A couple of years ago, I had written a short story to my daughter Gail about an adventure I had back in 1957-58 in Atchison Kansas. A long story , but for this, I'll make it short as i can. My father didn't raise me. My grandmother did. Dad was a wild and crazy guy who was a jack of all trades and master of none. He never found anything but the army that kept his interest and after he was discharged, he had quite a life.
In 1958, he had moved to Atchison Kansas of The Atchison, Topeka and Sante Fe railroad fame. He had opened a Roadhouse there with my uncle as partner. It was named after my uncle's wife Dorothy, (Dot). In 1958, me and my buddy ran away from home, (We were 16), I had a custom 1951 Chevy fastback with a flame job named "The Green Hornet"! We went to Atchison and Dad let us live in the back of the night club in a small apartment. He had decorated both the inside and the exterior with his cartoons. (He was a professional artist on and off). These two photos were taken in the summer of 1958. Dad was 32 years old at the time. (I was born when he was 16 and my mother was 15). Behind him you can see some of his work.
Another one.
In July of '58, Atchison became famous for having a disastrous flood and tornados and became known as the City that wouldn't die. The destruction was awesome. Me and my buddy had to swim our way out of the roadhouse and make our way to a bluff high above the city. On it was a city park named Jackson Park. We came near to death. The water was rushing and the tornado winds were unbelievable. I remember it like it was yesterday. We were picked up by a Corps of Engineers motorboat and taken to a shelter in a high school on the hills above the city. While there a reporter from the Kansas City Star newspaper photographed us as survivors and we made the front page. Sorry, I had a copy and it vanished many moons ago.
Anyway, the insurance paid off, the roadhouse was rebuilt better than ever. It reopened 3 weeks after the flood, one of the first businesses in town to do so. Two weeks later, another flood and tornadoes hit. Again the club was destroyed. Dad said the hell with it and we went home to Springfield, MO.
The damage was so severe, many wondered if the city could ever be rebuilt. Many of the businesses on the main drag were sinking and had to be jacked up from underneath and concrete poured to stop the sinking. Shortly thereafter, I went into the army at 17. When I got out four years later i returned for a weekend trip and the town had changed drastically.
I had had many adventures in that town and it will always be a warm memory for me. I told Gail all the stories and that one day, I would like to take her there.
We planned a trip to Kansas City for my birthday this year and a side trip to Atchison so she could see all the places I had written about in the story I sent her. The first place we went was to Dad's old roadhouse. It had been transformed into a salvage yard back in 1962 when i returned. The cartoons were left on the outside for decades. In 2001, on a trip there the building had been repainted.
Since Gail never knew her grandfather, I was hoping at least a few of his cartoons were still inside the building. When we pulled up, the man who owned the business came out, we talked, he remembered the cartoons on the exterior and said there were still some inside. We went in and behind some plastic sheeting, lo and behold, after 58 years, there they were. Most had badly eroded with time, (Being a salvage yard hadn't helped much either), but this was the best of the bunch.
The owner was very interested about the history of the building. He had heard stories but never knew anybody who was actually there and lived in it. He called some other people including his wife who came to meet us. We discussed people we knew, including my old girlfriends, one of which died several years ago. This is a photo of me, (At 17), and her at a booth in the roadhouse.
Gail was amazed that all this ancient history still had artifacts from all those years ago. She loved seeing the paintings her grandfather painted all those years ago. While there we went to the Amelia Earhardt house and museum, Gail loved that. Here she is beside the bed of young Amelia. It was a great p[lace to visit.
I also took her to Jackson Park bluff where the Corps of Engineers picked me and my buddy up and took us to a shelter. The pavilion was a later addition, but this was the spot!
Back in Kansas City, we ate at one of my favorite restaurants there, Jack Stack Barbecue, famous for Baby Back ribs and burnt Ends. I had the ribs, Gail the burnt ends. Here she is in Jack Stack's.
We went to the Kansas City open market, bought a ton of homegrown veggies!
We went to the famous Kansas city WW I Museum. It was really cool!
And a tired Gail beside a cannon.
Then I took her to The American Restaurant, the most awarded and most famous restaurant in Kansas City. The interior was incredible and had a 180° view of downtown Kansas City from the Crown Center. The service and the food was superb and the check reflected that! $$$$$. But is was a great experience.
