Tag Archives: history

Day 10… A little revolution now and then is a good thing. Or so I’ve heard.

February 26, 2020 Rivergirl 26 Comments

We said goodbye to our company early on the morning of vacation day 10, promising to think about joining them for Christmas. The plan was to head down to Yorktown where I’d heard their American Revolution Museum was quite something….. but first, a Golden Corral buffet breakfast.

Biscuits and gravy and cheesy hashbrown casserole.

Long live the artery clogging south!

The museum?

Was everything they said it was…. and a little bit more.

A sprawling place chock full of fascinating history.

(If that’s not your thing? Leave now… I’ll try not to hold it against you.)

2019 was the 400th anniversary of the arrival in America of the first enslaved people from West Africa and the museum devoted an entire section to the subject.

Most of it was hard to read.

To view.

And to understand how seemingly otherwise good people could think this practice was just.

But though horrible, it is a part of this country’s story.

There were many free people of color during the Revolutionary era, and a large number fought alongside the patriots who would later come to own them.

A reprehensible thought.

One of the most stunning documents was this:

Seeing it in black and white gave me a chill.

And the descriptions?

Heartbreaking….

I can’t even imagine.

Even the father of our country wasn’t immune.

I certainly never read that in any school textbook.

Liberty… yes.

But not for all.

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Museum oddities, death, Pocahantas, a scenic drive and some vultures.

February 17, 2020 Rivergirl 23 Comments

I could bore you to tears with all we saw that day, but let this suffice..

A portrait of an evil cherub who looks like she’s ready to stab Fido with an already bloody knife.

But no.

It’s just a 17th century pacifier. “Your mouth is sore sweetie? Here… suck on this metal and coral pointy thing.”

No wonder she looks pissed off.

“Inveterate dysenterical fluxes”.

Doesn’t that sound like fun?

The museum was filled with artifacts unearthed from the original site.

And things thrown down the communal well.

Naturally, the husband was appalled at the waste of all those perfectly good rusty tools.

The takeaway from most of the history we read?

We might romanticize the idea of the first settlers… opportunity, adventure, a brave new world etc., but in reality? It was starvation, illness and death.

And Pocahantas…. of whom much is written and little is really known.

The only actual image drawn during her lifetime is this English portrait:

A much later Anglicized version of her true self.

Child trading. A fact of which I was heretofore unaware.

So there you have it, historic Jamestown.

Where a t shirt we saw in the gift shop said it all…..

Leaving Jamestown, we got back on the Colonial Parkway…..

And saw some deer.

Some swamps.

And a whole bunch of these strange mounds.

Too small and numerous for beaver.

Any southerners care to weigh in on what constructs them?

The Parkway slides along the James River….

And was a lovely, peaceful, traffic free drive.

Except for the black vultures.

Which are neither lovely nor peaceful….

And often cause their own traffic jams when they discover a fresh kill.

And no, I didn’t include a photo of the canine corpse.

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Historic Jamestown Museum.

February 16, 2020 Rivergirl 21 Comments

Through with our outdoor touring of the site….

We found the museum.

An odd looking building we were assured was totally green.

Although it looked pretty brown to me.

climate change

Although I called it a museum?

They call it an Archaearium.

Technically that means an archeological excavation covered by a glass building.

Which it was.

Because the remains of the first government building was literally under your feet.

The exhibits were well done and history rich.

And it shouldn’t surprise you that we spent a good couple of hours here.

They’ve apparently taken a good deal of flack over the display of actual remains.

But to be honest, it was fascinating.

Granted if JR was my 10th great grandfather I might feel differently….

I mean, it doesn’t look like he died peacefully.

But then again, this poor fellow had to be in dire need of some Excedrin as well.

Early surgical instruments?

Or the Marquis De Sade’s toy chest?

Tough call.

I’m guessing this poor soul didn’t get any Novocain either.

Of course back in the day…. this pointy little piece of metal?

Yeah.

Not your average Q Tip.

Way.

And if you remember my post from yesterday about the hardships the settlers endured?

This 14 year old girl was eaten.

It doesn’t get much harder than that.

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Day 7…. Historic Jamestown

February 15, 2020 Rivergirl 11 Comments

Part 2 of the historic triangle in the Williamsburg ,Virginia area is Jamestown. What I didn’t know before arriving was that there are 2 distinct ways to experience it…. the National Park site and the more touristy recreation.

We opted for the National site first, by way of the Colonial Parkway.

The Parkway is a beautiful 23 mile road that runs along the James River from Williamsburg to Yorktown.

We jumped off at Jamestown and drove the 5 mile Island Loop, a self guided tour that explores the natural environment and history of the area.

Then it was on to the visitors center.

