Ain't No Party Like a Scranton Party

 

                            

THE ELECTRIC CITY MURAL:

AIN'T NO PARTY LIKE A SCRANTON PARTY

   

                           Growing up in northeastern Pennsylvania was about as exciting as counting snowflakes in the middle of July. (Yes, that there is sarcasm). Up until some years back, a tiny, little show called, "The Office" made people take a different look at Scranton. We were getting popular. Not New York City or Los Angeles popular, but popular enough that when you said you were from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area, people didn't look at you as if you had lava coming out of your head. 

                 When you were from Wilkes-Barre, going to Scranton was a big deal and vice versa. One of the highlights of driving to Scranton was passing the enormous Electric City mural on the right hand side of route 81 N. 

                 When I was a little whippersnapper I would ask my parents why Scranton was called the Electric City. Their answer surprised me. Scranton was the first city in America to have electricity in the year 1880. "Holy crap! That was back in the Middle Ages. " I thought. Well, actually it was the first city to have an electric trolley system in 1886. Well, the last time I checked we didn't use the trolleys anymore due to this wonderful invention called the automobile. The nickname stuck regardless.

          The mural represents Scranton at night with the multicolored lights streaming up to the sky. A painting of an old fashioned trolley train reminds the public that we were the first.  It has been there (I am guessing for the past twenty years) and it is still pretty as the day it was unveiled.  As Michael Scott so proudly explained, "They call it that cuz of the electri-city."