| Penobscot Knob | |
|---|---|
| Penobscot Mountain | |
  Penobscot Knob | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 2,103 ft (641 m) [1] |
| Geography | |
| Location | Luzerne County, Pennsylvania |
| Parent range | Appalachian Mountains |
| Topo map | USGS 40075G8, 1947&'83 Tamaqua (PA) Quadrangle |
Penobscot Knob, also Penobscot Mountain, is a summit that is located in the western fringe of the Poconos nearest to Mountain Top, Pennsylvania. The Solomon Gap pass below it contains an important multi-modal transportation corridor.
At one time before incorporation, Mountain Top and the saddle of the pass was known by the Amerindian name Penobscot. Penobscot Mountain forms part of the drainage divide between the Lehigh Valley & greater Delaware River drainage basin and the Wyoming and Susquehanna Valley, part of the Potomac River drainage basin. The pass formed between Penobscot and Haystack Mountain a few thousand feet to the West was one of the few places a railroad could be envisioned in the 1830s when the fuel crises in eastern cities demanded easier transportation to the Northern Anthracite Coal Fields, which ironically, came to be exploited by the company with a near monopoly in providing coal from the Southern Anthracite region, Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N, f.1821), which had built both the Lehigh Canal, but also the nation's second railway, the Summit Hill & Mauch Chunk Railroad.
The whole uplands north and west faces overlook the Wyoming Valley from the southeastern corner near Hazleton towards and through the greater south Wilkes-Barre area. The southern and eastern slopes just give peeks into portions of the Poconos and wider views of the Lehigh Valley descending down to White Haven, for the Poconos technically are left-bank bounded by the Lehigh.
The shoulders of the peak, an elevated flat area saddle pass peak today is perhaps best known as the site of many local television and radio station transmitter antennas. The first broadcast station located there was WIZZ FM followed by WILK FM. Much of the engineering and work on the WIZZ site was conducted by Major Edwin Armstrong, the inventor of several technologies including FM.
WIZZ is now WMGS which still broadcasts from the same building erected in 1947 for WIZZ. WILK FM became WILK TV then WNEP TV. WVIA-TV, WVIA-FM, WNEP, WYOU, WBRE, and WOLF-TV are some of the major stations that broadcast from the high elevation there, but the peak was known for another reason in the nineteenth century, the saddle or pass on its western slope together with its other terrain features were the best place to build a railroad across the south and east faces of the bowl of the Wyoming Valley from the 'direct road' down the level water route to the Delaware Canal and Delaware River above and alongside the Lehigh Canal, cutting off nearly 100 miles from a rail trip to Philadelphia.
Penobscot Hill is about 2,100 feet (640 meters) above sea level.
WNEP-TV's transmission tower broadcasting the analog signal on channel 16 collapsed on December 16, 2007, [2] due to severe ice, winds, and snow at the transmitter location on Penobscot Knob. The tower collapse also destroyed the transmitter building. No one was injured during the incident. Transmission of the digital signal on channel 49 was restored after a brief interruption of power to the tower supporting the digital transmitter and antenna. WNEP's signal on local cable systems and satellite was restored before the end of the day. The ice and winds on December 16, 2007, also brought down or damaged the towers broadcasting WYOU-TV, WBRE-TV (digital), WVIA-TV (analog and digital), and WCLH which are located within proximity on Penobscot Knob. The 800-foot (240 m) WNEP tower completely collapsed.
The top 150 feet (46 meters) of the WVIA tower fell, as well as its digital antenna. The WNEP tower fell across power lines knocking out the power to the other transmitters, except the WBRE analog transmitter, which was on a different line. [3]
Tamaqua is a borough in eastern Schuylkill County in the Coal Region of Pennsylvania, United States. It had a population of 6,934 as of the 2020 U.S. census.
WNEP-TV is a television station licensed to Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States, serving as the ABC affiliate for Northeastern Pennsylvania. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on Montage Mountain Road in Moosic. Through a channel sharing agreement with PBS member WVIA-TV, the two stations transmit using WNEP-TV's spectrum from an antenna at Penobscot Knob near Mountain Top.
WBRE-TV is a television station licensed to Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, United States, serving Northeastern Pennsylvania as an affiliate of NBC. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which provides certain services to Scranton-licensed CBS affiliate WYOU under a shared services agreement (SSA) with Mission Broadcasting. The two stations share studios on South Franklin Street in downtown Wilkes-Barre, with a news bureau and sales office next to WYOU's former studios on Lackawanna Avenue in downtown Scranton. WBRE-TV's transmitter is located at the Penobscot Knob antenna farm near Mountain Top.
WVIA-TV is a PBS member television station licensed to Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States, serving Northeastern Pennsylvania. Owned by the Northeast Pennsylvania Educational Television Association, it is sister to NPR member WVIA-FM (89.9). Both stations share studios in Jenkins Township, which shares a post office with Pittston. Through a channel sharing agreement with ABC affiliate WNEP-TV, the two stations transmit using WNEP-TV's spectrum from an antenna at Penobscot Knob near Mountain Top.
WYOU is a television station licensed to Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is owned by Mission Broadcasting, which maintains a shared services agreement (SSA) with Nexstar Media Group, owner of Wilkes-Barre–licensed NBC affiliate WBRE-TV, for the provision of certain services. The two stations share studios on South Franklin Street in downtown Wilkes-Barre, with a news bureau and sales office in the Ritz Theater in downtown Scranton. WYOU's transmitter is located at the Penobscot Knob antenna farm near Mountain Top.
