A mighty good road: 1913-2013

The old Rock Island Depot don't get much respect these days. For one thing, it's just over the brow of a hill at the east end of Court Avenue and invisible from Highway 14 (North 7th Street), a block west. For another, it's been half a century and more since passengers and freight arrived here, or departed.

Now used by the Union Pacific as a kind of maintenance outpost, it is surrounded this weekend by heavy equipment, trucks, a bus and --- on a rickety siding --- a work train. 

But if there ever was a time to show the fine old building and the tracks beside it a little love --- this would be the year to do it. The first scheduled Rock Island train rolled into Chariton from the north during July of 1913 and stopped at the brand new depot, completed during June. So it's a centennial year.

Work on the 60-mile stretch of the Rock Island line that connected Carlisle to the north and Allerton to the south had commenced during 1911. The link provided the Rock with a direct connection linking the Twin Cities and Kansas City. It also facilitated exploitation of coal reserves under Lucas and Marion counties and helped to fuel a booming coal industry.

Construction changed the face of Chariton --- more than 60 houses were demolished or relocated in the east part of town so that the cuts followed by tracks through town could be made. These cuts were, in their time, a huge project. It is unlikely the Hotel Charitone, completed during 1923, would have been built had not the town square been half way between the busy C.B.&Q. Depot to the northwest and the new Rock Island Depot to the southeast.

Here's a post from January of 2012 that provides more information about the depot. There's a Flickr slideshow here that incorporates more of the photographs taken at that time.

Six months later, during August of 2012, Union Pacific Locomotive 844 made a brief stop at the depot while on a whirlwind tour of the Midwest. You can read more about that visit here or see a slideshow incorporating more photographs here.

Finally, here's Lead Belly (Huddie William Ledbetter) performing "Rock Island Line," an American folk song he launched toward popularity during 1937.

Those big gay weddings

Just in case you missed it, the Fabulous Beekman Boys (Brent, left, and Josh) tied the knot officially yesterday at the Beekman 1802 farm near Sharon Springs, New York. Martha, of course, was there. She brought, among other things, multi-colored hard-boiled eggs from her Bedford farm.

The photos here are taken from Andrew Ritchie's mildly obsessive "Martha Moments" blog. Follow the link to see more --- if interested. I love Martha --- the boys, too. We do love our divas, and divos, you know. 

This wedding, as might be expected in the Beekman/Stewart universe, had been in the planning stage for months --- so its scheduling two days after the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling that gutted the Defense of Marriage Act and extended federal recognition to same-sex marriages in states like New York and Iowa was coincidental. But kind of fun.

Out in California, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals moved quickly on Friday to lift the stay it had imposed on same-sex marriages more than four years ago as the other big gay marriage case moved through the court system. The plaintiffs in that case were married soon thereafter: Kris Perry and Sandy Stier in San Francisco by California Attorney General Kamala Harris and Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo in Los Angeles by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. 

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One of the better (brief) unpackings of this week's rulings came from gay blogger Andrew Sullivan and Freedom to Marry Executive Director Evan Wolfson on Anderson Cooper 360. Both Sullivan and Wolfson began advocating for marriage equality at a time when other activists considered such things  beyond reach.

The Christian response to Wednesday's rulings has continued as expected --- The vocal right meaner than a skilletful of rattlesnakes; the "we're-not-like-that" other side, substantially less vocal.

"They will know we are Christians by our love ...." ROFLMAO.

Marches, gallops, waltzes, peanuts and more

The stars definitely were aligned in our favor Thursday evening as the Chariton Community Band brought its summer performance series to the patio of the Lucas County Historical Society for an old-fasioned "Peanut Day" concert. 

The day dawned hot, humid, overcast --- and a little rainy. But by late afternoon (we opened the doors of all the museum buildings at 6 p.m.), the humidity had dissipated, there was a cool breeze and plenty of sunshine.

The band, directed by Oscar J. Ortiz, ordinarily performs on Thursday evenings during June and early July in the gazebo on the courthouse lawn and has a considerable following. So we were delighted when its members agreed to move to the museum campus this week.

There's was a certain amount of sacrifice involved. The museum is located in a residential neighborhood where parking is at a premium. Some of those instruments are heavy and it was a considerable hike up the circle drive, over the hill and down to the patio.

The concert began at 7 --- and the music was, as usual, great. Ortiz is an effective advocate for music in the schools and life in general, as well as a great showman, so he kept the audience engaged between those marches, gallops and other musical forms.

The other star of Thursday night's show was the vintage peanut roaster, nearing its 130th birthday, that came to the museum a good many years ago from Piper's Grocery on the square. It works as good now as it did in the 1880s, with a few modifications --- a small electric motor now turns the drum as raw peanuts roast and propane fires the burner under the drum that does the roasting. Bob Ulrich (right) and Jerry Pierschbacher were in charge of the peanut end of things last night.

