Along the Road in West Central Illinois

As we rolled northwest through central Illinois toward Iowa, we kept looking for historic sites, old railroad depots and whatever else caught our eye to photograph…

The first stop was in Cass County Illinois.

This classic building in Virginia Illinois is not listed in the National Register of Historic Places…but I liked its solid Romanesque look!  There is no doubt in my mind that it was a bank for many years.  Its imposing façade demonstrates confidence and strength.  It appears that someone may be working on preserving this building…something like what I’d do if I won the Mega Millions or Power Ball lottery!

One local attraction for nature lovers is the Rexroat Prairie, a 5 acre section of land that has been restored, complete with its ‘original’ prairie growth.  These plants include everything from alum root to prairie willow and aster to wood sorel.   As occurred naturally in the olden days, the prairie is burned off each year…revitalizing the soil and keeping out invasive plants. If you are into plants or prairie restoration, you can check out the list at http://media.wix.com/ugd/3a3ecd_71ac58c1478f411e9382da83abf42168.pdf. FYI, Rexroat Prairie is also home to a couple of very old log cabins, one from Arkansas (ca. 1860) and the other from Kentucky (ca. 1950).

Here’s what I had listed to find as we passed through Virginia Illinois.  This is the former Baltimore and Ohio combination freight and passenger depot in Virginia.  I wasn’t sure that this was the right building until I noted the telegrapher’s bay and ticket office protruding from the back of the structure.  I couldn’t find anything to help me determine when the depot was built. 

I’ll bet that you can’t guess what this restaurant is named…  How about “The Depot”!  Check it out at http://visitthedepot.com/.  Unfortunately, at least from a railroad fan’s viewpoint, the exterior of the building was redone and remodeled due to a fire.

Virginia is the county seat for Cass County Illinois.  The town had an estimated population of 1,551 in 2014 but unlike many small towns across America, Virginia’s population has been relatively constant over the years.  In 1880 there were 1,420 residents and in 1980 there were 1,825.  Cass County itself was named for Lewis Cass.  Cass was a general in the War of 1812, Governor of the Michigan Territory, and United States Secretary of State in 1860.  He was serving as Andrew Jackson's Secretary of War when the County was named.

Our next stop was in Beardstown Illinois.  Beardstown is situated on the Illinois River in Cass County.  Major employers include 2 grain terminals that utilize barges on the river to move their product as well as a major pork slaughterhouse. 

I took this photo of this sign just because I liked it!  The Seeger family must have been prominent in Beardstown.  I found references to Seeger’s Hall and the Seeger block in a history of the county at https://archive.org/stream/historyofcasscou00perr/historyofcasscou00perr_djvu.txt. 

FYI…In 1882 the Quaker Mill Company launched a national advertising campaign for Quaker Oats.  In 1885, Quaker Oats introduced the cereal box, making it possible for consumers to buy in quantities other than bulk.

Beardstown Factoids:

·       William Henry Herndon, Abraham Lincoln's Springfield law partner, claimed that Lincoln contracted syphilis from a prostitute in Beardstown.

·       The town is also the site of a famous Lincoln/Douglas debate at the Beardstown Courthouse.

·       William "Duff" Armstrong, the accused murderer of James Preston Metzker, was tried in Beardstown and successfully defended by Abraham Lincoln.

·       The “Beardstown Ladies” was a group of 16 elderly women who formed a ‘club’ that invested in stocks and reportedly outperformed the Dow averages.  They received world-wide publicity and sold many videos and books on their adventure.  Check out the story at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beardstown_Ladies.

The Beardstown Opera House was built in 1872.  As it neared completion the opera house was almost completely destroyed by a tornado.  With the help of the owners and volunteer townsfolk, it was rebuilt.  The first troupe to play the theater was General Tom Thumb of P.T. Barnum fame.  In 2004, the opera house was purchased by the Heritage Preservation Foundation, a non-profit organization created for the purpose of owning and revitalizing the Opera House.

FYI…Tom Thumb was a dwarf, born of normal sized parents, who grew to a height of 3 ft. 4 in. and weighed 71 lbs.  He was adopted by P.T. Barnum who was a distant relative.  Barnum taught Tom (Charles Sherwood Stratton) to sing, dance, mime, and impersonate famous people.  Tom Thumb became quite wealthy and he actually bailed out Barnum later in life when Barnum was in financial difficulties.  You can learn more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Tom_Thumb.

