Guest Book | Harvey's Lake

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224 entries.

Joserph Lerner from Cookeville, Tennessee wrote on January 24, 2012 at 4:52 am:

I was born in Wilkes-Barre and lived in Plymiuth until the mines folded. Moved to New Brunswick, NJ in 1956; graduated Rutgers; was dean of Arts & Sciences at Tennessee Tech Univ until retired. Harvey's Lake brings back wonderful memories of childhood. The sandy beaches; the cool evenings; the great friends--we played all day and into the evenings. It's so sad that the older generation is gone. Now it all exists in my memory; my grandchildren don't have any interest in seeing the lake! They have their own frontiers. I still have friends in the area like Carol who lives at the lake. We just had a reunion birthday party of kids that went to Plymouth schools that don't exist anymore. The party was for us 70-year olds.

Rita McHugh from Centermoreland wrote on January 16, 2012 at 3:54 pm:

I am interested in more info and pics from Camp Wildwood. I attended Girl Scout Camp there in 1969 . 2012 is the 100th Anniversary of Girl Scouting. I would love to talk to other girls who went to camp there.

Grant Besser from Colorado wrote on December 26, 2011 at 6:41 pm:

I have three pictures of the Weckesser house on the lake and would love to send scanned pictures - they were acquired recently when I bought a house in Colorado that was originally Anna Hammond brothers house (wife of Frederick Jacob Weckesser)

Ashley P. from Harveys Lake wrote on November 9, 2011 at 7:29 pm:

I love living at Harveys Lake, I'm currently studying history at a local college and am writing a paper on this beautiful town. This website has been extremely helpful!!

Pat McGuiness from Concord CA wrote on October 26, 2011 at 3:28 pm:

Coming from California to Harvey's Lake where my Fathers family had summer homes was so fun as a child. I discovered my love for bumper cars and rode them constantly! I'm looking for someone who rode horses there with my father, her name was Patsy Whiteknight not sure if spelling is correct. I was disappointed to read the bumbper cars are gone

David Polifko from San Francisco wrote on October 17, 2011 at 3:55 pm:

Thanks for the work putting this website together. My grandfather was Charles "Chick" Randall who was murdered at Sugar Hollow. I've done research over the years and was pleased to see the information here. Thanks! If anyone has anything else about him, his family (the Randalls) I would be grateful to see it. Thanks - Dave

Marguerite Arnone Walton from Pittston/Los Angeles wrote on September 25, 2011 at 10:29 pm:

Whoops! Sorry, meant Artie Shaw. I have many special memories of Harvey's Lake as a child. My uncle owned the boat rides and other property there. It was a wonderful place to go as a child and will always have good memories.

Marguerite Arnone Walton from Pittston-born/Los Angeles, Cal wrote on September 25, 2011 at 10:18 pm:

Love the website! Thank you for the history you provide on your website. I was able to see pictures and posters of Fern Brook Park and Dance Hall where my mother and father danced to big bands in the 30's! Got to see posters of those bands that they've talked about, Paul Whiteman, Ernie Shaw and was glad to see Ozzie Nelson also there back then.

Don Bara from Centermoreland pa wrote on September 21, 2011 at 10:47 pm:

I am looking for information on the ski slope that was at harveys lake somewhere near present day woodlawn ave. I believe it was in operation in the 60's or70's any info would be appreciated

Ken Schwall from Tennessee wrote on September 9, 2011 at 12:39 pm:

Enjoyed the site. I often heard my dad, Carl Schwall, talk about the hot dog stand he and Harry Powell operated at Harvey's Lake back in the 1920's.

Trina & Donna Gimber from Aston, PA wrote on September 8, 2011 at 10:53 am:

Our parents are from Wilkes Barre and both grandparents had homes at Harveys Lake; one up the street from Sandy Beach and the other had a summer cottage near Warden Place. We sent every summer there and enjoyed fishing and the amusement park. It was a great time and these pictures bring back many memories.

Marlene from Harrisburg area wrote on August 30, 2011 at 10:08 pm:

I was born in the 1950's and we had a boat when I was growing up.. We spent several boating vacations at Harvey's Lake and we stayed at a very beautiful old hotel (I CANNOT remember the name of it no matter how hard I try) with long porches and in the dining room you were served family style. I am sure it was one of the two hotels mentioned in the site--perhaps the one where the chicken dinners were famous 🙂 I never forgot Harveys Lake and the great times with my parents there. I was hoping to take my family there for an extended weekend... Sad to think its not like it was.. but it still has to be as beautiful as I remember. I LOVED this website.. The history of Harvey Lake was very very interesting!

