My cousins, Vickie and Kaye, planned great activities to make our time together fun and memorable. On Friday, July 13th, we traveled to the quaint town of Collierville, TN. a suburb of Memphis, in Shelby County.
[Sign in the historic Town Square]
A bit of research revealed: In 1836, Jesse R. Collier advertised in the Memphis Enquirer, "The town of Collier for sale." His ad marked the beginning of the town's growth. In 1851 Collierville was a stagecoach stop. In 1852 the Memphis-Charleston Railroad opened. In 1863 the Battle of Collierville [one of the bloodiest Civil War battles in Shelby County] took place. Collierville's location on the rail line placed it in the midst of several Civil War battles [ten in all], and the original town was burned to the ground and many lives were lost. In 1872 Collierville's Town Square was established, which was the location of our lunch stop at The Silver Caboose.
Their soda fountain is one of Tennessee's few remaining original soda fountains. I loved their tin ceiling.
I quickly concluded that Sweet Tea [a highly sweetened iced tea] is served by copious glassfuls in Tennessee. I ordered the Silver Caboose "Hamburger All the Way" [smothered with sauteed onions, mushrooms, cheese and bacon]. Yummy! Another thing I noticed is "vegetable plates" are offered on most Tennessee restaurant menus. [In Michigan I've only seen them on Cracker Barrel menus.]
We were all too full to order individual desserts so Vickie ordered two "tasting" desserts that we passed around: Hot Fudge Pecan Ball [vanilla ice cream rolled in pecans and covered with rich hot fudge] and Strawberry Short Cake.
Following lunch we went in all the little shops on the town square.
From there we drove the short distance to Sheffield's Antique Mall - the largest antique mall in the mid-south. The building comprises 72,000 sq. feet and has over 300 dealers. I saw lots of "treasures," but my flight home with an already full suitcase, left little room for purchases.
[Internet Photo]
After antiquing, we drove back to Vickie's house for what was to become a wonderful ritual for three afternoons. Kaye ordered the Anne of Green Gables trilogy collection for us to watch together. [I will definitely be ordering a set of my own.]
While I knew the book existed, I somehow went through school [and adulthood] without ever reading it or seeing the movie, but I knew I was in for a treat with these DVD's since three days prior to my trip, several bloggers featured an Anne of Green Gables tea on their blogs. If you are an Anne of Green Gables fan, you must read the July 9th posts at the following blogs [if you haven't already done it].
Bernideen's Tea Time Blog http://bernideensteatimeblog.blogspot.com
Sandi's Rose Chintz Cottage http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com
Judith's Lavender Cottage http://lavendercottagegardening.blogspot.com
Beth's Beyond the Garden Gate http://beyondthegardengate-beth.blogspot.com
Clara's Rose Walk Cottage http://rosewalkcottage.blogspot.com
Jina's Pink Piccadilly Pastries http://pinkpiccadillypastries.blogspot.com
Michele's The Nest at Finch Rest http://www.finchrest.com
We were all captivated by the Anne of Green Gables movie [the first in the trilogy], and were moved to laughter or tears depending on the scene.
Since returning home, I've pulled from my bookshelf the Anne of Green Gables Reader's Digest edition that I purchased at an outdoor flea market last summer, and have begun reading it - better late than never! I noticed the first publication of Lucy Maud Montgomery's enduring book was 1908. I smiled as I read Marilla's comment to Rachel Lynde in chapter one, that they were adopting a boy because Matthew was getting up in years, [60] and he wasn't as spry as he once was! I'm thankful most sixty year olds in the twenty-first century reach that milestone without being too decrepit! ;-)
I have moved Prince Edward Island to the top of my "bucket list" of places to visit!
Memphis vacation continued...
The whole series of "Anne" books are among my very favorites. I read the whole series as a child and re-read them when I introduced them to my daughters. I haven't watched the movies, preferring to let Anne remain in my mind as I saw her when reading the books. But I'm glad you enjoyed the movie and hope you will enjoy all the books, too.
ReplyDeleteAnd, by the way, "Sweet Tea" (iced, sweetened tea) is known around here as the "Table Wine of the South" although some of us now have to substitute another sweetener for sugar. Not just in TN but all over the American South!
ReplyDeleteHi Phyllis, What a neat trip. The restaurant is really special both in decor and food. It reminds me of a restaurant in the Black Hills that we visited when we drove out west long ago, when our children were still small. Thanks for mentioning my Anne of Green Gables post - I'm touched! I watched the Anne movies (all 3) just a few months ago and had never read the book until recently. That was a fun tea that Sandi hosted, wasn't it?
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to more about your trip to Memphis. Surely you must have eaten some good BBQ, and visited Graceland? I'll keep reading to find out!
Hugs, Beth
Love that photo with the little stretch of shops. I would enjoy shopping in each one! And the old fashioned soda fountain! Such fun!
ReplyDeleteI have heard of that antique mall and would certainly love to visit there. But like you, I would reeeally love to visit the country of Anne of Green Gable. I think that is why I love the one blog from there, Aikens Garden and Home.
ReplyDelete