It wasn’t the need to escape a humid, late summer sizzle in Birmingham, Alabama, nor a case of ‘little town blues’ that motivated me and my wife, Cheryl, to travel to New York last week.
I needed to see and feel the places where the great industrial barons lived, worked and strutted their successes. A personally guided tour from Kevin was an excellent choice. His knowledge of and passion for this glorious 50-year period in American history practically turned back time as we strolled along Central Park and its side streets near Columbus Circle.
Kevin expertly revealed facts and places where a young country was being transformed into a global industrial power – a power fueled by eager immigrants seeking opportunity, and a handful of ambitious risk takers lucky enough to be young and present on this magic island.
Walk down these streets around Central Park and see what remains of the homes, offices and grand hotels where aristocratic families reluctantly conceded that working class citizens, through hard work, a belief in self-sufficiency and education, were their equal. Visit the place where The American Dream was created, and was proven it could come true.