Number of courses served during the ship's final first class dinner: 10
Menu choices: oysters, consomme, poached salmon, filetm mignn, lamb with mint sauce, punch romaine, roast squab, cold asparagus, vinigrette, pate de foie gras, Waldorf pudding.
Wine pairings: each course had one.
Spirits and cigars: Offered after dinner
Second Class fare: Classic French bistro and American dishes
Third Class: Typically soup or stew
--Cooter
Ticketed Pasengers: 1,317
Maximum persons: 3,300
People on board for maiden cruise: 2,200 including 900 crew
First Class: 324
Second Class: 284
Third Class: 709
--Cooter
From October 30, 2020, History "Titanic by the numbers: From construction to disaster to discovery" by Lesley Kennedy.
Two Hours and 40 Minutes: How long it took the "Unsinkable" ship to sink.
Cost to Build: $7.5 million (then)
Rivets: 3 million
Length of construction: 3 years
Weight: 46,000 tons
Length: 882 feet 8 inches
Workers: 3,000
--Cooter
One wall of the barn is open, but the roof, reinforced in 1986, looks solid. There is also a beautiful 1957 rainbow truss barn on the property. Destroyed by fire January 31, 1957, local farmers gathered and raised the current barn in two months.
The Kattners will continue to farm the property through this year. Pease expects it will take about a year before work begns on the residential lots and at that time the barn will come down unless someone wishes to move it.
He is willing to give it away in order to preserve the octagonal barn.
"I'd love nothing better than to drive five miles away and say, 'Hey, they reconstructed the barn over here'," Pease said. "We would, at a minimum, sell the timbers so that they would end up in someone's recreation room."
Let's hope the barn is saved and moved. Perhaps to Horse Fair Park or the Spring Grove Fish Hatchery.
I've talked to local farmers who believe the barn's roof is in way too bad of a shape to save.
--CootBarn
From the October 1, 2022, Northwest Herald (McHenry County, Illinois) "Only you can ensure local history will be 'barn' again" by Kurt Begalka.
The exterior of the 1876 octagonal horse barn in Spring Grove, Illinois, is not much to look at (despite being octagonal). However, go inside and look up. Well, that's a whole different story. That ceiling appears almost cathedral-like.
And, it might well be the only remaining octagonal barn in McHenry County.
Jack Pease, president of McHenry-based Super Aggregates Inc., recently bought the remainder of the Fred Hatch Farm (site of the now-demolished first silo in the United States that was designed by Fred Hatch). This farm was most recently owned by the Kattner family.
I knew one of the Kattners, Ed.
Pease said he intends to mine the estimated 100 acres on the north side of Main Street and develop the current Kattner farmstead to the south (where the barn is located). That means tear it down, subdivide it into lots.
This land is on Spring Grove's Main Street a short distance east of Wilmot Road.
--Cooter
DOROTHY PITTMAN, HUGHES, 84
** A pioneering black feminist, child welfare advocate and lifelong community activist who toured the country speaking with Gloria Steinem in the 1970s and appears with her in one of the most iconic photos of the second-wave feminist movement.
Died December 1.
BOB McGRATH, 90
** Actor, musician and children's author known for his portrayal of one of the first regular characters on "Sesame Street."
Died December 4.
KIRSTIE ALLEY, 71
Two-time Emmy-winner whose roles on "Cheers" and the "Look Who's Talking" films made her one of the biggest stars in comedy in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Died December 5.
STEPHEN "tWITCH" NOSS, 40
** Beloved dancing DJ on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" and former contestant on "So You Think You Can Dance."
Died December 13.
FRANCO HARRIS. 72
** Hall of Fame running back who caught the "Immaculate Rcception," considered the most iconic play in NFL history.
Died December 20.
PELE, 82
** Brazilian king of soccer who won a record three World Cups and became a global sports giant.
Died December 29.
ROBERT CLARY, 96
** A French-born survivor of Nazi concentration camps during World War II who played a feisty POW in the improbable 1960s sitcom "Hogan's Heroes.