Hy-Vee keeps a small supply of raw peanuts on hand specifically for the historical society (and donates same; we're very appreciative). About half of this year's supply was roasted and distributed free to our guests Thursday; more than likely we'll roast and serve up the rest during next month's ice cream social.

It was a great evening. Our board members and volunteers work hard to ensure the success of events like this --- and we love it when it's hard to find a parking place within blocks of the museum campus and people of all ages are gathered here to relax and enjoy an evening.

So, after all have stood for the National Anthem, please give everyone involved a round of applause.

The museum is open from 1-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays --- free of charge. If you'd like to visit at any other time, just give a call. The Roberts family will be holding their annual reunion on Saturday in the barn --- a building that's gotten quite a workout this month --- but we'll be open as usual to everyone else, too.

Rainbow flags and moral voices

Well now that was quite a day, what with those U.S. Supreme Court rulings that affirmed same-sex marriage and all. Maybe even a little disorienting, especially for those of us teetering on the brink of our dotages who look back on substantial chunks of life in the relational shadows, lived with carefully compartmentalized public personas.

But good. Especially for married gay couples in the now-13 states (and District of Columbia), including Iowa, occupied by roughly 30 percent of the U.S. population, where same-sex marriages are both performed and legally recognized. All federal benefits previously reserved for heterosexual couples will flow automatically to them once the technicalities are ironed out.

Place of residence rather than marital status, however, will continue to restrict the flow of many federal benefits to legally married couples who live in states where their marriages are not recognized --- until conflicting program eligibility standards are harmonized. Both the Internal Revenue Service and Social Security Administration, for example, apply a "place of residence" standard even though couples were legally married elsewhere.

Most likely those restrictions will fall now that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act has been ruled unconstitutional --- but that will take time and Republicans will resist.

The rulings fell into line with what LGBT-affirming legal types felt were the most likely, although not assured, outcomes. Same-sex marriage returns to California because the court ruled (narrowly) that defenders of Proposition 8 had no standing in the federal court system. That ruling does not affect marriage restrictions in other states.

While the DOMA ruling steered clear of any limits on a state's authority to restrict access to marriage within its borders, the justices' broad invocation of the equal-protection provision of the Fifth Amendment to assure equal access to federal recognition provided powerful ammunition for use in future challenges.

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It seems likely that the institutional church will continue to be a big loser as efforts accelerate now to bring equal marriage to more states, primarily because the viciously conservative end of that contraption now forms the public face of Christianity.

The right wing --- Southern Baptist, the Roman Catholic all-male hierarchy and others --- responded harshly and loudly to Wednesday's rulings with the usual absurdly inflated rhetoric. "Jesus wept," the execrable Mike Huckabee declared. And the media gleefully reported all of that.

But you can hardly blame the media. Strong moral voices that might have spoken joyfully for the millions of Christians who are affirming, were silent or muted --- as generally is the case.

Just for giggles, I did a little poking around last night and found strong and supportive voices among the Unitarian Universalist and United Church of Christ leadership. My own head honcho, Bishop Katharine, seemed pleased --- but she is infected with the virus called "nuance" that so many Episcopalians fall victim to and that makes communications a challenge. ("Nuance" translates in most instances as "unintelligible.")

The official United Methodist response to the rulings seemed to be a lengthy discourse on how difficult is was going to be for United Methodists to resolve their own conflicts. It is rumored, by the way, that parenthetical modifications to that denomination's official description of itself will be considered during the next annual conference: "Open Hearts (60 percent), Open Minds (40 percent), Open Doors (9 a.m.-noon Sundays and by appointment)." 

The recent right-wing mantra has been, "Gays will destroy the church." Actually, there's no need for LGBT folks to focus on that mission. The church is doing quite nicely on its own.

Charitone update: Plumbing, heating & electrical

I end up taking a lot of photos of our newspaper guy, Bill Howes, taking photos of the same things I'm shooting --- we're each other's natural hazard (I get in his way a lot, too). But this photo, taken on the third floor of the Charitone, is a major coup --- Martin Buck is in the distance taking a snapshot of Bill (taking notes) while I take a photo of both. Wonderful. Raymond Meyer, who was leading the walk-through, managed to avoid both cameras, as did all of the guys actually working on the building.

We're standing just outside the entrance to a small study in the third-floor west apartment, the one that looks down on Piper's to the west and toward the courthouse from its southwest corner. Martin is standing in the living room with the kitchen between us. Bathroom is to the left of the study and, behind us to the north, are two bedrooms, one with windows facing west; the other, with an eastward view.

Here's another view south from the northwest bedroom, this one with Bill just stepping through into the bathroom, where the shower already is in place.

