What did the fish say when it hit the wall?
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The dam tree
Here is a picture of the tree across the Iroquois that I wrote about here and here. There is also a tree down at the other end of the cemetery, shown here and here. Click on the picture for a larger view.
What did the fish say when it hit the wall?
What did the fish say when it hit the wall?
Spring Sports
On Saturday three springs sports had meets or games at Saint Joseph's College. I arrived at the track meet just in time to see the agony of the feet. I think it was the 5k that had just been run.
The next event was the 4x400 relay, and I have always loved this race because it is the last race of the meet. Two of my sons ran in middle and high school, so I worked high school and middle school track meets for about ten years. I was always happy to work the meets because watching from the stands was pretty much unbearable. Track meets have a lot of down time in them, so there are long, boring intervals between the interesting bits. Timing them made the boring bits go by much more quickly.
The baseball team was also in action. Baseball is a great radio sport. It does not require much concentration to listen to the game, so people can do other things while the game is on. It is my theory that radio made baseball the national pastime. What do you think?
The girls softball team was in the last inning when I arrived there. (What great timing!) I saw one of the girls I know get a hit, and watched the last inning as the SJC pitcher struck out the last three batters. If you click on the picture below to get a larger view, you might see the ball on the way to the plate. SJC won over Bellarmine University 3 to 0 (but they lost the first game 0 to 3).
After the game the players and coaches from both sides filed by each, giving "high fives" and saying, "Good game." It is nice to see practices that encourage sportsmanship.
It was a cold day and the rain started about an hour after I took the picture above. According to the sports report at SJC, the baseball game was not interrupted.
The next event was the 4x400 relay, and I have always loved this race because it is the last race of the meet. Two of my sons ran in middle and high school, so I worked high school and middle school track meets for about ten years. I was always happy to work the meets because watching from the stands was pretty much unbearable. Track meets have a lot of down time in them, so there are long, boring intervals between the interesting bits. Timing them made the boring bits go by much more quickly.
The baseball team was also in action. Baseball is a great radio sport. It does not require much concentration to listen to the game, so people can do other things while the game is on. It is my theory that radio made baseball the national pastime. What do you think?
The girls softball team was in the last inning when I arrived there. (What great timing!) I saw one of the girls I know get a hit, and watched the last inning as the SJC pitcher struck out the last three batters. If you click on the picture below to get a larger view, you might see the ball on the way to the plate. SJC won over Bellarmine University 3 to 0 (but they lost the first game 0 to 3).
After the game the players and coaches from both sides filed by each, giving "high fives" and saying, "Good game." It is nice to see practices that encourage sportsmanship.
It was a cold day and the rain started about an hour after I took the picture above. According to the sports report at SJC, the baseball game was not interrupted.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Men at work
The end of March is here and I have a bunch of pictures that are sitting on my hard drive. It is time to have another post that meanders a bit.
Last week I noticed the sign about construction for the new hospital. It probably has been there for months, but I do not get out that way too often.
Whenever I do get out that way, I usually snap a picture of the construction. On March 16 the masons were at work on the cement block façade, but it still looked a lot like it had on February 8.
On March 28 the façade was complete and it looked like the workers were heating the interior.
When I saw the workmen carrying the window frames for the Lafayette Bank and Trust renovations, I had to take a picture. That might be the only job on the site that I would have been able to do--carry the frames 50 feet.
A few days later the new windows were installed. The inside of the bank, however, has not changed much from the last time I peeked inside.
Down the street I saw someone doing something above what used to be Harvey's Copy Center. That space will soon become part of the Clauss Bakery.
Being inquisitive (which sounds better than being nosy), I stopped and asked how much was left to be done and how they were going to make a hole in the wall to connect the old part with the new part. I was told that the hole was already finished, and all that was left to do before the new addition opened was the heating and air conditioning.
As I said, this post was going to meander, so let us fly west a couple miles. I noticed that there was trenching between some of the eleven light poles along Airport Road. (They obviously did not have a neat machine like the one that was used for cable installation at St Joseph's College.) And then I found this trench that headed from the light poles to places unknown. When an airplane taxied near the trench, I quickly snapped a picture. My guess is that they were upgrading or repairing the electrical wiring.
I will end this with one more meander, this from an e-mail I received:
Last week I noticed the sign about construction for the new hospital. It probably has been there for months, but I do not get out that way too often.
Whenever I do get out that way, I usually snap a picture of the construction. On March 16 the masons were at work on the cement block façade, but it still looked a lot like it had on February 8.
On March 28 the façade was complete and it looked like the workers were heating the interior.
When I saw the workmen carrying the window frames for the Lafayette Bank and Trust renovations, I had to take a picture. That might be the only job on the site that I would have been able to do--carry the frames 50 feet.
A few days later the new windows were installed. The inside of the bank, however, has not changed much from the last time I peeked inside.
Down the street I saw someone doing something above what used to be Harvey's Copy Center. That space will soon become part of the Clauss Bakery.
Being inquisitive (which sounds better than being nosy), I stopped and asked how much was left to be done and how they were going to make a hole in the wall to connect the old part with the new part. I was told that the hole was already finished, and all that was left to do before the new addition opened was the heating and air conditioning.
As I said, this post was going to meander, so let us fly west a couple miles. I noticed that there was trenching between some of the eleven light poles along Airport Road. (They obviously did not have a neat machine like the one that was used for cable installation at St Joseph's College.) And then I found this trench that headed from the light poles to places unknown. When an airplane taxied near the trench, I quickly snapped a picture. My guess is that they were upgrading or repairing the electrical wiring.
I will end this with one more meander, this from an e-mail I received:On my walk through the cemetery I stopped to talk with Phil Evers who was righting gravestones that had been undermined by the strong river current with the last flood. I asked who was going to do something about the downed tree that is so big it is acting as a dam and really impeding the flow of the river. He said that the banks of the river are owned by the state. The cemetery people cannot do anything on the north bank without permission. The Army Corps of Engineers was informed but Phil was not hopeful. There are two trees down across the river downstream. They crisscross each other and form another dam. They have been there for years. Phil also said that the river upstream had been recently deeply dredged and therefore pulls in more water hence more flooding potential.Phil said that when he got to the cemetery this morning and did his drive through there was a car in the river. Someone stole a car (a nice car) and did doughnuts in the park then drove to the new cemetery and drove all over the lawn tearing up the sod and then drove to the old cemetery and ditched the car in the river. The car was gone by the time I got there.
The tree is an attractive nuisance. Already youngsters are climbing onto it, and with a swift current, they could easily be swept into the river. Who do we sue if something bad happens?
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Going to church the Fellowship of Living Hope way
(I thought it would be interesting to use Sundays to focus on Rensselaer's churches and to see how many Sundays I can go before I run out of material. Indiana is richly endowed with religious denominations, with influences from North and South, East and West. This is part of that series of posts.)
The Fellowship of Living Hope is located west of Rensselaer at 3850 W Bunkum Rd. According to the "Church Services Directory" in the Rensselaer Republican, pastors are Edwin and RuthAnn Bontreger. Sunday worship is at 10:00 a.m.
I could not find a web site for this church, nor could I find any organization or fellowship of churches to which it belongs. Like a fair number of Rensselaer churches, it is an independent or non-denominational church.
The Fellowship of Living Hope is located west of Rensselaer at 3850 W Bunkum Rd. According to the "Church Services Directory" in the Rensselaer Republican, pastors are Edwin and RuthAnn Bontreger. Sunday worship is at 10:00 a.m.
I could not find a web site for this church, nor could I find any organization or fellowship of churches to which it belongs. Like a fair number of Rensselaer churches, it is an independent or non-denominational church.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Thinking about summer
A few weeks ago I visited the Jasper County Fair grounds. In less than four months it will be warm and we will be able to enjoy the fair, maybe the biggest community event that we have.
The winter ice storm had taken its toll of branches, but all remained quiet in the livestock barns.
In July there will be lots of people strolling along the pavement here. Kids will be up early each morning tending their 4-H animals.
There will be food booths selling fair food, and in the afternoons and evenings there will be entertainment on this little stage. I hope I will be able to provide a better look at it this year than I did last year.
In the arena in front of the grandstand are lots of concrete barricades. I wonder what they are all used for.
Over in the horse area is a little cafe that is only open for a week each year. I did not have a need for ice on the day I was there.
The favorite spot for a lot of kids will be the midway with the carnival rides.
This area to the east of one of the horse barns will be filled with trailers, as for a week the fairgrounds becomes Jasper County's fifth largest city. (I do not know for sure that it is only the fifth largest. I am guessing that it never gets as big as Wheatfield.)
Even though I visited the fair grounds early on a cold morning, I was not alone. Someone was busy in one of the exhibition halls, which is used year round for variety of meetings, dinners, and receptions.
July will be here before we know it. Time flies.
The winter ice storm had taken its toll of branches, but all remained quiet in the livestock barns.
In July there will be lots of people strolling along the pavement here. Kids will be up early each morning tending their 4-H animals.
There will be food booths selling fair food, and in the afternoons and evenings there will be entertainment on this little stage. I hope I will be able to provide a better look at it this year than I did last year.
In the arena in front of the grandstand are lots of concrete barricades. I wonder what they are all used for.
Over in the horse area is a little cafe that is only open for a week each year. I did not have a need for ice on the day I was there.
The favorite spot for a lot of kids will be the midway with the carnival rides.
This area to the east of one of the horse barns will be filled with trailers, as for a week the fairgrounds becomes Jasper County's fifth largest city. (I do not know for sure that it is only the fifth largest. I am guessing that it never gets as big as Wheatfield.)
Even though I visited the fair grounds early on a cold morning, I was not alone. Someone was busy in one of the exhibition halls, which is used year round for variety of meetings, dinners, and receptions.
July will be here before we know it. Time flies.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Shopping at Family Dollar
Several years ago Rensselaer had two dollar stores, the Family Dollar store in College Square and Dollar General in downtown. Dollar General closed two or three years ago, and now only the former remains.
Family Dollar is a large corporation with about 6500 stores. It is big enough so its stock is part of the S&P 500 index and it is a Fortune 500 company. The Rensselaer store is now in the site that was formerly occupied by Walgreens. Before it moved there, it was where Fastinal presently is.
The dollar stores such as Family Dollar have successfully found a niche that lets them co-exist with Wal-Mart. I think part of their success is their large selection of detergents and other things that come in plastic bottles, all at very reasonable prices.
They also offer a selection of other things, such a clothing, which takes up about a quarter of their floor space.
Like Walmart, the drug stores,and the convenience stores associated with gas stations, they also offer a selection of food products.
Their selection of holiday candy does not compare to that offered by Walgreens.
Recently they have been putting out the spring merchandise, such as a large display of plastic flowers. I know a lot of these end up in cemeteries. I am not sure why else they are purchased.
Family Dollar has a very small selection of garden seed, but at 20 cents a packet, it is the cheapest I have found in Renssleaer. (It used to be 10 cents per packet, but those days are gone.) I wish they offered a bigger selection. (Update: Smith's True Value Farm Store has some seeds 8 packets for $1, and the selection is much bigger than what Family Dollar has.)
I took some of these pictures during the rains the preceded our big flood and the store had a leak in the roof. I hope it is now fixed.
Family Dollar is not a very exciting store--after all, the local store is one of 6000+. We do not buy much there, but they serve a niche and their personel has always been friendly.
Family Dollar is a large corporation with about 6500 stores. It is big enough so its stock is part of the S&P 500 index and it is a Fortune 500 company. The Rensselaer store is now in the site that was formerly occupied by Walgreens. Before it moved there, it was where Fastinal presently is.
