I grew up in Downers Grove, Illinois
Emo Philips
Denise Richards
Randy Savage
Tony Granato
Downers Grove prides itself on the presence of a large collection of Sears-Roebuck Catalog Homes.
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Aug. 16, 2011 4:13 p.m. pete240z SuperDork
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Aug. 16, 2011 4:54 p.m. RexSeven SuperDork
friedgreencorrado wrote:
RexSeven wrote:
Methuen, MA was the birthplace of Robert Rogers. His Roger's Rangers were an irregular infantry group that fought in the French and Indian War just before the Revolutionary War. Even though he may have massacred Indians and sided with the Redcoats, his tactics were so effective that the U.S. Army Rangers use a variation of his Standing Orders and claim to have been inspired by Roger's Rangers.
Methuen was also home to Edward Searles, a millionaire interior and architectural designer who built two castles, stone walls, and a church-like concert building to house an 1860s pipe organ. Most of the walls still stand. The ruins of one of the castles is open to the public, the other is a Catholic convent and high school that is closed to the public. The organ hall still stands. Here's a picture of the beast:
Whoa. Man, I love those things. I wish every place with a pipe organ would let guys like us that want to see how machines actually work would let us go inspect the pipes & bellows & stuff.
Me too. The Methuen pipe organ still works and still provides regular concerts. That sucker is LOUD. I plan on appropriating the pipe organ for myself once my plans for global domination are unleashed. Every supervillian needs a massive pipe organ, right?
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Aug. 16, 2011 5:35 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork
better to appropriate the one from Atlantic City. You can probably take the while Hall while you are there. I think it is STILL the worlds largest freestanding structure (no internal supports).
You can (and they have) played football and even done autoracing inside the main room.
I did talk to the guy in charge of the restoration on the organ. He says the hardest part of playing it is the lag between pressing a key and hearing music. The two playing points are quite some distance from some of the pipes
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Aug. 16, 2011 6:45 p.m. stuart in mn SuperDork
It happened yesterday, so I guess it's history.
President Obama made an unannounced stop in my home town yesterday, on his way from Red Wing, MN to Decorah, IA.
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Aug. 17, 2011 12:00 a.m. BoostedBrandon Reader
Not necessarily "hometown" but about an hour from here is Wolf Creek Dam, on Lake Cumberland, one of america's biggest ticking timebombs.... sorry nashville!
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Aug. 17, 2011 1:41 a.m. Type Q Dork
John Brown wrote:
Lansing, Mi was going to be called El Dorado... splains all the Messycans.
I grew up in Lansing as well. Here are a few interesting facts.
Famous people that lived in or are from Lansing.
1. Ervin "Magic" Johnson
2. Malcolm X
3. Burt Reynolds
4. Rosie the Riveter
5. Ransom E Olds. (founder of Oldsmobile and REO trucks)
6. John Brown. (Everyone's favorite GRM Megadork)Interesting little known history. The Durant Motor Company was founded on the west side of town. William Durant founded General Motors, co-founded Chevrolet. After being fired from GM in 1921, he tried to duplicate what he'd done by acquiring a bunch of brands to compete compete with GM. The company folded in 1931. For those who live in Lansing, the Durant Motor factory was at the corner of North Verlinden and Osborn streets. In 1935 it became the Fischer body plant that extended south to Michigan Avenue by Sexton High School. All that's left now is the foundation since GM decided to tear everything down a couple of years ago.
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Aug. 17, 2011 7:29 a.m. mad_machine SuperDork
how do you get fired from the company you created? He must have really angered somebody
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Aug. 17, 2011 8:21 a.m. Gimp Dork
pete240z wrote:
I grew up in Downers Grove, Illinois
Emo Philips
Denise Richards
Randy Savage
Tony Granato
Downers Grove prides itself on the presence of a large collection of Sears-Roebuck Catalog Homes.
5725 Pershing Ave here! (Well, not there anymore).
