Columbia, Pennsylvania, is a town on the Susquehanna River west of Lancaster and south of Harrisburg. The borough has a population of around 10,000.
The town was originally called Wright's Ferry, but changed it's name to Columbia after Christopher Columbus in 1790 in an effort to get Congress to name the town the national capital. Congress took a look at Columbia and voted on naming it the capital, but the motion fell one vote short, and so Columbia lost out to the eventual winner, a piece of land on the Potomac River.
Columbia area also marks the farthest north that Confederates got in 1863. The Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge, pictured in this thread, was as far as the Confederates got before backtracking towards Gettysburg.
I wasn't expecting too much from Columbia, since it didn't stand out amongst the other towns on the map. I was very surprised at how dense and urban this town is.
An old abandoned factory along 3rd Street.
This factory seems ready to be demolished.
Rowhouses on 2nd Street.
More rowhouses on 2nd Street.
Rowhouses on 2nd Street, with a view up Poplar Street.
Rowhouses on 2nd Street near Chestnut Street.
Duplexes on 3rd Street.
Rowhouses on Walnut Street.
Looking down Walnut Street at the Susquehanna River.
The Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge, formally known as the Veterans Memorial Bridge for Civil War veterans, built in 1930.
Looking up the Susquehanna at US Route 30 and rapids in the river.
Looking across the river at Wrightsville. Wrightsville marks the northernmost spot that the Confederates had come up into the North. They tried crossing the Susquehanna on June 28, 1863, but Union militiamen in Columbia held them off for a day. The next day, Confederate forces were called to backtrack westward, as Union forces were making their way up through Maryland. The Confederates and Union eventually met in Gettysburg.
The Columbia Historical Society near the intersection of 2nd and Locust Streets.
Old stores on Locust Street. Many of these have been converted into houses and apartments.
St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church on 2nd Street.
Looking up Union Street, with 3rd Street in the background.
Duplexes on Cherry Street.
The Wright's Ferry Mansion, built in 1738. The building was the home of Susanna Wright, a Quaker. Legend has that there are underground passageways leading from the house to the Susquehanna, so that slaves could be smuggled to freedom.
A store and rowhouses on 2nd Street.
Stores on Locust Street.
The First National Bank building, at the corner of 2nd and Locust Streets. The building is in the process of being completely renovated.
Stores along Locust Street. These buildings date back to the late 1890's.
Buildings on Locust Street. The Schwartz Building on the corner, was built in 1902.
More storefronts on Locust Street.
State Theatre on Locust Street.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Locust Street.
The Columbia Market House, located on 3rd Street. The basement of the Market House contains a dungeon, which was used for decades to house prisoners in dismal conditions after being built in 1874.
The borough's town hall, located at the corner of 3rd and Locust Streets.
Houses on 3rd Street.
Rowhouses on Cherry Street.
More rowhouses on Cherry Street.
Houses on 3rd Street, with Immanuel Presybterian Church on the right.
Houses on 3rd Street.
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