The dollar stores such as Family Dollar have successfully found a niche that lets them co-exist with Wal-Mart. I think part of their success is their large selection of detergents and other things that come in plastic bottles, all at very reasonable prices.
They also offer a selection of other things, such a clothing, which takes up about a quarter of their floor space.
Like Walmart, the drug stores,and the convenience stores associated with gas stations, they also offer a selection of food products.
Their selection of holiday candy does not compare to that offered by Walgreens.
Recently they have been putting out the spring merchandise, such as a large display of plastic flowers. I know a lot of these end up in cemeteries. I am not sure why else they are purchased.
Family Dollar has a very small selection of garden seed, but at 20 cents a packet, it is the cheapest I have found in Renssleaer. (It used to be 10 cents per packet, but those days are gone.) I wish they offered a bigger selection. (Update: Smith's True Value Farm Store has some seeds 8 packets for $1, and the selection is much bigger than what Family Dollar has.)
I took some of these pictures during the rains the preceded our big flood and the store had a leak in the roof. I hope it is now fixed.
Family Dollar is not a very exciting store--after all, the local store is one of 6000+. We do not buy much there, but they serve a niche and their personel has always been friendly.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
SJC Faculty & Student Art Show
The current exhibit in the Fendig Gallery is the Saint Joseph's College Senior Portfolio and Faculty Art Exhibit, which runs to April 10. The reception for the show is Sunday, March 29 from 2:00 until 4:00. I browsed through the objects and found several that I thought unusual. I liked the mosaic table top shown below. It is by David Herriott, who teaches an art course or two at SJC, and is called "It's Not Nice to Fool Around with Mother Nature." You can buy it for $500.
The chair looks like it may also be by David Herriott, but I did not see any tag with artist and name.
Completely different was this mixed media piece with a ceramic 3-D head and painted, 2-D hands. I am not sure where I would hang a piece like this, but it would deserve wall space somewhere. It is by Michael Crowthers and it is called "The Scream."
Let us end on a pleasant note, Jennifer Guenin's stain glass called, "An Afternoon at the Beach."
There is more, and the pieces that strike you as interesting may be a very different set of items than the ones that strike me. That is part of the fun of art.
The SJC band concert is also scheduled for Sunday afternoon (at 3:00). Here is a clip (with no editing at all) from the jazz band in a concert on March 15.
The chair looks like it may also be by David Herriott, but I did not see any tag with artist and name.
Completely different was this mixed media piece with a ceramic 3-D head and painted, 2-D hands. I am not sure where I would hang a piece like this, but it would deserve wall space somewhere. It is by Michael Crowthers and it is called "The Scream."
Let us end on a pleasant note, Jennifer Guenin's stain glass called, "An Afternoon at the Beach."
There is more, and the pieces that strike you as interesting may be a very different set of items than the ones that strike me. That is part of the fun of art.The SJC band concert is also scheduled for Sunday afternoon (at 3:00). Here is a clip (with no editing at all) from the jazz band in a concert on March 15.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Plaque in Flat Iron Park
One of the most prominent of the plaques in Rensselear is the one in Memorial or Flat Iron Park.
It reads:
Memorial or Flat Iron Park is similar to Milroy Park, which has a memorial to the Civil War, but much smaller. Their basic function is to look nice. However, Milroy Park has some places to sit while Memorial Park has none, and Milroy Park has some additional plaques. Milroy Park is big enough so that people can play frisbee in it (and I am told that at one time had a tennis court), while there is very little one can do in Flat Iron Park. Flat Iron Park, though, has a cannon.
Here is a closer look. I do not know where the name Flat Iron Park came from.
And here is a look at the entire park, a little triangle of land that was created by the transition of the city streets from the north-south/east-west grid to the east and the angled grid of the original plat that followed the river.
I think it needs a bench or a picnic table. What do you think would improve it?
It reads:To honor those who went from Jasper County to serve in the World War this stone was erected by the American Legion Auxiliary Dewey Biggs Post No 29. Dedicated November 11, 1937Obviously the people who put it up did not realize that in just a few years there would be another World War. The plaque is attached to a large boulder that is surrounded by a little hedge.
Memorial or Flat Iron Park is similar to Milroy Park, which has a memorial to the Civil War, but much smaller. Their basic function is to look nice. However, Milroy Park has some places to sit while Memorial Park has none, and Milroy Park has some additional plaques. Milroy Park is big enough so that people can play frisbee in it (and I am told that at one time had a tennis court), while there is very little one can do in Flat Iron Park. Flat Iron Park, though, has a cannon.
Here is a closer look. I do not know where the name Flat Iron Park came from.
And here is a look at the entire park, a little triangle of land that was created by the transition of the city streets from the north-south/east-west grid to the east and the angled grid of the original plat that followed the river.
I think it needs a bench or a picnic table. What do you think would improve it?
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Shopping the Birthright Rummage Sale II
Yesterday we looked at the rummage sale through Friday. The sale continued on Saturday, but the price is even better. You can fill any sized box or bag for only $1. Obviously, the selection is not nearly as good, but there are always overlooked treasures to be found.
The serving counter in the basement began the sale filled with kitchen stuff. By Saturday the few remaining Christmas items were also on the counter. Every year there are mugs left, though almost all of them sold this year. Americans have enough mugs.
Over 50 people came and tooke their time looking though it all. But the time they were done, there was shockingly little left. This year the women's basketball team from Saint Joseph's College volunteered to help clean up. Notice how empty the tables are. This year for the first year ever, all the stuffed animals sold. Usually there are boxes of them left over.
The remains were quickly boxed up and loaded on a truck that would take them to Jasper Junction. This year there was little for them to pick up, as the picture below shows. In some past years the leftovers have filled a truck this size.
My guess is that people are spooked by the economy, and as a result, fewer was being donated and more was being purchased. I asked the people from Jasper Junction how their donations were, and they said that they were noticeably down.
In a final bit of cleanup, the basketball women broke down the leftover cardboard boxes and hauled them out to be recycled.
And then they posed for a group picture. I hope the one they took was in better focus than mine was.
It will be interesting to see how many people will take part in the City-Wide Yard Sale on May 2.
The serving counter in the basement began the sale filled with kitchen stuff. By Saturday the few remaining Christmas items were also on the counter. Every year there are mugs left, though almost all of them sold this year. Americans have enough mugs.
Over 50 people came and tooke their time looking though it all. But the time they were done, there was shockingly little left. This year the women's basketball team from Saint Joseph's College volunteered to help clean up. Notice how empty the tables are. This year for the first year ever, all the stuffed animals sold. Usually there are boxes of them left over.
The remains were quickly boxed up and loaded on a truck that would take them to Jasper Junction. This year there was little for them to pick up, as the picture below shows. In some past years the leftovers have filled a truck this size.My guess is that people are spooked by the economy, and as a result, fewer was being donated and more was being purchased. I asked the people from Jasper Junction how their donations were, and they said that they were noticeably down.
In a final bit of cleanup, the basketball women broke down the leftover cardboard boxes and hauled them out to be recycled.
And then they posed for a group picture. I hope the one they took was in better focus than mine was.
It will be interesting to see how many people will take part in the City-Wide Yard Sale on May 2.
Monday, March 23, 2009
After the equinox
The warm weather the past weekend had a lot of people thinking spring. People were lined up at Busy Bee on its first weekend.
I saw daffodils blooming, though mine are not. My crocuses are finally blooming, though.
Lots of kids and some adults were riding bikes or strolling around in the streets. I saw people with their grills fired up and smoking, and there were people in the parks playing ball, both softball and basketball.
There were also people in the park shelter eating. Soon the park people will be putting out more garbage cans, another sign of the end of winter. It is always fun to see the little kids playing on the playground equipment.
A final sign of spring--WalMart is selling manure. (I wonder if the people who live in Washington D.C. get it free.)
I have seen wood ducks and heard red wing blackbirds and killdeers. One sound of spring that I have not heard yet is the sound of mating frogs and toads. Maybe I do not live near the right ponds. I remember hearing them before the ice had melted when I was in school in Minnesota.
I saw daffodils blooming, though mine are not. My crocuses are finally blooming, though.
Lots of kids and some adults were riding bikes or strolling around in the streets. I saw people with their grills fired up and smoking, and there were people in the parks playing ball, both softball and basketball.
There were also people in the park shelter eating. Soon the park people will be putting out more garbage cans, another sign of the end of winter. It is always fun to see the little kids playing on the playground equipment.
A final sign of spring--WalMart is selling manure. (I wonder if the people who live in Washington D.C. get it free.)
I have seen wood ducks and heard red wing blackbirds and killdeers. One sound of spring that I have not heard yet is the sound of mating frogs and toads. Maybe I do not live near the right ponds. I remember hearing them before the ice had melted when I was in school in Minnesota.
Shopping the Birthright Rummage Sale I
The annual Birthright rummage sale took place last weekend. Like most events, there is a lot of work behind the scenes. It begins the Sunday before when the Saint Augustine Church basement is prepped. Tables and clothing racks are set up and extra chairs are put away.
By Tuesday there was a fair amount of stuff in corner.
On Thursday a pack of people take the pile, sort it, and set it out on tables.
This year it was all set up by Thursday at noon. Compared to years in the past, there was not a lot of stuff. In the year of Katrina, the amount of stuff was noticeably down as people sent loads of clothing south (where most of it probably ended up in landfills). This year was the amount of clothing and stuff was as depressed.
Toys took a tremendous hit. Usually the piles of toys are much higher than this.
The same with shoes, most of which fit on the pie rack. In the past there have been twice as many shoes.
The pile of books may look impressive, but often there are many boxes spread out on the floor.
It is good to see at least one table where some of the stuff had to be put on the floor in boxes. This is what the sale looked like as the doors were ready to be opened at 9:00 on Friday.
Dozens of people were ready to start shopping. Many even brought their own bags to fill for $2.00. The price per paper grocery bag has not changed for many years.
At about 9:30 it was hard to walk around the basement because there were so many people looking through the tables. By the way, the different things are on different tables. Some have women's pants, other women's blouses, others men's shirts, etc.
By the end of the day the tables were much emptier. Below is what was left of the toy section.
Remember the books? There were still a few left, but they probably were not what most people would want to read.
Tomorrow we will look at the end of the sale.
By Tuesday there was a fair amount of stuff in corner.
On Thursday a pack of people take the pile, sort it, and set it out on tables.
This year it was all set up by Thursday at noon. Compared to years in the past, there was not a lot of stuff. In the year of Katrina, the amount of stuff was noticeably down as people sent loads of clothing south (where most of it probably ended up in landfills). This year was the amount of clothing and stuff was as depressed.
Toys took a tremendous hit. Usually the piles of toys are much higher than this.
The same with shoes, most of which fit on the pie rack. In the past there have been twice as many shoes.
The pile of books may look impressive, but often there are many boxes spread out on the floor.
It is good to see at least one table where some of the stuff had to be put on the floor in boxes. This is what the sale looked like as the doors were ready to be opened at 9:00 on Friday.
Dozens of people were ready to start shopping. Many even brought their own bags to fill for $2.00. The price per paper grocery bag has not changed for many years.
At about 9:30 it was hard to walk around the basement because there were so many people looking through the tables. By the way, the different things are on different tables. Some have women's pants, other women's blouses, others men's shirts, etc.
By the end of the day the tables were much emptier. Below is what was left of the toy section.
Remember the books? There were still a few left, but they probably were not what most people would want to read.
