Riddles and A Bowling Game! (Post #2)

Riddles in The Library

 In my last post I welcomed you to our new Puzzle Club blog.  Today I’m going to talk about the hometown of the Puzzle club.  When I wrote the book “The Clue Club,” with Dwight Dobbins, I left it up to him to name the town.  I guess he liked the music of John Coltrane because that’s the name he came up with.  Coltrane is very much like the towns that I lived in for most of my life, namely Glen Ridge and Maplewood, New Jersey.  It also contains aspects of Hilton Head Island, in South Carolina, a place of many fond memories for our family.  The town in our story is situated south of Virginia, along the east coast of the United States.  The town goes back at least to the Revolutionary War and the residents live mostly in old Victorian style homes.  The stores, situated downtown, are grouped around a park which features a bandstand along with a statue of Abner Bennington Coltrane, the founder of the ABC Puzzle and Game company, the town’s major employer.  Access to the island is over a short bridge.

Several times a year the island plays host to both national and international puzzle conventions.  These activities have gone on for over a hundred years.  Much of Coltrane is a living memorial to the past.  The streets are shaded with magnificent old oaks, elms, maples and chestnut trees.  It is one of the few towns left in the country where the streets are still illuminated with gas lamposts.  Several of their roads are also paved with cobblestones.  There are miles of palm shaded beaches and an old time amusement park, reminiscent of the New Jersey shore circa the 1930’s.

High above the town, on a prominent cliff, stands the home of the Puzzle Club.  This was formerly the residence of Abner Bennington Coltrane.  Several years ago, when the Puzzle Club was formed, the Coltrane Foundation presented this beautiful building to the organization for use as their headquarters.  It is here that many of our puzzling adventures take place.  The club’s magnificent library has been the scene of many a lively session of brain battles among our heroes.

Once a year, on Founders Day, the town celebrates the establishment of the ABC Puzzle and Game Company, and, for one day, turns the clock back to 1896, the year the company opened for business.  Everyone must dress up for the occasion.  No cars with a vintage later than 1920  are allowed on the streets.  The only other forms of transportation permitted are the electric trolley cars and horse drawn carriages.

Living in Coltrane is, in many ways, like living in a theme park.  When you’re there the cares of the rest of the world seem to disappear.  Life is indeed all fun and games.  In our next post I’ll be introducing you to some of the residents that make Coltrane such an enjoyable place to visit.

A New Bowling Game

Mr. Fogg's Answer Desk.

The Riddles, along with the Bowling game presented above, are both items from Chapter One of The New Island Puzzler (please checkout the Coltrane Bookstore).  The answers to the riddles are: (1) Why is a wig like a lie? Because it’s a false hood. (2) Why is an empty purse always the same?  Because there is never any change in it.  (3) What is the highest public building in Hilton Head?  The library because it has the most stories.  (4) When does a chair hate you?  When it can’t bear you.  (5) What Question can never be answered by “yes”?  “Are you asleep?”  (6) Why is Ireland the Wealthiest country in the world? Because it’s capital is always Dublin.  (7) What is bought by the yard yet worn by the foot?  Carpet.  (8) On which side of the church does a cypress tree grow?  On the outside.  (9) Who was the most popular actor in the Bible?  Samson.  He brought the house down.  (10) What does no man want yet no man wants to lose?  A bald head.

Tags: Puzzles