There Seems to Be a Theme This Week

For some reason trains seem to be a recurring theme on the blog this week. I didn't make it out of the house today, so here's a snap from the archives, taken at the Trolley Car Museum on March 3, 2010.

Trivelli's Goodness

Grabbed a couple of sandwiches at Trivelli's for dinner on Monday: Philly cheesesteak for Pat, vegetarian for me. Yum! I snapped this photo while I waited for my order. Trivelli's is an Old North End/Roswell institution. It's been around since the mid-1970s. This is old school Colorado Springs, friends. It isn't a sit down restaurant; you order at the counter and take your food with you. Trivelli's moved around a bit over the last decade, trying out the sit down business model -- first a couple of doors north, then a few more blocks north, and then all the way east, just outside Peterson Air Force Base. A couple of years ago it returned to the little hole in the wall spot where it started, on North Nevada next door to Murphy's Tavern, and that's definitely all right with me!

November 2023 Theme Day: My Favorite Part of Town

It's Theme Day for City Daily Photo bloggers, and this month the theme is my favorite part of town. I very much have a favorite neighborhood, the Old North End. For me this also has to include the micro neighborhoods around it: Patty Jewett, Bonnie Park, Roswell. I just love this part of the city and always have. My studio was located in the Old North End for a decade; it's only in the last three or four years that I've had to relocate. I miss the daily commute into this neighborhood of wide avenues, gracious Victorian mansions and Craftsman homes, big old trees, and nice parks. Still, it's only a couple of miles from our house, so of course I take any excuse to drive through the Old North End and I typically do my grocery shopping there.

The above photo was taken on North Cascade Avenue in 1927 by an unknown photographer, and the one below was taken by me almost exactly a year ago, on October 30, 2022, on Alamo. I did blog the same shot on November 14, 2022 (here). If you saw this neighborhood in person, you'd love it too.

To see more favorite places by other City Daily Photo bloggers all over the world, click HERE. Enjoy!

Clang Clang Clang!

The interior of one of the cool old trolley cars at the Pikes Peak Trolley Museum. This was taken on March 3, 2010, so it's an old image, but the museum has only gotten better over time. You should visit it sometime!

And now, for your listening pleasure...

Untitled

Mother Nature has been thwarting me these last few days. It seems every time I find the time to go exploring with my camera, the weather becomes distinctly uncooperative. Today we had dark clouds and thunderstorms for most of the afternoon, so please enjoy this slightly crooked shot of Corpus Christi that I took on December 27, 2018. Better luck tomorrow I guess!

Merry Christmas!

I was hoping for a white Christmas, but alas there has been almost no precipitation here in weeks. That's okay -- we hardly ever have snow on Christmas, actually! Do you remember this house on Beacon Street? I blogged about it on November 14th (HERE), and tonight we drove past it to see what it looked like in the dark. It didn't disappoint! A couple of other cars drove past as well, but I don't think this homeowner is getting enough appreciation for all his hard work. You should check it out yourself and make it worth his while! The address is 2613 Beacon, 80907, in the Roswell neighborhood.

Did you have a good day? We slept in, had cinnamon rolls and coffee for breakfast, then opened our presents. It was perfectly wonderful! I hope you got everything you wished for!

Notice the Christmas countdown clock. No detail has been overlooked!

It's begun

I drove through the Roswell neighborhood today and noticed this awesomeness. It'd be hard to miss! If you're a fan of over the top Christmas yard displays, this house at 2613 Beacon should be pretty fun after dark!

Intriguing building and an interesting conversation

I've been fascinated by this apartment building for years! I've always wanted to take a picture of it but never bothered to until a couple of weeks ago, when Pat and I had an errand to run near my studio and cut through the slightly down-at-the-heels neighborhood behind Lincoln Elementary so I could do just that. As I was training my camera on the building, a very old man across the street started yelling at me. He just wanted to know what I was up to. I told him that all I wanted was a picture of it, and he told me that he was the owner. A long and very interesting conversation soon ensued. He told me that he's owned the building for decades and he lives in the house across the street. I asked him when it was built but he didn't really know. To me it looks late Art Déco verging on Mid-Century. It's been empty for about ten years, though he plans to start renting again in there sometime (though he couldn't say when). Eventually I realized that I was talking to Mr. Pinello, of the local Pinellos, one of the oldest families in our city! His family owned Pinello Ranch, which I believe long ago (1960s-ish?) became a subdivision down south, by Security. I absolutely love it when I get to meet a Colorado Springs old timer. I am definitely going to have to try and bump into Mr. Pinello again and pick his brain about his memories of Colorado Springs back in the day!