Tomorrow we will look at the end of the sale.Sunday, March 22, 2009
Going to church the Iroquois Valley way
(I thought it would be interesting to use Sundays to focus on Rensselaer's churches and to see how many Sundays I can go before I run out of material. Indiana is richly endowed with religious denominations, with influences from North and South, East and West. This is part of that series of posts.)
The Iroquois Valley Christian Church is located west of Rensselaer at 2335 Bunkum Rd. According to the "Church Services Directory" in the Rensselaer Republican, the senior minister is Scott Chastain. It has Sunday school at 9:00 a.m. and blended worship at 10:00 a.m.
I could not find a web site for this church, nor could I find any organization or fellowship of churches to which it belongs. Like a fair number of Rensselaer churches, it appears to be an independent or non denominational church. I found it linked to this camp and other than a lot of directories, not much more.
The Iroquois Valley Christian Church is located west of Rensselaer at 2335 Bunkum Rd. According to the "Church Services Directory" in the Rensselaer Republican, the senior minister is Scott Chastain. It has Sunday school at 9:00 a.m. and blended worship at 10:00 a.m.
I could not find a web site for this church, nor could I find any organization or fellowship of churches to which it belongs. Like a fair number of Rensselaer churches, it appears to be an independent or non denominational church. I found it linked to this camp and other than a lot of directories, not much more.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Renovations
I did not pay attention to the renovation at the Lafayette Bank and Trust for several weeks, until I noticed the dumpster on the street and what appeared to be bricked-up windows.
The bank did have a sign announcing the renovation, and I had actually seen a sign about it earlier, but ingored it.
However, a couple weeks ago I had a check to cash and decided to go in and see what was happening. The main entrance no longer led to the tellers. Instead, it lead to construction.
A smaller door led into a new teller's area. Along the side was plastic that separated the working part of the bank from the under-construction side.
What had appeared to be bricked-up windows were not. Instead, the renovation was creating new windows. In the picture below there on three on the left that have been punched all the way, while two window openings and a doorway still need to have bricks removed.
In the picture below a workman is knocking out bricks for the doorway.
The bank is not the only building with some sort of renovation underway. On Kellner between Cullin and Weston there is an old building that appears to have been a garage of some sort that I noticed looked really dilapidated. It had a hole in the back wall,
Below is how the hole looked from the rear of the building.
A few weeks ago I noticed that there was activity here, and the whole back wall had been taken down.
I do not know what this building has been used for in the past and I do not know what the plans are for its future. Because there has never been anything interesting in it, I have not really noticed it in the past. If you have information, leave it in the comments.
The bank did have a sign announcing the renovation, and I had actually seen a sign about it earlier, but ingored it.
However, a couple weeks ago I had a check to cash and decided to go in and see what was happening. The main entrance no longer led to the tellers. Instead, it lead to construction.
A smaller door led into a new teller's area. Along the side was plastic that separated the working part of the bank from the under-construction side.
What had appeared to be bricked-up windows were not. Instead, the renovation was creating new windows. In the picture below there on three on the left that have been punched all the way, while two window openings and a doorway still need to have bricks removed.
In the picture below a workman is knocking out bricks for the doorway.
The bank is not the only building with some sort of renovation underway. On Kellner between Cullin and Weston there is an old building that appears to have been a garage of some sort that I noticed looked really dilapidated. It had a hole in the back wall,
Below is how the hole looked from the rear of the building.
A few weeks ago I noticed that there was activity here, and the whole back wall had been taken down.
I do not know what this building has been used for in the past and I do not know what the plans are for its future. Because there has never been anything interesting in it, I have not really noticed it in the past. If you have information, leave it in the comments.
Spring equinox
Happy spring equinox, the day on which the sun is directly over the equator. It is also the day on which the sun rises due east and sets due west. If we were on the north pole, we would be welcoming the sunrise. (Actually, because the atmosphere distorts light rays a bit, the sun rises a bit before the spring equinox at north pole and sets a bit after the fall equinox.)
Te picture above shows the sun setting at the end of Jackson Street. You can see three light poles for the softball field.
Te picture above shows the sun setting at the end of Jackson Street. You can see three light poles for the softball field.
Friday, March 20, 2009
A picture of the flood
The graph showing gage height tells the story in a different, more analytical way. Aren't the shapes interesting? They indicate that the river rises faster after a big rain than it declines.
Hunting for trailer past
When I came to Rensselaer, there were two trailer courts in Rensselaer, the existing one at the end of West Washington Street, and a smaller one north of Bunkum Road near the city water wells. This smaller court was closed 25 or 30 years ago, but its road still shows up on google maps and mapquest. Today this area is just west of the fence of the newest part of Weston Cemetery. I suppose the trees and the grasses form a nice backdrop, better than a row of houses or a cornfield.
One cold morning I searched for evidence that there had once been a trailer court here. The view below is from Bunkum. The clear area may once have been the road in. It is hard to tell. There is no obvious evidence now that there was ever a road there.
There are a number of small dirt piles, now grown over with vegetation, but it not clear why they were formed. They look a lot like Indian burial mounds, but obviously that is not what they are. Perhaps they came from bulldozing the road surfaces or other debris left from after the trailers were moved.
If you did not know that a trailer court had been here, you might think someone had dumped this large, concrete block. Even knowing that a trailer court had been here, I do not know is original purpose. You can see the Countryside subdivision in the background.
There are a number of tires along the outside of the property. I wonder if they have been dumped in the years since the trailer court was emptied. I do not know what the blue stuff is. Could it have been a trailer skirt?
In places there is thick undergrowth, and in places there is grass and goldenrod. There are a number of small trails in the property, which were made evident by the light covering of snow. They had deer tracks, so I am pretty sure that they are animal trails, not human trails. The utility pole carries wires that are still in use. The red pine is not too large, so it is possible that it has grown up since the court was deserted.
The white cedar and the yew, however, were ornamentals for some trailer lot years ago. This photograph was taken from Weston Cemetery--you can see the fence in the lower left.
Here is another pile, this one with some auto tires.
At the far end of the lot are more tires and another pile, all a dense growth of small trees.
I do not know why the trailers were taken out and I do not know why this piece of land has been allowed to go back to nature. The land to the west and north are cultivated. Why was it not bulldozed and put into crops? Or why has it not had houses built on it? Or why did the city not buy it and make it part of Weston Cemetery? I am sure there are good answers to all of these questions, and it you know the answers, please leave them in the comments.
Digressions: Before European settlement in the 19th century, this area was inhabited by various tribes of Indiana for thousands of years. Some locals know many spots that are rich in artifacts of these peoples. Yet I know of nothing in Rensselaer or the immediate area that tells us anything about that past. In Lafayette, there is an elementary school (Wea) named after one of the tribes that had a village across the Wabash from Fort Ouiatenon, and Prophetstown State Park commemorates the gathering of tribes for the last big Indian-white battle in the Eastern U.S. Pulastki County has its county seat named after a Potawatomi chief. The only Indian reference I am aware of in the area is the Trail Tree Inn, the name of which refers to a trail through the area marked with bent trees. Why are the original settlers so completely ignored?
Also, given its demographics, Rensselaer has very few trailer homes in its vicinity. Why? Has local government discouraged them?
One cold morning I searched for evidence that there had once been a trailer court here. The view below is from Bunkum. The clear area may once have been the road in. It is hard to tell. There is no obvious evidence now that there was ever a road there.
There are a number of small dirt piles, now grown over with vegetation, but it not clear why they were formed. They look a lot like Indian burial mounds, but obviously that is not what they are. Perhaps they came from bulldozing the road surfaces or other debris left from after the trailers were moved.
If you did not know that a trailer court had been here, you might think someone had dumped this large, concrete block. Even knowing that a trailer court had been here, I do not know is original purpose. You can see the Countryside subdivision in the background.
There are a number of tires along the outside of the property. I wonder if they have been dumped in the years since the trailer court was emptied. I do not know what the blue stuff is. Could it have been a trailer skirt?
In places there is thick undergrowth, and in places there is grass and goldenrod. There are a number of small trails in the property, which were made evident by the light covering of snow. They had deer tracks, so I am pretty sure that they are animal trails, not human trails. The utility pole carries wires that are still in use. The red pine is not too large, so it is possible that it has grown up since the court was deserted.
The white cedar and the yew, however, were ornamentals for some trailer lot years ago. This photograph was taken from Weston Cemetery--you can see the fence in the lower left.
Here is another pile, this one with some auto tires.
At the far end of the lot are more tires and another pile, all a dense growth of small trees.
I do not know why the trailers were taken out and I do not know why this piece of land has been allowed to go back to nature. The land to the west and north are cultivated. Why was it not bulldozed and put into crops? Or why has it not had houses built on it? Or why did the city not buy it and make it part of Weston Cemetery? I am sure there are good answers to all of these questions, and it you know the answers, please leave them in the comments.Digressions: Before European settlement in the 19th century, this area was inhabited by various tribes of Indiana for thousands of years. Some locals know many spots that are rich in artifacts of these peoples. Yet I know of nothing in Rensselaer or the immediate area that tells us anything about that past. In Lafayette, there is an elementary school (Wea) named after one of the tribes that had a village across the Wabash from Fort Ouiatenon, and Prophetstown State Park commemorates the gathering of tribes for the last big Indian-white battle in the Eastern U.S. Pulastki County has its county seat named after a Potawatomi chief. The only Indian reference I am aware of in the area is the Trail Tree Inn, the name of which refers to a trail through the area marked with bent trees. Why are the original settlers so completely ignored?
Also, given its demographics, Rensselaer has very few trailer homes in its vicinity. Why? Has local government discouraged them?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Ag Day Breakfast
Early (for me) on St. Patrick's Day I jogged over to the Knights of Columbus Hall to attend the 2009 Jasper County Ag Day Breakfast.
From the parking lot it appeared that they had a good crowd, but there was plenty of seating inside.
For the $1.00 charge, the amount that the farmers would receive, we got eggs, pork sausage, toast, shredded potatoes, and orange juice. (Coffee or milk were also options.)
I picked up a couple of pages of statistics as I entered and took a look at them as I was eating. They were from the 2007 Census of Agriculture, and they ranked the state of Indiana and Jasper County on a variety of commodities. Jasper County was number 1 in the state for the total value of agricultural products sold and 165 of 3076 counties nationally. For grains, oilseeds, dry beans, and dry peas it was second in the state and 77th of 2933 counties nationally. It was first in milk and other dairy products from cows in the state and 57th of 2493 counties nationally. It was also first in the state for corn and 51st nationally.
I checked the internet to see if I could find other statistics, and found bits of data for 2008. We were only 2nd in corn (White County was 1, Benton 3, Carroll 4, and Newton 7), and tenth in soybeans.
I also enjoyed looking at the place mats. They had some information about how plants naturally produce chemicals to fight off disease, fungus, and insects, and that when they are injured, they are less nutritious. The implication was that if farmers pampered their plants by helping them with some additional chemicals, they would be good for you. I guess that is the chemical industry's response to the organic food movement. (Economists, by the way, tend to view the organic-food marketing as a method of price discrimination.)
When it was time to leave, I noticed that they had goodie bags with pens, notepads, keychains, and other fun stuff.
