Portal:Erie
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  Culture · Geography · Health · History · Mathematics · Nature · Philosophy · Religion · Society · Technology  Erie played a major part in the War of 1812 when President James Madison ordered the construction of a naval fleet at Erie. Noted shipbuilders Daniel Dobbins of Erie and Noah Brown of New York led construction of four schooner–rigged gunboats and two brigs. Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry arrived from Rhode Island and led the squadron to success in the historic Battle of Lake Erie. Because of the presence of Perry's flagship, the Brig Niagara, Erie is known as the Flagship City. Erie is in proximity to Cleveland, Ohio; Buffalo, New York; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Once teeming with heavy industry, Erie's heavy manufacturing sector now consists mainly of plastics and locomotive building. Known for its lake effect snow, Erie is in the heart of the rust belt and has begun to focus on tourism as a driving force in its economy. More than four million people each year visit Presque Isle State Park, for water recreation, and a new casino named for the state park is growing in popularity.   Presque Isle State Park (pronounced IPA: /ˌprɛskˈʔaɪl/) is a 3,200 acre (13 km²) state park in Pennsylvania on an arching sandy peninsula that juts out into Lake Erie, 4 miles (6 km) west of the city of Erie, in Millcreek Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The peninsula sweeps eastward for more than 13 miles (21 km), surrounding Presque Isle Bay along the park's southern coast. Presque Isle has a monument to Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, a naval squadron leader during the War of 1812, near the eastern end of the peninsula, who strategically used the peninsula’s bay as a pier and a place to construct six out of nine of the ships in his fleet for the Battle of Lake Erie. The park, operated by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, hosts over 4 million visitors per year, the most of any Pennsylvania state park. Popular recreational activities include swimming, hiking, biking, in-line skating and bird watching. The park is on Pennsylvania Route 832, also known as Peninsula Drive. Presque Isle State Park is one of twenty-one chosen by the Pennsylvania Bureau of Parks for its "Twenty Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks" list.  Tom Ridge (born August 27, 1945 in Munhall) is an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives (1983–1995), Governor of Pennsylvania (1995–2001), Assistant to the President for Homeland Security (2001–2003), and the first United States Secretary of Homeland Security (2003–2005). Born in Munhall, Pennsylvania, in Pittsburgh, he was raised in veterans' public housing in Erie. He was educated at St. Andrews Elementary School and Cathedral Preparatory School. He earned a scholarship to Harvard College. He was staff sergeant during the Vietnam War where he earned the Bronze Star , National Defense Service Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge. Erie International Airport was renamed Tom Ridge Field in his honor. An environmental center on Presque Isle is named after Ridge as he was instrumental in securing funds for the center.
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