Taking advantage of the nice cool yet sunny weather, my husband cleaned the carpet in the kitchen and family room using the steamer we purchased five years ago. Since we don’t have kids or pets and shoes are taken off once we are inside, the carpet only needs to be vacuumed weekly and cleaned twice during Spring and Fall cleaning. We steam cleaned the entire house in the Spring. On Saturday, while my husband cleaned the carpet and gathered the leave to the front yard for pick up (the City provides the service at no charge), I decided to make a visit to the mall. Regular readers know that I don’t care to spend time shopping. I could count on one hand how many times I went to the nearby malls in the last 5 years. Last week we got new mobile phones. And of course, now we had to get accessories such as carrying case for my husband and gel skin for both phones. I visited a few clothing stores but did not find any sweaters that I really liked (actually I did not want to pay full price). I usually make purchases at the end of the season when the items are placed on the clearance racks. I got a few more hand lotions to take care of the dry skin in the winter.
On Sunday, we drove to Grafton, Illinois for a 2nd visit. We heard of Grafton and its famous eagle watching but never paid a visit. During the Poker Run, we did not have time to really enjoy the town but we loved the beautiful scenery along the river, the limestone bluffs and the charm of its Main Street. Now we could not stay away! Grafton is definitely on our list for weekend roadtrips.
From the official website, http://www.enjoygrafton.com/, “Located near the convergence of the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers - Grafton, Illinois is a little town steeped in history. Grafton was founded in 1832 by a man named James Mason. Grafton is the oldest city in Jersey County. The area was being settled as early as 1812. The population reached 10,000 people in the 1850’s. Grafton, Illinois boasts a handful of ghost stories, the most famoushaunted site is the Ruebel Hotel.”
We had a nice home cooking lunch at the Ruebel Saloon. How fitting to listen to a ghost story about this place on Halloween.
“The hotel was built by Michael Ruebel in 1879 where it became the largest commercial hotel in Jersey County . It had 32 rooms with a bath house in the back and mainly played host to river travelers. Room rates at that time were $1.00 per day. The hotel thrived until it caught fire in 1912. As stories have been told the ghosts of the Ruebel Hotel remain. Many guests have spoken and seen a little girl ghost named, “Abigail”. Her presensce is still known and felt to this very day. Pictures that have been taken by several guests show orbs in many different places of the hotel recently.”
“In the heart of Grafton history is the Ruebel Hotel. The Ruebel was built in 1879, caught fire on 1912 and was rebuilt and renovated in 1997. The Ruebel Hotel has a magnificently restored bar from the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis.”
This building used to be Grafton Bank. It is now a specialty shop selling leather and accessories to bikers (sorry, Qaptain Qwerty, for motorcycles, not bicycles).Below is one of the many fine arts and crafts shops along Main Street.
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