Grain Elevators, South of Peoria

These massive grain elevators south of Peoria along the Illinois River are slated for demolition–or maybe they aren’t. They’ll probably sit around for a long time until they’re finally, or completely, demolished.

In Search of the Sidaway Bridge and John D. Rockefeller, Cleveland

Sometimes I go searching for something and I don’t find it, but the journey becomes interesting (and a little scary) in of itself. In this case, I went looking for the Sidaway Bridge, further up one of the tributaries of the Cuyahoga River, after reading about it online, and besides being fascinated by its structure,…

East of Downtown, Cleveland

Cleveland is much like St. Louis in that it is much longer than it is wide. In this case, however, the city stretches along a lake, and is longer east-west. St. Clair and Superior avenues in many ways are like the equivalents of North Broadway back in St. Louis, as well, passing through industrial zones…

Downtown, Part One, Cleveland

Downtown Cleveland is tucked into a triangular wedge northeast of the the Flats, in perhaps what is the closest physical relationship of an American city’s core to its industrial heart. Much of the western part of downtown is preserved, but it should be noted there are still entire large city blocks that are parking lots….

Irish Bend, Cleveland

From high up above the Flats, looking east, you wouldn’t even notice the huge industrial area down below since the passage of the Clean Air Act and the clearing of old factories and other polluters. But head down the streets into the valley, and the dense cluster of bridges, curving river and other buildings soon…

The Flats, Cleveland

From what I understand, pretty much all of the lower Cuyahoga Valley, including Whiskey Island, is know as the Flats, which is the lowlands along the twisting course of the waterway that soon found itself clogged with boats coming to and from the many factories and distilleries crowding its banks. As you might imagine, it…

Other Fall Updates, Fires, Demolitions, Etc.

It finally happened, the Mullanphy Emigrant Home, which I last looked at back in June of this year, caught on fire and burned to the ground on the night of September 14th. There is certainly no grand conspiracy, but simply the fact that overnight lows reached 50 degrees, and a squatter’s fire probably spread out…

The Chicago River and Civic Identity

I would argue that the approximate one mile from the Lake Shore Drive Bridge to Wolf Point, where the Chicago River splits into its North and South branches, is easily one of the most famous vistas in the world. Along it you will see the Wrigley Building, the Tribune Tower and many others you’d recognize…

JeffVanderLou and St. Louis Place, Early Summer 2023

Heading east of St. Louis Avenue, I looked at the north side of that thoroughfare, having looked at the south of the street in two parts, here and here back in July of 2022. There is still a large part of JeffVanderLou west of North Grand Boulevard, even if most of the huge neighborhood is…

Southwest and Northeast of Downtown, Galesburg, Illinois

Heading southwest down Louisville Road, I spotted one of the grain elevators that line the train tracks in Galesburg. Now owned by ADM, it possesses one of the largest grain silos I have ever seen, at least in diameter. I worked my way back up on Monmouth Boulevard, which connects the center of town with…