As anyone who has been following the Charitone project should know by now, there are four apartments on each of the upper three floors for a total of 12. There are four unique apartment designs on each floor, configured to fit the building's shape and size and stacked one above the other. All three west apartments look like this; the south and east apartments on each floor are two-bedroom units, too; and the north apartment on each floor has only one bedroom, but a somewhat larger living area.

This little study (or dressing room) makes the west apartments my favorites --- a good place to keep piles of paper out of sight.

Each bathroom will contain, in addition to the usual amenities, a stacked washer and dryer. Nine of the apartment bathrooms are equipped with walk-in showers; the other three, with tubs.

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Not too much activity has been evident outside the Charitone during June because the focus has shifted inside, where apartments have been framed and wiring, plumbing and heating/cooling units are being installed. Drywall on interior walls (plaster on exterior walls except on the fourth floor in order to meet Department of the Interior restoration guidelines) will be the next step.

Here's a photo of fresh plaster work on the exterior walls of the southeast bedroom of the third-floor-east apartment. This is how walls in the original Charitone were finished, which is the reason for new plaster rather than drywall now. Because the interior of the Charitone had been gutted long before the Lucas County Preservation Alliance acquired it, plaster isn't required elsewhere.

All of the windows now have been removed. Those taken from the west and south facades are being restored at The Stained Glass Store in Des Moines, one of the Midwest's premier restorers of vintage windows, stained-glass and otherwise. New windows are being built for the north and east facades. The translucent plastic that replaced plywood boarding over the windows when they were removed now allows light to flood into the building.

At least one window per floor remains open, however, to allow building materials to be lifted and brought inside. Here's the view toward the courthouse from a room in the third-floor-south apartment.

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I was interested in the variable refrigerant flow (VRF) heating/cooling system now being installed, too. The occupant of each apartment will control his or her own climate destiny with room units, each hooked to outdoor condensing units that will be placed on the reconstructed roof of the Annex, just east of the hotel proper.

This type of system uses refrigerant as both the heating and cooling medium and is highly energy efficient. This is the unit in the ceiling of the northwest bedroom of the third-floor-west apartment.

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If exterior activity has been limited during June, that is scheduled to change dramatically during July, according to Raymond.

A big chunk of the project's $5.5 million price tag will be devoted to exterior utilities, including new storm and sanitary sewer lines. These will extend a block north along North Main Street to its intersection with Roland Avenue. The east sidewalk will be replaced along this stretch of North Main, too, as well as along Braden Avenue from North Main to the alley just east of the Annex. Chariton's ARS Construction is the major contractor for this phase of the project.

Beyond that, work will begin soon to install the tenant parking lot, just north of the hotel; to rebuild the roof and upper courses of brickwork on the Annex, preparing it to support the VRF condensers; to install the ground-level north entrance to the building; and of course, to install restored and newly built windows.

Inside, the first-floor goal is to complete the "vanilla box" --- undeveloped space equipped with utility connections --- that Hy-Vee will need to install the new restaurant there. 

No specific plans have been made for the basement, high, dry and well-lighted once windows have been reinstalled because window wells once sealed with concrete have been reopened. That space will remain open for redevelopment.

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The drive to raise the remaining $550,000 needed to fully fund the $5.5 million Charitone project continues. Anyone who would like to make tax-deductible cash contributions may do so, payable to Lucas County Preservation Alliance and mailed to the Alliance at P.O. Box 678, Chariton, IA 50049.

Raymond C. Meyer is the contact person for those who wish to discuss potential contributions or obtain further information about investing in or living at the Charitone. He may be reached at (641) 774-2179 or rcmeyer@iowatelecom.net.

And don't forget the Charitone's Facebook page, which is located here.

Keep looking down: Prism Glass

Prying cigarette butts out of sidewalk cracks on the west side of the square this morning, I noticed this triangular bronze marker embedded in the sidewalk in front of what now is Rob Johansen's building but  started life during 1867 as the T.A. Matson building, then was renovated and given its current stone Richardson Romanesque facade during 1915 by the Stantons.

Anyhow, this is a form of permanent advertisement for the American Luxfer Prism Co., purveyors of  "Luxfer Prisms for lighting buildings with daylight."

These small squares of prism glass were installed in a wide full-width transom panel atop the street-level business facade of the newly renovated Stanton Buiilding. It's still there, behind boarding. There once were (and many remain although obscured) similar installations in many buildings around the square.

The theory was, prism glass picked up daylight and then reflected it deep into stores, thus reducing the need for reliance on artificial lighting. The suggestion here, too, is that the sidewalk (still in good shape) is nearly a century old.

Next time you're walking around the square in the neighborhood of the Stanton Building, keep looking down --- at least for a little while.

Hydroelectricity and picking up stuff

The big news in this part of the state this morning, courtesy of The Register, involves plans for a hydroelectric  generating plant at Red Rock dam on the Des Moines River, just up the road northeast of here between Knoxville and Pella. 

