Harpers Ferry NHP, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia and Maryland

The tragedy of a country founded on freedom engaging in a war to keep some of its citizens enslaved and the tragedy of Americans fighting Americans, with hundreds of thousands of men killed by their fellow countrymen challenges our comprehension. Perhaps these two facts help illustrate the tragedy: on a single day in September 1862 at the Battle of Antietam, more than 23,000 men were killed or injured.  This totals more than all of the causalities in all of the battles that the United States had fought up to that time.  During the four years of the Civil War, over 600,000 men died -- with 360,000 killed from the North and 258,000 from the South. Many more died of their injuries in the months and years after combat.  The legacy of the Civil War continues as its sites still attract tourists from around the country and the world, as its battle tactics are still studied, and even after 150 years, as its causes and effects still stir heated debates.

Volunteer Burt leads a tour of Harpers Ferry to a group of tourists (Photo by Hunner)

A conflict that engulfed millions of people and lasted four years took a long time to develop. Driven by History will focus on the causes of the conflict over the next few weeks and has already posted a history of slavery in New York City at African Burial Ground For now, let’s focus on the beginnings of the armed conflict that occurred in Kansas and Harpers Ferry.

Harpers Ferry sits at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers. Thomas Jefferson passed by the valley with his daughter in 1783 on his way to serve in the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. He wrote in his Notes on the State of Virginia that it was “one of the most stupendous scenes in nature” and “worth a trip across the ocean” to witness.

The Thomas Jefferson Rock overlooking Harpers Ferry.  (Photo by Hunner)

President George Washington established a federal armory and arsenal there. In 1803, Meriwether Lewis obtained guns, powder horns, bullet molds, knives, and an iron frame for a portable boat to take on the Voyage of Discovery. It was an important place in the 19^th century.

A replica of Lewis's steel framed boat which he had made at Harpers Ferry (Photo by Hunner)

Dennis Frye, the Chief of Interpretation at Harpers Ferry, laid out its importance for me. First, Harpers Ferry was one of the earliest industrial centers in the U.S. The falls at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers provided ample water power for the mills that produced manufactured goods for the new republic. In 1819, John Hall used his government contract to make guns at Harpers Ferry with a revolutionary idea of manufacturing interchangeable parts that fit every musket.[1]

Muskets made at the Armory at Harpers Ferry (From exhibit at Visitors' Center)

Second, transportation innovations that transformed the United States came to Harpers Ferry in the 1830s. From Baltimore, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad raced to the west through Harpers Ferry to tap into the verdant region in Ohio. The route through this valley continues as trains screeched by my RV park day and night in nearby Brunswick, Maryland.

Harpers Ferry and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad bridge over the Potomac River (From the exhibit at the Visitors' Center)

Third, the military importance of the gap through the Blue Ridge Mountains manifested itself even before the Civil War when John Brown raided the armory and arsenal at Harpers Ferry to supply a slave revolt. Some say that the Civil War started then. During the war, the town changed hands eight times since it served as a strategic gateway to both the Shenandoah Valley and as an invasion route to the north for the Confederates. Harpers Ferry had more than 1,400 days of contest during the Civil War, even more if you factor in John Brown’s raid in 1859. By comparison, the battles of Antietam and Gettysburg lasted one and three days respectively.

Troops crossing the Potomac on a temporary bridge during the Civil War (From the exhibit at the Visitors' Center)

And fourth, civil rights in the 20^th century got a start here with the Niagara Movement in 1906 that helped found the NAACP in 1909. From industrialization to transportation to war to civil rights,

Harpers Ferry saw some of the most significant events in our nation’s history in the 19^th and early 20^th century. So Harpers Ferry played an important role both before and after the Civil War. It is a town anchored in many of the main developments in our nation’s past.

Students at Storer College in Harpers Ferry (From exhibit at the Visitors' Center)

Let’s focus on the beginning of the Civil War with John Brown and his raid. For an opportunistic attack on a nexus of the nation that targeted slavery, Harpers Ferry was ideal for Brown.