Died November 16.
IRENE CARA, 63
** Oscar, Golden Globes and two-time Grammy winning singer-actor who starred and sang the title cut from the 1980 hit movie "Fame" and then belted out the era-defining "Flashdance...What a Feeling" from 1983's "Flashdance."
Died November 25.
CHRISTINE McVIE, 79
** British-born Fleetwood Mac vocalist, songwriter and keyboard player whose cool, soulful contralto helped define such classics as "You Make Loving Fun," "Everywhere" and "Don't Stop."
Died November 30.
** TAKEOFF, 38
A rapper best known for his work with the Grammy-nominated trio Migos.
Died November 1.
** ARCHBISHOP CHRYSOSTOMAS II, 81
Outspoken leader of Cyprus' Greek Orthodox Church whose forays into the country's complex politics and finances fired up supporters and detractors alike.
Died November 7.
** JEFF COOK, 72
Guitarist who co-founded the country group Alabama and steered them up he charts with such hits as "Song of the South" and "Dixieland Delight." Of course, their "Farewell Tour" took five years.
Died November 8.
One of my all-time favorite country acts that got their start at Myrtle Beach's "Bowery." We used to go their regularly. The house band, which Alabama was before they hit it big, was not paid, but relied on tips.
** ASH CARTER, 68
A former defense secretary whom opened combat jobs to women and ended a ban on transgender people serving in the military.
Died October 24.
** LESLIE JORDAN, 67
Emmy-winning actor whose very Southern drawl made him a comedy and drama standout in TV series including "Will and Grace" and "American Horror Story.
Died October 24.
** JERRY LEE LEWIS, 87
Untamable rock 'n' roll pioneer whose outrageous talent, energy and ego collided on such definitive records as "Great Balls of Fire" and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin'On" and sustained a career otherwise upended by personal scandal.
Died October 28.
CHARLES FULLER, 83
The Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of the searing and acclaimed "A Soldier's Play" who often explored and exposed how social institutions can perpetuate racism.
Died October 3.
LORETTA LYNN, 90
The Kentucky coalminer's daughter whose frank songs about life and love as a woman in Appalachia pulled her out of poverty and made her a pillar of country music.
Died October 4.
ANGELA LANSBURY, 96
British actor who kicked her heels in the Broadway musicals "Mame" and "Gypsy" and solved endless murders as crime novelist Jessica Fletcher in the TV series "Murder, She Wrote."
Died October 11.
ROBBIE COLTRANE, 72
Comedian and character actor whose hundreds of roles included a crime-solving psychologist on the TV series :Cracker and the gentle half-giant Hagrid in the "Harry Potter" movies.
Died October 14.
What? No More Hagrid?
From the American Battlefield Trust.
FEBRUARY 6, 1778
** The United States and France become allies.
FEBRUARY 10, 1763
** The Treaty of Paris ends the French and Indian War. The English drive the French from North America and the English national debt soars. This led to the unpopular taxes in the colonies.
FEBRUARY 11, 1768
** The Massachusetts Assembly issues the Massachusetts Circular Letter, denouncing the Townsend Acts.
FEBRUARY 14, 1779
** Battle of Turtle Creek, Georgia.
FEBRUARY 27, 1776
** The Battle of Moore's Creek, North Carolina.
--Cooter
BARBARA EHRENREICH, 81
Author, activist and self-described "myth buster" who is notable works as "Nickel and Dimed" and "Bait and Switch" challenged conventional thinking about class, religion and the very idea of an American Dream. Died September 1.
BERNARD SHAW, 82
CNN's chief anchor for two decades and a pioneering black broadcast journalist best remembered for calmly reporting the beginning of the Gulf War in 1991 as missiles flew around him in Baghdad. Died September 7.
I sure remember watching him report the war while at a bowling alley.
RAMSEY LEWIS, 87
A renowned jazz pianist whose music entertained fans over a more-than 60-year career that began with the Ramsey Lewis Trio and made him one of the country's most successful jazz musicians. Died September 12.
