Showing posts with label Louisiana. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Louisiana. Show all posts

Sunday, March 17, 2024

2021-07: The Final Week of Our 5300 Mile Road Trip from Texas to Indiana to Florida and Back to Texas

In todays edition of the AwayWeGo's Adventures Blog, we're winding down these last few days of our 5300 mile road trip to purchase our motorhome. These last 2300 miles went by much faster than we would have gone in the past. Driving the big RV we stuck to the Interstates for the most part. I gotta learn how to route plan better so that we can still do some sightseeing and geocaching. We did stop to see a few things on some overnight stops. So climb onboard the big Eagle Bus and let's go for a ride...



After leaving the Cummins shop in Cincinnati, Ohio on Wednesday we jumped on I-75 and headed south. About an hour later getting through the Cincinnati traffic, I pulled into the I-75/I-71 Rest Area in Kentucky to park for the night. Thursday we drove nearly 400 miles into North Georgia and stayed the night in the I-75 Southbound Rest Area near Resaca, GA.

Friday is here and on the way down to Florida, I did stop at a rest area about halfway near Sycamore, GA to stretch my legs and grab a geocache (GC89X9V). We ended the day at a Cracker Barrel in St Augustine, FL along I-95. While there we had dinner with Candy's mother and brother.

On Saturday we drove down to Umatilla, Florida, where my mother lives, and stayed there two nights at the Olde Mill Stream RV Resort. This gave me a chance to spend time with my mother as well as see my two sons down in Orlando on Sunday. But alas it's never long enough time as we had to get back to Texas and back to work. I did manage to grab a geocache (GC46KYD) there in Umatilla before taking off.

Monday morning we said our goodbye's and drove 382 miles up to Troy, Alabama. We boondocked for the night in a Walmart parking lot. I did have some daylight left and drove over to the Bicentennial Park to grab a geocache (GC1C6D5) for Pike County and take these next few photos.









From there I drove the GeoJeep over to Crenshaw County. I stopped at the crossroads of US-331 and CR-50 at what seems to be an old abandoned gas station / country store. Nothing to buy anymore but I did find the geocache for the county (GC55ZNK).





Continuing north on US-331, there was another geocache stop that caught my interest. It had some recent DNF's so I didn't even bother looking for it. But I did want to stop for the photo opp. It was another Veterans Memorial (GC2W9EC) and I took the photo of the GeoJeep underneath the F-16 fighter jet you see at the top of this page. With more DNF's to follow the geocache was eventually archived, but I still added the GC link so you can find this memorial park.

And finally just one more quick geocache (GC5M26B) stop at a fireworks stand on the way back to the RV.

We noticed that the refrigerator had stopped working so I went into Walmart and bought a cooler and some ice. Most of our food went into it. Now I have to figure out where and when I can find a place to get it checked out.

Tuesday morning we left Troy, Alabama driving north on US-231 into Montgomery. There we turned west onto US-80. Arriving in Selma, Alabama, I stopped at a small Sunoco truck stop to fuel up. Not being very busy, we decided a good place to stop for a few while I took the GeoJeep to pickup some breakfast at Hardee's. This also gave me a chance to grab a geocache for Crenshaw County (GC5PYDF).

Continuing westbound on US-80, we eventually picked up I-20 westbound at the Mississippi state line. I eventually stopped again at a rest area in Scott County to stretch my legs and grab a geocache (GC7JVWB). With just over 500 miles of driving for the day, we finally made it to the Texas Welcome Center on I-20 and parked it for the night. I got out to stretch my legs and grabbed another geocache (GC6Z4ZB).

On Wednesday we arrived in Killeen, Texas where my Candy's daughter lives. It was the house my wife lived in for a few years before she started traveling with me. If you've been reading my blogs for a while, you might remember most of my blog posts were about the long drive on Sunday back from Killeen to a jobsite somewhere in Texas.

Candy's granddaughter is now home after her three week road trip with us around the country. And we are able to gather much of our clothes, dishes, and other items we still had stored there and load them into the motorhome. Now our new home-on-wheels feels more like our home.

I did find an RV repair place nearby in Harker Heights to finally get our refrigerator checked out. We boondocked in the parking lot of the old shopping center which they occupied the end of. While waiting, I did drive over to the Pleasant Hill Cemetery and grab a geocache (GC6G1Y5). It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Bell County and dates back to 1855.

Lone Star RV Service eventually was able to check out the refrigerator on Friday. Turned out to be a bad motherboard. Surprisingly there was a recall on it twenty years ago and it had never been completed on that unit. So it would be fixed for FREE! The downside was that it had to be ordered and take a few weeks. But they did show me how to temporarily get it working using a magnet to reset it.

