boston : bibliophile society, 1907. - irving to catharine paris, paris, september 20, 1824, works 24 : 76 - see reviews in blackwood ' s edinburgh magazine, westminster review, et al., 1824. cited in jones, 222. - hellman, 170 – 89. - burstein, 191. - bowers, 22 – 48. - burstein, 196. - jones, 248. - burstein, 212. - burstein, 225. - russell, jeffrey burton. inventing the flat earth : columbus and modern historians. praeger paperback, 1997. isbn 0 - 275 - 95904 - x - washington irving to peter irving, alhambra, june 13, 1829. works, 23 : 436 - hellman, 208. - pmi, 2 : 429, 430, 431 – 32 - pmi, 3 : 17 – 21. - washington irving to peter irving, london, march 6, 1832, works, 23 : 696 - jill eastwood ( 1967 ). " la trobe, charles joseph ( 1801 – 1875 ) ". australian dictionary of biography, volume 2. mup. pp. 89 – 93. retrieved july 13, 2007. - see irving, " a tour on the prairies ", works 22. - williams, 2 : 48 – 49 - jones, 318. - jones, 324. - williams, 2 : 76 – 77. - jones, 323. - burstein, 288. - williams, 2 : 36. - jones, 316. - jones, 318 - 28. - monthly review, new and improved, ser. 2 ( june 1837 ) : 279 – 90. see aderman, ralph m., ed. critical essays on washington irving. ( g. k. hall, 1990 ), 110 – 11. - burstein, 295. - jones, 333. - edgar allan poe to n. c. brooks, philadelphia, september 4, 1838. cited in williams, 2 : 101 - 02. - washington irving to lewis g. clark, ( before january 10, 1840 ), works, 25 : 32 – 33. - jones, 341. - hellman, 257. - washington irving to ebenezer irving, new york, february 10, 1842, works, 25 : 180. - bowers, 127 – 275. - irving to thomas wentworth storrow, madrid, 18 may 1844, works, 25 : 751 - jones, 415 - 56. - jones, 46


10, 1842, works, 25 : 180. - bowers, 127 – 275. - irving to thomas wentworth storrow, madrid, 18 may 1844, works, 25 : 751 - jones, 415 - 56. - jones, 464. - hellman, 235. - williams, 2 : 208 – 209. - bryan, william alfred. george washington in american literature 1775 – 1865. new york : columbia university press, 1952 : 103. - william c. preston to washington irving, charlottesville, may 11, 1859, pmi, 4 : 286. - kime, wayne r. pierre m. irving and washington irving : a collaboration in life and letters. wilfrid laurier university press, 1977 : 151. isbn 0 - 88920 - 056 - 4 - nelson, randy f. the almanac of american letters. los altos, california : william kaufmann, inc., 1981 : 179. isbn 0 - 86576 - 008 - x - pmi, 4 : 328. - longfellow, henry wadsworth. " in the churchyard at tarrytown ", quoted in burstein, 330. - longfellow, henry wadsworth. " address on the death of washington irving ", poems and other writings, j. d. mcclatchy, editor. ( library of america, 2000 ). - leon h. vincent, american literary masters, 1906. - pattee, fred lewis. the first century of american literature, 1770 – 1870. new york : cooper square publishers, 1935. - kime, wayne r. pierre m. irving and washington irving : a collaboration in life and letters. wilfrid laurier university press, 1977 : 152. isbn 0 - 88920 - 056 - 4 - poe to n. c. brooks, philadelphia, september 4, 1838. cited in williams 2 : 101 - 02. - jones, 223 - jones, 291 - thackeray, roundabout papers, 1860. - hawless, american humorists, 1881. - stoddard, the life of washington irving, 1883. - wendell, a literary history of america, 1901. - see williams, 2 : appendix iii. - kelly, richard michael ( ed. ) ( 2003 ), a christmas carol. p. 20. broadview literary texts, new york : broadview press, isbn 1 - 55111 - 476 - 3 - restad, penne l. ( 1995 ), christmas in america : a


), a christmas carol. p. 20. broadview literary texts, new york : broadview press, isbn 1 - 55111 - 476 - 3 - restad, penne l. ( 1995 ), christmas in america : a history, oxford : oxford university press, isbn 0 - 19 - 510980 - 5 - see stephen nissebaum, the battle for christmas ( vintage, 1997 ) - see irving, 1828 ; and his 1829 abridged version. - see irving, 1829, chapter vii : " columbus before the council at salamanca ", pp. 40 – 47, especially p. 43. - grant ( edward ), 2001, p. 342. - grant ( john ), 2006, p. 32, in the subsection " the earth – flat or hollow? " beginning at p. 30, within chapter 1 " worlds in upheval ". - caldwell, john ; rodriguez roque, oswaldo ( 1994 ). kathleen luhrs, ed. american paintings in the metropolitan museum of art. volume i : a catalogue of works by artists born by 1815. dale t. johnson, carrie rebora, patricia r. windels. the metropolitan museum of art in association with princeton university press. pp. 479 – 482. - roger panetta, ed. ( 2009 ). dutch new york : the roots of hudson valley culture. hudson river museum. pp. 223 – 235. isbn 978 - 0 - 8232 - 3039 - 6. - irving ' s publisher, john murray, overrode irving ' s decision to use this pseudonym and published the book under irving ' s name — much to the annoyance of its author. see jones 258 - 59. - composed of the three short stories " a tour on the prairies ", " abbotsford and newstead abbey ", and " legends of the conquest of spain ". - burstein, andrew. the original knickerbocker : the life of washington irving. ( basic books, 2007 ). isbn 978 - 0 - 465 - 00853 - 7 - bowers, claude g. the spanish adventures of washington irving. ( riverside press, 1940 ). - hellman, george s. washington irving, esquire. ( alfred a. knopf, 1925 ). - grant, edward. ( 2001 ) god & reason in the middle ages, cambridge university press, isbn 978 - 0 - 521 - 80279 - 2 hardcover ; isbn 978 - 0 - 521


alfred a. knopf, 1925 ). - grant, edward. ( 2001 ) god & reason in the middle ages, cambridge university press, isbn 978 - 0 - 521 - 80279 - 2 hardcover ; isbn 978 - 0 - 521 - 00337 - 7 softcover. - grant, john. ( 2006 ) discarded science : ideas that seemed good at the time... [ sic ], ff & f ( facts, figures & fun ), publisher, isbn 978 - 1 - 904332 - 49 - 7 hardcover. - irving, pierre m. life and letters of washington irving. 4 vols. ( g. p. putnam, 1862 ). cited herein as pmi. - irving, washington. the complete works of washington irving. ( rust, et al., editors ). 30 vols. ( university of wisconsin / twayne, 1969 – 1986 ). cited herein as works. - irving, washington. ( 1828 ) history of the life of christopher columbus, 3 volumes, 1828, g. & c. carvill, publishers, new york, new york ; as 4 volumes, 1828, john murray, publisher, london ; and as 4 volumes, 1828, paris a. and w. galignani, publishers, france. - irving, washington. ( 1829 ) the life and voyage of christopher columbus, 1 volume, 1829, g. & c. & h. carvill, publishers, new york, new york ; an abridged version prepared by irving of his 1828 work. - jones, brian jay. washington irving : an american original. ( arcade, 2008 ). isbn 978 - 1 - 55970 - 836 - 4 - warner, charles dudley. washington irving. ( riverside press, 1881 ). - williams, stanley t. the life of washington irving. 2 vols. ( oxford university press, 1935 ). isbn 0 - 7812 - 5291 - 1 | wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to : washington irving | | wikisource has original works written by or about : | wikimedia commons has media related to : washington irving | - works by or about washington irving at internet archive ( scanned books original editions color illustrated ) - works by washington irving at project gutenberg ( plain text and html ) - famous quotes by washington irving - washington irving ' s sunnyside - timothy hopkins ' washington irving collection, 1683 – 1839 ( 5 volumes ) is housed in the department of special collections and university archives


| nickname ( s ) : city of jasmin | | governorates | | damascus governorate, capital city | | • governor | | bishr al sabban | | • city | | 105 km2 ( 41 sq mi ) | | • urban | | 77 km2 ( 30 sq mi ) | | elevation | | 680 m ( 2, 230 ft ) | | population ( 2009 est. ) | | time zone | | eet ( utc + 2 ) | | • summer ( dst ) | | eest ( utc + 3 ) | | area code ( s ) | | country code : 963, city code : 11 | | sources : damascus city area | damascus ( arabic : دمشق dimashq, metropolitan arabic : dimisheʼ ), commonly known in syria as ash - sham ( arabic : الشام ash - sham ) and nicknamed as the city of jasmine ( arabic : مدينة الياسمين madinat al - yasmin ), is the capital and the second largest city of syria after aleppo. it borders quneitra, daraa and as - suwayda to the south, jordan to the east, homs to the north, and lebanon to the west. it is also the capital city of one of the country ' s 14 governorates. in addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, damascus is a major cultural and religious center of the levant. the city has an estimated population of 1, 711, 000 ( 2009 est. ). located in southwestern syria, damascus is the center of a large metropolitan area of 2. 6 million people ( 2004 ). geographically embedded on the eastern foothills of the anti - lebanon mountain range 80 kilometres ( 50 mi ) inland from the eastern shore of the mediterranean on a plateau 680 metres ( 2, 230 ft ) above sea - level, damascus experiences a semi - arid climate due to the rain shadow effect. the barada river flows through damascus. first settled in the second millennium bc, it was chosen as the capital of the umayyad caliphate from 661 to 750. after the victory of the abbasid dynasty, the seat of islamic power was moved to baghdad. damascus saw a political decline throughout the abbasid era, only to regain significant importance in the ayyubid and mamluk periods. during ottoman rule, the city decayed completely while maintaining a certain cultural prestige. today, it is the seat of the


a political decline throughout the abbasid era, only to regain significant importance in the ayyubid and mamluk periods. during ottoman rule, the city decayed completely while maintaining a certain cultural prestige. today, it is the seat of the central government and all of the government ministries. during the ongoing civil war in syria, damascus has witnessed intense anti - government protests and violent government responses in which thousands of people have died. the name of damascus first appeared in the geographical list of thutmose iii as t - m - s - q in the 15th century bc. the etymology of the ancient name " t - m - s - q " is uncertain, but it is suspected to be pre - semitic. it is attested as dimasqa in akkadian, t - ms - kw in egyptian, dammasq ( דמשק ) in old aramaic and dammeseq ( דמשק ) in biblical hebrew. the akkadian spelling is found in the amarna letters, from the 14th century bc. later aramaic spellings of the name often include an intrusive resh ( letter r ), perhaps influenced by the root dr, meaning " dwelling ". thus, the qumranic darmeseq ( דרמשק ), and darmsuq ( ) in syriac. the english and latin name of the city is " damascus " which was imported from greek : δαμασκος, which originated in aramaic : דרמשק ; " a well - watered place ". in arabic, the city is called dimashqu sh - sham ( دمشق الشام ), although this is often shortened to either dimashq or ash - sham by the citizens of damascus, of syria and other arab neighbors. ash - sham is an arabic term for " levant " and for " syria " ; the latter, and particularly historical greater syria, is called biladu sh - sham ( بلاد الشام / " land of the levant " ). | ancient city of damascus | | name as inscribed on the world heritage list | | criteria | | i, ii, iii, iv, vi | | unesco region | | arab states | | inscription | | 1979 ( 3rd session ) | early settlement carbon - 14 dating at tell ramad, on the outskirts of damascus, suggests that the site may have been occupied since the second half of the seventh millennium bc, possibly around 6300 bc.