The Hogan

The Navajo Hogan looks cool by day, but you should see this landmark sign by night. It's awesome!

Sorry for the late post today -- less than two hours to midnight, but better late than never! I spent all day doing gardening and yard work things, then grown up things like grocery shopping. It never ends! See you tomorrow!

Lunch at Trivelli's

Pat and I stopped by Trivelli's on Monday for lunch. It's been too long since I've eaten there. In fact, they changed locations (by only about a block) a couple of years ago, and this was my first time eating at their new address. It's much bigger than the place they had occupied next door to Murphy's since 1976. And the food was as good as ever. If you love hoagies and submarine sandwiches, Trivelli's is by far the best place in town.

The Navajo Hogan

The Navajo Hogan, or Johnny's Navajo Hogan as it's now called, has been a Colorado Springs fixture since the mid-1930s. It is located above the Old North End, on the eastern edge of the Roswell neighborhood, which at the time was very blue collar. As you can see, The Hogan has still got the coolest neon sign in town! Its only surviving rival in that regard is the Peak Cinema, downtown. True to its name, the Navajo Hogan is built in the style of a traditional Diné (Navajo) hogan. Interestingly, no nails were used in constructing the domes. You can read a little more about its history HERE (scroll down the page a bit). The Hogan has had its ups and downs over the years, and at times it's even been considered a disreputable biker bar -- but if you ask me, that only adds to its character. So does the fact that it's on the National Historic Register. Lately the Hogan has had new life breathed into it, having been purchased and rehabbed by the same guy who owns the popular Southside Johnny's. I hadn't been to the Hogan in years, but last night my pub quiz team decided to compete there instead of our usual Thursday night hangout, McCabe's. My first shock was that the parking lot was so much nicer than I remembered. It was paved, and it had painted lines. My second shock was that I counted no fewer than three shiny Mercedes sedans in the nice parking lot. Mercedes-Benzes! Not a Harley in sight! My third shock was how nicely the interior has been restored, and my fourth shock was that the ladies room was clean. Ha ha! I made this picture on the way out, after we took third place. We'll do better next time, so be ready for us, regular Hogan quizzers!

Big plans for Lincoln Elementary

Sweet little Lincoln Elementary School, which had served the Roswell neighborhood since 1948, was closed down two years ago and has stood empty ever since. To me, there's something very sad about a school closing. For some reason it really bums me out. Anyway, Lincoln sits just four blocks west of my studio, and the property has been up for grabs for the last couple of years. There was quite a lot of talk - and concern - about how it should be used. Roswell is a nice little neighborhood, and its residents wanted to make sure the school didn't end up becoming an eyesore or a nuisance. Another old school in town, Ivywild, has been successfully repurposed over the last few years into a sort of neighborhood gathering place; a brewpub, a market, an event center and so on. The thought was to do the same with Lincoln Elementary, but there were plenty of other ideas thrown into the ring (all of them bad) before a developer bought the property in October. Thankfully, Ivywild's success has inspired the new owners, who are planning something similar. They've been hard at work remodeling the space, which will include at least one brewery, a coffee place, some professional offices, and a restaurant or two. That's fantastic news! The Old North End and Ivywild could use more dining options, and I'm glad to hear that Lincoln Elementary will live on and thrive in its new incarnation. I can't wait for it to open!

Roswell Community Church

My lifelong fascination with the Roswell neighborhood hasn't dulled. The other day I cruised through there and stopped for a quick snap of charming Roswell Community Church, which I first blogged about four years ago. I love its old-fashioned charm.

Theme day!

The first of the month is Theme Day for City Daily Photo bloggers! This month's theme is "my favorite part of town". My regular readers know how much I love downtown, the west side, Roswell, the Garden of the Gods... it's a big city with lots of potential favorites! I'd have to say my absolute favorite part of town, though, is Wood Avenue in the Old North End. It's lined with gracious, beautifully maintained Victorian mansions and century-old trees. I've always said that if I won the lottery today I'd buy a house on Wood Avenue tomorrow! It's very close to my studio, so today I dashed over between clients to grab a quick picture for the blog. While there I noticed that one of the largest, most architecturally significant mansions on Wood is currently for sale. I better go and buy a lottery ticket!