Born in 1800 to a family that farmed the hard hills of Connecticut, Brown embraced Calvinism, an austere faith that fought sin and material attachments. He also embraced the precepts of the young nation, especially the promise that all men are created equal. His fierce belief in this founding principle fueled a passionate drive to rid the nation of slavery.

Portraits of John Brown over the years (From the exhibit at the Visitors' Center)

Brown arrived in Kansas Territory in October 1855. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 had opened up those territories to a popular vote on slavery. Pro and anti-slavery advocates moved in to contest the vote, and emotions ran hot. As one pro-slavery newspaper proclaimed: “We will continue to tar and feather, drown, lynch, and hang every white-livered abolitionist who dares to pollute our soil.”[2]

In May 1856, 400 “Border Ruffians” attacked the Free State enclave at Lawrence, Kansas and anti-slavery settlers elsewhere. In retaliation, Brown, with four sons and two other men, descended on pro-slavery homes along the Pottawatomie Creek where they hacked to death five men. Violence continued to flare in Kansas, including the "Battle of Osawatomie" where Brown and forty men fought with several hundred Border Ruffians. Then Brown, now nationally known as the fiery abolitionist of Bleeding Kansas, left the territory to hatch a bigger plan to abolish slavery.

Tragic Prelude by John Steuart Curry

Brown wanted to capture the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry with its 100,000 guns and distribute those weapons to start a slave rebellion. He recruited men, raised money from abolitionists, and infiltrated the area in July 1859. Brown declared: “I want to free all the Negros in this state. If the citizens interfere with me, I must only burn the town and have blood.”[3]

On Sunday evening, October 16, John Brown, two of his sons, and eighteen other men, including five African Americans, set out from a nearby farm through the autumnal chill to attack Harpers Ferry. They quickly captured the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad bridge across the Potomac River, while shooting Heyward Shepherd, who died the next day. Shepherd, a free black luggage porter for the B & O, was their first victim.

A tribute to Heyward Shepherd near where he was killed from the United Daughters of the Confederacy (Photo by Hunner) 

 Quickly, Brown’s raiders secured the railroad bridge and parts of the town and kidnaped several plantation owners. Local men began to snipe at the raiders, and then militia from nearby Charlestown arrived. They recaptured the B & O Railroad bridge and continued shooting at Brown and his men, who had holed up in the Armory, the arsenal across the street, and the Rifle Works down the road. Brown’s headquarters in the Armory was in the Engine House, a thick brick building where he held the captives. A few of Brown’s men, particularly in the Rifle Works, tried to slip away, and most were gunned down by the militia. Brown’s son Watson was shot as he escorted a hostage out in the street to negotiate. The local men had no patience for any raiders who wanted to free slaves.

A replica of the Engine House, Brown's headquarters during the raid. (Photo by Hunner)

Two future commanders of the Confederate Army responded to the raid. Lt. Jeb Stuart, a cavalryman with the Army, led the ninety marines sent to the conflict. From D.C., they arrived by train at Harpers Ferry around 11 pm on the 17^th.  After calling for surrender, which Brown ignored, the marines stormed the Engine House. In his report on the action, future Confederate General Robert E. Lee commented that in a few minutes, ten of Brown’s men died as well as five hostages, including the mayor of Harpers Ferry and one marine.[4]

A  drawing of the interior of the Engine House with Brown's raiders and their hostages. (From the exhibit at the Visitors' Center)

Punishment came swiftly to Brown and his surviving men. One week after the raid, Brown faced trial in Charlestown. After a week of testimony, the jury needed only forty-five minutes to convict him of treason and murder. On Dec. 2, 1859, John Brown was hung.

The raid failed to start a slave rebellion. But it did spark an increase in abolition action in the north, and in the south, increased fears of both slave revolts and northern attacks on slavery. Brown’s intention of forcing the issue of slavery onto center stage worked.

Harpers Ferry continued to see action in the Civil War. In April 1861, Virginian troops, led by Thomas (later dubbed Stonewall) Jackson, captured the town and sent it weapons-making machinery south to produce arms for the Confederacy. In the fall of 1862, Jackson and his troops returned, laid siege to the town, and forced the surrender of the federal troops there, the largest such Union surrender during the Civil War.