inscription | | 1979 ( 3rd session ) | early settlement carbon - 14 dating at tell ramad, on the outskirts of damascus, suggests that the site may have been occupied since the second half of the seventh millennium bc, possibly around 6300 bc. however, evidence of settlement in the wider barada basin dating back to 9000 bc exists, although no large - scale settlement was present within damascus walls until the second millennium bc. damascus was part of the ancient province of amurru in the hyksos kingdom, from 1720 to 1570 bc. some of the earliest egyptian records are from the 1350 bc amarna letters, when damascus - ( called dimasqu ) was ruled by king biryawaza. the damascus region, as well as the rest of syria, became a battleground circa 1260 bc, between the hittites from the north and the egyptians from the south, ending with a signed treaty between hattusili and ramesses ii where the former handed over control of the damascus area to ramesses ii in 1259 bc. the arrival of the sea peoples, around 1200 bc, marked the end of the bronze age in the region and brought about new development of warfare. damascus was only the peripheral part of this picture which mostly affected the larger population centers of ancient syria. however, these events had contributed to the development of damascus as a new influential center that emerged with the transition from the bronze age to the iron age. damascus is mentioned in genesis 14 : 15 as existing at the time of the war of the kings. ( however, the verse can also be understood to mean that damascus existed when genesis was written – by tradition around the 13th century bc, and several centuries later according to some [ who? ] scholars – regardless of whether damascus existed at the time of the war of the kings. ) according to the 1st century jewish historian flavius josephus in his twenty - one volume antiquities of the jews, damascus ( along with trachonitis ), was founded by uz, the son of aram. elsewhere, [ where? ] he stated : nicolaus of damascus, in the fourth book of his history, says thus : " abraham reigned at damascus, being a foreigner, who came with an army out of the land above babylon, called the land of the chaldeans : but, after a long time, he got him up, and removed from that country also, with his people, and went into the land then called the land of canaan, but now the land of judea,


of the chaldeans : but, after a long time, he got him up, and removed from that country also, with his people, and went into the land then called the land of canaan, but now the land of judea, and this when his posterity were become a multitude ; as to which posterity of his, we relate their history in another work. now the name of abraham is even still famous in the country of damascus ; and there is shown a village named from him, the habitation of abraham. damascus is not documented as an important city until the arrival of the aramaeans, semitic people from mesopotamia, in the 11th century bc. by the start of the first millennium bc, several aramaic kingdoms were formed, as aramaeans abandoned their nomadic lifestyle and formed federated tribal states. one of these kingdoms was aram - damascus, centered on its capital damascus. the aramaeans who entered the city without battle, adopted the name " dimashqu " for their new home. noticing the agricultural potential of the still - undeveloped and sparsely populated area, they established the water distribution system of damascus by constructing canals and tunnels which maximized the efficiency of the river barada. the same network was later improved by the romans and the umayyads, and still forms the basis of the water system of the old part of the city today. the aramaeans initially turned damascus into an outpost of a loose federation of aramaean tribes, known as aram - zobah, based in the beqaa valley. the city would gain preeminence in southern syria when ezron, the claimant to aram - zobah ' s throne who was denied kingship of the federation, fled beqaa and captured damascus by force in 965 bc. ezron overthrew the city ' s tribal governor and founded the independent entity of aram - damascus. as this new state expanded south, it prevented the kingdom of israel from spreading north and the two kingdoms soon clashed as they both sought to dominate trading hegemony in the east. under ezron ' s grandson, ben - hadad i ( 880 – 841 bc ), and his successor hazael, damascus annexed bashan ( modern - day hauran region ), and went on the offensive with israel. this conflict continued until the early 8th century bc when ben - hadad ii was captured by israel after unsuccessfully besieging samaria. as a result, he


( modern - day hauran region ), and went on the offensive with israel. this conflict continued until the early 8th century bc when ben - hadad ii was captured by israel after unsuccessfully besieging samaria. as a result, he granted israel trading rights in damascus. another possible reason for the treaty between aram - damascus and israel was the common threat of the neo - assyrian empire which was attempting to expand into the mediterranean coast. in 853 bc, king hadadezer of damascus led a levantine coalition, that included forces from the northern aram - hamath kingdom and troops supplied by king ahab of israel, in the battle of qarqar against the neo - assyrian army. aram - damascus came out victorious, temporarily preventing the assyrians from encroaching into syria. however, after hadadzezer was killed by his successor, hazael ii, the levantine alliance collapsed. aram - damascus attempted to invade israel, but was interrupted by the renewed assyrian invasion. hazael ordered a retreat to the walled part of damascus while the assyrians plundered the remainder of the kingdom. unable to enter the city, they declared their supremacy in the hauran and beqa ' a valleys. by the 8th century bc, damascus was practically engulfed by the assyrians and entered a dark age. nonetheless, it remained the economic and cultural center of the near east as well as the arameaen resistance. in 727, a revolt took place in the city, but was put down by assyrian forces. after assyria went on a wide - scale campaign of quelling revolts throughout syria, damascus became totally subjugated by their rule. a positive effect of this was stability for the city and benefits from the spice and incense trade with arabia. however, assyrian authority was dwindling by 609 – 605 bc, and syria - palestine was falling into the orbit of pharaoh necho ii ' s egypt. in 572, all of syria had been conquered by the neo - babylonians, but the status of damascus under babylon is relatively unknown. damascus was conquered by alexander the great. after the death of alexander in 323 bc, damascus became the site of a struggle between the seleucid and ptolemaic empires. the control of the city passed frequently from one empire to the other. seleucus i nicator, one of alexander ' s generals, made antioch the capital of his vast empire, which led to the decline of damascus ' importance


. the old borough of bab tuma was developed at the end of the roman / byzantine era by the local eastern orthodox community. according to the acts of the apostles, saint paul and saint thomas both lived in that neighborhood. roman catholic historians also consider bab tuma to be the birthplace of several popes such as john v and gregory iii. islamic arab era after most of the syrian countryside was conquered by the rashidun caliphate during the reign of caliph umar, damascus itself was conquered by the muslim - arab general khalid ibn al - walid in september – august 635 ce. his army had previously attempted to capture the city in april 634, but without success. with damascus now in muslim - arab hands, the byzantines, alarmed at the loss of their most prestigious city in the near east, had decided to wrest back control of it. under emperor heraclius, the byzantines fielded an army superior to that of the rashidun in manpower. they advanced into southern syria during the spring of 636 and consequently khalid ibn al - walid ' s forces withdrew from damascus to prepare for renewed confrontation. in august, the two powers met along the yarmouk river where they a fought a major battle which ended in a decisive muslim victory, solidifying the latter ' s rule in syria and palestine. while the muslims administrated the city, the population of damascus remained mostly christian — eastern orthodox and monophysite — with a growing community of muslims from mecca, medina, and the syrian desert. the governor assigned to the city which had been chosen as the capital of islamic syria was mu ' awiya i. after the death of caliph ali in 661, mu ' awiya was chosen as the caliph of the expanding islamic empire. because of the vast amounts of assets his clan, the ummayads, owned in the city and because of its traditional economic and social links with the hijaz as well as the christian arab tribes of the region, mu ' awiya established damascus as the capital of the entire caliphate. with the ascension of caliph abd al - malik in 685, an islamic coinage system was introduced and all of the surplus revenue of the caliphate ' s provinces were forwarded to the treasury of damascus. arabic was also established as the official language, giving the muslim minority of the city an advantage over the aramaic - speaking christians in administrative affairs. it is critical to note that, at the time damascus was conquered by the muslims, the majority of arabs were either pagans or christians. damascus itself


, giving the muslim minority of the city an advantage over the aramaic - speaking christians in administrative affairs. it is critical to note that, at the time damascus was conquered by the muslims, the majority of arabs were either pagans or christians. damascus itself was predominantly aramaic with arab speaking people. abd al - malik ' s successor, al - walid initiated construction of the grand mosque of damascus ( known as the umayyad mosque ) in 706. the site originally had been the christian cathedral of st. john and the muslims maintained the building ' s dedication to john the baptist. by 715, the mosque was complete. al - walid died that same year and he was succeeded at first by suleiman ibn abd al - malik and then by umar ii, who each ruled for brief periods before the reign of hisham in 724. with these successions, the status of damascus was gradually weakening as suleiman had chosen ramla as his residence and later hisham chose rusafa. following the murder of the latter in 743, the caliphate of the umayyads — which by then stretched from spain to india — was crumbling as a result of widespread revolts. during the reign of marwan ii in 744, the capital of the empire was relocated to harran in the northern jazira region. on 25 august 750, the abbasids, having already beaten the umayyads in the battle of the zab in iraq, conquered damascus after facing little resistance. with the heralding of the abbasid caliphate, damascus became eclipsed and subordinated by baghdad, the new islamic capital. within the first six months of abbasid rule, revolts began erupting in the city, albeit too isolated and unfocused to present a viable threat. nonetheless, the last of the prominent umayyads were executed, the traditional officials of damascus ostracized, and army generals from the city were dismissed. afterward, the umayyad family cemetery was desecrated and the city walls were torn down, reducing damascus into a provincial town of little importance. it roughly disappeared from written records for the next century and the only significant improvement of the city was the abbasid - built treasury dome in the umayyad mosque in 789. in 811, distant remnants of the umayyad dynasty staged a strong uprising in damascus that was eventually put down. ahmad ibn tulun, a dissenting turkish governor appointed by the abbasids, conquered syria, including damascus, from his overlord


