The Martin's Blog

7/18/24 – 12hr drive to Fairmont MN.  We were pulling a 5 x 8 U-Haul trailer with items for Kate’s house in Portland OR.  We were surprised to see a herd of Texas Longhorns as we took an after-dinner stroll from our motel.

7/19 – stopped in Mitchell SD to tour The World’s Only Corn Palace.  The first one was built in Sioux City in 1887, and then each year until 1891 when the city flooded.  In 1892 Mitchel SD built it’s first Corn Palace and the tradition has continued every year.  Each year the “palace” is stripped and redecorated with new corn and grains.

Of course, we had to have some popcorn before we left –

Made it to Rapid City SD in time to attend my first meeting at the Highpointers Club Convention

7/20 – we took advantage of the Convention bus trip to the Gordon Stockade in Custer State Park for the traditional watermelon feast and pizza.

1868 – Fort Laramie Treaty establishing the Great Sioux Reservation

Story of the Gordon Stockade

Black Hills of SD

In the evening, gave a slide presentation at the Annual Club Banquet, reviewed club history and encouraged members to participate in the Buy-A-Brick program to support the HPC Display at Campbell Hill, the highpoint of OH.

7/21 – 2hr drive to Devils Tower NM

We visited here in 1969 when we were moving from Seattle back to the U of MD to continue our graduate work. I then visited with Stacy in 1993. 

2024

1,000ft across at base

How Devils Tower was created –

Again, did the 1.5-mile loop trail around the 867ft monolith.

The top is 180ft x 300ft and was featured in the 1977 movie classic “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” by Steven Spielberg.

I wanted to climb Devils Tower but could never fit it into our schedule.  Climbers and standard routes –

Climbing history and some climbers on route –

A sacred place for Native Americans –

Prairie Dog Town – 1969

Continued West on I-90 until we blew a tire on the U-Haul trailer by Crazy Woman Creek in the “middle of nowhere.”

Fortunately, we had cell phone service and were able to call the U-Haul emergency number.  A new tire was pre-mounted on a rim and brought to us from over 40-miles away.  BUT, that made us late driving through Yellowstone NP.  

West Thumb Geyser Basin and Yellowstone Lake

Crossing the Continental Divide

South Entrance

This was my sixth visit and Helen’s second, but this is my first entry on Yellowstone NP in this Blog.  So, here is an overview of our first National Park (1872). According to Ken Burns, National Parks are “America’s Best Idea.” I have included some pics from each visit.

Yellowstone NP is in the Northwest corner of WY but also includes areas in the bordering states of MT and ID.  It is a large NP and has four major areas: the #1 Geyser Basin, #2 Yellowstone Lake, #3 Mammoth Hot Springs, and #4 Grand Canyon and Falls of the Yellowstone River. 

#1 – the Geyser Basin is roughly a 30- by 45-mile oval that is the result of a collapsed volcano.  Someday I would like to stay at the famous Old Faithful Lodge (1991).

Lunch in Old Faithful Lodge 2007

There are more geysers in this basin than anywhere else in the world.  Geyser Hill 2007

Heat from deep underground magma powers the geysers, hot springs, fumaroles, and mudpots.  

Old Faithful is the world’s best-known geyser with regular eruptions varying between 40 and 126 minutes (1967). 

It is great fun to walk through the geyser fields and see, hear, smell, and feel the activity. Grotto Geyser 2007

1991

Grand Prismatic Spring 1967

Morning Glory Pool 1991

Firehole River 1991

Riverside Geyser 1991

#2 – Yellowstone Lake is noted for fishing, underwater hydrothermal vents, and a great variety of birds.  It is America’s largest high-altitude lake (7,733ft).  

The forested slopes provide habitat for many large animals – Elk 1991 –

Note the buffalo eyeing the trout fisherman (1991). 

There have been large forest fires in the NP, but the land has made a surprisingly swift recovery.

In the 1960s we saw bears all over the place, on the roads, and even in our camp – one knocked over our cooler, opened it, and ran off with a pound of bacon!  In 2007, we did not see any.  1967 –

Twin Cubs

Feed Me!

Times and conservation practices have changed.  Now, buffalo are more dangerous for tourists than bears!  Buffalo Herd – I did not see any buffalo here in the 1960s.

Do Not Approach Buffalo (1993)!

Bison = Buffalo 2007

Elk 2007

#3 – Mammoth Hot Springs are in the NW part Yellowstone NP.  The springs have produced colorful travertine terraces of calcium carbonate -1967.

There are boardwalks to take you through the formations (2007). 

In October 2007, we awoke to snow.

Liberty Cap

#4 – Grand Canyon and Falls of the Yellowstone are in the north central part of the park.  The canyon is 20 miles long and 800ft to 1,200ft deep. Upper Falls of the Yellowstone River in the distance – 1991.

There are spectacular views and excellent trails in this area. Inspiration Point 2007 –

In 1967 when I was young and foolish, I received a ticket for rock climbing there.  My friend Jay and I had tied off our rope at Inspiration Point and rappelled into the canyon. 

No seat harnesses back then, you worked the rope through your groin and over your shoulder – Yellowstone River below.

Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Upper Falls – 1967

Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River 308ft – 1991

Stacy at Lookout Point Lower Falls – 1993

More Waterfalls! – Tower Falls (132ft) 1967

Stacy at base of Tower Falls in 1993

Gibbon Falls (82ft) – 2007

Lewis Falls near South Entrance – 1963

Artists Paintpots – which are different color mudpots.