I won’t bore you ~~more than I already do~~ with the story. You can read about it here. Suffice it to say Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement, the birthplace of Virginia… and basically, America.

There was a wonderful theater…

With multiple screens… where we brushed up on our high school history.

Outside there was a long boardwalk…

That led to a monument…

Which I’m sure the husband was glad he didn’t have to climb.

It was there we waited for our Park Ranger tour guide.

Who led us to the original settlers’ site.

That’s Pocahantas to the right… and yes, there was a Mockingbird on her head. A real one who proceeded to poop on her nose.

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The only thing left from the original settlers’ buildings was one crumbling wall of a church.

But archeologists have been actively digging here for years….

Removing thousands of artifacts from the fort….

And various other buildings.

Here, the husband checks out a model recreation of the site.

The soldiers barracks.

Where the Queen visited a decade ago.

And the required selfie by the water.

There was an outline of a church with markers for the identified graves.

And a graveyard for unidentified remains.

It was a lovely spot.

But the history of the hardships the colonists suffered sure made you appreciate the wealth of opportunities and conveniences we have now.

Famine, civil unrest, severe weather, murder, Indian attacks…. even cannabilism. They experienced it all.

cannibal

Second required selfie by the water to lighten the mood.

It was a fascinating tour…

And we learned a lot.

But it was lunchtime…. and the husband’s stomach was growling.

Not wanting to waste time and drive back to town, we were glad to find a small cafe on site.

You couldn’t beat the view.

Chicken salad spinach wrap with potato salad for me…

Tomato bisque and a Sloppy Joe with potato salad for the husband.

Thus fortified, we headed for the museum.

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When in Manteo…..

February 14, 2020 Rivergirl 33 Comments

Granted, it’s not Rome.

But Manteo, North Carolina has an interesting history all it’s own.

Manteo is located on Roanoke Island, site of the famous Lost Colony.

A very brief history is here.

Living in North Carolina you encounter cities, towns, streets, schools, sports teams, forests, streams, hospitals etc. etc. with the names Raleigh, Virginia Dare and Croatan. Do we know for certain what happened to those early colonists?

No, we do not.

But after visiting this National Park, reading the history and having one extremely long conversation with a Park Ranger…. I wondered why it was a mystery at all.

We stood at the exact site of that early fort.

Granted, there wasn’t much to see.

A few humpa humpas and a sign.

There was also a squirrel with a very large nut, but I’m guessing he wasn’t an original 16th century squirrel.

Walking around the park we did find a theater where they hold seasonal plays.

Weird diving board not withstanding…

It didn’t hold our attention for long…..

Even with the interesting tree branches….

And lovely old live oaks.

Back at the visitor center I learned the whole story and basically, it goes like this.

The first English settlers arrived in 1585. They were a military group sent by Sir Walter Raleigh to colonize the New World. They built a fort, the effort failed, they returned to England.

The second group of settlers landed in 1587. This consisted of approx 120 men, women and children. They figured they would fish for food…. but none of them were fishermen. Great plan!They met friendly Indians who totally supported and fed them for 2 years until a drought in the 3rd year left the Indians barely enough to feed themselves. The English were ticked off that the gravy train had run out, so they slaughtered the chief and stole his food. Thus ending the friendly relationship with the native population.

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Disease, famine, and a harsh winter all took their toll. When Governor John White sailed back to England for supplies, he had no idea a war with Spain was about to start…. and didn’t make it back for 3 years. When he returned, the colony was deserted. The only clue? The word Cro scratched into a tree and Croatan scratched into a post.

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Did the Indians kill all the colonists? Maybe… but I doubt it.

The Croatan were a local tribe with a history of assimilating other peoples into their society. Later English settlers spoke of meeting blue eyed Indians.

Where’s the mystery? Sick and starving, the remaining colonists set out to find the friendly Indians and scratched Croatan as a message to those who followed.

Blue eyed natives?

What do you think they were doing for those 3 years.

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See? There are memes about it…

It must be true.

Anyway…. the visitor center had some interesting items.

And I adore old maps. This way there be monsters….

Liz was there.

As was Walt….

But how about that ceiling?

Made my neck hurt just thinking about painting it.

And the walls?

Were not just any old walls.

Yes, I’m really blogging about walls.

Just go with it.

A pineapple…

And a flying fish (painted by none other than Governor John White, the only unlost member of the Lost Colony) later…..

We left Roanoke.

Drove back through the Outer Banks…

Just in time for me to try and snap some sunset pics at 85mph.

That didn’t work well.

But the sun was perfectly poised on the horizon…

As we went over the bridge…

And headed back to the mainland.

Two hours into the 3 hour trip back we stopped at Cracker Barrel for a quick dinner. You’ve all been there, no pictures required.

But country fried turkey? Definitely reminded me we were in the south.