The $260 million plan involves installing turbines at the existing dam, with the plant located just to the right of the structure as it appears in this U.S. Army Corps of Engineers image. A group of 61 municipalities in four states doing business as Missouri River Energy Services is behind the project.

No one seems to be expressing concern about the project, including Iowa's Department of Natural Resources, because the dam already is there --- and has been since 1969. As Mike Delaney, Izaak Walton League lobbyist told The Register, "....the mess has already been made at Red Rock."

I was interested to see in the Register report that 16 percent of Iowa's power now comes from the wind (nearly 72 percent from coal, however). The new plant supposedly will produce enough energy to power 18,000 homes, so I'm wondering how that figure would transition into a percentage were all of the power to remain in Iowa, which it won't.

It's unlikely to cut the number of coal trains that rumble through Chariton daily, however, gradually carrying what remains of Wyoming east to coal-fired plants elsewhere. Anyhow, The Register's story about this is here at the moment.

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This is one of those mornings when a few brave souls meet on the square at 6 a.m. with gloves, garbage bags and anything else that seems useful to pick up trash and cigarette butts and pull weeds out of cracks in the sidewalk. Gotta go.

Tempted by a terabyte --- plus gay marriage

I opened a Flickr account two years ago, posted something like six photos and then forgot about the whole thing --- until Sunday. The password came to mind --- like magic, it worked. Then the fatal message scrolled: "Smile Lucas Countyan. Flickr gives you one free terabyte of space. Share your photos in full resolution." Hooked.

What is a terabyte? A billion bytes. Or, 1024 gigabytes. Wow. That should be enough storage to last a while.

So now I've started posting a few more of the the thousands of images that live on my hard drive and various backup storage devices. I'm going to try to do this gradually by set organized into collections so that navigation is possible. The goal is to come up with a decent collection of images of buildings and other stuff in Lucas County that anyone interested can look at and use. Naturally, anyone who uses a photo will give appropriate credit. In my dreams.

Some of this is born of frustration. I wanted to see what a specific building in a specific town looked like yesterday. The only images I could find were the size of postage stamps and had been posted to a Web site that had been allowed to die.

Plus, Iowa is under-represented in the online image community. Sure, there are plenty of images of big-ticket places --- the State Capitol, Old Capitol, Terrace Hill, downtown Des Moines. The smaller places, like Lucas County, don't get much photographer respect. 

So we'll see how this goes. This is the link to the Flickr cover page. There's also a link via Flicker "badge" at the bottom of the sidebar at right. The badge is fairly ugly. I'll work on that.

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This will be the week during which the U.S. Supreme Court announces some variety of rulings on the federal Defense of Marriage Act and California's Proposition 8. DOMA prevents the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages performed in states like Iowa where such marriages are legal. Proposition 8 overturned same-sex marriage rights extended to Californians by their state Legislature.

It's not clear what, or how broad, the rulings will be, primarily because the court is divided along partisan lines, too, with swing votes the deciding factor. Whatever happens, it's unlikely anyone is going to be entirely happy --- and some are going to be unhappy.

If the rulings lean toward marriage equality, Tea Party and conservative Christian types will yowl like scalded cats, switch their tails, say all sorts of unchristian things and threaten armed insurrection. If the rulings lean against equality, LGBT people will be disappointed, angry and frustrated, then will get back to work finding other ways to advance the cause of justice. I'm betting on LGBT people, no matter what the rulings, to behave like the grownups here.

Ice cream and silver linings

I'm in hog heaven this weekend because Skondra's Old Fashioned Churned Ice Cream is (or at least was) on sale for under $3 a half-gallon (okay 1.75 quarts; half-gallons no longer exist).

The magic $3 used to be a line in the sand --- "I'm never going to pay more than $3 for a half-gallon of ice cream." Yea, sure. But Skondra's --- Hy'Vee's upscale brand; you can't get it in Texas --- is the best ice cream in the whole wide world. 

I even pay full price (when something else isn't on sale for under Skondra's regular price, my new line in the sand) so I can wallow in "Strawberries N' Cream" and stuff myself with old-fashioned "Butter Brickle." 

Don't waste your time or money on Blue Bunny (revolting but intentional syrupy clumps of pinkish-red stuff in the last strawberry derivative I bought under that label) --- unless its really price-reduced (admittedly, I have a weakness for Blue Bunny's "Peanut Butter Panic"). Just go straight for the Skondra's.

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Who would have thought that last week's fall from grace of southern fried chef Paula Deen would impact my life. My heart belongs to Martha, who you may recall sailed triumphantly through a brief --- and totally unfair --- imprisonment some years ago and continues to rule (as we knew she would, bless her heart). So I've just never had much use for Paula.