America the Beautiful 2010 WY State Quarter

In 1972 Congress dedicated a 24,000-acre parcel of land as John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway to recognize his generosity and foresight. Congress also named the highway from the south boundary of Grand Teton to West Thumb in Yellowstone in honor of Rockefeller. The parkway provides a natural link between the two national parks and contains features characteristic of both areas. Not only that, but wildlife can freely move between Yellowstone and Grand Teton NPs.  We stopped briefly at the Flagg Ranch Info Station along the PKWY.

Then entered Grand Teton NP about 9pm.

Lots of traffic on the Memorial Parkway as we drove to our Super 8 motel in Jackson Hole WY.

Jackson Hole has become extremely expensive with wealthy people buying up land and property. This basic old motel cost $325.86 for one night!  See this Blog for June 2017 to see our 49^th wedding anniversary activities and pics, including two days hiking in Grand Teton NP.

The following are pics from previous visits to Grand Teton NP.

I have visited Grand Teton NP seven times – note the year on each photo.  The first is from 1963 – it is blurry because it was taken out the window of the car.

In 1966, I took my mother and three brothers on a road trip “Out West.”  I have included one page of my mother’s diary from that trip.

Here is a “Hero” shot of me with an ice axe and manila rope from 1967.  My friend Jay and I did a lot of climbing on a 10,000-mile road trip through the western states and Canada.

Stacy and I stopped in the park in 1993.

Helen and I did a 7-mile hike to Taggart and Bradley Lakes, a 7-mile trail around Jenny Lake, as well as other trails in October 2007. 

View from Signal Mountain

8-mile hike to Jenny Lake, Hidden Falls, and String Lake

Jenny Lake

Hidden Falls

In 2007, we were invited to the National Geographic International Film Festival at the Jackson Lake Lodge by a friend who was displaying her work at the National Museum of Wildlife Art. A special treat was dinner on an Elk Ranch along the Snake River.

Elk Horns, Jackson City Square

7/22 – 4hrs to Craters of the Moon NM Visitor Center in ID.  I visited in 1966 and have my mom’s diary entry, but did not have any photos from that visit. I visited Craters of the Moon National Preserve (a separate NP Unit) in May 2018 – see Blog.  So, my objective on this trip was to fill the gap in my photo records.

Brochure

Monument Map showing 7-mile loop road.

Entrance

Our first stop was the Visitor Center to get a free cave permit.

We then did the North Crater Flow Boardwalk Trail (0.3-mile), the first of several short hikes.

Cinder Cone Fragments

Cinder Garden with dwarf buckwheat

We then hiked up Inferno Cone (0.4-mile rt) with an elevation gain of 164ft.

View from top, including Big Cinder Butte, one of the world’s largest basaltic cinder cones.

Return

We then did short walks to two Spatter Cones

One was called a “Snow Cone” because of the snow/ice in the bottom.  In 1966 we were able to hike into an “Ice Cave,” which provided a wonderful respite from the 95-degree temperature that day.

Second Spatter Cone

Only two lava tube caves were open (with permit), along the Caves Trail (2-miles rt).  

Dewdrop Cave

And Indian Tunnel

Lava Flow

Helen wanted to find out what was rattling in there –

Again, stopped at the Visitor Center

Followed by a 3hr drive to Boise ID, where it was 105-degrees!

7/23 – we awoke to a hot hazy day.  Wildfires were burning along our route.  After about 2hrs of driving on Interstate-84, we came to a location where it had just been closed, which resulted in a long detour on back roads.  After returning to I-84 we saw a sign for “Blue Mountain Crossing Interpretive Park” and took the exit. It was a stop on the Oregon National Historic Trail.

There was a nice loop trail with excellent pictorial markers.

From the late 1830s until the 1860s, thousands of emigrants followed the trail to the Willamette Valley of Western Oregon.  The trail then became a stagecoach line.

A “Parade of Survivors”

“On This Ridge” –    

Arrived at Kate’s house, settled in, and walked to the food trucks for dinner.  She was in TX on a business trip.

7/24 – 7/27 worked outside weeding, cutting, and cleaning.  

7/28 – Sunday Mass at the Chapel of Mary at the Grotto.  It is set in a beautiful park area with high cliffs and trails, including one featuring the stations of the cross. 

Returned home, changed, packed, dropped Bennie and Greta off at doggy care and drove to Astoria OR.  Our first stop was at Young’s River Falls Park, a location on the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.  The Corp of Discovery spent the winter of 1804-1805 nearby at Fort Clatsop.

Continued into Astoria and drove up to the impressive Astoria Column dedicated in 1926.  

Vincent Astor, son of John Jacob Astor, and the Great Northern Railroad paid for the land and construction.  The city (10K population today), named for Astor’s fur trading company, built the access road.  The column is 125ft high with 164 steps. The painted relief scrolling up the column covers Astoria’s history from 1792 until the arrival of the railroad in 1818.  A fun tradition is to fly a small wooden glider plane off the top of the column. They sell them at the Visitor Center for $1.

Kate wanted to see two more sites.  First the house from the 1985 movie “Goonies.”

And the John Jacob Astor Elementary School, which was the setting for the 1990 movie Kindergarten Cop with Arnold Schwarzenegger, which was only three blocks from the Goonies house.

Fish & Chips at the Rogue Pier 39 Public House, put bags in our room at the Holiday Inn Express, and then walked along the waterfront.  Coast Guard ship passing under the bridge to WA – going out to the Pacific Ocean.

7/29 – Our first stop was the Oregon Film Museum, which is in the former city jail.

It was used in the Goonies movie and has several Goonie movie displays.

Made a short video clip

The next stop was the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park.

See Blog entry for October 2022 for description of previous visit to Lewis and Clark NHP.

Sacajawea and son Pompey – Helen and daughter Kate.

