See the Beatniks...

"See the Beatniks (An Ode to Non-Conformity)" written by Burt Siegel:

See, the beatniks in the Village
See, the beatniks on Macdougal Street,
See the beatniks in the Village,
And they all look just the same.

There's a tall one and a short one,
And a white one and a Negro one.
And they all go to the Village and they all look just the same.

And the boys all wear dungarees, and the girls all wear sandals,
And they're all non-conformists,
And they all dress just the same.

And they go to the university,
And they major in philosophy,
And they're all deep thinkers,
And they all think the same.

And they all read their Satre,
And they all read their Kierkegaard,
And they all talk about it,
But they all sound the same.

And they all like folk music
And they dig Woody Gutherie,
And just like Bob Dylan, 
They all sound the same.

Little Boxes: A Modern Look at "Ticky-Tack"

 As soon as I read the assignment and saw "Little Boxes" I knew that I had to do a modern look. The show "Weeds" used this song as their theme for the first season- Weeds Opening Theme . When I first heard it I just found it to be a cute analysis of suburbanite life but now I see it differently. The little boxes are more than houses, they are a lifestyle.

 As the song states; 

"Little boxes on the hillside,

Little boxes made of ticky tacky,

Little boxes on the hillside,

Little boxes all the same.

There's a green one and a pink one 

And a blue one and a yellow one,

And they're all made out of ticky tacky

And they all look just the same."

As we can see the song looks at the houses all looking the same even with different colored paint. I believe the same is true of the residents of these houses. The song goes on to say the people all went to college and got jobs, then returned to their own "boxes" in the suburbs. The "box" can be the person himself as well. No matter what the person looks like or does he continues to follow social stigma and act the same. Whether it is drinking his martini dry or playing golf. As the show presents all the houses in the development are all the same and so are the people, so it would seem. All the women dress the same for exercising and the most important element to the males is the golf course built in the center of the development. 

Hayden believed that the suburbs offered a threefold approach to drawing people in. The home, nature, and community aspects of the area. I believe that these are very true when looking at the "sitcom suburbs" of the '50's but today the suburbanites are not looking for only the same three things. Yes, they still want the home and yard and the sense of belonging to the community. However, now people in the suburbs want a sense of belonging to lifestyle. The "country club" life if you will. The privileged life that many want to live.  The residents of the new suburb developments are still the cookie cutters that Reynolds sang about.

Black Rock Houses

There are over 90 pre-1850 standing houses that still exist in Black Rock. 

  

This home is built in the Federal style of Medina sandstone. The builder used large blocks of stone to build the entire house indicative of wealth. The windows look to be replaced but you can still see the symmetry that exists The low pitched roof and smooth facade also indicate the federal style.

 This home on Amherst Street is built/renovated in a mix of Federal and Greek Revival style. It is a basic rectangular frame structure with a low-pitched gable roof - end toward street. There is also a cornice over the front door with sidelights. The large windows with double-hung sashes have six panes per sash and separated by thin wooden supports, iconic of the federal style.

This homes exterior is a variation of many styles but stripped down the Foursquare elements come to life. It is evident that this building is laid out in a four room per floor fashion, it is very square and boxy. These homes were most commonly built in frame, but they are also found in stone or brick.or concrete block, or wood siding. All of these can be seen on this home.






From walking through this neighborhood I have realized the historical value of many of these homes. The entire area consists of pre-1900's as stated before. Many of the homes have been "modernized" but still remember their roots. Some homes have a mix of styles which makes them even more interesting. It becomes much clearer now where the wealth in this area tended to settle and what styles they chose. The homes along Amherst Street have a distinct Federal style to them with variations but home around them are much simpler and smaller. I get the sense that many of these homes were working class people but that the wealthy business men of the day were mixed in too. 

Crime and Scandal in Buffalo

The expectations for this tour may have influenced my opinion but this tour came up short of the others I have attended. It was billed as a chance to learn why Buffalo was a center of prohibition evasion but this was not mentioned for more than 5 minutes. I still found the tour to be interesting when we got to the site of the former Ku Klux Klan headquarters. This building was home to the organization until the residents of the city fought to run them out of town. The story that guides told was very entertaining and insightful. The tour started to become more of an architectural tour than a crime and scandal tour. We learned about the Guaranty building because at the time of building Sullivan was moonlighting from is job with Frank Lloyd Wright. I was amazed to learn of a triple hanging at the site of the McKinley monument in front of the City Hall. I think the cold weather and constant political insights from the guides may have drawn some life out of the tour but I will say it was still very educational.

