Goodbye Higgins, Pt. 3

My final photo from the Higgins Closing. This is inside the Great Hall. When steel magnate John Higgins sought a permanent location to show his growing collection of armor which he was purchasing in Europe, he commissioned a building which would resemble a Medieval fortress or castle. The outside is a staunch rectangle of glass and steel, a relatively new combination in 1920’s America, but the inside is dark flagstones and thick, imposing stone walls. But while the combination of Empire State Building and Castle Wofenstein drew tourists for decades, now the question is can it draw investors? Owning a 90-year building is a challenge enough, let alone when the majority of the space is a cold, cavernous hall. From what I understand, maintenance costs were a big factor on why the museum went under. The obvious choice would be to partition this into offices, but even if that were physically possible, the building is listed on the Register of Historical Places. What company has the creativity to make the building useful, energy efficient, and keep the Historical Society(ies) happy? What company has the funds to make it happen? Google? 
PS. National Geographic did an article on Worcester, Mass back in the 1950’s, and used a full-page photo of the Higgins’ Great Hall. 

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Higgins Pt 2

Another photo from Higgins Armory Last Day on Dec 31st. All the suits of armor, weapons, and artwork will be moved to and displayed at the Worcester Art Museum. 

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Good Knight, Higgins

I’m at the Last Day of Higgins Armory, a Worcester museum which has the second-largest collection (besides the Met) of medieval swords and armor outside of Europe. Since the 1920’s Higgins has been a landmark in Worcester, not just as one of the first steel-and-glass buildings in the country, but also as a requisite field trip for generations of elementary school students growing up in Central Mass. But because of funding issues over the last few years, the museum is being forced to shut down permanently. I’m here and staying until the very end, at 3:45. 

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Rock Star Dave

Tonight Jen and I had dinner with Jess, Dave, and Jeff at Paul and Sarah’s house in Stoughton. Jess, Jeff, Paul and I have all been friends since high school, and even though we all live in the same state, it’s rare that we can all get together like this. Paul and Sarah have a two-year-old daughter, and here Dave is playing a command performance of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. 

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What Up Dog?

This is Percilla, one of the dogs at the Worcester Animal League. She is partially blind. So if you see her driving a car, look out !

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Christmas at Rockefeller Center

Jen’s entire extended family took a day trip to New York City before the holidays and invited me to come along. We visited the World Trade Center Memorial, Canal Street, and here is Jen and me at Rockefeller Center, before returning to Little Italy for dinner. The best part was we had a limo bus to drive us around. It was fun spenfing time with the MacDonald Clan, especially since the weather was unseasonably warm (in the 60’s!) For December. 

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Captain Paul

Over the summer, my cousin Paul was studying for hiscaptian’s license. He needed hands-on practice time before he his test, so he asked me if I’d come along. This is us sailing around Naragansett Bay (before it started raining.)

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The Battle of Leicester Common 2

Another photo from my Civil War Re-enactment day in Leicester, back in June. You can see the soldiers from the Southern camp mustering in the background, while in the foreground one of the women in the Northern camp does her sewing. The amount of attention re-enactors put into detail and minutae is crazy ridiculous… that’s what makes the re-enactment world so fun. 

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Christmas, I.T. style

Decorating my workbench for the holidays. 

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Chaplain George

One of the stories I covered this year for the T&G… Chaplain George ministers a chapel for truck drivers. His “church,” permanently parked at a truck stop on Route 20, is a converted 40′ trailer, with worship space up front and his office and sleeping bunk in back. He was a missionary for many years before becoming a minister. He’s an interesting guy; I interviewed him and another chaplain for hours before I wrote my article. 

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