in 811, distant remnants of the umayyad dynasty staged a strong uprising in damascus that was eventually put down. ahmad ibn tulun, a dissenting turkish governor appointed by the abbasids, conquered syria, including damascus, from his overlords in 878 - 79. in an act of respect for the previous umayyad rulers, he erected a shrine on the site of mu ' awiya ' s grave in the city. tulunid rule of damascus was brief, lasting only until 906 before being replaced by the qarmatians who were adherents of shia islam. due to their inability to control the vast amount of land they occupied, the qarmatians withdrew from damascus and a new dynasty, the ikhshidids, took control of the city. they maintained the independence of damascus from the arab hamdanid dynasty of aleppo and the baghdad - based abbasids until 967. a period of instability in the city followed, with a qarmatian raid in 968, a byzantine raid in 970, and increasing pressures from the fatimids in the south and the hamdanids in the north. the shia fatimids gained control in 970, inflaming hostilities between them and the sunni arabs of the city who frequently revolted. a turk, alp takin drove out the fatimids five years later, and through diplomacy, prevented the byzantines from attempting to annex the city. however, by 977, the fatimids under caliph al - aziz, wrested back control of the city and tamed sunni dissidents. the arab geographer, al - muqaddasi, visited damascus in 985, remarking that the architecture and infrastructure of the city was " magnificent ", but living conditions were awful. under al - aziz, the city saw a brief period of stability that ended with the reign of al - hakim ( 996 – 1021 ). in 998, hundreds of damascene leaders were rounded up and executed by him for incitement. three years after al - hakim ' s mysterious disappearance, the arab tribes of southern syria formed an alliance to stage a massive rebellion against the fatimids, but they were crushed by the fatimid turkish governor of syria and palestine, anushtakin al - duzbari, in 1029. this victory gave the latter mastery over syria, displeasing his fatimid overlords, but gaining the admiration of damascus ' citizens. he was exiled by


jerusalem to resist zengi ' s forces. consequently, zengi withdrew his army and focused on campaigns against northern syria. in 1144 zengi conquered edessa, a crusader stronghold, which led to a new crusade from europe in 1148. in the meantime zengi was assassinated and his territory was divided among his sons, one of whom, nur ad - din, emir of aleppo, made an alliance with damascus. when the european crusaders arrived, they and the nobles of jerusalem agreed to attack damascus. their siege, however, was a complete failure. when the city seemed to be on the verge of collapse, the crusader army suddenly moved against another section of the walls, and were driven back. by 1154, damascus was firmly under nur ad - din ' s control. in 1164, king amalric of jerusalem invaded fatimid egypt, which requested help from nur ad - din. the nur ad - din sent his general shirkuh, and in 1166 amalric was defeated at the battle of al - babein. when shirkuh died in 1169, he was succeeded by his nephew yusuf, better known as saladin, who defeated a joint crusader - byzantine siege of damietta. saladin eventually overthrew the fatimid caliphs and established himself as sultan of egypt. he also began to assert his independence from nur ad - din, and with the death of both amalric and nur ad - din in 1174, he was well - placed to begin exerting control over damascus and nur ad - din ' s other syrian possessions. in 1177 saladin was defeated by the crusaders at the battle of montgisard, despite his numerical superiority. saladin also besieged kerak in 1183, but was forced to withdraw. he finally launched a full invasion of jerusalem in 1187, and annihilated the crusader army at the battle of hattin in july. acre fell to saladin soon after, and jerusalem itself was captured in october. these events shocked europe, resulting in the third crusade in 1189, led by richard i of england, philip ii of france and frederick i, holy roman emperor, though the last drowned en route. the surviving crusaders, joined by new arrivals from europe, put acre to a lengthy siege which lasted until 1191. after re - capturing acre, richard defeated saladin at the battle of arsuf in 1191 and the battle of jaffa in 1192, recovering most of the coast for the christians, but could not recover


lengthy siege which lasted until 1191. after re - capturing acre, richard defeated saladin at the battle of arsuf in 1191 and the battle of jaffa in 1192, recovering most of the coast for the christians, but could not recover jerusalem or any of the inland territory of the kingdom. the crusade came to an end peacefully, with the treaty of ramla in 1192. saladin allowed pilgrimages to be made to jerusalem, allowing the crusaders to fulfill their vows, after which they all returned home. the native crusader barons set about rebuilding their kingdom from acre and the other coastal cities. saladin died in 1193, and there were frequent conflicts between different ayyubid sultans ruling in damascus and cairo. damascus was the capital of independent ayyubid rulers between 1193 and 1201, from 1218 to 1238, from 1239 to 1245, and from 1250 to 1260. at other times it was ruled by the ayyubid rulers of egypt. the patterned byzantine and chinese silks available through damascus, one of the western termini of the silk road, gave the english language " damask ". mamluk period ayyubid rule ( and independence ) came to an end with the mongol invasion of syria in 1260, and following the mongol defeat at ain jalut in the same year, damascus became a provincial capital of the mamluk empire, ruled from egypt, following the mongol withdrawal. the black death of 1348 – 1349 killed as much as half of the city ' s population. in 1400 timur, the turco - mongol conqueror, besieged damascus. the mamluk sultan dispatched a deputation from cairo, including ibn khaldun, who negotiated with him, but after their withdrawal he put the city to sack. the umayyad mosque was burnt and men and women taken into slavery. a huge number of the city ' s artisans were taken to timur ' s capital at samarkand. these were the luckier citizens : many were slaughtered and their heads piled up in a field outside the north - east corner of the walls, where a city square still bears the name burj al - ru ' us, originally " the tower of heads ". rebuilt, damascus continued to serve as a mamluk provincial capital until 1516. ottoman rule in early 1516, the ottoman turks, wary of the danger of an alliance between the mamluks and the persian safavids, started a campaign of


continued to serve as a mamluk provincial capital until 1516. ottoman rule in early 1516, the ottoman turks, wary of the danger of an alliance between the mamluks and the persian safavids, started a campaign of conquest against the mamluk sultanate. on 21 september, the mamluk governor of damascus fled the city, and on 2 october the khutba in the umayyad mosque was pronounced in the name of selim i. the day after, the victorious sultan entered the city, staying for three months. on 15 december, he left damascus by bab al - jabiya, intent on the conquest of egypt. little appeared to have changed in the city : one army had simply replaced another. however, on his return in october 1517, the sultan ordered the construction of a mosque, tekkiye and mausoleum at the shrine of shaikh muhi al - din ibn arabi in al - salihiyah. this was to be the first of damascus ' great ottoman monuments. the ottomans remained for the next 400 years, except for a brief occupation by ibrahim pasha of egypt from 1832 to 1840. because of its importance as the point of departure for one of the two great hajj caravans to mecca, damascus was treated with more attention by the porte than its size might have warranted — for most of this period, aleppo was more populous and commercially more important. in 1560 the tekkiye al - sulaimaniyah, a mosque and khan for pilgrims on the road to mecca, was completed to a design by the famous ottoman architect mimar sinan, and soon afterwards a madrasa was built adjoining it. under ottoman rule, christians and jews were considered dhimmis and were allowed to practice their religious precepts. the damascus affair that took place in 1840 was an incident in which the accusation of ritual murder was brought against members of the jewish community of damascus. in addition the massacre of christians in 1860 was also one of the most notorious incidents of these centuries, when fighting between druze and maronites in mount lebanon spilled over into the city. several thousand christians were killed, with many more being saved through the intervention of the algerian exile abd al - qadir and his soldiers ( three days after the massacre started ), who brought them to safety in abd al - qadir ' s residence and the citadel. the christian quarter of the old city ( mostly inhabited by catholics ), including a number of churches, was burnt down. the


after the massacre started ), who brought them to safety in abd al - qadir ' s residence and the citadel. the christian quarter of the old city ( mostly inhabited by catholics ), including a number of churches, was burnt down. the christian inhabitants of the notoriously poor and refractory midan district outside the walls ( mostly orthodox ) were, however, protected by their muslim neighbours. american missionary e. c. miller records that in 1867 the population of the city was ' about ' 140, 000, of whom 30, 000 were christians, 10, 000 jews and 100, 000 ' mohammedans ' with fewer than 100 protestant christians. in the early years of the 20th century, nationalist sentiment in damascus, initially cultural in its interest, began to take a political colouring, largely in reaction to the turkicisation programme of the committee of union and progress government established in istanbul in 1908. the hanging of a number of patriotic intellectuals by jamal pasha, governor of damascus, in beirut and damascus in 1915 and 1916 further stoked nationalist feeling, and in 1918, as the forces of the arab revolt and the british imperial forces approached, residents fired on the retreating turkish troops. on 1 october 1918, t. e. lawrence entered damascus, the third arrival of the day, the first being the 3rd australian light brigade, led by major a. c. n. ' harrry ' olden. two days later, 3 october 1918, the forces of the arab revolt led by prince faysal also entered damascus. a military government under shukri pasha was named and faisal ibn hussein was proclaimed king of syria. political tension rose in november 1917, when the new bolshevik government in russia revealed the sykes - picot agreement whereby britain and france had arranged to partition the arab east between them. a new franco - british proclamation on 17 november promised the " complete and definitive freeing of the peoples so long oppressed by the turks. " the syrian national congress in march adopted a democratic constitution. however, the versailles conference had granted france a mandate over syria, and in 1920 a french army commanded by the general mariano goybet crossed the anti - lebanon mountains, defeated a small syrian defensive expedition at the battle of maysalun and entered damascus. the french made damascus capital of their league of nations mandate for syria. when in 1925 the druze revolt in the hauran spread to damascus, the french suppressed it brutally, bombing and shelling the city on 9 may 1926. as a result the area of the old city between al -


nations mandate for syria. when in 1925 the druze revolt in the hauran spread to damascus, the french suppressed it brutally, bombing and shelling the city on 9 may 1926. as a result the area of the old city between al - hamidiyah souq and medhat pasha souq was burned to the ground, with many deaths, and has since then been known as al - hariqa ( " the fire " ). the old city was surrounded with barbed wire to prevent rebels infiltrating from the ghouta, and a new road was built outside the northern ramparts to facilitate the movement of armored cars. on 29 may 1945, the french once more bombed damascus, but on this occasion british forces intervened and the french agreed to withdraw, thus leading to the full independence of syria in 1946. damascus remained the capital. syrian civil war the uprising started with peaceful protests in the spring of 2011 and had grown to a civil war over the past year. on 6 january 2012, a car bomb exploded in damascus killing over than 26 people, most of them civilians. state media said it was a suicide attack and blamed terrorists. in january 2012, clashes between the regular army and rebels reached the outskirts of damascus, reportedly preventing people from leaving or reaching their houses, especially when security operations there intensified from the end of january into february. on 17 march 2012, twin car bombs hit the heart of the city, targeting the air force intelligence service and the headquarters of the security forces killing at least 27 people, most of them civilians. an islamic jihadi faction called " jabhat al - nusra " claimed responsibility for the bomb attacks. in the early morning of 19 march, firefights and explosions broke out in the west villas section of the heavily guarded and upscale mezzeh neighborhood. by june 2012, bullets and shrapnel shells smashed into homes in damascus overnight as troops battled the free syrian army in the streets. at least three tank shells slammed into residential areas in the central damascus neighborhood of qaboun, according to activist. intense exchanges of assault - rifle fire marked the clash, according to residents and amateur video posted online. since the battle of damascus, the city has witnessed a security crackdown. checkpoints have sprung up in the city, and the sight of red dirt spilling from sandbags and ids held out the window, of kalashnikov - toting shabiha and soldiers have become widespread. traffic jams, like unemployment, became widespread and countryside refugees sleep in city parks


