Tag: history Page 7 of 8
Minute Man National Historic Park, located just outside of Boston, is home to many sites of significance of the first battle in the battle for American Independence. There are many sites of important historical significance located inside the park. The Battle Road Trail is a 5 mile trail that connects many of the sites within the park and would be a fun way to explore the park. Since this was our third stop of the day, we didn’t have much time to explore the park before it closed, so we drove between sites to maximize time.
The Old North Bridge, one of the sites in the park, is where the “shot hear round the world” was fired. The Minute Man statue (left) is located near the bridge and interestingly is made from seven cannons that were used in the American Civil War (wiki). A monument at the site of Paul Revere’s Capture can be seen along the Battle Road Trail. Hartwell Tavern is another stop on the trail where costumed re-enactors talk about the home turned tavern and life in Massachusetts in the late 18th century.
Pictured above is the Wayside, which is a home that has housed many famous American authors. Louisa May Alcott lived in the home as a child and it is said that her time at the Wayside inspired many scenes from Little Women. The Alcotts sold the home to Nathaniel Hawthorne (author of the Scarlet Letter and The House of Seven Gables among others) who named it The Wayside because it was so close to the road, he worried it would be mistaken for a coach stop. After Hawthorne’s death, the home was purchased by his son-in-law and author, George Parsons Lanthrop. Four years after that, Boston publisher Daniel Lothrop purchased the home with his wife, Harriet who wrote children’s books under the pen name, Margaret Sidney. In 1963 the home was named a National Landmark and joined Minute Man National park two years later (wiki).
The park is full of history and I recommend you take a trip to visit if you are in the Boston area. For more information, visit the National Park Service. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! You can purchase prints on Etsy and Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.
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The first stop on our recent East Coast Road Trip was at the Onieda Community Mansion Museum. This is an interesting place with a unique history. We had first heard about the Onieda Mansion on an episode of Planet Money. You know the Onieda silverware company, right? Did you know that they started out as a 19the century, perfectionist cult and free love commune? The mansion house (now a museum) was the home of the Onieda Community from 1848-1880. Led by John Humprey Noyes, the community “challenged social views on property ownership, gender roles, child-rearing practices, monogamous marriage, and work.” The community was way ahead of its time in the in the rights of women, in that the women of the community were able to participate in community work and they played an active role in shaping policy of the commune. (wiki and Onieda Community)
The mansion house itself is a beautiful building with unique details. There are many community spaces to explore including a beautiful library. There is also a large meeting space where the 300 members of the community would come together for religious purposes as well as community meetings. It is hard to imagine 300 people living together under one roof. Nowadays, the building houses a museum, gift shop, as well as apartments, and guest rooms. It was a very interesting place, but I will admit it had a kind of creepy vibe to it. The Onieda Community may have failed as a cult/commune/eugenics experiment, but they do make nice silverware.
While in Onieda, we also discovered the Wold’s Smallest Church. The Cross Island Church was built for a wedding so it can house a couple with a minister while the guests watch from boats on the water. I wish we had heard about this place earlier because we may have called ahead for a tour, instead we viewed it from the road. More information about this tiny church can be found at RoadSideAmerica.com.
Thanks for stopping by and reading what has to be one of the strangest posts on this blog! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! You can purchase prints on Etsy and Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.
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This past weekend, we made our first visit to Greenfield Village of the season. At this point, it almost doesn’t feel like spring until I get to soak up the sun in the Village. It was hard to believe that our last visit had been for holiday nights just a few days before Christmas. Now, the grass was green, the trees were beginning to bud, and everyone seemed to be glad to get to be able to get out of the house.
The first thing that caught my attention on this visit was that the train whistle sounded different. When we got closer, the reason for that became clear. It was a Day Out With Thomas and the train had been transformed into Thomas the Tank Engine. I’m sure if I had watched the show this decade I may have recognized that whistle at once, and I’m sure all the kids I saw with their Thomas balloons were very excited to get go on a ride on the famous train. This special event definitely seemed to bring young families to the Village.
We made a stop at the Cotswold Forge and the light coming in the window illuminating the blacksmith tools really caught my eye. It took a few tries to illuminate the shadows enough so as to not have a lot of noise. Being that this structure was built in the 17th century, I thought black and white was appropriate.
If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! You can purchase prints on Etsy and Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.
