So, we celebrated Mom X's 80th yesterday (and many happy returns!). A lot of friends and family stopped by, good food was enjoyed by all (I do okay in the kitchen but believe me when I say I'm the least-skilled from a family of gifted cooks) and, in the festivities, some of Mom's extensive collection of photo albums were out to be looked through.
When I was growing up, these snapshots (and the occasional professional photograph) were scattered through many boxes; I don't suppose I ever saw them all. One of the albums had pictures from about the time my parents got married, mostly the years right afterward. I leafed idly through, marveling at how young they looked (and how much their faces are reflected in those of their children and grandchildren), when the settings and background of one series of images caught my eye: it all looked hauntingly familiar, despite being decades before I was born. Turned the page and there, in a bumper sticker and a sign, was the answer: they were at the House of David's very own amusement park and resort!
I've blogged about them before, a fascinating bunch; if you want to think of them as sort of a fun version of the Shakers, you won't miss by much: the same traits of self-reliance and inventiveness, but with a flair for showmanship and entertainment as well. Their Eden Springs Park was a popular Midwest tourist destination from early in the 20th Century through 1971. But I never knew my parents had been there.
Looks like it was a lot of fun.
When I was growing up, these snapshots (and the occasional professional photograph) were scattered through many boxes; I don't suppose I ever saw them all. One of the albums had pictures from about the time my parents got married, mostly the years right afterward. I leafed idly through, marveling at how young they looked (and how much their faces are reflected in those of their children and grandchildren), when the settings and background of one series of images caught my eye: it all looked hauntingly familiar, despite being decades before I was born. Turned the page and there, in a bumper sticker and a sign, was the answer: they were at the House of David's very own amusement park and resort!
I've blogged about them before, a fascinating bunch; if you want to think of them as sort of a fun version of the Shakers, you won't miss by much: the same traits of self-reliance and inventiveness, but with a flair for showmanship and entertainment as well. Their Eden Springs Park was a popular Midwest tourist destination from early in the 20th Century through 1971. But I never knew my parents had been there.
Looks like it was a lot of fun.
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