After the war, Free Will Baptists created Storer College to teach ex-slaves, which became a center for civil rights struggles in the later part of the 19^th and into the 20^th centuries. At the second meeting of the Niagara Movement at Storer College, W.E.B. DuBois called for changes, including the vote for African American men; an end to discrimination in public accommodations; that the 14^th and 15^th amendments be honored and that laws be enforced “against the rich as well as the poor… against white as well as black;” and that “we want our children educated.”[5] This meeting helped create the NAACP in 1909.

The second meeting of the Niagara Movement at Storer College. W.E.B. DuBois is seated, fourth from the right. (From the exhibit of the African American Museum at Harpers Ferry)

Harpers Ferry has played a significant role in our nation’s history.  As a transportation center, a gateway to the west, a site in the industrial revolution, a flash point for the Civil War, and a center for civil rights, this place instigated and witnessed major events in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry helped realize of one of the founding promises of the country, that all men are created equal. Over the next few weeks, Driven by History will visit other Civil War parks will explore the history of the bloody conflict.

President Franklin Roosevelt signed legislation creating Harpers Ferry National Monument on June 29, 1944. It became a National Historical Park in 1963.

A monument to John Brown at Harpers Ferry with the Engine House on the left. (Photo by Hunner)

---

[1] Horowitz, 69.

[2] Horwitz, 45.

[3] Horwitz, 131.

[4] Horwitz, 291-92.

[5] From the exhibit at the African American Museum at Harpers Ferry.

The Island Paradise of Bornholm, Denmark

Welcome to Bornholm, a lovely island between Sweden and Poland in the Baltic Sea. Some surveys say the people of Denmark are the happiest in the world and those who live on Bornholm the happiest Danes. So welcome to the happiest place in the world.

Perhaps they’re happy because of the beauty of the island. Perhaps because it is like a garden of Eden with a lot of organic products and a healthy climate. Perhaps because it in their genes, which would not explain why my immigrant brother Pete is so happy here. Perhaps he’s happy because he’s an artist doing what he wants to do. The island is a haven for creative people.

The Gray Pond (Photo by Hunner)

Obviously, there are no NPS units in Denmark. I am taking a break from the road trip through our national parks to attend a conference in Sweden and a family wedding in Denmark. So this week, I offer a history of Bornholm, a smallish island, only forty miles long by ten wide.

Map of Scandinavia with the island of Bornholm just below the "B" in Baltic Sea

Bornholm rises out of the Baltic Sea as a great granite dome. At high points, you can see the southern coast of Sweden about thirty miles to the north. From many places on the island, the constantly changing blue and gray and green hued Baltic Sea is visible. About forty thousand people live on Bornholm year round; however, during the summer, tourists descend on it so that another 100,000 or more vacation here. The economy of the island rests on agriculture and tourism.

Humans first came to the island some 10,000 years ago as the Ice Age froze the Baltic Sea and people could walk to Bornholm. Maibritt, my Danish sister-in-law, while digging in her backyard garden found stone axes which dated back 7,000 years. As in the U.S., the resourcefulness and sophistication of ancient peoples is impressive. Hunters, gatherers, fishermen, farmers, all made this their home and adapted to their times, abilities, and environment.

Stone Axes similar to those found on Bornholm (From exhibit at the Danish National Museum, Copenhagen)

Small Viking warship from 1070 A.D.
(From exhibit at the Viking Ship Museum)

Sometime around the 8^th or 9^th century, Vikings arrived on the island. Before coming to Bornholm, I visited the Viking Ship Museum at Roskilde, Denmark. The museum has restored five different types of boats which they found sunk in their bay. They date the boats to around 1070 A.D. In addition to the Long Ship, a fast warship that carried up to 100 warriors, the other boats on exhibit included short haul ones that farmers might have used to take goods to market and a long haul freighter that carried twenty to twenty-five tons of cargo. Viking runes, burial mounds, and petroglyphs dot the landscape of Bornholm, and a shop in Svaneke, the Vikinghuset run by Torben Sode, sells Viking replica goods.