But there I was in Shopko yesterday, looking for a melon-baller. Mine has slipped into a crack somewhere and I cannot find it. Every home needs a mellon-baller. How else are you supposed to make fruit salad? Chunks? I think not. 

Anyhow, I didn't find a melon-baller; not among the gadgets at Hy-Vee either. Major product failure on the parts of both. So came home and made do with a teaspoon measure that, while round, doesn't work well.

Anyhow, my big non-stick coated skillet needs to be retired --- after 15 years or so the coating is threatening to flake. Yes, I know --- cast iron. Non-stick coatings do have their place now and then, however. And Skopko carries the Paula Deen line of cookware. So I looked. I was tempted. Then it occurred to me that if Paula does indeed go under there may be a clearance sale on her cookware. I'll wait. Always looking for the silver lining.

Genesis of the end of Exodus International

Alan Chambers

Exodus International, umbrella organization for the ex-gay ministries embedded in fundamentalist and evangelical Christian culture, went out of business --- by changing its name --- this week.  Its strategically remorseful president, Alan Chambers, closed Exodus down, sort of, in a series of carefully orchestrated media events that, when all was said and done, didn't do much.  

The reactions have been interesting to watch. Some in progressive evangelical circles --- mostly heterosexual --- have been overjoyed, interpreting the move as a step toward reconciliation. Those involved in Exodus's some 270 national and international affiliates have focused on controlling whatever "damage" a kinder, gentler Chambers may have done to their cause and carrying the work forward without changing course.

As a rule, LGBT people have viewed the whole business with skepticism.

Chambers encouraged the latter by announcing formation of a new organization, "Reduced Fear," that while acknowledging sexual orientation as God-given maintains the old boy created LGBT people to suffer.  Gay folks, therefore, should avoid same-sex relationships and practice celibacy if a suitable spouse of the opposite sex cannot be found. Reduced Fear, apparently, will facilitate those routes to glory, but be nicer to gay folks who choose not to follow them.

It's useful to remember that Chambers himself is gay, something he now acknowledges readily by phrasing it as a "struggle against same-sex attraction." He is married (to a woman) and they have two adopted children. 

Exodus International always has had difficulties keeping its top officials on the straight and narrow. One of its founders, Michael Bussee, left the organization during 1979 to form a committed relationship with one of its ministry leaders, Gary Cooper, who died of AIDS-related complications during 1991. 

More recently, chairman John Paulk was removed by the organization's board during 2000 after he was discovered patronizing a gay bar in Washington, D.C. Paulk has since renounced his former cause. His former wife has formed an ex-gay ministry of her own.

Chambers seems to have started publicly down the path that led to this week's announcements by acknowledging last year that "99.9 percent" of the people served by the Exodus ministries failed to transition from gay to straight, as promised. His logical destination now --- as the Exodus mission transitions from cure to control ---would be similar to those of Bussee and Paulk, but we'll have to wait and see on that.

Exodus International may be gone, but fundamentalist culture and much of evangelical culture, too, populated by many wonderful and in other ways caring people, remain dangerous places for those who differ. These guys, blinded by their own sin, torture their LGBT children emotionally, occasionally cast them out, often kill them spiritually and in some cases kill them --- indirectly by suicide or other routes --- physically, too.

Strike up the band

Summer arrived officially about five hours ago, 12:04 a.m. CDT, the moment of solstice --- if you keep track of such things --- so here we are, launching a new season.

The eve of the solstice in Chariton happened to be the regular date for a concert by the Community Band on the courthouse lawn --- 7 p.m. Thursdays through July 11. So there was even a celebration.

Popcorn was free and appreciative consumers of old-fashioned summers --- and band music --- gathered on lawn chairs and park benches or in their cars nosed to the curb (honking in appreciation between numbers rather than clapping).

Those attuned to physical fitness as well as music had hiked briskly around the perimeter of the courthouse lawn several times before the music began.

The concert will move next Thursday, June 27, to the Lucas County Historical Society museum, on the patio if the weather is fair, inside the barn if it isn't. 

Our buildings will open at 6 p.m. for those who wish to visit them and fresh-roasted peanuts, popcorn, lemonade and ice water will be on the menu. Concert starts at 7. Come on over.

Behold, a host arrayed in white ...

You don't hear that old Norwegian Lutheran hymn (Den store hvite flokk) much down here in the south of Iowa, where Norwegian Lutherans are kind of scarce, but it whistled me down the path at Pin Oak Marsh yesterday where fields of penstemon digitalis (aka beardtongue, white foxglove, false foxglove, etc.,) were blooming.

I think the last time I actually sang it --- a solo performance in church with Cyndy at the organ --- was many years ago at the funeral of an unfortunate guy who experienced the great misfortune of being run over by his own motor home. This was better.