Ranger Program – Native American description of life at Fort Clatsop

It was a short drive to Fort Stevens SP to see what is left of the Peter Iredale Shipwreck –

Next, a beach walk at Cannon Beach – Haystack Rock

Continued south down the coast highway (101) to Short Sand Beach

Returning to car –

Stayed in a VRBO apartment, with a fifties musical theme, in Rockaway Beach

7/30 – bought coffee and scones near our VRBO apartment and then did a stroll on the beach.

Twin Rocks

Returning to car

Outside of town, did a short hike to a large old growth Western Red Cedar in the Rockway Big Tree Conservation Area, which was paid for by a transient lodging tax in Rockaway Beach.

Continued on to Tillamook OR and the Tillamook Cheese Factory.  In the early 1900s local dairy farmers formed a cooperative and built a ship, the “Morning Star,” to carry their products to Portland.

In 2018, the Tillamook County Creamery Association opened a new factory where they make a wide variety of cheese products.  We did the self-guided factory tour and then ate lunch – Tillamook Classic Cheddar, Double Cheddar Grilled Cheese, and Summer Blues Salad. It took about 1.5hrs to get back to Portland and pick up the dogs.

7/31 – 8/4 – continued work on the house and grounds, including painting the basement, which had incurred water damage earlier in the year.  Next door neighbors Izak, Rachel, and son James had us over for a delicious grilled dinner.

8/5 M – dropped Helen off at the Portland Airport at 5:45am.  Her flight flew east over Ohio to Washington DC’s Dulles Airport (in Virginia).  After a three-hour layover, she flew back west to Dayton OH – that’s what happens when you use Reward Pts!

Meanwhile, I drove to Spalding ID and the Nez Perce National Historical Park.

5/6 – Slava (Serbian Saint’s Day), St George is the patron saint for Helen’s family.  A Kolach (sweet bread cake) is made and decorated with four apples on perimeter holding scripture passages, center one reads “Christ is Risen” in Cyrillic.  Grapes and Barrel of Wine for blood of Christ, bird of peace, and cherries for health.

Candles are lit for those who have passed as well as the living.

Serbian Tort for dessert!

Serbian Trip to attend Wedding

5/15-5/25

Belgrade Market – Helen bought and traded for carpets and purchased other crafts.

Gypsy band looking for tips

Newly restored St Sava Orthodox Cathedral

St Sava is the patron saint of Serbia

We discovered that Helen’s grandmother’s and mother’s gravestone and base had collapsed.  We arranged for it to be rebuilt and paid the cemetery for one hundred more years of “rent.”  If plots are not paid for, the remains will be removed to a mass grade and the plot sold.

Three-day wedding of Helen’s cousin Zoran’s son in Velika Plana.  First day, dinner/drinks/dancing at groom’s family restaurant and event center on the Green Morava River – Dragan, Biljana, Nikola, Ivana, Kate, Damir, and Helen.

5/18 Sa – Wedding events started at the events center, more food, drinks, music, socializing.

Local band

The groom (Nikolas) was then taken to pay the dowery to his fiancé’s family and pick up the bride.

Arriving to bands playing (hired and Gypsy)

Serbian Orthodox Church

1.5hr wedding

Men and women standing on opposite sides

Hands bound by linen and crowns placed on heads.

Celebrants

Eight-hour reception (~300 people) with constant food, drinks, music, and dancing. Helen with parents Zoran and Dalfina

Kate and Helen

Cutting the cake, accompanied by fireworks –

Day after wedding, more food, drinks, music at family events center. Family members – Ivana, Kate, Daniele, Noah, Nikolas, Sonja, Zoran, Zoki, Dalfina, Ana, Ljsa, Helen, and Tom

Trip to family (Helen’s mother’s grandmother’s) cemetery in Veliko Selo.  Cleaned plot (1800s) and lit candles.

Trip to family (Helen’s father’s father’s) estate in Ub.  It was taken by communists after WW II, split up, with the house and surrounding land turned into an agricultural school.  The house is now in shambles.

Many of the farm buildings were sold and are still operational.

Some of the land was purchased and is a pheasant farm with lodge, dog breeding kennels, and elite clients.

Lodge interior

Serbian lunch before returning to Belgrade.

Farewell dinner on the Sava River with Maja who helped and entertained us while in Belgrade.

3/17 Su – St Patrick’s Day!  Early afternoon took back roads (1.5hrs), drove by debris from a tornado that hit Logan County a few days earlier, to Wapakoneta OH and the Armstrong Air & Space Museum (just off I-75).  It is a site in the National Aviation Heritage Area, as well as a site on the Aviation Trail.  I had been here in August 2019, see the end of the Blog entry for that month.  However, I was too late to tour the museum.  Today, we did that –

There have been 26 astronauts from Ohio, making it the fourth-largest producer of astronauts in the U.S.

Neil Armstrong was a Navy Fighter Pilot during the Korean War.

Armstrong joined the NASA Astronaut Corps in 1962 and made his first spaceflight in 1966 as command pilot of Gemini VIII.  On this mission, they made the world’s first docking with another satellite in orbit.  This is the Gemini VIII space capsule –

The 36-story Saturn Rocket was used to put Apollo 8 and all following moon missions into lunar orbit.

On July 20, 1969, Armstrong and Apollo 11 Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin became the first people to land on the Moon!  The next day they spent two and a half hours outside the Lunar Module Eagle, while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia.  The Plan –

When stepping onto the Moon, Armstrong said “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Lunar “Rock”

Neil Armstrong’s boyhood home in Wapakoneta OH is a half mile from the museum.

3/18 M – Drove to downtown Dayton OH and Sinclair Community College to visit the National UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) Training and Certification Center, which is a site on the Aviation Trail.

