For the past 10 years John Curran, a city historian, has been fighting to preserve yellow bricks in Peekskill, New York that he believes inspired L. Frank Baum. The author attended military school in the town for two years, and according to legend, when he asked for directions to the Peekskill Military Academy he was told, “Just follow the yellow brick road.” Most of the golden bricks, which were made by Dutch settlers, have been paved over, but there’s still one 50-foot stretch left. Right now it’s being used as a parking lot near a commuter rail, but Curran hopes it will be memorialized. He’d also like to prevent Wizard of Oz fans from stealing pieces of the yellow brick road. A pack of of flying monkey guards should probably do the trick.
Image via Valentin Agapov/Shutterstock.