The marsh ponds are fully charged after bountiful spring rains --- and sporadic Chariton River flooding --- so it's a pleasure to walk there again after last summer's drought. All those shifts in water level, however, apparently drowned out the nests of Canada geese and duck varieties that usually nest here, so there were only militant red-wing blackbirds and a variety of warblers to keep me company.

There were field daisies here, too --- blooming in a spot or two where the prairie grasses were not yet waist high, and varieties of milkweed, too.

But the overwhelming color scheme was green, with a little yellow to add contrast ...

... blue flags, picking up the colors of the sky  from their position knee-deep in marsh water just off the trail  ...

and the pink of crown vetch --- an invasive non-native plant that's pretty anyway.

A small house with an (almost) hidden past

On the face of it, this pleasant bungalow at the intersection of South 14th Street and Armory Avenue in southwest Chariton seems to date from the 1920s --- and it does, kind of. But appearances can be deceiving. What you see actually is a fragment of what once was one of Lucas County's grandest homes.

My friend Diana asked a few days ago about the house, which has changed hands recently and is being refurbished. Friends of hers are the new owners and someone had told them that the house had been built in 1900 and that it once was larger.

I was able to refer her (and the new owners) to this photo of the house intact and under full sail, which appears in Lucas County's 1978 history with a brief account of the family that built it, the Blakes. As you can see, the house as built --- probably during the 1880s --- had an additional two stories and a tower, too. The printed version of the photo didn't preserve too much detail but it does convey the general idea.

A fire, which according to the 1978 history occurred during 1923, heavily damaged everything above  first-floor level and, as a result, the second and third floors --- and the tower --- were removed. The low gabled roof characteristic of the 1920s then was installed as the first floor was remodeled into a much smaller dwelling.

If woodwork and other interior features of the house remained, these were removed during subsequent remodelings and the interior now is very plain. Chimneys in the old photograph suggest there once were fireplaces, but no signs of them remain.

The only traces of the original house in its recycled version are a few exterior features and the stone  basement.

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The builder of the house was George W. Blake, but the date of its construction isn't known. It appears to date from the 1880s, but could have been constructed somewhat earlier, during the lifetime of George's first wife, Caroline, nee Edginton, who died Dec. 31, 1880. Seven years after Caroline died, during 1887, George married Tamar Arabelle "Belle" Chickering and the house might have been constructed about then, too.

It is located in the Edginton Addition, an area of Chariton platted and developed by Caroline's father, Edward T. Edginton. I've written about the Blake family before because George W.'s heirs built the Blake Building, now home to Ben Franklin, on the north side of the square during 1901.

The elaborate frame of the original Blake front door, which must have been doubled and topped by a transom.

George was a native of Brewster, Maine, where he was born on July 7, 1841. He arrived in Ottumwa at age 17 and was working as a clerk there when the Civil War began. Enlisting in Co. K, Second Iowa Volunteer Infantry, he was chosen to be second, then first, lieutenant, then was wounded so severely at the October 1862 Battle of Corinth that death seemed likely. He beat the odds and recovered to serve honorably until discharge during 1864. George came to Chariton the following spring.

Shortly after arriving, George opened Chariton's first hardware store on the site of the current Blake Building. And in September of 1866 he married Caroline Edginton, a native of London. Her father, Edward T. Edginton, was among the most prominent of Chariton's residents at that time. 

Shortly after the marriage, however, it became evident that Edginton had disgraced himself by playing fast and loose with county funds while serving as county treasurer during the war years. Although he never was prosecuted, a bounty was placed on his head for a time and he was looked upon as a fugitive.

Edward had evaded angry Lucas Countyans, however, by accepting a state appointment that took him back to his native London to recruit more English settlers for Iowa and he apparently remained there until the excitement in Chariton had died down and he was able to arrange a settlement.

Although Edginton never regained his reputation and apparently lost many of his assets in that settlement, he eventually returned to Chariton and was allowed to live out his remaining years in peace --- with his daughter and son-in-law --- until death claimed him during February of 1881. Although buried in the Chariton Cemetery, his grave is not marked.

George and Caroline Blake had three children before she was felled by tuberculosis, dying a month before her father. Of the children, Harriett married Thomas R. Drummond and moved west, first to Utah and then to California, and Charles A. did not marry. 

George Clarence Blake (1879-1956) remained in Chariton, where he operated a clothing store in the Blake Building for many years. He married first Eva May Graves, then after her death, Mabel Nobel. His children --- Charles F. Blake, Elsie (Blake) Johnson and Caroline (Blake) Shelton --- and their descendants represented the famiy in Chariton during the 20th century.

George W. Blake died Dec. 20, 1900. Although his widow, Belle, survived until 1931,  Clarence and his family were living in the old Blake home during 1923 when it burned.