Sinclair has extensive UAS “Drone” facilities to enable advanced training and support of applied research activities.

They also have manned aviation programs to support the growing UAS industry.

One example is the LIFT prototype vehicle for individual vertical takeoff flight. Electric Vertical Take-Off Ride Sharing Aerial Vehicles (Taxis) will be built by Joby Aviation in a production facility at the Dayton Airport.  Joby received Part 135 Air Carrier Certificate, which allows Joby to operate a commercial air taxi service, in 2022.  It has partnerships with the USAF, Uber, and Delta.

Building 18, is the only UAS Indoor Flying Pavilion in the country.  It has 3,200 sq ft of flying space and is 40 ft high.

I returned to Sinclair CC on April 17, 2024, for a tour of the Flying Pavilion with Tech Sam.

The World’s First Custom Built UAS Indoor Flying Pavilion

Sam also gave me a demonstration of the wind tunnel used for testing drone components.

We finished with a tour of the laboratory/teaching facilities.

3/23 Sa – picked up John at 8am and headed for the ‘Wright “B” Flyer’ located at the Dayton Wright Brothers Airport in Miamisburg OH, just south of Dayton.  It is a historic site in the National Aviation Heritage Area and is also on the Aviation Trail.

The Wright “B” Flyer, on the left, is a look-alike of the world’s first mass-produced airplanes (1910-1911) made in the Wright Company factory in Dayton OH.  The “Flyer” on the right is one that is used for scenic flights.  The Wright “B” Flyer is also flyable, but insurance costs are a barrier to using it for that purpose at this time.

This float is used in parades to promote the ‘Wright ”B” Flyer’ and the National Aviation Heritage Area.

Model – note the Aviation Trail sign.

An hours’ drive took us to Batavia OH, on the east side of Cincinnati, and the Tri-State Warbird Museum, which is another site on the Aviation Trail. 

Their mission is to preserve the aircraft of World War II.  It has nine significant WW II aircraft and plans to add more.  John at entrance with mural of Curtis P-40M Kittyhawk III.

P-40s were important fighters during the early stages of WW II.

The museum is well-funded and staffed, immaculate, and all planes are flyable and used in air shows around the country. Note the yellow North American AT-6D Texan in the center of Hangar #1.

Fock-Wulf FW 190 F8/R1, was one of Germany’s two main fighters during WW II.

North American P-51 Mustang, they served in every combat zone during WW II.

General Motors TBM-3 Avenger Navy torpedo bomber, note the foldable wings to reduce the space needed for storage on aircraft carriers –

Hangar #2 has a B-25 Mitchell, the plane that was used in the famous “Doolittle Raid” on Tokyo (April 18, 1942), four months after Pearl Harbor.  Sixteen B-25Bs took off from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet in the Pacific Ocean (which they were not designed to do), and bombed Tokyo providing a large boost in American morale.

Our last stop was the Middletown OH Regional Airport, the location of Butler County Warbirds Inc., my 17^th and final Aviation Trail site.

They have a 1943 Fairchild PT-19, this was the primary trainer for the Army Air Corps during World War II. The plane is used for scenic flights.

There is a WW II Era Airport Beacon located next to the hangar.

Inside of Hangar –

Door surrounded by sandbags leads to displays of World War II items and memorabilia.

Home at 4pm

4/17/2024 – After doing a second tour of the UAS facilities at Sinclair CC, I drove to the Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport (SGH).  In 2006 the Ohio Air National Guard base lost its F-16 training mission there but was assigned an intelligence mission flying MQ-1 Predator drones.  The Predators are flown remotely and controlled from SGH. 

Starting in 2019, a National, State, Local, Air Force, and Industry effort led to the establishment of the National Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) Center for Excellence at the airport.

Lobby – has the Kittyhawk electric plane owned by Larry Page co-founder of Google.

SGH – “An Innovative Aerospace Technology Hub”

Hangar currently houses experimental aircraft owned by private industry companies such as Joby.  They also have a flight simulator housed in a semi-trailer truck.

A “Sky Vision Bus” provides radar to control unmanned aircraft in a designated 225-square-mile airspace above the airport. 

Joby Flight Simulator –

“Entities Using the Airfield for Testing & Flights include: BETA; Joby; Kittyhawk; LIFT Aircraft; Air Force Research Labs; OH Dept. of Transportation; Ohio UAS Center; SelectTech GeoSpatial; local & state universities, multiple UAS companies & start-ups; multiple eVTOL companies & start-ups; equipment manufacturers & suppliers related to UAS & eVTOL markets.”  A vertical take-off and landing platform has been constructed for the experimental aircraft as well as an electric charging station. 

This is currently one of only two aircraft electric charging stations in Ohio.

SGH Terminal –

First there were piston aircraft, then there was jet propulsion, and now an electric aircraft phase has begun. 2002 Ohio State Quarter –

12/5 Tu – Left 6am and arrived at the Columbia Crossing River Trails Center on the Susquehanna River at 2pm.  It is one of two Visitor Centers in the Susquehanna National Heritage Area (NHA).  There is a 14-mile paved, multiuse trail along the Susquehanna River.  This marker describes the 1913 Lincoln Highway from NYC to San Francisco, that passes over the Veterans Memorial Bridge/Old US-30 Bridge. 

The remains of the Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal, which runs along the river.

It took about 20-min to drive across the bridge to the Zimmerman Center for Heritage on the west side of the river.  It is Pennsylvania’s official visitor contact and passport station for the Captain John Smith Chesapeake NHT.

It is a 1750s stone house built by Gen. Jacob Dritt, who fought in the Revolutionary War.  It was renovated by the Zimmermans and donated to the NHA.

It tells the story of the area, beginning with the Susquehannock Indians who lived along the river.

