by

Mike Prero

BULLETIN

PRESIDENT TREASURER EDITOR

John Bachochin Loren Moore Mike Prero

15731 S. 4210 Rd., POB 1181 12659 Eckard Way

Claremore, OK 74017 Roseville, CA 95678 Auburn,CA 95603

918-342-0710 916-783-6822 530-906-4705

No. 354 July 2014

We’ve come a long way since 1776, and, although our founding fathers surely have turned over in their graves

many times since then, we’ve accomplished much, much more than they ever envisioned, I’m sure. Here are some

interesting facts that I found about the good ol’ USA.

- The US is the 4th largest country in the world by land area and 3rd by population.

- On February 25, 2013, the estimated population of the US was 315,568,000.

- The US has the world's largest economy.

- Most of the world's tornadoes occur in the Midwest region of the US.

- The most populated US city is New York City, followed by Los Angeles and Chicago.

- The US was the leading force behind the development of the Internet.

- The highest point in the state of Florida is only 345 feet above sea level.

- Today, 66 percent of all Americans are considered to be overweight.

- Alaska is 429 times larger than Rhode Island. But Rhode Island has a significantly

larger population.

- Alaska has a longer coastline than all of the other 49 U.S. states put together.

- Montana has three times as many cows as it does people.

- The average U.S. citizen drinks the equivalent of more than 600 sodas each year.

- The only place in the United States where coffee is grown commercially is in Hawaii.

- The United States has 845 motor vehicles for every 1,000 people. Japan only has 593

for every 1,000 and Germany only has 540 for every 1,000.

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 2

- The grizzly bear is the official state animal of California, but no grizzly bears have been seen there since 1922.

- In the middle of the last century, the United States was #1 in the world in GDP per capita. Today, it’s #13.

- Today, approximately 25 million American adults are living with their parents.

- In 2011, our trade deficit with China was more than 49,000 times larger than it was back in 1985.

- One out of every seven Americans has at least 10 credit cards.

- The city of Juneau, Alaska, is about 3,000 square miles large. It’s actually bigger than the entire state of Delaware.

- The original name of the city of Atlanta was "Terminus".

- The median price of a home in the city of Detroit is now about $6000.

- Back in 1950, more than 80 percent of all men in the United States had jobs. Today, it’s less than 65 percent.

- There are three towns in the United States that have the name "Santa Claus".

- In 1940, 68.0% of all women in the 20 to 34 year old age group in the United States were married. In 2010, it was

only 39.2%.

- The most dangerous job in the United States is that of a fisherman, followed by logging and then an airline pilot.

- The only working diamond mine in the United States of America is Crater of Diamond States Park.

- Over 200 varieties of watermelon are grown in the US.

- English is spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five or older

- Automobiles operate on a network of 13 million roads in the USA

- Approximately, one out of every three families has a pet dog.

- [For those of you who are musically inclined] American car horns beep in the tone of F.

- Hebert Hoover, the 31st president, turned over all the federal salary checks he received to charity during the 47

years he was in government.

- The USA is one of the world’s most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations.

- The first President to ride an automobile was William McKinley. After being shot, he was taken to the hospital in

1901 Columbia electric ambulance.

- It cost 3 cents to make a $ bill in the United States.

- Gulf Oil Company opened the first drive-in service station in the US on December 1, 1913, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

[http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/countries/unitedstates.html]

[http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/40-weird-facts-about-the-united-states-that-are-almost-too-crazy-to-believe]

[http://travel.wikinut.com/220-Interesting-Fun-Facts-About-U.S.A/36tnhosg/]

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 3

A Passion For Parks!

I started collecting National Parks years ago. It seemed like the natural thing to do. Most people have

visited at least one of the nation’s national parks, and I’m certainly one of those visitors—the desert parks

of the Southwest, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Sequoia, Yosemite, and others. When my sons were

younger, I took them on a grand tour of the Southwest, visiting parks in California, Utah, Colorado,

Wyoming, Arizona, and more. The majesty and grandeur of such parks leaves a lasting

impression...creating nostalgia...and creating a great reason to collect National Parks!

