July 4

West Branch, Iowa, is a quaint, small midwestern town. A great place for Herbert Hoover to learn the work ethic and fortitude which would one day lead him to the U.S. Presidency. A small section of town around his parent’s homesite has been preserved within the park. Raised boardwalks allow visitors to keep their feet clean from the gravel roads. Along with the gravel, the four houses, a small one-room schoolhouse, and a couple of other buildings makes one think they are in the late 19th century. The house in which Herbert was born is the focal point of the park. He returned in later years with his wife to purchase the building and restore it. A walking path goes from the house to the burial plots for Herbert and Lou Henry. She died in 1944, eleven years after Hoover left the White House. He did not die until 1964. Next to the burial site is a hill on which Herbert’s relatives, Isaac and Esther Miles, had a 100-acre farm. One can take a narrow trail through grassland to house and barn, the only structures remaining from Herbert’s young days.

Then it was time to brave the idiots who drive around the Chicago area on I-80. If the speed limit is posted as 55 mph, Chicagoans feel 85 mph is appropriate. Granted, most, if not all, big cities show this resident mentality. Pullman NHP (until last year it was designated as a National Monument… someone in Congress figured it should get a name change) is a short distance off I-80, via I-94. Pullman was the brainchild of George M. Pullman. It would be a planned industrial complex, with workers living in a structured community (housing, schools, stores, etc.), being able to walk to work just down the street. The hope was that by having a self-contained environment (and better than most city situations), Pullman could attract the best workers. What blue-collar workers could expect free garbage pick-up at their homes back in those times? May-1880 was the beginning of the experiment. The concept was soon noticed by many. The Pullman’s Palace Car Company took off like a shot. No better luxury railcars were ever produced. They were elegant, efficient, and comfortable… “hotels on wheels”. By 1884 there were over 1,000 buildings of homes, public areas, and manufacturing. This was the perfect picture of success. Or was it? The 1894 strike by workers became a national fuse. Eventually the workers had to give in, but the company was not the same. Pullman died in 1897. His successors were forced by the Illinois Supreme Court to sell all non-industrial assets, depriving the company of revenue from rents by the workers. 1904 saw another strike, which management squashed. The Pullman Company closed its doors in 1969.

Indiana Dunes used to be called a National Lakeshore, but Congress in February-2019 changed its designation to National Park. The main attraction is the beachfront, and Mount Baldy, which tops out at 126 feet above Lake Michigan. Baldy is a “living dune”, moving inland between 5 and 10 feet a year. Over this July 4 weekend the dune was closed, though people could still walk on and sit on the beach. But I wanted nothing to do with the beach, today. A ranger at the VC said a three-hour wait for a parking spot at the beach lot. Or one could walk 1.5 miles (one-way) from the next closest lot which had openings). This park is more than just the beach, so I headed to Chellberg Farm, from the 1870s. The original barn of the homestead is used to manage cattle and chickens. The “new” home made of bricks from 1885 was open for tours (the original home made of wood burned down in 1884). The two park staff inside the home were having a wonderful day. One was dressed in period clothing, making food on the black cast iron stove. Again, cannot get that experience in a school room today. How many youngsters have ever seen someone cook with something other than an electric stovetop, self-cleaning oven, or a microwave oven? This is how rural people lived 150 years ago. The parking lot here was only about a quarter full, so I was happy. For anyone driving along I-94 in northwest Indiana, the VC is only one mile north of the Interstate at exit 26B (route 49). Stop in and look around.