The Wyoming Valley is a historic industrialized region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The region is historically notable for its influence in helping fuel the American Industrial Revolution with its many anthracite coal-mines. As a metropolitan area, it is known as the Scranton–Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area, after its principal cities, Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. With a population of 567,559 as of the 2020 United States census, it is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Pennsylvania, after the Delaware Valley, Greater Pittsburgh, the Lehigh Valley, and the Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical areas.
Mount Pisgah is a mountain in the Appalachian mountain range and part of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, United States. The mountain's height is 5,721 feet above sea level, and it sits approximately 15 miles southwest of Asheville, near the crossing of the boundaries of Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson and Transylvania counties. It is located on the border of Buncombe and Haywood counties, close to the point where Henderson and Transylvania meet them, but not actually within the latter two counties. The mountain is easily accessible via a hiking trail from the Blue Ridge Parkway, near the Pisgah Inn.
WCLH is a non-commercial radio station licensed to Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, United States, the station serves the Scranton area. The station is currently owned by Wilkes University. The station has obtained a construction permit from the FCC for a power increase to 205 watts. The station plays alternative rock, heavy metal, and most recently adding rap/hip-hop to the programming schedule. It also airs the nationally syndicated shows Democracy Now, Making Contact, CounterSpin, Radio Goethe and The Full Armor of God Broadcast. Like most college radio stations, it is run by a staff of students with the exception of a faculty general manager to oversee the day-to-day operations.
WSWB is a television station licensed to Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States, serving as the CW affiliate for Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is owned by MPS Media, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with New Age Media, owner of Hazleton-licensed Fox affiliate and company flagship WOLF-TV and Williamsport-licensed MyNetworkTV affiliate WQMY, for the provision of certain services. All three stations, in turn, are operated under a master service agreement by the Sinclair Broadcast Group. The stations share studios on PA 315 in the Fox Hill section of Plains Township; WSWB's transmitter is located on Bald Mountain, northwest of Scranton and I-476. However, newscasts have originated from the facilities of sister station and CBS affiliate WSBT-TV in South Bend, Indiana, since January 2017.
WOLF-TV is a television station licensed to Hazleton, Pennsylvania, United States, serving Northeastern Pennsylvania as an affiliate of the Fox network. It is the flagship property of locally based New Age Media, LLC, and is co-owned with Williamsport-licensed MyNetworkTV affiliate WQMY ; New Age also provides certain services to Scranton-licensed CW affiliate WSWB under a local marketing agreement (LMA) with MPS Media. All three stations, in turn, are operated under a master service agreement by Sinclair Broadcast Group. The stations share studios on PA 315 in the Fox Hill section of Plains Township; WOLF-TV's transmitter is located at the Penobscot Knob antenna farm near Mountain Top. However, newscasts have originated from the facilities of sister station and CBS affiliate WSBT-TV in South Bend, Indiana, since January 2017.
WQPX-TV is a television station licensed to Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States, broadcasting the Ion Television network to Northeastern Pennsylvania. Owned and operated by the Ion Media subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company, the station has offices on Lackawanna Avenue in downtown Scranton, and its transmitter is located on Bald Mountain, northwest of Scranton and I-476.
Regions of Pennsylvania in the United States include:
WVIA-FM is a non-commercial, public FM radio station in Scranton, Pennsylvania. It is the National Public Radio member station for Northeastern Pennsylvania. The station is owned by the Northeastern Pennsylvania Educational Television Association along with its sister television station, WVIA-TV, with studios in Jenkins Township, near Pittston. It airs a mix of NPR news and talk shows, classical music in middays, jazz at night and the BBC World Service overnight.
WMGS is a commercial radio station in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. It is owned by Cumulus Media, through licensee Radio License Holding CBC, LLC. It broadcasts an adult contemporary radio format, switching to Christmas music for part of November and December. The studios and offices are on Baltimore Drive in Wilkes-Barre.
The Geology of Pennsylvania consists of six distinct physiographic provinces, three of which are subdivided into different sections. Each province has its own economic advantages and geologic hazards and plays an important role in shaping everyday life in the state. From the southeast corner to the northwest corner of the state, the include: the Atlantic Plain Province province, the Piedmont Province, the New England Province, the Ridge and Valley Province, the Appalachain Province, and the Central Lowlands Province.
Pisgah Mountain, or Pisgah Ridge on older USGS maps, is a ridgeline running 12.5 miles (20.1 km) from Tamaqua to Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania from the Little Schuylkill River water gap to the Lehigh River water gap.
Nesquehoning Mountain or Nesquehoning Ridge is a 15–17-mile-long (24–27 km) coal bearing ridge dividing the waters of Lehigh Valley to the north from the Schuylkill River valley and the several near parallel ridgelines of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians barrier range all local members of which run generally WSW-ENE in the greater overall area.
Mountain Top yard or Penobscot yard is a rail yard in Mountain Top, Pennsylvania. It was built by the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N) in response to an 1837 bill authorizing a right of way and was established by 1840, at least as a construction camp for the Ashley Planes, in support of the construction of the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad trackage and operations to join the northern Anthracite Coal Region from barge loading docks along the Susquehanna in Pittston, in the Wyoming Valley, with the Lehigh Canal.
Mauch Chunk Ridge or Mauch Chunk Mountain is a historically important barrier ridgeline north of the Blue Mountain escarpment and 3rd parallel ridgeline south of the Nesquehoning Creek after Nesquehoning Mountain and Pisgah Ridge in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Haystack Mountain (Pennsylvania), is an otherwise non-descript 1871 ft peak forming the steep southwestern faces of the Solomon Gap mountain pass's saddle connecting and dividing the Wyoming Valley from the Lehigh Valley.
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