and the sight of red dirt spilling from sandbags and ids held out the window, of kalashnikov - toting shabiha and soldiers have become widespread. traffic jams, like unemployment, became widespread and countryside refugees sleep in city parks. damascus lies about 80 km ( 50 mi ) inland from the mediterranean, sheltered by the anti - lebanon mountains. it lies on a plateau 680 metres ( 2, 230 ft ) above sea - level. the city has an area of 105 km2 ( 41 sq mi ), out of which 77 km2 ( 30 sq mi ) is urban, while jabal qasioun occupies the rest. the old city of damascus, enclosed by the city walls, lies on the south bank of the river barada which is almost dry ( 3 cm left ). to the south - east, north and north - east it is surrounded by suburban areas whose history stretches back to the middle ages : midan in the south - west, sarouja and imara in the north and north - west. these neighborhoods originally arose on roads leading out of the city, near the tombs of religious figures. in the 19th century outlying villages developed on the slopes of jabal qasioun, overlooking the city, already the site of the al - salihiyah neighborhood centred around the important shrine of sheikh muhi al - din ibn arabi. these new neighborhoods were initially settled by kurdish soldiery and muslim refugees from the european regions of the ottoman empire which had fallen under christian rule. thus they were known as al - akrad ( the kurds ) and al - muhajirin ( the migrants ). they lay two to three kilometres ( 2 mi ) north of the old city. from the late 19th century on, a modern administrative and commercial centre began to spring up to the west of the old city, around the barada, centred on the area known as al - marjeh or the meadow. al - marjeh soon became the name of what was initially the central square of modern damascus, with the city hall on it. the courts of justice, post office and railway station stood on higher ground slightly to the south. a europeanised residential quarter soon began to be built on the road leading between al - marjeh and al - salihiyah. the commercial and administrative centre of the new city gradually shifted northwards slightly towards this area. in the 20th century, newer suburbs developed north of the barada, and to some extent to the south, invading the ghouta oasis


salihiyah. the commercial and administrative centre of the new city gradually shifted northwards slightly towards this area. in the 20th century, newer suburbs developed north of the barada, and to some extent to the south, invading the ghouta oasis. from 1955 the new neighborhood of yarmouk became a second home to thousands of palestinian refugees. city planners preferred to preserve the ghouta as far as possible, and in the later 20th century some of the main areas of development were to the north, in the western mezzeh neighborhood and most recently along the barada valley in dummar in the north west and on the slopes of the mountains at berze in the north - east. poorer areas, often built without official approval, have mostly developed south of the main city. damascus used to be surrounded by an oasis, the ghouta region ( الغوطة al - guta ), watered by the barada river. the fijeh spring, west along the barada valley, used to provide the city with drinking water. the ghouta oasis has been decreasing in size with the rapid expansion of housing and industry in the city and it is almost dry. it has also become polluted due to the city ' s traffic, industry, and sewage. damascus has a hot arid climate ( koppen bsh ), due to the rain shadow effect of the anti - lebanon mountains and the prevailing ocean currents. summers are dry and hot with less humidity. winters are mild and comparatively rainy, sometimes snowy. annual rainfall is around 130 mm ( 5 in ), occurring from october to may. | climate data for damascus | | record high °c ( °f ) | | 21 | average high °c ( °f ) | | 12. 6 | average low °c ( °f ) | | 0. 4 | record low °c ( °f ) | | −6 | precipitation mm ( inches ) | | 27. 9 | avg. precipitation days ( ≥ 0. 1 mm ) | | 7 | | 7 | | 5 | | 3 | | 1 | | 0 | | 0 | | 0 | | 0 | | 2 | | 4 | | 6 | | 35 | | mean monthly sunshine hours | | 164. 3 | | 182. 0 | | 226. 3 | | 249. 0 | | 322. 4 | | 357. 0 | | 365. 8 | | 353. 4 | | 306. 0 | | 266. 6 | | 207. 0 | | 164. 3 | | 3


3 | | 249. 0 | | 322. 4 | | 357. 0 | | 365. 8 | | 353. 4 | | 306. 0 | | 266. 6 | | 207. 0 | | 164. 3 | | 3, 164. 1 | | source # 1 : bbc weather | | source # 2 : world meteorological organization, hong kong observatory ( sun 1961 – 1990 ) | the historical role that damascus played as an important trade center has changed in recent years due to political development in the region as well as the development of modern trade. most goods produced in damascus, as well as in syria, are distributed to countries of the arabian peninsula. damascus also holds an annual international trade exposition in the fall since 1955. damascus has the potential for a highly successful tourism industry. the abundance of cultural wealth in damascus has been modestly employed since the late 1980s with the development of many accommodation and transportation establishments and other related investments. since the early 2000s, numerous boutique hotels and bustling cafes opened in the old city which attract plenty of european tourists and damascenes alike. the real - estate sector is booming in damascus. real - estate adviser cushman & wakefield listed damascus office space as the eighth most expensive in the world in 2009. the office market in damascus is rather immature and the demand for premium office space surpasses supply. however, new supply of office space is expected to be delivered in 2009. damascus is home to a wide range of industrial activity, such as textile, food processing, cement and various chemical industries. the majority of factories are run by the state, however. limited privatization in addition to economic activities let by the private sector were permitted starting in the early 2000s with the liberalization of trade that took place. traditional handcrafts and artisan copper engraving are still produced in the old city. the damascus stock exchange formally opened for trade in march 2009, and the exchange is the only stock exchanges in syria. it is currently located in the barzeh district, within syria ' s financial markets and securities commission. its final home is to be the upmarket business district of yaafur. the estimated population of damascus in 2011 was 1, 711, 000. but damascus is the centre of an over - crowded metropolitan area with an estimated population of 5 million. the metropolitan area of damascus includes the cities of douma, harasta, darayya, al - tall and jaramana. the majority of the population in damascus came as a result of rural - urban migration. the majority


of 5 million. the metropolitan area of damascus includes the cities of douma, harasta, darayya, al - tall and jaramana. the majority of the population in damascus came as a result of rural - urban migration. the majority of the inhabitants of damascus are muslims. it is believed that there are more than 2, 000 mosques in damascus, the most well - known being the umayyad mosque. [ verification needed ] christians represent 10 % of the population. there are few christian districts in the city, such as bab tuma, qassaa and ghassani, with many churches, most notably the ancient chapel of saint paul. at the suburb soufanieh a series of apparitions of the virgin mary have reportedly been observed between 1982 and 2004. there is a small jewish community namely in what is called haret al - yahud the jewish quarter. they are the remnants of an ancient and much larger jewish presence in syria, dating back at least to roman times, if not before to the time of king david. historical sites damascus has a wealth of historical sites dating back to many different periods of the city ' s history. since the city has been built up with every passing occupation, it has become almost impossible to excavate all the ruins of damascus that lie up to 8 feet ( 2. 4 m ) below the modern level. the citadel of damascus is located in the northwest corner of the old city. the damascus straight street ( referred to in the conversion of st. paul in acts 9 : 11 ), also known as the via recta, was the decumanus ( east - west main street ) of roman damascus, and extended for over 1, 500 metres ( 4, 900 ft ). today, it consists of the street of bab sharqi and the souk medhat pasha, a covered market. the bab sharqi street is filled with small shops and leads to the old christian quarter of bab tuma ( st. thomas ' s gate ). medhat pasha souq is also a main market in damascus and was named after midhat pasha, the ottoman governor of syria who renovated the souk. at the end of the bab sharqi street, one reaches the house of ananias, an underground chapel that was the cellar of ananias ' s house. the umayyad mosque, also known as the grand mosque of damascus, is one of the largest mosques in the world and also one of the oldest


of ananias, an underground chapel that was the cellar of ananias ' s house. the umayyad mosque, also known as the grand mosque of damascus, is one of the largest mosques in the world and also one of the oldest sites of continuous prayer since the rise of islam. a shrine in the mosque is said to contain the body of st. john the baptist. the mausoleum where saladin was buried is located in the gardens just outside the mosque. sayyidah ruqayya mosque, the shrine of the youngest daughter of husayn ibn ali, can also be found near the umayyad mosque. the ancient district of amara is also within a walking distance from these sites. another heavily visited site is sayyidah zaynab mosque, where the tomb of zaynab bint ali is located. shias, fatemids and dawoodi bohras believe that after the battle of karbala ( 680 ad ), in iraq, the ummayad caliph yezid brought imam husain ' s head to damascus, where it was first kept in the courtyard of yezid mahal, now part of umayyad mosque complex. all other remaining members of imam husain ' s family ( left alive after karbala ) along with heads of all other companions, who were killed at karbala, were also brought to damascus. these members were kept as prisoners on the outskirts of the city ( near bab al - saghir ), where the other heads were kept at the same location, now called " raous - us - sohda - e - karbala ", visited by all shias. there is a qibla ( place of worship ) marked at the place, where imam ali - zain - ul - abedin used to pray while in captivity. the walls and gates of damascus the old city of damascus with an approximate area of 128 hectares is surrounded by ramparts on the northern and eastern sides and part of the southern side. there are seven extant city gates, the oldest of which dates back to the roman period. these are, clockwise from the north of the citadel : - bab al - faradis ( " the gate of the orchards ", or " of the paradise " ) - bab al - salam ( " the gate of peace " ), all on the north boundary of the old city - bab tuma ( " touma " or " thomas ' s gate " ) in the north - east corner