But, it was long before I began coming upon other national parks, parks from distant lands, parks with

exotic names and scenes...so, of course, I added them to my collection, as well—Jasper National Park,

Canada; Kosciusko National Park, Australia; Fuji-Hakone National Park, Japan; etc.

And then, I started running across state parks! Covers with wonderful names—Big Bone Lick State Park,

Giant City State Park, Mohican State Park, Silver Creek Falls State Park, Starved Rock State Park, and so

on...Well, I had to add those to my collection!

Thus, what started out as my National Park collection turned into a Parks collection. But, it didn’t stop

there...Oh, no....You can imagine my surprise when I discovered that there were covers from city parks!

And covers from county parks! Ohhhhh! And what about amusement parks? No, I draw the line there.

Amusement parks go into my Famous Places collection

I still haven’t decided what to do about National Monuments!

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 4

Great Ships of the Seas:

S.S.. Oceanic

The Oceanic was launched at Monfalcone, Italy, on January 15, 1963 and entered the transatlantic

service in 1964. The 39,000-ton liner was

the new flagship of Home Lines,

appearing on the scene just as the Italian-

based Home Lines was decommissioning

its great classic, the Italia.

A true luxury liner, the Oceanic’s

facilities included two swimming pools,

closed circuit television, chapel,

cinemascope theatre, children’s and

teenagers’ public rooms, and complete air

conditioning. She was sleek, gleaming

white, and had a single stack to the rear.

Always popular, the Oceanic plied the

seas for tourists, vacationers, and business

people.

Her 61,000-horsepower turbines gave

her a speed of 27 knots, and, by 1965, she

was the largest liner used throughout the

year on cruises, with a capacity of 1200

passengers. She worked the weekly run

between New York and Nassau.

[Reprised

from 1995]

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 5

Barrel Matches

Well, you can see why they’re called Barrel matches. They’re more or less the modern version of match

safes, only these are barrel-shaped and made of cardboard.

Barrel matches have never been all that popular, probably, I assume, because they’re more expensive

than matchbooks and traditional matchboxes. They’re designed for the customer who’s looking to be chic.

So, you’ll see some from the larger hotel chains, usually their posh restaurants (I have one from a Hilton).

I can’t see your average guy carrying around something this bulky.

They make a great category, and they’re great for

displays. I have several around, just for show, but I

don’t collect them. You can’t put these in albums,

but, if that doesn’t bother you, I could certainly see

someone collecting them.

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 6

San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf

One of the busiest and well known tourist attractions in the western United States, Fisherman's Wharf is best

known for being the location of Pier 39, the Cannery Shopping Center, Ghirardelli Square, a Ripley's Believe it or

Not museum, the Musée Mécanique, the Wax Museum at Fisherman's Wharf, the Aquarium of the Bay, and the San

Francisco Maritime National Historical Park.

Seafood restaurants are aplenty in the area. Some include the floating Forbes Island restaurant at Pier 39 to stands

that serve fresh seafood, most notably Dungeness crab and clam chowder served in a sourdough bread bowl. Some

of the restaurants, including Fishermen's Grotto, Pompei's Grotto and Alioto's, go back for three generations of the

same family ownership. Other restaurants include chains like Joe's Crab Shack and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.

Other attractions in Fisherman's Wharf area are the Hyde Street Pier which is part of the Golden Gate National

Recreation Area, the USS Pampanito, a decommissioned World War II era submarine, and the Balclutha, a 19th

century cargo ship. Nearby Pier 45 has a chapel in memory of the "Lost Fishermen" of San Francisco and Northern

California. There is a sea lion colony next to Pier 39. They "took-up" residence right after the Loma Prieta

Earthquake in 1989. The sea lions lay on wooden docks that were originally meant for docking boats.

An American Tour:

82

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 7

details as they arrive.

SOUTHERN SWAPFEST:

March 17-21, 2015 – Hilton

Orlando/Altamont Springs

Conference Center , 350

Northlake Blvd., Altamonte

Springs, FL 32701, (407) 830-

1985. Reservations can also be

made via this web site:

www.orlandoaltamontesprings.h

ilton.com. Special rate of

$83.00. Deadline is Feb 15,

2015. FMI: Gayle Hofacker at

gaylelynn13@hotmail.com, or

937 621 1700.

____________________

Casino Covers!