Patti from Hazleton wrote on August 29, 2011 at 8:20 pm:

So many nice memories of Hanson's and the drive-in movie. My neighbor was Nate Straley amd he owned the drive-in and I used to go with his niece, Janet Turner.He also owned the Noxen Movie Theatre. I used to love the old roller coaster.

Renee Warner from Canandaigua, NY wrote on August 8, 2011 at 5:06 pm:

My parents, 2 sisters & I spent time @ grandparent' (Peterman)'s cabin on a wooded hillside. We enjoyed it so much & swimming in the lake. We were warned about the dreaded drop-off. This was in the late 40's - early 50's when time was slower. We got drinking water from a spring, light from akerosene lamp & experienced a privy. We were from a small town Attica, NY which no-one had heard of back then. Happy times for us @ H.L.

Tricia Akowicz from Waltham, MA wrote on August 7, 2011 at 10:35 am:

My family and I used to vacation in Harvey's Lake every year. We rented a cottage right up the hill from the general store. What wonderful, wonderful memories...the lake, Hanson's Sandy Beach, Sandy Bottom, Joe's Grotto...it's so sad that it's no longer the same place it was...but I have some amazing lifetime memories!

Kim Killeri from Philadelphia, PA wrote on July 10, 2011 at 10:04 pm:

This was a great site that I really enjoyed! My parents took us there when we were kids more than 30 years ago! We have relatives that lived in Luzerne County. I won a ring playing skee-ball that I still have and cherish. It was good times.

Jim Curran from Manahawkin New Jersey wrote on June 14, 2011 at 12:02 pm:

Hello everyone. Isn't this a great website. Really brings back great memories. My Grandparents had a cottage on Carpenter Road. They lived in Wilkes Barre in the winter. The best memories of my life were at Harvey's Lake. We would spend the day swimming at Old Sandy Bottom beach and having cook outs over by the covered picnic tables. At night we would go to Hanson's. The cottage was in a great location since we could walk to Grotto pizza. I have driven there a few times just to check out the old cottage and get pizza from Grotto. I was hoping the Carousel from Hanson's would be brought back but I think it was sold. It had been operating in Kissimmee Florida at a small park called Old Town. I visited the site of Hanson's and walked the grounds. Not too much left. I stood in the old bumper car building and had my picture taken. It's amazing that any of the buildings are still there after all this time. It would be nice to see public access to the lake increased. They have the boat launch but that is about it. The swimming area is now a private beach club. This summer I plan on staying at the Stone Hurst cottages. They are the only place left if you want to stay on the lake. From their website they look pretty nice. Thanks Joe for creating thid web site and giving us a place to remember a wonderful place.

Carol Fabbo from Belchertown, MA wrote on June 9, 2011 at 10:40 pm:

It was wonderful to read about everyone's memories of Harvey's Lake. I was born in 1944 and from the time I was 2 years old until I was about 13 I spent every summer at Ben Rood's campground. We had a very large tent (probably 20 x 20) and every year we built a wood kitchen next to it. We had an icebox and an iceman would deliver the ice twice a week. What a great childhood! All we had to do was walk down the hill and cross the road and we were at Sandy Beach. We spent many nights sitting on the benches at the drive-in. My very first job when I was 12 was running the kiddie rides there (they would never let a young person that age have that responsibity today). I also babysat for the family who owned Sandy Beach. After we paid to see the movies on the benches, the other nights we would all go on the hill and see it again without sound. I have great memories of Hanson Park and the dances there. The pizza was also great. We also had dances at the pavillian at Sandy Beach. I took a ride around the lake two years ago. It was wonderful to remember everything. I did find Rood Street and figured that was where the campground was. Sandy Bottom was also a favorite swimming place. It's a shame that the lake is so private now. Everyone should have a chance to swim there. Thanks for the memories! Carol Fabbo

Kay-Ann Eike-Coviello from New Jersey wrote on June 2, 2011 at 6:32 pm:

I have commented before on this site.I go back to it once in a while, checking for any familiar names from my childhood spend at the Lake. One person I am looking for in particular, Patty Murphy, lived at the Lake year round. We were good friends, and penpals when the summers ended, but we lost touch. Patty, if you are out there, hope you connect on this site. I would love to know how you are doing and what life has brought you.

Bob McNeil from Cinti, Ohio wrote on June 1, 2011 at 3:31 pm:

This is the place we will always call home.Growing up at the Lake, with all the great people and fond memorys of a time when life was good ....