Rock Island (IL) Armory PIREP
Jay Honeck
Island Armory will do the trick for you. Mary and I took the kids there a
few weeks ago, just looking for something "different" than the usual $100
hamburger, and we had a great time.
Located on an island in the middle of the Mississippi River, the Rock Island
Armory is one of the oldest active military facilities in the mid-West.
Established at the start of the Civil War in an area that was thought to be
invulnerable to Rebel attack, the armory has grown over the years in fits
and starts to become immense, taking up the entire island.
It's sort of "active in a moth-balled state", as it has been through much of
its existence. It was built and is still maintained in large part to allow
the "instant" production of heavy weaponry (I.E.: artillery, cannon, etc.)
without having to wait for private industry to "spool up". As a result,
the foundries and heavy machinery are in place, ready to go if needed -- but
currently "standing down", awaiting the next emergency.
(Although there are a fair number of other military buildings on the island,
including Navy and Marine facilities, we didn't get to visit any of these.
Not sure if you even CAN visit them, to be honest...)
It is this "down time" that has made the place so fascinating. Between the
Civil War and World War I, there wasn't much for them to do at the armory --
so they devoted themselves to expanding the permanent structures at the site
(is this NOT government logic at its finest??), and they had all the time
(and money) in the world to do it.
Because the men stationed there were skilled craftsmen -- and they had
virtually nothing to do -- the Guvmint made use of their skills in
performing the finely detailed construction of the many old and beautiful
buildings there -- resulting in massive door hinges and knobs being made out
of pure brass, forged from melted-down civil war cannons!
You have not seen construction like this -- no expense was spared. The doze
ns of buildings themselves are made out of huge quarried limestone blocks,
not unlike medieval castles. This, combined with their immense size and
over-sized solid brass hardware, gives the place a feeling of absolute
permanence. This facility will be in Rock Island -- in one form or
another -- in 3,000 years. There aren't many buildings in North America
with THAT kind of pedigree!
The commandant's house is the second largest government-owned private
residence in the U.S., second only to the White House!
(A side note: the stuff built since World War I is truly pathetic, by
comparison to the older stuff. And the facilities added during the frenzied
expansion of World War II are truly sad. In fact, this newer stuff is being
torn down, as it is falling apart -- while the old stuff still looks brand
new!)
There is a small museum on site, with one of the largest collections of hand
weapons in the world. They also have a pretty good collection of artillery
pieces, and an impressive collection of armor, with everything from a
battle-damaged Sherman tank that fought in the Battle of the Bulge, right up
to captured Iraqi armor from Desert Storm. (These are outside, so dress
warm if you go in the winter months.)
There is also a Confederate Cemetery there, as Rock Island was used as a
prison-camp during the Civil War. Conditions were evidently abominable (as
they were at most prisoner of war camps), judging by the mortality rate.
Here's how you get there: Fly into Quad Cities (Moline, MLI), and park at
Elliott aviation . They have two courtesy cars, and were VERY nice about
letting us take the car for more than just lunch. (In fact, they turned
down my offer of money, when I returned the car four hours later!) The
armory is less than 15 minutes from the airport, but get good directions
from the line staff -- it's a bit tricky.
And, of course, the whole island IS an active military facility -- so it
could in theory be closed down in the event of some sort of emergency. It's
a good idea to call ahead, as always, just to make sure everything is open.
You'll have a great time, and the kids might learn a thing or two while
they're there!
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Warrior N33431
Jay Honeck
And catch the buffet lunch at the riverboat casino (the "President") in
downtown Davenport. It's just across the river from Rock Island, with good
food and tight slots...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Warrior N33431
Jay Honeck <hon...@avalon.net> wrote in message
news:961pgi$ele$1...@sword.avalon.net...
stad...@my-deja.com
There is a heck of a neat John Deere museum/display facility in the
same area. Pretty good place to eat just behind it as I remember.
Man, this is almost making the Quad Cities sound like a nice place.
In article <961pq5$elv$1...@sword.avalon.net>,
Sent via Deja.com
http://www.deja.com/
Jay Honeck
> same area. Pretty good place to eat just behind it as I remember.
> Man, this is almost making the Quad Cities sound like a nice place.
Let's not stretch this too far!
Although they've come a long way since their "London Blitz" look of the
early 1980s (after all the heavy industry closed down), the Quad Cities are
still a mess.
Unless, of course, you like weapons, gambling, or old tractors!
Joe Norris
Other than airplanes, what else is there????
Joe Norris (ducking and running!)
Mike O'Malley
--
Mike O'Malley
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