Regular live theater productions are presented in the Beardstown Opera House.  Two productions have already taken place this year.  In late July, there will be a 3-day run of “Once Upon a Mattress” and in October the production will be “Duck, Duck, Shoot”.

From Beardstown we rolled on north on US Hwy. 67, making a slight detour on US Hwy 24 into the town of Rushville Illinois.  Rushville is the county seat for Schuyler County.  This is the building that we were looking for…the Phoenix Opera House Block.

 

The Phoenix Opera House Block was built in 1882.  It housed commercial businesses on the first floor and an opera house on the second floor.  The opera house hosted traveling performers and theater companies as well as local social events.  The opera house closed in 1910, as churches began to host the town's social functions and the local movie theater provided entertainment.  For over 30 years beginning in 1924, the opera house served as a Masonic lodge.  The building is one of the few surviving examples of a combined opera house and commercial building.

This is the Schuyler County Courthouse in Rushville.  The clock tower states that the courthouse was built in 1881.  For some reason though, even though the courthouse is about 135 years old, this striking building isn’t listed in the National Register of Historic Places.  I’m guessing that too many structural modifications have been made over the years.

Factoid:

·       Edward W. Scripps, newspaper publisher and founder of The E. W. Scripps Company, was born on a farm in Rushville.  Ellen Browning Scripps, Edward’s half-sister also lived there.  Ellen went on to found or to be inextricably involved in the development of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Scripps College in Claremont, California.  She financed the Torrey Pines State Natural Preserve and she was an early contributor to the San Diego Zoo.  Ellen helped to found the Scripps Memorial Hospital and funded the Scripps Research Clinic which eventually became The Scripps Research Institute.  After her death her home was transformed into the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla California.  Some small town girl!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a short trip through local Illinois history!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Few Sights and a Little History – Christian County Illinois

These postings are a little out of order since my last post involved our dinner in Springfield Illinois… In any case, as we neared our overnight stop in Springfield, via US Hwy. 51 and IL Hwy. 49, we passed through a couple of towns in Christian County. 

There is almost always something historical and/or interesting to look at…

We rolled on into Pana Illinois and then we sought out the former combination railroad depot that was built in 1927.  It was shared by the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad as well as the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.  For a while the old depot was being used as a business but it looks abandoned now.

Pana was a major railroad hub beginning in the 1850s with 4 tracks for 4 railroads that involved a rare double crossing.  The other 2 railroads that passed through Pana were the Indianapolis and St. Louis and the Illinois Central Railroads. 

Back in the boom days of railroading, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad operated a divisional maintenance headquarters in Pana.  That facility included a machine shop with a power plant, 16-stall roundhouse, transfer table, a 2-story car shop, turntable, blacksmith shop, and offices.

This is the Louis Jehle house at 511 East 5^th Street in Pana.  This impressive classic Queen Anne Style home was built for Mr. Jehle, a local businessman,  in 1895.  As of 1995 when it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the home only had 4 owners including the current resident.

Factoids:

·       At one time, Pana came to be known as the City of Roses.  Many major florists and growers set up operations here.  There were 109 greenhouses in Pana!

·       The township of Pana was originally named “Stone Coal District”. 

·       The Pana riot, or Pana massacre, occurred on April 10, 1899, resulting in the deaths of 7 people.  The riot occurred after coal mine owners brought in black ‘scabs’/replacements in order to break an ongoing strike by union miners.  It’s an ugly story!  Check it out at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pana_riot.

Laurie and I had driven through Taylorville Illinois on many occasions back in the late 1970’s and as late as 1980.  But we’d never stopped to look around at all… Those trips were really weekend visits to check out my Loss Prevention operations at several Illinois and Iowa Venture Stores.

In any case, this time we actually took a few moments to look around for some historic places.  This is the Christian County Historical Society’s “Settlement” on the edge of Taylorville.  Unfortunately the settlement was closed that day and I ended up taking photos through the fence.

The first building on the left is the original Christian County Courthouse.  There also is a school, a railroad depot, a 1820s log cabin and at least 3 other historical structures in this open air museum.  The Historical Society’s website is http://cchistoricalsociety.blogspot.com/2010/10/wide-world-of-trains.html and they are on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Christian-County-Illinois-Historical-Society-and-Museum-137053123008672/. 

