Category Archives: History
Party at the Plumbers Local No. 36
I came across this old advertisement, framed, saved, taken care of, in the basement of a house I was doing some work on, updating it before it would be sold. This basement was definitely a working man’s basement, an organized basement, one well maintained with a workbench and assortment of tools and saved parts and old metal coffee cans full of screws and more tools older then I am that still looked as good as the day they were purchased, collected odds and ends and useful bits that could be put together to tackle any type of household handyman task. This was a good basement.
Seeing this framed ad, this simple small poster, I was intrigued. It wasn’t just the awkward sizing of letters in some places that drew my attention; or the date or ticket price, or even the mention of the Harugari Temple, a “secret” society I’d never heard of before a week prior to finding this sign, when I’d driven past another sign for the Ancient Order of the Harugari, or my interest in local history and what might be at this location now. It was a little bit of each of those things sure, but I wondered if there was something more personal to it.
Here was an old framed advertisement in this meticulous basement. What did this mean to the man who kept an organized workbench and well maintained tools, a space that was functional and purpose driven, not cluttered by the accumulated detritus that seems to swallow up any spare space one in my generation might happen upon. What was significant about this event? I wondered what this event, this night may have meant, that the advertisement was saved, preserved, framed and held onto. Protected just as any work of art or family photograph would have been.
What kind of story does this prompt for you? Was there something historically significant that occurred on that date? Or was it something at that party to be personally commemorated?
Or maybe it was a cool looking old poster
Still Having Trouble with Geography / Revisiting Belgrade
Apparently I’m a bit behind in the news.
A few years ago I posted this terribly written piece about Peter II of Yugoslavia that ended up complaining about my own lack of geographical knowledge specifically and American’s lack of knowledge of anything we can’t blow up in general.
It had started because of the mention of the anniversary of Peter II’s death, and his status as the only foreign dignitary to be buried on US soil. It makes sense, why wouldn’t they be reinterred in their native land if they died while in the US? Still, that’s a cool bit of trivia.
Except it isn’t anymore. And it hasn’t been for a while.
Peter II’s history was interesting to read about; his ascension to the throne of a country not much older than he was, having been formed in the aftermath of World War I, his exile from that country due to World War II, marriage to a Greek princess, his removal by the Communist government that seized power following the war, and his death in 1970 in Colorado after a failed liver transplant. He had one son, Crown Prince Alexander, born during World War II, who would very much like to see the monarchy restored to power in Serbia and who was mentioned as intending to return his father’s remains to Serbia.
| Whet Moser offered a more thorough view of Peter’s life for Chicago Magazine |
I would Google-around from time to time to see if it had happened, but beyond a few articles I found mentioning Prince Alexander’s intentions, I never came across any more details about it. The other day I was looking through the stats for Gas Station Burrito and saw that my post had popped up a couple times for people. It reminded me of the whole thing, so I went looking to see what was going on with Peter II’s remains.
It turned out that Prince Alexander did return the king’s remains to Serbia. Back in January 2013. In May that year Peter was buried alongside his wife, and nearby to his cousin and mother, who herself was reinterred from the Royal Burial Ground at Frogmore where she was buried in 1961. Like I said, I’m a little behind. Look, I had to watch all of Dexter and a good chunk of Sons of Anarchy this year, not to mention read an obscene amount of Amos Walker books, I don’t always have time to keep up on the Google news alerts I have set for the Serbian royal family, I apologize.
As a fan of quirky trivia/historical facts I liked that there was this one foreign king buried in the United States. I can’t be the only one who liked it either. A few things I’d read implied it was a source of pride and comfort for Serbians living in the US, that this symbol of their country was interred here.
Peter II had chosen his interim burial site at St Sava Monastery Church knowing that he couldn’t return to his homeland. I’m pretty nearly positive that the Wikipedia entry was edited after his re-interment in Serbia to refer to St Sava’s as “interim”. I don’t think he ever expected to return. Death from cirrhosis at 47 would imply he wasn’t entirely optimistic about ever making it back to Yugoslavia, living or dead. It didn’t imply he was optimistic about much of anything.
However, as someone who likes the world to not be a horrible place, I enjoy that Crown Prince Alexander has returned with his family to Serbia and worked towards generating a national Serbian spirit in his country. I enjoy that he was able to bring his father home; that after more than forty years since his death, after his country was torn apart by world war, communism and civil war, a man—not even a king, forget the royal titles for a minute—has finally returned to his homeland.
