Travels in the 2nd half

  Lorenzo Mansion from the formal garden Central New York has many historic homes and estates. One that is sometimes overlooked, but is historically important, is the Lorenzo State Historic Site , in the town of Cazenovia. John Lincklaen by Charles B. J. Févret de Saint-Mémin, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons The home was built in 1807 by John Lincklaen (1768-1822), the founder of the town of Cazenovia. Lincklaen was an agent for the Holland Land Company, a syndicate of Dutch investors based in Philadelphia. In the early 1800’s foreigners were not allowed to own land in New York State, so the investors hired Americans to purchase and develop tracts of land in the central and western parts of New York and Pennsylvania. Lincklaen brought a large swath of land along the what became Lake Cazenovia, developed the land, and began selling lots to settlers moving in to the area. Lornzo Mansion by rossograph via wikicommons media John Lincklaen married Helen Ledyard (1777-1847). They built a mans...

  Last week I journeyed along U.S. 20 from Boston to Springfield MA, the eastern-most section of the country’s longest road. This week we continue  along that route through some of the most beautiful land in Massachusetts, the Pioneer Valley and the Berkshire Mountains. Western Massachusetts is loosely defined as the the area between the Connecticut River and the New York Border. There are several routes that cross the area, but U.S. 20 may be the least touristy of them. As I head west from the city of Springfield, U.S. 20 passes through some of the city’s suburbs, but most of these have been around for while, and it shows in some of the buildings that line the route. West Springfield Fire Station No. 2 Leaving the suburbs behind, U.S. 20 enters the town of Westfield, MA. Westfield was first incorporated in 1669 and was the westernmost settlement of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In the 19th century its main industries were cigars and buggy whips. While its industrial base has ...

  Route U.S. 20 is one of the original trans-national roads, although it was not actually designated as coast to coast until the 1940’s. From east to west, it starts in Boston MA and stretches all of the way to Newport OR, a distance of 3365 miles (5425 Km). Today, U.S. 20 is the longest road in the country. The eastern terminus of U.S. 20 is Kenmore Square in Boston, at its junction with route MA-2. This area sits in-between the Charles River and the Boston Fens, and it is known for two famous landmarks - Fenway Park and the giant CITGO sign. Fenway Park, home to the Red Sox, was built in 1912, and it is the oldest stadium in use in major league baseball. The Citgo sign was erected in 1940 and is well known by those who watch baseball and those who drive into Boston along I-90. The back of the Green Monster at Fenway Park U.S. 20 makes its way west along Commonwealth Ave, passing the length of Boston University. It crosses the Charles River, goes through the suburb of Watertown, a...