Here are some more statistics from the 2007 Census of Agriculture. Jasper County had 734 farms in 2007, up from 641 in 2002. The land in farms increased 21% from 280,368 acres to 340,339 acres. (I do not understand how that would have happened. What were those 60,000 acres being used for in 2002?) However, 137 of the farms had sales less than $1000 and another 53 had sales between $1000 and $4999. (If I took my garden produce to the farmers market and sold it, earning $100 or maybe even $200, would that make me a farmer? How can anyone selling less than $1000 worth of farm products be called a farmer? Maybe they will disappear if a bill in Congress passes.) On the other hand, 315 had sales more than $100,000, and 106 of those had sales more than $500,000.
Total market value of production was $293. 5 million, split almost evenly between crop sales and livestock sales. (I assume milk production would be in livestock sales.) Total government payments to farmers were $5,965,000.
As a bonus, when I got home, I noticed that the crocuses in my neighbor's yard were blooming. When I was a kid in Minnesota, where the winters are long and cold, I would find crocuses on the hillsides, and I was always very excited because it meant that winter was drawing to an end. Childhood memories can give some things special importance, and for me crocuses are one of those things.
From the parking lot it appeared that they had a good crowd, but there was plenty of seating inside.
For the $1.00 charge, the amount that the farmers would receive, we got eggs, pork sausage, toast, shredded potatoes, and orange juice. (Coffee or milk were also options.)
I picked up a couple of pages of statistics as I entered and took a look at them as I was eating. They were from the 2007 Census of Agriculture, and they ranked the state of Indiana and Jasper County on a variety of commodities. Jasper County was number 1 in the state for the total value of agricultural products sold and 165 of 3076 counties nationally. For grains, oilseeds, dry beans, and dry peas it was second in the state and 77th of 2933 counties nationally. It was first in milk and other dairy products from cows in the state and 57th of 2493 counties nationally. It was also first in the state for corn and 51st nationally.I checked the internet to see if I could find other statistics, and found bits of data for 2008. We were only 2nd in corn (White County was 1, Benton 3, Carroll 4, and Newton 7), and tenth in soybeans.
I also enjoyed looking at the place mats. They had some information about how plants naturally produce chemicals to fight off disease, fungus, and insects, and that when they are injured, they are less nutritious. The implication was that if farmers pampered their plants by helping them with some additional chemicals, they would be good for you. I guess that is the chemical industry's response to the organic food movement. (Economists, by the way, tend to view the organic-food marketing as a method of price discrimination.)
When it was time to leave, I noticed that they had goodie bags with pens, notepads, keychains, and other fun stuff.
Here are some more statistics from the 2007 Census of Agriculture. Jasper County had 734 farms in 2007, up from 641 in 2002. The land in farms increased 21% from 280,368 acres to 340,339 acres. (I do not understand how that would have happened. What were those 60,000 acres being used for in 2002?) However, 137 of the farms had sales less than $1000 and another 53 had sales between $1000 and $4999. (If I took my garden produce to the farmers market and sold it, earning $100 or maybe even $200, would that make me a farmer? How can anyone selling less than $1000 worth of farm products be called a farmer? Maybe they will disappear if a bill in Congress passes.) On the other hand, 315 had sales more than $100,000, and 106 of those had sales more than $500,000.Total market value of production was $293. 5 million, split almost evenly between crop sales and livestock sales. (I assume milk production would be in livestock sales.) Total government payments to farmers were $5,965,000.
As a bonus, when I got home, I noticed that the crocuses in my neighbor's yard were blooming. When I was a kid in Minnesota, where the winters are long and cold, I would find crocuses on the hillsides, and I was always very excited because it meant that winter was drawing to an end. Childhood memories can give some things special importance, and for me crocuses are one of those things.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Greater Tuna
On March 13 and 14 the Carnegie Players presented "Greater Tuna," a two-man play set in a small Texas town. Before the play, there was the option of dinner. We went on Saturday, and there was no crowd at all.
There was live entertainment in the form of harp music.
You could sit in the light or in semi-darkness. We enjoyed the meal and the dinner conversation.
The two actors for the show were Mark Brouwer, who also directed, and Roger Burns. I have watched Mark since he was in high school productions, and he has always been an exceptional actor. I have seen much less of Roger Burns, but he provided an excellent match for Mark. The display in the hall outside the high school theater showed some of the costume changes that they would be making, but not the best of them. Click on the picture to see a somewhat larger version that will show some of the characters that they played.
The play had a rather harsh and jaundiced view of life in a small Texas town, but there was a lot of humor, and the actors were really good. Just watching Mark Brouwer play Bertha Bumiller was worth the price of admission.
Roger played the younger women roles, such as Charlene Bumiller, the daughter of Bertha who is frustrated because she never made the cheerleader squad.
Parts of the show were enacting scenes from a radio station. Below Roger as the embittered Didi Snavely is talking to Leonard Childers on the call-in show.
Another character of Mark that was very funny was Pearl Burras, an old lady who poisons dogs. Below Pearl and Vera Carp are paying respects to the late judge who had sentenced Stanley Burmiller, Pearl's nephew, to reform school. Here is the scene on Youtube. I think the Rensselaer production is at least as good. (You can see a lot of different performances on Youtube. If you have gone or are going to go, take a look and you will see just how good Brouwer and Burns are.)
Here is Roger in his last appearance as Charlene. As you can tell, I really enjoyed the scenes where they played women--they were very funny.
The play, with no dinner option, will have its last run on March 20 and 21. Tickets are available at Longs and Jordan Floral. It is exceptionally well done, and if you enjoy live theater, you should not miss it.
There was live entertainment in the form of harp music.
You could sit in the light or in semi-darkness. We enjoyed the meal and the dinner conversation.
The two actors for the show were Mark Brouwer, who also directed, and Roger Burns. I have watched Mark since he was in high school productions, and he has always been an exceptional actor. I have seen much less of Roger Burns, but he provided an excellent match for Mark. The display in the hall outside the high school theater showed some of the costume changes that they would be making, but not the best of them. Click on the picture to see a somewhat larger version that will show some of the characters that they played.
The play had a rather harsh and jaundiced view of life in a small Texas town, but there was a lot of humor, and the actors were really good. Just watching Mark Brouwer play Bertha Bumiller was worth the price of admission.
Roger played the younger women roles, such as Charlene Bumiller, the daughter of Bertha who is frustrated because she never made the cheerleader squad.
Parts of the show were enacting scenes from a radio station. Below Roger as the embittered Didi Snavely is talking to Leonard Childers on the call-in show.
Another character of Mark that was very funny was Pearl Burras, an old lady who poisons dogs. Below Pearl and Vera Carp are paying respects to the late judge who had sentenced Stanley Burmiller, Pearl's nephew, to reform school. Here is the scene on Youtube. I think the Rensselaer production is at least as good. (You can see a lot of different performances on Youtube. If you have gone or are going to go, take a look and you will see just how good Brouwer and Burns are.)
Here is Roger in his last appearance as Charlene. As you can tell, I really enjoyed the scenes where they played women--they were very funny.
The play, with no dinner option, will have its last run on March 20 and 21. Tickets are available at Longs and Jordan Floral. It is exceptionally well done, and if you enjoy live theater, you should not miss it.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
A trip to Monon
Recently we took a trip to the Monon Meat Packing Company to pick up half a hog. We are like quite a few other people in Rensselaer--we do not buy much meat at the local grocery stores, but rather we buy it directly from farmers. And when you do that, sometimes you have to travel a bit because Rensselaer does not have a processing plant.
The Monon Meat Packing Company is located a block east of U.S. Highway 421, next to the railroad tracks that at one time went to Michigan City, but today end in Medaryville. When you enter, it does not look much like a normal grocery store.
The sign over the counter gives prices for various things that you cannot get in a normal supermarket. What does your local supermarket charge for slaughtering a goat? Sometimes, but not recently, we go to the Brook locker plant to pick up meat, and the last time I was there they had the charges for processing deer. I did not see that in Monon.
Although purchasing meat in this way is common in Rensselaer, none of the people I know who live in big cities buy meat in this way, unless they come from a small town and still have the small town connections.
Monon Meat Packing also sells individual cuts of meat, so it is not necessary to buy half a pig at a time. When we were there, we also picked up some buffalo steaks and some barbecue ribs.
I do not think they carry any unfrozen meat. Maybe they do for sausage.
In the distant past, I remember a similar place in Remington, but it closed.
One of my native Rensselaerian sources remembers that there was a locker plant on Milroy Street near the General Milroy statue, and that she used to visit it to get meat from the family locker. I vaguely remember people referring to one of those buildings as the old locker plant. Asking around, I found it was the first house on Milroy. It was built in 1932 as a locker plant. In the late 1960s it was converted to apartments, and then just a few years ago converted to a residence and an office. The back of the building has walls that are three feet thick. Apparently animals were not slaughtered there, but people could rent locker space and store meat there, and there was also space for cutting meat. I guess that made sense in the days before home freezers were common. If you know more, share in the comments.
Below is what half a hog looks like when you buy it from a meat packing plant. We pay the Monon Meat, and also our neighbor who raises hogs. Usually the amount we pay for processing is greater than the amount we pay the farmer.
We dump it into the trunk and are ready to drive back to Rensselaer.
If you are interested in buying meat in this way, I recall that one of the vendors at the farmers market this past summer was selling freezer beef, and there are sometimes ads in the Rensselaer Republican from farmers who want to sell freezer beef. Or give Monon Meat Packing a call at 219-253-6363.
The Monon Meat Packing Company is located a block east of U.S. Highway 421, next to the railroad tracks that at one time went to Michigan City, but today end in Medaryville. When you enter, it does not look much like a normal grocery store.
The sign over the counter gives prices for various things that you cannot get in a normal supermarket. What does your local supermarket charge for slaughtering a goat? Sometimes, but not recently, we go to the Brook locker plant to pick up meat, and the last time I was there they had the charges for processing deer. I did not see that in Monon.Although purchasing meat in this way is common in Rensselaer, none of the people I know who live in big cities buy meat in this way, unless they come from a small town and still have the small town connections.
Monon Meat Packing also sells individual cuts of meat, so it is not necessary to buy half a pig at a time. When we were there, we also picked up some buffalo steaks and some barbecue ribs.
I do not think they carry any unfrozen meat. Maybe they do for sausage.
In the distant past, I remember a similar place in Remington, but it closed.One of my native Rensselaerian sources remembers that there was a locker plant on Milroy Street near the General Milroy statue, and that she used to visit it to get meat from the family locker. I vaguely remember people referring to one of those buildings as the old locker plant. Asking around, I found it was the first house on Milroy. It was built in 1932 as a locker plant. In the late 1960s it was converted to apartments, and then just a few years ago converted to a residence and an office. The back of the building has walls that are three feet thick. Apparently animals were not slaughtered there, but people could rent locker space and store meat there, and there was also space for cutting meat. I guess that made sense in the days before home freezers were common. If you know more, share in the comments.
Below is what half a hog looks like when you buy it from a meat packing plant. We pay the Monon Meat, and also our neighbor who raises hogs. Usually the amount we pay for processing is greater than the amount we pay the farmer.
We dump it into the trunk and are ready to drive back to Rensselaer.
If you are interested in buying meat in this way, I recall that one of the vendors at the farmers market this past summer was selling freezer beef, and there are sometimes ads in the Rensselaer Republican from farmers who want to sell freezer beef. Or give Monon Meat Packing a call at 219-253-6363.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Signs of spring
This sign pretty much says it all.
The picture above was taken on March 12. Note the high water in the background and the sandbags. Here is a better look at the sandbag in a picture taken a day later.
By the way, the lady with the pole really knew how to handle it. I had a lot more trouble when I was raising gas prices, but I did have a longer pole.
Below is another sign that spring is on the way.
(Why is kite flying concentrated in the spring? Why do people not fly them more in the summer?)
