Steel Arch Bridge, Niagara Falls

Wallace Hartley Violin at the Titanic Museum in Pigeon Forge, TN.

Recently, we made it down to Pigeon Forge to check out the Titanic Museum.  Right now, they have the Wallace Hartley violin on display!

AND, they have a VIP ticket you can get that gives you some very personal access to the violin and it includes a guided tour of the museum with a crew member (ask for Jodi if you go, I am sure everyone is great, but we LOVED Jodi!). 

We got to the museum at 8:30 am, the start time for the VIP tour but still half an hour earlier than the actual time the place opens.  We were greeted with much enthusiasm when we came in.  In fact, the staff was so friendly we felt a little embarrassed!  My wife and I both felt like VIPs (and blushed a little) when the men in their dressy White Star Line uniforms saluted and the ladies in their black dresses curtsied as we walked into the museum.  That alone was a sweet and special experience.

We were given our boarding pass with the name of a person on the Titanic.  At the end of the tour, you got to see if the name on the pass survived or not, and you could get more information on their life.  I was excited to see that, for the day I got to be Captain Smith, though I was also a little let down, as I already knew of his fate.

Once inside, Jodi escorted us to the second floor for a private viewing of the Wallace Hartley Violin.  Photos are not allowed inside of the museum, but you are allowed to take pictures of the violin if you purchase the VIP ticket.

There is something very exciting about taking a photo of a legendary relic yourself.  Sure, you still get to see the violin with the standard ticket at the Titanic Museum, but it was very nice getting to see it up close before the museum officially opened!

ALSO- This is simply one of the most exciting museum pieces on display anywhere right now!  It will be at the Pigeon Forge site until July 27th and it will be in Branson for two weeks after that.  Then, it will be auctioned off.  After that, it may never be shown publicly again.  Think about that!

The fact that this violin exists at all is also very special.  We all know the legendary story of the band playing as the Titanic went down.  Well, this instrument produced the last sounds some of those individuals heard.

I could go on and on about this exciting and emotional item.  You could hear whispers in the museum calling this the last survivor of the Titanic.  I personally think there is something to be said for a musical instrument having a soul.....

After we took photos and admired the violin as long as we felt appropriate, we started our tour of the entire museum with Jodi back on the first floor.

We would have bought the VIP tickets even without the personal Wallace Hartley Violin experience!  Having a knowledgeable guide at this fantastic site was mind blowing!  We are still digesting all of the information!  Our tour lasted about 3 hours and Jodi told us tales the entire time, only stopping during the 6 minute film and when other guides did their presentations.  I tried to stump her with tough questions but she answered them all!

The Titanic Museum did not disappoint when it came to actual relics from the ship.  My favorites included a couple of stuffed animals associated with children on the ship. 

I also appreciated the attention to detail in the displays.  Many items had mirrors behind them, so that you could see back detail- like an engraving or a postmark on the back of a postcard.

Some of the displays not related to the actual ship were amazing too.  Of course there are many movie props.  I enjoyed the wall sized enlarged photos showing where the Titanic was built.  It really gave a feeling of being at that spot on Queen's Island.

At the end of our marathon tour with Jodi, we were exhausted, but we wanted more!  Even though we have visited the travelling Titanic exhibits 3 times and know a good amount about the ship and its fate, we realized there was still more to know.  In fact, there is still a lot of room for research.  There are still mysteries surrounding many of the passengers, and mysteries about the wreck itself that researchers in the future might discover.

As Jodi told us the stories of various passengers, I told her I felt that another movie, a FACTUAL one could be made to top any previous film.  She suggested an entire series.  At various points on our tour we joked "there's ANOTHER episode"!

Before leaving the museum, we picked up some books in the gift shop AND a limited edition (of only 250) poster that was included with our VIP ticket.

So make sure you get to see the Wallace Hartley Violin while you can and pop for the VIP ticket!  It is a special experience.  Though, now that I have been there for the violin, I am excited to find another excuse to go again soon!



Whaleback Steamer Christopher Columbus passing through Milwaukee

Sent in 1923 to a friend in Illinois.  This postcard shows a Whaleback Steamer, The Christopher Columbus going through Milwaukee.

This particular whaleback was scrapped in 1936 and it was the only whaleback made for passenger service.

Middle Falls and Gorge, Buttermilk Falls State Park, NY

Images of America: Traverse City State Hospital by Chris Miller

Another good book about the Traverse City Hospital is Chris Miller's book from the Images of America series.

