I do so enjoy discovering things.
While looking into the Merci Train we both had the feeling that they were familiar, but could not place where, or if we had seen one before, So I returned to the Merci Train website and checked more carefully the locations of the boxcars in all states we have passed through. Using Google maps, satellite views and Street view I could then cross reference the locations with our photos. I looked again at Jackson, we were so close to that one. The boxcar in Bristol, Tennessee was close to us, we may have driven past it, but the map shows that it's location cannot be seen from the road. Lastly I looked at Louisiana. The boxcar was displayed at the Old State Capitol, well we had visited the new State Capitol, but could not recall going to the old one. However as soon as I brought it up on Street View I recognized the building, so then checked on our blog archive - found it on 21st October 2012. We had heard about the Downtown Friday Concerts, a series of concert held in a public square, just by the Old State Capitol Building Friday evenings, this week was to be Zydeco! So we had driven into Baton rouge after lunch and parked the car nearby. As we arrived early we had toured the Old Capitol and then gone for a coffee. I re-read the blog. But while I have recorded our visit to the Old State Capitol, there was no mention of the Merci Boxcar and no photos of our visit. In fact I had been quite dismissive of the exhibits there, with the exception of the fine staircase.
So I then checked the Photo Albums on Picasa and lo and behold, there was and album showing our visit and a careful search showed that in the background to a couple of the pics and one video is the Louisiana Boxcar!! More than that, I then searched through our photo archive and found it! We had actually had a look at it and examined it close up, but I had not included the picture in the blog. So here are those pictures.
Oh I am so easily pleased!!! But I had tracked down that little niggle. Yes!
Showing posts with label Baton Rouge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baton Rouge. Show all posts
Monday, April 1, 2013
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Farr Park Campground
The Farr Park Equestrian Center and RV Campgound is a County Park, operated by the Baton Rouge East Parish. It is situated very conveniently for Downtown Baton Rouge. It is very quiet, you cannot make reservations. The facilities are basic, but servicable. Water pressure at this time was very low. No campfires allowed. NOTE: LSU home games are blackout days, as it is only a mile from the gound and all sites are pre reserved.
$20 per night.
$20 per night.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Baton Rouge Day 2
"Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waiting for a train
And I's feeling nearly as faded as my jeans.
Bobby thumbed a diesel down just before it rained,
It rode us all the way to New Orleans."
How many times have I heard those romantic lyrics sung either by Kris Kristopherson or Janis Joplin? And here we are in that famous city.
Today we were going to get some music, we planned to be in Baton Rouge for the 'Live After Five' concert behind the Old Capitol building.
So we had a lazy morning and drove into Baton Rouge for lunch, parked and had Crawfish Etouffe in Lloyds, a Po Boy Seafood restaurant (though cafe was probably a more apt description. "Etouffe?" I hear you say. This is the third dish that is famous in Cajun Culture. As per usual the dish is served over rice. It is a roux sauce (oil and flour and milk) with all cajuny bits added. In this case it was their secret spices and Crawfish Tails, (small freshwater lobster). It was very nice.
We then toured the Old Capitol building which was built in 1835, only to be burned out by the Union army due to a cooking accident! The rebuilt in 1880. It has a beautiful cast iron spiral staircase right in the middle of the entrance hall. Apart from that not a lot really. So after that we went for a nice cup of coffee (tea for Sally) and unleashed ourselves into the concert. Curtis Coubello and the Insta-gators. Three guitars, fiddle (sometimes accordion) and drums playing coutry, zydeco and swamp-pop. It was great fun, as we joined about 3000 other people in the small arena area. We talked to loads of people and the music was excellent.
Came home about 7.30 having had a great day.
And I's feeling nearly as faded as my jeans.
Bobby thumbed a diesel down just before it rained,
It rode us all the way to New Orleans."
How many times have I heard those romantic lyrics sung either by Kris Kristopherson or Janis Joplin? And here we are in that famous city.
Today we were going to get some music, we planned to be in Baton Rouge for the 'Live After Five' concert behind the Old Capitol building.
So we had a lazy morning and drove into Baton Rouge for lunch, parked and had Crawfish Etouffe in Lloyds, a Po Boy Seafood restaurant (though cafe was probably a more apt description. "Etouffe?" I hear you say. This is the third dish that is famous in Cajun Culture. As per usual the dish is served over rice. It is a roux sauce (oil and flour and milk) with all cajuny bits added. In this case it was their secret spices and Crawfish Tails, (small freshwater lobster). It was very nice.