Former HQ of KKK

Gold Medal Grain Elevators

I just have to say that everyone who enjoys Cheerios must attend this tour sometime. The smell of roasted oats fills the air down on the inner harbor. This has been my favorite tour so far. The history of the Erie canal downtown and its impact on shaping society is mind blowing when you realize how big the impact was. If the Erie Canal does not come to Buffalo, the people and culture do not come either. It is sad to see how the canal was abandoned and filled in but the current efforts to renovate and excavate are wonderful. The rest of the tour focused on the impact of grain movement in shaping this area. Two separate  canals were dug just to accommodate more barges transporting grain. The grain elevators lining these canals are a testament  to man's innovation. When the work load placed upon Irish backs became to much a burden and too costly man turned to technology. The grain elevators were designed as means of storing grain for loading and unloading of barges. The elevators in Buffalo were the skyscrapers of their time and people flocked from all over the world to see them. Tragically, the combination of grain dust and coal fired burners led to many fires that destroyed the towers.

General Mills is one of the few large factories still operating in Buffalo. There plant sits right on the island created by the two canals. This was a prime location for unloading of grain ships. Today they only receive ships a couple times a year. The most tragic part of the tour came when we talked about the Great Northern Elevator which is a truly unique piece of architecture that is going to shambles.

Sightseeing European Style

The differences between the tours that Americans take to Europe and those that Europeans take here are noticeable when examined. I noticed this a couple years ago while visiting Italy. My tour lasted 14 days and covered the entire country. A couple days in Venice, Florance, Rome, Sorrento, among other small towns. When an american tours they focus on ancient cities and areas of high cultural importance such as museums and archeological sites. European cities offer the distinct historical feel that American tourists long for. Italy attracts tourists looking to see architecture, art, and culinary examples. While I was travelling I had the chance to experience all these things. I visited the Coliseum

saw the statue of David and the Sistine Chapel 

The big difference between sightseeing tours in Europe and those offered by European travel agencies to the United States is that Europeans want to see primarily one city and all it has to offer. In addition to the single city approach to sightseeing is the addition of small local attractions that society offers. This is evident in one tour I found for Boston. The tour lasts 8 days and includes day trips to Salem and two days to visit Maine. I realize that this is a stretch from my overall opinion but it shows that Europeans want to see major attractions as well as simple small novelties.   Some other tours are surprisingly lengthy in my opinion, some are 21 days and include visits to many major cities but only for a couple days. In this regard they become similar to how Americans choose to go sightseeing. I feel that Europeans see the US as a great open landscape with metropolitan clusters. They see the US as having unspoiled landscapes and beautiful natural wonders. I can see where these notions develop from but don't feel that they are completely accurate. I ultimately get the impression that they come here to get away from over developed old cities and to visit more modern cities and see the sight that they hear about here. This is in a way the same as American tourist, we go to see sights that guide books point out or have heard about since we were young. This is why many tour companies offer nearly identical tours.

http://www.tourvacationstogo.com/usa_tours.cfm?npid=21933&nhr=1

Black Rock

'



This tour was one of my favorites, the community history as well as the rich historical impact on the state. I loved looking at he classic housing styles of the neighborhood. Most of the homes in the neighborhood have been covered by siding but some still shows there federalist style. The Black Rock area was at one point larger than Buffalo and only was eclipsed by the opening of the Erie Canal. When planning for the canal was taking place there was a competition between Buffalo and Black Rock to be the terminus of the canal. Black Rock actually blew up the large "black rock" jetty that gave the city its name. Buffalo was awarded the honor due to the large existing port structure. I also found it interesting that Black Rock built their own canal that ran parallel to the Erie Canal. 

My favorite building on the tour was an old Water Works building that housed a Masonic Temple, the neat part was that the back wall of the temple opened out over the canals. The local business men could meet in the temple and check on business on the canal. I was unaware of the battles that took place in Black Rock during the War of 1812 and also Fenian's Raid.  

Religious Center