Hamburger joints back in the 60s on Westnedge Ave in Kalamazoo and Portage. McDonald's, Burger Chef (not Burger King, and who remembers Henry's Hamburgers?
As my son and I were poking around in the back of the building at work, we found a room that looked a like a small bathroom, just a toilet and a sink that probably hadn't seen any water in at least half a century, probably more. And there was a medicine cabinet.
What many people may not know about the Kalamazoo/Portage area is the fact that we were on our way to becoming the Mall capital of Michigan. During the 80’s Kalamazoo had a minimum of 4 malls. Today, there is only one. Is the Crossroads Mall going to be the exception, or will it too join these abandoned and demolished malls of Kalamazoo’s past?
Is there a Kalamazoo music curse? In addition to Bobby Hatfield and tenor Richard Tucker actually dying in Kalamazoo, The King of Rock and Roll,, Elvis Presley, and Stevie Ray Vaughan died soon after performing in Kalamazoo, Vaughan just two days later.
"Beautiful Day. Great to be Alive." If you were old enough in the 1990's and were anywhere near a radio signal that originated in the Kalamazoo area, those words bring back memories and a smile. The words were spoken by Scott Jett.
If we did a Mount Rushmore for Kalamazoo, whose faces would you put on it? That’s where this gets to be fun. The narrowing down process would probably start a good bar or classroom argument or two.
Maybe some of the old-timers who grew up here know the stories, but a few days ago, I just found out the surrounding area just west of Kalamazoo was once the mint capital of the world. And it was right up until the early 1970's, when blight disease killed it.
With over 29,000 members, Facebook page "Vanished Kalamazoo" is a testament to the appetite Kalamazooans, former and present, have in the city's past. Now, the city of Kalamazoo is embarking on a "City-Wide Historic Resources Inventory."