From the FIRST MATE's PHOTO ALBUM...

'

Since 1975, the Eville Iron Street Rod Club
has put on one of the largest street rod events in America!

It is called The Frog Follies Street Rod Show and begins today thru Sunday at 2PM. Everywhere you go in the Evansville area, you will see these classic vehicles in parking lots everywhere like the photo below (click on photos to enlarge the images).
As I was driving my son to work this morning we saw several Model T's and I mentioned that they used to call these older vehicles "horseless buggies"... Phillip said, you mean "horseless carriage" and I said that was right and that I think that the term "car" came from "carriage" and that "automobile" meant self-moving. Then, as Phillip will do, he asked how did they come up with the term "truck?" Of course I did not know and was not sure if I was correct about the origins of "car" & "automobile"... so, to the Internet & I Googled my way around to learning a few things! I found a nice article "The History of the Automobile" that gave me a lot of info! I was exactly right about the origins of "automobile" but was off a little on the term "car" (from the site): "The other popular name for an automobile is the car. The word car is derived from Celtic word 'carrus' - meaning cart or wagon." And for the Phillip's of the world here is two more word origins I found ~ "Vehicle" Origin: Latin vehiculum, from vehere, to carry. "Truck" Origin: < ? L trochus, a hoop < Gr trochos, a wheel, disk:

Above is a 1937 Packard from Benton, Kentucky and below is a pretty little car from 1936 from Illinois.

If you would like to go to the Vanderburgh County (Indiana) 4-H Center to see the bulk of these some 3,000 to 5,000 cars on display, it is only $5 to get in. Not only is the fee affordable, this money plus money from concession stands go to a lot of charitable causes with a large amount going to Easter Seals to help Evansville's Rehabilation Center. Go to the Frog Follies website: http://frogfollies.org/ The 2010 Frog Follies will be open to the public from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday at the 4-H Center, just west of U.S. 41 North on Boonville-New Harmony Road. Admission is $5, free for those age 12 and younger.

If you would like to send me some photos from this year's Frog Follies, I will select some to be posted next Wed.

My email addy is: jgw.mylines@gmail.com

- Photos taken & submitted by JGWest

THE CAPTAIN'S LOG –TSGS News

'
Boonville, IN:
Warrick County 4-H Achievement Program...

The Tri-State Genealogical Society announced the 2010 winner of the Glenda K. Trapp Memorial Award Certificate for Achievement in the 4-H Genealogy Project. The winner was Tyler Kroeger! Tyler was also last year's winner. TSGS President John G. West & TSGS Board Director Becky West made the presentation Saturday night at the Warrick County 4-H Center at the annual achievement program. TSGS has proudly presented this award to 4-H members in several southwestern Indiana counties for over 25 years.

[Click photo to enlarge image]

I am wearing my Sons of the American Revolution uniform because I also present the Indiana Society SAR Outstanding Citizenship Award with this year's winner being Ellen Gore who could not attend the program.

- News released by JGWest

- Photo taken by George Lewis

Quilt Photo Contest!

Mary Biever, a 4-H Leader & facebook friend, suggested that I announce the Quilt Show 2009---Harvest of Quilts VIII "Through a Quilter's Eye" September 18 (set up), 19, 20, 2009 The Raintree Quilters exhibited a record number of quilts at the last show. This show promises to be just as exciting. In addition to many interesting venders the guild hosts the Treasure Table where new and used quilt items are donated for sale to the public. The 2009 Raintree Quilt Guild Harvest of Quilts Show will be held at a new venue. The new site will be the Vanderburgh Co. 4-H Center located just off US 41 N, on 210 E. Boonville/New Harmony Rd., Evansville, IN.

Mary said, "Admission is $5 per person. They are setting up now! Quilts are gorgeous!!!!!!!!!! This is a must see for any quilt lover or seamstress. They must have 200 quilts on display. They will completely fill the 4-H Center auditorium, except for a tiny area near the stage with a few designated foods tables. There will also be vendors selling quilting supplies. This is the nicest exhibition of quilts I've ever seen in Evansville or our area."

The connection to genealogy (or history) is the fact that most families have quilts passed down from generation to generation. There are many "Friendship Quilts" that list friends or members of a group or family members... often with signatures & sometimes little notes or messages (poems). As Mary stated these quilts are gorgeous and would be great to show some photos on this blog. We had the Frog Follies Photo Contest... it would be fun to have a Quilt Photo Contest.

RULES for contest: First, there is no monetary award, just the honor of having your photo and name on this blog and preserving a little history. I will select at least six photos to display on "The First Mate's Photo Album" feature on Wed. 30 Sep 2009 of the TSGS Cruiser Blog. Other photos may be displayed between then & now, but may or may not be the final "winners." The photos must be from the Quilt Show 2009---Harvest of Quilts VIII "Through a Quilter's Eye." All of the quilts are winners, so you need to find a neat way to present one or more of them or catch something that makes your photo stand out a little more than the other great photos. Send as many entries as you wish, but only 3 at a time, to John G. West jgw.mylines@gmail.com You can send me an url to where you may have a photo album that I can pick from and save. Before I will post any photos, I must have the permission of the photographer to post them on the TSGS Cruiser Blog. If you want to have a copyright for the photo, please state that and it will be included. Include any comment or explanation if desired, your name, where from, if you know the name or title of the quilt. Thanks for helping us have some fun and preserve a little history... Good Luck to all! - JGWest

"Nikki Ervin Featured in National Magazine - 1994"

.

Frog Follies 1993... first TSGS Cruiser Blog Photo Contest Winner - 2009

Little 5-year-old Nikki Ervin, as the 1993 Easter Seals Representative, was featured in a story in the January 1994 edition of Street Rodder magazine, page 41. Nikki is shown in the top two photos on the page in the magazine (second picture below). As always, click on photos to get a larger image. This photo of the page inside Street Rodder is my favorite for the TSGS Cruiser Frog Follies Photo Contest! This one plus some others will be the blog for tomorrow for the photo contest. It is going to be a hard task selecting about 6 more photos from the great ones submitted so far... and more will be coming in!


The Eville Iron & Street Rod Club sponsors the annual Frog Follies Antique Car Show at the Vanderburgh 4-H Center. And 2009 is its 35th. Anniversary! As in this photo story back in 1993, the proceeds go to several local charities of which Easter Seals is the largest. Nikki is seen in her wheel chair with a group from the street rod club in the very top picture. in the second picture, Nikki is in the driver seat of a hot rod that is her size - a minature of the full-sized one just behind it.

Nikki is the adopted daughter of Don & Betty Counts.

- Magazine pictures submitted by Don Counts.

Marker/Plaque/Monument Monday

.

Albert M. Bishea...
26-year Vanderburgh County Agriculture Extension Agent


The Vanderburgh County 4-H Center on US Highway 41 North is dedicated to youth in his honor. He was the Extension Agent from 1940 until his retirement in 1967.


At the time of his retirement, Mr. Bishea was serving on the Burdette Park Board. The Board named one of the park's rental buildings (Shelter House) after him known as the Bishea Building (or the Bishea Shelter House).

According to the Browning Genealogy Database , Albert M. Bishea died 1n 1975 at the age of 74. He became the Agriculture Advisor on WGBF radio right up to within a week of his death. A graduate of Purdue University, he was born in Ripley County, Indiana. He was a past president of the Evansville Downtown Kiwanis Club.

- Photos taken & submitted by JGWest