Gone to Gettysburg

Gettysburg. I have to confess, I was very eager to go this particular battlefield.In order to get ready we watched wonderful film, Gettysburg if you have never seen it, it is worth a watch! Then Beth, Gavin and I were off! Beth has lived back here for many years and she loves history so she is the perfect tour guide and she knows the inside scoop!:D

On the way to Gettysburg, we saw an ominous sight. A crow on top of the steeple of an abandoned church.

I read somewhere that Gettysburg is the most preserved battlefield in America, I don't know if this is true or not, but there is a lot to see and it is very well laid out.

From the Wheat Field, where 6000 men died.

Little Round Top, where the Union Colonel Chamberlain heroically defended this strategic point at the Union line end.

Looking down into Devil's Den.

Gavin even found his first gun!

My favorite, yet one of the saddest places in Gettysburg, is Pickett's Charge, a desperate attempted of the confederate infantry to charge right through the middle of the Union lines. The catch, all the men had to run over a half a mile, in plain sight, braving cannons and heavy gunfire and THREE fences, which they had to crawl over!

The causalities were devastating with over half of the infantry dying. This charge is remembered as the high-water mark of the Confederacy, as they were met with heavy gunfire. Simply put, the dream of the Confederacy died right here on this field.

It is amazing and sobering to stand there and realize that so many men lost their lives in such a rural and previously insignificant place.

On a much happier note, next it was lunch time and Beth took me to her favorite restaurant, The Dobbin House Tavern, if you are ever in Gettysburg find this gem it is worth it!

Built in 1776, the restaurant was a home and a tavern and now functions as a hotel and restaurant. The main restaurant is original spring house/cellar.

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If you pres your face in to the tiny window you can see the still in use clean spring.

After lunch we had one more important stop: the cemetery.

Abraham's Lincoln's famous Gettysburg address was spoken right here for the first time.

After all the seriousness of the day it to relax and browse downtown Gettysburg, here are some of treasure we found!

Okay now no judgement....Beth and I tried to find the most gaudy dress we could find. :D

Fabulous Fourth!

Here is a fact about me you may not know...the Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays! It is just a step below Christmas in my book! I love the fireworks, the delicious food, being with family and celebrating the wonderful history of our great nation! As a history lover there is no better holiday! This Fourth of July was no exception, because what better place to celebrate then in Philadelphia!

I headed north to meet my perfect tour-guides, my incredible cousin Beth and her husband Dan and their adorable new baby, Gavin, who live in Baltimore, Maryland!

It was a good eight hours from where I live in South Carolina and as I inched my way up the coastline I passed by so many historical sights, my soul was dying, so it was good thing I was very excited to see them, else wise I would have gotten very distracted. :D

After meeting adorable Gavin, we headed north to Philadelphia, with one very important stop on the way, to see where Dan proposed to Beth! Clearly, he did a good job!

Then it was on to Philadelphia! The beautiful city hall with William Penn on top of it.

The famous Independence Hall.

We barely got in line in time, but we were saved by the bell!:D

For such a historical artifact, I was surprised at how modern the building was.

Additionally, I did not realize before coming that the original President's House is actually on the lawn of Independence Hall. It makes sense since Philadelphia was the nation's capitol before Washington D.C., I just didn't realize it was so close.

This an outline of the house.

Underneath is some of the original wall and foundation.

Of course, no visit to Philadelphia is complete without a delicious oooey-gooey cheesesteak!

Philadelphia is a beautiful old city with gorgeous architecture! We were able to walk through a lot of the city, which was a lot of fun! We then headed to the Philadelphia Art Museum, where A LOT of people were celebrating. I am told there was a concert and even fireworks, but honestly I have no idea...Beth and I were too busy talking. :D

That was just the beginning of our fun! Because tomorrow is Gettysburg!

Kings, Cows, Peaches and BBQ

Although I have now been to several Civil War battlefields, Kings Mountain and Cowpens were my first American Revolutionary War Battlefields. Just 45 minutes from my house, it was a short drive, but a long trip back into history.

The Battle of Kings Mountain, although small in size is remembered today because it was the first official battle made up entirely of colonist guerrillas against American Loyalist and their lone British leader.

It was a beautiful and peaceful park

This is part of the old road. Crazy and fun to stand place where other walked hundreds of years ago!

It was a quiet and peaceful stroll winding up and around a mount (On a side note, as a Oregon girl I really cannot bring myself to call these hills "mountains.") and up the hill to where the battle took place, and where ultimately the British lost.

