Montgomery AL & Central City CO

In today's "Anything Goes Saturday" entry we will visit two cities in the U.S. of A., and see them as they once were, and as they are today.

This fellow is standing in the middle of the street in Montgomery, Alabama (sometime in the 1950's). He's not in much danger of  being squashed by a car! Montgomery has a rich history, but as a kid I knew it for its association with the civil rights movement 1950's & 1960's. In fact, I did a bit of research trying to figure out what street this was, and Googled "Montgomery Alabama church". Success! That church to the left is the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, and Martin Luther King Jr. himself was the pastor of that church from 1954 to 1960! It is very possible that this picture was taken during that span. 

Here's a Google Maps street view of the same area today. Wikipedia says that Montgomery has been undergoing a revitalization/restoration of its downtown area, and that is evidenced by the construction crane seen here.

New we'll head west to Central City, Colorado; we're looking down Main Street. Central City was a prosperous mining town founded in 1859 during the "Pike's Peak Gold Rush". As you can see in this August 1961 picture, the buildings in the downtown area have a lot of vintage charm, with their varieties of colors and architectural details.

After the gold veins ran out, Central City's fortunes fell. Casino gambling has been introduced, but competition from nearby Blackhawk has been fierce. In order to build even bigger casinos to hopefully attract more gamblers, height restrictions on new buildings have been eliminated. I do understand that people need to earn a living and raise their families, but I hope this doesn't lead to this charming town being overwhelmed by gigantic ugly casinos.