Stanley Steamer - 10-2

Thus far, the American Treasure Tour blog has concentrated its attention on items in the collection found in the Music Room side of the tour.  We are going to "hop the hallway," a phrase we intend to coin one day, and talk about one of the antique automobiles in the Toy Box.  We will begin with one of our very favorites,

our 1922 Stanley Steamer.  (Please note:  the above picture is NOT an image of our Stanley, but it was taken at the time of their original popularity.)
The Stanley Motor Carriage Company was in business for only twenty-two years; however, they were considered some of the finest vehicles on the road shortly after the turn of the twentieth century.  Founded by the Stanley brothers, Francis and Freelan (born in 1849), they utilized steam to power their engines, and made speed and endurance records during the height of their popularity.  During the nineteen-teens, the internal combustion engine was developed, and the new gasoline-powered cars quickly made the steam-powered Stanley obsolete.  The Stanley at ATT was produced only two years prior to the closing of their Newton, Massachusetts factory and the dissolution of the company.

Question:
In 1899, a Stanley Steamer was the first automobile ever to reach what New England destination?
a)  Mount Washington, New Hampshire
b)  Desert of Maine, Maine
c)  Bunker Hill, Massachusetts
d)  Newport, Rhode Island
e)  The Mark Twain House, Connecticut

Answer Below

Today in History
The 28th President of the United States, Woodrow Wilson, was in office when the 19th Amendment was passed, which finally gave American women the right to vote.  Earlier, he led the nation into - and out of - World War I, and he advocated American ratification of the Covenant of the League of Nations (the precursor to the United Nations).  In 1919, he took a tour of the country in the effort to gain support for the Covenant.  Likely because of the strain of the journey and a bout of influenza earlier in the year, Wilson collapsed while in Pueblo, Colorado.  On October 2nd, he suffered a serious stroke, which paralyzed the left side of his face.  Despite his being incapacitated, he refused to give up control of the government and remained in power, even considering a run for a third term of office as president in the effort to realize his fading dream of entry into the League of Nations.  Neither event happened, and Wilson died in March of 1921.

On a much lighter note, it was this day in 1950 that Charles Schultz first got his comic strip Peanuts

published.  During its fifty years of publication, almost 18,000 strips were printed, making Peanuts one of the most enduring comics of all time, and certainly one of the most beloved.  Schultz, nicknamed Sparky, grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota, the son of immigrants from Germany and Norway.  His first Peanuts strip was printed in only seven newspapers, although it would reach 2,600 newspapers in 75 countries during its height, with classic strips printed in strips for years after his death in the year 2000.

Births

As is every day, October 2nd is the birthday of many special and important people.  Sometimes it is difficult to determine who to highlight and, since we already addressed the tragic stroke that hit Woodrow Wilson in 1919, the ATT blog has opted to focus on celebrating the birth of someone who has inspired the laughter in many, many people since his birth in 1890.  His name was Julius Henry Marx, more famously known as 'Groucho."  Greasepaint eyebrows and an unnaturally thick moustache made Groucho one of the most 

recognizable comedians of his era.  He began his career as a comic performer on the vaudeville circuit, then moved into film, starring with his brothers Harpo and Chico - and occasionally Zeppo, too - Groucho eased into television with his humorous game show You Bet Your Life.

Our second comedian celebrating a birthday on October 2nd is none other than Bud Abbott.  Five years younger than Groucho, William Alexander "Bud" was the taller, thinner straight man of the comedy team Abbott & Costello, and they made dozens of popular films prior to 1957, when the team broke up.  Costello passed away two years later, Abbott in 1974 at the age of 78.

Quote:

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies. -- Groucho Marx.

Answer:  a)

Love & Rockets - 10-1

The American Treasure Tour blog is happy to discuss our album collection, and today we are going to show the diversity of what is on our walls just a little bit.  To date, we have talked about such country artists as Lynn Anderson, Johnny Paycheck, Johnny Cash, and even Ray Charles.  Entering the month of October, we will talk about the English band Love & Rockets, formed in 1985 by former members of the Goth-Rock band Bauhaus Daniel Ash, David J, and Kevin Haskins.  Earth, Sun, Moon was their third album, released

in 1987, and included their first big hit, "No New Tale to Tell."  The band released seven albums during the 1980s and '90s before disbanding at the dawn of the 20th century.

Question:
Love and Rockets had very few hits, despite a loyal following - their biggest hit was the 1989 song "So Alive."  From what source did they take their name?
a)  A movie
b)  A science fiction novella
c)  A song from another band
d)  A comic book
e)  A dream
Answer below.

Today in History
Robert Fulton did not invent the steamboat.  What he did was create effective and successful steamboat transportation routes in the United States.  His first regular service began in 1807, with  his steam-powered boat, the Clermont, taking passengers between New York City and Albany, New York.  Four years later, steamboat service had expanded to such an extent that the first one travelling from Pittsburgh down the Ohio River arrived in New Orleans.  The date of its arrival was October 1, 1811.

We at the American Treasure Tour blog do everything in our power to avoid editorializing about politics; however, it was on October 1st, 1890, that the United States Congress did something for which only the most shortsighted people could offer criticism.  They declared California's Yosemite Valley a national park.

The park was protected (poorly) by an understaffed military force until the actual National Park Service took over in 1916.  It received another upgrade in 1984, when it became a World Heritage Site.  The natural beauty of the site alone justifies its protection.  

Births

Happy birthday, Richard Stockton!  The founding father from New Jersey after whom one of the rest stops on the New Jersey Turnpike is named, was born today, in the year 1730.  He lived for only fifty-one years,

but during his lifetime he had quite a few accomplishments as a lawyer, jurist and legislator.  His family was also deeply involved in the development of what would become Princeton University.  Most significantly for posterity, he was one of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence.  The British forces imprisoned Stockton during the war and compelled him to sign an oath of allegiance to the king to regain his freedom.  He respected the vow he took to remain out of the war for two years, resigning his post in Congress, and tried to return to his private practice but never quite recovered from the reversals he experienced with the war.

Walter Matthau was born this day in 1920.  The actor, the son of Lithuanian immigrants in New York City's Lower East Side, started to perform after serving in World War II, in the U.S. Army Air Force.  In fact, his first film appearance was in the 1955 Burt Lancaster western, The Kentuckian.  He went on to perform in about sixty years before his death in the year 2000.

Quote:

Every actor looks all his life for a part that will combine his talents with his personality....  The Odd Couple was mine.  That was the plutonium I needed.  It all started happening after that.  -- Walter Matthau

Answer:  d)