Cracker Jack

Cracker Jack is a famous American snack made of caramel-coated popcorn and peanuts.  The iconic Sailor Jack logo on the Cracker Jack box was modeled after Robert Rueckheim, the grandson of company co-founder, Frederick William Rueckheim.

Robert Rueckheim was the son of Edward Rueckheim (the eldest of the Rueckheim brothers who created the snack.  His likeness was captured and introduced as part of the brand's mascot artwork around 1916.  

Bingo the dog was the small dog accompanying Sailor Jack.  The character was based on a real-life stray dog named Russell, who was adopted in 1917 by partner Henry Eckstein.  Eckstein insisted the beloved pet be added to the packaging alongside the boy. 

In 1937, the artwork was refined, changing the boy's hat to white and shifting the dog's position.

It was first shown to the public at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair.  The name and slogan "The More you Eat, the More You Want" were registered in 1896. In that year, a coating process was perfected to stop the popcorn from sticking together, leading to the name 'Cracker Jack".  In 1908, the snack became famous when it was immortalized in the baseball anthem "Take Me Out to the Ball Game". 

Cracker Jack stopped including traditional physical toy prizes in 2016.  The most valuable Cracker Jack prizes are the 1914 and 1915 baseball cards.   Complete sets in near-mint condition are worth between $150,000 and $375,000 with individual star player cards that include the name, Ty Cobb commanding five-figure sums at auction.  Rare die-cast or pot-metal cars, trains and tin litho airplanes can fetch anywhere from $40 to over $100 depending on rarity and condition. 

In 1912, the snack began the tradition of putting a prize inside every box.

 

Buffalo Trace Distillery 

113 Great Buffalo Terrace

Frankfort, Kentucky

Buffalo Trace Distillery is America's oldest continuously operating distillery offering complimentary historic grounds tours and bourbon tastings. It remains the only major Kentucky distillery to offer daily tours and guided tastings completely free of charge. The complimentary Hard Hat Tour + Tasting is a behind-the-scenes journey through the full bourbon-making process.

The distillery has operated on the banks of the Kentucky River for over 200 years along an ancient buffalo path.  The property is a designated National Historic Landmark on July 22, 2013.  It was also entered on the National Register of Historic Places on May 2, 2001.  

It famously continued distilling for medicinal purposes during Prohibition. The 50-acre scenic campus features a group of six buildings, constructed between 1880 and 1907 with a blend of rugged 19th-century architecture. There is a Clubhouse and Lodge, both of which are rustic log buildings were constructed in 1935 for the use of employees and corporate visitors.  

Stony Point

The residential home on the grounds of the Buffalo Trace Distillery built by Colonel Albert Bacon Blanton.  It was built in 1934 by Colonel Blanton as a private residence for himself and his wife. The Frankfort architectural firm of Leo Oberwarth and Son designed the home.

A beautiful example of an Arts and Crafts style, this house retains its original woodwork and intricate detail.  A nature lover, avid bird watcher and gardener, Colonel Blanton designed the gardens around his home to attract many different types of birds.  Colonel Blanton lived in the house until his death in 1959 spending many hours bird watching from the sun porch on the second floor.  Today this house serves as offices for distillery staff.

Blanton's Bourbon is distilled and hand-bottled at the historic Buffalo Trace Distillery. Introduced in 1984 by master distiller Elmer T. Lee Blanton's was created as the world's first commercial single-barrel bourbon named in honor of distillery pioneer Colonel Albert Bacon Blanton. 

All Blanton's barrels are aged in the famous metal-clad Warehouse H built by Colonel Blanton in 1935 where extreme temperature swings accelerate the interaction between the wood and the whiskey.  

The iconic bottle stoppers feature eight different horse-and-jockey designs with each bottle having a letter that when completely collected spell out

 B-L-A-N-T-O-N-S 

with the second "N" distinguished by a colon (N:) immediately following the letter.

