Tulip City Dispatch

The first headline in the May 27 issue of the Holland City News reads “All Arrangements For Decoration Day Are Completed.” Decoration Day, of course, being an old name for Memorial Day. There was a post on Twitter discussing that “Decoration Day” became “Memorial Day” shortly after the American Civil War. That's apparently not true , as the Holland City News still refers to it as Decoration Day as late as 1920. The article lays out a daily itinerary, detailing marching exercises from a few Veterans' groups, as well as a parade down 8th St beginning at 9am.  The second headline of note reads “Work Has Begun On $30,000 Theater.” John Raven and John Kramer, the article says, “are very busy these days putting up their new theater on River avenue across from Centennial Park.” This building, of course, is the Holland Park Theatre! I've been fortunate to help set up the venue for a concert, attend a concert, and have actually sang karaoke on stage. It's a fantastic, beloved ve...

Something not touched upon in my " Best Burger " article from January was a ubiquitous sandwich seen on the menu of many Michigan burger joints:  The Olive Burger.  It's pretty self-explanatory - a burger topped with olives, or an olive sauce.  Usually olives soaked in mayonnaise, and if it's served with cheese, it's swiss.  Incredibly salty and bland, no doubt, combining the worst in salted vegetables (in olives) with the most disappointing part of the Whopper (the mayo). Let's explore this abomination, and how it came to wreak havoc on restaurant menus across the state: Tom Rademacher of the Grand Rapids press, wrote an article in 2008 tracing the origins of the olive burger to 1929, at a Kewpee restaurant in Grand Rapids, MI.  Haley Hansen of the Lansing State Journal puts the roots of the olive burger at 1923, at a Kewpee in Flint .  In any case, two major Michigan newspapers put the roots of olive burgers at Kewpee Burgers in the 1920's. In Hansen...

Smack dab on the front page is the Holland Elks Club advertising a celebration for Flag Day, including participation from the local Boy Scouts, as well as a minstrel show.  Certainly not something I expected to read. Further down the page is an advertisement from The Huyser Company, of 61 East 8th St (currently the park next to Ferris Coffee) advertising "$6 to $9 Hats At $5."  I'm wearing a classic felt hat as I type this, so I'm definitely interested in that ad. Page 2 opens with a memorial to a group of soldiers who perished in a naval accident.  Sounds like a group of guys returned from the Spanish American War to take up sailing as a civilian job, then their steamer sank somewhere between New York and Key West. Page 3 is interesting, as it contains an article still pertinent today!  Downtown Holland has "Wheel Control Zones," with no wheeled vehicles allowed on sidewalks (including bikes, skateboards, and rollerblades).  14 people were cited, and 5 more...

Without further ado, the Tulip City Dispatch 2020 Tulip Time Photoblog!  I know the entire aim of this blog was to showcase Holland, Michigan outside of Tulip Time, but man, this year's gotten weird.  I'm happy to be physically able to get out on a bike and pedal around town, so here's some tidbits of our adventure!  Please, if you have any tips on photography and photo editing, let me know!  I'm going with an 8th-grade understanding of Photoshop software, and as such, have used little more than the stock filters and effects! Cappon House, Holland Michigan Park Theatre, one of the coolest music venues in Holland I busted out the ol' gradient mask for this shot of tulips on Tulip Lane, Washington St., Holland MI More tulips on Tulip Lane, this time with forced perspective The wonderful fountain at the southern end of Washington Square The businesses contained within Washington Square, Holland MI