Luke Taylor

Matchbook Blog: Tobacco Road

This matchbook comes from a small chain of tobacconists’ shops that operated in the Twin Cities area. I don’t think they’re still in operation.

The name “Tobacco Road” derives from a 1932 novel by Erskine Caldwell. I haven’t read the novel, but its title introduced a couple of expressions: 1) “tobacco road” can refer to an impoverished rural area; and 2) “tobacco road” refers to a number of colleges in North Carolina who compete in sports against one another.

The first sense can be used derogatorily, while the second sense is a well-received slang term among sports writers and fans. 

It’s interesting that the top of this matchbook features the line, “All roads lead to Tobacco Road” — perhaps written by someone oblivious to the origin and contemporary meanings of the phrase.

Matchbook Blog: Bob Chinn’s Crab House

A popular spot, Bob Chinn’s is still in business in Wheeling, Ill.; the phone number is a clue that this matchbook is from the early 1990s, before launch of the 847 area code.

Matchbook Blog: The Red Lantern Restaurant

This Italian restaurant was not far from my father’s workplace in Willowbrook, so he probably went to the Red Lantern for lunch from time to time. This restaurant was the Red Lantern for a long time, then it was Balducci’s, and now I think it’s called Madison’s.

The Madison Street on which it’s located is not Chicago’s east-west Madison Street, but rather a different Madison Street that runs north-south through Hinsdale; as the address connotes, the restaurant is located eight miles south of Chicago’s Madison Street.

Aside from the restaurant itself, it’s interesting how the capital T and the capital I are so similar in the Brushscript font.

Matchbook Blog: Normandy Motor Inn

What was the Normandy Motor Inn is now the Best Western Normandy Inn & Suites. The stylized N used on the matchbook above is still part of the aesthetic of the current Normandy Inn. My maternal grandfather’s retirement party was held at the Normandy, so I suspect this matchbook made its way to me some time after that.

My grandfather worked for the same company his entire career; more than 40 years with the Soo Line Railroad Company, which is now part of Canadian Pacific Railway. He enjoyed his work and his colleagues; they nicknamed him “Flash” for his tendency to walk very fast and to run up and down the stairways in the office.

When my grandfather died in 2009, he’d been retired for a long time, but some of his colleagues came to the funeral. They had nice things to say about my grandfather, which was certainly good to hear. It also speaks well of them, that they would take time out of their day to remember my grandfather and to pay their respects.