Christianity came late to the northland. Some crusaders came here instead of to the Holy Lands to convert the heathen tribes along the Baltic. On Bornholm, they built round churches for reverence as well as protection from raiding parties. Local legend has it that the Holy Grail was brought north by the Crusaders and resides in one of the five round churches on the island. Remote sensing has found a cavity below one of the church but as yet, church authorities have refused to allow further excavations.

A  Round Church on Bornholm (Photo by Hunner)

The interior of a Round Church (Photo by Hunner)

Strategically located in the Baltic Sea, the island is contested territory and has been since people began sailing. Its rich farms and woods provided supplies and goods for ships, and its central location guarded water travel in the region. Denmark has usually ruled it, but Sweden and the Hansa merchants from Lϋbeck also have controlled the island. The castle at Hammershus (the largest medieval fort in northern Europe) on the northwest tip of Bornholm overlooked the sea lanes through the Baltic and testify to the importance of the island.

The castle at Hammerhus on the north end of Bornholm (Photo by Hunner)

After the Vikings declined, an organization based in Lϋbeck, Germany called the Hanseatic League filled the vacuum. From the 13^th to the 16^th centuries, they dominated the Baltic Sea region as a multinational conglomeration with its own protection forces.

The Hansas established trading outposts in London, Burges, Bornholm, and elsewhere which sometimes grew into walled communities. These compounds had their own warehouses, churches, offices, residences, and weigh houses. In Tallinn, Estonia, a massive wall from the time period still surrounds the center of the city. I asked an Estonnian who the residents back then were afraid of to build such a wall, and he said: “Estonians.” Upon occasion, the Estonians revolted against the Hansa merchants and tried to storm their enclave.

The defensive city wall around Tallinn protecting the Hansa merchants (Photo by Hunner)

For much of the twentieth century, the Baltic Sea continued to be contested waters. As a gateway to eastern Russia through St. Petersburg, it is a vital link for that country. During World War II, Germany occupied Denmark including Bornholm. Resistance occurred. I talked with Bent, a fisherman who during the war helped run a chicken farm as a teenager. He told me about how they smuggled guns around the island buried under loads of fish heads which they used as chicken feed.

At war’s end, the German army refused to surrender to the Soviets, hoping instead to do so to the Americans. So the USSR bombed several cities on Bornholm in May 1945 and then moved in. The Soviets occupied Bornholm for eighteen months, and this is one of the few places that they had occupied which they left after the war.

Its strategic importance continues. During the Cold War, Denmark joined NATO, and Bornholm as the farthest east land of a member country served as a listening post into the Soviet Union. Today, resurgent Russia sends military planes routinely over the island. Other Baltic states such as Estonia and Latvia suffer similar encroachments of their airspace. While in Sweden, I heard that they have redeployed military forces on their Baltic Sea island of Gotland due to Russia’s increased posturing.

Despite its position in the center of tense geo-political webs, Bornholm has a well-deserved reputation as a haven for arts and crafts. Potters, fashion designers, and glass blowers thrive.  Here are a few examples. Eva Brandt makes pottery. Her designs incorporate nature so that tea mugs look like they are wrapped in birch bark.

Eva Brandt's pottery (Photo by Hunner)

Bente Hammer, a textile designer, silk screens patterns ranging from geometrical to Viking themes on her fabric at her studio.

Silk Screen printing of textiles at Bente Hammer's studio on Bornholm (Photo by Hunner)

And Maibritt Jönsson and Pete Hunner create beautiful glass at Baltic Sea Glass near the town of Gudhjem (God’s Home). They bought an old chicken farm from Bent (who I mentioned earlier in resisting the Nazis as a teenager} and his wife Grete and turned it into a studio and gallery. Their inspirations also come from nature—fall foliage, the tempest driven sea, and even Native American corn. These are just a few of the wonderful artists and craftspeople who live and work on Bornholm.

