Wed. & Thurs., Sept. 18-19, 2024
Wednesday was a good day to pack and prepare for the upcoming weekend adventure on the East Coast.
As we have done each of the last two years, son Michael and grandson Jacob would join me for a college football weekend during Jacob's Camarillo Stingers Pop Warner team's bye week.
In 2022, we flew up to Seattle to see the Colorado Buffaloes at the Washington Huskies game, a way too easy 54-7 win for the UW squad.
Last year we journeyed to New York to first see the sights of the Big Apple before heading north up the Hudson River to see a much better game as the Boston College Eagles nipped the Army Black Knights of the Hudson, 27-24.
As for this year's excursion . . .
We were off the Annapolis, Maryland
for the Memphis Tigers (3-0) at
Navy Midshipmen (2-0) contest
Why this particular game you ask?
The simple answer is that with my growing disillusion with the direction that collegiate DI football is going what with NIL and Transfer Portal issues, I just like, more and more, what our nation's military academies represent in terms of old school values such as duty, honor and loyalty.
Plus I LOVE the various forms of option football that Navy, Army and Air Force all employ to matriculate the ball down the field.
I also like going to a game where 100% of the crowd is respectful and either quiet or, as most do, sing the National Anthem loudly.
There was one other underlying reason for going to this game, the opportunity for Civil War buffs, Michael and Jacob, to visit some of the historic battle sites of that tragic American war of 160+ years ago.
Both Jacob and Michael have been
involved in Civil War reenactments
for several years now
They are now getting Mary
and Vanessa involved in the
these fun reenactments too
Thus our plans included visits to important
Civil War sites in four states:
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Antietam, Maryland
Gettysburg Pennsylvania
Manassas, Virginia
It promised to be a busy, busy four days. Our journey started early Thursday morning as Laurie drove us to LAX for the flight to Dulles International Airport that services Washington, D.C. from about 25 miles away in Virginia.
Our plane was on time and we
enjoyed a smooth five hour flight
Three happy campers embarking
on an incredible adventure
Of course Jacob brought several
Civil War books along to read
on the plane and to then impart his
knowledge to me for the entire trip
Jacob pondering the eternal question,
"How do we stay up in the air?"
Clouds blanketing the Mid-West
An opening in the clouds
Our invasion has started
Jacob was not crazy about the colonial era uniforms. We had to explain to him that there is a tad more to U.S. history than the Civil War.
We navigated Dulles Airport efficiently
We met our Enterprise Rent-a -Car
shuttle bus here
We got our Nissan Rogue car fairly quickly and were on our way to our first night's stay in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.
Our Waze GPS app put us on beautiful country roads through Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia that took us through quaint towns and wonderful flora and fauna.
How old do you think that
this house might be?
How about this one?
We drove past lots of deer along
the roadside which was fun
After our gorgeous one hour drive, we arrived at our goal city late in the afternoon.
The scene of an important Civil War
battle in 1862 won by the Confederates
Still, Harpers Ferry is more famous for Abolitionist John Brown's Raid there in 1859, a main precipitating incident to the Civil War that would start two years later.
John Brown's Raid was costly
Brown's small band of fighters intended this attack as the first stage of an elaborate plan to establish an independent stronghold of freed slaves in the nearby mountains of Maryland and Virginia.
If successful, Brown was also looking to gain both moral and financial support from several prominent pro-Abolitionist men in Boston.
Brown opted Harpers Ferry because of its strategic location as a gateway to the South and because it had an armory that they wanted to seize to arm any others who might want to join their raid once it started.
Brown hoped that once slaves heard about the raid, they would try to escape their masters and join Brown's forces, in other words, he wanted to foment a slave rebellion.
A short siege ensued as combined state and Federal troops arrived led by future Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and J.E.B. Stuart.
Sporadic fighting took place for two days leaving 17 men dead. Brown was captured and convicted of treason. He and six fellow survivors of the raid were hung a few months later.
Although most Northerners denounced John Brown's Raid, it sent shock waves throughout the South. Always fearful of a slave rebellion, slave owning Southerners were now convinced that the Northerners would stop at nothing in their quest to end slavery. They also feared that with Brown's execution, Abolitionists would now have the martyr to their cause that would create even more support to their fervent followers.
We arrived in the village of Harpers Ferry at around 7:00 p.m. when most of the city's sidewalks were already rolled up.
As I said, quaint
Jacob was excited to say the least
This B&O railroad track that ran
through Harpers Ferry was
strategically important during both
the Raid and the Civil War battle
The six acres where the Raid
occurred in 1859 and the site of
th U.S. Armory in question
The Armory that stood here would eventually be a casualty of the Civil War.
This John Brown' Raid marker was the
first of hundreds of Civil War markers
that we would see this weekend
The rugged bluff across from
the village of Harpers Ferry
The only remaining building from
the Raid is this Armory's fire engine
house known now as John Brown's Fort
We still had time to explore more of the village.
What is this building's
historical significance?
AHA!
Storer College was a Historically Black College University (HBCU) that flourished in Harpers Ferry from 1867 to 1955.
Trekking up to St. Peter's
Roman Catholic Church
Jacob tried to enter but
the doors were closed
Another historic marker needing
desperately to be read, so we all did
Obviously INDEED!
An interesting building overlooking
Harpers Ferry that we all liked
This Inn was coming to life
Our collective hunger was
coming to life as well
What exactly are "Historic Candies?"
We really needed to find a dinner spot so we drove a few minutes to nearby Charles Town, WV in search of pizza.
Our recommended restaurant
was near this intersection
Abolitionist Ale Works got the call
The Funky Olive for Jacob,
the Funky Fig for me and
the Blue Buffalo for Michael
The Funky Fig was easily the best thing I ate on our trip.
While awaiting the pizzas,
Jacob started playing a bar game
Though challenged by Michael,
Jacob won in getting the ring on a
string to swing towards the wall
and then get it to catch on a hook more
often than his father
Jacob, pose for a picture for me
Poppo, pose for a picture for me
More of the Ring on a String, Hook Game
Michael redeemed himself in winning this indoor version of the game.
It was the first time for all three of
us in the Great State of West Virginia
John Brown
Harriett Tubman and Frederick Douglass
Of course their portraits were hanging in the Abolitionist Ale Works.
J.B., who does your hair?
It's a good look if you ask me.
Next time you are in Charles Tow, WV
stop here and order the Funky Fig pizza
Heading back to our car,
Jacob spotted this banner
Charles Town has race track
at their Hollywood Casino complex
Go Javier, GO!
I liked this Charles Town mosaic
that was an eerie shade of blue
in the dark of the night
Fully sated and a tad tired, we called it a night.
We would need to fully recharge our batteries for Friday's busy agenda that would include visits to the Antietam Battlefield in Maryland, the Gettysburg Battle Field in Pennsylvania, a high school football game in Gettysburg and then a 90 minute drive to our next hotel located in Bowie, Maryland.
Stay tuned . . .
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