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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Memories by Amanda Meek
Richie Valens by Lars-Åke
Ghosts-Fact or Fiction? by Stacey
Belgian Titanic Articles by Sofie Du Bois
Memories by Amanda Meek
I opened the door quietly. The steps creaked beneath my feet. The door swung open and then lightly tapped the wall. A stream of sunlight came through the old dusty window. I took a look around at what there was. Hat boxes, mirrors, a dresser, an old hope chest, everything. I stepped up into the attic and a cloud of dust flew around me. I swatted at it and sneezed a few times. I continued onto the dresser. Old jewelry lay untouched on top. There were many neclaces and rings all under a layer of dust. I blew it away and picked up the first neclace I saw. I rubbed off the excess dirt and carefully placed it around my neck. I peeked into the mirror to see how it looked. It was very elegant, but very heavy. I took it off and set it back in its place so it looked undisturbed again.
I went over to the hope chest and knelt down. I tried to open the lid, but there was a lock. I fiddled with it for a minute and it came undone. The chest creaked open. Old musty air poured from it and I coughed. I reached in and pulled out an old browned wedding gown. I unfolded it and shook it out. I stood in front of the mirror and held it up. The creases in it remained but it still looked beautiful. I held it to my body as I twirled around the room. The longer I held it up, the more I could imagine my great-grandmother wearing it.
I took it away and folded it back up. I set it aside so I could see what else was in the chest. The next thing was a small book. I opened it up and out fell a silver ring. I picked it up to look at it. Inside was inscribed, "To my dearest Marie." I flipped to the first page in the book.
"I have met the man of my dreams. So it was written long ago that he and I would meet. And our long happiness shall make legends seem boring and our grandchildren's children will read our story." I began to laugh. That was her. My great-grandma. It was her journal- her most prized possession.
I closed the book and replaced the ring. I put everything back and closed the chest. I walked to the door and took one last look at the attic and realized that my great-grandma lives on.
Richie Valens by Lars-Åke
Donna, Come on Let's Go, Labamba. These are all great songs written in the early days of Rock ’n Roll. Songs colored by the world seen through a young boy's eyes who had just begun his life in this epoch of music history. His name was Richard Steven Valenzuela. Born on May 13, 1941, in Pacomia, CA, at a very young age, Richard began touring with his father, but at the age of ten his father passed away because of diabetes. Richard's uncle stepped in and saved him from this tragedy, and they continued the touring later on.
Richard got his first guitar in Junior High. It was an old Sears which his mother had bought for him. Wherever he went, the guitar was always there with him. In the summer of 1958, Richard had his breakthrough. He was spotted on a local performance by his future Manager, Bob Keane, who was the owner of Del-Fi Records. He instantly put the young talent in the studio to record his first hit, ”Come on Let's Go”. At this time, Richard changed his long mexican name to an easier and snappy Richie Valens. With his first song, Richie sold 750,000 copies, and the success was a fact. Shortly after, he wrote what would become his greatest hit, "Donna "--a song inspired by his young high school sweetheart, Donna Fox.
In the winter of 1959 Richie Valens joined the Winter Dance Party tour, which was headed by the great Buddy Holly. The party contained other big names like Dion and the Belmonts, J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper) and Frankie Sardo. On the 2nd of February, Buddy Holly chartered a plane to their next gig. It was supposed to be for him and his two guitar players but J.P. had a terrible cold and was given one of the guitar players seats. Richie heard about this and wanted to join them , but the other guitar player wasn't that positive about giving up his seat too. After some arguing they decided to flip for it. It turns out that Richie won his seat after all.
At 1.00 a.m. the single engine aircraft carrying Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Richie Valens took off from Mason City Airport never to be heard from again.Nobody knows what could have cause the crash. There were some questions whether the pilot was inexperienced with flying in harsh weather and darkness. But these are questions left to be unanswered. The day 2nd Feb. 1959, with the loss for three great music geniuses, has been known as the day the music died.
Lars-Åke Heindal Heake@hotmail.com
Ghosts-Fact or Fiction? by Stacey
Now is the time for Halloween, ghosts and goblins, witches and warlocks. Most of all, it is a time to tell scary ghost stories and try to scare the "yell" out of eachother! Ghosts-do you believe or not believe? Here are a few stories. You be the judge.