We then toured the Old Capitol building which was built in 1835, only to be burned out by the Union army due to a cooking accident! The rebuilt in 1880. It has a beautiful cast iron spiral staircase right in the middle of the entrance hall. Apart from that not a lot really. So after that we went for a nice cup of coffee (tea for Sally) and unleashed ourselves into the concert. Curtis Coubello and the Insta-gators. Three guitars, fiddle (sometimes accordion) and drums playing coutry, zydeco and swamp-pop. It was great fun, as we joined about 3000 other people in the small arena area. We talked to loads of people and the music was excellent.
Came home about 7.30 having had a great day.
Huey P Long
One of the most fascinating politicians I have never met. He was the Governor from 1928 to 1932, He was supposedly a very corrupt Governor, with many stories attached to his term in office. He was a very powerful man, who eventually was looking to run for President against Herbert Hoover.
He became very popular in Louisiana because he ordered the building of thousands of miles of roads, built the first bridges across the lower part of the Mississippi (named surprisingly the Huey P Long Bridge, we wrote about how scary this bridge is to cross when we came to New Orleans last year). He also opposed the power of Standard Oil (LA is very rich in oil) and removed the Poll Tax, yes you had to pay a poll tax if you wanted to vote, surprisingly few poor people voted in the state elections, white or black.
He was very unpopular amongst other politicians and Standard Oil, because he removed power from them and gave it to himself as well as enfranchising many poor people. He also sacked many hundreds of public officials and replaced them with his family, friends and people who had supported him in his campaign.
Arguably his biggest enemy was the President himself, as he had eyes on that office. He was appointed to the Senate (national) in 1930, but did not take up the post until he finished his governorship in 1932. He made many deals with people in Washington, pushing his doctrine that there should be wealth and work for all (remember this was at the height of the depression and the official line was to make drastic budget cuts), so powerful did he become in Washington that Franklin D Roosevelt was forced to create his 'Fair Deal' programme of public works and job creation, which was intended to cut the ground from under Long's feet, yet only succeeded in increasing his popularity.
In 1935 he was assassinated in a crowded corridor of the Capitol Building in 1935, supposedly by a Doctor Weiss. who was the son-in-law of a judge who had been removed by Long. Dr Weiss was shot dead at the scene by Long's security men, there were 61 bullets holes in him, they made sure that he was dead. Long died two days later. Weis's gun was not recovered at the scene, because he was not carrying a gun and it was found in his car! There was no Autopsy. Later (years later) forensic evidence showed that the gun was not the weapon that was used to assassinate Huey P Long. He was actually killed/murdered by his own security staff, for reasons unknown (though check on the enemies he had made). So Huey P Long was assassinated by his own men in his own building, before he could declare himself as a presidential candidate.
Many people think that had he lived he would have won the election in 1940 and been president during the war. Oh by the way his foreign policy was that he was an Isolationist - America should not involve itself with any foreigners.
There were some very interesting politics in those days. I urge you to read more abut him and his family on Wikipaedia and his official Bio page. The award winning book 'All The Kings Men' is a thinly disguised biography of him.
He became very popular in Louisiana because he ordered the building of thousands of miles of roads, built the first bridges across the lower part of the Mississippi (named surprisingly the Huey P Long Bridge, we wrote about how scary this bridge is to cross when we came to New Orleans last year). He also opposed the power of Standard Oil (LA is very rich in oil) and removed the Poll Tax, yes you had to pay a poll tax if you wanted to vote, surprisingly few poor people voted in the state elections, white or black.
He was very unpopular amongst other politicians and Standard Oil, because he removed power from them and gave it to himself as well as enfranchising many poor people. He also sacked many hundreds of public officials and replaced them with his family, friends and people who had supported him in his campaign.
Arguably his biggest enemy was the President himself, as he had eyes on that office. He was appointed to the Senate (national) in 1930, but did not take up the post until he finished his governorship in 1932. He made many deals with people in Washington, pushing his doctrine that there should be wealth and work for all (remember this was at the height of the depression and the official line was to make drastic budget cuts), so powerful did he become in Washington that Franklin D Roosevelt was forced to create his 'Fair Deal' programme of public works and job creation, which was intended to cut the ground from under Long's feet, yet only succeeded in increasing his popularity.