Above, Pete and Maibritt working at Baltic Sea Glass. Below, a glass bowl inspired by Native American corn
(Photos by Hunner)

Back to why Bornholmers are the happiest people in the world. David, the proprietor of my guest house, said even though everyone complains everywhere, the people here complain the most so they are happy. Brother Pete thinks they are happy because all the tourists say how lucky the residents of the island are living there. Sister-in-law Maibritt mentioned an “island mentality” which meant that the islanders take care of each other. Marianne, the minister at the wedding I went to, told me at the reception afterwards that all Bornholmers have a secret in their hearts: “When they have a problem, they go to the woods. When they have a problem, they go to the waterfalls. When they have a problem, they go to the sea. And then their problems aren’t so bad.” Even though there is no NPS on Bornholm, I think that sums up nicely why many of us go to parks. We get happier when we go to the parks.

The shore near Gudhjem on Bornholm (Photo by Hunner)

I am back on the road next week, visiting Virginia and North Carolina. Stay tuned as Driving by History goes to Williamsburg and more Civil War parks. 

Congratulations to the newlyweds driven away from the church by Torben in his 1920 Citroen.

Notes from the Road, Sept. 19, 2016

As you know, I love to travel. In addition to driving over 10,000 miles since May and visiting over fifty National Park Service sites, I also went to two international conferences. This posting will discuss the trips to the conferences and the countries.

The view of Bogota from Mount Monserrate with a rainbow (Photo by Hunner)

After the west coast road trip, I flew to Bogota, Colombia at the beginning of July to attend an International Federation of Public History conference. The IFPH has an ambitious goal of providing an organization for public historians around the world to connect and share ideas and issues. [A quick refresher – public history is the engagement of people with the past at museums, historic parks, and through social media and digital humanities.]

A sign in front of the Cafe Bizzaro in Bogota and a theme for public history-- locally produced, globally inspired.
(Photo by Hunner)

I presented a paper at Bogota on how we teach public history at New Mexico State University. I met a wide variety of people from Latin America at the conference and heard some interesting projects on truth and reconciliation, especially as the civil war in Colombia is ending. More about this later. I even heard a presentation by Dr. Mario Vilar, a historian from Chile, who researches historians who blog. I was the first live one that he has met.

Cathedral of Bogota on Plaza de Bolivar  (Photo by Hunner)

I was impressed with the cosmopolitan atmosphere of Bogota. We had very good cheap meals ($15 US for a steak dinner with wine), went to a fantastic museum on gold (more about this later), and had good accommodations both at our hotel as well as at the conference site at the University of the Andes. Thanks to Catalina Muñoz in Bogota and Serge Noiret and Thomas Cauvin with the IFPH for organizing such a worthwhile conference.

Front Entrance to the University of the Andes in Bogota (Photo by Hunner)

In September, I flew to Kalmar, Sweden for the annual meeting of Bridging Ages. Over 200 people from twenty countries, mainly from Europe and Africa, gathered at the Linnaeus University to discuss Time Traveling, that is bringing history to life through first person role playing and other activities. I having blogged about first person interpretation earlier when I visited Conner Prairie.  Since 2002, Bridging Ages has grown tremendously, especially in South Africa. There, they recreate past times with students who gain an experience about living under apartheid. Deputy Minister Rejoice Mabudafhasi of the South African Department of Arts and Culture talked to the conference as well as Mzalendo Kibunjia, the Director General of the National Museums of Kenya.

I presented with Padre Kevorg, an Armenian Mechitarist monk, and Cécile Franchetti, a heritage preservationist from Venice, about a Time Travel we conducted in October 2015. At the Time Travel, sixty 14 and 15 year-old students pretended to be back in 1870 at the first day of school at the Armenian College of Venice. At the conference, we presented a short history of Armenia and the Mechitarist religious order, showed how we prepared the students for the Time Travel, and then offered some images about the event itself. Padre Kevorg ended our session with a Magnificat, a moving Armenian devotional song to the Virgin Mary.

Padre Kevorg and me with a photo of an Amermian Church from 1200 AD presenting at the Bridging Ages conference. (Photo by C. Franchetti)

Because of the increased presence in Bridging Ages with people from places where human rights violations occurred, there was much discussion about truth and reconciliation. This also was a dominant theme in Bogota. I know that public historians can play a vital role in getting to the truth about past actions, including atrocities sometimes perpetrated by governments, sometimes by rebel groups. We are trained to get to the truth about past events.