) - bab al - salam ( " the gate of peace " ), all on the north boundary of the old city - bab tuma ( " touma " or " thomas ' s gate " ) in the north - east corner, leading into the christian quarter of the same name, - bab sharqi ( " eastern gate " ) in the east wall, the only one to retain its roman plan - bab kisan in the south - east, from which tradition holds that saint paul made his escape from damascus, lowered from the ramparts in a basket ; this gate has been closed and turned into saint paul chapel marking this event, - bab al - saghir ( the small gate ) - bab al - jabiya at the entrance to souk midhat pasha, in the south - west. churches in the old city - chapel of saint paul - house of saint ananias - mariamite cathedral of damascus - the roman catholic cathedral in zaitoon ( olive ) alley - saint johnn the damascene church - saint paul ' s laura - saint george ' s syriac orthodox church islamic sites in the old city old damascene houses threats to the future of the old city due to the rapid decline of the population of old damascus ( between 1995 – 2005 more than 20, 000 people moved out of the old city for more modern accommodation ), a growing number of buildings are being abandoned or are falling into disrepair. in march 2007, the local government announced that it would be demolishing old city buildings along a 1, 400 - metre ( 4, 600 ft ) stretch of rampart walls as part of a redevelopment scheme. these factors resulted in the old city being placed by the world monuments fund on its 2008 watch list of the 100 most endangered sites in the world. it is hoped that its inclusion on the list will draw more public awareness to these significant threats to the future of the historic old city of damascus. current state of old damascus - souk el atik, a protected buffer zone, was destroyed in three days in november 2006 ; - king faysal street, a traditional hand - craft region in a protected buffer zone near the walls of old damascus between the citadel and bab touma, is threatened by a proposed motorway. - in 2007, the old city of damascus and notably the district of bab tuma have been recognized by the world monument fund as one of the most endangered sites in the world. damascus is the main center of education in syria. it is


. - in 2007, the old city of damascus and notably the district of bab tuma have been recognized by the world monument fund as one of the most endangered sites in the world. damascus is the main center of education in syria. it is home to damascus university, which is the oldest and largest university in syria. after the enactment of legislation allowing private higher institutions, several new universities were established in the city and in the surrounding area, including : - syrian virtual university - international university for science and technology - syrian private university - arab international university the institutes play an important rule in the education, including : - higher institute of business administration - higher institute for applied science and technology - national institute of administration the main airport is damascus international airport, approximately 20 kilometres ( 12 mi ) away from the city, with connections to many asian, european, african, and recently, south american cities. streets in damascus are often narrow, especially in the older parts of the city, and speed bumps are widely used to limit the speed of vehicles. public transport in damascus depends extensively on minibuses. there are about one hundred lines that operate inside the city and some of them extend from the city center to nearby suburbs. there is no schedule for the lines, and due to the limited number of official bus stops, buses will usually stop wherever a passenger needs to get on or off. the number of buses serving the same line is relatively high, which minimizes the waiting time. lines are not numbered, rather they are given captions mostly indicating the two end points and possibly an important station along the line and taxicab. served by chemins de fer syriens, the former main railway station of damascus was al - hejaz railway station, about 1 km west of the old city. the station is now defunct and the tracks have been removed, but there still is a ticket counter and a shuttle to damacus kadam station in the south of the city, which now functions as the main railway station. in 2008, the government announced a plan to construct a damascus metro with opening time for the green line scheduled for 2015. the green line will be an essential west - east axis for the future public transportation network, serving moadamiyeh, sumariyeh, mezzeh, damascus university, hijaz, the old city, abbassiyeen and qaboun pullman bus station. a four - line metro network is expected be in operation by 2050. damascus was chosen as the 2008 arab capital of culture. the


university, hijaz, the old city, abbassiyeen and qaboun pullman bus station. a four - line metro network is expected be in operation by 2050. damascus was chosen as the 2008 arab capital of culture. the arab capital of culture is an initiative undertaken by unesco, under the cultural capitals program to promote and celebrate arab culture and encourage cooperation in the arab region. the preparation for the festivity began in february 2007 with the establishing of the administrative committee for " damascus arab capital of culture " by a presidential decree. - national museum of damascus - azem palace - military museum - october war panorama museum - museum of arabic calligraphy - nur al - din bimaristan sports and leisure popular sports include football, basketball, swimming, tennis, table tennis, equestrian and chess. damascus is home to many football clubs that participate in the syrian premier league including al - jaish, al - shurta, al - wahda and al - majd. many other sport clubs are located in several districts of the city : barada sc, qasioun sc, nidal sc, al - muhafaza sc, al - fayhaa sc, al - thawra sc, dummar sc and al - arin sc. damascus has quite busy midnights. coffeehouses, where — in addition to arabic coffee and tea — nargileh ( water pipes ) are served, proliferate damascus. card games, tables ( backgammon variants ), and chess are activities frequented in cafes. tishreen park is one of the largest and popular parks in damascus. it is home to the yearly - held damascus flower show. other parks include : al - jahiz, al - sibbki, al - tijara, al - wahda, etc. damascus ' ghouta ( oasis ) is also a popular weekend - destination for recreation. many recreation centres operate in the city including sport clubs, swimming pools and golf courses. the syrian arab horse association in damascus offers a wide range of activities and services for horse breeders and riders. nearby attractions - madaya : a small mountainous town well known holiday resort. - bloudan : a town located 51 km north - west of the damascus, its moderate temperature and low humidity in summer attracts many visitors from damascus and throughout syria, lebanon and the persian gulf. - zabadani : a city in close to the border with lebanon. its mild weather along with the scenic views, made the town a popular resort both for tourists and


summer attracts many visitors from damascus and throughout syria, lebanon and the persian gulf. - zabadani : a city in close to the border with lebanon. its mild weather along with the scenic views, made the town a popular resort both for tourists and for visitors from other syrian cities. - maaloula : a town dominated by speakers of western neo - aramaic. - saidnaya : a city located in the mountains, 1, 500 metres ( 4, 921 ft ) above sea level, it was one of the episcopal cities of the ancient patriarchate of antioch. twin towns and sister cities - dubai, united arab emirates - toledo, spain - tripoli, lebanon - cordoba, spain - sao paulo, brazil - istanbul, turkey - yerevan, armenia, since 1997 - fars province, iran - ningxia region, people ' s republic of china - ankara, turkey since 2010 - central bureau of statistics in syria : chapter 2 : population & demographic indicators table 3 : estimates of population actually living in syria in 31 december 2011 by mohafazat and six ( in thousands ) - albaath. news statement by the governor of damascus, syria ( arabic ), april 2010 - central bureau of statistics syria syria census 2004 - list i, 13 in j. simons, handbook for the study of egyptian topographical lists relating to western asia, leiden 1937. see also y. aharoni, the land of the bible : a historical geography, london 1967, p147, no. 13. - " ( in book reviews ) ' ' ancient damascus : a historical study of the syrian city - state from earliest times until its fall to the assyrians in 732 bc. ' ', wayne t. pitard. review author : paul e. dion, ' ' bulletin of the american schools of oriental research ' ', no. 270, ancient syria. ( may, 1988 ), p. 98 ". links. jstor. org. retrieved 20 june 2010. - " ' ' the stele dedicated to melcarth by ben - hadad of damascus ' ', frank moore cross. ' ' bulletin of the american schools of oriental research ' ', no. 205. ( feb., 1972 ), p. 40 ". links. jstor. org. retrieved 20 june 2010. - " online etymology dictionary ". etymonline. com. retrieved 20 june 2010. - " damascus – wiktionary ". en. wiktionary. org. 9 may 2010. retrieved 20 june


retrieved 20 june 2010. - " online etymology dictionary ". etymonline. com. retrieved 20 june 2010. - " damascus – wiktionary ". en. wiktionary. org. 9 may 2010. retrieved 20 june 2010. - moore, a. m. t. the neolithic of the levant. oxford, uk : oxford university, 1978. 192 – 198. print. - burns 2005, p. 2 - macmillan, pp. 30 – 31 - burns 2005, pp. 5 – 6 - burns 2005, p. 7 - genesis 14 : 15 ( new international version ). bible gateway. retrieved 25 november 2009. - burns 2005, p. 9 - burns 2005, p. 10 - burns 2005, pp. 13 – 14 - burns 2005, p. 11 - burns 2005, pp. 21 – 23 - burns 2005, pp. 98 – 99 - burns 2005, p. 100 - burns 2005, pp. 103 – 104 - burns 2005, p. 105 - burns 2005, pp. 106 – 107 - burns 2005, pp. 110 - burns 2005, p. 113 - burns 2005, pp. 121 – 122 - burns 2005, pp. 130 – 132 - burns 2005, pp. 135 – 136 - burns 2005, pp. 137 – 138 - burns 2005, p. 139 - burns 2005, pp. 142 - burns 2005, p. 147 - burns 2005, pp. 148 – 149 - burns 2005, p. 151 - phillips, jonathan ( 2007 ). the second crusade : extending the frontiers of christendom. yale university press. pp. 216 – 227. - hans e. mayer, the crusades ( oxford university press, 1965, trans. john gillingham, 1972 ), pp. 118 – 120. - tyerman, christopher ( 2006 ). god ' s war : a new history of the crusades. penguin. p. 350. - hamilton, bernard ( 2000 ). the leper king and his heirs : baldwin iv and the crusader kingdom of jerusalem. cambridge university press. pp. 132 – 136. - " the third crusade : richard the lionhearted and philip augustus ", in a history of the crusades, vol. ii : the later crusades, 1189 – 1311, ed. r. l. wolff and h. w. hazard ( madison, wisconsin : university of wisconsin press, 1969 ), pp. 45 – 49. - wolff and hazard, pp. 67 – 85. - islamic city. encyclop


. r. l. wolff and h. w. hazard ( madison, wisconsin : university of wisconsin press, 1969 ), pp. 45 – 49. - wolff and hazard, pp. 67 – 85. - islamic city. encyclopædia britannica. - ellen clare miller, ' eastern sketches – notes of scenery, schools and tent life in syria and palestine '. edinburgh : william oliphant and company. 1871. page 90. quoting eli jones, a quaker from new england. - barker, a. ( 1998 ) " the allies enter damascus ", history today, volume 48 - roberts, p. m., world war i, a student encyclopedia, 2006, abc - clio, p. 657 - blasts hit damascus as syria gears up monitors - " public transportation in damascus is having an uphill go of it " - twin bombings in damascus kill at least 27 - flashpoint international : jabhat al - nusra claims credit for twin bombings in damascus - barnard, anne ( 19 march 2012 ). " clashes rock mezze, an upscale area of damascus ". new york times. - " heavy gunfire in syria ' s capital during the weekend ". haaretz. 10 june 2012. retrieved 10 june 2012. - damascus metropolitan area urban planning and development : dma - upd discussion paper series no. 2 october 2009 p. 2 - tyson, patrick j. ( 2010 ). " sunshine guide to the damascus area, syria ". www. climates. com. retrieved 26 november 2010. - " average conditions damascus, syria ". bbc weather. july 2011. retrieved 3 november 2010. [ dead link ] - " world weather information service – damascus ". world meteorological organization. - " climatological information for damascus, syria ". hong kong observatory. - " damascus ". encyclopædia britannica. retrieved 28 november 2009. - " damascus international fair ". retrieved 28 november 2009. - cummins, chip. " damascus revels in its new allure to investors ". the wall street journal. retrieved 28 november 2009. - " report : office space across the world 2009 ". cushman & wakefield. retrieved 28 november 2009. - " inauguration of damascus stock exchange ". syrian enterprise and business center. retrieved 28 november 2009. - " afp : syria launches first stock exchange ". google. com. 10 march 2009. retrieved 20 june 2010. - flood, finbarr barry ( 2001 ). the


