Notes from the Road, August 29, 2016

I went to a birthday party on August 25^th and fell in love with a French woman. I have seen her several times over the years, but this time we clicked. Maybe it was the celebration, maybe it was all the people flocking to her, whatever the chemistry, I was smitten. I admired her like millions of others past and present, for her call for freedom and liberty. Of course, I am talking about the Statue of Liberty. More about her later.

The Statue of Liberty from the ferry (Photo by Hunner)

Before the NPS birthday party at the Statue of Liberty, I went to the New Bedford Whaling NHP. As a desert dweller, I am fascinated by the sea and those who sail it. It is a foreign world to me. From there, I drove to another shipping museum at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut where I boarded the Edward Morgan, the last surviving tall ship from the American whaling fleet. A passing comment by a volunteer in the information booth sent me to the U.S. Submarine museum in Groton where I crammed myself into the passages of the USS Nautilus, the first Navy vessel to use nuclear propulsion.

A painting of the whaling ships at New Bedford with barrels of whale oil. (From the exhibit at the visitors' center) 

I then landed at an RV park across the Hudson River from Manhattan, and even more importantly, near the New Jersey ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I went to Liberty first to help celebrate the 100^th birthday of the National Park Service. I asked if there were any celebratory activities and found out that a Girl Scout troop was singing “This Land is Your Land” at the base of the Lady. Park rangers held up cue cards with the lyrics, and many of us sang along. When asked why the park chose that song, Chief Ranger Melissa turned to me and said, “The parks belong to all of us, they’re all our land.” Lady Liberty is a majestic and endearing symbol of our yearning for a better life. I am in awe of this green elegant woman.

Park rangers holding up the lyrics to "This Land is Your Land" (Photo by Hunner)

I hopped on the Statue Cruises ferry and went to Ellis Island where millions arrived to actualize that dream. It was humbling to see the stories of why people fled their ancestral homes to come to the United States. It was also inspiring to see how they pursued a dream of a better life for them and their families in the U.S.

Immigrants fled from poverty and war (From the Ellis Island exhibit)

The New York neighborhood that immigrants arrived at (From Ellis Island exhibit) 

The next morning, I toured the September 11 Memorial at the site of the World Trade Center. The fountains that cascade down over the foot print of the two towers and then into square chambers further underground is a moving image for all the lives lost. Walking around the subterranean museum with its crushed fire helmets and relics of the collapsed skyscrapers and with the video and photos of the carnage of that tragic day was at times too much for me. In truth, I rushed through parts of the exhibits since the emotion was still too raw. It is an incredible museum which I will write about in a future blog in combination with the Flight 93 National Monument.

One of the two fountains at the September 11 Memorial (Photo by Hunner)

The remnants of the foundation of one of the Twin Towers with the last steel girder that was removed
(From September 11 Memorial exhibit)

Leaving the New York area later that morning, I took a wrong turn on an interstate in New Jersey. Fortunately, I found myself at the Morristown NHP where George Washington and his Continental Army wintered in 1779-1780. Here, the winter was worse than Valley Forge, but the Patriots lost less men because of the lessons learned about hygiene and camp living.

General George Washington's office at Morristown where he wintered with the Continental Army 1779-1780
(From the Ford House exhibit at the  Morristown NHP) 

I then spent a couple of days in the Philadelphia area, first with tours of Independence Hall, City Tavern, Declaration House, Franklin House, and Carpenter Hall. And then I biked around Valley Forge and surprisingly, met Jennifer Bourque, a former public history student from New Mexico State University. I went on her tour of the camp and was happy that she is doing well as a park ranger.

Former NMSU Public History student Jennifer Bourque leading a tour at Valley Forge (Photo by Hunner)

At an RV campsite, I parked next to Sheldon, a Civil War re-enactor who showed me his uniform as a Yankee Signal Corps sergeant. As I was getting ready to leave for Gettysburg, he briefed me on the first day of battle there.

As I went from Valley Forge to Gettysburg, I have to admit that I ground some gears as I shifted from the American Revolution to the Civil War. And I realized that I have been immersed in our war parks for the better part of last week with another week of battlefields on the schedule.

Like last week, I visited more parks than I have time to blog about. Eventually I will write about all of these parks when I am not driving so much. In the meantime, while I travel to the next historic site, I find rejuvenation as I think about that French lady, about Lady Liberty.

The face of Liberty (From exhibit at the Statue of Liberty National Monument)