A Quick Post...
Oct. 28th, 2008 11:18 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mmerriam...before my internet connection fails again. Comcast is coming to look at it tomorrow afternoon.
But now, I give you![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
careswen and mmerriam's
Friday. 17 October 2008
careswen and I had a nice easy drive from Hopkins to Stillwater, arriving in town at about 11:30 am. Since we could not check into the William Sauntry Mansion until 4:30 pm, we spent some time exploring the city. First, though we stopped for lunch at Culver's, which seems to be some kind of Minnesota institution. The Culvers double bacon cheeseburger (butter burger) was... juicy I guess is the best word. It was tasty, though.
Once finished, we decided to visit the historic Washington County Courthouse. There we ran into a bit of disappointment: They had closed the exhibits the day before. We ran into this multiple times. Why do you close your exhibits before the weekend? Close them after! We did watch a short video about the history of the courthouse and Washington County. Then, the nice lady who greeted us took us on a short tour of the decommissioned jail. They did have several artifacts from former sheriffs, including handcuffs, a pistol, badges, patches, and hats.
There was a wedding in the large upstairs courtroom that day, but since they were not there at the time, we were allowed entry to the courtroom and given a chance to look around. Among the non-jail artifacts that were still on display, I was most impressed with the manual typewriter that sported an extra-long carriage for typing legal documents.
On other note of interest: The tile on the floor was brought over to Stillwater from Stoke-On-Trent, which is the home town of my friend and fellow writer,mylefteye.
Once finished at the jail and courthouse, we headed for the Warden's House Museum, home of the former warden of the now-lost state prison. Arriving a bit early, we were part of the first tour group of the day. Our guide did an excellent job of detailing the day-to-day life in the house. It was interesting to see the layout of a typical (if large) home of the day.
My two favorite parts of the exhibit were the ornate music box that played metal disks, about the same size as a vinyl record, and the room with the artifacts and records concerning the Younger brothers during their time in state prison. There was also a wonderful period dress that had belonged to one of the wife of a former warden. Our guide also explained about how the logging companies all had stamps to stamp their logs with for identification at the mills in Stillwater.
The old prison itself is gone, lost to a fire, but the outer wall and guard house are still standing and was incorporated into the new development.
From there,careswen and I stopped to get a drink at a little hot dog stand. We were sitting outside when we saw a sea (river?) plane take off from the waters of the St. Croix River. It was pretty neat.
Our next stop was the antique mall inside the Staples Lumber Mill. The antiques were pretty standard, with a couple of interesting pieces. I enjoyed looking at the old lumber mill as much as the goods being sold inside.
Once finished there, we ate dinner at the Stillwater Depot Grill. Good food and great service. The Minnesota Zephyr train was parked outside, so we got a couple of good pictures.
When we finished dinner, we went to the Sauntry and checked in. The mansion is gorgeous to look at. It is well restored, and the owners are nice folks. Our room was one of the smaller rooms, but that was fine. We chatted for a few minutes with the other guests, as the mansion serves coffee, tea, wine, and light snacks at check-in time, and then headed up to our room.
In the room, we changed into pajamas for the night, at least until we decided to climb into the whirlpool. We relaxed, ate fruit and cheese, and drank the bottle of winematastas and dlandon gave careswen for her birthday. Once done with the whirlpool and wine, we climbed into bed for the night.
Saturday. 18 October 2008
careswen and I awoke in good spirits, showered, and went downstairs for coffee and tea before breakfast. We took our drinks outside and sat on the porch. Though it was chilly, it was also soothing and peaceful.
Breakfast at the Sauntry is a full, 4-course breakfast served in the formal dinning room. One of the owners is a former chef, it seems. Breakfast was fruit (banana, orange, and pineapple slices) followed by scones (I can't remember what kind), with the main dish being an oven omelet with sun-dried tomatoes and peppers with a side of sausage links. The last course was no-flour brownies. Orange juice, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate was available for drink. We had a nice chat with the others guests and the owners as well.
Setting out, we found a place to park for the day and ventured into town on foot. Our first stop was Valley Booksellers, where we purchased a present for someone else. It was a nice little bookstore.
We started browsing the antique stores after that. Many interesting things were seen, including a Civil War field cannon in Gabrielle's. We purchased a nice little bellows for out fireplace at the Stillwater Antique Mall. I considered buying a vintage manual typewriter, an Underwood #5, but decided the condition didn't warrant the price.
We dropped our stuff back at the car, stopped to get a couple a drinks, and then made our way to the Stillwater Trolley Tour. This was one was a load of fun! The driver, a nice older man named Robert, drove us around town, telling us stories and interesting bits of history about Stillwater, especially in its lumber-town days. The trolley swayed and bobbed all up and down the hills as he talked. My favorite points were:
He stopped at the top of the highest hill in Stillwater, then he came off the clutch and we shot downward, causing yells from some of the passengers.
The view of the river from one of the highest parts of town: It was the most spectacular views of the river and river-valley.
The story of the Ann Bean Mansion, which is just hysterical.
When he talked about how the city built steps from the lower streets to the high streets because no one wanted to take there horses, buggies, or carriages out on the hilly streets during a Minnesota winter. He said, "You could always tell a Stillwater girl by the muscles on her calves." If you could get her to show them to you, anyway.
Once the ride was over, we ate at Luna Rossa (great food, excellent service) and then took the Joseph Wolf Brewery Caves Tour. It was great fun seeing all the old equipment and hearing the stories of what the caves were used for after the brewery closed due to prohibition.
After the tour we walked over to the St. Croix Antiquarian Booksellers. It was lovely, and I very nearly bought a couple of things, but resisted the siren call.
We wrapped up our second day by doing a few more antique shops.careswen saw several vintage sewing machines and spinning wheels, and more than once found herself explaining to a shop employee or antique owner how the spinning wheel worked. I saw a wooden box made for crochet hooks, but was filled with fountain pens. Love and lust, but I did not buy.
Before we returned to the car, we walked down to the river and watched the water flow by for a few minutes.
Back at the Sauntry for the evening, we soaked in the whirlpool some more, ate more cheese and crackers (and other light snacks) and rested, reading our books and quietly chatting until we turned out the lights.
Sunday. 19 October 2008.
Sunday morning, we got up and packed most of our luggage before going downstairs to have tea and coffee before breakfast. We sat outside again, this time on a different part of the porch, overlooking the fountain. We talked about why we think modern homes have moved from porches to patios, among other things.
Breakfast that morning was grapefruit wedges, raisin scones, Finnish pancakes with a side of polish sausage, and for the life of me I can't remember the dessert course. Once checked out, we headed back into Stillwater for a little more sightseeing. We arrived at Main Street earlier than most of the stores opened, so we had coffee and tea at Starbucks, then walked over to the Midtown Antique Mall. We spent a lot of time in this rather large building, but all the antiques (and some times just junk) was starting to look the same.
When we finished with that store, we walked over to Chestnut Street Books. This store is owned by the daughter of the former owner of the Loome Antiquarian Bookseller (which is now closed, though the Theological Bookstore is still open). We spent a long time in the store. It wasn't very large, but it was packed with goodness, and we bought a couple of things, including a book of Turkish fairy and folk tales.
And then we were done.careswen drove us home and we unpacked and rested. We had a lovely time in Stillwater, and will probably go back again sometime in the future. We still want to take a paddleboat tour, and ride the Minnesota Zephyr (though I've heard a rumor it might be closing), and there are several other bed and breakfasts to stay at, and several things still to explore!
But now, I give you
careswen and mmerriam's Friday. 17 October 2008
careswen and I had a nice easy drive from Hopkins to Stillwater, arriving in town at about 11:30 am. Since we could not check into the William Sauntry Mansion until 4:30 pm, we spent some time exploring the city. First, though we stopped for lunch at Culver's, which seems to be some kind of Minnesota institution. The Culvers double bacon cheeseburger (butter burger) was... juicy I guess is the best word. It was tasty, though.Once finished, we decided to visit the historic Washington County Courthouse. There we ran into a bit of disappointment: They had closed the exhibits the day before. We ran into this multiple times. Why do you close your exhibits before the weekend? Close them after! We did watch a short video about the history of the courthouse and Washington County. Then, the nice lady who greeted us took us on a short tour of the decommissioned jail. They did have several artifacts from former sheriffs, including handcuffs, a pistol, badges, patches, and hats.
There was a wedding in the large upstairs courtroom that day, but since they were not there at the time, we were allowed entry to the courtroom and given a chance to look around. Among the non-jail artifacts that were still on display, I was most impressed with the manual typewriter that sported an extra-long carriage for typing legal documents.
On other note of interest: The tile on the floor was brought over to Stillwater from Stoke-On-Trent, which is the home town of my friend and fellow writer,
mylefteye.Once finished at the jail and courthouse, we headed for the Warden's House Museum, home of the former warden of the now-lost state prison. Arriving a bit early, we were part of the first tour group of the day. Our guide did an excellent job of detailing the day-to-day life in the house. It was interesting to see the layout of a typical (if large) home of the day.
My two favorite parts of the exhibit were the ornate music box that played metal disks, about the same size as a vinyl record, and the room with the artifacts and records concerning the Younger brothers during their time in state prison. There was also a wonderful period dress that had belonged to one of the wife of a former warden. Our guide also explained about how the logging companies all had stamps to stamp their logs with for identification at the mills in Stillwater.
The old prison itself is gone, lost to a fire, but the outer wall and guard house are still standing and was incorporated into the new development.
From there,
careswen and I stopped to get a drink at a little hot dog stand. We were sitting outside when we saw a sea (river?) plane take off from the waters of the St. Croix River. It was pretty neat.Our next stop was the antique mall inside the Staples Lumber Mill. The antiques were pretty standard, with a couple of interesting pieces. I enjoyed looking at the old lumber mill as much as the goods being sold inside.
Once finished there, we ate dinner at the Stillwater Depot Grill. Good food and great service. The Minnesota Zephyr train was parked outside, so we got a couple of good pictures.
When we finished dinner, we went to the Sauntry and checked in. The mansion is gorgeous to look at. It is well restored, and the owners are nice folks. Our room was one of the smaller rooms, but that was fine. We chatted for a few minutes with the other guests, as the mansion serves coffee, tea, wine, and light snacks at check-in time, and then headed up to our room.
In the room, we changed into pajamas for the night, at least until we decided to climb into the whirlpool. We relaxed, ate fruit and cheese, and drank the bottle of wine
matastas and dlandon gave careswen for her birthday. Once done with the whirlpool and wine, we climbed into bed for the night.Saturday. 18 October 2008
careswen and I awoke in good spirits, showered, and went downstairs for coffee and tea before breakfast. We took our drinks outside and sat on the porch. Though it was chilly, it was also soothing and peaceful.Breakfast at the Sauntry is a full, 4-course breakfast served in the formal dinning room. One of the owners is a former chef, it seems. Breakfast was fruit (banana, orange, and pineapple slices) followed by scones (I can't remember what kind), with the main dish being an oven omelet with sun-dried tomatoes and peppers with a side of sausage links. The last course was no-flour brownies. Orange juice, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate was available for drink. We had a nice chat with the others guests and the owners as well.
Setting out, we found a place to park for the day and ventured into town on foot. Our first stop was Valley Booksellers, where we purchased a present for someone else. It was a nice little bookstore.
We started browsing the antique stores after that. Many interesting things were seen, including a Civil War field cannon in Gabrielle's. We purchased a nice little bellows for out fireplace at the Stillwater Antique Mall. I considered buying a vintage manual typewriter, an Underwood #5, but decided the condition didn't warrant the price.
We dropped our stuff back at the car, stopped to get a couple a drinks, and then made our way to the Stillwater Trolley Tour. This was one was a load of fun! The driver, a nice older man named Robert, drove us around town, telling us stories and interesting bits of history about Stillwater, especially in its lumber-town days. The trolley swayed and bobbed all up and down the hills as he talked. My favorite points were:
He stopped at the top of the highest hill in Stillwater, then he came off the clutch and we shot downward, causing yells from some of the passengers.