After a few days of boondocking, we needed to dump the tanks and get fresh water. And being late in the afternoon, we decided to wait until morning to get back on the road. So we found an RV park over in Kempner.

Thirty minutes later and about a mile away from the Rocky River RV Resort, the engine temperature gauge on the dash starts to climb and the warning buzzer goes off just as I'm pulling in the entrance. I park in front of the office and steam is coming out the back of the motorhome and the Jeep is covered in engine coolant. The guy from the RV park and myself is looking it over but the Cummins diesel engine is just covered in coolant. He calls a diesel mechanic he knows and the guy is able to come first thing in the morning to check it out. I let it cool down a bit, do our check in, and drive over to our spot for the night.

The mechanic drove over from Waco Saturday morning and was able to diagnose that a freeze plug was leaking on the side of the head. He pulled out the bad plug and drove into town. A couple of auto parts stores later, he was only able to find one of those temporary rubber expandable plugs to install. But it works and that's what matters.

We stayed one more night there in Kempner. Sunday morning came and we finally got back on the road. We headed up I-35 northbound through Dallas and arrived in Bonham, Texas just in time to be back to work on Monday.

Three weeks and over 5300 miles later, this road trip adventure comes to an end. Here's a recap and links to the blog pages if you missed any of it:


To follow along on our travels and keep up with my latest blogs, you may do so here of course by clicking the "Follow" button to the right. And there's also my main website at AwayWeGo.US for the complete index of my traveling adventures going back to 2005. But also by using one or more of your favorite of these social media platforms: FacebookMeWeGabRedditTwitterGETTRInstagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

Saturday, August 27, 2022

2021-03-04: Visiting the Less Touristy Sites in New Orleans

Hey Everyone! Welcome back to Day #2 of our 4,000+ mile roadtrip. Today we start off in New Orleans, Louisiana. Not the Mardi Gras, the bars, restaurants, and nightlife party, but the historical, less visited, peaceful attractions. So hop onboard and join us for a geocaching adventure...



We started the day with breakfast, a cache, and a new county at a Waffle House just down the street. We ordered a couple of breakfast bowls to-go. While they were cooking, I grabbed the geocache (GC8MND3) in the parking lot to fill in the blank for St. Charles Parish.

My next county cache was in Jefferson Parish. At the Veterans Memorial Century of Sentries Park, there was a multi-cache hidden here which I could not find the final stage (GC110R8). But it was still a worthy stop. There were many military display's such as the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk Vietnam War attack plane, a 1941 Plymouth Sedan Army staff car, a Vietnam River Patrol boat, a couple of cannons and a torpedo.







Now since I couldn't find that last geocache for the county, I settled on a quick parking lot LPC hide (GC77DYE).

In Orleans Parish, our next stop was the site of the Spanish Fort at Bayou St. John (GC8GC4J). The first small fort here was erected by the French in 1701, before the founding of the city of New Orleans, to protect the important trade route along Bayou St. John. After Louisiana passed to Spanish control, a larger brick fort was constructed at the site of the neglected old French fortification; this was known as San Juan del Bayou. Louisiana passed back to France and then to the hands of the United States. The fort was decommissioned in 1823.



This is the story of the grave at Spanish Fort. During the Spanish days, the Commandant of Fort St. John was Sancho Pablo. He had opened negotiations with the chief of a local Choctaw tribe, Waw-he-wawa (White Goose), who lived down the bayou with his daughter Owaissee (Bluebird). Sometimes Pablo visited the Indian camp and became acquainted with Bluebird as well.

One day, as the legend goes, Bluebird took her canoe down Bayou St. John to the lake. The choppy waters began to pound her canoe until it nearly capsized. Seeing this from the fort, Sancho Pablo ordered his men to prepare a boat at once to rescue her. When they reached her, Pablo personally lifted Bluebird into the Spanish boat to safety and escorted her home. Needless to say, Sancho Pablo and Bluebird fell in love with each other. Bluebird would paddle down the bayou again and again at night to meet with Sancho.

White Goose became suspicious, however, that his daughter was meeting with this Spaniard; and he became alarmed being strongly opposed to such a relationship. He secretly followed his daughter down the bayou one night and discovered that she was meeting with Pablo. White Goose therefore resolved to kill the Spaniard. On an ominously dark night, the Indian father traveled down the bayou in a canoe alone. As the canoe approached the fort in the pitch black night, Pablo believed the boat contained Bluebird coming to visit. Instead the Spaniard soon discovered it was Bluebird's father who came only for blood. White Goose killed Sancho Pablo on the spot.



