Nelson Jones and My State Fair

As people may have figured out by now, I love the Indiana State Fair and I love taking pictures of the activities and people involved in them. Each year I "patrol the perimeter," taking pictures of people and exhibits that catch my eye. Among my favorite places on the grounds is the "Pioneer Village," which displays and demonstrates farm machinery and practices of years past -- some of which are not that far in the past at all.

Pioneer Village is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It was established in 1961 by the Purdue Agribusiness Alumni Association. The showcase opened at the fair with an exhibit of its agriculture museum collection and has grown in popularity and size ever since. It now encompasses five acres of the northeast  section of the fairgrounds and consists of several buildings saved and restored for use. Among them is a barn, a silo, storage buildings and a corn crib, one end of which is used as a bin to store coal for the machinery used during the fair.

On the corn crib I saw a sign which read:

Captain O. Nelson Jones

The coal in this bin and that being used to power the engines in the Pioneer Village has been very kindly donated by Mr. Jack Weiss and Mr. Ed Schwartzentruber of Cincinnati Bulk Terminals LLC in honor of Captain O. Nelson Jones.

Captain Jones passed away July 25, 2010 at the age of 52 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

He was a highly respected industry leader who, if you asked him, would have humbly disagreed, pointing to others he held in high esteem.

His early childhood memories of river activities, his summer job aboard the steam-prop towboat, J. S. Lewis, and his father's sternwheel pleasure boat all combined to sow the seeds for a river career.

At age twelve,he persuaded the Mayor of Charleston (West Virginia) to sponsor a sternwheel boat race that became the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta, a premier river event for the next twenty years.

Captain Jones came to manage his family business at age twenty-four, his father telling him, "you have one year to turn it around." The Amherst Madison Company now successfully operates thirty barge towboats, ranging in horsepower from 165 to 5,600 as well as a construction division that has numerous floating cranes and barges.

Jones was an ardent supporter of the Sons and Daughters of Pioneer Rivermen and an active member of the American Sternwheel Association.

He was described by his friends as a fair-minded, genuine gentleman and one who was passionate about his industry.

Captain Jones was truly an industry leader who reached beyond his own business to create a positive impact on the world around him.

Thank you, Captain Jones, and many thanks to Cincinnati Bulk Terminals LLC for this wonderful gift of fifteen tons of coal for Pioneer Village.

While I was taking pictures, I briefly met one of the men who'd made the gift in Captain Jones's name. We didn't get much of a chance to talk, but it's fairly safe to say we were each surprised to find another member of both the S&D and ASA in the middle of the Indiana State Fair, and to know that it was because of the continued high regard felt for Nelson Jones by his friends and associates that he and I were able to share our mutual interest in river history.

On My Head

I had a list of pictures I intended to take today, all of them planned for that golden aura morning sunlight gives us. Only today, the morning was flat, gray and very humid. 


So I walked to the store instead, during which I saw these flowers. I nearly stood on my head to get the pictures. Must've looked like one of those comical garden cartoon ornaments to passing drivers.


'Though fully clothed, I was certainly mooning them as I contorted myself to catch a ground level glimpse of the pretty purple flowers. 

Back of the Bus

One evening, as the bus I was riding came up to its stop, I noticed this design on the bus in front of us. At first, I thought it was a part of its paint scheme; instead it was from the adhesive-backed advertising design that had been removed.

And now for the ubiquitous utility pole. I'd been trying to make a Mondrian-like grid from the lines and insulators. Between the street-gray bus and the pole, the stares I got from people as I took the pictures were enough to fill a large sack with question marks. 

"Tourist?"

"Nope."

"One of them arty types?"

"Yep."

"Oh."

Venice by the Cornfield

Looking southwest, the Indiana State Office Building is shown in the background,
while a glimpse of the J.W. Mariott Hotel can be seen behind the tree.

Not really, but eh, what the hell, it might catch some attention. 


Until the development of the steamboat in 1807, people had never traveled by any means other than on foot, horse power, or by boats and ships pushed by the wind. Roads were hopelessly tedious and uncomfortable, making the country's rivers the preferred mode of travel. 


When the Erie Canal was completed in 1825, connecting the east coast at Albany, New York with Erie, Pennsylvania its success launched decades of "canal fever" by states eager to provide their landlocked citizens with a way to get themselves and their produce to markets on the east coast and New Orleans. 


Indiana was not alone in this craze, but only one of its planned canals was completed, the Wabash and Erie Canal. Connecting Lake Erie at Toledo with the Ohio River, the canal route roughly paralleled the Maumee, Wabash and White Rivers over 468 miles, making it the longest canal in the country. Only two sections of Indiana's other planned canals were completed: the Whitewater Canal in southeastern Indiana, and the Central Canal in Marion County.

