Horse Shoe Fall From Canada, Niagara

I found this postcard, which is over a century old recently.  I love the picture on the front, and the GREAT, 1910 Falls Station postmark on the back.  Check out the Maid of the Mist in the picture too!

Arial View Of Niagara Falls Old Postcards

 This colorful Niagara Falls postcard shows the falls from a generally unique angle.  It went through the mail to a friend in Pennsylvania in 1957.

Through the Gorge by Trolley, Niagara Falls, NY

Someone sent this card to a friend in New Jersey, boasting that they were on the way to the fair.  It was sent in 1904 from Niagara Falls.

Old West Point New York Postcards

I found these postcards recently, showing cadets at West Point.  They are blank, and undated on the back.

 

1970s Matchbook Cover, New York City

 Here is a nice matchbook cover showing NYC from the 1970s!

Mayville Village Park, Mayville, NY Old Postcard

 This old linen postcard shows Mayville New York.  It is unused and undated.  I am guessing it is from the 50s.

Panoramic View of Niagara Falls Old Postcard

 This wonderful postcard of Niagara Falls is unused and undated.  I am guessing that it is, or is close to, a century old.

Matchbook Covers from Niagara Falls, 1970s.

 I found a nice set of Niagara Falls Matchbook Covers from the 1970s!  One of my favorite places around!

1970s Matchbook from the Skyon Tower, Niagara Falls Ontario

Here is a nice, simple matchbook cover showing Canada's Skylon Tower from the 1970s, located at Niagara Falls!  We've been there!

General View of Falls from Canadian Side, Niagara Falls Old Postcard

 This postcard went through the mail to a mother from her children in 1924!

Niagara Falls Old Postcard

 Another great unused postcard showing Niagara Falls.  I am guessing this one was bought sometime in the 1950s.

Greetings from Niagara Falls, Canada Old Postcard

 This is a fun postcard from many decades ago (any guesses, judging by those old cars?).  It was unsent and undated.

Grant's Tomb- New York City- Old Postcard

 This great old postcard of Grant's Tomb is unused and undated.

"Thunder Dog" by Michael Hingson with Susy Flory

 "Thunder Dog- the True Story of a Blind Man, His Guide Dog & the Triumph of Trust at Ground Zero" by Michael Hingson with Susy Flory is a GREAT BOOK!  I have been going down the 9/11 rabbit hole again and this book really got my attention when I was googling around for books on the topic.

VERY briefly, the story is about Michael Hingson, who is blind, and his guide dog, Roselle, as they escape from the World Trade Center on that terrible day.  They literally walk down 78 flights of stairs to escape the building after the first plane hits.  Of course, they still have a way to go before getting home safely.

The author does a great job of telling his and Roselle's story, and he also talks about his life as a blind person.  It was fascinating to hear about how he has been able to pretty much live his life like anyone else.  He has hobbies, and has been very successful in his career.

His parents were very supportive and he was always motivated.  There is a great story about his dad getting upset with neighbors who were concerned about Michael riding his bike as a child!

Higson does give the reader a great telling of his experiences right there in the middle of things on September 11th.  I was very moved by his story involving his and Roselle's encounter with a fireman going up the stairs as they were going down. 

I could go on and on about this book.  Its a great, easy read.

RMS Queen Mary Postcard

This postcard showing the RMS Queen Mary went through the mail in 1938 according to the postmark on the back!

"The New York Crimes- Volume 1 The Fifties and Sixties" by Stephanie Hughes

New York City is amazing, strange, and wild on so many different levels.  I was talking to a friend the other day about my recent trip there, and they told me that they like to go there every couple of years for shopping.  My friend and I went mostly to see historic and iconic places.  Others might go to see plays, live music, or to experience iconic restaurants.

There is so much art to see, so many things to experience.  There is also a lot of tragedy that has gone down in the Big Apple.

I think most of us have at least some interest in visiting places associated with crime and tragedy.  On my trips to NYC, I visited places associated with 9-11, and the assassination of John Lennon.  I know there is something compelling about going there, and seeing where it happened.

Well, after getting back from my last trip, I got a copy of Stephanie Hughes' "The New York Crimes Volume 1" which covers some of the more notable crimes that happened in New York City during the 50s and 60s.

A famous author, artist, human rights activist, TV star, and various others fill the pages of this book.  Hughes gives a short description of what exactly happened, and then she discusses the various players (some of whom are almost lost to history and very little is known).  After that, she includes a list of places involved in the crime, including specific addresses.  The book is very similar to the series by author Ron Franscell who is also not afraid to tell you ALL about various crime scenes.

