An afternoon in Colonial Maryland
A friend of mine recommended Historic St. Mary’s City in Southern Maryland as a weekend destination numerous times, but up until this point I haven’t followed up with the suggestion. I kept saying I was waiting for a Sunday to go, because they tend to be quieter in towns or cities, but always found somewhere else to go or something else to do. Finally, I just admitted my Sundays are tied up, so I just went.
Point Lookout
Now, the driving directions from the DC area are very simple. Get off the beltway and follow a state route to its end, where one turn is made. Yeah, well, I still messed it up. I thought I was being smart and took an assumed short cut. It might have been a good choice, had I not made a wrong turn.
State Park
Having mistakenly followed MD Route 5 to the park gates, I asked the park ranger if I could just turn around. I wasn’t prepared to pay the cash fee nor did I want to since I wasn’t sticking around. He was nice enough to let me and said I could drive to the end of the park road to circle around if I wanted. Of course, I’m not one to miss a great photo opportunity, so I took him up on the offer.
Chesapeake Bay shore
Point Lookout Lighthouse
The park was beautiful. The road, which ran along the Bay, was lined with fisherman. At the end sits the Point Lookout Lighthouse, which is currently a museum open for tours. Built in 1830, it marked the mouth of the Potomac River on the Chesapeake Bay.
Memorial Park
The Confederate Memorial Park sits right outside of the State Park, where the original POW camp was located. The park was established by the Decedents of Point Lookout POW Organization to honor the Confederate military members and civilians imprisoned at the Civil War camp.
Confederate Memorial Park
Point Lookout Confederate Prisoners-of-War Memorial
The focal point of the park is a large Confederate POW Memorial. It’s lined with the various Confederate state flags, with a POW statue in the middle.
Civil War Cemetery
Point Lookout Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument
Maryland State Confederate POW Memorial
Not far from the park sits the Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery, which is maintained by the Department of Veteran Affairs. The POW camp, formerly a Union Civil War hospital on Point Lookout, housed over 50,000 prisoners during its operation. More than 4,000 died while there and were buried in nearby plots.
The state of Maryland exhumed the unidentifiable remains from their original burial spots and reinterred them further inland in a newly established cemetery. The state also erected a marble monument in 1876 to those Confederate buried in the large common grave. In 1910, the Federal Government assumed responsibility for the cemetery and erected the large granite monument to the Rebel soldiers and sailors lost at the POW camp, listing the known individuals.
All in all, I’d say this little gem of a location was a good find. I’d like to revisit the park at some point. Maybe tour the lighthouse, relax near the water or enjoy the open space.
Historic St. Mary’s
Eventually, I did make it to Saint Mary’s city, an outdoor living history museum dedicated to the first capital of the fourth permanent English settlement in America.
Woodland Indian Hamlet
Indian Hut
The site’s Indian Village was a very happening place. Apparently today is “Woodland Indian Discovery Day,” and there were tons of family activities going on in the area. That being said, I stayed as far away as possible, but it also meant the rest of the park was relatively vacant, which was nice.
St. Mary’s City
Chapel
Old State Hall
Ordinary
Framed Town Buildings
There are several reconstructed buildings within the state run museum, including the newly finished brick chapel. The volunteer stationed at the chapel said it was to be officially opened this up-coming week. Apparently, the original was locked by the town sheriff under orders from the English monarchy, and will be unlocked by the current town sheriff. The building is considered an important one in the museum, as the state was founded on principles of religious tolerance.
The 17th-Century State House was also rebuilt. It housed the state government until 1695, when the capital was moved to Annapolis. Various other common period buildings are on exhibit as well, including an Ordinary, which is basically a small bed-and-breakfast.
The rest of the museum structures are framed buildings, which mark actual buildings found during the archeological exploration of the site. The original foundations and such are considerably well preserved because the land has been left relatively undisturbed since the city was abandoned.
Colonial Ship
Maryland Dove
A replica of the Dove, one of the two ships that brought the state’s original settlers over, is docked on the bay.
