By Ricky Rieckert
I hope everyone has a beautiful upcoming Labor Day weekend.
This week in Aurora, we take off at Broadway and Illinois Avenue and go south.
On the riverside, west of Illinois is Carl Stirn’s Boat Marina.
It’s been around a long time.
I purchased my first yacht for Carter Crane and myself there. Not!
Moving south to the Burlington Northern Roundhouse, they worked on engines inside, with a huge turntable.
They had huts, shops all the way north to Pierce Street. All to work on the train cars.
Today at Pierce Street and Broadway was the Burlington Northern Credit Union, which I joined because I was an Aurora Turners member, more than 30 years ago.
They decided to rename it Fox Valley Credit Union, which it is today.
Moving back south, is the “newer” Aurora Post Office, on the east side, of Broadway, with a parking lot all the way to the Round House, now 2 Brothers Round House. It was also Payton’s Roundhouse years back, named after “Sweetness” No. 34 Walter Payton of the Chicago Bears.
Across the street, used to be a bar, called LTD’s. It was owned by the Ward brothers, Larry, Tom, and Danny.
Al Heriud owned it as The Shore Club.
Today, it’s Jake’s Bagels.
Moving south to Spring Street.
At the northeast corner is an Holiday Inn Express Hotel now, on the Burlington yards.
Many years back on Spring Street, the railroad tracks were at street level.
Some genius discovered it was a great idea to build viaducts above for Amtrak and freight trains to run overhead, to the West, instead of through the center of our beautiful City.
They were installed at Spring Street, E. New York Street, Main Street (Galena Boulevard), Downer Place, Benton Street, North Avenue, and S. Lake Street.
I would take credit, but I wasn’t here yet. Sorry.
On Spring Street, south on LaSalle Street was Club 66, an African-American club.
Next door to the south was the original Aurora Turners Club.
If you remember, the Turners were into gymnastics.
The majority of Aurora Turners were German immigrants. Which explains the closeness to the RR tracks, because most of them were employed by the Burlington Northern Railroad.
I rest my case.
Have a lovely holiday.