Pop Wagner, a folksinger and friend of mine, told me he has a brick from Italian Hall—an odd thing to keep as a souvenir, it seems to me, since you can't prove it's from Italian Hall.

I don't remember the details of how he got it, but I'll bet it had something to do with Charlie Maguire; I know they are friends and have performed together; in fact, they recently recorded an album of Woody Guthrie songs together, along with Tony Glover.

He also told me there were Christmas decorations still in the building right up until it was torn down. Apparently it had been closed up the whole time. Maybe he heard that from Charlie.

It's a shame the building wasn't preserved as a monument or museum. I think it's typical, though, especially in small towns, that when something awful like this happens, the local residents feel it's a stain on their reputation, and they'd rather have it be forgotten.

Keeping a brick makes a little more sense to me if you think of it as a protest against the fact that the building wasn't preserved.