In 1935 he was assassinated in a crowded corridor of the Capitol Building in 1935, supposedly by a Doctor Weiss. who was the son-in-law of a judge who had been removed by Long. Dr Weiss was shot dead at the scene by Long's security men, there were 61 bullets holes in him, they made sure that he was dead. Long died two days later. Weis's gun was not recovered at the scene, because he was not carrying a gun and it was found in his car! There was no Autopsy. Later (years later) forensic evidence showed that the gun was not the weapon that was used to assassinate Huey P Long. He was actually killed/murdered by his own security staff, for reasons unknown (though check on the enemies he had made). So Huey P Long was assassinated by his own men in his own building, before he could declare himself as a presidential candidate.
Many people think that had he lived he would have won the election in 1940 and been president during the war. Oh by the way his foreign policy was that he was an Isolationist - America should not involve itself with any foreigners.
There were some very interesting politics in those days. I urge you to read more abut him and his family on Wikipaedia and his official Bio page. The award winning book 'All The Kings Men' is a thinly disguised biography of him.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Baton Rouge! - The Red Stick!
No I do not know why they named the place 'Red Stick', but I am working on it.
On Friday morning we made a packed lunch and set off along the bank of the Mississippi going into Baton Rouge.
Our normal routine for a new place is to:
1 find the Tourist Information
2 Find out about parking regulations.
Well we couldn't find the TI, so we stopped outside City Hall to find out about parking regs. The information desk was deserted, but a Shoe Shine Boy was happy to tell me that Sally's blue badge would be OK to use in Baton Rouge. He also told me where the TI Office was, so we were able then to get ourselves organised.
Baton Rouge is the Capital of Louisiana, so it has the Capitol Building as well, which houses the two houses of representatives and the Senate for the State. Often they are styled on the Washington Capitol building, with a big dome. Not Baton Rouge. It has the Old Capitol Building, which is square and looks like a castle and the New Capitol Building, which is a skyscraper. The story of this skyscraper is intermingled with its most famous Governor, one Huey P Long. He was the Governor from 1928 to 1932, He was supposedly a very corrupt Governor, with many stories attached to his term in office.
Anyway, back to the Capitol Building. The building was built, surprise, surprise, by Huey P Long (no not personally) and completed in 1934. Closely modelled on the Chrysler and the Empire State Building, it is a tower 30 floors high and was finished in 14 months! We rode the elevator to the top where you get a stupendous view of - well swamp, from every direction the land is flat and swampy, but that's what Louisiana is. It is still far and a way the tallest building in Baton Rouge and dominates the skyline. So Huey P Long was assassinated by his own men in his own building, just before he could declare himself as a presidential candidate. There were some very interesting politics in those days.
After visiting the Capitol we went to the Louisiana State Museum which gave us a good idea of the history and importance of Louisiana. In particular we learned about the Louisiana Purchase, in Dec 1803 the fledgling US bought 600 million acres of land to the west of the Mississippi for $15 000 000 from the French, only months after Spain had given it to France after Napoleon had given the assurance that it would never leave French hands. There appears to have been a fair amount of skullduggery attached to this land acquisition. This doubled the territory owned by U.S. and gave it control of the whole of the Mississippi Basin.
Anyway enough history. Our poor brains were sizzling. We drove home (back to the trailer) and made a lovely meal of burger for Sally, while I had the other half of the pork chops with red beans and rice that I had brought back form Sammy's last night.
On Friday morning we made a packed lunch and set off along the bank of the Mississippi going into Baton Rouge.
Our normal routine for a new place is to:
1 find the Tourist Information
2 Find out about parking regulations.
Well we couldn't find the TI, so we stopped outside City Hall to find out about parking regs. The information desk was deserted, but a Shoe Shine Boy was happy to tell me that Sally's blue badge would be OK to use in Baton Rouge. He also told me where the TI Office was, so we were able then to get ourselves organised.
Baton Rouge is the Capital of Louisiana, so it has the Capitol Building as well, which houses the two houses of representatives and the Senate for the State. Often they are styled on the Washington Capitol building, with a big dome. Not Baton Rouge. It has the Old Capitol Building, which is square and looks like a castle and the New Capitol Building, which is a skyscraper. The story of this skyscraper is intermingled with its most famous Governor, one Huey P Long. He was the Governor from 1928 to 1932, He was supposedly a very corrupt Governor, with many stories attached to his term in office.
Anyway, back to the Capitol Building. The building was built, surprise, surprise, by Huey P Long (no not personally) and completed in 1934. Closely modelled on the Chrysler and the Empire State Building, it is a tower 30 floors high and was finished in 14 months! We rode the elevator to the top where you get a stupendous view of - well swamp, from every direction the land is flat and swampy, but that's what Louisiana is. It is still far and a way the tallest building in Baton Rouge and dominates the skyline. So Huey P Long was assassinated by his own men in his own building, just before he could declare himself as a presidential candidate. There were some very interesting politics in those days.