". syrian enterprise and business center. retrieved 28 november 2009. - " afp : syria launches first stock exchange ". google. com. 10 march 2009. retrieved 20 june 2010. - flood, finbarr barry ( 2001 ). the great mosque of damascus : studies on the makings of an umayyad visual culture 33. brill. p. 12. isbn 90 - 04 - 11638 - 9, 9789004116382 check | isbn = value ( help ). retrieved 26 november 2009. - sbalchiero in : laurentin / sbalchiero ( 2007 ), p. 1093 - 1097. - katz, ketsi ' ah ( 1981 ), masoret ha - lashon ha - ' ibrit shel yehude aram - tsoba ( halab ) bi - qri ' at ha - miqra ve - ha - mishnah ( the hebrew language tradition of the jews of aleppo in the reading of the bible and mishnah ) - old damascus - the british syrian society. the british syrian society. retrieved 29 may 2009. - " worldmonuments. org ". worldmonuments. org. retrieved 6 november 2011. - " ghf ". global heritage fund. retrieved 1 june 2011. - " الخط الاخضر " اهلا بكم في موقع الخط الاخضر ". damascus - metro. com. retrieved 29 may 2009. - " دمشق عاصمة الثقافة العربية 2008 ". damascus. org. sy. retrieved 27 december 2012. - herbert, ian ; nicole leclercq, international theatre institute ( 2003 ). the world of theatre : an account of the world ' s theatre seasons 1999 – 2000, 2000 – 2001 and 2001 – 2002. routledge. p. 225. isbn 0 - 415 - 30621 - 3. - " مجلس الادارة و المجلس الاستشاري ". damascus. org. sy. 22 october 2007. retrieved 20 june 2010. - beatties and pepper, 2001, p. 102. - " syrian arab horse association ". saha - sy. org. retrieved 20 june 2010. - uaeinteract. com. " sister cities delegates praise dubai ' best practices '


- beatties and pepper, 2001, p. 102. - " syrian arab horse association ". saha - sy. org. retrieved 20 june 2010. - uaeinteract. com. " sister cities delegates praise dubai ' best practices ' uae – the official web site – news ". uaeinteract. com. retrieved 29 may 2009. - " sister cities ". toledo turismo ( patronato municipal de turismo ). retrieved 16 october 2008. - ayuntamento de cordoba cordoba city council web, sister cities - " international relations – sao paulo city hall – official sister cities ". prefeitura. sp. gov. br. retrieved 20 june 2010. - sister cities of istanbul – turkey. sister cities of istanbul – turkey. retrieved 24 november 2009. - " yerevan municipality – sister cities ". yerevan. am. retrieved 22 june 2009. - the syrian - iranian joint supreme committee meetings ( in arabic ). alwehda publications. 8 march 2009. retrieved 30 november 2009. - محافظة دمشق ومنطقة نينغيشيا الصينية توقعان على اتفاقية توامة. syria news. retrieved 22 april 2010. - " damascus, ankara become sister cities ". worldbulletin. net. 6 july 2010. retrieved 9 november 2010. - burns, ross ( 2005 ). damascus : a history. routledge. isbn 0 - 415 - 27105 - 3, 9780415271059 check - jill, duchess of hamilton ( 2002 ). first to damascus : the story of the australian light horse and lawrence of arabia. isbn 0 - 7318 - 1071 - 6.. - aharoni, yohanan ; avi - yonah, michael ( 1977 ). the macmillan bible atlas. carta ltd. isbn 0 - 7318 - 1071 - 6.. - cammelli, stefano ( 2006 ). il minareto di gesu. il mulino.. - icomos heritage at risk 2001 / 2002 : damascus, a major eastern mediterranean site at risk - syria, historic damascus : the destruction of the old city | look up damascus in wiktionary, the free dictionary. | | wikimedia commons has media related to : damascus | - philip k. hitt, the imperial capital, 1973, saudi aramco world - damascus on


a helium – neon laser or hene laser, is a type of gas laser whose gain medium consists of a mixture of helium and neon inside of a small bore capillary tube, usually excited by a dc electrical discharge. history of hene laser development the first hene laser emitted at 1. 15 μm in the infrared and was the first gas laser. however a laser that operated at visible wavelengths was much more in demand, and a number of other neon transitions were investigated to identify ones in which a population inversion can be achieved. the 633 nm line was found to have the highest gain in the visible spectrum, making this the wavelength of choice for most hene lasers. however other visible as well as infrared lasing wavelengths are possible, and by using mirror coatings with their peak reflectance at these other wavelengths, hene lasers could be engineered to employ those transitions ; this includes visible lasers appearing red, orange, yellow, and green. lasing transitions are known from over 100 μm in the far infrared to 540 nm in the visible. since visible transitions at wavelengths other than 633 nm have somewhat lower gain, these lasers generally have lower output powers and are more costly. the 3. 39 μm transition has a very high gain but is prevented from lasing in an ordinary hene laser ( of a different intended wavelength ) since the cavity and mirrors are lossy at that wavelength. however in high power hene lasers having a particularly long cavity, superluminescence at 3. 39 μm can become a nuisance, robbing power from the lasing medium, often requiring additional suppression. the best known and most widely used hene laser operates at a wavelength of 632. 8 nm in the red part of the visible spectrum. it was developed at bell telephone laboratories in 1962, 18 months after the pioneering demonstration at the same laboratory of the first continuous infrared hene gas laser in december 1960. construction and operation the gain medium of the laser, as suggested by its name, is a mixture of helium and neon gases, in approximately a 10 : 1 ratio, contained at low pressure in a glass envelope. the gas mixture is mostly helium, so that helium atoms can be excited. the excited helium atoms collide with neon atoms, exciting some of them to the state that radiates 632. 8 nm. without helium, the neon atoms would be excited mostly to lower excited states responsible for non - laser lines. a neon laser with no helium can be constructed but it is much more difficult without this means of energy


radiates 632. 8 nm. without helium, the neon atoms would be excited mostly to lower excited states responsible for non - laser lines. a neon laser with no helium can be constructed but it is much more difficult without this means of energy coupling. therefore, a hene laser that has lost enough of its helium ( e. g., due to diffusion through the seals or glass ) will most likely not lase at all since the pumping efficiency will be too low. the energy or pump source of the laser is provided by a high voltage electrical discharge passed through the gas between electrodes ( anode and cathode ) within the tube. a dc current of 3 to 20 ma is typically required for cw operation. the optical cavity of the laser usually consists of two concave mirrors or one plane and one concave mirror, one having very high ( typically 99. 9 % ) reflectance and the output coupler mirror allowing approximately 1 % transmission. commercial hene lasers are relatively small devices, among gas lasers, having cavity lengths usually ranging from 15 cm to 50 cm ( but sometimes up to about 1 meter to achieve the highest powers ), and optical output power levels ranging from 0. 5 to 50 mw. the red hene laser wavelength of 633 nm has an actual vacuum wavelength of 632. 991 nm, or about 632. 816 nm in air. the wavelength of the lasing modes lie within about 0. 001 nm above or below this value, and the wavelengths of those modes shift within this range due to thermal expansion and contraction of the cavity. frequency - stabilized versions enable the wavelength of a single mode to be specified to within 1 part in 108 by the technique of comparing the powers of two longitudinal modes in opposite polarizations. absolute stabilization of the laser ' s frequency ( or wavelength ) as fine as 2. 5 parts in 1011 can be obtained through use of an iodine absorption cell. the mechanism producing population inversion and light amplification in a hene laser plasma originates with inelastic collision of energetic electrons with ground state helium atoms in the gas mixture. as shown in the accompanying energy level diagram, these collisions excite helium atoms from the ground state to higher energy excited states, among them the 23s1 and 21s0 long - lived metastable states. because of a fortuitous near coincidence between the energy levels of the two he metastable states, and the 3s2 and 2s2 ( paschen notation ) levels of neon, collisions between these helium


- lived metastable states. because of a fortuitous near coincidence between the energy levels of the two he metastable states, and the 3s2 and 2s2 ( paschen notation ) levels of neon, collisions between these helium metastable atoms and ground state neon atoms results in a selective and efficient transfer of excitation energy from the helium to neon. this excitation energy transfer process is given by the reaction equations : - he * ( 23s1 ) + ne1s0 → he ( 1s0 ) + ne * 2s2 + δe - he * ( 21s ) + ne1s0 + δe → he ( 1s0 ) + ne * 3s2 where ( * ) represents an excited state, and δe is the small energy difference between the energy states of the two atoms, of the order of 0. 05 ev or 387 cm−1, which is supplied by kinetic energy. excitation energy transfer increases the population of the neon 2s2 and 3s2 levels manyfold. when the population of these two upper levels exceeds that of the corresponding lower level neon state, 2p4 to which they are optically connected, population inversion is present. the medium becomes capable of amplifying light in a narrow band at 1. 15 μm ( corresponding to the 2s2 to 2p4 transition ) and in a narrow band at 632. 8 nm ( corresponding to the 3s2 to 2p4 transition at 632. 8 nm ). the 2p4 level is efficiently emptied by fast radiative decay to the 1s state, eventually reaching the ground state. the remaining step in utilizing optical amplification to create an optical oscillator is to place highly reflecting mirrors at each end of the amplifying medium so that a wave in a particular spatial mode will reflect back upon itself, gaining more power in each pass than is lost due to transmission through the mirrors and diffraction. when these conditions are met for one or more longitudinal modes then radiation in those modes will rapidly build up until gain saturation occurs, resulting in a stable continuous laser beam output through the front ( typically 99 % reflecting ) mirror. the gain bandwidth of the hene laser is dominated by doppler broadening rather than pressure broadening due to the low gas pressure, and is thus quite narrow : only about 1. 5 ghz full width for the 633 nm transition. with cavities having typical lengths of 15 cm to


