I could write about Jim Thorpe, the man, but I have very little knowledge of his life. After having visited the town, a place I’ve been weirdly enamored with since moving back to the U.S., I learned more about Jim Thorpe’s death. Well, more about what happened to him post-death.

Jim Thorpe was a Native American athlete born in 1887. He played American football, baseball, and basketball, but his most noteable achievement was being the first native to win gold in the Olympics for the U.S. in 1912 (one in the pentathlon and one in the decathlon). Due to violating the contemporary amateurism rules of the olympics, his medals were stripped from him and later restored, posthumously, in 1983.

He was born into the Sac and Fox Tribal Nation of what is now Oklahoma and his only association with Pennsylvania was his time at the Carlisle Indian Industrial school, a boarding school for Indigenous tribal children, designed to educate them into western ideologies for the purposes of assimilation. This would then beg the question, why is this town, a town NOT in Cumberland County, named after him? Did he live here? Go to college or work here? What is his connection?!

None. Sorry for the disappointing answer. As you walk around the town you will see placards all throughout, detailing the rich history of the town, the namesake, and hints of its original name, but the part for how or why Jim Thorpe’s body ended up there as a shrine for the occasional interested tourist to gawk at is not advertised. That’s probably because it isn’t exactly inspirational or ethical. Having lost all of his fortune, he and his wife were broke near the end of his life, so it is no surprise that after he died, she saw a money grab opportunity and cashed in. The towns of Mauch Chunk and East Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania were looking to merge and rebrand for economic reasons. Patricia, wife number three who was with him when he died, sold off his remains to the town where there is now his tomb and a couple statues paying homage to the athlete. He has no association to the area apart from his remains resting in eternity as a prop and a mostly ignored tourist point of interest.

Not much of this surprises me. His life, although mixed raced, was mired in the typical American racism. He attended schools on the reservation and “indian” boarding schools, robbed of his achievements (likely due to his heritage), a victim of alcoholism, robbed again of his tribal burial, then sold off as property to live on as a monument for the purposes of economic growth. Not that the town really needs it. The area is beautiful and there is so much outdoor recreation that attracts city dwellers looking for a connection with nature.

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Jim Thorpe, the town, is nestled in the Pocono Mountains. Rolling hills of deciduous forest that typically draw in the crowds during the fall foliage season or the snowy, ski season, but we chose to visit during the end of a shoulder season.

The town is called the Switzerland of Pennsylvania and they aren’t far off. It truly does give off old world chalet vibes, but if you look closely at the architecture, you will see hints of the French Quarter in New Orleans, colonial America, and English village…an eclectic, artsy mix that just works. The locals give off Portland, Oregon energy while the visitors seemed to be mostly from New York and New Jersey….and Maryland.

While we were there we stayed at a VRBO in the town of Albrightsville that had so much emerald green and wildlife all around. We even saw a huge black bear on the road side, watching cars, attempting to cross to the other side (sadly, he darted back into the forest before a picture could be snapped)! Fun, but a bit unsettling, there was also a family of raccoons living in the walls of our VRBO. As someone who studies zoonotic diseases, I’m not sure how I feel about 3/4 of an inch of drywall separating me from possible parvo or rabies, but we were, thankfully, okay and only ever HEARD the raccoons – never saw.

We also went (“white water”) rafting with very mild class 1 and 2 rapids. It rained that day and I was not thrilled with how cold the water was if I’m being honest. I’m generally not a fan of being cold, but it was, admittedly, a lot of fun, despite the cooler air/water temps. We did the family rafting trip (the only thing available at the time) which encouraged piracy and water fights, something my partner was all too excited to engage in, leaving me with a ton of water in my ears and frozen solid by the end of it all. It’s never a great sign when the rowdy men in three of the other 25 boats is heading straight at you, while trapped atop a rock unable to free your raft, chanting “surround and drown, boys!”. There was no hope for us, and my “water proof” jacket was quickly saturated and rendered NOT water proof.

We hiked the Shades of Death trail within the Hickory Run park which had endless obstacles to traverse from rock scrambling, roots, crossing streams, and climbing boulders to careening through an old dam staircase and rubble. I’ve never before seen a forest of rhododendrons, so this was a lovely surprise. The name is not hyperbolic – it truly was dark along much of the trail with nary a hint of sun peeking through, such that several of the rhododendron bushes and trees were still clinging onto their blossoms late in the season. I had no idea this even existed out here.

We ate at several places, but my favourite was Notch Eight Craft House. The cocktails are all very unique and the beet root salad, brussels bulgogi, and bao buns were pretty incredible. We also ate at Ouros, which I recommend their blueberry rye smash and the chipotle philly cheesesteak sandwich (a special, so perhaps isn’t always there), but the artwork of the bar countertop and the floor are worth taking a glance at. To honor the name of the establishment, the bar (adorned with pennies and various coins) is in the likeness of the ouroboros – the serpent consuming its own tail – while the floor is a map of the constellations!

We were in Jim Thorpe for just a short time, but the town also offers a scenic “trolly” which is sort of like a rural “hop on hop off bus” and the Lehigh Valley train that offers various seating options, including renting the entire caboose, and travels through the Lehigh valley and by the gorge. Our most disappointing miss was the jailhouse museum, which keeps very tight hours and didn’t align with our plans, so we will certainly have to return one day!

If you live in the area and are looking for a day trip, I highly recommend Jim Thorpe, despite its questionable name acquisition. The people were all very friendly, there was a lot to explore and experience, the food was good, and the town gave me a little piece of Europe to dampen the Fernweh that I have for my old life in Germany.

Have a great rest of your week, everyone!