Of course I was searching for the railroad depot!  This little combination depot was moved to the museum from Owaneco Illinois, a small village in Christian County.  Owaneco’s population peaked in 1940 at 366 residents but they did have a depot!  I couldn’t find any information on this little Baltimore and Ohio combination depot, but I noted that the Historical Society is in the midst of researching the history of this facility.

This is the former Chicago and Illinois Midland Railroad depot in Taylorville.  This railroad never had more than 100 miles or so of track, it never served Chicago and it’s still a shortline railroad...  In 1996 this railroad became part of the Genesee and Wyoming family of shortlines and its name was changed to the Illinois and Midland Railroad.  The ca. 1925 depot is now being used as offices for that the railroad. 

As for the name of the Chicago and Illinois Midland Railroad, the railroad has roots dating back to the Pawnee Railroad of 1888 which connected Pawnee Illinois with the Illinois Central Railroad some 15 miles to the west. In 1905 the Pawnee was purchased by coal-related interests for the express purpose of moving coal from central Illinois coalfields to their coal-fired power plants located near Chicago.  The 2 companies were the Chicago Edison Company and Illinois Midland Coal Company.  Hence the name Chicago and Midland Railroad reflecting its ownership by these two companies.

  

This is the Christian County Courthouse.  The stone Romanesque Revival style courthouse, which was constructed in 1902, forms the centerpiece of the roughly 14 block Taylorville Courthouse Historic District.  The courthouse cost $100,533 to build, or roughly $6,000,000 in today’s dollars.

The county was organized in 1839 from parts of Macon, Montgomery, Sangamon and Shelby Counties.  It was first named Dane County, in honor of Nathan Dane, one of the framers of the Ordinance of 1787.  However, since the majority of early settlers came from Christian County Kentucky, this name was finally adopted.

FYI…The Ordinance of 1787 was an act of the Congress of the Confederation of the United States that created the Northwest Territory, the first organized territory of the United States, from lands beyond the Appalachian Mountains.

Factoids:

·       Edward Mills Purcell was born in Taylorville.  He discovered nuclear magnetic resonance (MRI) and won the 1952 Nobel Prize in Physics.

·       Yvonne Craig, the actress who appeared in the Batman television series as Batgirl, was born in Taylorville.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave 

Ended up at Applebee’s in Springfield Illinois

When we’re on a road trip, I usually research possible restaurants for lunch along the way or for dinner wherever we stop for the night.  I try to go for local places or chains that we’d never experienced and in this instance I’d picked out 3 promising possibilities…

This was my first choice for our dinner in Springfield Illinois.  "Engrained Brewing Company, (a catchy name), was convenient to our hotel and it was one of the highest rated restaurants in town. 

Upon arrival at Engrained, reality set in!  It was Saturday night on a holiday weekend and the wait would have been more than an hour… I decided that the other 2 restaurants would have the same problem plus I didn’t want to spend our evening driving from restaurant to restaurant.  We had an early departure time in mind for our final push on to Omaha with a lot of sights along the way! 

Check out “Engrained” at http://www.engrainedbrewing.com/.  We’ll try again the next time we come through Springfield.

There was an Applebee’s near our hotel and, as per the TV ads they’d recently reworked their menu.  For many years now, we’ve considered Applebee’s to be a safe and reliable place to stop on our road trips…so we made the decision to stop at this one for dinner.  

This iteration of Applebee’s had a ‘bar’ or counter area with stools for customers who would be so inclined.  I also remembered that many if not all Applebee’s now have wood fired grills.  As usual for this chain of eateries the restaurant was well lit and clean.

Laurie went for a bowl of the French Onion Soup. ($3.99) While I’ve seen better presentations, Laurie told me that she liked it and would order it again… That was a good start for our meal.

My entrée was an 8 oz. sirloin steak accompanied by roasted red potatoes with bacon pieces and drizzled with a chipotle cream sauce. ($19.99) Note the shrimp on top of the steak and the nice side of parmesan green beans.

The steak was a little undercooked for me but still OK.  The flavor was good even if the steak was a little tough.  I really liked the sides.  Given the price of beef these days, you get what you pay for… All in all, this was a better than average steak for a family type restaurant chain.   

Laurie paired her French Onion Soup with a Thai Shrimp Salad. ($11.99) The ingredients were fresh, the shrimp were cooked correctly and she liked the mix of textures between the lettuce, shrimp, crispy noodles and beans.  She was happy with her dinner choice!