Godiah Spray Tobacco Plantation
Spray House
Gohiah Spray, my guide
House Gardens
Small Sunflowers
The tobacco plantation was an interesting exhibit. ‘Gohiah Spray,’ himself showed me around the property. His seven-year–old son’s tobacco barn. The wild pigs on his property, destined to be dinner for his daughter’s up-coming wedding. His wife’s house gardens. His two story home, which shows his wealth. The sunflowers he picked for his wife. We covered quite a bit.
Today’s Flickr set: exhibit photos
Day 3: The end of a war and beginning of a nation
Yorktown Victory Center
and
Yorktown Battlefield
Yorktown, VA
Appropriately, the final leg of our trip through Colonial America was essentially where it ended, Yorktown. The small port town along the York River hosted the final major battle of the American Revolution, effectively ending the war and giving the United States its independence. Similar to Jamestown, there are two spots to visit around the Yorktown Battlefield. There’s a privately-maintained museum and the actual battlefield, maintained by the National Park Service.
Yorktown Victory Center
Museum
“Road to Revolution” Timeline
Galleries
The path to the main galleries was lined with panels listing the major events and several noteworthy quotes from the period leading up to the Revolutionary War creating a timeline.
The galleries were very well done. The exhibits were excellent. They were very visually pleasing, there’s just a LOT of information there. It’s almost overwhelming. We skimmed through a most of it, but had to skip parts to save time. Unfortunately, we had to be the rain coming in and still had an eight hour drive ahead.
Continental Army Encampment
Officer’s Tent
A tool to drill into a skull (how appropriate)
Musket Firing Demonstration
In the camp, we stopped by almost every station to ask a few question. On one end, we had an opportunity to learn and play a few games the Continental Army soldiers would have passed the time with. At Camp Surgeon’s tent we had a hands-on lesson regarding the time-period’s medical instruments, with a brief explanation of their treatment philosophies. Finally, at the weapons corner, we were treated to a private musket firing demonstration.
Cannon Firing Demonstration
Before leaving, we returned to the camp for an artillery firing demonstration. It was pretty cool, but the lead up was rather lengthy. Unlike most artillery demonstration I’ve seen, they really focused on involving the younger crowd, unfortunately, it bored me.
1780’s Farm
Farm Kitchen
At first the farm seemed like a random addition to a Revolutionary War museum, but I eventually figured it out and it made complete sense. Considering Yorktown ended the war (and the museum is focused on that particular battle), the exhibit gives a glimpse of life in the newly-independent America. Duh…
This morning’s Flickr set: exhibit pics
*photography was not permitted inside the galleries
Colonial National Historical Park – Yorktown Battlefield
The battlefield was the site of two sieges over a course of 100 years, planning a role in two of the most significant wars to take place in this country. The first, and more notable, ended the American Revolution, while the second occurred near the beginning of the Civil War.
American Revolution
In September 1781, the American army under George Washington and French forces under Comte de Rochambeau marched from New York to join the Americans under Marquis de Lafayette holding the British Army at Yorktown. The three armies took position surrounding the trapped Brits under Lord Cornwallis, as the French Fleet, under Comte de Grasse, formed a blockade around the port. After a week of artillery bombardment and infantry attacks during the First Siege of Yorktown, Cornwallis reluctantly surrendered his army.
~British Forces~
British Inner Defense Line
We started in enemy territory, where the visitor center is, and walked along the British inner defense trench line. As the three Allied armies converged on Yorktown, Cornwallis pulled his forces back to this line, where they remained through the siege.
~Allied Forces~
Artillery at the French Trench Overlook
French Grand Battery
An American Battery along the Second Allied Siege Line
The French Grand Battery was the largest gun placement on the first Allied siege line when it opened fire on the Brits. Within a few days after commencing their bombardment, the allied forces pushed forward and constructed a second siege line.
Civil War
During MG George B. McClellan’s 1862 Peninsula Campaign, Confederate forces reconstructed and occupied some of the former British breastworks to defend the town. The Second Siege of Yorktown took place in April between McClellan’s Army of the Potomac and Gen. Joseph E. Johnson’s Army of Northern Virginia. The month-long siege accomplished very little other than delaying McClellan’s advance north, as the Confederates quietly withdrew toward Richmond before any major action took place.
Yorktown National Cemetery
I saw very little within the field itself regarding the Civil War battle, however, a National Cemetery did sit proudly in the midst of the Revolutionary trenches and markers. Over 2,000 soldiers, including 10 Confederates, were interred, with most being unknown.
