Boring, Maryland, USA

How would you like to be a Methodist minister with this church on your resume? The Boring United Methodist Church, located in Boring, Maryland. Almost 30 years separate the two signs. Compare them, and the times they represent. What changes do you predict have beset the congregation? [1991 and 2019]

Cornish, New Hampshire, and Windsor, Vermont, USA

The Cornish-Windsor covered bridge connects two states across the Connecticut River. From portal to portal, it's the longest in the United States and a civil engineering landmark. Remember, though, you must "walk your horses or pay two dollars fine." [2018 and 1991]

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

The old windmill is the oldest landmark in Brisbane. It was reburbished in time for Australia's hundredth anniversary, but in the mid-1800s it was almost demolished because it was built by convict labor during the penal-colony era, which Australia was trying to live down at the time. As a backup to the wind, inmates powered the mill on a treadmill. [1988 and 2006]

New London, Connecticut, USA

Blue whales can live almost a century. Murals of blue whales are lucky to last a few decades. Wyland's 'whaling wall' in New London was painted in 1993. Look at its condition now: The last ten years seem to have taken an especially hard toll. Take a look at the mural in 2008 (below). Hear Ye, Hear Ye, City Council: Save the Whales! [2021]

Chicago, Illinois, USA

As the first skyscraper north of the Chicago River, the Wrigley Building became the leading edge of vertical urbanism in the 1920s. Its size and stunning design visually dominated the Magnificent Mile for the next 75 years. Then, it got some competition from the Trump Tower and a high-rise condo nearby. Compare the view now with the skyline in 2006. [2021]

Cashtown, Pennsylvania, USA

The Round Barn: Like the Schuster Barn and the Emminger Barn, the round barn in Pennsylvania's orchard country was built in the early 20th century. It's the eye-catching centerpiece of a working farm that seems to be capitalizing on current trends in rural economics. The barn is now a produce and crafts market, and right across the road is a winery. [2021 and 1986]

Denver, Colorado, USA

Today, the State of Colorado is 145 years old. Yet, that is only two generations. Any native Coloradan who was born in 1876 has undoubtedly passed on, but, if he fathered a child at the age of fifty, that child could be a spry 95 this year. In those 145 years, however, an entire era of human geography has closed: See the statue? [2019 and 2005]

Madison, Wisconsin, USA

Wisconsin's current capitol was built in 1917. Amazingly, it has always been a true capitol, serving as home to all three branches of state government: the governor, the legislature, and the supreme court. In other states, that is not always the case. On this date in 1848, Wisconsin became the 30th state to join the Union. [2019 and 1991]

Brussels, Belgium

During the first 15 years of the Surveillance Era (post-1999), "big brother" felt obligated to let you know if you were being watched (post-1984, the book, not the year). Now, we all assume we are being both watched and recorded every time we step out of our private space and into public view. Amazingly, we don't seem to care! [2015]

Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

It's time to celebrate Utah's qasquicentennial! Statehood came 125 years ago, making it the last state of the nineteenth century to join the union. The capitol was finished ten years later. When you see Capitol Hill up close, it looks like the humid East, but when you zoom out you realize it is all an illusion: You are in a desert. [2020 and 2003]

Hyde Park, New York, USA

Springwood (known by all as Hyde Park) was originally built in 1826 but has been remodeled extensively and expanded since then. In 1882, Franklin Roosevelt was born here and it became his getaway from the White House during his presidency. [2019]

Seoul, South Korea

People of Seoul: Why do people all over the world find aesthetic value in water as a component of landscape? Here on the Cheonggyecheon, photographers devise multiple opportunities to capture the spirit of place by freezing a very special urban spring. They do it by adjusting lenses rather than regulating temperatures. [2012]

Annapolis, Maryland, USA

In Pennsylvania, it would be called the capitol. In Maryland, it is always called the state house. In Pennsylvania, you would be laughed at if you called that a dome. In Maryland, they brag about having the largest wooden dome in the country. But, today, it is all about Maryland: Happy 232nd birthday! [2018 and 2002]

Augusta, Maine, USA

Maine separated from Massachusetts in 1820, and Augusta became the official capital in 1832, the year the capitol building was finished. Do you see the resemblance between the Massachusetts and the Maine capitols? Charles Bullfinch designed both. 1820 to 2020: Happy bicentennial birthday, Maine! [2019 and 1987]

New York, New York, USA

Manhattan's High Line (high = elevated; line = rail line) is popular in every season of the year. The industrial city's grit and grime have been replaced by the post-industrial city's gardens and greenery. (Brownery in winter!) Let's re-purpose even more elements of industrial landscapes so we can enjoy them today. [2020]

Concord, New Hampshire, USA

When the Granite State ratified the U.S. Constitution on this date in 1788, its vote was the ninth, but it was more important than any other: With the ninth ratification, the Constitution went into effect. Here are some flowers to say happy 231st birthday! In the picture below, though: no posies. Concord had been conquered by the cold. [2018 and 1988]

Jamestown, Rhode Island, USA

Maryland is to Chesapeake Bay as Rhode Island is to what? Narragansett Bay, of course. Let's say thank you to the continent's original inhabitants for adding some bling to the English language. [2019]

Montpelier, Vermont, USA

Vermont was the first state to be admitted to the union after the original 13. Before accession, on this date in 1791, it had been a republic of its own since 1777. As for Montpelier, it is the least populous state capital in the U.S. What's a gold-leaf dome doing out in the middle of the country? Below is a view of the capitol from the Winooski River. [2018 and 2001]

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA

On this date in 1787, Pennsylvania ratified the new U.S. Constitution, becoming the second state to do so. But for Delaware, it could have been the First State! A quarter-century later, John Harris's ferry town on the Susquehanna River became the new capital. The current capitol was finished in 1906. Compare these two snapshots in time. [👆 2018 and 👇 1992]

From City Island in the Susquehanna River

Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Indiana became a state (the 19th admitted to the Union) on this date in 1816. Indianapolis became Indiana's capital city in 1825. The current capitol was completed in 1888. Take a gander below to see what the statehouse looked like twenty years ago, in 1998. [2018 and 1998]