First You See Them

...Now You Don’t!

Hard to believe that at one

time Casino covers were as

common as sand on a beach.

Now, new Casino covers, even

from the Indian Casinos, are a

rare commodity. The bright side

is that the previous Casino

covers are getting older...but

they aren’t getting scarcer.

Membership

New Members

993. M.S. Kamm, POB 545,

Palm Springs, CA 92263

Collects: Casinos, Facial Hair,

Flames/Torches, Palm Springs

area, Keys, Names

___________________

Change of Address

#664. Sandy Unger, 11105 Joy

Lane, Minnetonka, MN 55305

Ads

W E E K L Y O N - L I N E

AUCTION: 100 lots each

Sunday. Large and small

categories. http://matchpro.org

Coming Up

RMS CONVENTION 2014:

Augus t 17-23 . She ra ton

Westport, St. Louis, MO. This is

the BIG one! More details

coming, but the l a t e s t

information is always available

at Convention Central >http://

matchcover.org

INTERNATIONAL MATCH

SAFE ASSOCIATION MEET:

Oct. 17-18, 2014. Hotel DuPont,

Wilmington, DE. FMI George

Sparacio (IMSA@matchsafe.

org)

KEYSTONE-LEHIGH SWAP

-FEST: October 22-25, 2014.

Holiday Inn Morgantown, 6170

Morgantown Rd., PA (610-286-

3000) Room: $88+. Lots of fun

for everyone, as always. More

Readers Write

John Bachochin, OK: Unless

there is an optional spelling of

―neighborhood‖, I believe this

cover has an error.

No. 354 SIERRA-DIABLO BULLETIN-July 2014 Page 8

Replace with advertising text

Company Name

COMING

UP

Aug: “Hobby Cover Errers!”

Sep: “Ohio Wide-Strikers”

Oct: “Antique Autos”

SIERRA-DIABLO...we’re

the hottest club in the

hobby!

....July Auction

Ohhhh! More good items...as usual.

We’ve got quality; we’ve got old;

we’ve got interesting!

http://matchcover.org/sierra

And, don’t forget...you can see

more auction cover pics at:

www.matchcovercollector.com

Happy Birthday!

Eggleston, Kay......................7-1

Hothan, Mike........................7-1

Hofacker, Gayle..................7-13

Leckie, Mike.......................7-13

Schwimmer, Mike...............7-14

Norton, DJ...........................7-16

Manwaring, Art...................7-18

Nelson, Ron........................7-19

Kennaday, Dave..................7-23

Pelletier, Claude..................7-23

Harding, Ted.......................7-24

Dixon, Barbara....................7-29

Hollmann, Helen.................7-31

McMillan, Robert...............7-31

Hales, James.........................8-3

Eberhart, Charles..................8-6

Waite, Randy........................8-8

Aji, Pete................................8-9

Lamb, Robert......................8-12

Rowe, Terry........................8-12

Israel, Marty........................8-15

Barnes, Jack........................8-21

Lund, Greg..........................8-22

Evans, Bill...........................8-24

Prescott, Bill.......................8-28

The Sierra-Diablo Bulletin is a

publication of the Sierra-Diablo

Matchcover Club. Deadline for all

submissions is 2 weeks before the

issue month. Any information

herein may be reproduced with

appropriate credit line. Dues of $5

(e-bulletin); or $10 hard copy

(individual), $15 (family), $15

(Canada/Mexico) or $20 (outside

N. America) are payable to the

Sierra-Diablo Matchcover Club, c/

o Loren Moore, POB 1181,

Roseville, CA 95678

Visit the Sierra-Diablo Web Site

at: http://www.matchcover.org/

Sierra. You can reach the Ed. on

line at RMSED@matchpro.org for

h e lp wi th Bu l l e t in /h obby

questions, concerns or problems.

Interesting Find

Pictured in the next column is

a cover I recently ran across.

This looks as if it’s probably

from the 1950s.

Jim Moffett was a long-time

member of Long beach

Matchcover Club. I used to see

him all the time at the AMCAL

convent ions. He was a

collector’s collector. He

published the ―California

Matchcover News‖, which I’m

not familiar with. Anyone know

if that was associated with the

early days of AMCAL?

July’s Smile