Category Archives: The Past is Ever Present…

Musings on memory, nostalgia, and old stuff still new…

Tales from the Road: ‘Round the Lake, Part 1

For years I have been wanting to drive all the way around Lake Michigan, exploring. Never enough time. And this journey, along with my truncated excursions on the Lincoln Highway, tells me that I must make the time–while I can. … Continue reading

Posted in On the Road Less Taken..., Tales from the Road, The Past is Ever Present..., The Wonder of It All | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Preservation Tales: The House No Longer a Home

Oh no. Not another one! I have written before about National Register buildings I have lovingly researched and gotten listed, only to see them threatened and even demolished years later. A listing will not save a historic structure, and we … Continue reading

Posted in Preservation Tales, The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Preservation Tales: “Progress” Goes Before a Fall

“It’s a historical building, but I guess it’s progress,” said Marv Blessing, an alumnus of Pine Village High School, in a recent interview with IndyStar.  After decades of work in historic preservation, little pains me more than this continuing assertion … Continue reading

Posted in On the Road Less Taken..., Preservation Tales, Tales from the Road, The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Preservation Tales: “Progress” Goes Before a Fall

Preservation Tales: Crying in My Beer

Some weeks ago I stumbled on the news that yet another building in South Bend listed in the National Register of Historic Places–this one was also a designated Local Landmark–was demolished. Someone had posted a video on a South Bend … Continue reading

Posted in Preservation Tales, The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Tales from the Road: Seeking the WPA in Historic Harrison County, Indiana

Some 34 years ago I traveled to the National Archives in Washington D.C. to go through Indiana’s WPA records. Perhaps the last WPA project was to compile the project records, each of which had an identifying index card, onto microfilm. … Continue reading

Posted in On the Road Less Taken..., Preservation Tales, Tales from the Road, The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Tales from the Road: The Lincoln Highway in Illinois

Sometimes I just have to run off. And so, even though I had done little preparation, I headed out to hit the Lincoln Highway in Illinois. Actually, full disclosure, my original plan was to do Illinois and Iowa, but fate … Continue reading

Posted in On the Road Less Taken..., Preservation Tales, The Past is Ever Present..., The Wonder of It All | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

On the Road Again: In Search of the Lincoln Highway in Pennsylvania, Part FOUR

My last day on the road, like the three previous, dawned beautifully sunny and pleasant.  I was ready to take on the Alleghenies! This time in daylight! I headed west back to Schellsburg, where I passed the grocery that had … Continue reading

Posted in Following in My Foodstops, On the Road Less Taken..., The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on On the Road Again: In Search of the Lincoln Highway in Pennsylvania, Part FOUR

Preservation Tales: I Thought This Was Saved!

Collier Lodge I first learned of Collier Lodge, originally built deep in the Kankakee Marsh along the river of that name, back in the 1990s at a historic preservation conference in South Bend. A fellow from Porter County gave a … Continue reading

Posted in On the Road Less Taken..., Preservation Tales, Tales from the Road, The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Preservation Tales: I Thought This Was Saved!

On the Road Again: In Search of the Lincoln Highway in Pennsylvania, Part THREE

As it grew light I was eager to leave the charmless motel outside of Trenton, with its broken security lock and lack of any coffee anywhere. Having determined the first day of this adventure that I could not make New … Continue reading

Posted in On the Road Less Taken..., The Past is Ever Present..., The Wonder of It All | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on On the Road Again: In Search of the Lincoln Highway in Pennsylvania, Part THREE

On the Road Again: In Search of the Lincoln Highway in Pennsylvania, Part TWO

I awoke from a delightfully cozy sleep at the Lincoln Motor Court, about five miles east of Schellsburg, ready to resume. Again the day was clear and sunny. I walked around the charming court and gazed back westward at the … Continue reading

Posted in Following in My Foodstops, On the Road Less Taken..., The Past is Ever Present... | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment