 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
|
||
 |
One Hour Self-guided Tour: Carlisle Carlisle
This one-hour driving tour is designed to give you a flavor of a town that has developed over 250 years. The tour will take you through part of Carlisle’s historic district, containing handsome buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries, past the church where President George Washington worshiped in 1794, past the Old Court House whose columns were shelled by the Confederates on their way to Gettysburg in 1863, through a portion of the campus of Dickinson College chartered in 1783, and onto the 2nd oldest Army post in the U.S. If you have the time, by all means get out of the car and explore. If not, come back and visit us again. Begin tour at Square (High & Hanover Streets) Buildings on the Square include the 1st Presbyterian Church where President George Washington worshiped in 1794; St. John’s Episcopal Church, Civil War Monument, and the 1846 Court House shelled by the Confederates on their way to Gettysburg. Note Historical Markers. Travel south on S. Hanover St. 1 block. Turn Right onto W. Pomfret St. Travel 1 block. On the Left side of the street note the California Café, a restaurant in the Art Deco Empire Hook and Ladder Co., and Tommy Thompson’s Antiques. Turn Right onto S. Pitt St. Travel 1 block to W. High St. and turn Left On West High St. note Historical Marker about James Wilson, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Historical Marker about the Whiskey Rebellion, and campus of Dickinson College, chartered in 1783. Old West, now the main administration building, was the first building on this campus and housed the entire college. It was built in 1804 and designed by Benjamin Latrobe, architect of the Capitol in Washington D. C. The mermaid weather vane that adorns the cupola was crafted by a Carlisle coppersmith in 1804. Continue driving on West High St. for several blocks past Massey’s Frozen Custard stand on the Left side of the road, past Dickinson tennis courts and football field. At the edge of the football field, turn Left onto Belvedere Street. This portion of the drive takes you through Mooreland, a turn of the century neighborhood with well-built houses in a variety of styles and shaded by mature trees. Travel 1 block and turn Left on South St. Dickinson School of Law on the corner of South and College Streets was founded in 1834. Historical Marker. Turn Right on South St. Travel 1 block and
turn Right on West St. Turn Left on S. Hanover St. and travel 3 blocks to the Square.
Get into the Right hand lane as you approach the Square. Turn Right on E. High St.  On
the NW corner of E. High & Bedford Streets is the Old
Prison.
It was built in 1854 to replace the 1754 jail and was used until
1985 when a new prison was built outside of Carlisle.
Continue driving through the Bedford St. intersection. Note 2 Historical Markers on NE & SE corners. Sites of the houses of Gen. John Armstrong and Gen. William Irvine Travel 1 more block on E. High and turn Left on East St. Travel 2 blocks. SW corner of East & Louther Streets is an 18th C. stone tavern and brewery. At North St. turn Right. Travel past the Sentinel newspaper building on your Left and continue on the road as it curves. The road turns into Claremont Rd. Pass Agway on the Right. Cross the railroad tracks. Just past the traffic light, turn Right into Carlisle Barracks entry checkpoint.
When you turn Right into the entry point for Carlisle Barracks follow signs for visitors. Here you will need to present: Photo driver’s license, car registration, and proof of car insurance. They will give you a pass and tell you to go through the next checkpoint where the guard will take your pass. Go straight through the traffic light and concrete barriers. Follow the road to the first stop sign and turn Left. The road will end in a V at a large brick building. At the stop sign at the V, turn Left. There is another stop sign almost immediately by the Fire Station. Turn Right onto Ashburn Dr. Continue on Ashburn, slowly. (Speed limit 15 mph.) Pass Indian Field on Right then Movie Theater also on Right. Across from the Movie Theater is Washington Hall built as the hospital for the Indian School. The road will bend past the Movie Theater—continue straight on Ashburn past Upton Hall on the Left. Just after you pass this building you will not exit but turn Left onto Lowell Ave. The white building on the Left is Thorpe Hall, the Gymnasium named for Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe. Continue on Lowell Ave. Turn Left onto Guardhouse Lane and continue 1 block. The stone building on the Right is called the Hessian Powder Museum. It was built in 1777 by Hessian prisoners of war captured at Trenton, New Jersey. At stop sign turn Left and continue to the stop sign at Ashburn Drive. At Ashburn Drive turn Left and exit between the concrete barriers. At traffic light make a Left onto Rt. 11 and follow the road to the Square (past Hess’s Gas Station on Right, through traffic light, past Kentucky Fried Chicken. Over the RR tracks the road bends and you enter the historic district of Carlisle (N. Hanover St.). Travel 3 blocks to the Square. Turn Right at the Square onto W. High St. To the Left is the Carlisle Theatre. Built in 1939 in the Art Deco Style, the facade features inset color tiles. The interior has recently been restored. Just past Carlisle Theatre look to the Right and you will see a mural painted on the brick wall that highlights some of Cumberland County’s history. Tour ends here. Things to see in Carlisle:
Places to shop in Carlisle:
Places to eat lunch in Carlisle:
|
Carlisle, the quintessential small American town,
is nestled between the beautiful North and South Mountains. Church
spires and the cupola of the Old Court House peek out over the trees
on the approach to town, and vintage lamp posts hung with colorful
baskets of flowers line the streets leading to the Square. Carlisle
is a town with a dramatic history, a great beauty, and is long remembered
by those who visit it. 
On this stretch you will pass 3 Historical Markers on the Right side of the street
As you pass the traffic light you pass the reburial ground of 186 American Indian children who died while attending the Carlisle Industrial Indian School. Note Historical Marker.
