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<br /> ` : = = - - a whole pier in Philadelphia and a ware-
<br /> r. _ _ house in Charles County, Md. And he
<br /> has his 377 , 000-square-foot headquar-
<br /> ■ ters , on Hargrove Drive, in Lanham ,
<br /> AC � �9 Globally A message on the Internet last July Md. In the front lobby in Lanham, Har-
<br /> warned of the demolition then underway grove displays an eclectic assortment of
<br /> 10
<br /> of a cultural icon that had come to symbolize the alternative rock group RaE . M . 's items : a bronze sculpture of a terrapin, a
<br /> connection to its hometown of Athens , Ga . For fans of the band , it meant a call to Royal Ride golf cart with a Rolls-Royce
<br /> action . CSX Transportation had already leveled two abandoned railroad trestles near hood ornament, a tin knight in armor, a
<br /> Athens—built in 1883 from wood , steel , and Stone Mountain granite—and had full-size fiberglass Cinderella's carriage, a
<br /> begun to tear down the picturesque trestle spanning Trail Creek, which was immor- life-size toy soldier. Ascend a spiral stair-
<br /> talized by the back-cover photograph on R . E . M . ' s 1983 " Murmurs " album . case to the office floor, and there's much
<br /> That' s when the on-line alert, posted on the rec . music . rem Internet discus- more: ship models, a marble table from a
<br /> sion group , triggered an outpouring of passionate e-rd immediately , the pre- home of the late cereal heiress Marjorie
<br /> mier R . E . M . fan Web site ( http ://www , murmurs . com/) launched a publicity Merriwether Post, acentury-old carriage
<br /> campaign to "save the Athens Trestle, " urging fans to lodge their protests with with a commemorative blanket from
<br /> Athens Mayor Doc Eldridge . " Everybody started e-mailing `the mayor, and the June 8, i99i (the end of the Gulf War)
<br /> poor guy got , like , 2 , 000 e-mails , " says Ethan Kaplan , the 21 year-old founder spread across the front seat,
<br /> of murmurs . com and a University of California at San Diego student , "There are Hargrove's enthusiasm for his expan-
<br /> a couple of must stops if you are sive collection of artifacts is endless , and
<br /> ;.
<br /> an R . E . M . fan and go to Athens . :gAir
<br /> # :.
<br /> w, ,�. catching. He leads me into a work area,
<br /> -
<br /> The trestle is o �ne of them . It is — . ^F:t ;:. : r.�KN"
<br /> F ` `"- " " ` " f=1' ' ' ` where he's restoring metal-wheeled lug-
<br /> s ,f , • ary.p+ , < ..w.. s " m u r mur s , �-za
<br /> a piece of history . ' � v �r;, . e >• 4z`1
<br /> +` ` ' ` gage carts from
<br /> Y ,r t v �• - ` Station—he owns
<br /> � ;: <a fps : . ,r.. � >� Union
<br /> Move h show of su - `� :` + �
<br /> d b the j r a��3 � - fi . 1s;-
<br /> y p r :V?I . r� Q <<$. `<, s: io of them—for use in future events and
<br /> d the 118- Y � � _>
<br /> port , r`: � ' r 1-: i' parades . In his offic
<br /> the mayor stayed .:.w o ,
<br /> s - with
<br /> §. : . e , cluttered
<br /> year-o ! d trestle ' s destru i n • dre
<br /> ` -,;`< � =1,4
<br /> et o , ,, u, �,::� '. , more of his collections he shows
<br /> I yId_ .: ows me a
<br /> . : :4; : . , o 44r..
<br /> approximate ) ' '' " ion Cemetery.
<br /> y a third of theu..� ; : � yu log from Arlington National C m tery.
<br /> 7 }AM, g
<br /> structure had been dismantled . Or
<br /> »°` . """` .s•''""' 'W _
<br /> � `'Y� r �L �� s �:� � Ord•• It came from a tree removed to make
<br /> y e voted with 1F }W i�
<br /> ! n ear! October, h v
<br /> k room for the John F. Kennedy gravesite,
<br /> t Or
<br /> the C - . .�.... ��. » , • rr
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<br /> mission of IzFr _ :: F _ ...7. .�. . ,. ,
<br /> And then faci
<br /> om Athens - - T .. v : r;i ri ng Har rove's desk, stand
<br /> Clarke Or
<br /> Or
<br /> � _.. . ..
<br /> struc- -
<br /> ' y ' "` ` ` ' h- backed blue e
<br /> r County to buy the . -F -
<br /> { ;x r � t : t �r R two hig velour chairs
<br /> ture for $ 25 , 000 and attempt which he took to
<br /> Ronald Reagan's sec-
<br /> to purchase 1 . 9 miles of railroad right of way from CSX to create a pedestrian and and inaugural . When the parade was
<br /> bike• trail . Restoration costs could exceed $ 150 , 000 , and by early November, canceled due to frigid weather, the pres-
<br /> murmurs . com had raised more than $ 1 , 400 toward the effort, selling T-shirts and ident and Nancy Reagan went to the
<br /> mouse pads bearing the image of the trestle . Meanwhile , other organizations— Capital Center arena, in Largo, Md. , to
<br /> among them , the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy ( based in Washington , D . C . ) , the thank the iz, 000 kids—majorettes, band
<br /> Athens-Clarke Heritage Foundation , and Bike Athens—lent their support . The members , twirlers—who were to have
<br /> Athens city government created a Web page ( http ://www. athensclarkecounty , marched up Pennsylvania Avenue. The
<br /> com/new/trestle. htm ) where supporters can make contributions • chairs were placed on a stage inside the
<br /> Reticent at first, R . E . M . members , recognized for their preservation activism arena. The Reagans took their seats and
<br /> ( including financial support of the National Trust) , eventually brought their voices the event went on indoors.
<br /> to the cause . "The trestle has become a symbol for a lot of people of some sort "We marked underneath who sat in
<br /> of southern Gothic icon , " says David Bell , who heads R . E . M . ' s Athens-based fan which one, " Hargrove said . I ask him
<br /> club and runs its Web site ( http ://www, remhq . com/) , which updates trestle news which one was Reagan's. "The one you're
<br /> for fans . " But ultimately the band sees it is a matter of historic preservation . " sitting in, " he says.
<br /> I For Ethan Kaplan , it proved to be about more : "The efforts we showed here
<br /> prove that you don 't have to be local to have collective activism . " I EugeneL. .MeyerzsaionterandeditorforThe
<br /> --Don Oldenburg Washington Post and is the author of
<br /> Maryland Lost and Found . . . Again and
<br /> Chesapeake Country.
<br /> IG PRESERVATION
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