Return to Dearborn: Highlights

I had a number of questions I wanted to answer on this second trip to Dearborn. In general, this trip filled a lot of knowledge gaps, but many still remain. Here are some of the highlights.

I had already written about a scene that takes place during the playing of a old time baseball game in Greenfield Village...now I've actually seen one. It was pretty cool. The players were dressed in old garb, played by 1867 rules and did a nice job of educating and getting the crowd involved. I can now visualize and hear the scene taking place in my head rather than just assuming how it'd all look and sound like.

I also took a lot of photos. I took photos of all the places where scenes take place (thus far) and of key points around town which may see action in the future.

I also got a better feel for the difference between Dearborn and Detroit. The outskirts of Detroit along Michigan Avenue were rather desolate. A lot of buildings were vacant and there weren't many folks around. Dearborn seemed to have more going on. It looked like a number of new restaurants had either opened or were about to open, but that a number of buildings remained empty and free to lease.

Downtown Detroit, though, wasn't as clear cut. I attended a Tigers game at Comerica Park (Detroit beat Baltimore 5-3, Verlander pitched great, Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Guillen homered) which is located right downtown. I liked the stadium and the Tiger fans, but from my seat in the left field bleachers I could see long empty buildings. While discussing the old Tiger Stadium which stands abandoned off Michigan Avenue no wrecking ball in sight (nor any other plans) with another fan during the game he provided me with a telling quote, "I don't know what it is, but Detroit likes to keep its crap."

That being said, I took a close look at the Montgomery Ward building in downtown Dearborn. There is a lot of talk that it'll be razed very soon, but from the look of it, it just appears that nothing is happening. If anything there are scary signs pertaining to asbestos within its entrances.

I had reached out to a local reporter/blogger before visiting, but didn't hear from him until my return. Nevertheless, I look forward to picking his brain and learning more about what's going on on the street. If all goes well I'd like to return in October for a few days as that's about when the story wraps up.

Chapter 6 continues to roll along. Hopefully I can finish it up this week. Events are starting to mount and the stakes are getting higher. While I have certain events in mind, others are sprouting here and there which have provided extra flavor and, hopefully, fun to the story.

Booked

I made plans to return to Dearborn in August today. Specifically, I'm going to watch a historic baseball match and then off to Comerica Park to see the Tigers take on the Orioles in Detroit. I also need to peek into the Montgomery Ward and find out more about it's current status. This visit will give me a better idea of what the characters would see and feel as the story takes places between August and early November. My February visit gave me a good overview, but was a bit out of context as I froze my balls off.