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By Doug, July 18, 2009 02:44

The Hobo Museum in Britt, Iowa.

Believe it or not, there’s a difference between a hobo, a tramp and a bum.  Basically, a hobo travels in order to work (a migrant worker is a type of hobo) and a tramp travels but doesn’t do work.  A bum doesn’t travel around and doesn’t work, either.

The Hobo Museum, in Britt, Iowa has photos, various contraptions used by hobos, railroad memorabilia, etc.  There’s also a hobo cemetery one can visit to pay their, well, respects to various hobos of note.  A visit to the gift shop is a must; one can buy various hobo-made oddities like wood carvings, “monkey fists” (apparently the symbol of all official hobos) and more.

Each year, the town hosts a Hobo Convention where folks come by the thousands to do what it is hobos do.  There’s a parade, flea market, concerts and Mulligan Stew to serve 5,000!

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By Doug, July 13, 2009 04:29

Herreshoff Museum

Put on your captain’s cap and do your best impression of Thurston Howell III because today we’ll visit the Herreshoff Marine Museum / America’s Cup Hall of Fame. Yes, yachting is on our agenda so let’s shove off and hoist the mainsail; we’re headed for Bristol, Rhode Island!

Yacht racing is not something the average Joe enjoys on a typical summer weekend.  Even the Wikipedia entry on the America’s Cup sounds uppity:

The America’s Cup is the most prestigious regatta and match race in the sport of sailing, and the oldest active trophy in international sport, predating the Modern Olympics by 45 years. The sport attracts top sailors and yacht designers because of its long history and prestige. Although the most salient aspect of the regatta is its yacht races, it is also a test of boat design, sail design, fundraising, and management skills. The Cup originally named the Royal Yacht Squadron Cup was changed to the America’s Cup after the first yacht to win the trophy, the schooner America. The trophy remained in the hands of the New York Yacht Club of the United States from 1857 (when the syndicate that won the Cup donated the trophy to the club) until 1983 when the Cup was won by the challenger, Australia II of Australia, ending the longest winning streak in the history of sport. The skipper of Australia II, John Bertrand, was quoted as saying, “This puts yacht racing back on the map.”

The museum, as the name implies, is actually two museums in one. The Herreshoff museum displays a collection of some 60 boats including the largest boat to compete in the America’s Cup and Rhode Island’s oldest boat, SPRITE. The museum also houses 500 models that are themselves worth the price of admission.

The America’s Cup half of the museum looks at some of the people behind the race. Unless you are really into yachting, this half of the museum is a “must miss” even though the rest of the museum is worth a visit.

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By Doug, July 9, 2009 20:20

The Dover Speedway in Delaware is known as the Monster Mile so what better mascot than Miles the Monster? In 2000, the management decided to build a giant monster breaking out of the racetrack and grabbing a car. It’s a great photo op and that’s why you only see the top half of Miles; if the entire creature were erected he would have been too tall to photograph well!  Miles also has his own comic book; he’s quite the celeb.

Miles cost $6m, is 48 feet tall and weighs 20 tons. He’s hollow so it’s actually possible to go inside him, climb up to the car and sit in it! It must be one heck of a view but unfortunately it’s not open to the public. Whether you like NASCAR or not, it’s worth a visit to Dover Speedway to see Miles!

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By Doug, July 5, 2009 03:12

Steamboat Arabia

Picture it in your mind. You’re traveling from St. Louis to Kansas City in 1856. It’s nighttime, the air is sticky, crickets are chirping, fireflies light up the shores and someone is playing a banjo in the distance. No, you aren’t in a scene from Deliverance and you aren’t going to be made to “squeal like a pig!” You’re on the steamboat Arabia, cruising up the mighty Missouri river on your way to a new life way out west in Missouri!

Then, you hit a submerged log, the boat sinks and all of a sudden it sucks to be you. You’re on one of more than 300 steamboats that have met a similar fate. The Missouri river is tough to navigate.

The steamboat Arabia was a side-wheel steamer built in Brownsville, PA in 1853. She measured 171 feet long and was capable of carrying 222 tons. Against the Missouri’s swift current, the twin 28-foot tall paddlewheels could push the steamboat upstream at a speed of over 5 miles an hour. The Arabia was considered a dependable vessel and soon gained a reputation for speed, safety and comfort.

More than 130 years after the wreck, David Hawley, along with his father Bob and brother Greg went looking for the remains of the steamboat and found them in a field, nearly ½ mile from the present day riverbank. The crew was able to salvage parts of the riverboat, personal belongings of the passengers (no passengers died during the accident), cargo and other treasures. Those treasures are now on display at the Steamboat Arabia near Kansas City, Missouri.

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By Doug, June 28, 2009 04:47

The Batmobile from Historic Auto Attractions

Historic Auto Attractions in Roscoe, Illinois doesn’t really sound that interesting. It doesn’t look very interesting from the outside, either. So, why would anybody go inside? Because it has some of the coolest cars ever created inside it, that’s why!