CDP bloggers all over the world are posting their Theme Day photos today. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants!

The Trolley Car Museum

Did you know that Colorado Springs has a museum dedicated to streetcars? It's called the Colorado Springs and Interurban Railway Museum and it's operated by the Pikes Peak Historical Railway Foundation. It's located in the charming neighborhood called Roswell (see yesterday's post), and I never visited the museum until this week! On Wednesday my mom and I made a quick stop to check it out. I took a few shots of some of awesome streetcars and trolleys they had there, and as I was snapping away one of the volunteers beckoned me into a large hangarlike building, where this beautiful specimen was housed. This streetcar was built in 1919 and was in service in Fort Collins, Colorado until about the 1950s. According to the placard, it cost about $6,000 to build. Imagine that! I suppose that was a princely sum in 1919.

Since my mom was waiting in the car, I didn't have time to linger and enjoy all the great streetcars at the museum. I plan on going back with Pat soon and spend an afternoon there.

Roswell Community Church

Roswell is a diminuitive neighborhood in Colorado Springs that I am a little fascinated with. Actually I've been mildly obssessed with it for years, don't ask me why. I just think it's charming and full of character. Few people in our ever-growing city seem to be aware that Roswell even exists. I suppose only the old timers really understand that this little neighborhood actually used to be a town unto itself.

Roswell was founded in 1888 by coal miners and annexed by the city of Colorado Springs in 1950. It's small and full of charm, bounded roughly on the east by Nevada Avenue, the west by Mark Dabling Blvd., the north by Fillmore (or possibly a block or two beyond it), and the south by Van Buren. It's filled almost exclusively with Craftsmen and Victorian homes (including a couple of standout stone beauties, a rarity in Colorado Springs), with a handful of midcentury ranchers thrown in the mix. There's a small open space called Roswell Park, exactly one square block in size. The railroad tracks are close enough to be uncomfortably loud for some suburbanites. There are rarely homes for sale in Roswell, though it's not a pricey neighborhood. I just love it there and I'll find any excuse to cut through Roswell on some errand or other. My studio is only about three blocks east of it, which makes my little detours very convenient!

This is Roswell Community Church, probably my favorite little church in all of Colorado Springs. I think it looks like a little 1940s postcard kind of church. I've never been inside it, but I'd love to shoot a wedding there. It's adorable.

Trivelli's

The other night, Pat had a powerful a hankering for an Italian sausage sandwich. In an emergency situation such as this, the only truly satisfying solution is Trivelli's! This tiny sandwich shop has been located next to Murphy's Tavern (my home away from home) on North Nevada for over 30 years, and they serve up the best Philly cheese steaks, Italian grinders and hoagies in town, bar none -- always cooked up hot right before your eyes and served with a smile. They even deliver. I love Trivelli's. It's my go-to place when I'm craving a hot sandwich. Nothing else compares!

St. Paddy's Day at Murphy's Tavern

One of my favorite places on Planet Earth is Murphy's Tavern on North Nevada, just around the corner from my studio. Family owned for generations, it's an honest to God dive-bar in the best sense of the word, and a real Colorado Springs institution. The first time I ever got stinkin' drunk was at Murph's (and I was way underage, don't tell anyone!). I've been going there since I was a freshman in college. It's really kind of old and crappy, and it has the geniune appeal of a blue collar bar but without the scary factor. The place still reeks of decades of cigarette smoke, even though they banned smoking in bars here a couple of years ago. The walls are painted institutional green. You definitely want to be drunk to use the restrooms (unless you're not picky about these things). There's a horseshoe bar covered in formica that's about a thousand years old. They've had the same bartenders forever. It's still only about $1.50 for a draw at Murph's. I rarely have to pay for more than the first round though, especially when Ron's behind the bar. In the 25+ years I've been going there, the place has barely changed. I love that.

Murphy's has been a favorite gathering place for me and most of my friends since college, and I think that statement applies to so many other groups of friends who are fortunate enough to live in Colorado Springs. It's sort of a home away from home. When my friend Dave died unexpectedly two summers ago, his wake was held at Murphy's. He would have liked that!

On Saint Patricks Day, Murph's a popular spot. I shot this from across the street a couple of hours ago. I don't think anyone noticed me, they were too busy enjoying their beer. I think I can see my friends Kathy McQ and Jerry M through the windows.