The picture above was taken on March 12. Note the high water in the background and the sandbags. Here is a better look at the sandbag in a picture taken a day later.
By the way, the lady with the pole really knew how to handle it. I had a lot more trouble when I was raising gas prices, but I did have a longer pole.Below is another sign that spring is on the way.
(Why is kite flying concentrated in the spring? Why do people not fly them more in the summer?)
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Going to church the Bible Baptist way
(I thought it would be interesting to use Sundays to focus on Rensselaer's churches and to see how many Sundays I can go before I run out of material. Indiana is richly endowed with religious denominations, with influences from North and South, East and West. This is part of that series of posts. )
The Bible Baptist Church on 722 North Summer Street (or north of Clark Street and west of Brookside Creek) has Sunday services at 9 a.m and 8 p.m. The pastor is David Hoffman. The Rensselaer Republican does not have them in the proper alphabetical spot in the "Church Services Directory." (They seem at one time to have been called the Open Door Baptist Church and the Open Bible Baptist Church, which would account for their place in the "Church Services Directory.") Below is the view from Vine Street.
Here is the view from Clark Street.
The church does not have a website, but it is listed here http://www.biblebelievers.com/churches/. This is not an organizational site; rather the churches listed here agree on a set of beliefs, including:
Wikipedia has more about generic Baptists. Baptists dominate the south as the maps from Valparaiso University illustrate.
The Bible Baptist Church on 722 North Summer Street (or north of Clark Street and west of Brookside Creek) has Sunday services at 9 a.m and 8 p.m. The pastor is David Hoffman. The Rensselaer Republican does not have them in the proper alphabetical spot in the "Church Services Directory." (They seem at one time to have been called the Open Door Baptist Church and the Open Bible Baptist Church, which would account for their place in the "Church Services Directory.") Below is the view from Vine Street.
Here is the view from Clark Street.
The church does not have a website, but it is listed here http://www.biblebelievers.com/churches/. This is not an organizational site; rather the churches listed here agree on a set of beliefs, including:We believe the King James "Authorized Version" Bible to be the perfect and infallible word of God. We believe the Bible was inspired in its origination and then divinely preserved throughout its various generations and languages until it reached us in its final form. By this we mean that the Authorized Version preserves the very words of God in the form in which He wished them to be represented in the universal language of these last days: English.The Bible Baptist Church is listed here as an independent Baptist church and here as a King James Bible Church.
We believe a man is secured in his salvation eternally and unconditionally at the moment he believes. This condition is secured by the numerous irreversible works of God and the Holy Spirit.
We believe that believers should be immersed in water after being saved. Such believers baptism is an ordinance but is not a means of grace. Also This directory contains a listing of churches organized by geographical region. Among these churches you will find differing practices and convictions. Why? The Bible teaches that a local, New Testament church should be autonomous (i.e. self-governing).
Wikipedia has more about generic Baptists. Baptists dominate the south as the maps from Valparaiso University illustrate.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
More flood pictures
Thursday was the high-water day for the spring flood of 2009. (Let us hope that there is only one.) The water was high enough so that most of Bicentennial Park was covered. However, the bank near the river is higher than the land further back, so part of the park was isolated as an island. I wonder if the high spot was caused by fill over what had once been a garbage dump.
The water was on the road at the ends of Milroy and Sparling.
Several houses on College Avenue were surrounded by water, and much of that water was flowing.
Across street you can see how far up College Avenue the water came. To park by the water treatment plant, you had to drive through water.
By the way, the Jasper County Interim Report liked this little building, which houses Rensselaer Well #1, giving it a notable rating. It says, "Relatively detailed for a functional building, it was constructed about 1935." (The Report likes the municipal power plant even more.)
As the above pictures suggests, pretty much all of Iroquois Park was under water. There was no access to the park building. To the right of the big tree you can see just the very top of a fencepost sticking out. The fencepost is about 18 inches high.
Below is another picture of Austin Park. Notice that the water has risen up to the sign showing park plans, and the sign is creating a little wake.
Here is a little video of the water going under the Washington Street Bridge. It would not be a good day to raft down the river.
By Friday morning the water was starting to recede, as you can see from the ice in one pond that is at river level.
Another place where the receding water was evident was on some of the trees, which had tiny ice skirts on them. This picture reminded me of much more impressive ice skirts from a smaller flood in January, 2005.
The ice skirts from January, 2005 were impressive. I wish I had had a better camera to capture them.
These 2005 pictures were taken between the College Avenue and the Washington Street bridges on the North side of the river.
If the temperatures were in the single digits, we probably would be forming equally impressive ice formations this year. But I am happy to forego the ice formations for an early onset of spring.
The gauging (or gaging) station had the river level at 15.4 feet at 6:00pm on Friday. It should slip below 15 feet on Saturday.
Update: It was at 14.96 at 7:30 on Saturday morning, 14.08 at 6:30 Sunday morning, and 12.97 at 7:30 Monday morning.
The water was on the road at the ends of Milroy and Sparling.
Several houses on College Avenue were surrounded by water, and much of that water was flowing.
Across street you can see how far up College Avenue the water came. To park by the water treatment plant, you had to drive through water.By the way, the Jasper County Interim Report liked this little building, which houses Rensselaer Well #1, giving it a notable rating. It says, "Relatively detailed for a functional building, it was constructed about 1935." (The Report likes the municipal power plant even more.)
As the above pictures suggests, pretty much all of Iroquois Park was under water. There was no access to the park building. To the right of the big tree you can see just the very top of a fencepost sticking out. The fencepost is about 18 inches high.
Below is another picture of Austin Park. Notice that the water has risen up to the sign showing park plans, and the sign is creating a little wake.
Here is a little video of the water going under the Washington Street Bridge. It would not be a good day to raft down the river.By Friday morning the water was starting to recede, as you can see from the ice in one pond that is at river level.
Another place where the receding water was evident was on some of the trees, which had tiny ice skirts on them. This picture reminded me of much more impressive ice skirts from a smaller flood in January, 2005.
The ice skirts from January, 2005 were impressive. I wish I had had a better camera to capture them.
These 2005 pictures were taken between the College Avenue and the Washington Street bridges on the North side of the river.
If the temperatures were in the single digits, we probably would be forming equally impressive ice formations this year. But I am happy to forego the ice formations for an early onset of spring.
The gauging (or gaging) station had the river level at 15.4 feet at 6:00pm on Friday. It should slip below 15 feet on Saturday.Update: It was at 14.96 at 7:30 on Saturday morning, 14.08 at 6:30 Sunday morning, and 12.97 at 7:30 Monday morning.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Death of a Landmark 2
These pictures continue a look at the demolition of the old J.W. Duvall Livery and Feed building. These pictures are dated July 17, 2002. Unless I set the camera clock inaccurately or altered the dates once the files were downloaded to the computer, they are accurate.
The next three pictures are dated July 18, 2002.
This picture is dated October 1, 2002.
The next three pictures are dated July 18, 2002.
This picture is dated October 1, 2002.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Lakeshore views
Rensselaer suddenly has a lot of lakeside property, and some of it is for sale. Buy it now while the lakes are still there!
The picture above shows water from the swale that runs through Rensselaer. It is what accounts for the water on Cullin Street between Susan and Clark, and at the intersection of College and Jackson, which is shown below. The Imes-Babcock-Paulus House, an Italianate, was built in 1879, The porches were added in 1914, and the back addition a year or two ago. The pond in front was added on Tuesday.
The LaRue Pool also has a lake by it. Too bad it will not be there when the weather is warm. The "pool rats" would love it.
The future Kirby Risk building on 114 has a substantial lake behind it. I hope the developers deal with the drainage before they put up more buildings.
Many areas of the Saint Joseph's College campus have poor drainage, and on Wednesday that gave the Apartments a lakeside view. If it were warmer, there would be students in the picture. But we dropped about 40 degrees in a few hours last night, from the mid 60s to the mid 20s early this morning. It is a bit chilly to be playing in water.
If anyone was wondering the rationale for Austin Park, this picture shows it. It floods. All of it.
The picture below shows how high the water is in this flood. This is a big one. It is not as big as the flood of July 2003 (and I hope I never see another as big), but it is likely to be in the top five for the past fifty years. The USGS gauging station at Laird's Landing has the current (7:30 pm, Wednesday, March 11, 2009) water height at 15.88 (over 12 is flood), and the flow at 2570 cfs, and it is still be rising a bit. The average for the day will be a less than 2570, but it will be much higher than the previous high for the day, which was only 1670 in 1990. (The highest the river got in 2003 was 16.59. See here.)
Here is the last house on Milroy, which now is right on the shoreline.
Weston Cemetery is a big lake.
The picture below shows the bridge over the creek. If you look carefully, you will see just the tops of the bridge railings peeking above the surface. That is how I remember the bridge looking back in July 2009. So the river in Rensselaer may be pretty close to the height it was in July 2003. However, downstream it is not nearly as deep. I went out to Mount Calvary Road to see how much water was on it, and although the sign said there was water, I could not see it. In 2003 a large stretch of it was underwater, and there was a huge lake there that is not there now.
However, there is flooding south of town, as the road-closed sign indicates. My guess is is along the Howe Ditch. The signs here are near the entrance to Saint Joseph's College
The scene below is pretty common in Rensselaer wherever there are basements. This is along Melville Street.
Do you have any interesting flood stories or information? Feel free to leave them in the comments.
PS: I saw a lot of robins on Tuesday and Walmart was setting up their garden center, more signs of spring.
Update: The river seems to have crested a bit above 16.1 feet early today.
In my basement drain I can see water about two inches down. There should be no water there. I think it is reflecting the level of the river. In the flood of July 2003, the water level rose above the floor of the basement, and water spurted from the cracks in the floor. That had never happened before. So this flood thankfully will fall a bit short (about five inches) of the 2003 flood.
Update 2: Friday morning at 8:00 the river was at 15.74 and headed down.
The picture above shows water from the swale that runs through Rensselaer. It is what accounts for the water on Cullin Street between Susan and Clark, and at the intersection of College and Jackson, which is shown below. The Imes-Babcock-Paulus House, an Italianate, was built in 1879, The porches were added in 1914, and the back addition a year or two ago. The pond in front was added on Tuesday.
The LaRue Pool also has a lake by it. Too bad it will not be there when the weather is warm. The "pool rats" would love it.
The future Kirby Risk building on 114 has a substantial lake behind it. I hope the developers deal with the drainage before they put up more buildings.
Many areas of the Saint Joseph's College campus have poor drainage, and on Wednesday that gave the Apartments a lakeside view. If it were warmer, there would be students in the picture. But we dropped about 40 degrees in a few hours last night, from the mid 60s to the mid 20s early this morning. It is a bit chilly to be playing in water.
If anyone was wondering the rationale for Austin Park, this picture shows it. It floods. All of it.
The picture below shows how high the water is in this flood. This is a big one. It is not as big as the flood of July 2003 (and I hope I never see another as big), but it is likely to be in the top five for the past fifty years. The USGS gauging station at Laird's Landing has the current (7:30 pm, Wednesday, March 11, 2009) water height at 15.88 (over 12 is flood), and the flow at 2570 cfs, and it is still be rising a bit. The average for the day will be a less than 2570, but it will be much higher than the previous high for the day, which was only 1670 in 1990. (The highest the river got in 2003 was 16.59. See here.)
Here is the last house on Milroy, which now is right on the shoreline.
Weston Cemetery is a big lake.
