Did you know that Central Park was one of the first public places created and that the park is a manmade creation designed by landscape architect Frederick Olmsted ?

This park has been around for a while, design on the the park was actually stopped during the Civil War, then resumed after the war and and completed in 1873.

The park happened to be a very popular place for professional photography. My daughter and I were visiting the beautiful city in July and we stopped at Central Park on our last day. We saw a model garbed in a wedding tux looking like he was ready to say “I do” and a young woman being filmed walking in a famous area under a lovely bridge.

On our walk to and at the park we witnessed at a commercial where they actually topped traffic in both directions.

Central Park was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1962. While we enjoyed walking around the best part of our visit to the park was a tour as we sat in a rickshaw pulled by a bicycle, our guide, a transplanted Irishman shared the history of the city and pointed out all the important sites. He pointed out the fountain where the Friends cast cavorted in the opening. He pointed out important statues and historic sites and even the building where John Lennon was shot. The tour added insight that we would not have had and provided us the time to see sights we would not have seen without his tour. It was fun to hear about American history from a lilting Irish accent. New York was and is a true melting pot. We were honored to be one of the masses! .

Darrell and Kevin Darst have an amazing International Harvester museum in Madison, Missouri. Darrell is the editor of the International Harvester club publication Harvester Highlights and he and his wife Kevin have been collecting for decades. Kevin is the queen of IH refrigeration and freezer collectibles and their museum reflects their knowledge and the love they have for what was once the largest farm machinery company in the country.

The Darst Collection includes many rare and unique items like pictures, signs and even equipment. Keith and I visited this August and enjoyed the Darst collection and hospitality. Everyone will walk away with something that is their favorite item, I think mine may have been the film where an IH spokesperson is telling dealers how to sell the refrigerators and talking about the new “Spring green” color.

T schedule a visit you need to call ahead at 660-291-8742.