Unfortunately, our visit was cut short by a storm. It started pouring while we were exploring the second Allied siege line, so we left. It was kind of disappointing, but really, overall we were pretty lucky this weekend. The weather held up long enough for us to fit in 4 1/4 of the five sites. Not bad. I’ll just have to make another trip down to finish the battlefield tour. Again, not bad.
This afternoon’s Flickr set: battlefield pics
A gloomy afternoon at Antietam
Sharpsburg, MD
I finished up on campus early and just needed to get out. I didn’t really have a destination, but I knew I didn’t want to go home yet, so I just drove. I’ve been a bit antsy for some reason lately and wasn’t ready to barricade myself in my room so soon in the day. I tend to isolate myself when I’m feeling this stressed… that and I have work that I need to do. Well, my little driving expedition landed me in Western Maryland. Since I was in the area (and had my camera) I stopped by Antietam National Battlefield, or more specifically the cemetery.
Cemetery
Antietam National Cemetery
Unknown Civil War Graves
The Antietam National Cemetery was created to hold the remains of those lost during the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest single-day battle of the war, and various other engagements in the area, such as the Battles of South Mountain and Monocacy. Additionally, soldiers who died at area Union hospitals stretching from Cumberland to Frederick were interred into the cemetery, which was dedicated on September 17, 1867, the battle’s fifth anniversary.
Memorials
“Old Simon”
4th New York Infantry Monument
The cemetery’s centerpiece is the large over 21-foot marble infantryman standing at parade rest looking ‘home’ (North). The Private Soldier Monument, also known as “Old Simon,” stood guard at the 1876 Centennial Exposition gateway in Philadelphia before it travelled to the cemetery, where it was dedicated on September 17, 1880. The monument bares the simple yet poignant inscription:
But for their country
September 17, 1862
A few regimental monuments are also scattered throughout the cemetery, including the 4th New York Monument. As part of the BG Max Weber’s Third Brigade, French’s Division, MG Edwin Sumner’s Second Corps, the regiment was one of the first to assault MG D.H. Hill’s Confederate infantry entrenched in Bloody Lane. The monument lists the unit’s 35 members killed or mortally wounded in the action.
Civil War Soldiers
>F.G. Reed
Cpl. James McConnell
Pvt. Charles H. McClellan
Unknown Soldier
Four-thousand, seven hundred and seventy-six Union soldiers, with 1,836 unknown, are buried within the cemetery gates. Due to the lingering bitterness immediately following the war and the poor economic status of the South, only Union soldiers were re-interred from the battlefield.
James McConnell, a non-commissioned officer in the 4th West Virginia Infantry Regiment, Company G, died in August 1864 at the Clarysville General Hospital in Frostburg, MD. The facility was a former tavern turned Union hospital. Charles McClellan, a 7th Michigan Infantryman from Company G, died in the area on October 10, 1862. Very little was listed for the Maryland Civil War soldier F.G. Reed in the cemetery register. Many of the unknown graves are marked with small square headstones inscribed with the gravesite number, as well as the number of soldiers interred in the grave.
Post-Civil War Graves
PFC Reno E. Wyan, US Army
FN Patrick H. Roy, USN
Around 200 post-Civil War military personnel and spouses from the Spanish-American War, World War I and II and the Korean War were buried in the cemetery before it was closed in 1853. For example, Reno Emery Wyan, a local WWI infantryman, was killed in action in 1918 fighting with the 328th Regiment, 82nd Division.
In October 2000, the cemetery made an exception to allow the burial of Patrick Howard Roy. The 19-year-old local Keedysville resident was killed in the suicide bombing of the USS Cole in Aden Harbor, Yemen, while stationed in the destroyer’s engine room.
Today’s Flickr set: cemetery pictures
DC to Arlington, again.
So, today’s trip was just my normal stroll through the Nation’s Capital, ending in the country’s most hallow ground, Arlington National Cemetery. It’s becoming a rather standard trip for me, from the Navy Memorial to Arlington Metro stations. I’m not complaining. It’s a wonderful route. The memorials and cemetery are still moving, and I assume will always be. That’s why I continue to go. Anyway, on to the good stuff… my pictures.
