I'm so glad you could stop by. This is my personal blog of daily life and my journey through life. You will find a strong emphasis on family and friends as well as finding my ancestors through genealogy. Unlike my other blogs this blog is more of a catch-all so any topic is fair game.
Arby's Restaurant SignJanuary 23, 2010I find advertising signs fascinating and am especially fond of older signs. Chain restaurant signs are part of their brand so that in itself makes them unique. Pictured is the Arby's Restaurant sign that joined my photo collection of advertising. I liked the way it popped out against the beautiful blue sky with wispy white clouds. Talk about a great photo opportunity!
Garden Gnome©2006-2010
July 21, 2008
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
July 21, 2008
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
July 21, 2008
The Michigan State Ferry service was established in St. Ignace in 1923 to transport vehicles from St. Ignace to the Lower Peninsula. Cost for the hour long trip was $2.50. In the first year of operation the ferry transported 10,351 vehicles! In 1956 with five ferries were running almost a million vehicles were transported with as many as 9,000 vehicles being transported on summer weekends. The wait times were as high as twelve hours. In 1957 the Mackinac Bridge replaced the ferry service.
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
I just love historical signs especially when they relate to my family history. My French Canadian ancestors came from France and settled in the St. Lawrence Valley (Québec City 1608, Montréal 1642). These founding French ancestors, my great greats, appear in the Fichier Origine database. Many of them were fur traders or involved in the fur trade in other capacities. Father (Père) Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit named the mission after St. Ignatius Loyola founder of the Jesuits. A military fortress was built shortly after becoming a military strong point however, in 1701 the garrison moved to Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit under the control of the French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac. Why should this be of interest to me?
Père Marquette appears in my database but not as an ancestor. I know some of my ancestors were in St. Ignace and some of their descendants still live in the area. Cadillac was in St. Ignace then came to establish Fort Pontchartain in 1701. My sixth great grandfather was the first white man in the area of the fort. He was an interpreter for Cadillac and was a highly respected individual in the fort. Cadillac granted him land in the fort yet he chose to live in the Miamis village beside the fort with his wife and children. He was buried under the original location of Ste. Anne's Church in Detroit which speaks to his importance in the fort. Ste. Anne's Church was moved to it's current location to accommodate the Ambassador Bridge spanning the Detroit River connecting Windsor, Ontario to Detroit, Michigan.
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
Historical PlaqueJuly 20, 2008
We were on the historical Watertown Plank Road! Plank roads were made from basically clearing a road 24 feet wide between the ditches. The road was sloaped in the centre towards the ditches to help with drainage. Stringers provided the support upon which wooden planks made from white pine were laid to form a road (more information
here). There's little left of this historical road aside of the marking plaque although it does follow the same route.
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
The Circle
July 17, 2007
As we neared the downtown area of Chicago on the Kennedy Expressway there were lit signs as to how many minutes it was from that point to certain exits and something called the
circle. We had no idea what the circle was so had to
google it when we arrived at the kids. The Circle Interchange is where four [Kennedy Expressway - northbound, Dan Ryan Expressway - southbound, Eisenhower Expressway - westbound and Congress Parkway - eastbound] highways converge on the downtown area forming a a huge mess of spaghetti with the many entrance and exit ramps. It is the centre of the Chicago's downtown area and let me tell you it is impressive!
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
Entering Illinois
July 17, 2008
We entered Illinois at 7:42 pm, only four hours and twenty minutes after leaving the tire place. Up to that point we had been making good time and the trip had been uneventful. Traffic was indeed heavier with more than a few less than considerate drivers. Honestly, the chances some drivers take is beyond imagination! Then we hit the wonderful construction with lane closures and reduced speeds mingled with a few "
I'm more important than you so I'll jam in between you and the car ahead then slam on my breaks just because I can.", a few "
What the heck am I thinking?" and the ever precious "
I knew I wanted that exit a half hour ago so let me through while I jump across 4 lanes of traffic!" types. It's a good thing my husband was driving because my nerves were raw and my startle reflex was on heightened alert. That was before we hit Chicago!
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
Entering Indiana
July 17, 2008
We entered Indiana on I-94 a little over three and a half hours (6:56 pm) from leaving the tire store (3:30 pm). At that point we were 30 miles from the Illinois state line. My husband was pleased as that meant we would avoid a lot of the heavier traffic going through Chicago. It also meant we were making better time than we thought we would so would arrive in Wisconsin a couple of hours before our estimated time of arrival after taking the delays into consideration. So far the trip was going remarkably smooth!
Garden Gnome
©2006-2008
Historical Plaque