The most obvious traces of the original house are under the roof of the front porch --- two paneled bay windows with incised brackets above that flank the elaborate frame of the original front door, which must have been doubled and topped by a transom.

That door most likely led into a central stair hall flanked by two rooms on both sides, classic four-over-four construction. The bay window at the northwest corner of the house also is original equipment, although now topped by a gabled roof of its own that is supported by graceful brackets.

The stone basement also is original to the house. It also appears that the sidewalks served both the original house and its diminished version. One of these winds around the southeast corner of the building, then just ends, apparently once having led to a now-vanished door or porch.

"Our Iowa" visits our Lucas County

 We had special guests early this afternoon at the museum --- Our Iowa Magazine editor Jerry Wiebel and his wife, Paula. 

The magazine is planning a Lucas County feature in a future issue (no, I don't know which one) and the Wiebels were in the county for a whirlwind tour led by Tourism Lucas County's indefatigable top guides, Linda Baynes and Lyle Asell.

Founded by Roy Reiman, founder and longtime publisher of Farm Wife News (later Country Woman), Farm & Ranch Living, Taste of Home and a variety of other magazines, as well as the creator of Reiman Gardens, Our Iowa follows a derivative format and is one of Iowa's most popular publications.

It was fun to visit a little with the Wiebels and we're all looking forward to reading down the road a ways about this great place we live in. 

My heart belongs to the Panda Buffet, but ...

... the oriental food line opened this week in our splendidly expanded and enhanced Hy-Vee (this is big news in a place like Chariton, where we entertain easily). So I decided to try it out while on an emergency late-afternoon lettuce run. The BLT could wait. Should have taken a camera.

It's unfair to judge any eating establishment when it's just getting started. On the other hand, it's kind of fun to do just that. 

The chopsticks were stellar --- far superior to the Panda's, hefty with incised circles around the hilt. More than anyone could have hoped for. Three servers in training were lined up behind the narrow counter and kept bumping into each other, but that's unlikely to be a permanent problem.

The food was OK (I'm sure it will get better). My sesame chicken tasted great, but the syrup was out of control and had washed the sesame seeds right off, plus the inexperienced server was counting chicken chunks. And the rice was not quite sticky enough to make a chopsticks-enhanced dining experience pleasurable. The Mongolian beef seasoning situation? Well .... 

But I'm looking forward to having this fast and easy Iowa-flavored oriental dining experience available. For serious in-town eating, however, the oddly named Panda (endangered species is not on the menu) will remain hard to beat. 

There also was this uniquely Chariton experience in the service line Monday afternoon: I was behind one of our newer Ukrainian neighbors who was placing her order through an on-staff translator to an English-only server as her supervisor, of Asian-American descent, looked on. Who says we're not multi-cultural?

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The best tombstone tale of the week is unfolding in Manhattan, where the stone-cutter who added former Mayor Ed Koch's dates of birth and death to his massive tombstone in Trinity Church Cemetery transposed numerals and inadvertently trimmed 18 years off his age, actually 88, at death on Feb. 1. It should have read "1924-2013," but ended up as, "1942-2013." This is the sort of mistake that is extremely difficult to correct.

Koch reportedly had spent years meticulously preparing for death --- finding a scarce place in Manhattan to be buried in the first place, then ordering his tombstone and finally micromanaging his funeral.  This photo of the tombstone was taken before the dates were added.

Although LGBT activists are not widely known for sensing the mythic hand of God in much of anything, at least some probably are chuckling about this minor indignity imposed after death on the late mayor, who was a lifelong closet case.

Many skewer the former mayor for failing to respond to public health and other issues that developed within New York's gay community when AIDS became an epidemic on his watch. Michelangelo Signorlie's piece, "Ed Koch and the Corruption of the Gay Closet," is here.

Charitone enters the Facebook age

As of this weekend, the Hotel Charitone has its own Facebook page, which you can "like" by clicking here. It promises to be a great way to keep track of day-to-day advances involving this terrific project. So go ahead. Do it.

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On the other hand, friends tell me that the "You grew up in Chariton, Iowa, if your remember ..." page now has gone "private." Used to be, anyone could browse posts but not participate without joining. Now, apparently, you have to join in order to view or participate.

Apparently this involves "privacy" concerns, although there's very little privacy to be had when a site has nearly 1,300 members. However ....

The great scape

It's been years since I raised garlic, but couldn't pass on the big bulbs of seed garlic available during last fall's Farm Crawl visit to Coyote Run Farm near Lacona. These came home, were divided into cloves almost immediately, planted and spent the winter under a blanket of grass clippings. The result is a small but healthy bed that I'll harvest later this year.

But the first harvest came over the weekend when I broke the scapes off the now thigh-high plants and brought them inside to eat. Scapes are the flower shoots sent out by hardneck garlic plants this time of year, although garlic really doesn't bloom in a conventional way. The scapes curl and with the small head intact look a little like snakes --- the reason why these varieties are sometimes known as "snake garlic."