I am not so sure that historians can bring about reconciliation, that we can heal the trauma of those actions or events. A past injury or death in a family or community cannot be so easily forgotten.  Some abuses take centuries to play out. For example, the United States Civil War is still being fought by some, and the legacy of slavery continues to impact communities and even the nation.

I would like to see evidence where historians brought about reconciliation. For example, on my road trip, I talked with a volunteer at the Flight 93 Memorial who lives about a mile from that Sept. 11th crash site. She told me she cried for three days after the crash and then someone from the local historical society knocked on her door and asked her to start collecting the items that people left on the road in front of her house in remembrance of the victims. For three years, she collected and curated those items and over time, she realized that by taking care of these leavings, she also was taking care of the victims. Reconciliation often only comes after years of processing and hard work and is very individualized. We can assist by presenting the truth about an event, but I question whether historians are qualified to work with the grieving public. Isn’t that better left to the trained professionals like therapists and social workers?

After the conference, I spent a weekend in Copenhagen, my favorite city in Europe. I walked up the winding spiral of the Round Tower where in the 1640s, King Christian IV rode his carriage up to check on the astronomers who used the top to observe the heavens. From up there, I had a great view of the old quarter of Copenhagen.

Left, Christian IV's Round Tower. Above,  the view of Copenhagen from the top of the Round Tower
(Photo by Hunner) 

I also visited the National Museum of Denmark where I compared the stone age peoples and cultures of Denmark with what I saw at the Museum of Gold in Bogota and the mound building sites at Cahokia and Hopewell. Here’s some observations. Ancient people in both North America and northern Europe similarly buried some of their dead in mounds, surrounded by graves goods. The ceremonial large flint axes on exhibit at the Danish National Museum, the Cahokia State park museum, and the Hopewell NHP looked very similar.

Ceremonial flint axes at the Danish National Museum, similar to ones at Cahokia and Hopewell (Photo by Hunner)

The exquisite filigree gold artifacts shown at the Bogota Museum are perhaps more finely done than the gold pieces at the National Museum, but the craftsmanship of both evoke a mystical essence that drifts down through the eons. For the ancient peoples of Colombia, they made effigy items out of gold to connect with the spirit animals of their three realms—the air, the ground, and under the ground. Thus animals like bats who lived in all three realms were highly praised. Jaguars also were powerful symbols The iconic symbol shown here

Two dimensional depiction of a jaguar from the Museum of Gold, Bogota (Photo by Hunner)

is actually a flattened out silhouette of a jaguar. This is also a symbol for a national beer.

Club Colombia beer with jaguar symbol as logo (Photo by Hunner)

At Denmark’s National Museum, gold also figured prominently. So here’s a test. Which objects are from Colombia and which from Denmark. The key is at the end of the blog.

Gold artifact #2

Gold artifact  #1

Gold artifact #4

Gold artifact #3

Copenhagen is a popular city, from museums and historic sites to the Tivoli, an amusement park right in downtown. There, old rides and activities combine with those that turn you upside down at a high speed. And some Danes go there just to eat in one of the many tasty restaurants. It is a destination that offers a lot.

Tivoli at night (Photo by Hunner)

Copenhagen is also a bicycle city. Many Danes commute by bike, hold hands while riding bikes, transports goods and other people by bike. I asked a waitress at breakfast if she rides during the winter and she said yes, it was actually safer than driving a car in the snow. She said they dress in layers “and I don’t know how, but we look awesome.” As my niece Tess states: “Copenhagen is a chic city.” I agree.

Bicycle rack at the Norreport Metro Station in Copenhagen (Photo by Hunner)

Finally, today I went by train to the Viking ship museum in Roskilde. In the 1960s, the Danish National Museum excavated five Viking ships sunk 1,000 years ago. The museum has partially reconstructed what they could of the ships in a stunning exhibit of simplicity. I went on a tour with Niclas who explained the different ships that the Vikings used from small coastal cargo boats to large warships to even larger cargo freighters. The Viking ship museum also uses experimental archaeology to understand how these ancients lived and sailed. They have reconstructed working replicas of all five boats and have even taken the large war ship from Denmark to Ireland and back.