Still Rebuilding from Prohibition, Because It’s Always a Rebuilding Year
or, How My Unbeatable Liver Uncovered a Conspiracy Built Completely on Heresay
Some days, for whatever reason, you want to drink yourself stupid. That’s easy enough to accomplish. Other times it creeps up on you and you’ll go from feeling pretty good with a gin & tonic in your hand to sleeping on the couch in your clothes with the burnt remains of a pizza that sat in the oven for six hours.
The other night I found myself faced with option three: no intention of getting sloshed and apparently lacking in the physical ability to do so as well. You keep ordering drinks and even toss in a shot or two before your buddies start bailing on you, but it’s not sticking. There’s a hint of a buzz creeping in, but not much else and now that other group of idiots with their smarmy ringleader who has a permanent duck-face and Jersey Shore wardrobe who totally cheats by leaning three over the line to take his shot has edged you out from the dartboards. You’re all right calling it quits and heading home.
The good news is that the next morning you wake up and remember how you got there and made it all the way through the movie you put on, even if that movie was Sweet Dreams
The Pierce Arrow Building, in case you’re not aware, is the massive complex facing Elmwood Avenue between Amherst Street and Hertel Avenue. It was built in 1906 for the Pierce Arrow Motor Car Company by Albert Kahn
Thankfully, unlike the Larkin Administration Building, after Pierce Arrow declared bankruptcy in 1938, the complex carried on and still stands today. It was divided into smaller pieces for an assortment of companies and businesses over the years from theater groups to casino dealer training. And now a distillery.
In 1887 there were three distilleries in New York State, two of which were in Buffalo. Until Prohibition shut it down after 70 years of operation, C. Person’s Sons was considered the finest distillery in the state. There may not have been much competition for that title, but they were well regarded for the quality of their product and respect for their customers.
It may have taken quite a bit longer for distilling to come back to Buffalo then its brewing counterpart, but now we have Lockhouse Distillery. From what I’ve heard, it’s been worth the wait. Originally named Eight Buffalo Spirits, Lockhouse has so far released vodka but is already aging rye, and plans on tackling gin this summer. After selling out of their initial 800 bottle offering in less than two hours that business will surely continue to grow. Their expanded products is similar to what C. Person’s Sons offered a hundred years ago and given their predecessor’s reputation, that’s not a bad legacy to pick up. Lockhouse certainly is on its way since just recently they won the gold medal for grape-based vodka from the American Distiller’s Institute.
The interesting part of our conversation wasn’t even about the distillery at all. My friend had talked briefly with one of the guys behind Lockhouse about how they ended up in the Pierce Arrow Building. Finding a suitable location wasn’t that easy since it seems all those unused buildings and empty lots around the city aren’t as ignored and neglected as they seem. Most of those commercial properties that would have been suitable for their needs were owned already but not in the absentee landlord sense we all assumed. They aren’t owned by real estate speculators hoarding lots for a big payday when a new hotel or strip mall is proposed by one of the big name developers, allowing them to cash in. These properties are part of a plan with development projects in various stages of planning.
I’m not naïve enough to believe these developers are investing in the city simply out of the goodness of their hearts. Their financial futures are tied directly to the city’s. The improvements on the waterfront will lead to further development with Ohio Street, the Webster Block, Uniland’s new Delaware North headquarters that began construction recently at Delaware and Chippewa. The continued expansion of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus brings improvement to any vacant property within two blocks of anything they slap their logo on.
These projects aren’t spontaneous. There’s no mad dash to flip the nearest empty building every time Ciminelli, Rocco Termini or Uniland announces a new project. The plans are in place, property is owned and proposals are flying. This may make it harder for companies like Lockhouse to find a suitable location, but they will. Their success, the success of independent pipe-dream niche businesses, however small or grand, any idea what begins with, “Hey, wouldn’t be cool if—” is tied to the success of these sprawling mixed-use developments like HarborCenter or the renovated FWS building on Elmwood that Buffalo Spree recently moved into, intended to become part of “Pierce Arrow Village.”
The average person only sees a piece of the puzzle in North Buffalo or a piece of it along Fuhrman Boulevard and can’t comprehend that it’s all leading towards a grander integrated vision. These developments have not happened by chance or accident. There is a plan.
“They know what they’re doing,” my buddy said, “This city… in ten years we won’t’ even recognize it. It’s going to be amazing living through that.”
He’s one of several people I know who bought a bottle of Lockhouse Vodka. It may be amazing to witness the changes in the city, to watch us feed our post-industrial sickly self, and watch as pound by pound development companies put some meat on our bones. It’s even more amazing to be a part of it, even one $35 dollar bottle of it at a time.
Gas Station Burrito 