The picture below shows the bridge over the creek. If you look carefully, you will see just the tops of the bridge railings peeking above the surface. That is how I remember the bridge looking back in July 2009. So the river in Rensselaer may be pretty close to the height it was in July 2003. However, downstream it is not nearly as deep. I went out to Mount Calvary Road to see how much water was on it, and although the sign said there was water, I could not see it. In 2003 a large stretch of it was underwater, and there was a huge lake there that is not there now.
However, there is flooding south of town, as the road-closed sign indicates. My guess is is along the Howe Ditch. The signs here are near the entrance to Saint Joseph's College
The scene below is pretty common in Rensselaer wherever there are basements. This is along Melville Street.
Do you have any interesting flood stories or information? Feel free to leave them in the comments.PS: I saw a lot of robins on Tuesday and Walmart was setting up their garden center, more signs of spring.
Update: The river seems to have crested a bit above 16.1 feet early today.
In my basement drain I can see water about two inches down. There should be no water there. I think it is reflecting the level of the river. In the flood of July 2003, the water level rose above the floor of the basement, and water spurted from the cracks in the floor. That had never happened before. So this flood thankfully will fall a bit short (about five inches) of the 2003 flood.
Update 2: Friday morning at 8:00 the river was at 15.74 and headed down.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Gingerbread houses
Gingerbread is a term for elaborate decorative work on Victorian-era houses. For the past few weeks I have been looking for examples on Rensselaer houses and have found fewer than I expected to find.
A good starting place to look for almost anything in housing architecture is on Milroy Avenue, and there are two houses there with some gingerbread. One is the McCoy house, described in the Jasper County Interim Report as, "The unique McCoy House was designed in the Victorian Gothic/Chateauesque style around 1880." Usually the gingerbread is in a gable front, but here it is in three gables.
The other Milroy house is across from Milroy Park, and though it is not a big or impressive building, it has some of the best gingerbread of any home in Rensselaer. Check out the porch.
Below is a close-up of the gable gingerbread. I do not know if this is original. A lot of Rensselaer houses have lost their gingerbread because it is a chore to paint and keep up. It is possible that some of the houses that now have it have restored it to get the house back to its historic look.
Below is the David Nowels House on North McKinley. The Jasper County Interim Report says it "was built around 1890 in the Queen Anne style. It facade features a unique angular boxed bay." It does not have gable gingerbread, but some sources consider all the detail around the porch and the bay to be gingerbread. Gingerbread and the Queen Anne style often went together.
Another of Rensselaer's distinctive Queen Anne style houses is the Delos Thompson house on Front Street, which was noted in a previous entry because it seems to have a hitching post in front of it and it has a white cedar by its side. This house was extensively restored to is present grandeur about fifteen years ago by Ron Geleott and was once on a tour of Rensselaer homes. Its gable gingerbread is rather restrained.
A block to the west of the Nowels House on Weston Street is a less impressive Queen Anne that has an unusual color and wonderful gingerbread.
Most houses with gable gingerbread will have it not only on the gables that face the street, but also on the gables that face the neighbors. On the north end of College is a home that has broken gingerbread in the front of the house facing College.
However, the gingerbread on the side facing Vine is still complete. This house, which is not listed in the Jasper County Interim Report, perhaps because it has been sided, also has gingerbread in the gable facing south to its neighbor.
The strange gingerbread below is on a house that is near the north end of Van Rensselaer. It is also not listed in the Jasper County Interim Report, perhaps because not only has it been sided, but its windows have been changed. Notice the patterned siding behind the gingerbread. This kind of detail is very common on homes build during the Victorian period.
Finally, there is a small Queen Anne cottage near the corner of Cullen and Clark that in my opinion has the best gable gingerbread of any house in Rensselaer.
The picture below may show it better.
Most of the gingerbread houses that I found were not south of the river, as I expected, but north and northwest of the downtown. Do you know of any other examples in Rensselaer?
A good starting place to look for almost anything in housing architecture is on Milroy Avenue, and there are two houses there with some gingerbread. One is the McCoy house, described in the Jasper County Interim Report as, "The unique McCoy House was designed in the Victorian Gothic/Chateauesque style around 1880." Usually the gingerbread is in a gable front, but here it is in three gables.
The other Milroy house is across from Milroy Park, and though it is not a big or impressive building, it has some of the best gingerbread of any home in Rensselaer. Check out the porch.
Below is a close-up of the gable gingerbread. I do not know if this is original. A lot of Rensselaer houses have lost their gingerbread because it is a chore to paint and keep up. It is possible that some of the houses that now have it have restored it to get the house back to its historic look.
Below is the David Nowels House on North McKinley. The Jasper County Interim Report says it "was built around 1890 in the Queen Anne style. It facade features a unique angular boxed bay." It does not have gable gingerbread, but some sources consider all the detail around the porch and the bay to be gingerbread. Gingerbread and the Queen Anne style often went together.
Another of Rensselaer's distinctive Queen Anne style houses is the Delos Thompson house on Front Street, which was noted in a previous entry because it seems to have a hitching post in front of it and it has a white cedar by its side. This house was extensively restored to is present grandeur about fifteen years ago by Ron Geleott and was once on a tour of Rensselaer homes. Its gable gingerbread is rather restrained.
A block to the west of the Nowels House on Weston Street is a less impressive Queen Anne that has an unusual color and wonderful gingerbread.
Most houses with gable gingerbread will have it not only on the gables that face the street, but also on the gables that face the neighbors. On the north end of College is a home that has broken gingerbread in the front of the house facing College.
However, the gingerbread on the side facing Vine is still complete. This house, which is not listed in the Jasper County Interim Report, perhaps because it has been sided, also has gingerbread in the gable facing south to its neighbor.
The strange gingerbread below is on a house that is near the north end of Van Rensselaer. It is also not listed in the Jasper County Interim Report, perhaps because not only has it been sided, but its windows have been changed. Notice the patterned siding behind the gingerbread. This kind of detail is very common on homes build during the Victorian period.
Finally, there is a small Queen Anne cottage near the corner of Cullen and Clark that in my opinion has the best gable gingerbread of any house in Rensselaer.
The picture below may show it better.
Most of the gingerbread houses that I found were not south of the river, as I expected, but north and northwest of the downtown. Do you know of any other examples in Rensselaer?
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Is your basement dry?
Mine is not. The heavy rain this evening backed up the sewers and caused seepage from everywhere, and as a result, I have several inches of water in my basement. If you have a basement, how are you doing?
The river is now (10:00pm CST) at 14.5 feet and headed higher. The swale at College and Jackson is running well, and some people were enjoying driving through the several inches of water on College by Iroquois Park.
The river is now (10:00pm CST) at 14.5 feet and headed higher. The swale at College and Jackson is running well, and some people were enjoying driving through the several inches of water on College by Iroquois Park.
Street closings
The rain today has pushed the river higher, and it is now at 14 feet at the gauging station. Water was starting to creep over College Avenue at about 4:00.
There was standing water at the intersection of College, Jackson, and Front, where in times long past a swale used to be, and it still reveals itself when we have big rains.
Right after I took the picture above, a city truck arrived and two workers put out a road closed sign for College.
Turning onto Lincoln, the intersection of Lincoln and Elza was underwater. There was some water flowing across Lincoln, but it was still passable.
Parts of the roads in the cemetery were completely submerged.
And a few minutes after I took the above picture, three city trucks arrived to put up signs closing Lincoln.
There is more rain in the forecast. We will see how high water goes this time. The river flow is just a tad under 2000 cubic feet per second. In really bad floods it has been over 2500 cfs.
There was standing water at the intersection of College, Jackson, and Front, where in times long past a swale used to be, and it still reveals itself when we have big rains.
Right after I took the picture above, a city truck arrived and two workers put out a road closed sign for College.
Turning onto Lincoln, the intersection of Lincoln and Elza was underwater. There was some water flowing across Lincoln, but it was still passable.
Parts of the roads in the cemetery were completely submerged.
And a few minutes after I took the above picture, three city trucks arrived to put up signs closing Lincoln.
There is more rain in the forecast. We will see how high water goes this time. The river flow is just a tad under 2000 cubic feet per second. In really bad floods it has been over 2500 cfs.
Educational building
Monnett grade school has the planets painted on one of the wings. I think that is a very creative way to teach some elementary astronomy. 
The also have a map of the U.S on the basketball court.
Sometimes people learn best when they are not aware that they are being taught.
The also have a map of the U.S on the basketball court.
Sometimes people learn best when they are not aware that they are being taught.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Bad tree year
There is another tree in the river by the cemetery. This one is a recent fall, but like the one further downstream, it is backing up water. With all the trees damaged during the winter, and now trees dropping in the spring, this has been a bad year for trees.
When the water goes down, maybe we will be able to walk across it. Or might someone actually remove this one?
As the picture shows, we had a lot of rain Sunday, and the river is at 13 feet, above flood stage, which is 12 feet. It may be setting a record today and/or tomorrow. And if we get the additional rain forecast tomorrow, it may rise even higher.
When the water goes down, maybe we will be able to walk across it. Or might someone actually remove this one?As the picture shows, we had a lot of rain Sunday, and the river is at 13 feet, above flood stage, which is 12 feet. It may be setting a record today and/or tomorrow. And if we get the additional rain forecast tomorrow, it may rise even higher.
Shopping at the Saint Joseph's College Bookstore
There are some retail stores in strange spots in and around Rensselaer, and one of those in a strange spot is the Saint Joseph's College bookstore, which is in the back of Halleck Center. It is not a location that is likely to attract the casual shopper. Unless one intends to specifically go to the bookstore, one will not get there. Below is a picture through its window, which is on the hallway around the Halleck Center ball room. You might see the reflection of part of the mural that is painted on the walls around the ballroom reflecting in the window.
You would expect books in a bookstore, and like almost every other college bookstore in the country, the store stocks books that will be used in the classes held during the semester. One of the problems facing all college bookstores is the threat of the on-line book sellers. Both amazon.com and abebooks.com, among others, usually will sell copies of textbooks cheaper than a college bookstore. Some students use these sources, but most still do not. It is easier and quicker to go to the bookstore.
The bookstore also caries a variety of school supply. It also sells some food and softdrinks, and to encourage people to buy them, it has a couple of tables with chairs for people to sit and enjoy them, as you can see in the first picture. However, more floor space is taken up with clothing and SJC paraphenalia than anything else.
I am not aware of any other place in town that one can buy SJC paraphernalia. If you want a SJC tee shirt, sweatshirt, or hoodie, you have to visit the college bookstore.
The picture below is taken from the back of the store looking toward the front of the store.
Today students will be returning from spring break, and if they left pens or pencils at home, they may be heading over to the bookstore to replace them.
You would expect books in a bookstore, and like almost every other college bookstore in the country, the store stocks books that will be used in the classes held during the semester. One of the problems facing all college bookstores is the threat of the on-line book sellers. Both amazon.com and abebooks.com, among others, usually will sell copies of textbooks cheaper than a college bookstore. Some students use these sources, but most still do not. It is easier and quicker to go to the bookstore.
The bookstore also caries a variety of school supply. It also sells some food and softdrinks, and to encourage people to buy them, it has a couple of tables with chairs for people to sit and enjoy them, as you can see in the first picture. However, more floor space is taken up with clothing and SJC paraphenalia than anything else.
I am not aware of any other place in town that one can buy SJC paraphernalia. If you want a SJC tee shirt, sweatshirt, or hoodie, you have to visit the college bookstore.The picture below is taken from the back of the store looking toward the front of the store.