The definition of "ghost" as listed in the dictionary: *Ghosts: A disembodied soul; the soul of a dead person believed to be an inhabitant of the unseen world or to appear to the living in a bodily likeness.
One famous haunting is the Bachelor's Grove Cemetery. Bachelor's Grove-Midlothian, Illinois- Many things have happened to people who have visited this 1800's cemetery. Back in 1864, there use to be many small farm lands here. Young, single, mostly German men took residence here. After many years, the farms had gone and in came a cemetery. Due to the history of the single German settlers, the cemetery had been named Bachelor's Grove. This cemetery has a pond that lies next to it, Bachelor's Pond. This pond was used often for Chicago Gangsters to throw bodies into the water during the Prohibtion Era. Many sighting have been reported in and around this pond. There is also reports of a woman nick-named "Madonna" being seen. She is buried here along side of her baby son. Many reports claim to have seen a woman walking around the cemetery with a baby in her arms. In the 1870's a man was drowned in the pond when his horse and carriage accidently fell into the pond. The weight of the carriage dragged the horse underwater along with it's driver, drowning them both. Sights of a horse and carriage and a man driving it have been a known "legend" of this cemetery. The turnpike along side of the cemetery is also known to be haunted. Cars disappear into thin air and reports of an accident has been told-people have "collided" with these phantomcars, sounds of metal ripping and grinding, then to find the car gone and no damage done to them or their cars. There is suppose to be a white house that comes and go in the forest of the cemetery. People have seen it and when they get near it, it vanishes. Bachelor's Grove is still to this day a very visited place by teenagers and others who sneak in for a little scare and try to experience anything they may have heard. Photos have been taken of these ghosts from researchers and are on the web at http://www.ghostweb.com/free.html
The most famous ghost in Chicago is a woman named Ressurection Mary. She comes from Justice, Illinois and is buried at Ressurection Cemetery. Mary was killed in the 1930's in a car crash and buried at Ressurection Cemetery. She was killed coming home from a dance at the Willowbrook Ballroom. She is the most famous ghost in Chicago-seen many, many times by people and even picked up by some! She is seen hitchhiking down the road of Archer Ave. She gets picked up and either taken to or from the Willowbrook Ballroom. She has danced with people and have touched them. She has been noted to be cool to the touch, and speaks very little, although people do not know she is a ghost at the time of contact. What happens is that she enjoys the evening and when it's time to go home, she gets a ride and when they pass the cemetery, she either vanishes in the car, or gets out and walks through the gates of the cemetery. One popular story is that she was getting a ride home one night from a man and left him her phonenumber. He called the next day, expecting to talk to Mary, but when her mother answered the phone, she started yelling at the man who called that her daughter had died years ago, believeing this man was just being mean and mocking her daughter's death. In 1977, a man saw a woman pulling on the bars from the inside of the cemetery. Instead of helping her, he went to the police station and told them of what he saw. When the police got there, there was no woman, but there were two iron bars of the cemetery that were pulled apart and had burned imprints of fingers on them.
In Chicago there is a restaurant that is visited often by strange occurences and ghostly figures.The Red Lion's Pub and Restaurant-Chicago,Illinois-Erected in 1882, it was originally a large house. An old man died there from old age and a young retarded girl had died there from a disease. It is now a restaurant and pub and has had many sightings of ghosts there by the owner as well as customers and employees. There sometimes is a strong scent of lavender, believed to be the little girl. It is also said that things have taken place in the upstairs girl's bathroom-suspecting the little girl is playing tricks on people in there. There have been reports of seeing a blonde haired man walking with a bearded man wearing a black hat, and a man in cowboy clothes.
There is also stories passed down that the famous Molly Brown from the Titanic is also haunting her Colorado home that she used to live in. Molly was famous for her many parties for the rich and famous. She loved to throw lavish dinner parties and many prominent guests have attended. After her death, contractors had wanted to buy the land to demolish the house and build on it. The town petitioned to keep the house and it's history behind it and the town eventually won and the house remained. Molly Brown's home was turned into a home for waywards teens. They, along with the employees, lived there. Many times a figure was seen by the staff sitting at the dining table sipping tea. The figure was wearing Edwardian Era clothes and would come and go, disappearing into thin air. Once in the morning when an employee came into the dining room to begin his days work, he saw that all the chairs around the table were pulled out as if people had just left a dinner party. Molly's husband J.J. Brown had not been one for lavish dinner parties like Molly was. Their difference in lifestyles eventually became a wedge in their marriage and they began sleeping in seperate rooms. J.J. would often go into his room and smoke his pipe. Several reports have been made that in the room that was once J.J.'s sleeping room, there would be a strong smell of pipe smoking coming from there.
