Home, again

Day 374

     Back home for routine maintenance on Truck and The Sphinx. While we are having that done, going to a wedding (another good man bites the dust), and a week at Ocean City, Maryland. Hope to be back on the road in 2 weeks. 

Technical Stuff: Ashland, Va to Fallston, Md. 175.4 miles

4 hours and 55 minutes (numerous backups, I am surprised I got such good milage)

10.9 MPG

Diesel: $2.22

 

Maymont, Richmond, Virginia

Day 373

     James Henry Dooley, the son of wealthy Irish immigrants, was born January 17, 1841. On May 5, 1862, during the Civil War, he was wounded at the Battle of Williamsburg, captured and confined in prison for a short time. Upon his release he worked in the Confederate Ordnance Department in Richmond.

     After the War, Dooley further increased his fortune by speculating in real estate and becoming involved in railroads, steel and banking.

     To show off his wealth, in 1893 he and his wife Sallie built their elaborate Gilded Age estate on a site high above the James River in Richmond, Virginia, and called it Maymont. This 100-acre Victorian estate contains not only the mansion, but gardens, water falls, animals, and furniture from all over the world. 

From gilded wall paper To opulent furniture

Even their archways had stained glass 

And of course, a comfortable bed 

     Throughout my travels, I have seen hundreds of lily pads, but no frogs on them. I am wondering if this is a myth. 

Petersburg, Virginia

Day 372

     So, where was Robert E. Lee’s last major battle before he surrendered at Appomattox Court House? I thought it was Richmond, Virginia (based on the phrase “like Grant took Richmond”), but I was mistaken. 

     Grant began his march from Washington, DC with the intention to take the Capital of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia. He fought many battles on the way, in which Lee continued to outflank him (as stated in previous posts). Because of no decisive victories, and suffering some defeats, Grant decides to attack Petersburg, Virginia, as that is the hub of the Confederacy’s supply and transportation lines. The thought was cut off Lee’s supplies, and Richmond falls.  It was not as easy as he thought. The siege of Petersburg took him 9 months.

     Finally on April 2, 1865, Grant breaks through the confederate line at what is now called the Breakthrough Battlefield. We hiked this battlefield today, about 2 miles. Once Grant broke through, he was able to cut off all the supplies to Lee. Lee telegraphed Jefferson Davis in Richmond and told him to evacuate. Lee himself retreated, hoping to make it to North Carolina to meet up with General Joseph E. Johnson (see Day 249). 

     After the breakthrough, Grant pushed on after Lee, finally trapping him at Appomattox seven days later, where Lee surrendered. 

     When a portion of Grant’s army entered Richmond, there was no troops or government there. 

     l learn something new every day. 

Ashland, Virginia

Day 371

     Visited the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier (Pamplin Historical Park). This museum was not about any particular battle, or about the Union Soldier v. the Southern Soldier. It was about how the soldiers who fought in the ranks prepared, lived, and survived, or not. When you enter, you chose a soldier to follow through the museum. He narrates his particular life (as interpreted through diaries and letters he wrote home). 

     The museum also covered the black soldier’s plight, and some of the citizens in the towns used as battlefields. It was certainly a different perspective than the other museums we have been.

Technical Stuff:

Fayetteville, North Carolina to Ashland, Virginia:  236.4 miles

4 hours 41 minutes

12.6 MPG

Diesel: $2.33

 

Edgar Allan Poe’s House, Fayetteville, North Carolina

Day 370

     Visited Edgar Allan Poe’s house. No, not that Edgar Allan Poe. This Edgar Allan Poe was born in Fayetteville, N.C. and was a prominent businessman. The house was built in 1897 and represents the life style of the middle class at that time. In a couple of days I’ll show you a house reflecting the life style of the hoity-toity.

 

     The house housed a museum of the history of the Fayetteville area.

Fayetteville, North Carolina

Day 368

     Fayetteville, North Carolina is best known as the home of Fort Bragg. Established in 1918, it is now the largest military installation in the world, covering over 251 square miles with more than 50,000 active duty personnel. It is named for Confederate General Braxton Bragg. As so, Fayetteville hosts many war related museums, including the Airborne and Special Operations Museum. 

 

     And North Carolina’s Veterans Park. This park is unique in that it paid tribute to veterans, past, present, and future, by displaying one hundred bronze hands from castings taken from veterans of every North Carolina County. 

 

     In the exhibit hall was a chandelier of dog tags representing 10,000 North Carolina casualties from World War II to the present.

Technical Stuff:

Summerton, South Carolina to Fayetteville, North Carolina: 114.4 miles

2 hours 52 minutes

11.8 MPG

Diesel: $2.33

Cooper River, South Carolina

Day 367

     We hiked along the Cooper River in Berkeley County, South Carolina. This is the area were Francis Marion was born in 1732. He joined the military and took part in the French and Indian War. He became known for his brutal campaign against the Cherokee Indians, this carried over to the Revolutionary War. He was not liked by the ranking military officers and was given his own command in defending South Carolina from the British to get him out of their hair. Marion committed atrocities during the war, including not honoring flags of surrender, brutality, and killing unarmed prisoners.

     An example would be after the Battle of Eutaw Springs on September 8, 1781. The retreating British fled to a plantation were they set up a hospital to treat their wounded. Marion ordered the hospital, and it’s inhabitants, burned to the ground. This incident resulted in much controversy about the proper rules of warfare. The senior Continental Officer of South Carolina responded saying military supplies were stored in the building, which made it a legitimate target. The victors write the history.

     Marion was made a romantic hero by books and shows like Walt Disney’s Swamp Fox.