One of the most interesting stories about the battle was the aftermath. Sadly, when the Loyalists surrendered, rather then holding them as POW, a shoddy trial was held and three men were hanged as traitors before the leaders of the Americans could get their men under control. Major Ferguson, the leader of the American Loyalist, was a hated man and when he was shot in battle he was quickly buried by the renegades and rather then marking his grave, they threw stones on it as a last act of defiance. When, years later America wanted to repair her relationship with England, his grave was marked. However, rather then removing the stones, the stones were left where they were, because apparently, in Scotland where the Major was from, having your grave covered in stones is a mark of respect.

Next it was on to Cowpens. Strange name for a battlefield, but it was exactly that. A huge pasture for cattle to graze and fattening up before being sent down to Charleston. On January 17, 1781, the British and Americans engaged in a battle that changed the fate of the Southern Campaign.

Checking out the battlelines with my soldier friends.

There was a great demonstration of weapons by Revolutionary reenactors. There were only three guns going at a time, but I am always amazed at how loud the guns were and how much smoke is created by just a few. Now times it by hundreds and you get the idea of how loud the war was.

After the Americans won the battle, the British reassessed their goal of taking the Southern colonies first and instead decided on focusing on the North colonies. A large part of this was due to guerrilla/ mountain man tactics used during the fighting in the South, tactics which were on great display in both these battles.

After the Revolutionary War the battlefield was largely forgotten, and was instead a homestead for many years. A beautiful cabin still remains on the land.

Now I thought I grew up in a small house, but this was home to eleven children and their parents. No thank you!

On the way home I was starving and I could not resist stopping at an adorable diner, called Carolina Crossing, the restaurant is in North Carolina and their parking lot in South Carolina. :D I was too hungry to take pictures, but they served the best hush puppies I have ever had. I am learning that what they say is true, every state prepares and serves BBQ differently. I have tried Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, South Carolina and Maryland offerings but my favorite is North Carolinian!

On a random side note, did you know the Peach Capitol of the World is not in Georgia as I had always supposed, but rather in South Carolina?

Gone with the Past...

Montgomery Alabama is a city of sharp contrasts. It was the first capitol of the Confederacy and is home to the first Confederate White House and filled with the President Davis's artifacts. Yet, the city is also home to many Civil Rights museums, memorials and the stomping grounds for the Civil Right Movement's favorite son, Martin Luther King Jr. This contrast, along with the current economical state and the emotional turmoil that has taken place there has left the city feeling, at least to me, a bit like a ghost town, preserved and unable to move on the from the past.

My first stop was the beautiful and historical state capitol building and an excellent example of this contrast.

It was here on the capitol steps that Jefferson Davis was sworn in as President and it was also here that the famous civil rights March to Montgomery ended.

Directly across from the capitol buildings is the first White House of the Confederacy, and I have to say that despite what one thinks of its past history, it is my favorite home that I have visited this summer. Below are a sampling of some of the rooms. I hope you can see, I had to take pictures with the flash off and in older houses, the lightening is not always the best. :(

The Jefferson Davis Bedroom, as well as some of his personal effects, such as an awesome smoking gown.

The steps of Varina's bed open to reveal the very cleverly concealed chamber-pot.

Rear Living Room and the Davis Family Bible on the table.

The Nursery. Who wouldn't want this precious bed?

This tiny lamp is a fairy lamp :D

However, my favorite bedroom was the guest bedroom. My favorite colors! Anyone want to buy the set for me?? :D

This pen, is for Brennan, a self proclaimed pen snob, this pen signed the majority of important historical documents of President Davis's term.

The beautiful front room and dining room, I love love the colors!

Then it was on to the Civil Rights Museum. Honestly the creepiest musuem I have ever been in, it was very dark and you had to go through two security check points to get in. However it is a very enlightening memorial.

This is the former bus station that was once part of the Freedom Ride.

You can see the boarded up door on the left, for blacks and the door that is still in use today, which was (then) used for whites.

Overall it was a good trip, but like I said, it was creepy. I went on a Saturday and I was often the only person on the street, also many shops around the area of the capitol buildings are boarded up, which does not help, with the whole feeling-safe-thing.

To leave you on a happier and slightly less creepy note, there is a modern building, now a bank, with its lower floor completely made of glass.

However if you look closer, you will find that the lower glass "box" has completely encased a historic 1800s house. I tried hard to get a picture of it and this is the best one I could get, due to the sun. Its a crazy cool idea of preservation though. As the house now service as a main entrance to the bank.