 

 

You can read this book in an hour or two easily, but this book's value is in all of the great photos.  I especially love the old postcard shots.  Miller does a fun job of mentioning info about the postcards too (often noting the message written on the non-picture side ,and the date of the postmark).

 

This is a nice book to go along with the previously mentioned one.

Beauty is Therapy by Earle Steele and Kristen M. Hains

Its kind of funny these days, I think many people think of abandoned properties and ghostly tourist attractions when they think of buildings that were formerly used as hospitals- especially if they relate to mental health.

After visiting what used to be known at the Traverse City State Hospital (see my other entry) on our recent trip, I picked up "Beauty is Therapy" by Earle Steele and Kristen M. Hains.

The book is written from Earle Steele's perspective as a long time employee of the facility.  Earl had a very long relationship with the institution, arriving on the property in 1922 when his dad got a job there, and it lasted until 1989 when the facility closed down.

The book is a quick and easy read, but it is still full of great bits of information from a very long term employee.  Earl kind of grows up on the grounds and then finds employment there, and even volunteers there after retiring.  Later as a young man, he turns down employment away from the Traverse City area to stay close by.

I particularly enjoyed and appreciated the descriptions of the former residents.  Earle seems to have an understanding of mental illness that is before his time, and very progressive.  He is sympathetic and understanding.  Though he does discuss some events you might expect (he was warned by his parents not to associate with one resident as that person had killed his son and he discusses a couple of suicides) he talks fondly and happily about most.

The book and the authors really show this old hospital to be the anti-stereotype of mental health hospitals.  They don't go on and on about tragedies that occurred there.  They discuss the benefits offered by the Traverse City State Hospital.  There are no follow up chapters about ghost investigations or any of that at the end (I did enjoy reading about the reality based museum on the property that closed when the hospital closed).

This is a sincere book, with a good and rare look at how a mental health hospital worked and evolved.

Strange & Unusual Shipwrecks on the Great Lakes by Wayne Louis Kadar

ANOTHER fun and easy to read book that i picked up on our trip around Lake Michigan is Strange & Unusual Shipwrecks by Wayne Louis Kadar.

I could read books like this all day.

This is another fun volume with many chapters- each covering a different shipwreck of the Great Lakes.  Many chapters are short but packed full of strange stories of tragedy.

One feature I really liked in this book is the small map at the start of each chapter.  The mini map shows all of the Great Lakes with an x pinpointing the location of where the disaster occurred that is mentioned.

Kadar is a good story teller, and sometimes withholds a bit of information until the end of the story to give it a little extra wallop.  For example, he doesn't mention the time period of one incident relating to alcohol found on a ship.  At the very end of the story when he brings up the fact that it happened during Prohibition gives the story an even more interesting twist.

Other "Strange and Unusual" tales involve cattle influencing the sinking of a ship.  Another involves drunk ducks (yes, you read that right).  A very unusual event involves the remains of crew from one ship being found with life jackets from another ship.

Still, this isn't a spooky or supernatural type of book.  All of the stories are factual and generally not too mysterious, but all are uncommon.

Pick this one up if you enjoy books about shipwrecks and strange stories.  Kids or adults can enjoy this one.

Shipwreck Tales of the Great Lakes by Cris Kohl

Shipwreck Tales of the Great Lakes by Cris Kohl was one of those books I saw on my recent trip around Lake Michigan that I had to pick up!

The book is packed with stories about shipwrecks, how they happen, and what we know about the ships now.

As someone who grew up away from the Great Lakes, I guess I really never realized that some shipwrecks have been brought up, and restored to usable condition (and some have been sunk and restored more than once!).  I didn't know that some shipwreck sites have been found, and then that site is lost.  I didn't know that the Griffon may or may not have been found.

Also, I like Cris Kohl's writing style.  I read another book recently about shipwrecks in the Great Lakes that was difficult.  A book about shipwrecks can get technical quick.  Cris wrote this book in a way that even people with little to no knowledge of the lakes and ships can understand.

Kohl is careful to give the reader a clear, "here is what we know now" ending.  I really like knowing what became of the shipwrecks, the wreck sites, etc.  Cris even goes to Oklahoma to investigate a ship's captain who was thought to be dead!  Great fiction writers couldn't make this stuff up!