Replica of viking warship on a voyage to Ireland 2007-2008 (From exhibit at Viking Ship Museum)

Tour guide Niclas in front of a reconstructed Viking ship from 1070 A.D. at the Viking Ship Museum
(Photo by Hunner)

Denmark offers a lot from historic landmarks to modern Nordic cuisine. It reaches well into its past while dealing with contemporary issues like refugees from the Middle East and Africa. Like many countries, Denmark is changing while connected to its past. An historian can’t ask for much more.

Here's the answers to which piece of gold comes from Colombia and which from Denmark:
#1-- Sun God's Chariot-- Danish National Museum, Copenhagen
#2-- Sun God-- Museum of Gold, Bogota
#3-- Flying Fish-- Museum of Gold, Bogota
#4-- Face of a Man-- Danish National Museum, Copenhagen

Replicas of the recovered Viking ships built as experimental archaeology at the Viking Ship Museum (Photo by Hunner) 

Guide to Being a Parkgonaut

Since I first started driving to history, I met people who like me who are smitten by the parks-- people like Tim Sprano of Virginia, the Rich family of Georgia, and others who line up at the NPS passport stamping stations. I struggled to find a term to describe us, and “park fanatics” just didn’t do it. Several weeks ago, as I was leaving the RV park near Gettysburg, I chatted with two women from Houston who asked if I was going to all 400+ parks. They were on that quest, and as I drove away, the name “parkgonauts” popped into my head to describe us. So here is my guide to being a parkgonaut.

Chief of Interpretation Dennis Frye at Harper's Ferry NHP visiting some of the people he has researched.
(Photo by Hunner) 

As many of you know, Jason had his Argonauts and NASA its astronauts. The Argonauts sought the Golden Fleece, and the astronauts shot the moon.  These were intrepid adventurers who through personal sacrifice, traveled the world or space on missions of daring deeds. OK so traveling in an RV is not quite the stuff of Greek myths or space walks but you get the idea.

Parkgonaut Hunner at Delicate Arch, Arches NP, Utah

Here are some skills and abilities I think necessary for parkgonauts. First, you need a park. Doesn’t have to be many, even one will do. You just need to explore a National Park or even a state or local park. Something that takes you away from your everyday world.

Second, you need time. A day, an afternoon, even an hour will do, you just need some time to spend at a park.

Third, you need to be inquisitive about something in the park, whether is a natural resource, a historical person, place, or event, or just something that grabs your attention. This something needs to interest you so that you keep wanting to scratch that itch by going to parks.

Fourth, as my friend George says, you need bug spray. I might put this as optional depending on where you are going but you might need to get a pack and put in some essential supplies you need for a trip away from home and car, even if only for a few hours.

El Capitan at Yosemite NP (Photo by Hunner)

Fifth, a bit of preparation helps but is not required. Research the park, start walking to get ready for the miles that you might hike to fully embrace the park. I like to bicycle some parks since I get an intimate view of the landscape and enjoy riding through the history. The main piece of advice is get away from your car as much as you can. Get out and read the roadside exhibits that explain what happened there. Even in the most crowded parks, it is amazing how few people hike even a ½ mile away from the parking lots and visitor centers.

Pokemon ranger at FDR Memorial, Washington DC showing me how to play. (Photo by Hunner)

Lastly, start conversations with fellow visitors. Ask where they are from, have they been to this particular place before, where else have they gone or are going? Visitors are engaged with our parks, and love to share their experiences. I have enjoyed talking with and learning from my fellow travelers.

Welcome to the club, all you parkgonauts. We celebrate the parks not just in this centennial year, but throughout our lives. The parks speak to us deeply. They provide tranquility and rejuvenation, they take us out of ourselves, and they ground us in nature and the past. So get out and chase that Golden Fleece in the National Parks.

First person interpreter Carl talking with parkgonaut George at Appomattox Courthouse NHS, Virginia
(Photo by Hunner)

Next week, I am attending a family wedding on an island in the Baltic Sea. Stay tuned for a blog about the history of this fascinating island of Bornholm which I will post next Monday night.