Today students will be returning from spring break, and if they left pens or pencils at home, they may be heading over to the bookstore to replace them.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Going to church the Harvest Baptist way
(I thought it would be interesting to use Sundays to focus on Rensselaer's churches and to see how many Sundays I can go before I run out of material. Indiana is richly endowed with religious denominations, with influences from North and South, East and West. This is part of that series of posts.)
Rensselaer has several Baptist congregations in the surrounding area. The Harvest Baptist Fellowship, north of Rensselaer at 305 E Wood Road, is the only one that seems to be affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. It is part of the Wabash Valley Baptist Association. Unlike some denominations, in which the local church is subservient to the larger church, the Baptists are congregational.
The Southern Baptist website explains some of the fundamental beliefs of the Southern Baptists:
Baptists dominate the south as the maps from Valparaiso University illustrate.
Rensselaer has several Baptist congregations in the surrounding area. The Harvest Baptist Fellowship, north of Rensselaer at 305 E Wood Road, is the only one that seems to be affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. It is part of the Wabash Valley Baptist Association. Unlike some denominations, in which the local church is subservient to the larger church, the Baptists are congregational.
The first Baptist Church in the United States was organized in 1639, in Providence, RI. In 1707 several Baptist Churches began to associate with each other in Philadelphia. Although Baptists had always recognized the autonomy of the local church, they discovered cooperation in a unity of mission.According to the Church Services Directory published in the Rensselaer Republican, the pastor is Randy Gaskey. Worship services are Sunday morning at 10:45, and there are other meetings.
The Southern Baptist website explains some of the fundamental beliefs of the Southern Baptists:Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification. There is no salvation apart from personal faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.Wikipedia has more on its history and relationships to other Christian groups.
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God's revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. Therefore, all Scripture is totally true and trustworthy. It reveals the principles by which God judges us, and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried. All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation.
A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Each congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic processes. In such a congregation each member is responsible and accountable to Christ as Lord. Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons. While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.
Baptists dominate the south as the maps from Valparaiso University illustrate.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
New things
I spent the last week out of town, and am catching up with what has changed. One thing I noticed was that a potential business I had mentioned in January is now open.
I looked inside and there was very little for sale. The main business seems to be carry-out Mexican food. Why don't you try it and tell us what you think in the comments? The number on the sign is 219-866-5370.
Before I left town I saw city workers measuring by the railroad crossing on Matheson Street. I asked them what they were doing, and they said that they were preparing a crossing of the water main from the new well to the existing main. Since they cannot shut down the railroad, this part of the pipeline requires special technique.
Last week they seemed to have made the crossing. The area is disrupted, and there are pipes sticking out of the ground on both ends.
I looked inside and there was very little for sale. The main business seems to be carry-out Mexican food. Why don't you try it and tell us what you think in the comments? The number on the sign is 219-866-5370.
Before I left town I saw city workers measuring by the railroad crossing on Matheson Street. I asked them what they were doing, and they said that they were preparing a crossing of the water main from the new well to the existing main. Since they cannot shut down the railroad, this part of the pipeline requires special technique.
Last week they seemed to have made the crossing. The area is disrupted, and there are pipes sticking out of the ground on both ends.
Jack and Red Pine
The most common pine in Rensselaer is the white pine, a five-needle pine. But there are also a few two- and three-needle pines that I have been struggling to identify.
One that I can identify is the jackpine, which I came to know when I spent a summer in Northern Wisconsin as a camp counselor. Only recently did I find some examples here. There are several in the grove of trees north and east of the Science Building at Saint Joseph's College, but an even better example is in the line of trees just south of the bowling alley. I had thought that the entire line was white pine, but when I looked at them closely, I was surprised to find a jackpine in the row.
You probably cannot tell which one it is. It is the middle tree. If you look carefully at the tops, you can tell that the middle tree has shorter needles.
Here is a picture of the branches showing the short needles and the twisted, asymmetrical cones. Jackpine cones open after fire, so it is a tree the repopulates in burned areas. It is not a large tree and does not have much if any value as a timber tree.
I am pretty sure that the trees on both sides of the jackpine are red pine, also called Norway pine though it is native to North America, not Europe. It is the state tree of Minnesota, so I should know it, but there were not a lot of pine trees in the areas of Minnesota where I grew up. The reason I am pretty sure that it is a red or Norway pine is that it is a two-needle pine with a small cone, and the needles snap when bent.
At the entrance to Lake Banet there more of these two-needle pine trees that I think are red pine. There are some older ones south of the entrance road, and some much smaller ones north of the road.
They have long needles and small cones.
Most tree identification books also show bark. Here is the bark of the old trees.
Scots pine is another two-needle pine that is often planted in this area, and I saw a lot on the street when people discarded their Christmas trees. It has short needles that twist around each other. I have not yet found any growing in Renssealer. The Austrian pine is another two-needle pine with long needles and my guess is there used to be some examples south of the SJC field house. Its needles did not snap when bent and its pine cones looked like the pine cones on this web page.
In the week before Valentine's Day, these trees were cut down. They had suffered damage during the ice storm of December, 2008, especially their centers. Insurance paid for their removal. I did a quick and dirty counted of the rings in one of the trunks and came up with about 50. However, SJC has some other two needle pines that are neither jack nor red pine and that may be the same kind of pine that these were.
Update March 16: I finally found a Scots pine growing in Rensselaer. It is small, only about ten feet tall, and growing along Angelica a bit east of Flat Iron Park. It looks quite a bit like jack pine, but notice the twisty needles and the small but straight cone.
Just in case anyone cares.
One that I can identify is the jackpine, which I came to know when I spent a summer in Northern Wisconsin as a camp counselor. Only recently did I find some examples here. There are several in the grove of trees north and east of the Science Building at Saint Joseph's College, but an even better example is in the line of trees just south of the bowling alley. I had thought that the entire line was white pine, but when I looked at them closely, I was surprised to find a jackpine in the row.
You probably cannot tell which one it is. It is the middle tree. If you look carefully at the tops, you can tell that the middle tree has shorter needles.
Here is a picture of the branches showing the short needles and the twisted, asymmetrical cones. Jackpine cones open after fire, so it is a tree the repopulates in burned areas. It is not a large tree and does not have much if any value as a timber tree.
I am pretty sure that the trees on both sides of the jackpine are red pine, also called Norway pine though it is native to North America, not Europe. It is the state tree of Minnesota, so I should know it, but there were not a lot of pine trees in the areas of Minnesota where I grew up. The reason I am pretty sure that it is a red or Norway pine is that it is a two-needle pine with a small cone, and the needles snap when bent.At the entrance to Lake Banet there more of these two-needle pine trees that I think are red pine. There are some older ones south of the entrance road, and some much smaller ones north of the road.
They have long needles and small cones.
Most tree identification books also show bark. Here is the bark of the old trees.
Scots pine is another two-needle pine that is often planted in this area, and I saw a lot on the street when people discarded their Christmas trees. It has short needles that twist around each other. I have not yet found any growing in Renssealer. The Austrian pine is another two-needle pine with long needles and my guess is there used to be some examples south of the SJC field house. Its needles did not snap when bent and its pine cones looked like the pine cones on this web page.
In the week before Valentine's Day, these trees were cut down. They had suffered damage during the ice storm of December, 2008, especially their centers. Insurance paid for their removal. I did a quick and dirty counted of the rings in one of the trunks and came up with about 50. However, SJC has some other two needle pines that are neither jack nor red pine and that may be the same kind of pine that these were.
Update March 16: I finally found a Scots pine growing in Rensselaer. It is small, only about ten feet tall, and growing along Angelica a bit east of Flat Iron Park. It looks quite a bit like jack pine, but notice the twisty needles and the small but straight cone.
Just in case anyone cares.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Death of a Landmark 1
Today the CTS Tire store sits on the corner of Front and Washington. If you need a new set of wheels for your ride, it is one of the places to go. A few years ago a much older building was on this site, doing business as Arihood Tire. That building, according to the Jasper County Interim Report, had originally been a livery stable, and maybe was a place where you could get a new set of shoes for your ride:
It was one of the few buildings listed as an outstanding resource in the Report, which dated its construction to 1883. I did not see any of the transformations that the Report discussed, but I did witness some of the changes that took place in the last decade, and I am happy to share them with you.
The rest of the pictures in this post are dated July 17, 2002. I took them with one of my first digital cameras, and the quality was not all that high. (Notice the color distortion at the sides.) Unlike most of the pictures I post, I did not resize or compress these. If you click on them, you get the original.
I have a few more that I will share later. Notice that the historical plaque for James Hanley has not yet appeared on this corner.
The J.W. Duvall Livery & Feed Building as Washington and Front streets is an outstanding resource illustrating the evolution of transportation in Rensselaer. Built as a livery and a hotel for accomodating travelers by horse-and-buggy, it was transformed into Rensselaer's first auto garage and gas station around 1910.
It was one of the few buildings listed as an outstanding resource in the Report, which dated its construction to 1883. I did not see any of the transformations that the Report discussed, but I did witness some of the changes that took place in the last decade, and I am happy to share them with you.The rest of the pictures in this post are dated July 17, 2002. I took them with one of my first digital cameras, and the quality was not all that high. (Notice the color distortion at the sides.) Unlike most of the pictures I post, I did not resize or compress these. If you click on them, you get the original.
I have a few more that I will share later. Notice that the historical plaque for James Hanley has not yet appeared on this corner.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Potato farm ruins
Across the road from the parking lot of the Fisher Oak Savanna lies an extensive set of farm ruins that I visited on the day of the brush pile burning. The man in charge of the day's proceedings told me that at one time the fields to the east grew potatoes, and that the buildings were used to store or process them. Now the land is used for corn and soybeans. I recall that I heard back in 1990 when I worked the census and drove around a lot of back roads down in this area (and in quite a few other areas as well) that at one time there were also onions grown in this part of the county.
Here is one of the most southerly of the ruins. There is a long, narrow concrete floor with the remnants of a structure in the back.
Below you see what is in the back. There are several piles of cinder blocks on the site, and this is the only one I have included.
From the cinder blocks the ditch that drained this area is visible. There are still old people who remember the extensive swamps of this part of the county before the ditches were put in and the area drained.
I do not know what the purpose is of the big concrete blocks shown below. Given enough time, the little trees growing between them will crack and move them.
The structure to the left of the picture is used seasonally as a hunting cabin. I do not think the large sheds in the center are used, but I may be wrong. I did not look inside them.
These stairs were probably once part of a residence on the site.
We are now north of the hunting camp and there is a large concrete floor. The round grain bins on the right are quite new and are currently used for storage. The small building in the center is a weight room.
The platform for the trucks seems to be in excellent shape.
Inside the building is the Fairbanks Morse scale. I wonder if it still works.
Continuing south toward the grain bins, we find the largest concrete floor on the site.
Below is the same floor looking due east. Notice how the fields stretch into the distance. There is nothing but fields for about two miles.
You can explore this area from the air with google maps. The pin on the map is at the north end of the Fisher Oak Savanna, which is the forested area stretching to the south. Go south on S 20E about half a mile and then zoom in. You should be able to see most of the things I have pictured here, plus some stuff that I did not take pictures of. (If you go over to S 80W, you will be able to see Little Creek Campground. It is quite big.)
Here is one of the most southerly of the ruins. There is a long, narrow concrete floor with the remnants of a structure in the back.
Below you see what is in the back. There are several piles of cinder blocks on the site, and this is the only one I have included.
From the cinder blocks the ditch that drained this area is visible. There are still old people who remember the extensive swamps of this part of the county before the ditches were put in and the area drained.