The New York Crimes is a very short 80 page read (it is to the point) and you can read this one in one setting.  It is the kind of book worth taking notes in though, so you might want to read it slowly, with a pad and paper handy.  This is a very interesting book for fans of New York, and I will be very excited to pick up the next volume of this series when it comes out!

Last meal in New York City at Grand Central Station

It was getting late on Sunday.  We had been in New York since Thursday.  We had been having a blast, and we felt like we had really conquered the town this time.  Between this visit and our previous one, we had done it all.

In fact, most of the things to do on our checklist for this trip had been checked off by midday Friday.  We had covered a lot of ground.

AND, I had been having a lot of trouble sleeping on this trip.  I was happy with my bed at the Grand Hyatt, but New York is simply electric.  It is hard to rest in this rockin' town.

We decided to spend most of our last day before flying back just walking around with no real plan.  We would stop for coffee (more than once) and cheesecake.

But the day was winding down.  We would need to get our bags and make our way to the airport soon.  And, we needed to get a meal before leaving.

The Grand Central Terminal Food Concourse has really impressed us on both trips.  Guys in business suits and the obviously homeless spend time here.  We were asked for money while hanging out on this level, but no one was aggressive... and cops are everywhere. 


In fact, the cops in New York are rock stars.  We saw tourists ask to get their photos with them.  Here in the Food Concourse, we saw cops come around and ask people, particularly the ones sleeping, and looking like they might be having a hard time, how they were doing.  It was very sincere and sweet.

For our last meal in town, I had a VERY hot and tasty bowl of tomato and rice soup from Hale and Hearty soups.  With bread and crackers, this was a very filling and great dinner.  Mark had a kosher meal that looked good too, and he liked it a lot.  I forget the name of the place where he got his.

So, we sat and slowly ate soup in Grand Central Station, relaxing before catching our plane back to Kentucky.

New York Public Library

We ended up spending some time at the New York Public Library while we were walking around New York.

Its a very iconic place, and you kind of know the place as soon as you see it.  Everyone knows about it's appearance in Ghostbusters.

There is a weird balancing act going on at the library constantly.  It is a working library...  and people are going in and out, reading, studying and looking for books.  There are also tourists and visitors walking in, taking pictures, and moving around.

The tourists seem respectful, and the people reading seem indifferent.  It works.

There is also a nice gift shop and souvenir kiosk selling library related items.  I did pick up some very nice postcards and stickers with the library lion logo on it.  The kind people working there thanked my for supporting the library.

The library has some amazing paintings on the walls too, and we saw several tours coming through for the artwork.

Chester Arthur House

Chester Arthur is one of those Presidents that many people seem confused by when you bring him up.  Indeed, I am certain that many young people will likely have no idea who he is.

He is kind of an obscure President.  He isn't brought up much, and there just aren't many references to him.  Luckily, after my visit to New York, I have been to the two main (only?) buildings with strong connections to POTUS #21.  If you are curious, here is the other place.

Vice President Arthur was at this home when President Garfield died, following several months of suffering after being shot by Charles Guiteau.  Arthur took the oath of office here, one of the very few times the oath was not taken in the US Capitol.

President Arthur would also pass away here.

There is a historic plaque on the building.  The first floor is now Kalustyan's grocery store, which sells food items from around the world.

I did go in and it looked like a nice, clean little place with a very constant stream of shoppers stopping by.

Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site- New York City

Completing out a Very Presidential trip through New York City was a visit to the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace.

We wanted to go here on our last trip, but this site was going through some upgrades, and was closed at that time.

So, we stopped by here one morning and had a great time.  We thought we might be here a half an hour to an hour, but we ended up staying for over 2 hours.

There is a small but very attractive museum in the front area.  An absolutely Holy Grail level display case houses the shirt, notes, and glasses case penetrated by the bullet of John Shrank during an assassination attempt on former President Roosevelt.

The unsuccessful assassination attempt happened in 1912 in Milwaukee.  See my photos from that site here.  The bullet was slowed by Roosevelt's glasses case, notes, and shirt, but it did go into Teddy's body.  It would be with him for the rest of his life.  And, as a side note to Teddy's toughness, he refused to go to the hospital at that time...  and he went on to deliver a 90 minute speech as scheduled.

Anyway, it was a true thrill getting to see these amazing relics.

We watched a very well done movie on Teddy's childhood at the home, and then we took a great tour of the home. 

The Birthplace is actually a reproduction but it is on the same site as the original home.   Our tour went through several rooms, and we had a guide that knew her history, and was a very funny lady.