Cris Kohl did a lot of homework on this book.  I have read some other books about events and areas where I feel like the author slopped the book together over a weekend after reading a few other similar books.  This is not the case with Kohl.  As an underwater photographer and researcher, he has put MANY gorgeous color photos he took himself at the wreck sites in the book.  Old newspaper articles are included along with old postcards.  Cris uses a lot of vintage resources from his own collection, AND he has obviously done decades worth of research on his own.

Miami, FL 1939

The great top postcard shows a Miami skyline from 1939!

Stone Cup Coffee House & Stone's Deil, Escanaba, Michigan

Another Great coffee shop we stopped at in Wisconsin was the Stone Cup Coffee House and Stone's Deli in Escanaba.

Cozy, clean and very casual, this place is great.  I had some perfect cherry coffee.  We also had scones.


I am not a scones person at all.  In fact, I am not sure why I ordered one here but man was it great!  Seriously, I feel comfortable saying the best scone I ever had was here.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stone-Cup-Coffee-House-Stones-Deli/297885473594

Orange Groves in Tropical Florida

The Village at Grand Traverse Commons, Traverse City Michigan

More on this site later......  But for now here are some photos we took while at the Village at Grand Traverse Commons in Traverse City Michigan!

Where do I start?

First, I must tip my cap to my pal JW Ocker at the GREAT blog "Odd Things I've Seen" (oddthingsiveseen.com- I have mentioned this site before).  I actually read about this location on his site JUST before our trip around Lake Michigan.

So, here is the edited version of the story.

The Traverse City State Hospital started up in the 1880s and pretty much stayed open and functioning until 1989.

I picked up a couple of books on the place (again, more on those later too- this is a fun site to visit AND to research).  From what I have read, this was a nice mental health facility.

Unlike other former psych hospitals, when you read up on the Traverse City State Hospital, you come away feeling good.  The patients were treated well, and in a respectful way.  As I read about the facility even in its early days, I felt like the staff was progressive, and way ahead of its time.

After the building stopped being used as a mental health hospital, it set around empty for some time.  Then, the locals decided that it was a nice building, and worthy of preservation.

Fast forward to now- and the building formerly known as the Traverse City State Hospital is now the Village at Grand Traverse Commons.

I am SO PROUD of Traverse City for this.  The grounds and the actual buildings are all well maintained and gorgeous.  This is something very special.

AND, unlike other former psych facilities that have survived selling ghost and haunted tour tickets, this historic site is providing legitimate services to the community.  AND it is restored and safe.

Traverse City has made this building in to a very upscale shopping facility and it is a MUST SEE for any visitor to the area.  It didn't (nor has it been promoted as) old and creepy.  It is peppy and lively.

Here are just a few of the places we liked a lot-

Cuppa Joe reminded me of the cool local diners that you read about but rarely see anymore.  I found some cool postcards here after sipping on some nice coffee.  I talked to some friendly staff and other friendly regulars there who gave me a quick lesson on the building.

We are not wine people ourselves, but we did pick up a bottle at Left Foot Charley for our pal who was watching our cat while we were gone.  He says it is good stuff!

We had cheesecake at the Underground Cheesecake Company.  We loved what we had as much as we loved the name of the place!

We stopped by the Higher Grounds Trading Company for coffee and a few more gifts (yes, I had coffee twice while at the Commons.... don't judge me).  It was ANOTHER very cool independent type store with a cool vibe.  They don't use paper cups here, so when I got my coffee to go, they gave it to me in a mug!  People donate their mugs to this coffee shop just so they don't have to use paper cups!  Pretty cool!

Oh, and there is an assisted living facility as part of the buildings too.  I would love to live at a place like this one day! 

Traverse City is a cool town with lots going on.  They have minor league baseball, great scenery, and a cool place like this!


http://www.thevillagetc.com/



Fountain of Youth, St. Augustine, Florida

This particular postcard was sent in 1936! The postmark encourages the purchase of Savings Bonds.

The sender tells their friend that they stopped here to have a drink.

Theodore Roosevelt assasination attempt in Milwaukee Wisconsin

In October of 1912, a man named John Schrank tried to assassinate Theodore Roosevelt in Milwaukee.

In the lobby of the Hyatt Regency in Milwaukee, close to where the event occurred, there is a very nice display about this moment in history. 

I took some photos of the display while I was in town.

Old City Gates, St. Augustine, Florida

All that now remains of the wall which together with the moat once protected the city on the north. Built by the Spaniards in 1743. Rebuilt in 1804.