Guess i don't look too bad for an ancient 75 year old paterfamilias :yipee
Bob
In 1958, he had moved to Atchison Kansas of The Atchison, Topeka and Sante Fe railroad fame. He had opened a Roadhouse there with my uncle as partner. It was named after my uncle's wife Dorothy, (Dot). In 1958, me and my buddy ran away from home, (We were 16), I had a custom 1951 Chevy fastback with a flame job named "The Green Hornet"! We went to Atchison and Dad let us live in the back of the night club in a small apartment. He had decorated both the inside and the exterior with his cartoons. (He was a professional artist on and off). These two photos were taken in the summer of 1958. Dad was 32 years old at the time. (I was born when he was 16 and my mother was 15). Behind him you can see some of his work.
Another one.
In July of '58, Atchison became famous for having a disastrous flood and tornados and became known as the City that wouldn't die. The destruction was awesome. Me and my buddy had to swim our way out of the roadhouse and make our way to a bluff high above the city. On it was a city park named Jackson Park. We came near to death. The water was rushing and the tornado winds were unbelievable. I remember it like it was yesterday. We were picked up by a Corps of Engineers motorboat and taken to a shelter in a high school on the hills above the city. While there a reporter from the Kansas City Star newspaper photographed us as survivors and we made the front page. Sorry, I had a copy and it vanished many moons ago.
Anyway, the insurance paid off, the roadhouse was rebuilt better than ever. It reopened 3 weeks after the flood, one of the first businesses in town to do so. Two weeks later, another flood and tornadoes hit. Again the club was destroyed. Dad said the hell with it and we went home to Springfield, MO.
The damage was so severe, many wondered if the city could ever be rebuilt. Many of the businesses on the main drag were sinking and had to be jacked up from underneath and concrete poured to stop the sinking. Shortly thereafter, I went into the army at 17. When I got out four years later i returned for a weekend trip and the town had changed drastically.
I had had many adventures in that town and it will always be a warm memory for me. I told Gail all the stories and that one day, I would like to take her there.
We planned a trip to Kansas City for my birthday this year and a side trip to Atchison so she could see all the places I had written about in the story I sent her. The first place we went was to Dad's old roadhouse. It had been transformed into a salvage yard back in 1962 when i returned. The cartoons were left on the outside for decades. In 2001, on a trip there the building had been repainted.
Since Gail never knew her grandfather, I was hoping at least a few of his cartoons were still inside the building. When we pulled up, the man who owned the business came out, we talked, he remembered the cartoons on the exterior and said there were still some inside. We went in and behind some plastic sheeting, lo and behold, after 58 years, there they were. Most had badly eroded with time, (Being a salvage yard hadn't helped much either), but this was the best of the bunch.
The owner was very interested about the history of the building. He had heard stories but never knew anybody who was actually there and lived in it. He called some other people including his wife who came to meet us. We discussed people we knew, including my old girlfriends, one of which died several years ago. This is a photo of me, (At 17), and her at a booth in the roadhouse.
Gail was amazed that all this ancient history still had artifacts from all those years ago. She loved seeing the paintings her grandfather painted all those years ago. While there we went to the Amelia Earhardt house and museum, Gail loved that. Here she is beside the bed of young Amelia. It was a great p[lace to visit.
I also took her to Jackson Park bluff where the Corps of Engineers picked me and my buddy up and took us to a shelter. The pavilion was a later addition, but this was the spot!
Back in Kansas City, we ate at one of my favorite restaurants there, Jack Stack Barbecue, famous for Baby Back ribs and burnt Ends. I had the ribs, Gail the burnt ends. Here she is in Jack Stack's.
We went to the Kansas City open market, bought a ton of homegrown veggies!
We went to the famous Kansas city WW I Museum. It was really cool!
And a tired Gail beside a cannon.
Then I took her to The American Restaurant, the most awarded and most famous restaurant in Kansas City. The interior was incredible and had a 180° view of downtown Kansas City from the Crown Center. The service and the food was superb and the check reflected that! $$$$$. But is was a great experience.
Guess i don't look too bad for an ancient 75 year old paterfamilias :yipee
Bob