We hiked up a hill on the Native Lands Heritage Trail to the site of the Susquehannock peoples’ last community.  Note the settler’s cemetery in the right middle of the photo.  

Grave marker for Elizabeth Dritt, Jacob’s wife.  He drown in the Susquehanna River in 1817 when his boat capsized as he was trying to cross in winter.

A 2-hr drive took us to Frederick MD and the grave/memorial for Francis Scott Key, the author of the Star-Spangled Banner – our National Anthem.  We arrived at dusk, 15-min before it closed.

Arrived 8pm at Lillian’s home in Rockville MD.  She had a surprise for us – dinner and a belated ice cream cake for my 80^th birthday!

12/6 W –I left at 7:30am for the George Washington Memorial PKWY, which runs along the Potomac River in VA.  The administrative center for sites along the PKWY is in Turkey Run Park.  I found the door open when I arrived and was able to use the 32-stamps, related to sites along the PKWY, to stamp my sheet.

I then did the 1.5-mile Turkey Run Trail Loop, that includes a section of the Potomac Heritage National Historic Trail (NHT).  The Claude Moore Colonial Farm, originally Turkey Run Farm, closed in 2018. The mission of Claude Moore Colonial Farm was to recreate the life of tenant farmers circa 1771. The majority of Virginians of that time period were tenant farmers who grew tobacco to pay their rent while growing food to eat.  How this site will be used in the future is under review.

The GW PKWY was under construction and had lots of traffic.  That made it difficult to access some of the sites along the Potomac River.  My next stop was the Navy and Merchant Marine Memorial, which is located on Kendall Point near the LBJ Memorial Grove (see Blog for August 2021).  I really like this “difficult to get to” memorial.

The 1922 cast aluminum memorial is dedicated to those Lost at Sea.  “The seven seagulls sculpted on the monument represent the witnesses of sacrifice on all seven seas.  Below the textured rocky surface of the water, the waves are swirling and crashing to portray the imminent dangers faced by seamen.”

From there I proceeded to the John Philip Sousa Middle School in east DC (Affiliated with the Brown vs. Board of Education NHP in Topeka KS).  It is a public school located in the city’s Fort Dupont neighborhood on the east side of the Anacostia River.  In 1950, Sousa was one of several new DC schools for white children.  Eleven African American junior high school students were taken on a field trip by Civil Rights activist Gardner Bishop, who requested admittance for the students to this school.  They were denied and ordered to return to their grossly inadequate school.  A suit was filed on their behalf in 1951, that suit became part of the Brown case in 1954.  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled “segregation in the District of Columbia public schools…is a denial of the due process of law guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment…”

My next stop was the U.S. National Arboretum

It is the location of the National Capitol Columns that once supported the East Portico of the Capitol.  They were the backdrop for Presidential inaugurations from 1826-1958.

It is a striking display –

Onward and westward to central DC and the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, near the Capitol and across the street from Union Station.

Though it opened in 1993, it was off my radar.  I noticed it on a map when planning this trip and thought I would check it out.  The National Stamp Salon of the museum houses hundreds of panels of U.S. stamps and is a philatelist’s dream.

One task of government is to facilitate communication.  One way the U.S. has done that is through our postal system.  Therefore, in many ways, the history of the postal system is the history of our country.  The atrium displays many vehicles that have been and are utilized for the transport of Mail.

Owney – the Mascot of the Railway Mail Service.

From 1888 to 1897, Owney was the most famous dog in America.  Papers covered stories of his travels across the length and breadth of the country.  At that time, most of our mail was sorted on trains.  Railway Mail Clerks would give Owney a medal or tag to commemorate his trips.  Magnify this map to see the locations where he received his medals.

It was a short drive to the National Museum of the American Indian where I wanted to get two photos of outdoor sculptures.  The first was the National Native American Veterans Memorial.

The second was the Buffalo Dancer Sculpture.

However, I could not resist the urge to go into the museum for another quick visit.  Music & Song –

Indians are Everywhere in American Life

The Indians utilized every bit of the Buffalo –

Also did a quick visit to the nearby U.S. Botanic Garden –

Note the Capitol Dome in the background –

We visited the African American Civil War Memorial in 2018 (see Blog for October 2018).  This year I planned to tour the African American Civil War Museum which is across the street.  The museum honors the heroic roles of 209,145 U.S. Colored Troops (USCT) who helped end slavery and kept America united under one flag. 

Unfortunately, it was in the process of a make-over.  BUT, fortunately, I received information and a personal tour from Marquett Milton!

Next, on to the Dumbarton House (built in1799) in Georgetown.  Dolley Madison stayed here briefly when (1814) she was evacuated from the White House during the “War of 1812.”  It has been restored and is now the headquarters for the National Society of The Colonial Dames of America – women descended from Colonial era leaders.

This marker tells the story and shows her evacuation route to VA for safety.  It is one of many sites on the Star-Spangled Banner NHT.

Right next door is Oak Hill Cemetery.  It contains the remains of many early Washingtonians –   

Reverend William Pinkney

Van Ness Mausoleum

John Joyce, poet

Supreme Court Chief Justice Edward Douglass White

Montrose Park, which is an extension of Rock Creek Park, is just down the road –

My next stop was the Francis Scott Key Memorial Park located on the N side of Key Bridge.  The park overlooks the Bridge, the Potomac River, and the C & O Canal.

For 25-years, Key lived 200-ft away in a two-story house in Georgetown.  He was a lawyer who defended leading politicians against charges of treason, scandal, and assault.   He also defended African Americans in court to the extent that he was sometimes referred to as “the Black’s lawyer.”

