as the time capsule that transports twenty-three passengers back in time to a most controversial chapter in American history -- the search for the Lindbergh baby and his kidnapper.

“The Crime of the Century,” as it is still known, stole all the headlines since the little boy’s father was Charles Lindbergh, who was America’s beloved hero at the time. While hundreds of reporters invaded the grounds of Lindbergh’s home in New Jersey (the scene of the crime) -- hoping to “scoop” each other on news of the baby’s whereabouts and the negotiations with the kidnapper, the story they were all competing for was secretly unfolding in -- of all places -- the Bronx!

Fifteen related sites will be visited during the six and a half hour tour. These include the exact spot in a cemetery where Dr. John Condon, Lindbergh’s enigmatic and colorful “go-between,” handed over $50,000 in ransom money; Condon’s house (which Lindbergh secretly visited twice!); convicted kidnapper Bruno Hauptman’s house; and the bakery where he claimed he had been on the night of the kidnapping.

The tour bus is lavatory-equipped and air conditioned. The VCR system enables participants to view old newsreels of some of the sites before they are about to visit them. An exclusive videotape will “take” participants inside Hauptmann’s house as it appears today, revealing a kitchen pantry and a bedroom closet that played important roles in the case. (The owner prohibits outsider from entering his house. However, he graciously gave the tour director, Richard Sloan, exclusive permission to videotape the interiors.) Participants will receive old pictures of the sites, enabling them to make comparisons with the way they appear today. They will also receive reproductions of the ransom notes that deal with some of the sites. Pre-selected box lunches will be distributed in Van Cortland Park, at one of the sites on the tour -- the shack where Hauptmann held a rendezvous with Dr. Condon.

In a traditional feature of the tour, a free raffle will be conducted of a half a dozen books associated with the kidnapping and Lindbergh -- all in very good condition.

Despite the rising price of gasoline, the price of this year’s tour is only $52. The tour bus will leave at 10:15 a.m. from the NW corner of 149^th Street and the Grand Concourse (directly opposite the Post Office building.) This is a most convenient location, as the Lexington Avenue #4 subway stops there. For those traveling by car to the bus, an attended parking garage is located one short block away. (Their modest $5 fee is not included in the tour price.) The bus returns to this same intersection, at approximately 4:45 p.m.

To make reservations and for additional details, write to Richard Sloan, 141 Saint Marks Place, Massapequa, NY 11758, or email him at emma1231@optonline.net