Do the Brown's still occupy their Colorado home? Do the dead rise from their graves late at night for lucky individuals to see? Do spirits like to play little tricks on the unexpecting? You may or may not believe, but one day, when you least expect it, you may get a visit from "someone" or "something" to proove that there is indeed life after death!
Belgian Titanic Articles by Sofie Du Bois
THE BIGGEST SHIPWRECK OF THIS CENTURY.
On October 21 1999 a newspaper in Belgium (The Latest News or het Laatste Nieuws) published the world's biggest disaster of this century.But there is something special about it : It is the front page of the newspaper. There was the front page of the disaster of the Hindenburg BUT.. The front page of April 18, 1912 was also published. The Headlines for that day:" the gang Carouy-Garnier-Bonno ","A new parliament for Ireland" and " The biggest Ship disaster of this century.In this issue I will translate 3 parts,the first part is about the saved woman and chlidren,the second part is about the millionaires on board and the last part is how many peoples died. When the Titanic sank about 1400 peoples died.
"The saved woman and children of the first and
second class"
The latest official numbers say that on the 325
passengers of the first class, there are 202 saved and
on the
285 of the second class , there escaped 114 passengers
the shipwreck. The other saved are so woman and
children of the third class or passengers in between.
"A list of all the prominent millionaires who were
on board"
Look here a list of all the prominents who were on
board:
Colonel John Astor (in the article it says Assor)
fortune of 3 million pounds;
Isidor Stauss fortune 10 million pounds; George D.
Widener fortune 15 million pounds;Benjamin Guggeheim
fortune 19 millin pounds;
W.Roelling fortune 12 million pounds; R.G.Thover
fortune 2 million pounds.In toal about 80 million
pounds
sterling.
An american banker says that there are at least 30
passangers who ownes more than 100 million
sterling.The most of these millionaires drowned.
"1,328 victims"
London- April 17-The total amount of victims are
1,328.
When the Titanic sank a lot of persons lost family,friends,...Because of
this disaster the savety on board got stronger.But it is so sad that it had
to happen before they did something about it.
~*~
Magic Dream by Robin Bender
Come lay you down and rest your head,
I'll tell you tales of old.
Of knights upon a fiery steed and maiden's hair of gold.
Embraced by a darkened night, softly lit by silver stars.
Where slumbering dragons hide in their lair
and vagabonds who've traveled far.
And while you sleep you'll see them there,
great battles waged and won.
Glorious things for you to see, just waiting, little one.
So come lay you down and rest your head,
have fun and travel far,
and in the morn, come back home and awaken in your bed.
~*~
Titanic by Robin Bender
To 1912, she takes us back
to an enchanted era gone by.
So grab your coat and your pack,
back in time, we will fly.
To gentlemen and ladies dreams,
none more an appropriate name,
Titanic,"the ship of dreams",
none other is the same.
Ever more captivating and proud
even as time goes by.
Their last time voices fade in the crowd
with all hopes heard in whispers and sighs.
The regal beauty in Atlantic's deep,
more precious now than then.
That is where she'll always sleep,
with the souls of ladies and gentlemen.
This month we will be starting up a monthly question on your opinion and your ideas. This month's question:
What other time periods or sections would you like to see in the paper? If you have a suggestion please send it to Amanda Meek at ama@nci2000.net.
(Classifieds are actually free advertisements for people's pages)
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This is Amanda Meek's Titanic Graphics devision. For free Titanic graphics, visit this page
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Althought Thomas Andrews died on the Titanic more than 87 years ago, he still lives on...as William Barnes. Learn more about Bill's new book- "I Built the Titanic" - here-
http://www.zenation.com/tomandrews/barnes.html
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And learn about other GREAT Titanic authors at Paulette's site-
http://www.zenation.com/paulette/books2.html
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