Hogansville, GA

When I was a lad, I loved trains. My brothers and I would go to the park down the street that bordered the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks. We would find a good spot to watch the trains go by.

We would wave to the engineer in the front, and then waited for the end of the train and the caboose. On a good day we would get a friendly wave from the conductor riding in the steel shanty at the rear of the train.

Every freight train ended with a caboose. It was always the last car, and it carried the conductor and a brakeman, who watched the train from the rear and made sure that all was well from that perspective. The conductor also did reports in the caboose as the train went on its way to the next destination.

When the train was stopped, the brakeman would walk back down the track with a lantern to warn approaching trains that the rails ahead were blocked. The caboose served as both the crew's office and lodging place, as they slept on board their moving workplace!

But by the 1980's, the caboose was slowly replaced with an electronic signaling device at the end of the train. The device could signal following trains, and alert the engine crew of technical problems with the equipment.

The caboose, which had served the railroads for 140 years, was now an obsolete piece of technology. There was no need to add the extra weight, and the two workers were no longer needed.

It still worked, but it was neither efficient nor cost effective. As a result, most were sold for scrap or reconfigured for work trains. The age of the caboose is over.

If you look around your house or office, I'll bet that you can find a hundred pieces of obsolete technology that had its day but is no longer useful. I wonder why we have so much trouble letting go of these things.

We know we'll never use them again, but we paid so much for them that it's hard to say goodbye. And so they collect into a mass and gather dust.

Come to think of it, I'm getting on and I'm not all that useful anymore either. I wonder what will be used to replace ME?

All content, including text, original art, photographs and images, is the exclusive property of Coweta Fayette Real Estate, Inc., and may not be used without the expressed written permission of ERA United Realty and Coweta Fayette Real Estate of ERA United Realty Newnan Georgia. All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted, Copyright 2003-2009. Richard Weisser 770-827-6225.
Learn more about Coweta County and Fayette County Georgia Real Estate, and to search the entire Georgia MLS for free with no registration required visit CowetaFayetteRealEstate.com!

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Back in the late 1920's, a new architectural fad was spreading like wildfire across the land. Art deco was the haute couture of builders seeking clean lines and a "modern" contemporary look.

And while the Empire State Building in New York City is one of the finest examples and the largest monument to the craze, the genre was not limited to big cities and high budgets. It endures today in small towns across America.

The photo is part of the old Rialto Theatre n Hogansville Georgia. Hogansville is a small town even today, a mill village that still depends on agriculture and textiles for survival.

But the old Rialto, now refurbished as City Hall, stands proud and tall on the well preserved main street through the historic downtown district.

So even though styles change, there are classics that endure forever, bolstered by those that seek to preserve an important part of our architectural history! Thanks to their efforts, the works of the past serve today as living museums.

And that's a good thing!

All content, including text, original art, photographs and images, is the exclusive property of Coweta Fayette Real Estate, Inc., and may not be used without the expressed written permission of ERA United Realty and Coweta Fayette Real Estate of ERA United Realty Newnan Georgia. All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted, Copyright 2003-2009. Richard Weisser 770-827-6225.
Learn more about Coweta County and Fayette County Georgia Real Estate, and to search the entire Georgia MLS for free with no registration required visit CowetaFayetteRealEstate.com!

EXQUISITE TURN OF THE CENTURY 2 STORY ON LARGE LOT IN HOGANSVILLE INCLUDES CARRIAGE HOUSE WITH DOUBLE GARAGE, PLUS APARTMENT WITH 2 BEDROOMS, BATHROOM,   LIVING-KITCHEN COMBO AND ARTISTS STUDIO, PLAYHOUSE, GAZEBO, TOTALLY RENOVATED! Listed by Chip Barron and Tom Barron #770-251-2304 of Lindsey's Realtors. For a complete view of this tour:    http://www.advantagehometours.com/CompletedTours/608EastMainSt/tabid/155/Default.aspx.