Each stopper features a tiny horse and jockey in a different stage of a horse racing, moving from the starting gate to the finish line. If you collect a used set of all eight unique stoppers, you can mail them to the Buffalo Trace Distillery Gift Shop and they will mount them on a wooden barrel stave* for free.

*A stave is an individual narrow strip of wood used to build a bourbon barrel or an extra piece of wood added to age and flavor the whiskey. Barrelmakers fit 31 to 33 staves together side-by-side and hold them in place with metal hoops to form the body of a standard 53-gallon bourbon barrel. The inside of these structural staves is toasted and charred imparting classic bourbon notes such as vanilla, caramel and oak spice into the resting spirit. 

While law does not require bourbon to be made in Kentucky, the Bluegrass state produces approximately 95% of the world's supply.  There are several primary reasons Kentucky remains the bourbon capital of the world today.  Kentucky was America's original West.  When early settlers moved West in search of more land and resources many settled in what is now the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  These settlers of Scottish, German and Irish descent brought with them their stills and distilling knowledge.  They quickly discovered that Kentucky was the ideal place to make great whiskey.

..the beautiful bottles awaiting quality bourbon..

 

Smith-Corona Manual Portable Silent Super

Circa 1957

"one of the best portable typewriters produced by Smith-Corona"

The Silent Super was renowned for its smooth, fast action and sound-dampening insulation. It was a popular 5-Series line (which included the Sterling and Silent models) serving as the high-end, top-tier model known for its relatively quiet "silent" (muted), reliability, heavy-duty and stylish design. The Silent Super was known for its "pretty" or "shiny" aesthetics.

Smith-Corona is credited with some "retro curves and "art deco aesthetics" that were "designed by" people in the company's engineering department. The Silent Super is considered to have strong Art Deco and streamlined, industrial design influences. Key features such as it's "low-slung" curves, racing stripes on the hood and overall sleek, modern silhousette made it a popular example of the era's design. Therefore, the Silent Super is often associated with the late Art Deco or Art Moderne period with often a matte or crinkle-paint finish. 

While some earlier 1930s machines, like the Remington 5, are more commonly cited for classic "piano black" Art Deco styling, the Smith-Corona Silent Super represents a 1950s evolution of that trend.

The Smith-Corona Super Silent was primarily offered in five distinct pastel and standard colors starting around 1957.  The most notable colors were Alpine Blue, Seafoam Green, Coral Pink, Desert Sand and Sapphire Gray/Grey.  Early models typically featured green keys though later the colored models transitioned to white keys.  

The Silent Super is often celebrated as a masterpiece of manual portable design. It was a mid-sized, heavy duty "workhorse" designed to provide the full keyboard experience.  It was renowed for its speed.  It was designed by the company's engineering team in Groton, New York which included design engineer, Joseph P. Barkdoll and released in the post-WWII "baby boomer" era.

Barkdoll was a long-serving Smith-Corona design engineer.  He also had much to do with the brilliant line of typewriters introduced by Smith-Corona at Christmas 1949.  These included the Clipper, Sterling and the Silent-Super.  Barkdoll was born in Ohio April 1895 and began work for L. C Smith-Corona in the late 1920s and continued to patent designs for the company until 1969. During his 30 years of service to Smith-Corona, Barkdoll assigned at least 23 patents to the company.

The Smith-Corona Silent-Super is a front-strike, segment-shift typewriter with a light touh and fast action due to its "super speed escapement".  It features an "88-character full keyboard", including the number "1" key which was not always found on typewriters.  The keys were made of an early form of plastic called "Bakelite.*  The machine also had a ribbon selector of black, red and stencil settings, a margin release switch, a backspace button and a manual ribbon reverse switch.  The typewriter weighed 13 pounds.  It was 11.5 inches wide, 12.5 inches deep and 4.75 inches tall. 