District of Columbia
Parks
Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
Constitution Gardens
I quickly bypassed the east end of the National Mall and made my way down towards the Lincoln Memorial. I had briefly passed through the Constitutional Gardens during a previous walk, but today, I spent a little more time there. Really, it’s was a great time to hang out in that small section of the city. The leaves were gorgeous. The park surrounds a relatively hidden lake to the north of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. It’s a nice little spot. I’d add it to my list of places to spread out a blanket, pack a lunch and spend an afternoon lying around.
War Memorials
World War II Memorial & Washington Monument
Vietnam Women/Nurses’ Memorial, with “The Wall” in the background
Navy Medical Corpsman, part of the Korean War Memorial’s Platoon of Statues
The memorials were especially beautiful today. The trees around the Korean and Vietnam Veteran War Memorials were absolutely gorgeous. The trees around the Vietnam Memorial were a nice light yellow and those behind the Korean War Memorial were a bright orange. It’s as if the soldier statues are marching out of a fire.
This morning’s Flickr set: DC photos
Arlington
So, across the Arlington Memorial Bridge, over the Potomac River, I went…
US Marine Corps War Memorial
Harlon Block, killed in action, & Rene Gagnon, part of the Iwo Jima Statue
My goal in Arlington was actually to visit the US Marine Corps War Memorial, so I bee-lined it to the statue. I’ve learned if I put that little destination near the tail end of my route, it will ultimately get skipped. After spending hours walking up and down the cemetery’s hills, marching over to the Marine Corps Memorial seems like a near impossible task. So, to combat my lack of super endurance, I made it my first point of interest today in Virginia and the plan worked.
The memorial’s statue is a recreation of news-photographer Joe Rosenthal’s 1945 Pulitzer Prize-winning picture, “Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima.” The photograph, and ultimately the statue, depicts the five Marines and a Navy Med Corpsman raise a flag atop Mount Suribach during the Battle of Iwo Jima. Clay face molds were made for the three surviving ‘flag-raisers’ and pictures were used for the other three in the process of sculpting the individual statues.
Arlington National Cemetery
After visiting the memorial, I wandered around the cemetery until I felt I could no longer walk.
~Individuals~
Cpl Rene A. Gagnon, USMC
Pierre Charles L’Enfant, with a view of Washington, DC
SgtMaj Frank A. Young, USMC
As with all my walks through the cemetery, I found a number of interesting people. I might have said this before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again, but it’s certainly humbling to spend time within the confines of Arlington. If you pay close enough attention, you can find some amazing stories and/or people connected some of the countries most memorable moments. These are the people that were there.
Rene Gagnon , one of the Iwo Jima flag-raisers, rests just inside the north gate near the USMC Memorial. I assume that isn’t a coincidence. He carried the second flag up Mount Suribach in February 1945 and helped raise the replacement flag, a feat immortalized by Rosenthal’s photo. As one of three surviving flag-raisers, he returned to the US for the Seventh War Bond Drive, an experience told in James Bradley’s book and Clint Eastwood’s 2008 movie Flags of Our Fathers.
Peirre L’Enfant, a French-born Continental Army officer, served as a military engineer under Lafayette and later on George Washington’s staff. He was wounded during the Siege of Yorktown and remained with the Army at Valley Forge. After the war, Washington assigned him the task of designing the Nation’s capital, but was dismissed after drafting a plan, which was used by the McMillian Commission as a foundation for its final blueprint. He now rests near the Arlington House, with a gorgeous view of the city he helped design.
Frank Young, was a US Marine during the Chinese Relief Expedition, or Boxer Rebellion. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for actions during the Siege of Peking between June 20 to July 16, 1900.
~Tomb of the Unknown Soldier~
Tomb & Old Guard Sentinel
Exchange of Orders during the Changing of the Guard Ceremony
My last stop in the cemetery, as usual, was at the Tomb of the Unknown. I watched the Changing of the Guard Ceremony, then headed out. The Old Guard Sentinels were all decked out in their winter gear. Honestly, I think I took some of my better shots of ‘event’ today. I’m somewhat impressed.