Legend has it that Pablo's last words were of his eternal love for Bluebird. The soldiers in the fort soon were startled by the sounds of the struggle, but the Indian chief had disappeared. The Spanish soldiers buried the body of their leader on the grounds of the old Spanish Fort. Legend says that the Indian village relocated. Neither Bluebird nor White Goose was ever heard from again.
(https://allpoetry.com/poem/513738-Sancho-Pablo-And-Bluebird-by-Dreamweaver)

And then, not too far away, was the Milneburg Lighthouse (GC8GC4N). Originally called Port Pontchartrain Lighthouse until 1929. This now landlocked lighthouse was located at the end of Milneburg pier. The brick lighthouse was built in 1855 which replaced the original wooden one which was built in 1832. Milneburg was a small town on the lake shore that was absorbed by New Orleans. The area was connected to the city by Elysian Fields Avenue. In 1830 it was decided to build the region's first railway along the route. The Pontchartrain Rail-Road started steam locomotive which carried people and cargo along the 5 mile trip. The port boomed. Hotels, saloons, bath houses, and resorts were built around it. The importance of Milneburg in shipping declined in the late 19th century, but it remained an important resort. Between 1920s and 1930s new land was reclaimed by dreading the shallows of Lake Pontchartrain which brought the end of old Milneburg.



Unfortunately I didn't get the geocache that was there. It wasn't that I didn't find it, but I didn't get to look. From where I took this photo were two parking spots. We got out of the GeoJeep to walk over for a closer look and to find the cache. Almost immediately, up rolls a golf cart with a security guard telling us that we can't walk out to see the lighthouse because of covid. REALLY? If it were not for the security guard, I'd be able to look completely all around in every direction and NOT see a single person except for my wife and I. I'm pretty sure covid would NOT be an issue. Oh well, off to the next one.

We planned on visiting the most famous of the New Orleans cemeteries, Saint Lewis Cemetery Number 1. With famous permanent residents like voodoo priestess Marie Laveau (1801-1881), civil rights activist Homer Plessy (1862-1925) of the Plessy vs Ferguson Supreme Court case, and future resident and actor Nicholas Cage who already has a 9' tall pyramid placed for his tomb. But it was closed because of... you guessed it... covid.

So we went across the highway to the Metairie Cemetery where we found six of the more than a dozen geocaches hidden there. The Metairie Cemetery Association received its charter in May 1872. This large cemetery was built on a former racetrack, and the oval track shape is still there. Metairie was part of the Rural (Victorian) Cemetery Movement. It’s landscaped and features elements like lakes and wide roads connecting to footpaths. Interments of note include singer Louis Prima, 49 kings of Carnival, and numerous Louisiana state governors and NOLA mayors.

Just a couple of notable residents here: Thomas Milton Benson (1927-2018), who was the owner of the NFL's New Orleans Saints and the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans.


Josie Arlington was a New Orleans madam whose crypt was once believed to be haunted. It was rumored that the statue of the woman in front of the tomb would come to life and walk the cemetery grounds at night. It was later discovered that a street light reflecting off the tomb gave it a reddish glow, lending credence to the rumors of the haunting. Josie Arlington's body was later moved to an unknown location within the same cemetery.

Located in the center of the Metairie Cemetery is the Tomb of the Army of Northern Virginia. Dedicated on May 10, 1881, the monument was erected in memory to the men of the Division of the Army of Northern Virginia, who served and died in the Civil War. The monument, made of white granite, rises fifty feet above the ground with a statue of General Stonewall Jackson on top and the inscription: "ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, LOUISIANA DIVISION," and "FROM MANASSAS TO APPOMATTOX, 1861 TO 1865." Located within the hill below this monument, is a large chamber containing the vaults of many Confederate Officers.

Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States, was the unrepentant highest ranking Confederate leader of the South. By the time his peaceful death occurred while visiting New Orleans, he was the symbol of the Lost Cause and the most revered man in the South. Eighteen months after his death and temporary burial in New Orleans Metairie Cemetery, Davis's widow, Varina, decided the final burial place was to be Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery, considered the National Cemetery of the Confederacy. 



His remains, were removed from the vault in New Orleans and placed on a flag-draped caisson escorted by honor guards composed of his old soldiers to Memorial Hall, where he lay in state. The next day, as thousands of people silently watched from the sidewalks and balconies, the caisson bore his body to a waiting funeral train. On the way, bonfires beside the tracks lit up ranks of Davis's old soldiers standing at attention beside stacked arms. In Richmond, Gray haired veterans escorted him to the Virginia statehouse where thousands filed past in respect before internment.

Jefferson Davis was the only Southern leader shackled in a dungeon and sacrificed as atonement for the sins of many. He refused to apply for a pardon because, he said, "I have not repented." In 1978, the United States Congress posthumously restored Davis's citizenship. 

Driving east into Saint Bernard Parish, we stop for my next county cache at Chalmette Battlefield and National Cemetery (GCA55A). Major General Andrew Jackson's troops were outnumbered and less experienced yet they defended and secured the port of New Orleans from British invasion on January 8, 1815. This victory at the Chalmette Plantation was the last major battle in the War of 1812. The American victory preserved U.S. claims to the Louisiana Purchase territory, prompted settlement in the Mississippi River Valley, made Jackson a national hero, and encouraged American pride and unity.

The construction of a monument honoring Andrew Jackson and his troops was the first step in recognizing the importance of the battlefield and saving it for future generations. In 1852 the Louisiana legislature appropriated funds to purchase land at the battlefield and build a monument there. The project was plagued with funding problems for decades and was finally completed in 1908. In 1939 Chalmette National Historical Park was created and the site became part of the National Park Service.



The destruction of their plantation during the Battle of New Orleans left the de Chalmet family in financial trouble. In 1817, brothers Hilaire and and Louis St. Amand bought the land. The St. Amands were prominent free people of color who already owned several plantations. In the early 1800's, it was not unusual for free people of color to own plantations and slaves in Louisiana. Actually according to the 1860 U.S. census, only 4% of southern whites owned slaves while 28% of freed blacks in New Orleans owned slaves.

The first owner of the Malus-Beauregard House was Madeleine Pannetier Malus, a widow who purchased land from the St. Amand brothers when they divided the land into small tracts in 1832. Malus built a French Colonial house in 1833 or 1834. After her death in 1835, Caroline Fabre Cantrelle bought the house and remolded it to the Greek Revival style it is currently. Its last private owner was Rene Beauregard, son of Confederate General P. T. Beauregard, who purchased it in 1880. The New Orleans Terminal Company then owned the property until 1949, when it became part of the Chalmette National Historical Park.



Looking at the house from the front or the back and you get the impression of an ominous grand estate. In reality, when you look at it from the side, the house is only one room deep with only four rooms on each floor.



The Chalmette National Cemetery was established in 1864 as a burial place for Union soldiers who died in the Gulf area during the Civil War. It also served as a site for reburials of soldiers from battlefield cemeteries in the region. This plot of land was part of the battlefield during the Battle of New Orleans. Only four U.S. veterans of the War of 1812 are buried here. None of the British who died in the battle are buried in the cemetery.



Also located on four acres of the battlefield, is the Freedmen's Cemetery. It was established by the Freedmen's Bureau in 1867, when the bureau received permission to use a portion of the battlefield as a civilian burial ground. The property reverted to other ownership when the bureau was discontinued, and the cemetery gradually fell into ruins. All above ground traces disappeared before the start of the 1900's.

The National Park Service received stewardship of the cemeteries in 1933. There are over 15,000 individuals buried in the 17.5 acre cemetery. Veterans of all major American wars and conflicts are interred here. Of these 15,000, more than 6,700 are unknown. By 1945 all available burial sites were either taken or reserved and the cemetery was closed. It was re-opened briefly in the 1960's for burial of Vietnam Veterans.

There are two burials I wanted to bring to your attention. One is the oldest and belongs to Pvt Elkanah Anderson (1774-1815). Marched from Hickman County Tennessee, then fought and died at the Battle of New Orleans. Mortally wounded in battle on January 8, 1815, then died on January 14, 1815.

The other was Sarah Rosetta Wakeman (1843-1864). Civil War Union Soldier. The oldest child in a poor, large farming family in upstate New York, she left home at nineteen years of age and found she could make more money by dressing as a man and working as a coal handler on a canal boat. Upon learning she could make thirteen dollars a month as a soldier, she disguised herself as a man and enlisted on 30 August 1862 in Montgomery County, New York, as "Lyons Wakeman" in the 153rd New York Volunteer Infantry, Company G which shortly thereafter would be redesignated as Company H. She served until she died of dysentery after fighting in the Battle of Pleasant Hill in Louisiana. Details of her experiences are found in her letters compiled in a book entitled "An Uncommon Soldier" edited by Lauren Cook Burgess. Her total service in the U S Army covered more than one year and seven months.