by doppler broadening rather than pressure broadening due to the low gas pressure, and is thus quite narrow : only about 1. 5 ghz full width for the 633 nm transition. with cavities having typical lengths of 15 cm to 50 cm, this allows about 2 to 8 longitudinal modes to oscillate simultaneously ( however single longitudinal mode units are available for special applications ). the visible output of the red hene laser, long coherence length, and its excellent spatial quality, makes this laser a useful source for holography and as a wavelength reference for spectroscopy. a stabilized hene laser is also one of the benchmark systems for the definition of the meter. prior to the invention of cheap, abundant diode lasers, red hene lasers were widely used in barcode scanners at supermarket checkout counters. laser gyroscopes have employed hene lasers operating at 0. 633 μm in a ring laser configuration. hene lasers are generally present in educational and research optical laboratories. red hene lasers have many industrial and scientific uses. they are widely used in laboratory demonstrations in the field of optics in view of their relatively low cost and ease of operation compared to other visible lasers producing beams of similar quality in terms of spatial coherence ( a single mode gaussian beam ) and long coherence length ( however since about 1990 semiconductor lasers have offered a lower cost alternative for many such applications ). a consumer application of the red hene laser is the laserdisc player, made by pioneer. the laser is used in the device to read the optical disk. see also - c. s. willet " an introduction to gas lasers " pergamon press 1974, pages 407 – 411 - a. d. white and j. d. rigden, " continuous gas maser operation in the visible ". proc ire vol. 50, p1697 : july 1962. - a. d. white, " recollections of the first continuous visible laser ". optics and photonics news vol. 22, p34 - 39 : october 2011. - javan, a., bennett, w. r. and herriott, d. r. : " population inversion and continuous optical maser oscillation in a gas discharge containing a he - ne mixture ". phys. rev. lett. 63, 106 – 110 ( 1961 ). - " sam ' s laser faq - helium - neon lasers : ". - nieb


john c. stennis space center | john c. stennis space center | | the b - 1 / b - 2 test stand holding space shuttle components ( 1987 ) | | preceding agencies | | mississippi test operations national space technology laboratories | jurisdiction | | u. s. federal government | | headquarters | | hancock county, mississippi | | agency executive | | dr. richard j. gilbrech, director | | stennis space center home page | the john c. stennis space center ( ssc ) is a nasa rocket testing facility. it is located in hancock county, mississippi, on the banks of the pearl river ( mississippi – louisiana ) at the mississippi – louisiana border. as of 2012 [ update ], it is nasa ' s largest rocket engine test facility. as of 2007 [ update ], british manufacturer rolls - royce plc has been operating an outdoor aero - engine test facility within ssc due to noise pollution concerns at its uk testing facility at hucknall airfield ( near its main uk site at derby ). rolls - royce is just one of the over 30 local, state, national, international, private, and public companies and agencies using ssc for their rocket testing facilities. the initial requirements for nasa ' s proposed rocket testing facility required the site to be located between the rockets ' manufacturing facility at michoud assembly facility in eastern new orleans, louisiana and the launch facility at the kennedy space center in florida. also, the site required barge access as the rocket motors to be tested for apollo were too large for overland transport. the selected area was thinly populated and met all other requirements ; however before construction began, five small communities ( gainesville, logtown, napoleon, santa rosa, and westonia ), plus the northern portion of a sixth ( pearlington ), and a combined population of 700 families had to be completely relocated off the facility. remnants of the communities, including city streets and a one - room school house, still exist within the facility. the 13, 500 acres ( 55 km2 ) site was selected on october 25, 1961 on the mississippi test facility or pearl river site. on december 18, 1961 nasa officially designated the facility as nasa mississippi test operations. the test area ( officially known as the fee area ) is surrounded by a 125, 000 acres ( 506 km2 ) acoustical buffer zone. the facility ' s large concrete and metal test stands were originally used to test - fire the first and second stages of the saturn v rockets. all space shuttle main engines were flight - certified at ste


( 506 km2 ) acoustical buffer zone. the facility ' s large concrete and metal test stands were originally used to test - fire the first and second stages of the saturn v rockets. all space shuttle main engines were flight - certified at stennis. the facility was renamed again to mississippi test facility on july 1, 1965, became a part of the marshall space flight center on june 14, 1974 and renamed national space technology laboratories a name that continued until may 20, 1988 when it was renamed for mississippi senator and space program supporter john c. stennis. with the end of the apollo program, use of the base decreased, with economic impact to the surrounding communities. over the years other government organizations have moved to the facility, providing a major economic benefit to the communities. in the 1990s, a new test complex named " e " was constructed to test a variety of new engine concepts. a series of tests conducted there eventually led to the commercialization of hybrid rocket motors, one of which was used to power the first privately funded spaceship, scaled composites spaceshipone. in 2007 rolls - royce plc opened an outdoor aero engine test facility at john c. stennis. the test stand is built on the old h1 test bed, rolls - royce relocated their engine testing facility from hucknall near its main derby site in the uk due to noise pollution issues. test stands the engineering & science directorate ( esd ) at ssc operates and maintains ssc ' s rocket test stands. - the a - 1 test stand was originally designed to test the apollo saturn v second stage ( s - ii ). it supports a maximum dynamic load of 1. 7 m lbf. - the a - 2 test stand is used for j - 2x engine testing. it supports a maximum dynamic load of 1. 1 m lbf. - nasa has begun construction of the new a - 3 test stand at ssc. the a - 3 stand will be used for testing j - 2x engines under vacuum conditions simulating high altitude operation. a - 3 will also be operable as a sea - level test facility. - the b - 1 / b - 2 test stand is a dual - position stand supporting a maximum dynamic load of 11m lbf. it was originally built to simultaneously test the five f - 1 engines of a complete saturn - v s1 - c first stage. during the shuttle era it was modified to test the space shuttle main engine ( ssme ). it is currently under retrofit for sls main engine testing.


f - 1 engines of a complete saturn - v s1 - c first stage. during the shuttle era it was modified to test the space shuttle main engine ( ssme ). it is currently under retrofit for sls main engine testing. - the e - complex supports testing of small engine and single / multiple components. installation of a 35, 000 - gallon liquid oxygen tank atop the a - 3 test stand. in 2005, the center was home to over 30 government agencies and private companies. by far the largest of these were elements of the united states navy with some 3, 500 personnel, which was far larger than the nasa civil servant contingent. some of the prominent resident agencies include : - the national oceanic and atmospheric administration ' s national data buoy center - a branch of the naval research laboratory - the lockheed martin mississippi space and technology center - the naval meteorology and oceanography command - the naval oceanographic office - navy special boat team 22 and navsciatts ( naval small craft instruction and technical training school ). - the university of southern mississippi ' s high performance visualization center - rolls - royce outdoor engine testing centre - the us geological survey hydrologic instrumentation facility - mississippi army ammunition plant the museum and visitor center for the stennis space center was known as stennisphere, but closed its doors to the public on february 15, 2012. exhibits focused on the activities of nasa, space, space exploration, science, geography, weather and more. many of the exhibits from stennisphere have been moved into the new infinity visitor facility. the infinity science center officially opened in april 2012 to replace the old stennisphere visitors center. the new center features state - of - the - art science and space exhibits, including a full - sized international space station module. see also - kelley, mike ( september 26, 2012 ). " scheuermann appointed new msfc director ". the huntsville times. retrieved november 28, 2012. - " may 1961 speech leads to stennis facility ". lagniappe. 11 may 2011. - " a - 1 test stand ". nasa. - " nasa ' s stennis space center marks new chapter in space exploration ". nasa. - " environmental assessment for stennis space center a - 3 test stand ". nasa. - " stennisphere museum and visitor center to close " ( press release ). nasa. jan. 30, 2012. - " history of infinity science center ". nasa. retrieved 2012 - 09 - 13. | wi


leonard harrison state park | leonard harrison state park | | pennsylvania state park part of pine creek gorge, a national natural landmark view north of pine creek gorge, pine creek, and the pine creek rail trail from the main lookout area in leonard harrison state park | named for : leonard harrison | | location | | pine creek gorge | | - elevation | | 1, 821 ft ( 555 m ) | | area | | 585 acres ( 237 ha ) | | management | | pennsylvania department of conservation and natural resources | | iucn category | | v - protected landscape / seascape | | website : leonard harrison state park | leonard harrison state park is a 585 - acre ( 237 ha ) pennsylvania state park in tioga county, pennsylvania, in the united states. it is on the east rim of the pine creek gorge, also known as the grand canyon of pennsylvania, which is 800 feet ( 240 m ) deep and nearly 4, 000 feet ( 1, 200 m ) across here. it also serves as headquarters for the adjoining colton point state park, its sister park on the west rim of the gorge. leonard harrison state park is known for its views of the pine creek gorge, and offers hiking, fishing and hunting, whitewater boating, and camping. the park is in shippen and delmar townships, 10 miles ( 16 km ) west of wellsboro at the western terminus of pennsylvania route 660. pine creek flows through the park and has carved the gorge through five major rock formations from the devonian and carboniferous periods. native americans once used the pine creek path along the creek. the path was later used by lumbermen, and then became the course of a railroad from 1883 to 1988. since 1996, the 63. 4 - mile ( 102. 0 km ) pine creek rail trail has followed the creek through the park. the pine creek gorge was named a national natural landmark in 1968 and is also protected as a pennsylvania state natural area and important bird area, while pine creek is a pennsylvania scenic and wild river. the gorge is home to many species of plants and animals, some of which have been reintroduced to the area. although the pine creek gorge was clearcut in the 19th and early 20th centuries, it is now covered by second growth forest, thanks in part to the conservation efforts of the civilian conservation corps ( ccc ) in the 1930s. the park is named for leonard harrison, a wellsboro lumberman who cut the timber there, then established the park, which he donated to the state in 1922. the ccc improved the


the civilian conservation corps ( ccc ) in the 1930s. the park is named for leonard harrison, a wellsboro lumberman who cut the timber there, then established the park, which he donated to the state in 1922. the ccc improved the park and built many of its original facilities. since a successful publicity campaign in 1936, the park has been a popular tourist destination and attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. leonard harrison state park was chosen by the pennsylvania department of conservation and natural resources ( dcnr ) bureau of parks for its " twenty must - see pennsylvania state parks " list, which praised its " spectacular vistas and a fabulous view of pine creek gorge, also known as pennsylvania ' s grand canyon ". native americans humans have lived in what is now pennsylvania since at least 10, 000 bc. the first settlers were paleo - indian nomadic hunters known from their stone tools. the hunter - gatherers of the archaic period, which lasted locally from 7000 to 1000 bc, used a greater variety of more sophisticated stone artifacts. the woodland period marked the gradual transition to semi - permanent villages and horticulture, between 1000 bc and 1500 ad. archeological evidence found in the state from this time includes a range of pottery types and styles, burial mounds, pipes, bows and arrows, and ornaments. leonard harrison state park is in the west branch susquehanna river drainage basin, the earliest recorded inhabitants of which were the iroquoian - speaking susquehannocks. they were a matriarchal society that lived in stockaded villages of large long houses, and " occasionally inhabited " the mountains surrounding the pine creek gorge. their numbers were greatly reduced by disease and warfare with the five nations of the iroquois, and by 1675 they had died out, moved away, or been assimilated into other tribes. after this, the lands of the west branch susquehanna river valley were under the nominal control of the iroquois. the iroquois lived in long houses, primarily in what is now new york, and had a strong confederacy which gave them power beyond their numbers. they and other tribes used the pine creek path through the gorge, traveling between a path on the genesee river in modern new york in the north, and the great shamokin path along the west branch susquehanna river in the south. the seneca tribe of the iroquois believed that pine creek gorge was sacred land and never established a permanent settlement there. they used the path through the gorge and had seasonal hunting camps along it, including one just north of the park near what is


