In a message dated 8/20/00 9:34:43 PM Central Daylight Time,
budapest@g... writes:
<< Talk about the Aurora Shops brings to mind kind of a open question about
what was auctioned off at Aurora when the shops were closed. >>
A woman I worked with about 6 years ago took me out to her elderly fathers
farm on the East side of Aurora. He had a machine shop in a lean-to building
off a barn. As we were out there her father told me the story about a (now I
am guessing here, it was 6 years ago) lathe he had in the shop that was about
12 feet long. I remember it being very impressive. He said it used to be down
at the Burlington Shops downtown, and that he picked it up "for a song."
"They used to make steam engines with that lathe" he told me. Humoring him,
(as he was in his early 80's) I asked him how he got it. He mentioned
something about a sale when they closed the shops. Your question brought back
this memory to me. I remember asking him how the hell he got the lathe out to
his house. "A flat bed truck and a crane" he answered. This fine gentleman
used to do subcontracting work for the military in his machine shop, and his
"Ex-steam engine building lathe" seemed to be one of his prize possessions.
Mike..........
<A HREF="http://www.geocities.com/heartland/8114/littleq.html";>Little Q
Model Railroad Club</A>
President: Mike Griesmann
<A HREF="http://hometown.aol.com/supchief17/collect/index.htm";>Mike's
Railroad Info Page</A>
843 Lebanon St.
Aurora, Illinois 60505
630-897-6513 evenings
630-820-6468 daytime
|