Here's a fine example of one of the many Craftsman style homes to be found in Albany.

One highlight of the downtown area is the Albany Regional Museum. This is a collaborative effort by the community since many of the displays were donated by Albany residences. Danny was captivated by the display of Adolph Hitler’s monogrammed silverware. It was explained that a local resident was one of the troops that secured the Eagles Nest at the end of WWII and had taken the silverware as a souvenir.

Another highlight for us was visiting the Carnegie Library. This library is the most preserved Carnegie building we have encountered. Albany has built a new facility but has kept the small Carnegie as a satellite branch. The librarians were thrilled that we were interested in the architecture and gave us a tour pointing out details that we would have missed. This is the only library we have seen that still has the stage in the basement for puppet shows and other productions for children. All of the furniture is original including the checkout counter.

Although Albany has many scenic parks on the banks of the Willamette River, we especially enjoyed the small manicured Waverly Park. Waverly lake is stocked with trout and a large wooden duck floating in the middle (touted as the largest wooden duck in the world). As we walked around the lake we were surprised to find that incorporated into the park was Albany’s historic pioneer cemetery. Seeing the gravestones of Oregon Trail pioneers dated 1846 and 1847 made us pause and reflect upon the rich historical roots of the area.

And finally ... another excellent example of an Albany Victorian.

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