A Brief Stop in Lansing

Last week I headed up to Engineer's Day in Sault Ste Marie, MI.  This is where they open up the center part of the locks so that people can look at them.  It is also the weekend when many of the boatnerds meet up, so it makes for a pretty fun weekend.  Per the tradition of heading up there, I picked up my dad on the way up.  He lives near Lansing, so I try to take the opportunity to get pictures of the capitol building and what not.

 Probably my favorite statue here is the one dedicated to the First Michigan Sharpshooters.  I like the way it looks like a sniper in his den somewhere.

 Almost next to it is a statue dedicated to the men who fought in the Spanish-American War.

 I really love the look of most Capital Buildings.  I just wish the occupants of them would live up to the buildings they are in.

 A statue of Austin Blair.  He was Michigan's Governor during the Civil War.  He was a Republican but he was quite progressive for his time.

 A closeup of that statue.

 I'm not sure why they have cannons around the property but they do.

One more shot of the capital building before moving on.

A Brief Stop in Lansing

I decided to head over to Grand Haven yesterday.  It was actually a fairly nice day except that it was clouded over.  It has been a couple of months since I've been over there and we were running low on some coffee we get from there.

 First I stopped at the Capitol Building in Lansing.  It has been a while since I've taken pictures of it as well.  I don't know why they have these cannons in front of the capital building but I think it's kind of cool.

 Then I took a picture of what is now known as the Boji Tower.  It used be known as the Olds Tower and was named after Ransom Olds (founder of Oldsmobile) and financier of this tower when it was built in 1929.

 A light cannon.

 And the capitol building itself.

 A memorial to all of the veterans in Michigan.

 When Michigan was first founded, the state capital was Detroit.  It was decided that it needed to further inland in case there was another war with the British.  After considering Ann Arbor, Jackson and Grand Rapids it was decided to move the capital to Lansing in 1847 because it was the closest to the center of the state.  A temporary building was erected about a block to the southwest from the current building.  When construction was completed on the current capitol building, that capital building was sold and used as a factory until it was destroyed by fire in 1882.

 In 1861, Austin Blair was elected Governor and served until the end of the Civil War in 1865.  He was a strong supporter of the Civil War and contributed a significant amount of resources that effort.  He was also an opponent of the death penalty and led a successful effort outlaw it in 1846.  He was also a staunch abolitionist.  After the war, he served in the US Congress and on the University of Michigan Board of Regents.  He died in 1894 and this statue was erected a year later.

 A statue dedicated to the soldiers of the Spanish-American War.

 And one of a few statues dedicated to the Civil War.

 Another angle of the capitol building.

 Another angle of the Boji Tower.

 Looking up at the Boji Tower.

 As I was heading back to the car, I noticed all the leading lines in this shot and decided to take a picture of it. 

And one more shot of the capitol building.

A Visit to the Capitol Building

I was going to meet my cousin in Kalamazoo yesterday, so that meant that I was passing through Lansing.  While I was there, I decided to get some pictures of the Capitol Building.

 I'll have to admit that it looks pretty cool decorated up.

 Another shot of the tree.

 I love the Austin Blair statue in front of the building.  He seems to be the ideal that politicians should live up to. 

 Another angle of the statue.

 Looking at it with the dome.

 And one more angle.

 Looking up at the building.

 There is a manger set up.  Personally, I don't get the controversy surrounding the mangers on public lands.  But I do have a caveat for that.....

 They should include decorations from other religions.  Christianity isn't the only major religion that celebrates a major holiday around the Winter Solstice.

 But it's sad that they need a sign like this.

 There is also a Satan one.  It's the price you pay for religious freedom I guess.

 I'm still not sure about the cannons.

 Another angle of the Capitol Building.

 My favorite statue.

And my other favorite statue.

The Day in Lansing

I ended up meeting some family up in Lansing yesterday.  Since I was there, I decided to get some pictures.

 It's kind of hard to visit Lansing and not get pictures of the capitol building.  I think it looks really nice with the Christmas tree in front.

 I'm not sure what building this is but I thought it looked pretty cool.

 This is now the Comerica Bank Building but it used to be the bank of Lansing.

 It was built in 1931 and is 15 stories tall.

 I really like some of the decorations on the building.  For some reason this reminds me of someone stealing government.  Kind of funny seeing this on a bank.

 This may be the guy that chopped the top of the capitol building off.

 An elephant.  If there is one thing I like about old buildings, it's that it seems like they took the time to make them look right.  Lots of attention to detail.

 Looking down one of the streets.  It seemed pretty abandoned for a major city.

 This was in a tobacco shop.

 I kind of liked this street scene.

 another look at this street.

 This used to be known as the Strand Theater and was built in 1920.  It so many features that were common in so many movie palaces from the 1920's.  It was renamed the Michigan in the 1940's and closed in the 1970's (probably replaced by a multiplex somewhere).   In 1984, it was transformed into office space.  Not sure what is going on there now.

 This used to be the Cooley Law School.

 Some other angles of the Capitol Building.

 The Boji Tower.  Originally built in 1930 as the Olds Tower and was named after the founder of Oldsmobile.  In 1954, it became the National Bank Tower.  In 2005, it acquired its current name.  It is the tallest building in Lansing.

 Reflected in the marble of another building.

 I kind of liked the reflection of the Capitol Building.

 One of the statues on the Capitol grounds.

 another angle of the building.

 Looking up at the tower.

 This is a statue of Austin Blair.  He was Michigan's governor during the Civil War.  He was a strong supporter of abolition.  He was also a strong supporter of the Civil War.  Prior to the war, he was a leading proponent of the movement to ban capital punishment in Michigan.  After the war, he served as a US Congressman.

 I really love the looks of our Capitol Building.  I still wish its occupants could live up to it.

 This was an abandoned railroad tower.  Apparently, it used to be elsewhere and it was moved to its current location.  There is a Model Railroad Group that is trying to save it and move it somewhere else.

 When I took a picture of this line, I thought it was abandoned.  It certainly looked abandoned but I found out that it is owned by the Adrian and Blissfield Railroad and used at least once a week.

 Then I thought this engine was abandoned.  I'm still not sure who owns it but apparently it is sitting here while people decide what to do with it.  It used to be use to run a dinner ride.

 This is one of several fish ladders on the Grand River.  It was built in 1981 with funds from the Department of Natural Resources and the City of Lansing.

 This is part of what is known as Old Town Lansing.  I think it is Lansing's attempt at something like Depot Town and it looks like they are on their way to succeeding.

 Then I got a shot of the Capitol Building as the sun set.

And one more shot with the trees lit up.