Construction of the Indiana Central Canal began in 1836 and was meant to connect Peru with Evansville over 296 miles, generally following the path of the White River. Portions of the canal still supply water to the city, while other sections serve as recreational areas. Stretching through the west side of downtown Indy, it connects the Indianapolis Zoo, the NCAA Headquarters and Hall of Champions, the Indiana State Museum, and the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art. 

"Big Blue," the new J. W. Mariott Hotel,
opened at Indianapolis in February, 2011.

Restored in the 1980s and extended in 1995, this portion of the canal is part of the White River State Park, extending from Eleventh Street on the north at Boggs Temple, to the White River just above West Washington Street. Other sections of the canal can be seen on the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Butler University, and running through the Broad Ripple neighborhood

Gray Plaid Grids

At the intersection of Pennsylvania and Ohio Streets.
The building on the left is M&I Bank, that on the Right is the Chase Tower. 

Earlier this week, I was waiting for the bus at the intersection of Ohio and Pennsylvania Streets. It was late afternoon and the shadows were beginning to add depth and angles to the grid-like patterns on the taller buildings. The grids and their variations are the predominant theme among the newer buildings  in the downtown area. Devoid of curves and flourishes, the buildings that make up Indy's skyline resemble folded gray paper and Tranformers grown amok. The older buildings that are left provide the warmth, character and the lace.

Scaffolding a half block north of the intersection
on North Pennsylvania Street.

The scaffolding, located at a building just north of the intersection on North Pennsylvania Street, has been erected so that workmen can repair and repaint the stucco, creates a pattern of its own. The sun reflecting off the angled bracing reminds me of an Argyle sweater.

I looked down and saw the pattern in the covering to a freight elevator shaft. There, within a few feet was a texture of diagonals to echo that of the scaffolding. Not so much Argyle as big fluffy yarns.

Fiddlin' Around

Although this girl is young, her expression leaves no doubt that she is very prepared
for her turn playing in the Indiana State Fair Fiddle Contest.

I passed through the storage building at Pioneer Village on Saturday, on my way to another event, where I saw people tuning their fiddles and warming up for the annual Indiana State Fair Fiddle Contest. Behind the barn a young woman was tuning up, making sure she and her accompanist were in harmony, as inside an older man went from one entrant to another with his guitar, calmly making sure he and his charges would be in tune, as well.

As one of the entrants told me, while it is important that your fiddle
 be in tune, it's more important that the fiddler and their accompanist
be in tune with each other.

The contest is sponsored each year by Traditional Arts Indiana, an organization devoted to "expanding public awareness of Indiana's traditional practices," focusing on the artistic sensibilities as they are defined by the communities in which the artists participate. Not only does this include music, but other skills as well, such as weaving, carving, pottery, lace-making and bee-keeping, among others.

Tuning and last minute practice behind the barn

The contest was divided by age group into four classes: 11 years and under, ages 12-17, 18-59, and 60-plus. Each contestant was alloted 5 minutes in which to play 3 selections; a waltz, a hoedown, and a selection of the fiddler's choice. However, "Orange Blossom Special" and "Listen to the Mocking Bird" were not permitted to be played.

Unfortunately, the winners of this year's contest have not yet been posted, so I'm not able to say who won, but a great part of the contest is about community and learning from other players. I can tell you the audience was supportive and enjoyed listening to all the participants, because I could hear their cheers and applause pouring out of the Opry House.

Cows are Hard

As much as I enjoy the Fair, I've never before drawn a cow. I've taken plenty of pictures of cattle, patted their rumps and watched as they were washed and groomed. But actually sit down to attempt to draw an actual member of the bovine persuasion? Naw. No way.


Saturday was "Plein Air Day" at the Indiana State Fair. I decided to participate, but, since I buy my paint in quarts and pints, I did not have any little tubes of color, so I took some pastels and sheets of paper.


I think in terms of big gestures and can't draw small so drawing the Holstein lying on her straw bed was difficult; no matter what, I couldn't fit her on the paper in front of me. So her head's too big and her body is cramped. I think I truncated her trunk.


At least there's no black on my black and white cow.

Jenna, on the right, rests her head on the back of her stall buddy,
as they doze through the heat of the afternoon

Anyway, I like Jenna. She's my first cow and she seems to be smiling.


Given the sad events that occurred at the Fair last night, all events scheduled for today were cancelled and the grounds were closed. The Fair will reopen tomorrow, August 15, beginning with a memorial service for those lost and injured at 9 AM. While it hasn't been decided whether the concerts scheduled for the coming week will go on, other events will have their dates or sites shifted as needed to accommodate the circumstances.