JEAN-LUC GODARD, 91
The iconic "enfant terrible" of the French New Wave who revolutionized popular cinema in 1960 with his first feature "Breathless," and stood for years among the film world's most influential directors. Died September 13.
AUGUST
VIN SCULLY, 94
** A Hall of Fame broadcaster who called thousands of games involving the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers during his 67 years in the booth. Died August 2.
OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN, 73
** Grammy-winning superstar who reigned on pop, country, adult contemporary and dance charts with such hits as "Physical" and "You're the One That I Want" and won countless hearts as everyone's favorite Sandy in the blockbuster film version of "Grease." Died August 8.
Next to Linda Ronstadt, my second female singer heart throb.
LAMONT DOZIER, 81
** He was the middle name of the celebrated Holland-Dozier-Holland team that wrote or produced "You Can't Hurry Love," "Heat Wave" and dozens of other hits, making Motown an essential record company of the 1960s and beyond. Died August 8.
I'm a huge Motown fan.
ANNE HECHE, 53
** Emmy-winning film and television actor whose dramatic Hollywood rise in the 1990s and accomplished career contrasted with chapters of personal turmoil. Died August14.
MIKHAIL GORBACHEV, 91
** As the last leader of the Soviet Union, he set out to revitalize it but ended up unleashing forces that led to the collapse of communism, the breakup of the state and the end of the Cold War, Died August 30.
I wish he was the Russian leader now and not the current person.
SHINZO ABE, 67
** Japan's longest-serving prime mnister, he was also perhaps the most polarizing complex politician in recent Japanese history. Died July8.
TONY SIRICO, 79
** He played mobster Paulie Walnuts in "The Sopranos" and brought his tough-guy swagger to films including "Goodfellas." Died July 8.
PAUL SORVINO, 83
** An imposing actor who specialized in playing crooks and cops like Paulie Cicero in Goodfellas" and NYPD Sgt. Phil Cerreta on "Law and Order." Died July 25.
DAVID TRIMBLE, 77
A former Northern Ireland first minister who won the Nobel Peace Prize for playing a key role in helping end Northern Ireland's decades of violence. Died July 25.
TONY DOW, 77
** As Wally Cleaver on the sitcom "Leave It to Beaver," he helped create the popular and lasting image of the American teenager of the 1950s and '60s. Died July 27.
I still like to watch those reruns. And, then there was good old Eddie Haskell.
NICHELLE NICHOLS, 89
** She broke barriers for black women in Hollywood as communiations officer Lt. Uhura on the original "Star Trek" TV series. Diedd July 30.
Huge "Star Trek" fan. I remember when I was a freshman at NIU and my roommate had a little 13-inch black and white TV and every day after dinner, about ten guys would crowd in the room to watch reruns of the show.
BILL RUSSELL, 88
** NBA great who anchored a Boston Celtics dynasty that won 11 championships in 13 years-- the last two as the first black head coach in any major U.S. sport -- and marched for civil rights with Martin Luther King Jr. Died July 31.
So, the movie "Goodfellas" lost three people within three months last summer. And, then there was that other Sonny guy in "The Godfather" who died. Not a good year to be a movie actor who played a mobster.
JUNE
TONY SIRAGUSA, 55
** Charismatic defensive tackle who was part of one of the most celebrated defenses in the NFL history with the Baltimore Ravens. Died June 22
HERSCHEL "WOODY" WILLIAMS, 98
** The last surviving Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, whose heroics under fire over several crucial hours of the Battle of Iwo Jima made him a legend in his native West Virginia. Died June 29.
The Greatest Generation.
*********************************
JULY
BRADFORD FREEMAN, 97
** Last survivor of the famed American Army unit featured in the oral history book and miniseries "Band of Brothers." Died July3.
The Greatest Generation.
JAMES CAAN, 82
** The curly-haired tough guy known to movie fans as Sonny Corleone of "The Godfather" and to TV audiences as both the dying football player in "Brian's Song" and the casino boss in "Las Vegas." Died July 8.
His death in "The Godfather" was a real bloody mess.