*Bakelite was the early form of plastic developed in 1907 by Belgian chemist, Leo Baekeland in Yonkers, NY.  It was patented on December 7, 1909.  As the first fully synthetic plastic, it was used for durable, heat-resistant items like telephones, radios and jewelry often dubbed "the material of a thousand uses". The uses included .. typewriter keys.  Bakelite was commonly used for typewriter keys from the 1930s through the 1950s and typically had a solid, opaque appearance compared to earlier glass-covered keys. The keys were known for having a unique "wood-like" sound when tapped. 

Smith-Corona was founded in 1886 by the Smith brothers.  Smith-Corona became a dominant American typewriter manufacturer, famous for portable models.  Its origin from 1886 into the 1900s was founded by the Smith Premier Typewriter Company in Syracuse, New York by brothers Lyman Cornelius, Wilbert, Monroe and Hurlbut Smith.  In 1926, L.C. Smith & Brothers merged with the Corona Typewriter Company (founded in 1909) forming the L. C. Smith & Corona Typewriter Company and eventually becoming Smith-Corona. They ushered in the typewriter craze after WWII, when it produced the world's first portable manual typewriter. 

"no down payment .. convenient terms"

$121. 58 (incl. Fed. tax)

"To Smith-Corona with love .. best friend a busy girl ever had."

Natalie Wood

Sidenote:  In my research for this featured story I came upon the word QWERTY keyboard and now know what it is referring to in typewriter language. The QWERTY keyboard is the standard English-language typewriter and computer keyboard layout, named for the first six letters in the top-left letter row.  Patented in 1878, it was designed for early typewriters to reduce mechanical jams by separating frequently used letter combinations.  It prevented the mechanical arms of typewriters from colliding and locking up. Other regions used modified layouts, such as QWERTZ (German) or AZERTY (French). Despite the development of more efficient layouts, QWERTY remains the standard due to user familiarity and widespread adoption. 

I received an alpine blue Silent-Super as a young girl about to enter junior high school though I don't have it today.  That's the sad news, but the good news is I found one on eBay in alpine blue and can now say I am the proud owner of my second Silent-Super.

 

The Bob Hope (Fox) Theatre

242 East Main Street

Stockton, California 

The Ticket Kios

This theatre is an historic, ornate movie palace designed by Bach & Stanbery as the Fox California Theater opened October 14, 1930 showing Spencer Tracy in Up the River.  Approximately 20,000 people attended the opening celebration.  The Fox was built by Beller Construction Company though renamed in honor of comedian Bob Hope after a major $8.5 million restoration completed in September 2004, funded in part by local developer, Alex Spanos who was a close friend of Bob Hope.  The Fox was added to the National Register of Historic Places June 27, 1979.

The Bob Hope (Fox) Theatre features a grand lobby with an Italian marble mosaic floor that encompasses a 1,200 square foot space in the center of the lobby.  The theatre houses a restored 1928 Robert Morton theater organ donated by the volunteer group, Friends of the Fox and the Sierra Chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society which were  instrumental in preserving the theatre. 

The organ was last played in the Seattle Fox Theatre and used to accompany silent movies before being restored.

The theatre capacity holds 2,030 completely refurbished red velvet seats in a Spanish Renaissance and Baroque-style auditorium. The original chandelier and tile in the exterior lobby were preserved. 

The theatre was constructed in only 9 months time for $500,000.  The original seating capacity was 2,250. With its carved ceiling beams, gold leaf proscenium arches covered in gold, the theatre is definitely one of the most beautiful interiors in all of Stockton.  There are thousands of gargoyle faces throughout the theater and were traditionally crafted by individual artisans as the craftsman's signature. The floor mosaic is made up of 80,000 Italian marble pieces and evokes Neptune, God of the Seas.  The floor mosaic replaces a beautiful fountain that was removed in 1950.  The chandelier was taken apart and refurbished.

Today, the Bob Hope (Fox) Theatre is the most requested site for historical walking tours. 