One aggravation sprang up when I went on-line to review Applebee’s menu before writing this posting.  I couldn’t just look at a menu… No matter what I did, I was kicked to the on-line ordering system.  The format isn’t reader friendly… The system also wanted me to sign in or join them on Facebook.  All I wanted to do was to look at the darn menu!

Applebee’s continues on our list of safe and better than average casual dining chain restaurants.  This particular Applebee’s is located at 2554 Sunrise Drive in Springfield Illinois.  Phone: 217:528-7021.  Applebee’s aggravating website is at http://order.carsidetogo.com/.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Little History Plus 2 Railroad Sites in Central Illinois

Continuing with our drive to the north and west from Eastern Tennessee toward our grandson’s home in Omaha Nebraska… We took the secondary highways up through central Illinois.

US Hwy. 51 took us through Vandalia Illinois.  I really hadn’t looked up any historic sites or railroad depots for Vandalia.  Readers will learn shortly why I didn’t have a depot highlighted in town, but why I hadn’t noted any other historical sites is a puzzle…

From 1819 to 1839 Vandalia served as the state capitol of Illinois.  The Vandalia State House as shown above was built in 1836.  Illinois’ center of population had shifted north and the state legislature led by Abraham Lincoln wanted to shift the capitol to Springfield.  The local citizenry hurriedly built this fourth Illinois state capitol building in an effort to remain the capitol.  It didn’t work and in 1839, the state government moved north!

The Vandalia State House Historic Site is owned and managed by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.  To learn more, go to http://www.illinois.gov/ihpa/Experience/Sites/Southwest/Pages/Vandalia-StateHouse.aspx.

This is the reason that I didn’t have the Vandalia Illinois depot on my list of places to photograph!  This is the burned out shell of the former Pennsylvania Railroad/Illinois Central Depot. 

The exterior of this old depot had been significantly modified so the building could serve as a restaurant.  The first restaurant at this location was destroyed by fire in 2007.  The building was rehabilitated and opened its doors as The Depot Steakhouse and Lounge.  In November 2010, another fire totally destroyed the structure.

This Vandalia Railroad switcher/locomotive is former Louisville and Nashville Railroad locomotive #2271.  It was built in 1950 and its still operating!

While the burned out depot was a sad sight, this former Pennsylvania Railroad Tower across the street provided a more positive image.  It currently serves as the offices for the Vandalia Railroad.

The Vandalia Railroad is a shortline (3.5 miles) railroad subsidiary of Pioneer Railcorp.  It provides local service from a nearby CSX Transportation connection.  The railroad's principal commodities are steel pipe, plastic pellets and fertilizer.

This line is part of the original main line of the Illinois Central Railroad which was completed in the 1850s.  The line was abandoned in 1981 but the newly created Vandalia Railroad reactivated this short segment.  Pioneer Railcorp gained control in 1994.  Pioneer Railcorp operates at least 18 shortline railroad segments serving small portions of 13 states.

  

OK...this huge, ornate and well maintained Victorian home near downtown Vandalia is not listed anywhere as an historic home.  Still, it was too impressive to pass up and I’m sure that it has a significant place in local history!

Factoid:

·       For many years Vandalia was the western terminus of the National Road.  The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road and later as US Hwy. 40), was the first major improved highway in the USA that was built by the federal government.  It was built between 1811 and 1837.  It stopped at Vandalia because funding ran out.  Some things never change!  The National Road Interpretive Center is located just about a block from the old Illinois State House.  To learn more, go to http://nationalroadvandalia.org/.

Moving on up US Hwy. 51 we passed through the town of Ramsey Illinois where we encountered an unexpected railroad surprise… This is a former Illinois Central/Toledo, St. Louis and Western Railroad Tower.  It sits next to an old boxcar and a “Bay Window” caboose.

Factoids:

·       H. L. Hunt, the billionaire oil tycoon, who was the inspiration for the 1980s television series, “Dallas”, was born near Ramsey.  Hunt traded poker winnings for oil rights, ultimately securing title to much of the East Texas Oil Field, one of the world's largest oil deposits.

·       Tex Williams, "B" movie star and old time western swing musician well known for his “talking blues” style was born in Ramsey.  His biggest hit was in 1947 with “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)”.  To hear this song and to marvel at how much has changed in music and popular culture, you can listen to this song at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65_-vNtWLLs.