They’ll fry anything!

Last photo of the day is that weirdo building in Virginia I asked about previously.

Although this time it was quite colorful as we went by.

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Mariners’ Museum 5…. toys, a submarine, weapons, an Enigma and a 3D coral reef.

February 8, 2020 Rivergirl 25 Comments

I realize this is the 5th post of our trip to the museum, but fear not…. it will also be the last.

Oh, stop being so dramatic and admit you learned something. Even if it was just how to use seashell toilet paper.

We’d spent all day roaming these halls and closing time was approaching before we were even a quarter of the way through.

So we literally trotted from exhibit to exhibit.

Vintage naval toys?

Check!

The hull of the Oracle that won the 33rd America’s Cup in 2010?

A ginormous check!

Submarine cutout?

Got it.

WWII memorabilia?

Yup. Tons…

They even had an Enigma!

How cool is that?

If you haven’t seen The Imitation Game about the life of Alan Turing, the man who broke the unbreakable code and then tragically took his own life… with an apple?

You should.

Teddy Roosevelt was there…

As was this precious little sword wielding cherub.

Because yeah…. what could go wrong with that?

There was too much to see…

And too little time.

Look… interesting, not to mention decorative, ways to kill people!

And I didn’t have a chance to read all the details.

And that.

What was that?

I don’t know!

Because the husband was bound and determined to watch the 3D movie about the coral reef before they closed. So we ran to the theater, put on our plastic glasses and found a good spot to watch and take pictures.

Until this woman moved seats and put her head in front of my lens.

Rude. Very rude.

The Great Barrier coral reef?

Beautiful.

The Great Barrier coral reef in 3D after I moved away from the back of that woman’s head?

Stunning.

It looked like all these little things were reaching out for you….

And I swear the husband jumped a foot when he thought this fellow was right beside him.

Beautiful. No two ways about it.

So that was it.

We spent 8 full hours in the museum that day….

And were too tired to go out to eat.

Oh, stop screaming.

We got Chinese take out and went back to the condo.

The absolute worst Chinese takeout I think I’ve ever had… but there.

Still a food picture.

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Mariners’ Museum 3…. some sweetness and a little toilet humor.

February 6, 2020 Rivergirl 28 Comments

Yes, we’re still at the museum. But this post should make everyone smile.

Done with the Civil War Ironclad section….

Oh, stop. You learned something… and that’s never a bad thing.

We saw a large board filled with children’s drawings.

Every child that visits is encouraged to add one and some of them were wonderful.

We saw it too, and yes…. it was.

This one melted my heart for obvious reasons.

And this one made me laugh. They love the water, but have a ship marked with a big red X so the circling sharks can find them.

Nicely done little Peter Benchley.

And then, because I teased it on yesterday’s post…. some toilet humor.

Since we’d spent half the day exploring the museum, I had need of the ladies room where I found this on the inside of my stall door.

How great is this?

Not the latrine duty, that had to suck… but reading historic toilet facts while you’re on the toilet? Pretty great.

You don’t often find that kind of symmetry in life.

It must be celebrated when you do.

So you know I had to go stall to stall and photograph them all.

(Apologies to the woman in the last stall. I wasn’t stalking you… really. I just needed a picture.)

Ouch indeed.

Now that’s historical trivia at it’s best. Impress your friends the next time you play Jeopardy.

You’re welcome.

There you have it.

Proof positive museums can be fun.

Or at the very least, museum restrooms can.

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Mariners’ Museum 2… the movies, the Monitor and the turret.

February 5, 2020 Rivergirl 18 Comments

So class, yesterday we learned about the CSS Virginia and how most people call her by the incorrect name of…..?

The Merrimack.

Sure you do… you just haven’t realized it yet.

It’s okay. I’ll wait.

Today, we’re going to the movies.

In a surround sound theater that promised an ‘edge of your seat exciting’ depiction of the Ironclad battle.

“You’ll feel like you’re right there!” exclaimed the docent.

Yeah.

About that…

It was a cartoon.

An informative cartoon, I grant you…

But a cartoon all the same. And even with the rolling smoke that issued from the walls and floor…. I didn’t feel any more there than I did watching Bugs Bunny as a child.

Oh well, there were better things ahead.

Like the USS Monitor… famous for her spinning gun turret.

Is it me, or does that thing look like a drunken owl?

She was built in 100 days, which was an amazing accomplishment for the time.

And the museum faithfully recreated what the officer’s quarters looked like upon completion.

Not too shabby.

If a wee bit small.

There were lots of interesting artifacts to examine.

As well as photos of the men who served aboard her.

Of course, being me…. you know I had to find some reference to alcoholic refreshment.

And then, in the next section of the museum….

A replica of the recovered Monitor’s turret.