I do not know what the purpose is of the big concrete blocks shown below. Given enough time, the little trees growing between them will crack and move them.The structure to the left of the picture is used seasonally as a hunting cabin. I do not think the large sheds in the center are used, but I may be wrong. I did not look inside them.
These stairs were probably once part of a residence on the site.
We are now north of the hunting camp and there is a large concrete floor. The round grain bins on the right are quite new and are currently used for storage. The small building in the center is a weight room.
The platform for the trucks seems to be in excellent shape.
Inside the building is the Fairbanks Morse scale. I wonder if it still works.
Continuing south toward the grain bins, we find the largest concrete floor on the site.
Below is the same floor looking due east. Notice how the fields stretch into the distance. There is nothing but fields for about two miles.
You can explore this area from the air with google maps. The pin on the map is at the north end of the Fisher Oak Savanna, which is the forested area stretching to the south. Go south on S 20E about half a mile and then zoom in. You should be able to see most of the things I have pictured here, plus some stuff that I did not take pictures of. (If you go over to S 80W, you will be able to see Little Creek Campground. It is quite big.)
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Dawn redwood
In front of the Science Hall on the Saint Joseph's College campus is a medium-sized tree that looks like and evergreen tree but it loses its leaves in the winter. It is not a native tree to Indiana, but a recent transplant. It is a dawn redwood, a tree that was discovered growing in 1941 in China.
The SJC tree does not have the usual shape of a dawn redwood, which usually has a single trunk rather than the multiple trunks that this one has. Yet it you look at it from a distance, you can see that one of the branches seems to becoming dominant and taking the shape that the tree should have.
You may wonder why is this tree here. it is probably because in the past one of the priests at SJC, Fr. Reuve, was interested in trees and planted a wide variety of trees on campus, so that just about any tree that can grow in Indiana can be found somewhere on campus. Unfortunately, no one is likely to replace any of the strange trees if they die, so over time the campus will lose some of its diversity of trees, and perhaps that has already started to happen.
The dawn redwood has a distinctive cone, shown on the bottom in the picture below. The cone at the top is from another conifer that loses its leaves or needle, the bald cypress.
Does anyone know of any other dawn redwoods in Rensselaer?
The SJC tree does not have the usual shape of a dawn redwood, which usually has a single trunk rather than the multiple trunks that this one has. Yet it you look at it from a distance, you can see that one of the branches seems to becoming dominant and taking the shape that the tree should have.You may wonder why is this tree here. it is probably because in the past one of the priests at SJC, Fr. Reuve, was interested in trees and planted a wide variety of trees on campus, so that just about any tree that can grow in Indiana can be found somewhere on campus. Unfortunately, no one is likely to replace any of the strange trees if they die, so over time the campus will lose some of its diversity of trees, and perhaps that has already started to happen.
The dawn redwood has a distinctive cone, shown on the bottom in the picture below. The cone at the top is from another conifer that loses its leaves or needle, the bald cypress.
Does anyone know of any other dawn redwoods in Rensselaer?
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Plaques: Monnett School for Girls
One of the most interesting of the various plaques that you can find around Rensselaer is near the Monnett Grade School and the Rensselaer Central administration building.
The plaque is unusually verbose:
I searched the Internet trying to find more information, and did find mention of the school in an educational journal and a book.
From The Educator-journal (published in Terra Haute, Indiana Vol XV No. 1 September, 1914 p 423):
(Published by US History Publishers, 1947 ISBN 160354013X, 9781603540131) p 324:
From one of my local sources who remembers the Monnett School for Girls, the girls kept to themselves and did not mix with the local kids much.
The plaque is unusually verbose:Grateful Acknowledgment to Miss Cordelia P. MonnettThe right side has the trustees in 1966 and the trustees who have served in the past, but I do not want to type in all those names. You will have to go read them yourself.
Monnett School for Girls
In 1908 Miss Cordelia P. Monnett bequeathed to the deaconesses of the Trinity Methodist Church of Rensselaer, Indiana property to be used for a girls school, and for two years it was to be used as such.
In 1910 the board of trustees changed the school to a boarding school, with instruction through the 8th grade.
In 1913 and again in 1925 additional wings were added to the frame structure. In 1925 a brick dormitory was constructed, now being used for school administrative purposes.
In 1942 the school was separated from the church influence and became a nonsectarian school owned and operated by a board of trustees, and was accredited through the 8th grade.
In June 1954 the school closed its doors as the type of student was taken over by the state and welfare programs and the classification for which the school was created was thus terminated.
The trustees sold the property in July 1954 to the city and the city deeded it to the Rensselaer Public Schools in April 1955.
They then erected "The Monnett Public Grade School" with five class rooms and opened the building for use in September 1957.
I searched the Internet trying to find more information, and did find mention of the school in an educational journal and a book.From The Educator-journal (published in Terra Haute, Indiana Vol XV No. 1 September, 1914 p 423):
The Monnett school for girls at Rensselaer now has a total of thirty-two girls, which is four above their capacity limit. Miss Simpson is principal of the school and is anticipating better conditions when the proposed new building is erected.From Indiana. A Guide to the Hoosier State By Federal Writers' Project, United States. - Works Progress Administration, afterwards Work Projects Administration. - Federal Writers' Project
(Published by US History Publishers, 1947 ISBN 160354013X, 9781603540131) p 324:
At ll m. is the Monnett School for Girls, an elementary school founded in 1903 and maintained by the Methodist Episcopal Church of Rensselaer. The school accommodates 40 pupils.Both of these were part of Google's effort to digitize all known books.
From one of my local sources who remembers the Monnett School for Girls, the girls kept to themselves and did not mix with the local kids much.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Shopping at Kirby Risk
I decided to visit Kirby Risk when I saw that they were building a new building. Their current building is on McKinley about a block south of the railroad tracks. It is nondescript, and I think it was originally built to house Valade Electric. I do not recall when it became Kirby Risk, but it was a while ago.
Kirby Risk is a chain of electrical supply stores in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. It is to electrical supply what 4-County Supply is to plumbing supply. (Sorry if you do not know what 4-County Supply is. I will eventually get to it.)
Their early hours (they open at 7:00 and close at 4:00 Monday through Friday), plus the coffee and pop corn in the store, tell you that their primary customers are contractors, not do-it-yourself customers.
The interior is very functional and utilitarian. The signs proclaim that they carry wide variety of manufacturers.
I visited the store early one morning and took some pictures while a customer was picking up supplies. I wanted to talk to the store manager about the store and the planned move, but I got tired of waiting and left. A couple days later the manager saw me and stopped his truck to ask why I was taking pictures. I explained to him that my goal was to document over the next year or so as many of the stores in Rensselaer as I can and that I was not an industrial spy. (I wonder how that pays and how one becomes an industrial supply. I know people who were at one time mystery shoppers. Is that sort of the same thing?)
I asked him why they were moving. He said that they needed more room. The present store does not have enough room to stock all the electrical supplies that they would like to stock.
Let us close by taking a look at construction progress on the new building. In mid February workers brought in sand and stone to make an entry way and prepare surfaces. The unprepared field is mud and any heavy vehicles sink several inches into it.
With the stone and sand in place, they could bring in a construction trailer and a lot more machines. They then began to work on building forms for the foundation.
Not quite two weeks after the entryway was constructed, they poured concrete.
And two weeks after the picture of the truck dumping sand was taken, the forms were off the concrete foundation.
Kirby Risk is a chain of electrical supply stores in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. It is to electrical supply what 4-County Supply is to plumbing supply. (Sorry if you do not know what 4-County Supply is. I will eventually get to it.)
Their early hours (they open at 7:00 and close at 4:00 Monday through Friday), plus the coffee and pop corn in the store, tell you that their primary customers are contractors, not do-it-yourself customers.
The interior is very functional and utilitarian. The signs proclaim that they carry wide variety of manufacturers.
I visited the store early one morning and took some pictures while a customer was picking up supplies. I wanted to talk to the store manager about the store and the planned move, but I got tired of waiting and left. A couple days later the manager saw me and stopped his truck to ask why I was taking pictures. I explained to him that my goal was to document over the next year or so as many of the stores in Rensselaer as I can and that I was not an industrial spy. (I wonder how that pays and how one becomes an industrial supply. I know people who were at one time mystery shoppers. Is that sort of the same thing?)
I asked him why they were moving. He said that they needed more room. The present store does not have enough room to stock all the electrical supplies that they would like to stock.
Let us close by taking a look at construction progress on the new building. In mid February workers brought in sand and stone to make an entry way and prepare surfaces. The unprepared field is mud and any heavy vehicles sink several inches into it.
With the stone and sand in place, they could bring in a construction trailer and a lot more machines. They then began to work on building forms for the foundation.
Not quite two weeks after the entryway was constructed, they poured concrete.
And two weeks after the picture of the truck dumping sand was taken, the forms were off the concrete foundation.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Winter choral concert
The Saint Joseph's College Winter Choral Concert took place on February 24. To see a sample of what they sang, click here.
Living stations of the cross I
Today is the first Sunday in Lent, the 40-day period of fasting that has traditionally proceeded Easter. One of the devotions of Lent in the Catholic Church is the Stations of the Cross. Virtually all Catholic churches will have the stations along the walls of the vestibule. An earlier post displayed the outdoor Stations of the Cross at the grotto at Saint Joseph's College.
Six years ago some of the Hispanic parishioners of St. Augustine parish performed a living stations of the cross. Because this sort of religious devotion is quite common in Latin America, watching it was both a religious experience and also a cultural experience. The re-enactment began on the steps of the church, where Pilate condemns Jesus to death.
Stations three through nine took place on the walk to the site of the crucifixion.
The living stations of the cross have a long history, going back to the passion plays of the medieval period. After the Reformation, they died out in some parts of Europe.
The final destination was the Susan lot that serves as a playground for the St. Augustine school children.
This re-enactment was complete with the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus.
It took a lot of people to raise the cross.
And finally all the crosses are up.
I thought the picture of with a truck carrying swimming pools made an interesting juxtaposition.
A year of two later there was another performance of the living stations of the cross, but none has been done since then.
What the stations of the cross are to Lent and Easter, the creche is to Advent and Christmas. There are also re-enactments of the creche, but those are now more often done by Protestant denominations than by Catholics, which is rather ironic considering the history of the creche.
(No--I have not run out of Rensselaer churches to highlight on Sundays. There are still many more to do--check back next Sunday.)
Six years ago some of the Hispanic parishioners of St. Augustine parish performed a living stations of the cross. Because this sort of religious devotion is quite common in Latin America, watching it was both a religious experience and also a cultural experience. The re-enactment began on the steps of the church, where Pilate condemns Jesus to death.
Stations three through nine took place on the walk to the site of the crucifixion.
The living stations of the cross have a long history, going back to the passion plays of the medieval period. After the Reformation, they died out in some parts of Europe.
The final destination was the Susan lot that serves as a playground for the St. Augustine school children.
This re-enactment was complete with the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus.
It took a lot of people to raise the cross.
And finally all the crosses are up.
I thought the picture of with a truck carrying swimming pools made an interesting juxtaposition.
A year of two later there was another performance of the living stations of the cross, but none has been done since then.What the stations of the cross are to Lent and Easter, the creche is to Advent and Christmas. There are also re-enactments of the creche, but those are now more often done by Protestant denominations than by Catholics, which is rather ironic considering the history of the creche.
(No--I have not run out of Rensselaer churches to highlight on Sundays. There are still many more to do--check back next Sunday.)
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