| Show 0 t 3 ax 7 X ia Z I 1 A A I 1 1 1 M 1 I 1 S 6 HISTORY IN miniatures crowded into the 1000 square feet of roadside america worlds greatest indoor miniature village Is the panorama of american history 1 sleepy hollow Is typical of 0 the pioneer days of 0 the west 2 shrine church Is a replica of 0 a memorial chapel in the alps 3 a pioneer village of years ago Is reconstructed 4 the airport laid out like a real field lends note of at modernity 5 an idea of the scale on which the miniatures ore are built Is obtained by comparing laurence Gl eringer with the figures he Is placing on a railroad station platform and 6 the village of fairfield represents the modern era picturesque F miniature village depicts depicts 1 9 M history of america am erica features childhood disillusionment at the shattering of a dream did not deter laurence gieringer instead it embarked him on a hobby which over a span of 44 years has resulted in creation of a picturesque miniature village which whip lihas has attracted nationwide attention and lured millions of visitors with the passionate covetousness ot of a child the S 5 year old laurence used to sit nightly to in the window ot of his home in a pennsylvania valley and gaze longingly at a house on the mountainside a toy house it seemed to him as its lights blinked enticingly in the distance he wanted that tiny house wanted to pick it up in his hands and bring it home when his repeated pleas to set out in quest ot of his house were ignored the little boy finally became desperate and stuffing a banana and a few crackers into his pockets trudged off up the mountainside in search ot of the little house searching patties parties were out all night and at 6 in the morning the frantic parents finally discovered the grimy but undaunted boy two thirds the way up the m mountainside bitter at being overhauled the boy was comforted only when his parents agreed to take him to the end of the road dream shattered disillusionment clouded laurences eyes when he beheld just another ordinary sized house with no lights at all in the bright morning to no enchantment no magic lure but laurence flerl agers dream was not ended in fac act t it had only begun Tod ayat 54 he owns countless lighted houses that he be can pick up in his hands along with churches barns bridges highways railroads lakes fields grist mills factories and scores ot of other miniature lature models depicting the architectural and industrial r panorama of the america of tie the last few hundred years collectively they are known as roadside america which is situated four miles west of hamburg pa between harrisburg and allentown roadside america had its begin ning tour four years after laurences abortive attempt to bring home the lighted house from the mountaintop with his younger brother paul he had climbed another mountain near reading far below them reading looked uke like a city inhabited by doll men fascinated b by the sight laurence said eagerly paul it be swell to build little houses the tame same size they look from here thus was born the idea which was to grow into a project enchanting millions of visitors every year delving into their venture with enthusiasm thusia sm the boys scoured the library tor for books on american architecture from the pioneer days to modern times A kindly art teacher gave them drawing lessons at three cents for plain sketching live five cents for pastel work the fees covering only the cost of material early difficulties soon induced laurence to adopt an arbitrary scale of three eighths ot of an inch to a foot a scale he has employed through all the intervening years pictures and stories of the way the early settlers in america had lived induced Gl gieringer eringer Gierl nger to build history lonto into his miniatures ills his models he be decided could show the development ot of american home and business life as exemplified in the structure of homes and business buildings As a result there now are three separate sections one depicting the life of the early settlers another that of pennsylvania at the turn of the century and a third showing a modern setting Gierl Gl eringer nger plans a fourth eventually his version of the village of tomorrow built from scraps scraps of wood discarded tin cans wire pieces of metal pipe cleaners paper and numerous other odds and ends have been utilized as construction materials for giering Gl ering ers intricate models an idea of the scope of the exhibit may be gained by noting some of the materials which have gone into its making they include feet of board lumber feet of building paper 1728 feet of railroad and trolley track feet of electric wire light bulbs pounds of plaster miniature figures miniature trees hiees and shrubs pounds of nails 42 gallons of paint two barrels of green sawdust six tons ol of stone pounds ot of sand miniature railroad cars and 1700 teet feet of tracks lor for trains and trolleys highlight among the miniatures Is a high church with hand painted windows Ain dows a task that required months of exacting labor as Gl Gierl eringer nger sought means of creating stained glass As visitors mill about the village the lights are dimmed damme d and from the open door of the church pours religious music from a tiny organ outside the church a ragged tramp leans lazily against a white fence a dog at his heels when the organ strains fade a different type of music issues froma from a large barn in which an old fashioned barn dance is progressing nearby planes seem about to take off from an air air port while a few feet away people are packed jacked into a grandstand watching a baseball game animation marks the exhibits there are youngsters walking on narrow curbstones curb stones a boy whose feet are tangled in an electric wire dogs sniffing at fire hydrants women hanging cout their washing or gossiping over back fences trolleys trolley and train in operation water wheels wheel turning grist mills receive wide acclaim the Gl eringer exhibits have been widely heralded as the worlds gr greatest eanest miniature village and the most unique and detailed masterpiece ever evolved A staunch exponent of hobbles bobbles as a means of preventing juvenile delinquency Gl eringer insists that hobbles keep children off the street adding that it youngsters hands are busy they dont get into mischief nis ills dream Is to tee see establishment of a national hobby bobby center where exhibits of all kinds can be shown to inspire other hobbyists throughout the years both mr and mrs Gl eringer have worked with countless children from nearby schools and orphanages although Gl Gierl erInger nger allows boys training to in his workshop to use me charil cal equipment all of roadside america has been built completely by hand band and with ordinary carpenter tools originally set up as a christmas display in the Gl eringer home tor for showing to neighbors and visitors i the miniatures later were exhibited in a reading beading fire house and in a local park all earnings going to charity the present roadside america was established in 1941 a po portion ot of the proceeds still going I 1 to 0 charity although wartime gasoline rationing shattered attendance a record number of visitors viewed the displays last season and still larger crowds are expected this summer |