The Ramsey Tower with its accompanying railcars apparently once served as a local railroad museum.  That’s according to a notation about the tower on the “Significant Extant Railroad/Railway Structures of North America” website. (http://www.rrshs.org/Illinois/fayetteil.htm) I was unable to learn anything else about a museum or this structure.

Factoid:

·       At its peak, the Toledo, St. Louis and Western Railroad, (known as “The Clover Leaf”), served Detroit, Toledo, Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City with 451 miles of track.   The Clover Leaf became part of the larger New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, (aka, the "Nickel Plate"), in 1922 and that railroad eventually became part of Norfolk Southern.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for joining us on our drive!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave 

Classy Wine Bar and Bistro!

Laurie and I are always looking for a new dining experience.  When we saw several recommendations and plaudits for a new wine bar and bistro, we didn’t waste much time giving it a try!

As you can see, this is the “Water into Wine Bistro and Lounge”.  There are at least 2 other restaurants/dining opportunities in this upscale strip mall just west of the Turkey Creek Shopping Center.  At the time of our visit in June, this establishment had been open for just one month.

The interior of Water into Wine is warm and comfortable with a big “U” shaped full service bar, plus both high and low tables.  In the area behind the bar there are 2 ‘living room’ settings for parties of 4 or so plus a larger table that looked like it could seat 8 patrons.

What we didn’t know until our waitress informed us was that during “Happy Hour”, until 6 PM, all wines were at ½ price.  Nice!!  It can pay to eat an early meal…  (Incidentally, by 5:30 PM Water into Wine was very busy...)

Since I have gout and red wine is not my ‘friend’, I stuck with a couple glasses of Chardonnay.  My first choice was “Wente Morning Fog”. ($9.00/$4.50 half price) For my second glass I took full advantage of the half price deal.  I had a glass of “Toad Hollow Francine Unoaked” which would normally cost $14.00.  Both wines were very nice and smooth with the Toad Hollow being slightly more distinctive.

Laurie started out with a glass of Pinot Noir, choosing “Woodwork” at $8.00/$4.00 half price.  She switched to a Malbec for her second glass, going with “Maipe” at $9.00/$4.50 half price.  Both wines were very enjoyable but she liked the “Maipe” a little better.

Now for the important part…at least from my viewpoint.  I’m not a big drinker but I am a big eater!  Laurie and I decided to explore the Dips, Boards, Pinwheels, Salads and Artisan Flats and Shares that populate the small plate menu at Water into Wine.  We ended up with a couple of “Shares” to start us out…

This offering was the Cold Cucumber Amuse Bouche or canapé’s. ($8.00) Sections of English cucumber were topped with a smoky Boursin cheese blend, cherry tomato and balsamic drizzle.  It was very nice!

Our other ‘share’ was this Salami Rosette Canapé. ($12.00) These seasoned crustini were topped with stone ground mustard spread, salami puree rosette, goat cheese and fresh dill.  We really liked this small plate! 

The only suggestion would be that the bread/crustini should be sliced uniformly thin…like the 2^nd and 4^th ones on the plate above.  Even I had a tough time fitting the thicker crustini in my mouth to take a bite!

For a food finale, we ordered the large Charcuterie Board. ($18.00) This “Board” included Prosciutto wrapped asparagus, Salami dux Elle with pieces of baguette, spicy Chorizo sausage, shaved Prosciutto, smoked turkey and mustard cheese.  It was accompanied by a few pickled vegetables, and the chef’s choice of fruit jam and relish to complement the selection. 

We really enjoyed this Charcuterie Board.  I usually think that these types of offerings are skimpy and expensive for what you are served.  It wasn’t so in this case.  There was a lot of flavorful food to nosh on… We would have liked to have a few pieces of pita bread to combine with the goodies on the board but otherwise, this was about as good as it gets!

Service was competent and our waitress was friendly and helpful.  The owner also stopped by the table to ensure that we were satisfied.  We definitely will return in the near future.  Water into Wine Bistro and Lounge is located at 607 North Campbell Station Road in Knoxville Tennessee.  They are closed on Sunday and Monday.  Phone: 865-392-1586.  Website: www.waterintowineknoxville.com.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by and checking out this new Knoxville area food and wine experience!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Depots and History in Salem Illinois

Whenever possible from a timing viewpoint, Laurie and I wander toward our travel destinations on the back roads or the 2-lane highways, sightseeing along the way. 

