think the country,
most of the country doesn’t understand
about this part of PA?
– I think that a lot,
living where I’ve lived,
I think a lot of people-
– [Peter] Where have you lived?
– New York, I lived in the
Bronx area for a while,
and then I lived out
in Firestone, Colorado,
which is towards like the Boulder side.
– [Peter] Okay.
– And I will say that like
telling people where I’m from,
most people, they get
surprised that I am more,
it’s viewed, not to get
political, but it’s very red.
It’s a lot.
People have the tendency to assume
that we’re kind of like
backwoods, backwater.
And there is so much here,
not only in the history,
but in the potential for
growth that I think is missed
if you just look at backwater,
– [Peter] I was in deep
Appalachia last summer.
– Yeah.
– West Virginia.
Sort of a similar situation.
– Yeah.
– I met a lot of clever,
interesting people.
– Yeah.
– And they’re, you
know, it’s easy to label
and be like looked down upon.
– Yeah.
– Oh they’re from West Virginia.
– Yeah, exactly.
– But, wow, I would travel
there in a heartbeat.
– Yeah, it’s cool.
– West Virginia, it’s a beautiful area.
– Beautiful.
– The whole Appalachian Trail,
that whole section is a
gorgeous place in the country.
It really is.
– Yeah, right on.
Anything else?
– That’s it.
I just wanna throw my
two cents in there, man.
I think you threw in more.
– Yeah, maybe a little bit more than that.
– [Peter] I’m gonna say 28 cents.
(Johnstown resident laughing)
(truck rumbling)
Thanks for coming along
guys through a little sliver
of the rust belt in Pennsylvania.
More interesting and different
than I thought it would be.
There’s actually quite a
few pretty well off areas
and even towns like Johnstown
that are making their comeback
and some of the towns we
went to earlier today.
There’s more optimism in the air
than I thought there would be.
So, unfortunately,
I didn’t even get
halfway across the state.
So tomorrow’s gonna be
a big day on the road.
And I’m gonna continue this video then.
All right, guys.
Thanks for coming along on that journey.
Until the next one.
(gentle guitar music)
(gentle guitar music continues)