Check out this small sample of the eclectic collection:

• The Batmobile from the 1960s TV show and the one from Batman Returns
• Sanford and Son’s truck
• Limos from world leaders: U. S. presidents to Adolf Hitler
• The station wagon from National Lampoon’s Vacation
• Various racecars driven by famous drivers
• The ambulance from Ghostbusters
• The DeLorean from Back to the Future
• The car from the Flintstones movie
• Andy Griffith’s police car
• The Grateful Dead’s tour bus

The 36,000 square foot museum has a world-class collection, started by an autoworker turned businessman who uses his business to finance this fine collection. There’s something for everyone here; if someone in your family doesn’t care about cars, he or she may enjoy some of the other displays like Jackie Kennedy’s dresses, actual White House furniture and the JFK assassination display. But if you’re a car buff, this is a must see location!

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By Doug, June 26, 2009 12:00

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad

The Denver and Rio Grande Railway founded Durango, Colorado in 1880 and track was soon laid to haul gold and silver ore to Silverton. Eventually, the mines played out, a fire destroyed much of Silverton and later the Spanish Flu killed 10% of the town’s population. But the trains continued hauling passengers through the scenic mountains and Hollywood later discovered the railroad and used it in several movies including Around the World in 80 Days, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and others. Today, the railroad is called the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway and is a popular destination for railfans of all ages.

Today the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad continues to provide year-round train service, operating a historical train with rolling stock indigenous to the line. The locomotives used to pull today’s train remain 100% coal-fired, steam-operated. The locomotives are 1923-25 vintage and are maintained in original condition. The coaches each feature bathroom facilities and are heated during the winter months for passenger comfort. Open gondola cars provide a panoramic view of the mountains. Concessions are available on every train.

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By Doug, June 23, 2009 07:43

Seashore Trolley Museum, Kennebunkport, Maine

The Seashore Trolley Museum was founded in 1939 with one open trolley car, No. 31 from the Biddeford & Saco Railroad Company. Over the years thousands of members have followed the founding fathers by helping the Museum grow to be the premier electric railway museum in the world. Today, our collection contains over 250 transit vehicles, most of them trolleys, from all over the United States, Canada, and many other countries. We are the oldest, and largest electric railway museum in the world.

In 1939, three men were out and about looking at trains in Lewiston, Maine. At the time, one of the few remaining companies to still be offering trolley service, the Biddeford & Saco Railroad, had just ordered buses and the end of trolley service was drawing near. So, the three men raised $150 (from 10 different people) and purchased one of the trolley cars for restoration and preservation.

From that one car, the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, Maine was born. Today, the museum boasts the largest collection of trolley cars anywhere in the world. Some of the trolleys are still in operation and the museum entry fee includes unlimited rides.

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By Doug, June 21, 2009 07:07

The Steamboat Natchez is a modern (built in 1975) but authentic riverboat providing two-hour lunchtime cruises from the historic New Orleans French Quarter. The Natchez is patterned after the famous riverboats that hauled cargo and people up and down the Mississippi river around the turn of the 20th century and before. It features a steam calliope, live jazz band, optional Creole lunch and a fascinating engine room.

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By Doug, June 15, 2009 14:10

Cadillac Ranch, outside Amarillo Texas

Cadillac Ranch is on historic Route 66 in Amarillo Texas. The “ranch” is comprised of 10 Cadillac cars “planted” face down and at an angle, the same angle as the sides of Great Pyramid of Cheops, in the Texas desert. The cars themselves were build between 1949 and 1963 but weren’t planted until 1973 when Stanley Marsh 3 (not III) commissioned the work as a lasting memorial to his “Ant Farm” social collective.

Today, people from all over the world come to this monument stuck in the middle of nowhere simply for the purpose of painting the cars the way they see fit. The layers and layers of old paint are pretty much the only thing holding the old junk-heaps together.

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By Doug, June 13, 2009 07:38

This lunar module is similar to the one on display at the Cradle of Aviation museum on Long Island, New York.

Long Island was geographically a natural airfield. The Island itself is ideally placed at the eastern edge of the United States, at the western edge of the Atlantic Ocean, and adjacent to America’s most populous city. This made it the ideal focal point for most transatlantic and transcontinental flights. Furthermore, the central area of Nassau County, known as the Hempstead Plains, was the only natural prairie east of the Allegheny Mountains. This proved to be an ideal f lying field, treeless and flat, with only tall grasses and scattered farm houses. The Hempstead Plains were to be the scene of intense aviation activity for over fifty years.

At first glance, the Cradle of Aviation museum in Garden City New York (on Long Island) is not too unusual, as far as aviation museums go. There are a variety of aircraft on display, mostly Grumman aircraft since their factory was originally located here, and the usual variety of displays on how an airplane flies, the history of aviation, etc. But, there are a few very unique reasons why the Cradle of Aviation museum warrants a special trip.

First, Charles Lindbergh took off on his historic flight across the Atlantic from Roosevelt Field, also on Long Island. Lindbergh’s plane is not on display here (it’s in the Smithsonian) but one of two Ryan NYP monoplane sister ships to Lindbergh’s plane is. The airplane was used in the Jimmy Stewart movie “The Spirit of Saint Louis.”

Like almost all aviation museums, they have a Curtis “Jenny” but unlike most aviation museums, this Jenny was purchased in 1923 for $500. What’s so special about that? The buyer was none other than Charles Lindbergh himself; it was the first airplane he ever owned. He flew it in air shows all over the Midwest, crashing it twice.

The final artifact that makes the Cradle of Aviation museum a must-see is an actual Lunar Module (LEM). This isn’t a mock-up or a replica, this is the real thing, slated to fly on Apollo 18 but after the Apollo program was canceled, the lunar module found its way to the museum and is on permanent display.