You’re probably wondering what this postcard has to do with PA SHPO and historic preservation, let alone New Year’s or 2025. I came across this gem while searching the PA State Archives digital collections for images that I could use for a New Year’s Day blog post.

It immediately captured my imagination! I am so curious about the Pioneer Ostrich Farm of Pennsylvania and the African Ostrich Farm and Feather Company in Bloomsburg, Columbia County.

Where was it? What is still there? Why Columbia County? Was this the only one in PA?  Knowing that I would get sucked down a deep, deep rabbit hole, I didn’t let myself do any internet searching for the ostrich farm. I’ll let our readers do that instead – please share what you learn in the comments!

This image also reminded me that there is always something new and unusual to discover about Pennsylvania. Historic places like the Pioneer Ostrich Farm help tell Pennsylvania’s stories. Finding and sharing them not only celebrates our heritage but also brings awareness to the historic places that are the keystones of our community (spoiler alert for next week’s post!).

To this end, we’re going to tweak our blog content a bit in 2025. Starting this month, we’re going to rely on the old adage “a picture is worth a thousand words” for a few posts each month.  We’ll mix up our longer blog posts with sharing short, Ista-worthy photos and captions that capture Pennsylvania’s historic places and their stories. I’m easing everyone into this change with this week’s shorter post. I’m sure the photo caught your attention, just like it did mine.

Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2025!

Photo information: (no date). Columbia County, Bloomsburg, Pa., Ostrich Farm, African Ostrich Farm and Feather Company. Retrieved from https://digitalarchives.powerlibrary.org/psa/islandora/object/psa%3A1027823.