Stairs lead down to the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal towpath

My last stop for the day was Fort Marcy (1862) located off the westbound lanes of the George Washington PKWY.  It was one of the Circle Forts built to protect DC during the Civil War.

The Potomac Heritage NHT runs through the park – as you can see it was almost dark, the light on the trail sign came from my headlights.

12/7 Th – Called to confirm our White House Tour– no handbags/backpacks permitted and no storage available.  Took our photo IDs and caught the Red Line from Rockville to the Metro Central Stop in DC, walked through Freedom Plaza (diagram of Capitol)

Revisited the (now complete) World War I Memorial in Pershing Park, see Blog December 2020 for previous visit.

I did the White House Tour in the Fall of 1967 but do not have any photos from that visit.  This year I was fortunate to be able to obtain three passes for a Christmas Tour of the White House through my congressperson’s office.  Requests must be submitted a minimum of 21 days in advance and no more than 90 days in advance of the requested tour date(s).  Nothing is guaranteed and you are vetted before you are issued your pass.  As you will see in the following photos, the Christmas decorations were amazing. We felt privileged to be able to do our self-tour during this special season.  The theme chosen by First Lady Jill Biden was “Magic, Wonder, & Joy.” East, Visitors Entrance to White House –  

Gold Star Family Tree

Lillian and Helen in the East Colonnade

Library decorated for Bedtime Stories

Vermeil Room – Music Theater and decorations for the Joy of Music

China Room – decorated as The Bakery

East Room, largest room in the White House – decorated with advent calendar theme –  

Portrait of George Washington that First Lady Dolley Madison saved in 1814 when the British burned the White House.

Nativity display –

Front Cross Hall – taken through east door.

Front Cross Hall – taken from west door, Grand Foyer to left –

Green Room – top painting “Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City” by Ossawa Tanner; he mixed sand with his paint.

Official White House Menorah on right in Cross Hall, made in 2021 from wood removed from the White House during a Truman-era renovation –

Santa’s Reindeers Flying Through the Grand Foyer –  

The theme for the Grand Foyer was – ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas

Blue Room with the Official White House Christmas Tree – decorated with names of states and territories.

Blue Room windows looking out over the South Portico –

Red Room, Joy of Making Holiday Crafts –

State Dining Room

Gingerbread White House with Candy Cane Pillars

Main Entrance to Blue Room –

Looking Out Front Door of White House –

One Last Shot –

See our August 2021 Blog post for our visit to the White House Visitor Center

Walked back to the Metro and took it two stops to Judiciary Square and then continued walking to the Hart Senate Office Building.  Visited Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown’s office to get Gallery passes for the House and Senate Chambers and then ate lunch in the Senate Cafeteria. 

Photo of Senator Mark Kelly’s Office.

After lunch, one of Senator Brown’s aides accompanied us to the tunnel to the Capitol. We took the subway to the Capitol Visitors Center for our 2pm tour.

I have visited the Capitol several times, but this was the first time I did an Official Tour.  I obtained our free tickets on the U.S. Capitol website six weeks before our visit.  We started the tour by walking past a full-size plaster model (19.5ft tall) of the Statue of Freedom that sits on top of the Capitol.  It was placed atop the Dome in 1863.

Our first stop was the Crypt, which is located directly under the Rotunda.  The star on the floor is the center of Washington DC, dividing it into NE, NW, SE, and SW quadrants.  It was to be the burial place of George Washington.  However, he and Martha remain at Mount Vernon.  Thirteen statues are located here, one representing each of the original thirteen colonies.

Samuel Adams (Massachusetts) statue and a copy of the Magna Carta (gift of England & Northern Ireland).  The U.S. Constitution was formed on the basic principles of the Magna Carta.

Dome of the Crypt

Old Supreme Court Chamber –

We then walked upstairs into the Rotunda – the Dome.  The Apotheosis of Washington, is the fresco painted by Greek – Italian artist Constantino Brumidi in 1865 and visible through the oculus of the dome in the Rotunda.  The fresco is suspended 180 feet above the rotunda floor.

Thomas Jefferson and George Washington statues are located at the main (east) entrance into the Rotunda.

Helen resting under painting representing the Landing of Columbus in the “New World.”

Statue of President Garfield one of two statues representing Ohio.  The twelve historic paintings that surround the Rotunda present important events in the history of our country.  The one behind me is General George Washington Resigning His Commission, by John Trumbull, 1826.

Statue of the women at the forefront of the Women’s Suffrage Movement

Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Susan B. Anthony launched the women’s movement, which resulted in women’s right to vote.  It was granted 144 years after America declared itself a nation of liberty for all.  Note that the statue looks incomplete.  There is an uncarved block of marble.  There is speculation that it will be carved for the first woman President.

Statuary Hall – Our guide was excellent and spoke to us through our groups’ own audio system.  Her voice was clear, and our headphones blocked out other sounds in the area.  Rosa Parks statue in center.

Thomas Edison (born in Ohio) statue.  It is one of two statues representing Ohio in the Capitol.

After our tour, we were free to wander through the Exhibition Hall.  I liked the five models representing the development on Capitol Hill.  Here is the first, representing the New City of Washington DC 1790 – 1814.

Here is the Fifth model representing 1930 – Today.

We then used our Gallery passes to enter the House of Representatives, which was not in session. And then the Senate Chamber, which was in session; no photos are permitted.  Only one senator was present, and he was speaking during the debate on a funding bill.  Cameras were rolling and his comments were being recorded and sent to congressional offices in real time.  If a vote was required, the representatives would be alerted to come to the Senate Chamber. House and Senate Gavels

Gallery Passes

Exit

East side of Capitol at sunset –

Library of Congress – across the street from Capitol (there is a tunnel that connects them). I did research there when in graduate school at the University of Maryland.