After visiting the Capitol we went to the Louisiana State Museum which gave us a good idea of the history and importance of Louisiana. In particular we learned about the Louisiana Purchase, in Dec 1803 the fledgling US bought 600 million acres of land to the west of the Mississippi for $15 000 000 from the French, only months after Spain had given it to France after Napoleon had given the assurance that it would never leave French hands. There appears to have been a fair amount of skullduggery attached to this land acquisition. This doubled the territory owned by U.S. and gave it control of the whole of the Mississippi Basin.
Anyway enough history. Our poor brains were sizzling. We drove home (back to the trailer) and made a lovely meal of burger for Sally, while I had the other half of the pork chops with red beans and rice that I had brought back form Sammy's last night.
Moving On
It's Thursday morning and we are now camped just outside Baton Rouge, in the LSU football RV Park (well its the one everybody uses for the LSU Games). It is very quiet and I am writing this as the sun comes up. But what of Tuesday and Wednesday? Well Tuesday we had a quiet day. We got up to the news that our friend Paula had passed away that morning. Paula was the first of our Soggy Bottom Bunch of Friends, when she had introduced herself to us on the day before Thanksgiving 2007. She was a happy vibrant person who bounded from one activity to the next. She had made us feel very welcome at Soggy Bottom. Sadly she had contracted cancer which had finally taken its toll. This news was followed by Jim and Kathy saying fond farewells as they left us in order to return for their Bike Fest in Destin. We had had a great time with them and they had been very patient with us and our English ways. That evening we heard that they had arrived safely in Fort Pickens, near Pensacola. After the departure of our last link with Florida we used the free laundry facilities to do some washing, then went out briefly to get some cards from a Walgreens. Note: Walgreens is what I call a 'Formula' shop, as every one is almost exactly the same. First, they are built on a corner - they are a pharmacy, but they also sell bits of all sorts of things like a small Woolworths. They are often the first shop to appear in new estates, they are often quite competitively priced and along with their identical competitors, CVS - there are thousands of them.
We ate one of Connie's spaghetti sauces with, surprise, surprise, spaghetti as Sally had managed to get some Sally Legal non wheat spaghetti.
Wednesday, we got up and had something special - Sally made American pancakes, using her, now perfected, diet legal recipe of rice flour and Gram flour. The occasion for celebration? Why our wedding anniversary! - number 37, we think. Well I still love you Sally!!!
We then broke camp and moved on to Baton Rouge, with enough time to watch the sun go down on the Mississippi River and then go out for a romantic dinner for two at 'Sammy's Sports Bar and Fish Restaurant'. We had a great meal there -Sally had sauteed jumbo shrimp and I had Gumbo ( a soup - see From Blue Mountains to Blue Sea, October 2009, Jackson MS), which was completely different to my previous Gumbo, but still delicious, followed by Red beans on rice and pork chops (of which I boxed one,as I was too full). We rounded the night off with a Cold Stone Ice cream, as they have a Raspberry Sorbet, which is Sally Legal. I was forced into buying a coffee ice cream with brownie, pecan, chocolate and caramel blended into it. Again I brought half of it home to eat later.
I have no idea what we will do for the rest of today, but I think that the delights of Baton Rouge are calling.
We ate one of Connie's spaghetti sauces with, surprise, surprise, spaghetti as Sally had managed to get some Sally Legal non wheat spaghetti.
Wednesday, we got up and had something special - Sally made American pancakes, using her, now perfected, diet legal recipe of rice flour and Gram flour. The occasion for celebration? Why our wedding anniversary! - number 37, we think. Well I still love you Sally!!!
We then broke camp and moved on to Baton Rouge, with enough time to watch the sun go down on the Mississippi River and then go out for a romantic dinner for two at 'Sammy's Sports Bar and Fish Restaurant'. We had a great meal there -Sally had sauteed jumbo shrimp and I had Gumbo ( a soup - see From Blue Mountains to Blue Sea, October 2009, Jackson MS), which was completely different to my previous Gumbo, but still delicious, followed by Red beans on rice and pork chops (of which I boxed one,as I was too full). We rounded the night off with a Cold Stone Ice cream, as they have a Raspberry Sorbet, which is Sally Legal. I was forced into buying a coffee ice cream with brownie, pecan, chocolate and caramel blended into it. Again I brought half of it home to eat later.
I have no idea what we will do for the rest of today, but I think that the delights of Baton Rouge are calling.
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