We were on our way to Omaha Nebraska so we’d decided to stay overnight in Springfield Illinois.  As we were in south central Illinois and we had plenty of daylight left, we got off of I-57 at US Hwy. 50, which is the exit for Salem Illinois.

This building is what remains of the old Baltimore and Ohio Railroad combination freight and passenger depot in Salem.  I wasn’t able to learn when it was built but the architecture appears to be from the late 1800s.  If you’d like to see what this depot looked like before it was ‘modified’, you can go to http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1521288.

Note:

·       On June 10, 1971 Amtrak train number 1, the northbound “City of New Orleans” derailed near Salem at 90 miles per hour.  Eleven people died and over 150 were injured in Amtrak's first major accident.

This once busy passenger and freight combination depot served passengers for the Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad in Salem.  This brick depot was built ca. 1910. 

The City of Salem, Illinois was incorporated in 1855 and it’s the county seat of Marion County.  As it was situated at the crossroads of the Ohio and Missouri and the Illinois Central railroads, Salem grew as a transportation hub for southern Illinois with trains traveling from Cincinnati Ohio to St. Louis Missouri; from Chicago to New Orleans and; from Vincennes Indiana to points west.  Even today, Salem benefits from the nearby Union Pacific rail yards which employees roughly 200 workers…

The Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad was organized in 1877 as a consolidation of three others.  It operated on its own and as a segment of other railroads until the 1940s when it was completely absorbed into other lines.  It linked Chicago to southern Illinois, St. Louis and Evansville.

Beginning in the early 1990s the former Chicago and Eastern depot served a new role as a restaurant.  The most recent owners bought the building in 2006 and they totally renovated the interior while maintaining the historical value of the depot.  One of the owners was a member of the well-known Missouri Baking Company family from the Italian “Hill” in St. Louis Missouri.  Unfortunately, the restaurant has been closed for some time now.  I found a posting on-line from 2009 stating that the old depot was up for sale...and apparently there haven’t been any takers in the last 7 years.

Factoid:

·       In the 1820's, a severe drought hit northern and central Illinois.  That led to wagon loads of people traveling to southern Illinois to obtain food and grain for themselves and their livestock.  As this was compared to the biblical story of Israel going to Egypt to purchase grain, southern Illinois became known as "Egypt" and also "Little Egypt."  Salem became the "Gateway of Little Egypt."

The Charles and Naomi Bachmann House was built in 1929 for Charles Bachmann, a local furniture salesman, and his wife Naomi.  The architect designed the house using a plan from a book published by the Architects' Small House Service Bureau.  The Architects' Small House Service Bureau, which was endorsed by the American Institute of Architects, was organized to provide plans for builders of small houses, most of whom could not afford professional architects.  This plan (#6D2) was published in 1923 by the St. Louis Globe Democrat.   

To learn more about this home and why it’s considered significant enough to list on the National Register of Historic Places, you can go to http://gis.hpa.state.il.us/pdfs/218436.pdf.

Factoid:

·       There is a claim that Miracle Whip was invented in Salem Illinois at Max Crosset's Cafe, where it was called "Max Crossett's X-tra Fine Salad Dressing". Crosset sold it to Kraft Foods in 1931 for $300.00.  While admitting that Kraft did buy many salad dressings, Kraft’s historian disputes the claim that X-tra Fine was the original Miracle Whip.

This is the birthplace of William Jennings Bryan, a famous orator and politician.  Bryan was raised in Salem and Marion County, later moving to Lincoln Nebraska where he became active in politics.  He was a dominant force in the populist wing of the Democratic Party.  He was the Party’s candidate for President of the United States in 1896, 1900 and 1908.  He also served 2 terms as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Nebraska and later served as the United States Secretary of State under President Woodrow Wilson.  Bryan resigned the latter position because of his pacifist position on World War I.

After 1920 Bryan supported Prohibition and attacked Darwinism and evolution, most famously at the Scopes “Monkey” Trial in 1925 in Dayton Tennessee. Five days after the conclusion of that trial, Bryan died in his sleep in Dayton… To learn more about this interesting historical political figure, go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Jennings_Bryan.

Just click on any of the photographs to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a short visit to Salem Illinois!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave