Off To Maryland

Before we left Gettysburg today, we made one last stop downtown at the David Wills House, part of Gettysburg National Military Park.  This is the house where President Lincoln spent the night before delivering the Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery.

David Wills House

The exhibits in the house fill in some of the missing pieces of the Battle of Gettysburg, including the impact of the battle and its aftermath on the townspeople.  David Wills was a prominent lawyer who was directly involved in the creation of a national cemetery in Gettysburg.  He invited President Lincoln to deliver a “few appropriate remarks” at the dedication ceremony.

More than 20,000 people came to Gettysburg for the ceremony, and David and Catherine Wills accommodated many of the distinguished guests.  The bedroom where Lincoln slept and finished revising the Gettysburg Address is on display and is furnished with original pieces.  The museum interprets the significance of the speech and why it continues to endure to this day.



Bedroom Where Lincoln Stayed Before Delivering the Gettysburg Address

We finally left Pennsylvania, on our way to Baltimore, Maryland, to visit with friends and family.  Tonight we had dinner with Noreen and Mike, and it was wonderful to see them.  It’s been way too long since we got together, but they are the kind of friends where we can just pick up where we left off.


Mike and Noreen

Tonight was also our first experience “camping” in a Wal-Mart parking lot.  There are simply no campgrounds near Baltimore, so we decided to give this a try.  So far, so good.  I’ll report tomorrow on how it turned out.


Our "Campsite" at Wal-Mart



Sacred Ground

A visit to Gettysburg National Military Park is a pilgrimage for many people.  That was not why Tim and I came to Gettysburg, but we did want to see the park for ourselves.  I’m neither a military nor Civil War buff, but I do believe one can gain a greater sense of history by visiting the place where the event occurred.

The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War.  More men died at Gettysburg than in any battle fought in North America before or since.  The beautiful farmlands around Gettysburg appear much the same as they did during the battle in 1863, and touring the battlefield gives one a sense of the scope of those events.



Tim Contemplating the Battle at Gettysburg



One Thousand Yards of Battlefield, With the Union Lines in the Foreground
and the Confederate Lines in the Far Trees

The National Park Service’s new visitor center and museum does a magnificent job of interpreting the battle.  Through a new film, the restored Cyclorama Painting and twelve exhibit galleries, the Battle of Gettysburg is placed in the context of both the Civil War and the nation’s history during the first two decades of the nineteenth century.  I was exhausted when we exited the building, as there was just so much information to absorb.

A Reproduction of a Small Portion of the Cyclorama
The Resotred Cyclorama Is Upstairs at the Visitor Center and Is Amazing To See



Abe and Sarah

Before we began our tour of the battlefield, I wanted to visit a more recent battleground at Gettysburg.  For the last decade or so, a battle has raged between the National Park Service and modern-architectural preservationists who want to preserve the original Cyclorama Building, designed by Richard Neutra in 1962.  The National Park Service announced plans in 1999 to demolish the building, but the Recent Past Preservation Network successfully sued to block the demolition until the National Park Service complied with Federal law and explored alternatives to demolition.  Although the building is loathed by battlefield purists, it is an outstanding example of Modernist architecture.  Today, the fate of the building has not been determined, and it will be interesting to see what happens.



Cyclorama Building and Observation Deck



Cyclorama Building

The auto tour of the battlefield traces the three-day battle in chronological order and includes stops at the most important sites.  Throughout the park are monuments erected by various states and regiments that participated in the battle.  There must be hundreds of these monuments, from simple stones to elaborate structures.



Eternal Light Peace Memorial



Pennsylvania Memorial

At the end of the day, we took time to visit the Eisenhower National Historic Site, which is adjacent to the Gettysburg National Military Park.  This site encompasses the farm purchased by Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower in 1950.  The Eisenhower Home retains most of its original furnishings and reflects the personality of the couple.  It is telling that their favorite room was the glassed-in sun porch, where they relaxed, ate dinner on trays and watched television.  It is a beautiful property and worth a visit.


Eisenhower Home



Eisenhower Barn

Small Town Charm, Chocolates and Pretzels

The leaks in the RV are fixed, or at least we think they are!  We spent the morning at Miller’s Service Center in Honey Brook, Pennsylvania, attending to the RV issues that have been nagging at us for the last few weeks.  We had tried to book appointments at other RV dealers, but most could not take us for at least two weeks.  We were lucky to find Miller’s last Friday while we were in Lancaster County, and returned today for the repairs.

Cheyney, the technician who took care of us, climbed up on the roof and inspected every place that could possibly allow water to seep in.  He found a few culprits that had likely caused our problems, and then he sealed everything.  We were in and out of the shop in just about an hour.  I guess we won’t know for certain if we are water tight until the next rainstorm, but I’m very optimistic.



Seal Those Leaks!

We now had to make a decision.  Should we head southeast or southwest?  West won out, and we started towards Gettysburg.  On the way we remembered a tip from Joy and stopped in Lititz, Pennsylvania, for chocolate.  Lititz, which bills itself as Lancaster County’s Sweet Spot, was settled by Moravians in the eighteenth century.  The town is now known as much for its chocolate and pretzels as it is for its history.

Tim and I have not had the opportunity to spend much time in the small towns that we pass through, so our stroll through Lititz was a special treat.  The downtown main street contains a collection of specialty shops in wonderful, historic buildings, and we browsed as we walked.



Downtown Lititz Main Street

We were in search of Café Chocolate, which, we were told, sells amazing truffles.  We had a lesson in cacao beans and all-natural chocolate from the delightful staff and feasted our eyes on the display of beautiful truffles.  Of course we couldn’t leave empty-handed!

Cafe Chocolate



One Of Each Please

We also stopped at the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery for soft pretzels.  It was Julius Sturgis who opened the first commercial pretzel bakery in America in 1861.



Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery

Well-stocked with tasty treats, we headed towards Gettysburg where we will immerse ourselves in the Civil War tomorrow.


Lititz Historical Museum



Historic Lititz



du Pont Legacy

Where is a perfect place to spend a gorgeous fall day?  For us, it was Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.  Longwood Gardens is one of the premier horticultural showplaces in the world and encompasses more than 1,077 acres.  I wasn’t sure what we would see this time of year, but Tim and I were literally blown away.

We started our tour at the Peirce-du Pont House, which was built in 1730 and was the family homestead of the Peirce family until 1905.  After Pierre du Pont purchased the property, he enlarged the house for his weekend residence and added the garden’s first conservatory.  The house contains a wonderful heritage exhibit, which details the history of the property, its evolution into Longwood Gardens and the du Pont legacy.



Peirce-du Pont House



The Original Conservatory at the Peirce-du Pont House



Tim Examining Original Herbarium Sheets in the Heritage Exhibit
Are They Like the Ones in His Collection?



Planting Plan Drawn by Pierre du Pont in 1907
for Longwood Garden's First Flower Garden

The most amazing structure at Longwood is the Conservatory, one of the world’s great greenhouses.  Built in 1919, the Conservatory is enormous and contains twenty indoor gardens.  Seasonal displays are always a draw in the Conservatory, and the Chrysanthemum Festival recently opened.



The Conservatory

I like chrysanthemums, but I was not prepared for the unique varieties and colors on display.  And not just planted mums, but ones trained to hang from the ceiling, form pagodas and drape like curtains.  But the most amazing display was the huge Thousand Bloom mum.  This display may look like a collection of multiple plants, but it is truly a single plant that contains 1,000 flowers.  Incredible!  It’s unreal what the horticulturalists at Longwood can get a plant to do.  Tim was impressed with the historic, working greenhouses at the rear of the Conservatory.


Thousand Bloom Mum - It Really Is Only One Plant



Tim and Sarah - Mum's the Word



Chrysanthemums Everywhere



Hanging Mums



Mums Galore



Main Fountain Garden

We spent most of the day at Longwood and had to tear ourselves away to visit the Brandywine Valley Museum, which is home to a large collection of works by the Wyeth family.  Our visit here reminded us of our tour of the Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, Maine, which also houses a large Wyeth collection.

All and all, a very colorful and art-filled day.

Flower Power - Longwood Gardens Is Going Solar

Lovely Pennsylvania

Southeastern Pennsylvania is a beautiful part of the state, and the countryside is amazingly picturesque.  Scenic drives, lovely farms, charming towns and historic stone houses and barns make this area a wonderful place to explore. 

We ventured out from Lancaster County to discover more of Pennsylvania.  On our way to Valley Forge, I had suggested that we make a slight detour to visit Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site.  I had read that Hopewell Furnace was one of many “iron plantations” that produced iron goods during the early nineteenth century, and it seemed like an interesting place to visit.  When we approached the park, however, we found the gate closed.  How disappointing.  Not only did we not get to visit the park, but I couldn’t even get my passport stamp.



Hopewell Furnace Was Closed

We later found out that the park is closed on Monday and Tuesday in the off-season.  Another lesson learned – this time of year we need to check whether places are open before driving out of the way to see them.  At least the drive there was pretty, despite the widespread damage to trees from the storm.  It continued to amaze me how many branches, or entire trees, had simply snapped.  Many roads were still closed, and trucks from the various power and telephone companies were still repairing lines.

Valley Forge National Historical Park was open, and there we re-learned the story that every school child is taught.  We already knew that Valley Forge was the site of a winter encampment of soldiers during the Revolutionary War.  Valley Forge is particularly known for the hardships that the men endured, suffering from scarce food and clothing.



The Visitor Center at Valley Forge Is Wrapped
With a Copy of a Painting that Hangs in the Pennsylvania Capitol

But Valley Forge is about much more than hardship and misery.  Through an orientation film, exhibits and a self-guided tour, we learned more about the significance of the encampment and how it fits into the context of the American Revolution.  We learned about the character of the soldiers who comprised the Continental Army and how they developed into a highly trained force during their winter and spring at Valley Forge.  Valley Forge was another national park well-worth the visit.


National Memorial Arch Commemorates
the "Patience and Fidelity" of the Soldiers Who Wintered At Valley Forge



Washington's Headquarters at Valley Forge



Reconstructed Hut at Valley Forge
The Small Amount of Snow on the Ground Here Cannot Compare
With the Winter of 1777-1778

Before we left Lancaster County this morning, we had looked for a campground near Valley Forge.  We are very aware that many campgrounds are closing for the season today, or have already closed.  Tim found a KOA campground in the area, and although it was scheduled to close, the owner had decided to keep it open a few more days.

I’m not sure we had ever planned to stay at a KOA, but we found the Philadelphia/West Chester KOA to be a beautiful campground.  We were placed in one of the deluxe sites, with our own stone patio, table and chairs, barbeque grill and lovely view.  After dealing with muddy sites the last few days following the storm, this bit of luxury was welcome indeed. 

Tim Walking Kitty at Our "Luxury" Campsite

Happy Halloween

Kitty, Tim and I wish everyone a Happy Halloween.

Even though Kitty may not look very happy in these photos, she assured me that she did have fun dressing up in her costumes.  I think she makes a fabulous pirate.  Tim thinks I’m nuts and has accused me of Kitty abuse.  I don’t know what he’s talking about.



Thank You, Jane, For My Pirate's Hat

I'm Really Not the Devil, I Just Act Like One Sometimes



What Damage Hath the Storm Wrought?

We awoke to a beautiful morning, with bright blue skies and snow coating all of the trees.  The sun quickly melted the snow on the trees, but the ground was still covered with several inches of snow throughout the day.  Several driveways at the campground were blocked either by broken limbs or overhanging branches that were heavily weighted down by snow.  Some RVs even had to be pulled out from their campsites.



Morning At the Campground

Although we had heard on the news about the damage to trees throughout the storm-affected area, we were unprepared for the extent of the downed and broken trees on the back roads.  One of the roads we tried to enter was closed, and others were littered with large branches.  We saw one tree resting on a power line.  We literally drove into an overhanging branch when traffic prevented us from avoiding it.  Oh well, the Kat Karrier is going to get a few battle scars.


Downed Trees On the Back Roads



Lots of Snow On the Trees



Even More Snow



Enough Snow For a Halloween Snowman

We spent the afternoon at the mall in Lancaster, dealing with a few technology-related issues.  Lo and behold, we were successful in resolving them. 



On the Way Home



Nevermind, We Made It

We made it back from the nearly-frozen.  By mid-afternoon, the power at the campground had been restored, and we were able to fill the tank with propane.  It took a while, but we were finally able to warm up the RV, and even Kitty was able to come out from hibernation.



Even Kitty Had To Find a Way To Keep Warm

It’s beautiful outside, but six inches of snow is not what I had in mind for October, or any month on the road for that matter.  Our goal had been to avoid snow and freezing temperatures at almost all costs.

Close That Door!



Snow, and Even More Snow, Falls As the Day Wears On



It Really Is Pretty, Though



Is It Fall, or Winter?

We have learned a good lesson, however, and that is to make sure the propane is full when colder weather is predicted.  The furnace can really consume propane quickly when it’s very cold outside.

Although we were uncomfortable, I felt especially bad for all of the folks who had come to the campground for Halloween weekend.  Apparently, this is a hugely popular camping weekend in the Northeast, and the campground had planned all sorts of activities.  Most of the other campers who arrived yesterday had gone all out in decorating for the holiday.  There were a lot of disappointed families here today.  Many, in fact, packed up and left.

We’ll plan to celebrate Halloween in the next day or so.  Kitty’s costumes are waiting for her.