The Unknown Jewel of the Alleghenies

My husband had some car business that took him back to his home town of Ebensburg on this day. Since it was a Friday, I rode along with him. He took care of what he needed to, and then we each enjoyed a wonderful steak salad at Off the Rak.

The sky was overcast and a bit drizzly, but we had agreed that we'd like to visit the gardens at Loretto, across the road from St. Francis University. It's a place he visited as a child with his mother. Somehow, we hadn't been there in more than six years, which was far too long.

The place's real name was actually Immergrün (German for "ever green").  Some reports refer to this property as "the unknown jewel of the Alleghenies," a title I particularly like. The property was originally owned by steel magnate Charles Schwab, who lived the high life before his riches were lost in the stock market crash of 1929.

A story I read about this place indicated that at one time, Schwab spent a million dollars a year on the gardens. There are statues of the saints hidden in many nooks. The gardens boasted at least one of every tree that could be grown in North America.

At the heart of the estate was a 44-room mansion, now home to an order of Franciscan Friars. You may see that building at the top of the photo above, along with some of the sunken gardens.

There are several shrines at the edges of the gardens, and I went inside one and lit a few candles. You may see a photo of Our Lady of Fatima and the three shepherd children who witnessed her appearance in Portugal in 1917 in the extras.

The soundtrack song: Bruce Springsteen, with Secret Garden.