Cheeky Monkey- Portland Michigan

I have a new theory about towns named Portland.  If you are traveling and you see a town with that name, you should stop- its going to be a cool place.

I reconfirmed this theory in Portland Michigan.  We were driving less than an hour south of Grand Rapids and we noticed a sign for the "Cheeky Monkeys" coffee shop.

A town named Portland WITH a coffee shop called the Cheeky Monkeys- we would have no excuse if we drove on by!

 We drove maybe a mile or so off the exit, and we found this very cozy coffee shop in a beautiful downtown area.

The inside was roomy and warm on a cold day- the perfect setting for such a perfect coffee shop.

These guys were making up fresh pastries while we were there.  We decided to pick a few up for now....  AND a few to enjoy later down the road on our trip.

We walked out with a couple of bags of goodies, and paid pocket change for our food and two cups of coffee.  When they rang us up, we thought they were kidding.  Had they forgotten some of our purchases?

They had not.  Our total was around $10.  They could have told us our total was $20 and we would have still felt like we had gotten a good value.

You know I love coffee and cool, one of a kind coffee shops with a lot of heart.  Well, the Cheeky Monkeys gets the highest rating and recommendation from Kentucky Travels.  The place is perfect.  Chain coffee shops can't replicate this.

The staff was super friendly too and we chatted with them for a long time.  I can't wait to stop by the Cheeky Monkeys again!


http://www.cheekymonkeysportland.com/

Vinoy Park Hotel, St. Petersburg, Florida

Mount St. Helens

This postcard is undated, and it is a bit more modern than the postcard photos I usually like to put on the blog, but I like this one a lot.

If you are familiar with this volcano, you KNOW that the photo is from sometime before May of 1982!

Mount St. Helens- Washington

I thought today would be an appropriate day to mention two legends associated with the anniversary of Mount St. Helens erupting.

Robert Landsburg took photos of the event.  He was close to the action, and must have realized that he was about to be over taken by the cloud of ash.  Knowing that he would not make it, but that his photos would be very important, he did what he could do to secure his camera.  Check out these links-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Landsberg#cite_ref-natgeo_1-0

http://www.petapixel.com/2011/09/07/photographer-died-protecting-his-film-during-the-1980-mt-st-helens-eruption/

David A. Johnston was observing the eruption and famously reported it immediately before his death.  When I visited the volcano myself some time ago, I saw a film at Johnston Ridge Observatory.  The film closed with his famous last words, "Vancouver, Vancouver, this is it!"  The film screen then pulled back to show the actual volcano.  It was very dramatic.

http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/CVO_Info/david_johnston.html

St. Augustine, FL Pelican

A pelican is shown on this postcard from St. Augustine sent to a friend in 1935!

Wisconsin Dells Antique Mall

The Wisconsin Dells Antique Mall is amazing!  They get an A+ from me as far as antique malls go.  The place is an antique shoppers fantasy.

I know of a lot of antique malls where there might be a few booths wort stopping at, but there are mostly junk filled sections.  That is not the case here!  The mall is very clean, and there are some reasonably priced high end items!

I can cover most antique malls pretty quickly.  Not this one.  I had to stop and carefully exam each booth.  There were some finds.

My wife went to the craft mall next door- which she said was amazing too!  I wanted to make it over there, but I ran out of time at the antique mall.

I went over my spending budget for the day while I was here (I could have gone a lot more over budget easily).

When I got back home to Kentucky, I realized that I passed up a gorgeous Milwaukee Braves baseball button, and I was regretting it!

We called the good people at the Mall, and they were able to ship it to me!  Classy!

Make sure you stop here if you make it to the Wisconsin Dells!

http://www.wisconsindellsantiquemall.com/

An Old Landmark of St. Augustine Florida

Bridge of Lions, St. Augustine, Florida



House of Flavors- Ludington and Manistee Michigan

http://www.houseofflavors.com/

We felt very lucky to have stumbled on to this old legend establishment in  in Michigan.  The food was great, and the vibe was authentically retro.

If you are in Ludington or Manistee you must stop here!  They serve ice cream with every meal!  Oh yeah!

The food was good AND it was a good value.  I had the huge wrap and potato salad.

Check out the photos.  We were all very happy with our meals.

The House of Flavor was decorated with cool old photos, and old toys were displayed in cases.   The walls on the inside of the restaurant were wallpapered with blown up photos of the restaurant and employees from decades earlier.  Very cool.

Miami Beach Florida