Home | MikeOnline

Chapel Point Battery

The use of this location for defending the port harbour of Sydney, Nova Scotia, began in 1862. The site featured a battery of six 32-pounder guns in an earthwork emplacement as well as two stone magazines and a blockhouse. It was short-lived, however, as it was all but abandoned by 1865, and the stone from its construction was taken away to form the foundation of a church being constructed in Sydney Mines. Erosion destroyed much of the earthworks, and little else would be done here until the beginning of the first World War.

Argentia NAS

Construction of Naval Air Station (NAS) Argentia began on January 25, 1941 and was completed that July. In order to build this base in anticipation of the US's involvement in World War II, over 400 families were displaced from the land by the Government of Newfoundland. While they had been paid for their property, they were uprooted from land on which generations before them had lived, and moved into other communities that were already struggling with the population they had.

Redcliff AFS

The location on which the radar station was constructed was originally a World War II coastal battery. Construction of the site began in 1952, and was completed the following year when it officially began operations. It was built, financed and operated by the United States Air Force during its complete life-span of 9 years.

Fort Amherst

This point of land appears to have served in the defence of St. John's Harbour since 1632. It was apparently so named after Col. Amherst who, in 1762, took St. John's from the French.

Glovertown Pulp and Paper

The Terra Nova Sulphite Company sought funding for the construction of a new pulp and paper mill near present-day Glovertown, Newfoundland. The location was considered ideal because it was close to sea lanes, railways and a river for transporting logs and generating electricity.

RCAF Botwood

Aviation has been a part of Botwood for a very long time. As early as the 1930's, Charles and Anne Lindbergh arrived here and recommended it as a stop-over for sea-planes flying across the Atlantic Ocean. The recommendation was accepted, and air lines like Pan American began scheduled flights.

Genesee County Home

It was a dark and stormy night as we made our way to the haunted asylum in rural New York state. While enjoying a Valentine's get-away, we heard about a ghost hunt at the Rolling Hills Asylum in East Bethany. I read up on the building and its history and immediately decided that, despite my complete skepticism with regard to the existence of ghosts, it was still a great opportunity to explore a historic building with legal permission. These opportunities don't present themselves often. Aside from that, I had never seen a ghost hunt besides those on TV. It would be fun to see first hand.

Manchester Roundhouse

The Lehigh Valley Railroad (LVRR) was created originally to transport coal from Pennsylvania in 1846, but it soon began carrying passengers as well. To help with its growing needs, a large freight yard in Manchester, NY was constructed and opened in 1892 where the company apparently the company loaded and unloaded more than 100 freight cars per day. The yard was, at the time, was considered the largest in the world, employing over 1000 workers.

Conklin Roundhouse

Nothing on the ground is ever as easy as it appears on Google Earth. This is a rule I keep close in mind, but sometimes my explorations like to make a point of it.

Coxton Yard

Coxton Yard was built in 1870 by the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company to facilitate the vast train activity required to support Pennsylvania's coal mining industry. By the end of World War II, however, technology began catching up with the railroads. Trucks on the expanding highway systems, and the move from coal to diesel-electric trains were bringing about the beginning of the end for operations at Coxton Yard. It was finally abandoned in 1996, though the Reading and Northern Railroad Company still uses the southern-most portion of the yard to support natural gas extraction.