 

Carson Mansion

143 M Street

Eureka, California

"considered the most grand Victorian home in America"

"one of the most written about and photographed Victorian houses in California and possibly in the United States"

Circa 2018

This Victorian mansion was constructed in 1884 and was completed in 1886.  The cost to build it was $80,000 (equivalent to $2,866,667 in 2025).  The architects were Samuel Newsom and Joseph Cather Newsom. 

The mansion is a mix of every major style of Victorian architecture, including but not limited to Italianate and Queen Anne.  

Originally the home of William Carson, one of the Northern California's first major lumber barons.  The house and grounds are not open to the public as it is owned and occupied by the private Ingomar Club.

The Ingomar Club is a private club that owns the home being formed in May 1950 by J. H. Crothers and Carl Gustafson.  According to researcher Wally Graves, the club was founded "to own and maintain a club headquarters for the meetings and enjoyment of its members.

In the late 1940s, two Eureka businessmen, Crothers and Gustafson came up with the idea for what is now the Ingomar Club.  Modeling this vision after an established organization, the Humboldt Club, they and other prominent members of local society began meeting and looking for a physical location to house the club.  In particular, they focused on a vacant mansion that had been built by lumber baron, William Carson, who had been a member of the Humboldt Club.  Since his heirs had moved to San Francisco, the club founders were able to negotiate a price of $35,000. 

Originally a men's club, the club has since admitted women in the early 2000s with equal access as men. The club was named in tribute to the historic Ingomar Theatre which was once located in downtown Eureka's Carson Block Buiilding and named after William Carson's favorite play, Ingomar the Barbarian. Members enjoy upscale lulnch and dinner offerings featuring stellar cuisine paired with views overlooking Humboldt Bay.  

The Carson Mansion 

Circa 1902

The Pink Lady

Located directly across the street from the Carson Mansion is the Pink Lady Mansion.  It was built in 1889 by William Carson as a wedding gift for his daughter.  It has been beautifully restored and functions today as a boutique hotel and bed-and-breakfast.

The Carter House Inn

This Eureka landmark is a masterful 1980s replica of a grand San Francisco Victorian mansion designed originally by the Newsom brothers in the late 19th century.  Today, it operates as an upscale inn and restaurant. 

Hillsdale Street Neighborhood

For a quiet walk among residential "Painted Ladies", head to the historic streets between 12th & 13th Streets and E & C Streets.  This neighborhood contains some of Eureka's best-preserved private Queen Anne Victorian homes.

Mowry House

220 Hillsdale Street

Circa 1893

A. W. Torrey House

216 Hillsdale Street

Circa 1893

John A. Cottrell Home

1228 C Street

Circa 1902

 Mr. Cottrell was a lumberman. He arrived in Eureka in 1884 and became foreman at William Carson's Lincoln Mill.  Around 1889, he co-founded a moulding and sash mill then constructed this Queen Anne as a showpiece for products from his mill such as windows, doors, porch details, railings, cabinets and interior trim.

A car show on Main Street

Ferndale, California

Ferndale, California is an historic city in Humboldt County known as the "Victorian Village" for its exceptionally well-preserved 19th-century architecture.  Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1893, the town grew prosperous through a thriving dairy industry.  Wealthy dairy farmers built ornate Queen Anne homes and storefronts earning th etown its "Butterfat Palace" and "Cream City" nicknames. The entire city is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is designated as California Historical Landmark #883. 

The Victorian Inn

400 Ocean Avenue

Ferndale, California

Banker Ira C. Russ, charmed by the area and with family in the area returned to Ferndale in 1800 and created this detailed monumnet.  His magnificent tribute to luxury, comfort and crafsmanship is built entirely of native redwood and remains an historic and notable architectural testament of its time. One of the most photographed buildings in Northern California, the Inn embodies the elegance and romance of the timber boom era, as every room has a unique story to tell in the heart of California Redwoods.