Mighty Mo In Infrared Glow

                                   Above, Missouri River looking West from River Front Park.

                               Above, Missouri and Kaw Rivers looking East from Kaw Point.

City In A Forest

              Kessler Park in Historic Northeast Kansas City in the foreground... downtown KC in the  
                                                                        background.

Lafayette Square Homes Tour - Volume 4

 2340 Park Avenue was the next home on the tour, shown below.  This home was built in 1878 for Casper Fischer and his wife Elizabeth.  built as a two and a half story early Italianate style house, it was remodeled to the French Second Empire style with a Mansard roof and full third floor. The owners also renovated the 1891 Carriage House with the second floor serving as guest quarters.

Sunrise Blooms And One Bug

Took a walk down the block to see a wide array of lilies and other blooms and one temporary houseguest in the form of a praying mantis.

Lafayette Square Homes Tour - Volume Three

In 1886 Henry Hoffman, a busman employed by Missouri Sand and Gravel Company, built this home at 2351 Albion.  The 3400 square foot home is in the French Second Empire Style.  During the 20th Century the home was a rooming house for many years and, although much of the footprint remains original, only one of the fireplace mantels survived.  The others were replaced with period pieces by the current owners.  The chandeliers hanging in the front parlor and dining room are extremely rare examples of some of the most ornate gas lighting from the 1850's. 

 There's a formal garden in the back...  the next tour home was right across the street so not too many homes to picture in between the two :)

Lafayette Square Park, St. Louis

This is the first in a series of posts on a trip I took to St. Louis to visit my daughter and her boyfriend and to see the Lafayette Square Homes Tour.  First in the series is Lafayette Square Park.  

Land was set aside in 1836 for the park and it was dedicated in 1851.  After the park was created many new, exclusive, homes were erected around it.  Swan boats sailed the lake, carriage rides were par for the course and there was a parade ground for the militia to practice and perform.  Above is a replica of the curved bridge built in the first park.  

 On the day of the Tour there were complimentary carriage rides through the park.  Below, the Park House which contains a bust of the Park's namesake, Lafayette.

                             The pond has geese and swans as well as a complement of ducks.

 Above, men in period costumes playing baseball... this field was originally the parade ground for the militia. Below, these guns are from the British Man O'War Acteon, sunk in an attack on sullivan Island in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina on June 28, 1776.  The were installed in the Park on October 20th 1897.

 Senator Thomas Hart Benton, who may have had a hand in arranging for the land set-aside that created Lafayette Square Park.  We have our own tribute to the Senator in the center of the round-a-bout at St. John Avenue and Benton Boulevard in Northeast Kansas City.

                                  Fairy house on the island in the lake with swan and geese below.

                         Above, not sure of course, but this swan looks to be "sitting" on a nest...

                                                              Above and below, George Washington