I went to a lecture put together by the Hickory Landmarks Society.  The Hickory Museum of Art provided the space.  They also provided walls to display maps and old photography of architecture.  Surrounded by Carl Moser photographs, lecturer Leslie Keller showed photos of buildings long gone.  She started with churches, then schools, universities, houses of known families, hotels, and ended with shops.  Each photo had a tale of funny misunderstandings, tragedy, and lots of fires.  The older crowd murmured after each yarn revealed and spoke up with anecdotes of their own.  One story I liked came from Keller who talked about the Huffry Hotel.  She recounted a story of a bicyclist who used to deliver beer there.

I did have one complaint.  As she showed photos of past Hickory buildings, I felt she could have added photos of what the property looked like now.