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Interesting Facts
- Pennsylvania's only lake port city, Erie used to be called Gem City, more than likely in reference to the pristine and sparkling Presque Isle Bay waters that surround Presque Isle State Park.
- Get your favorite lure and head for the water. Staggering numbers of fish are caught in the waters of Lake Erie and Presque Isle Bay each year! At last count, the average was about 1.5 million fish.
- Commemorating the 175th anniversary of the Battle of Lake Erie and based out of Erie's Maritime Museum, Pennsylvania's flagship US Brig Niagara is the reconstructed sailing vessel piloted by Commander Oliver Hazard Perry during the intense skirmish fought on the waters of Lake Erie during the War of 1812.
- Located at Erie's Mercyhurst College, the D'Angelo School of Music boasts a 1.6 million dollar facility and replicates, on a smaller scale of course, the Julliard School of Music in New York. Not only does the school offer an outstanding musical education, but it also hosts a variety of musical performances throughout the year which are open to the public.
- Shop, shop, shop! That's the mantra of Erie's visitors, especially those from just over the Canadian border. Indeed, neighbors from the Great White North flock to Erie by the bus-full because there's no sales tax on clothing in the Commonwealth of PA.
- "We have met the enemy and they are ours." These famous words were spoken by one of the region's most notable sailors, Commander Oliver Hazard Perry, the brave naval officer who commanded the US Brig Niagara to victory over the British during the Battle of Lake Erie.
- Erie boasts the oldest land lighthouse of the Great Lakes. Dating back to the early 1800s, the Erie Land Lighthouse is now located in Dunn Park. It's weathered its share of storms and has been changed, enhanced and maintained throughout the years, but it still bears the distinction of being one of the first lighthouses to service the shores of Lake Erie. It's available for viewing at its home just off West 12th Street.
- Erie is Pennsylvania's fourth largest city and is primarily known as a manufacturing town. Twenty-five percent of jobs in Erie are manufacturing related. In fact, over 10 percent of the nation's plastic injection molding is made in Erie, thanks in large part to the fact that the US's top 50 plastics companies are headquartered here.
- The name "Presque Isle" is French for "almost an island," and that it is. Presque Isle is a lovely sliver of land that's bordered by Lake Erie on one side and the Presque Isle Bay on the other. The park hosts over four million visitors each year and was named by Field and Stream magazine as a top 20 destination.
- A birdwatcher's paradise, Erie's Presque Isle is home to more than 423 different species of birds. In fact, Birder's World magazine has rated Erie's lovely natural landmark as one of the nation's top birding spots.
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