Outer Banks Lighthouses - July 2006 and Sept 2007

Currituck Beach Lighthouse The northernmost lighthouse. According to their website, on December 1, 1875, this beacon filled the remaining "dark spot" on the North Carolina coast between the Cape Henry light to the north and the Bodie Island to the south. The light still flashes at 20-second intervals.
The Lightkeepers' House
The duplex for the two lightkeepers was completed in 1876. Each piece of the house arrived by barge pre-cut, numbered, and ready to assemble.

http://www.outerbanks.com/historiccorolla/
Bodie Island Lighthouse
Located on the south side of Highway 12, between Nags Head and Oregon Inlet. Completed in 1872. It's the third lighthouse built in this area: the first was destroyed by a storm and the second by the Civil War.
http://www.outerbanks.com/bodielight/
Cape Hatteras Lighthouse
"The Big Barber Pole" at 196 ft, is the tallest lighthouse in the nation. The beacon can be seen more than 20 miles out to sea. It has been in operation more than 100 years. http://www.hatteras-nc.com/light/















Ocracoke Lighthouse
The shortest of the OBX lighthouses and can only be seen 14 miles out to sea. http://www.ocracoke-nc.com/light/ocracoke-lighthouse5.shtml Ok. It was well after lunch time, and we were just tired of looking at lighthouses.





We took the Hatteras Ferry to Ocracoke.


Then we stopped at Howard's Pub for a fresh seafood lunch. Well. John probably had a fresh vegan lunch.

Kansas City - Plaza District - September 2007

The Plaza
Built in 1922, this is a "must see" if you come to Kansas City. It's billed as "an outdoor museum of romantic Spanish architecture and European art" and is a fun place to walk around even if you don't want to spend money for the shopping part of the experience. In surprising little corners and in featured park areas - wall art, tile art, sculptures, and fountains. I've been many times over the last eight years, and every visit I see something I hadn't noticed before.

The Fountains

Only Rome has more fountains than Kansas City, and some of the most spectacular ones are found at the Plaza.

The Art

Buffalo, New York - September 2007

Niagara River
The Niagara River flows to the north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It serves as part of the border between the Province of Ontario and New York State. According to NASA, "Niagara" comes from a Native American word meaning "at the neck". According to George R. Stewart, it comes from the name of an Iroquois town called "Ongniaahra" meaning "point of land cut in two". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_River
Albright-Knox Art Gallery
The Buffalo Fine Arts Academy, founded in 1862, is the governing body of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. It is among the oldest public arts organizations in the United States. Intended to serve first as the Fine Arts Pavilion of the Pan-American Exposition in 1901, it was completed too late for that purpose in 1905. The new addition was dedicated in 1962, and the museum was renamed the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. http://www.albrightknox.org/GenInfo/history.html

Kansas City - River District - September 2007

Kansas City River Market District
Kansas Cikty played a major role in American history as a gateway for pioneers heading West along the Oregon, California and Santa Fe Trails. For many generations, the land around Kansas City was shared by several Indian tribes, including the Osage, Kansa and Wyandotte. In the late 1700s/early 1800s, trappers and traders began developing the Town of Kansas (later known as Kansas City) on the southern bank of the Missouri River, a short distance from where it joins with the Kansas River.

A few years later, thousands of pioneers would disembark from riverboats at this point to begin their overland journey, making the public square a busy place! Early settlers gathered in the River Market area to sell or trade their produce, furs and other commodities. The first market house was erected in 1858, still the site of the current City Market.

Springfield, Illinois - September, 2007

Springfield By 1837, Springfield had become the capital for the state of Illinois, moving it from Vandalia. The designation was largely due to the efforts of Abraham Lincoln and his associates; nicknamed the "Long Nine" for their combined height of 54 feet. Lincoln moved to Springfield in 1837 and spent the next 17 years rising in political importance there. (Wikipedia)
Lincoln Museum and Library

We only had 45 minutes in the museum, but it was still a grand experience. No photos were allowed in the exhibits, but we could take pictures in the Plaza which is the hub area of all the exhibit rooms.

Lincoln family in the Plaza and some other Plaza "people".

Lincoln Presidential Library

New State Capital

Illinois State Supreme Court

Taylorville, Illinois - September, 2007

Taylorville Twenty-five miles southeast of Springfield and twenty-three miles southwest of Decatur. My brother was born in Decatur, so I'm sure my parents were familiar with Taylorville. It's a small town of about 12,000, but it has its own interesting history tidbits. We were working in Taylorville near the town square, but stayed in Springfield.

