At the end of January 1936 a crippling blizzard hit the Lykens Valley area particularly hard. The Elizabethville Echo of 23 January 1936, in a front page article, described the effort to dig out.
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Photo Caption: PWA [Public Works Administration] workers were clearing South Market Street to two-car width when this picture was taken. The road between Elizabethville and Fisherville was closed again by last evening’s miniature blizzard and high winds.
HIGH WINDS BLOCK ROADS; REGION AGAIN SNOWBOUND AFTER DIGGING OUT OF HEAVIEST SNOW IN YEARS
The horse and sleigh and felt boots came into their own during the past week, when this region was buried under an eighteen inch snowfall, the heaviest in fifteen years.
Starting early Sunday morning, the blizzard raged into late Sunday night blocking roads and traffic. Throughout the state, trains, buses, trucks and cars were reported stalled in drifts. Deepest snow of 25 inches was reported in Somerset and Fayette Counties.
On Sunday night, a work train was run over the branch between Millersburg and Lykens, but on the highways, plows attached to Highway Department motor trucks had a hard time opening the roads. In some instances, trucks carrying PWA workers followed the plow, and the men were called upon to shovel away the deeper drifts. Tractor plows, with caterpillar treads, sent into the region later, proved the most effective.
On Monday, Route 209, between Millersburg and Lykens, Route 25, between Millersburg, Berrysburg, Gratz, and the Elizabethville, Berrysburg, Pillow road were reported passable, but motorists were advised to drive with caution. Impassable until Tuesday was the road to Halifax by way of Fisherville.
Mail schedules between Millersburg and Muir were maintained with difficulty on Monday. On rural routes however, many patrons have been without delivery since Saturday.
Last night a three-inch snowfall accompanied by high winds blocked the roads that had been opened. Today, drifts car-high block all roads with the exception of route 209 between Millersburg and the Schuylkill County line.
Throughout the rural regions, marooned cars have been abandoned in the drifts by motorists who have been given shelter in nearby farm homes. Thirty-nine motorists some of them children, were given shelter at the Aaron Erdman home, east of town, last night, and twenty, unable to reach their home this morning, enjoyed a rural farm breakfast.
PWA workers, have been engaged in surrounding communities as in Elizabethville, clearing the highways. Today these workers and State Highway crews were busy with plows and shovels, battling to keep the roads open. High winds, however, make it almost impossible to keep the highways clear of the shifting, powder-like snow.
On Monday, the Elizabethville supervisor and a group of men were employed clearing the snow fro fire plugs. The snow, shoveled from pavements and streets is banked high in the gutters.
A number of rural schools have been unable to conduct sessions early this week. The local high school reported thirty-two students, residing in the the rural districts and nearby towns, absent today.
Lowest temperature reported her last night was 10 below zero, and the highest today, 6 above zero. Radio weather reports promise slowly rising temperatures for tomorrow.
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From the Elizabethville Echo, 23 January 1936, via Newspapers.com.
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