the south. the seneca tribe of the iroquois believed that pine creek gorge was sacred land and never established a permanent settlement there. they used the path through the gorge and had seasonal hunting camps along it, including one just north of the park near what is now the village of ansonia. to fill the void left by the demise of the susquehannocks, the iroquois encouraged displaced tribes from the east to settle in the west branch watershed, including the shawnee and lenape ( or delaware ). the french and indian war ( 1754 – 1763 ) led to the migration of many native americans westward to the ohio river basin. on november 5, 1768, the british acquired the new purchase from the iroquois in the treaty of fort stanwix, including what is now leonard harrison state park. the purchase line established by this treaty was disputed, as it was unclear whether the border along " tiadaghton creek " referred to present - day pine creek or to lycoming creek, further to the east. as a result, the land between them was disputed territory until 1784 and the second treaty of fort stanwix. after the american revolutionary war, native americans almost entirely left pennsylvania, although some isolated bands of natives remained in pine creek gorge until the war of 1812. lumber era prior to the arrival of william penn and his quaker colonists in 1682, up to 90 percent of what is now pennsylvania was covered with woods : more than 31, 000 square miles ( 80, 000 km2 ) of eastern white pine, eastern hemlock, and a mix of hardwoods. the forests near the three original counties, philadelphia, bucks, and chester, were the first to be harvested, as the early settlers used the readily available timber to build homes, barns, and ships, and cleared the land for agriculture. the demand for wood products slowly increased and by the time of the american revolution the lumber industry had reached the interior and mountainous regions of pennsylvania. lumber thus became one of the leading industries in pennsylvania. trees were used to furnish fuel to heat homes, tannin for the many tanneries that were spread throughout the state, and wood for construction, furniture, and barrel making. large areas of forest were harvested by colliers to fire iron furnaces. rifle stocks and shingles were made from pennsylvania timber, as were a wide variety of household utensils, and the first conestoga wagons. by the early 19th century the demand for lumber reached the pine creek gorge, where the surrounding mountainsides were covered with eastern white pine 3 to 6 feet


, as were a wide variety of household utensils, and the first conestoga wagons. by the early 19th century the demand for lumber reached the pine creek gorge, where the surrounding mountainsides were covered with eastern white pine 3 to 6 feet ( 0. 9 to 1. 8 m ) in diameter and 150 feet ( 46 m ) or more tall, eastern hemlock 9 feet ( 2. 7 m ) in circumference, and huge hardwoods. each acre ( 0. 4 ha ) of these virgin forests produced 100, 000 board feet ( 236 m3 ) of white pine and 200, 000 board feet ( 472 m3 ) of hemlock and hardwoods. for comparison, the same area of forest today produces a total of only 5, 000 board feet ( 11. 8 m3 ) on average. according to steven e. owlett, environmental lawyer and author, shipbuilders considered pine from pine creek the " best timber in the world for making fine ship masts ", so it was the first lumber to be harvested on a large scale. pine creek was declared a public highway by the pennsylvania general assembly on march 16, 1798, and rafts of spars were floated down the creek to the susquehanna river, then to the chesapeake bay and the shipbuilders at baltimore. the lumbermen would then walk home, following the old pine creek path at the end of their journey. a spar sold for one dollar and three spars up to 90 feet ( 27 m ) long were lashed together to make a ship ' s mast. the largest spar produced on pine creek was 43 inches ( 110 cm ) in diameter 12 feet ( 3. 7 m ) above the base, 93 feet ( 28 m ) long, and 33 inches ( 84 cm ) in diameter at the top. by 1840, tioga county alone produced over 452 such spar rafts with more than 22, 000, 000 board feet ( 52, 000 m3 ) of lumber. as the 19th century progressed, fewer pines were left and more hemlocks and hardwoods were cut and processed locally. by 1810 there were 11 sawmills in the pine creek watershed, and by 1840 there were 145, despite a flood in 1832 which wiped out nearly all the mills along the creek. selective harvesting of pines was replaced by clearcutting of all lumber in a tract. the first lumbering activity to take place close to what is now leonard harrison state park occurred in 1838 when william dodge and some partners built a settlement at big meadows and


selective harvesting of pines was replaced by clearcutting of all lumber in a tract. the first lumbering activity to take place close to what is now leonard harrison state park occurred in 1838 when william dodge and some partners built a settlement at big meadows and formed the pennsylvania joint land and lumber company. dodge ' s company purchased thousands of acres of land in the area, including what is now colton point state park. in 1865 the last pine spar raft floated down the creek, and on march 28, 1871 the general assembly passed a law allowing splash dam construction and clearing of creeks to allow loose logs to float better. the earliest spring log drives floated up to 20, 000, 000 board feet ( 47, 000 m3 ) of logs in pine creek at one time. these logs floated to the west branch susquehanna river and to sawmills near the susquehanna boom at williamsport. hemlock wood was not widely used until the advent of wire nails, but the bark was used to tan leather. after 1870 the largest tanneries in the world were in the pine creek watershed, and required 2, 000 pounds ( 910 kg ) of bark to produce 150 pounds ( 68 kg ) of quality sole leather. in 1883 the jersey shore, pine creek and buffalo railway opened, following the creek through the gorge. the new railroad used the relatively level route along pine creek to link the new york central railroad with the clearfield coalfield. in the surrounding forests, log drives gave way to logging railroads, which transported lumber to local sawmills. there were 13 companies operating logging railroads along pine creek and its tributaries between 1886 and 1921, while the last log drive in the pine creek watershed started on little pine creek in 1905. the west rim, which became colton point state park, had a logging railroad by 1903, which was able to harvest lumber on fourmile run that had been previously inaccessible. the old - growth forests were clearcut by the early 20th century and the gorge was stripped bare. nothing was left except the dried - out tree tops, which became a fire hazard, so much of the land burned and was left barren. on may 6, 1903 the wellsboro newspaper had the headline " wild lands aflame " and reported landslides through the gorge. the soil was depleted of nutrients, fires baked the ground hard, and jungles of blueberries, blackberries, and mountain laurel covered the clearcut land, which became known as the " pennsylvania desert ". disastrous floods swept the area periodically and much of the wildlife was wiped out. nessmuk and leonard harrison


and jungles of blueberries, blackberries, and mountain laurel covered the clearcut land, which became known as the " pennsylvania desert ". disastrous floods swept the area periodically and much of the wildlife was wiped out. nessmuk and leonard harrison george washington sears, an early conservationist who wrote under the pen name " nessmuk ", was one of the first to criticize pennsylvania lumbering and its destruction of forests and creeks. in his 1884 book woodcraft he wrote of the pine creek watershed where " a huge tannery... poisons and blackens the stream with chemicals, bark and ooze.... the once fine covers and thickets are converted into fields thickly dotted with blackened stumps. and, to crown the desolation, heavy laden trains of ' the pine creek and jersey shore r. r. ' go thundering [ by ] almost hourly... of course, this is progress ; but, whether backward or forward, had better be decided sixty years hence. " nessmuk ' s words went mostly unheeded in his lifetime and did not prevent the clearcutting of almost all of the virgin forests in pennsylvania. sears lived in wellsboro from 1844 until his death in 1890, and was the first to describe the pine creek gorge. he also described a trip to what became leonard harrison state park : after a 6 - mile ( 9. 7 km ) buggy ride, he then had to hike 7 miles ( 11 km ) through tangles of fallen trees and branches, down ravines, and over banks for five hours. at least he reached " the point ", which he wrote was " the jutting terminus of a high ridge which not only commands a capital view of the opposite mountain, but also of the pine creek valley, up and down for miles ". a pennsylvania historical and museum commission ( phmc ) state historical marker commemorating nessmuk was dedicated in the park in 1972. the creation of the park was the work of leonard harrison, a former lumberman and businessman from wellsboro who owned a substantial amount of land in the pine creek gorge. in the 1890s harrison operated a sawmill at tiadaghton in the middle of the gorge, which was supplied with logs, not by train as was most common in that era, but by a log slide built into the side of the gorge. the log slide was used on a year round basis : during the winter the logs slid down on ice ; following the snowmelt the slide was greased to ease


in that era, but by a log slide built into the side of the gorge. the log slide was used on a year round basis : during the winter the logs slid down on ice ; following the snowmelt the slide was greased to ease the descent of the logs. after the village and the mill were destroyed by a fire, harrison turned his attention to tourism. he purchased 121 acres ( 49 ha ) of land at the site of the current park in 1906, then developed this land, known as " the lookout ", and invited the public to enjoy the beauty of pine creek gorge. harrison donated the picnic grounds to the commonwealth of pennsylvania in 1922. although the park was donated to the state, the wellsboro chamber of commerce made initial improvements there and operated it for the first two decades. elsewhere in the gorge the state bought land abandoned by lumber companies, sometimes for less than $ 2 per acre ( $ 5 per ha ). except for the adjoining colton point state park, this land became the tioga state forest, which was officially established in 1925 and lies just north and south of the park. as of 2008 the state forest encompasses 160, 000 acres ( 65, 000 ha ), mostly in tioga county. modern era despite its status as leonard harrison state forest park, it took time for the park to become more well known. access to the park over small roads was still difficult. an elderly woman who had lived nearby all her life visited the park for the first time in 1932 and asked, on seeing the gorge, " how long has this been here? " the civilian conservation corps ( ccc ) improved access and constructed many of the amenities at leonard harrison park from 1933 to 1936, during the great depression. leonard harrison state park is one of many examples of the work of the ccc throughout north - central pennsylvania. the ccc built picnic and comfort facilities, made roads and trails ( often following old logging roads ), and planted stands of white pine, spruce and larch. some of the ccc - constructed facilities remain and are still used, and the park has hosted a reunion of former ccc workers each summer since 1990. in 1936 larry woodin of wellsboro and other tioga county business owners began a tourism campaign to promote the pine creek gorge as " the grand canyon of pennsylvania ". greyhound bus lines featured a view of the canyon from a leonard harrison lookout on the back cover of its atlantic coast timetable. the bus line ' s chicago to new york city tour had an overnight stay in wellsboro and a