There are two schools of thought about scapes. Some argue garlic bulbs are hardier and store better if the scapes are allowed to develop fully. Most, however, cut or break the scapes off. Energy that would be invested by the plants in producing scapes then goes instead to the bulbs, which grow larger.

It's best to harvest the scapes early in their development, when they're tender with a mild garlic flavor. The longer they grow, the tougher and "hotter" they become. Picked early they're great in salads or used in other ways green onions might be used.

There are many recipes involving scapes --- pesto, casseroles, soups, pickled, etc. But I'm a lazy cook so generally just wash, remove the ends (and the head), cut into two-inch-or-so lengths and saute in butter until tender and a little brown. Wonderful.

You sometimes can buy scapes during their very brief season at farmers markets and I noticed that Jill up at Blue Gate Farm near Columbia planned to have scapes Saturday at the downtown Des Moines Farmers Market. But the season doesn't last long --- so hurry.

Centerville's The Columns goes on the market

 I see that Morgan Cline, Centerville's major benefactor, is marketing The Columns --- home to an upscale gift boutique and retail little sister to Bradley Hall for more than a decade. The home is located a block north of Centerville's beautiful square at the intersection of North Main and East Washington streets, just across an intersection from the city's equally beautiful First United Methodist Church.

You find out about stuff like this by being an old house junkie --- checking in now and then at places like OldHouses.Com where The Columns currently is a featured listing.

The sale appears to be private --- anyone interested is invited to "contact seller privately." And the list price is $197,000. That's actually not bad considering the high standards of restoration and maintenance that Cline imposes on his properties --- try restoring a house of similar scale on your own. The location would not be to everyone's residential taste; others would love it. 

According to the entry, Cline operations in Centerville are consolidating their retail wing in the far larger and considerably grander flagship Bradley. The entry suggests that The Columns would make a fine bed and breakfast, which it once was. It's also has served in the years when owner-occupants moved out as an antiques shop, nursing home and community college dormitory.

According to the late Bill Heusinkveld's "Historic Homes of Centerville, Iowa," the big white-painted brick Columns was built during 1895 by Albert E. Wooden, elder son of Centerville pioneer merchant and banker James R. Wooden. After the deaths of Albert Wooden and his wife, Mary, the house was sold to Harry Jennings, who owned a wholesale grocery company. It became a nursing home in the early 1950s and later an antiques shop and college dormitory before returning to private home status, then its most recent sale, to Cline.

The interior of the house, high Victorian, does not quite match the facade, early 20th century Greek Revival, so I suspect that the porches and porte cochere were added later. It is, however, a pleasant composition.

I'm a longtime fan of both Bradley Hall and The Columns, not so much because of the upscale merchandise they contain (sorry), but because of the old houses that contain the merchandise. Bradley Hall, quite frankly is an intimidating house --- over-the-top grandeur. The Columns always seemed like a place people actually might live and be comfortable. Besides, what I take to be the original Columns study or library contained a small bookshop --- where I purchased several of Heusinkveld's interesting books related to Appanoose County history.

The photos here all are swiped from The Columns' Facebook page, where the focus is on retail rather than on architecture, so it's kind of hard to get a feel for the interior of the house. But the front door leads into a large entrance hall with soaring double-turn open stair and fireplace.

Doubled pocket doors lead to the left into a big front room, then directly ahead to the west into a pleasant glassed-in sun room. The clear glass in the original front room window was replaced by Cline during restoration by an art glass window (visible in the exterior photos here) that, if I'm recalling the story correctly, was left over after restoration of Bradley Hall had been completed. This is a valuable window, so a potential buyer --- depending upon his or her taste --- would need to inquire whether or not it stays.

Three large rooms lead through doubled doors from one to the other en suite along the west side of the house, front room, back parlor and dining room (at the rear). There is a second first-floor fireplace in the back parlor, flanked by windows and located in a bay that extends this room to the west.

What I'm taking to be the original study or library, with en suite bathroom, is located east of the back parlor, just behind the staircase hall. The kitchen, left intact during conversion for retail use, is located in the northeast corner of the house, adjacent to the dining room. The cabinetry along the kitchen's south wall contains doorways to the basement stairs (the basement has been in use for retail display, too) and a twisting back stairway to the second floor.

The front, or south, portion of the second floor contains three full-sized bedrooms over the downstairs front room, back parlor and library as well as a smaller room over the stair hall that could, in a pinch, serve as a bedroom, too.

A long center hall leads back to another bedroom, bath, storeroom and access to the back stairs at the north end of the house.

What I take to have been the master bedroom, with en suite bathroom, is the largest and also contains a fireplace in the bay extending to the west.

Interested? Well, contact the seller.