We finished up our tour of Cairo by revisiting Millionaires’ Row, which I still think is a weird name because there are not really that many mansions along it, and they’re not really that big, for that matter, befitting someone with a million or more dollars. First of all, what the heck happened to Riverlore,…
Tag: Cairo
Hidden in the Undergrowth, Cairo
Moving west of downtown to the oldest part of Cairo, we spot the Queen Anne house with the onion dome turret (second photo), which I photographed back in 2014. Nothing to the east of it is still standing. See that vacant lot above in the left foreground of that ranch house? That was a huge…
Commercial Avenue and Environs, Revisited, Cairo
Well, there certainly has been a lot of changes along Commercial Avenue, the main street of Cairo, since the last time I was here. First of all, we’re down to two buildings on the east side of the street, when there were four the first time I visited. I suspect there will be none soon….
The Confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, Cairo
We took a break from exploring the town and headed down to Fort Defiance Park, which is at the very tip of the peninsula where the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers is located, to have lunch. It is important to note that the actual Civil War fort was not located here as this…
Mid-City, Cairo, Part Two
There were once at least three Catholic churches in Cairo, and St. Joseph’s was located somewhere near its grade school, which still stands; you can see in these photos. St. Patrick’s survives, and you can see it in this post from the first time I visited; apparently some of the furnishings from the closed parishes…
Mid-City, Cairo, Part One
Did you ever see that weird movie, Return to Oz? That’s how I felt when we first parked at that cluster of civic buildings in the middle of town in Cairo, much as my visit had begun ten years ago. We were greeted with a closed U.S. Customs House Museum, which had been open back…
Returning to Cairo, Ten Years Later
It’s been ten years since my last visit to Cairo, Illinois, and it felt like it was time to check in on the town that played a critical role in the history of America, and in St. Louis. It was from here that Ulysses S. Grant, formerly of St. Louis, launched his invasion south, changing…
Sad Abandonment around Cairo, Illinois
Update: Most of these houses are presumably gone, but the house with the onion dome is still standing. While there is still much good left in Cairo, the truth is that much of the town is devastated. We’ll leave town with this survey of some of the abandonment we saw.
Millionaires’ Row, Cairo, Illinois
Update: I revisited the area in June of 2024. Italianate and Second Empire architecture dominates Millionaires’ Row, the grouping of lavish houses on Washington Avenue down the street from Magnolia Manor. This house, with its clean red brick, was my favorite. This Georgian Revival-esque house was probably one of the last grand homes built in…
Magnolia Manor, Cairo, Illinois
Update: Improved images added in June of 2024. The house is still in good condition and well-maintained. Magnolia Manor, up Washington Avenue in the intact portion of Cairo, is one of the most splendid examples of Italianate architecture I have ever seen. It is a shame that more of the town is not preserved as…