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The Original Band-in-a-Box It was the home of Asa Packer, the third wealthiest man in the world. He turned Mauch Chunk into a haven of the super-rich. At one time half of all the millionaires in America lived in this town. Tour the Asa Packer Mansion for a glimpse of his lifestyle.
There is history here, alive and accessible, from the jail that held the Molly Maguires to the mansions that hosted the parties of the world’s wealthiest, to the churches that have stood on these mountainsides for centuries. There is architecture here, preserved for many generations, and some say, the ghosts of those who lived within those walls so long ago. Find out for yourself on one of Jim Thorpe’s walking tours.
Everything Old Mauch Chunk There is so much history in this little town that it slips through your fingers like, well, like time itself. But the curators at the Mauch Chunk Museum and Cultural Center have managed to grab hold of some of the treasures from the past—you owe it to yourself to check them out.
Tour a Coal Mine Volumes have been written about the hard lives of the coal miners who burrowed into these hills to make a living and provide the fuel for the Industrial Revolution. But you can’t really understand it until you experience it. Travel back in time through the same tunnels that carried generations of miners and find out what it was really like for the Molly Maguires at the Number 9 Mine in nearby Lansford.
All Aboard “I’ve been a conductor on this line for years and I’ve never been late. Don’t you be late! Get your tickets now and get swept away on a whirlwind ride through the beautiful Lehigh Gorge. All aboard!” George Slater Train Conductor, Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway