Sixth Street Mural

During the interview with retired English professor, Jim Cahalan, he mentioned a mural on the corner of Sixth Street in Indiana with a quote by Edward Abbey. Abbey was a famous author and environmentalist from Indiana, Pennsylvania that typically wrote about this setting. The most notable mention came from his book, The Fool's Progress published in 1988. The mural on Sixth Street has a bit of history to it, containing a quote from Abbey himself (left). It is located on the side wall of Fox's Pizza, which is cattycorner to the old courthouse. It is commonly debated that the quote did not belong to Abbey; however, this has not been proven. Cahalan when asked about the quote stated, "the mural doesn't seem like Abbey. He was a funny guy." He continued by explaining that Abbey was always one for things like one-liners and jokes. The mural is of Indiana years ago. On the left, there are children and an adult woman blowing flowers in a field; on the right, there is an old man reading a book to a young boy; in the background stands the old courthouse. The book that the man is reading to the boy has a large quote inside that reads: “In the years before the civil war, Indiana County welcomed people fleeing slavery and helped them get to freedom.” On the second page, it says “The function of an ideal is not to be realized but, like that of the North Star, to serve as a guiding point.” –Edward Abbey.