This burnt-out hole used to be the O. T. Johnson's Department Store building, in downtown Galesburg, IL. The store which stood on this site once employed Ronald Reagan's father as a shoe salesman, and often hosted book signings for Carl Sandburg. The building burned to the ground Sunday, 22 January, and left neighboring properties damaged.
The building to the left in this image is owned by the BPOE, and suffered fire damage to the roof and windows, and considerable smoke and water damage. Next door to it, in the shadows, is the place where Mom & I go to get our artworks framed. The owner says he has lost most of his inventory, but expects to recover. We were grateful we had none of our works in his back room this month, and have deep sympathy for those whose works were damaged and/or lost.
This location suffered a small fire only a week before, when a pair of thirteen-year-old boys were caught "playing" with fire in the antiques warehouse which took up the majority of the real estate on that site.
Cause of this fire is still under investigation.
(My personal theory, though, is that somebody lit all the candles on Ex Sailorette's birthday cake. Stop by and wish her well.)
No comments:
Post a Comment