Supreme Court Building – also across the street from Capitol

Senator Robert A Taft (Ohio) Memorial Carillon – just north of Capitol.  Son of President William Howard Taft (1909-1913).

Returned to Rockville, had dinner at “Not Your Joe’s” Kitchen & Bar.

12/8 F – It was a 3-hr drive to the Robert Russa Moton Museum in Farmville VA, which is a National Park Unit affiliated with the Brown v. Board of Education NHP in Topeka KS.

The 1939 High School was named after Robert Russa Moton who was the second principal of Tuskegee Institute in AL.

The Museum is dedicated to the black students who walked-out of school in 1951 to protest the unequal educational facilities that were provided for them compared to their white counterparts.  

Local lawyers took up the cause and filed a lawsuit, Davis v. Prince Edward (county), to challenge racial segregation.  Their suit was consolidated into the U.S. Supreme Court case of Brown v. Board, which led to the 1954 decision declaring that public school segregation was unconstitutional.  Prince Edward County responded by closing its public schools for four years to prevent integration.   

Barbara Rose Johns led a student walkout in April 1951.

The museum and displays were well done –

Auditorium

These were the five cases combined into the Brown v. Board School Segregation lawsuit –

R. R. Moton High School is known as the birthplace of America’s student-led Civil Rights Revolution

7.5hrs to Springfield OH

10/3 Tu – Took Mike to lunch in Chicago and arrived in Milwaukee before the kids were home from school.  Moved some items into the house, e.g., wing-back chair, large copper kettle, Matt’s painting, etc., and then had some time for playing followed by a delicious chicken & dumpling dinner.

10/4 W – Grandparent’s Day at St. Sebastian Church/School, started with Mass (Seamus was a reader), followed by snacks and visits to Drago’s, Seamus’s, and Lena’s classrooms.

10/5 Th – We took Seamus and Lena, first to Goodwill for “low cost” shopping, and then to the Milwaukee Zoo.  Drago was to go climbing with a friend but that did not work out.

They had a special Ice Age Exhibit loop walk with animated prehistoric animals.

We also saw the Sea Lion Show and the kids did the 3D Virtual Reality Gorilla Trek. Our Zoo visit ended with a Rainbow Sherbert cone from the family farm. In total, we walked about 4 miles!

10/6 F – Chad drove Drago, Seamus, and I to the Pike Lake Unit of Kettle Moraine State Forest.  We did a 5-mile hike including a segment of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail.

Gained over 400ft to the top of the Powder Hill Observation Tower –

Meanwhile, Helen and Lena were making Halloween cookies at home.  In the evening, we went to Drago’s volleyball game (win) and the Family Fish Fry at St Sebastians.

10/7 Sa – I took Lena to her soccer game (win) while Chad and Helen went to Drago’s swim meet. 

It was the feast day of St Francis of Assisi.  In the afternoon, Chad and I walked to the church for Clancey to receive his blessing.  We celebrated Drago’s birthday early (it is on 10/10) at the Old Town Serbian Gourmet House in S Milwaukee.  Finished the evening with the card game 99 at home.

10/8 Su –started with Mass and then everyone rushed to get to Seamus’s soccer game (win).  Afterward, we drove to the Upper Peninsula (UP) of MI to spend the next day with our friends Clark and Donna.

10/9 M – Did a tour of the area along the border between WI and MI starting at Dave’s Falls in Marinnette County WI.  Then drove to the Lighthouse in Menominee MI, did Thrift shopping, and ate at the Ogden Club (1900); tried Cheese Curds for the first time.  High fat, greasy, but good!  Had a pizza dinner and played cards at home on a cold rainy day.

10/10 Tu – 2hr drive to the Munising Falls Visitor Contact Station at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (NL).  Fall colors were near peak on Lake Superior.

We visited here in 2003 on our first “Around Lake Michigan” trip.  That year we did the Ship Wreck Tour leaving out of Munising.

Followed by the 0.5-mile rt trail to Munising Falls located in the NL.

We then drove to Hurricane River and the Au Sable Light Station trailhead.  We did the 3-mile rt hike along the beach (North Country National Scenic Trail), passing the remains of Lake Superior shipwrecks, to the Au Sable Light Station.

Our first hike on this visit, 20-years later, was the 1-mile, mostly boardwalk, Marsh Trail Loop near Sand Point.

Our next stop was the Miners Castle Overlook

Followed by a short hike to the Lower Overlook on a segment of the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCNST).  The NCNST stretches over 4,800-miles from VT to ND or vice-versa!

The Lower Overlook provided a close-up view of Miners Castle.  Note the window picture frame – for taking a picture of Pictured Rocks NL!

We then took a cold stroll on Miners Beach – looking West –

Miners Beach looking East –

To warm-up, we then did the 1.2-mile rt Miners Falls Trail

2018 NP Quarter

Followed US-2 around the N end of Lake Michigan, crossed the Mackinac Bridge, and stopped in Petoskey MI for an Octoberfest dinner at the Side Door Saloon.  My mother’s first cousin, Josephine Kolinski and her husband Walter, owned this bar/restaurant and it was called the Vienna.  It was handed down in the family but sold last year and the new owners re-named it the Side Door Saloon.

This deer was shot by Tony Kolinsky, the first one of the 1964 hunting season.

Spent the night in the scenic town of Charlevoix MI –

10/11 W – It was a rainy 2hr drive to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (NL) –  

Our first trip here was in 2003 when we ran down to the lake and then climbed the NL’s highest dune at the Lake Michigan Overlook on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive.

It took about five minutes to run down to the lake and about a half hour to climb back up the 450ft dune!