The original is currently on site and being slowly and painstakingly preserved. Read about it’s discovery and journey to Newport News here.

This was basically what it looked like on the ocean floor.

All that rusty metal! You know my other half was thrilled….

But one of the most impressive aspects of this museum’s exhibit?

A life size USS Monitor right outside.

Of course it was raining and they advised you not to walk on her slippery deck….

So that’s exactly what we did.

Stand on the bow of an Ironclad?

Uh… yes. I will!

Husband even rung the turret’s bell for good measure.

Cool beans!

And if that wasn’t awesome enough? Back inside and down a flight stairs….

Took you inside the turret.

And literally inside the ship itself.

Admittedly the engines and engineering diagrams were above my pay grade.

But the display really gave you a feel for the ship.

And my inner history nerd was sighing with satisfaction.

We did climb up to the observation landing to peer into the lab where the original pieces of the ship are being restored, but it was just giant vats of seawater with electrical current running through them.

Not very photo worthy, so I’ll spare you the shots.

Fear not.

The second half of the museum starts tomorrow…. and it will be a little more fun.

Here’s a little preview.

See?

Fun.

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Day 4…. the Mariners’ Museum

February 4, 2020 Rivergirl 17 Comments

If you’re not a fan of museums, or history, or naval war battles and the Civil War Ironclads?

Please feel free to skip the next dozen posts because that’s probably how long it’s going to take me to document this amazing place in Newport News, Virginia.

It was an overcast day that was threatening rain so I thought this would be a good choice. I had no idea what to expect and was ready to pay a large ticket price… so imagine my surprise when I saw this.

My first reaction was… man, this place must bite.

But oh, was I wrong.

Upon arrival this magnificent eagle greets you.

It’s a remarkable carving and was lovingly restored from it’s original perch on the bow of this ship.

Look closely, it’s there. And gives you some perspective of how large those ships really were.

Next up was a light.

But not just any light.

And if these were the items in the lobby?

I knew we were going to have a great day.

There are 2 distinct areas of the museum to visit, but being a Civil War buff? I had to choose this first.

The Ironclads.

If you know nothing about them? Hang on.

You will by the time I’m through with you.

Great.

Let’s continue….

Turning the corner, we entered this bizarrely blue movie theater that told the story of the Monitor’s sinking.

Turn another corner…. and there she was.

Right under your feet.

And by watching the films, you come to realize how truly dedicated these people are to preserving history.

I found it quite moving.

Around the next corner…

Some interesting artifacts and a glimpse into our Naval past.

I tend to read faster than the husband and am always a few exhibits ahead.

Interestingly enough most people think of the Battle of the Ironclads as the Monitor vs the Merrimack, but technically that’s incorrect.

This was the Merrimack.

She was originally a Union ship that was captured by the Confederates when Gosport fell.

She was damaged, but thanks to this man…

Would be overhauled, covered in iron plate and turned into the CSS Virginia.

The Confederate’s Ironclad.

This is the museum’s recreation of her outfitting.

And what she looked like upon completion.

The Merrimack no longer.

There, you’ve learned something.

Now that wasn’t so bad… eh?

No! Not boring.

It’s history!

And how many of your friends can say they’ve seen inside a Civil War Ironclad?

None, I tell you!

None.

But now you have…

And are sure to be the envy of all your neighbors at the next block party.

thank-me-later-5cc2e0

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Colonial Williamsburg…. the Apothecary Shop, the Capitol and the Gaol.

February 1, 2020 Rivergirl 16 Comments

Still strolling Duke of Gloucester Street, we found the apothecary shop and it’s mistress in the middle of recounting some 18th century cures.

Trust me when I say you should be glad you weren’t sick in the 18th century.

Many towns and villages didn’t have doctors and these pseudo pharmacists were as close to modern medicine as many people could get.

There were some interesting drawings….

And a back room were the cures were administered. Though why that fellow in the corner needs a hat, I’m sure I don’t know…

Next up was the reconstructed Capitol building.

The birthplace of American government if you will.

The flag flying at the entrance meant it was open for tours…

So we settled in to wait for the guide.

With the husband admiring the rather odd gutterless drainage system.

Which was really more of a moat.

If you’re interested, the history of the Capitol is here. I’ll spare you the retelling and just post a few interior shots.

Local representatives met here, first to report to the crown….and then to form a new government.

The speaker had a throne… make of that what you will.

Here are the rooms our founding fathers formed the basis of the country we know today.

One can only imagine how they’d react to our current state of affairs.

I’d say that’s pretty close.

There was also a court where grievances and victims of crimes were given justice.

To me, the nicest part of the tour was when our guide proudly told us that he had helped officiate over the swearing in of 250 new American citizens on that day…. a 300 year old tradition lovingly continued on site.