Abraham Lincoln

There's a fun statue in front of the county courthouse of Abe Lincoln and a pig. The placques explaining the statue say, "..pigs rummaging underneath the floor boards of the courthouse sometimes disrupted the Judge's courtroom. Once, it was so noisy that attorney Lincoln reportedly rose to his feet to demand a 'writ of quietus' to abate the hog nuisance." Lincoln was a circuit lawyer and Taylorville was the last court on his circuit.

Houston / LaPorte, Texas - August 2007

Battleship Texas - LaPorte, Texas

This entry borders on "cheating" if the intent is to rely on my personal photos for the Blog. However, I was attacked by a major "tooth issue" the evening I'd planned to get to LaPorte for photos, so I am resorting to the web site. I want to document this trip for a few reasons. One, I really have been to the Battleship Texas, so it "counts", but mainly, I want to reserve this posting to enter a scanned photo of my dad and his shipmates when he was stationed aboard the Texas in the 1930s. My grandmother had lied about his age so he could get in the Navy, and he was only 17 years old when he reported on board the Texas. Dad died in 1988 at the age of 71.

History

The Battleship TEXAS is the last dreadnought in existence in the world, a veteran of Vera Cruz (1914) and both World Wars, and is credited with the introduction and innovation of advances in gunnery, aviation and radar. Having been designed in the first decade of the 20th century, (keel laid in 1911 and completed in 1914), and having seen action in some of the most intense and critical campaigns of WWII, she is an important piece of our naval and maritime history. http://www.usstexasbb35.com/introduction.htm

As a placeholder until I can get the Texas photo scanned, here is my dad, Earl Day, and I in 1987.

Memphis, TN - August, 2007

Memphis Just the facts.
Memphis was founded in 1820 by John Overton, James Winchester, and Andrew Jackson and was incorporated as a city in 1926. The city was named after the ancient capital of Egypt on the Nile river. Sadly, Memphis is also where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968 at the Lorraine Motel, the day after giving his prophetic "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech at the Mason Temple. (from Wikipedia)
The Elvis Experience
We turned down Elvis Presley Boulevard and into the Elvis Presley Parking Lot. From the parking lot, we crossed a little path bridge into Elvis land. After walking up and down the walkway in front of gift shops, fast food stops, and music stores, we finally had to ask a security person the question most on our mind...Where is Graceland? We just couldn't find it. We knew it was a big house, so why couldn't we see it? Well, it was across the street. So off we went.
Footbridge to the Elvis shops

Elvis Shops

Lisa Marie Airplane (the tail-end)

Graceland
One of the most visited houses in the United States attracting over 600,000 domestic and international visitors a year. Graceland is now a National Historic Landmark.


The House Ok. It's mainly a photo of tree trunks. But, as usual, sightseeing happens after work, and Graceland was closed. However, they hadn't shut the gates yet, so I was able to stand just inside the gate and aim toward the house with my camera. There's Graceland..way back in the hole between the tree trunks.

Brick Fence Surrounding Graceland
Filled with signatures - including mine.

The Sun Record Studio Experience
Where Elvis first recorded "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Heartaches Begin". Other famous musicians who got their start at Sun include Johnny Cash, Rufus Thomas, Charlie Rich, Howlin' Wolf Jack, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis.

After all the play the studio gets on the oldies stations, I was surprised to see what a sad little building it is. Guess not many people are interested in this little spot of tourist land.
Beale Street
Beale Street acted as General Ulysses S. Grant’s headquarters during the Civil War. But, Beale Street’s heyday was in the 1920's, when the area took on a carnival atmosphere and gambling, drinking, prostitution, murder and voodoo thrived alongside the booming nightclubs, theaters, restaurants, stores, pawnshops and hot music. One club, The Monarch, was known as The Castle of Missing Men due to the fact that its gunshot victims and dead gamblers could be easily disposed of at the undertaker’s place that shared their back alley. http://www.bealestreet.com/about.html
The Beale Street website claims this is the Number One tourist attraction in the state of Tennessee. I wonder if it's a bigger attraction than Graceland?
Memphis Walk of Fame - Beale Street
The walk of fame is a public exhibit located in the Beale Street historic district and is modeled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame but is designated exclusively for Memphis musicians, singers, writers, and composers. Honorees include Jerry Lee Lewis, B.B. King, Bobby Blue Bland among others.


Bike Night on Beale Street