This afternoon’s Flickr set: cemetery pics
Visiting Hallowed Grounds
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington, VA
and
Fort Marcy
GW Parkway, VA
I woke up inspired this morning, with new insights into a current project swirling through my brain. Love when that happens. Not wanting to waste such a moment of clarity, I started the day with school work, however, by mid-day I was ready to ditch campus and get outside for the afternoon.
Arlington
Cemetery
Section 67
Section 35
Memorial Section I
The cemetery grounds are absolutely gorgeous, especially on a beautiful early fall day. Green grass, blue sky, bright white headstones… picture perfect.
Memorials
I found several of the various memorials scattered throughout the cemetery.
Coast Guard Memorial
USS Maine Memorial
Civil War Unknowns Tomb
The United States Coast Guard Memorial is dedicated to the Coast Guardsmen who lost their lives during World War I, particularly the crewmembers killed aboard the USCG cutters Seneca and Tampa. It’s inscribed with the names of those lost. The Seneca lost eleven crew members in September 1918 aboard the torpedo-damaged British steamer Wellington. The men went down with the stricken allied vessel while maneuvering it to the closest port. Ten days later the Tampa was sunk by a German U-boat torpedo while crossing the Bristol Channel, killing all 131 crewmembers on-board.
The USS Maine (ACI-1) Memorial is inscribed the names of the 266 crewmembers lost when the battleship sank in Havana Harbor in February 1989. The memorial consists of the mast of the battleship, as well as an anchor similar to the one aboard. It sits near a section of the 208, most unknown, crew sailors and Marines that were returned to the US. The sinking of the Maine, believed to have been due to a Spanish mine, propelled the US into the Spanish-American War.
The Civil War Unknowns Monument marks a vault in the Arlington House rose garden containing the remains of more than 2,111 unknown Civil War soldiers gathered from the Manassas battlefields and surrounding area. Union Quartermaster MG Montgomery Meigs chose the location to deter Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee and his wife from returning to their pre-war home.
Individuals
As usual, I also made my way around various sections visiting individual graves. There are certainly some interesting stories within the cemetery walls. This trip I found quite a few Congressional Medal of Honor Recipients and five-star Generals, among other interesting military figures.
GA John Joseph “Black Jack” Pershing, USA
MM1 Robert Raymond Scott, USN
CAPT Charles Frank Burlingame, III, USNR
During the ‘Great War,’ President Woodrow Wilson appointed John Pershing as the commander of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF). In recognition of his service, he was later promoted to General of the Armies of the United States, a rank created for him, in 1919. Additionally, he served as the Chief of Staff of the Army and was awarded the 1932 Pulitzer Prize in History for his WWI memoir, My Experiences in the World War. His two grandsons, Richard and John, are buried next to him. Richard, an Army lieutenant, was killed in action during the Vietnam War.
Robert Scott was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions aboard the USS California during the December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor attacks. After battlefield was struck by a torpedo, the mechanic refused to leave his station in a flooding air compressor compartment and continued to operate the air compressor until he died. In doing so, he continued to supply air to numerous trapped sailors within the ship and to those manning its guns.
Charles Burlingame was a Naval Academy grad and Navy aviator during the Vietnam War. As a long-time Naval Reservist, he volunteered for active duty during the Persian Gulf War. He piloted American Airlines Flight 77 on September 11, 2001, which was hijacked and struck the west façade of the Pentagon.
In addition, I found the Sullivan brothers (5 siblings killed aboard the USS Juneau during WWII), Joe Hooper (the most decorated soldier of the Vietnam War), Audie Murphy (the most decorated soldier of WWII), Ira Hayes (one of the Iwo Jima flag-raisers), and Hap Arnold (the only General to hold a 5-star rank in two services – Army & Air Force) and many more.
Fort Marcy
So, on the way home, I made one last stop along the GW Parkway – Fort Marcy. The earthwork fort was built as part of the Civil War Defenses of Washington, DC. It never saw action during the war, but was manned by units through it.
The park area was almost completely empty, although it wasn’t surprising. It sounded more interesting than it was. The mounds that made up the ‘walls’ and batteries are still visible, but extremely overgrown. There’s isn’t much information available for the site. It’s set up as a park, with picnic tables and benches, and is located along the Potomac Heritage Trail.
Today’s Flickr set: Virginia pics
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