Thoughts and Quotes: The buck stops here. President Harry S. Truman
Headed up Hwy 49, 71, to Kansas, we stopped off in Lamar at the Harry Truman birthplace. Surprise! It was up in the air. New foundation going in.
The Senate Chambers were the most ornate and most beautiful of any I've seen so far.
Do wish they'd find a better way to dispense water, however.
The House Chambers were not nearly as spectacular, but I did love the door handle.
No decent photos of the library, but this is the view from the window.
Headed up Hwy 49, 71, to Kansas, we stopped off in Lamar at the Harry Truman birthplace. Surprise! It was up in the air. New foundation going in.
Not much here - some monuments, an outhouse, a well, and a smokehouse. Harry was born here May 8, 1884, and lived here until he was eleven months old. His parents bought the house in 1882 as newlyweds for $685. It measures 20' X 28'; four rooms downstairs and two rooms upstairs. No electricity - no plumbing. I think they overpaid.
Harry and Bess are buried at his presidential library in Independence, Missouri. I thought this was very special, however.
If the screen on your device is too small to make it out, it says, "Tulip poplar planted in 1987 is a direct offshoot of one planted by George Washington in Mt. Vernon in 1785." Not sure how they knew that George was the one who planted it or when, but just knowing it came from Mt. Vernon is pretty nice.
Okay, off to Topeka, Kansas, to see the capitol. And what a beautiful capitol it is!
Quite a change from the original.
Lots of murals depicting the history of life and events in Kansas.
A teacher hustling the kids into the storm shelter ahead of the tornado.
John Brown of Harper's Ferry fame.
A beautiful rotunda.
Even the stairs are special.
If you're wondering about the strange black thing in the upper left corner, it's to lower an injured person down the stairs.
Quite a change from the original.
Lots of murals depicting the history of life and events in Kansas.
A teacher hustling the kids into the storm shelter ahead of the tornado.
John Brown of Harper's Ferry fame.
A beautiful rotunda.
Even the stairs are special.
If you're wondering about the strange black thing in the upper left corner, it's to lower an injured person down the stairs.
Why they wouldn't just use this elevator is a mystery. There were smaller elevators, but this one is certainly large enough to accommodate a stretcher. The smaller elevators are self operating, but this hundred-year-old beauty has a feisty little operator.
The Senate Chambers were the most ornate and most beautiful of any I've seen so far.
Do wish they'd find a better way to dispense water, however.
The House Chambers were not nearly as spectacular, but I did love the door handle.
No decent photos of the library, but this is the view from the window.
Some capitols have become state houses due to the cost of revamping to add all the wiring, etc. for computers. Some have moved part of the offices to more modern buildings and left some offices in use in the capitol. If there is still a governor's office, he's using it. This is the first time I've seen a formal governor's office while the governor is off working in another office in another part of the capitol. Notice the painting over the fireplace - Kansas is the Sunflower State.
Not much stained glass, but I found these windows especially appealing.
There's a classroom by the visitor's entrance and a movie. Also a nice break/lunchroom with vending machines.
A piece of the orginal wall was left exposed in the bathroom. A nice historical touch.
Four statues on the main level (not very good ones in my opinion); Amelia Earhart . . .
. . . and Dwight Eisenhower.
There was a better statue of Ike downstairs, along with a photo and quote.
We'll see more of Ike in Abilene tomorrow, so off we go, just in time to check in and go have fried chicken across the street. Good thing we all like chicken, because that's all they serve. The restaurant started as a hotel back in the railroad days when the Chisholm Trail ended in Abilene, and the cattle were driven up from Texas, loaded into railcars, and shipped back east.
It was like going to Grandma's house.
Dinner is served family style. Peaches, pickles, spiced apple rings, and Cole slaw first.
Then fried chicken
Mashed potatoes and gravy
Creamed Corn
Biscuits
Vanilla ice cream for dessert.
There are three rooms upstairs, furnished in the style of the original hotel. They're just for fun - not rented.
The Parlor
And three bedrooms
Two sweet pictures in the stairwell
And in the back we found two banquet rooms.
I loved this picture in the lobby.
And when the old cash register gave out, they simply removed the front and the insides, and inserted a new up-to-date one.
Creamed Corn
Biscuits
Vanilla ice cream for dessert.
There are three rooms upstairs, furnished in the style of the original hotel. They're just for fun - not rented.
The Parlor
And three bedrooms
Two sweet pictures in the stairwell
And in the back we found two banquet rooms.
I loved this picture in the lobby.
And when the old cash register gave out, they simply removed the front and the insides, and inserted a new up-to-date one.
To make the evening complete, we met a little black kitty out front who was eagerly awaiting someone with leftovers. We gave him the meat from a thigh (NEVER give a kitty chicken bones), and resisted a photo since the flash might spook him.
I later learned that he's one of the remaining three of five kittens born at the hotel. The other two were adopted, and I think Black Kitty is happy where he is, as he's fed at the hotel, and he knows how to work the people leaving the restaurant.
To bed early and off to see Ike and Mamie tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment