The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, NY

Here's a picture of Curtiss on the bike.  1907, was a very busy time for Curtiss. In January, for example, he rode the world’s first V-8 motorcycle to a speed of 136 miles per hour in Ormond Beach, Florida. Having driven the cycle faster than even the typical locomotive of the day, he became known as “the fastest man on earth.”  Full here.

The June Bug was designed by Glenn Curtiss and powered by a Curtiss engine.

So his wife could come along.

Shaft-driven bicycle!

Could be handy going downhill in Philly on the fixed gear!

1934 Zündapp flat twin K500 shaft-drive motorcycle.

I had the opportunity to visit the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum yesterday after a long drive back to Philadelphia from Buffalo, NY.  The museum is located in Hammondsport, NY near Keuka Lake.  Keuka means "canoe landing" in the Iroquois language and "lake with an elbow" in the Seneca language.

Glenn Curtiss was an innovator in aviation, bicycles, and motorcycles.  He was a talented motorcycle builder and racer and built engines for airships in the early 1900s.  He worked with the Aerial Experiment Association (AEA), a group founded by Alexander Graham Bell.  Early on he had an interest in bicycles and started his own business building and maintaining them in Hammondsport.  Curtiss began assembling engines and attaching them to the frame of bicycles.  His desire to go fast was born.  Breaking records in 1907 riding his V-8 motorcycle, building countless engines for famous aircraft, and innovating transportation and inspiring many thinkers for years to come.  

If you are ever passing through or on a wine tour near the finger lakes, add this to your itinerary!

American Swedish Museum Presents "Indian Nation: Indian Motorcycles and America"

Hi Philadelphia friends or folks in the area!  If you have not heard already, the American Swedish Museum has a special exhibition on Indian Motorcycles.  The American Swedish Museum is the oldest Swedish Museum in the United States and it is right here in South Philadelphia!  The exhibition, "Indian Nation: Indian Motorcycles and America," features 12 rare bikes, parts, and history about the company's roots and key innovations.

Oscar Hedstrom, a Swedish immigrant, was the mastermind behind the first American motorcycle, the Indian, and co-founded the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company in 1901 with partner George Hendee.

If you are in the area I suggest you check out the exhibition.  It runs through the summer.

Vintage Norton Motorcycles

Vintage Norton Motorcycles is in my opinion the #1 online source for historical pieces on the bikes, a PDF collection of manuals, histories, brochures and parts.  Almost any vintage (we're talking pre-war era) machines are documented with in-depth descriptions and pictures.  It's a very concise pictoral archive and can be a day-killer if you're into that sort of thing.



The Lost Christmas Gift

Sixty years after his father left to be a mapmaker in the war in Europe, Emerson Johansson received a package that had been lost in the mail for decades. An exquisite book, lovingly handmade by his father, details an extraordinary adventure they shared together just months before his departure.  Take a peak inside the cover over at ISSUU.  You may purchase The Lost Christmas Gift from Princeton Architectural Press (Papress) here ($30). 

Norwegian Folktales

Especially around this time of year I get hooked on fairytales and mythologies.  Lately it's been Scottish and Norwegian Fairytales that I've been reading about and getting swept away in.  The illustrations above are by the famous Norwegian artist Theodor Kittelsen (1857-1914).  He illustrated for Asbjørnsen and Moe for their Norwegian Fairytale (Norse Folkeeventyr) book/pamphlets (1845-1870).   It is said that Asbjørnsen was skeptical when he first saw Kittelsen's troll drawings, he thought kids would be terrified of some of the trolls he illustrated.  This is a good reference for Kittlesen's work. 



Großes Schauspielhaus (Great Theater)



Berlin: Hans Poelzig's Großes Schauspielhaus(or you can refer, as I do in my head, to it as "groshes schowshpeeelhawws" I think it's right) is a perfect example of expressionist architecture, something I have only recently really begun to explore.  It's sad to find out about such great buildings and then hear they've been demolished (it's kind of like the time I discovered Jeff Buckley, got obsessed, and then realized I would never see him in concert). This building, more popular by it's internal "stalactite grotto" than the facade, has been a symbol of work by the late expressionist architect.  The supports looked like fountains lighted high above your head and seemed to drip down and turn into feable looking supports or as one of Poelzig's students, Julius Posener, remarked, "The 'supports' do not look convincing." I've read that the lights on the "stalactites," when aglow, formed celestial constellations.  Absolutely astonishing.  Poelzig's infatuation with Gothic and Renaissance architecutral structure and elements gave way to the creation of Großes Schauspielhaus.

Come 1933 and the Nazis took over Großes Schauspielhaus and called it the Theater for the People.  A drop like ceiling was hung to cover the "stalactites."  Following WWII the theater staged a variety of shows, turned into a military warehouse until 1988, and was demolished. 

Extreme Goth + High Victorian

Most Philadelphian's would not recognize the architect Willis Gaylord Hale by name, but rather the looming icons of times passed.  Located at Broad and Fairmount is the beautiful and eerie Divine Lorraine.  Another building that always interested me is the aptly named Hale Building.  It's located near Broad and Chestnut on the east side of Broad.  The Hale Building used to be home to the Garrick Theater in 1909 (above) and more . 

It has a really interesting history, created quite a stir and still remains to the day, well, somewhat.   There's a great article in Hidden City Philadelphia here. 

2012

Rabelos

Port wine was introduced in the 17th century when the import of wine into Portugal halted after Britain declared war on France and blocked ships from entering or exiting French ports. With Britain now looking to Portugal to supply wine, wines made from grapes taken from vineyards along the fertile Douro river were used. British merchants would often add "a bucket or two" of brandy to the wine barrels, leading to rich, fortified wine that was very different from French varieties.

Rabelos were famously used to transport the wine up until 1964.  Now, they're used to transport tourists and people who like to pretend to be pirates.