Travel Wednesday

Among all of the wonderful cities in the United States, San Francisco is unique. Not because of its big buildings or beautiful panorama views; no, San Francisco is unique because it has a feature that sets it apart from other big cities: cable cars. The cable car enabled easy transport of goods and people throughout …

Stitch together good times in New York City! Where would America be without the sewing machine and New York City’s marketing machine? It’s hard to imagine our industrial progress in textiles without envisioning black and white film footage of well-coifed women seated in rows upon rows turning out well-crafted clothing behind sewing machines. Such images …

With every new idea, every time-saving innovation and every life-changing invention, one idea remains in the shadows, as the gold standard for comparison. Today, the iPad, Google Glass or 3D TVs might seem like the greatest devices ever created, but they have constant competition from an invention from 1930, the invention of sliced bread. “Wonder …

Before $50 per checked bag, screaming babies and drunk passengers, before endless security lines and delays, there were two men with the dream to fly. In 1903, Orville Wright piloted the first powered airplane 20 feet above a wind-swept beach in North Carolina. The flight lasted 12 seconds and covered 120 feet. Three more flights …

Arizona is home to the Mojave, Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts. But this dry, sometimes desolate terrain is the birthplace of one of the most jubilant inventions to ever grace a body of water – the personal watercraft. Remember the days of having to share a boating experience with an annoying relative or work colleague? No. …

Milwaukee is the Creole word for the satisfaction induced by consuming massive quantities of domestic beer and cheddar cheese. OK. We made that up. Milwaukee offers much more than beer and cheese, including top-notch arts, food and sporting venues. Since this blog celebrates inventions and the inventing community, we recommend that your first stop be …

Years later, traveling got easier, as the idea of luggage overwhelmed the jet set with the ease and convenience of pocket storage, zippers and containment. The most significant update to luggage came in the 1970s when Bernard Sadow of New Bedford, Mass., revolutionized how we transport our luggage. Sadow, a luggage-business professional, came up with …

Hamburg is a site to behold, so walking over its beautiful canals, around the Binnenalster and along the River Elbe is worth the price of airfare alone. Combine the beautiful scenery with luxury goods and you have Alsterarkaden, a 100-meter street bedazzled with jewelry stores, antique books, chinaware and coffee shops. Perfect for the shopaholic …

The home of cramped, aroma-filled family road trips and awkward teenage make outs, the automobile redefined American culture, travel and industry. At the center of the movement was Detroit, Michigan. The heart of the automotive industry, this Midwestern blast furnace of horsepower and torque was the nexus of modern transportation. So pay your respects as …

Before people were irritated by digital albums crammed full of ill-prepared dinners and pre-club selfies on Facebook, people were irritated by celluloid-photo ambushes of Grand Canyon vacations and second cousins at dinner parties.   Stick it to FB friends and neighbors who over-share by soaking in some real photography, shot on real film, developed by …