The Fisher Building, located in Detroit’s New Center district and is known as “Detroit’s largest art object”. Right when I walked in the door, it became obvious how it received that title. This Albert Kahn (the architect who did the Guardian Building and the Belle Isle Aquarium and who is known as
The Architect of Detroit”) designed marvel is full of marble from all over the world, high, painted ceilings, and accented with brass and bronze. It features 1,800 bronze window and 641 bronze elevator doors. The ceilings in the arcade feature frescoes that were hand painted and at the time cost $20,000 (which would be about $265,000 in today’s money)! The exterior of this masterpiece is made up of over 325,000 square feet of marble and is the largest marble structure in the world! Somehow, it took only 15 months to complete and the building opened its doors to Detroit in 1928.
In later decades when Detroiters moved to the suburbs, the Fisher building was able to keep tenants because of its dedicated 1,100 spot parking garage, the first of its kind! Over the years, the building has changed hands several times because it is not cheap to run. In 1970, The Detroit Free Press wrote that the Fisher and the neighboring New Center Building cost $3.1 million a year to operate (Historic Detroit)! The building was most recently purchased along with the nearby Albert Kahn Building (previously known as the New Center Building) in 2015 for $12.2 million (Detroit Free Press). The new owner is reportedly putting $100 million into restoring these gems to their former glory! About the Fisher Building, Developer Peter Cummings said “It is more than just a beautiful building or a landmark; it is a beacon in the heart of Detroit for all of Detroit. It is the beacon of our city, both of its past and its future,” (Crain’s Detroit)
If you are in Detroit, and I advise that everyone should be at some point, definitely make a visit to the Fisher Building. On weekends, the Pure Detroit store in the lobby runs free, historical tours that are definitely worth the time!
Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.
On my last post, I shared about our time in Mackinaw City. We were camping at Wilderness State Park which is about twenty minutes outside the city and our way to town we passed a sign for the McGulpin Point Lighthouse. Being fans of lighthouses, we decided to make a stop. This was one of the best maintained lighthouses I have visited. There was barely a scratch to any of the paint, inside or out. You can see in the photo, it is surrounded by a nice little garden. You can even stay in an apartment on the grounds. Where the Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse (which is at the base of the Mackinac Bridge) is right in the heart of town, McGulpin Point is tucked away (it is near the Headlands Dark Sky Park). Where the Old Mackinac Point is pricey, McGulpin is donation only. Where the Old Mackinac Point is climbed in a group (and not guaranteed with admission, I must point out), McGulpin is at your own pace, with the ability to stay out on the catwalk and take pictures as long as you would like. From the catwalk, get out your telephoto lens for an interesting perspective on the Mackinac Bridge (my photo was a recent Wordless Wednesday). I was absolutely blown away by this lighthouse! If you are in the Mackinaw area definitely make a point to stop in and check it out and make a donation so they can continue to maintain this gem! You will not be disappointed.
Thanks for stopping by! To plan a visit to McGulpin Point, check out McGulpinPoint.org. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. For information about our new Guided Photography Tours, visit GuidedPhoto.com.
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After visiting Bodie Island Lighthouse, we headed to Roanoke Island to learn about the oldest American mystery. Do you remember the story from American History Class? The first English colonists were sent to Roanoke Island in 1585 by Sir Walter Raleigh. Shortly after arriving, Governor John White sailed back to England with the plan of returning later that year with supplies. Shortly, England went to war with Spain, the ships were comandeered by the English convernment and John White was not able to return to Roanoke until 1590. When he arrived the colonists were gone, the fort was dismantled, and the only clue left behind was the word “croatoan” carved in a tree. “Croatoan” was the name of present day Hatteras Island, but due to bad weather, White was unable to venture south and search for the colony. (wiki)
To this day, we do not know what happened to the colonists. We went to a ranger talk on the island where we discussed some of the theories: Did a hurricane wipe out the colony? Were they annihilated by disease? Did they assimilate with the nearby Indians? Did the colonists try to build a boat and return to England? Were they killed by the Indians? Or was it aliens? After returning home, we found this book by a 21st century anthropologist that gives a very compelling theory as to what happened to the first English settlers in the New World. Its too complicated to paraphrase, so I recommend you give it a read if you are at all interested in American history and what really happened at Roanoke.
Of course, when you’re in Roanoke, you have to see The Lost Colony! The drama is performed each summer on the site of the actual events. The drama just ended its 80th season which makes it the longest running outdoor symphonic drama in the U.S. Its the #1 thing to do in The Outer Banks on TripAdvisor and I highly recommend it too! The above photo is the only shot I took on Roanoke and is of the theater that houses The Lost Colony Show.
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