The view of the river from one of the highest parts of town: It was the most spectacular views of the river and river-valley.
The story of the Ann Bean Mansion, which is just hysterical.
When he talked about how the city built steps from the lower streets to the high streets because no one wanted to take there horses, buggies, or carriages out on the hilly streets during a Minnesota winter. He said, "You could always tell a Stillwater girl by the muscles on her calves." If you could get her to show them to you, anyway.
Once the ride was over, we ate at Luna Rossa (great food, excellent service) and then took the Joseph Wolf Brewery Caves Tour. It was great fun seeing all the old equipment and hearing the stories of what the caves were used for after the brewery closed due to prohibition.
After the tour we walked over to the St. Croix Antiquarian Booksellers. It was lovely, and I very nearly bought a couple of things, but resisted the siren call.
We wrapped up our second day by doing a few more antique shops.
careswen saw several vintage sewing machines and spinning wheels, and more than once found herself explaining to a shop employee or antique owner how the spinning wheel worked. I saw a wooden box made for crochet hooks, but was filled with fountain pens. Love and lust, but I did not buy. Before we returned to the car, we walked down to the river and watched the water flow by for a few minutes.
Back at the Sauntry for the evening, we soaked in the whirlpool some more, ate more cheese and crackers (and other light snacks) and rested, reading our books and quietly chatting until we turned out the lights.
Sunday. 19 October 2008.
Sunday morning, we got up and packed most of our luggage before going downstairs to have tea and coffee before breakfast. We sat outside again, this time on a different part of the porch, overlooking the fountain. We talked about why we think modern homes have moved from porches to patios, among other things.
Breakfast that morning was grapefruit wedges, raisin scones, Finnish pancakes with a side of polish sausage, and for the life of me I can't remember the dessert course. Once checked out, we headed back into Stillwater for a little more sightseeing. We arrived at Main Street earlier than most of the stores opened, so we had coffee and tea at Starbucks, then walked over to the Midtown Antique Mall. We spent a lot of time in this rather large building, but all the antiques (and some times just junk) was starting to look the same.
When we finished with that store, we walked over to Chestnut Street Books. This store is owned by the daughter of the former owner of the Loome Antiquarian Bookseller (which is now closed, though the Theological Bookstore is still open). We spent a long time in the store. It wasn't very large, but it was packed with goodness, and we bought a couple of things, including a book of Turkish fairy and folk tales.
And then we were done.
careswen drove us home and we unpacked and rested. We had a lovely time in Stillwater, and will probably go back again sometime in the future. We still want to take a paddleboat tour, and ride the Minnesota Zephyr (though I've heard a rumor it might be closing), and there are several other bed and breakfasts to stay at, and several things still to explore!
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2008-10-28 09:36 pm (UTC)And here's where you should stay in Stillwater to celebrate when you sell your novel:
http://www.rivertowninn.com/rooms.html
no subject
Date: 2008-10-29 01:30 am (UTC)The mansion was originally built by a Mr. Hersey, a lumber baron, who had promised it for his wife. It took two years to complete, like most of those of its day. Mrs. Hersey had had a lot of input into making it her dream home.
When the home was complete, Mrs. Hersey was out of town shopping. Mr. Hersey's friend offered Mr. Hersey a substantial profit if Hersey sold him the home. Hersey gave in, and sold it to his friend, who gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter, Ann Bean.
Mrs. Hersey was furious when she returned to discover that her dream home had been sold out from underneath her. To mollify his wife, Mr. Hersey built her a new home, but he was either cruel or stupid: The new home was half the size of Ann Bean's mansion, and it was across the street, with the porch and portrait windows facing the Bean home. Unsurprisingly, Mrs. Hersey refused to move into the new house.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-29 02:43 am (UTC)Great story, though. I hope Mrs. Hersey got her dream house eventually.