This year, we took pics and reflected on how difficult it was to climb that sand dune twenty years ago! Note the observation deck that has been built at the overlook.

Legend of Manitou Islands and the Sleeping Bear

View of climb from Observation Deck –

Lucky we didn’t get stuck at the bottom!

This year, we started our visit to the NL by doing the 1.2-mile hike to Pyramid Point

Another warning sign!

Next, the historic Village of Glen Haven

Then the U.S. Life-Saving Station

The Coast Guard Station was active from 1902 to 1942.

We then did the 1-mile rt hike to Sleeping Bear Point

Dune climb on our return hike to the SUV.

This was followed by the 7.4-mile 12-stop Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. First stop, Glen Lake Overlook.

D. H. Day wanted to develop the area – thank goodness he failed!

Our last stop on the drive was the North Bar Overlook

Got our stamp at the Visitor Center, had a bowl of soup in Empire, and then did the 4.5hr drive to Dearborn MI, which is just N of Detroit.

10/12 Th – We were at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation at 9:30am when it opened.  It is one of the locations within the MotorCities National Heritage Area (NHA).  We were disappointed to learn that Greenfield Village, which was decorated for Halloween, was not open.  We decided to “pay the piper” for the Museum anyway and were not disappointed.

Exploded 1923 mass produced Ford Model T

The Museum has several sections, one of which is, not surprisingly, Driving America.

This was my favorite car – a 1903 Model F Packard Runabout (made in Warren OH).  Tom Fetch and Marius Krarup (Packard employees) called their car the “Old Pacific.”

It was the second car to drive cross country from San Francisco to New York City (61-days). The first transcontinental trip was with a Winton car, which took 63-days earlier that same year.  The exact number of miles is not known because of the circuitous route due to the lack of good roads.  As far as I know, the record for the “Cannonball Run” (an “illegal race,” due to high speeds) from NYC to LA is 26hrs and 38 mins in 2019 during the Covid pandemic.  This 1903 Packard carried a large umbrella for the sun!

Helen’s family had a 1952 dark green used/repaired Hudson Hornet with a red hood.  They called it “Cherry Nose.”  It was like the Doc Hudson car in the movie “Cars.”

Helen had a 1962 dark grey Corvair convertible when I met her in 1967.

My car, at that time, was a 1962 Chevrolet Impala sedan, three speed stick shift on the column, that I called “Mister Good.”

Two other cars at the museum caught my attention.  The first was a Moore/Unser racecar used on the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in 1958.  The Pikes Peak Hill Climb was started in 1915, one year after the toll road was completed.  It is run on the last Sunday of June each year.  The 2011 “Hill Climb” was the last year when some of the route was not paved.  In 2018, a VW I.D.R. electric racecar set a record of 7 minutes 57.128 seconds for the 12.42-mile course, with an elevation gain of 4,720ft and 156 turns!   One reason why Electric cars have an advantage is because the gasoline engines require oxygen, which decreases with altitude.

The second car was the 1965 Goldenrod, which held the land speed record of 409.277mph for 25 years.  It was powered by four Chrysler engines. The record was set on the Bonneville Salt Flats of Utah.

Another popular display includes a line of Presidential Limousines.  The most recent was for President Reagan.  Each one became bigger, heavier, and had more security features.

The following line starts with President Eisenhower’s “Bubble Top” Lincoln limousine –

I remember getting a “Wiener Whistle” from a Wienermobile as a child in the early 1950s!  This year I came across one visiting Yellow Springs OH.

OK Everybody, let’s sing the Oscar Mayer Wiener Song!

15 cent McD hamburger anyone?  Note the 1956 Chevy and a Studebaker in the photo as well.  You can eat lunch in Lanny’s Diner.

There is a large section of the museum devoted to innovation in Agriculture and the Environment.  I have picked out a few photos of personal interest.  The first is the International Harvester wagon built in Chicago.

An 1850 Reaper made in Brockport NY

A 1900 Superior Grain Drill made in Springfield OH

A 1910 Aermotor (Windmill) made in Chicago.

Many are still in use.  I took this photo last year in West TX

Railroads – Early RR Steam Engine and the C&O 1941 Locomotive called the Allegheny.

The Allegheny was one of the biggest/heaviest most powerful locomotives ever built.  It is the most photographed item in the museum.

This is why passenger cars on trains are called both “ passenger carriages” and “passenger coaches.”

A center section of the museum was devoted to Liberty and Justice for All.  President Lincoln was assassinated while sitting in this blood-stained rocker at the Ford Theater in Washington DC on April 14, 1965.

The 1800s

Some women, who were arrested picketing President Wilson in front of the White House, went on a hunger strike while in jail and were force fed.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks would not give up her seat on this Montgomery AL City Bus and was taken to jail.

Another favorite section of the museum for me was the “Heroes of the Sky Exhibit.”  This is an exact replica of the 1903 Wright Flyer made in Dayton OH.

In 1926, Admiral Byrd made a disputed flight over the North Pole in this Fokker Trimotor aircraft.  The expedition was sponsored by Edsel Ford and the plane was named after his daughter Josephine.

It is documented that he did make the first flight over the South Pole in 1929 in this 1928 Ford Trimotor.

The Douglas Commercial (DC-3) was built from 1936 through 1950 and was the workhorse of the fledgling airline industry. 

This was one of the first Plane-Helos that was put in operation by the Detroit News.

The Dymaxian Round Aluminum House was a 1948 prototype of a proposed mass-produced house that was made from aluminum, steel, and plastic.  It looked like a great idea!    

Made in America items –

Last photo, Phone Evolution –

We hope to go back to the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation again, when the adjacent Greenfield Village is also open.

 A 3.5hr drive got us home about 5pm.