And finally, our last stop in New Orleans was out of this world (GCB50B). This is the Michoud Assembly Facility for NASA where much of the United States Space Program began. The Saturn 5 booster stage that launched all of the moon missions as well as all of the External Tank for the Space Shuttles were built here. Currently portions of the Orion Capsule slated to take the first men to Mars is being built here.

There used to be two metal sculptures near this virtual geocache location. One is honoring STS 107 which was the Columbia Mission that was lost upon reentry over Texas. The other is dedicated to the Challenger Crew who made the ultimate sacrifice when the shuttle exploded shortly after launching off the coast of Florida.





So that was our tour of New Orleans. Probably NOT the typical sites that most visitors to the "Big Easy" see. Maybe next time when we have longer to stay we'll check out the downtown restaurants and go on a ghost tour or something normal like most tourists. See you next time.

To follow along on our travels and keep up with my latest blogs, you may do so here of course by clicking the "Follow" button to the right. But also by using one or more of your favorite of these social media platforms: FacebookMeWeGabRedditParlorTwitterRVillageGETTRInstagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

Saturday, July 23, 2022

2021-03-03: Roadtrip! Our First Day of a 4000+ Mile Road Trip from Texas to Louisiana

WOHOO!! Time for another road trip!! After four months in southeast Texas, we laid the groundwork on this project and turned it over to the remaining crews. So where's the next big project? Well the next big project is just across the state back in West Texas. 

But first, I gotta make a quick overnight stop in Florida for my father's funeral. Then we head back up to Maiden Creek, North Carolina for two weeks worth of work putting the finishing touches on a project we started last year. And for an adventure we're gonna take the long way back to Texas. I mean what's the excitement of just driving the quickest interstate highway to your destination right? So a 500 mile roadtrip turns into a 4,000 mile roadtrip!



Day #1 of this road trip and my first goal is just getting out of Texas to get a jump on putting miles in the rear view mirrors. Our first stop was at a virtual geocache and an earthcache (GCCF25, GC7VW68) in Dequincy, Louisiana.

In 1897, the Kansas City Southern (KCS) Railroad laid track through the town of DeQuincy and the first depot was built on this site. In the early 1920's KCS began rebuilding or remodeling many of its stations along the line in Western Louisiana. This building was completely rebuild in 1923 and eventually turned into a museum in the 1970's.



Located trackside of the DeQuincy Railroad Museum is a 1913 Steam Locomotive and a 1947 Pullman passenger car. While we were checking out the outdoor displays, a modern day Kansas City Southern freight train whistled past.



Our first new geocaching county to check off the list was up next for Allen Parish. We stopped in the town of Oakdale and the Calcasieu River Dam (GC81VQW). After taking a few photos I began looking unsuccessfully for the geocache. Previous finders said that it was buried, something they're not supposed to be. It has since been archived.



Still needing a geocache for the county, or Parish as they are called in Louisiana, I made a stop for a quick roadside cache (GC8XN4V) as we continued eastbound.

The next county on the list was Evangeline Parish. Near the town of Bayou Chicot is the Vandenburg Cemetery and my next geocache (GCW780). A well maintained cemetery with over 800 interments here, the oldest dating back to 1818. It's too bad that I don't have more time to look around here.

Did you know there is a difference between a cemetery and a graveyard? I mean everybody, including myself, usually just calls them cemeteries. But traditionally a graveyard is a cemetery that's attached to a church. Just like my next geocache...

The White's Chapel United Methodist Church (GC3730Q) was built in 1894 by Hugh and Lee Evans on land donated by Wilson A. O'Quin Sr. It was named in honor of Rev. Frederick White who organized it in 1870. There are less than 300 interments buried here with the oldest dating back to 1877, a SGT Leon Joseph Campbell.



While it was great to visit an old historic church and graveyard, I wasn't able to find the geocache. And not wanting to get too far behind in miles, I skip the next few geocaches and drive quickly beyond Baton Rouge. Though that also meant skipping a few needed counties too. That just a reason for another road trip!

When normally passing through down I-10 east-west, most people take the I-12 shortcut between Baton Rouge and Slidell. Since I still wanted to get those lower counties, I went south into Ascension Parish and the town of Prairieville. The Prairieville Cemetery (GC35J5A) is scattered with old growth oak trees which makes for a beautiful setting and a little spooky too. The cemetery has over 3000 interments dating back to 1812.



Moving right along, the next geocache is just a quick roadside park and grab at an I-10 exit for a find in St. James Parish (GC50YRT). While here we ran into another geocacher named SWAseekers, who was also on a county caching run in Southern Louisiana.

Next in St. John the Baptist Parish, I met up with SWAseekers once again for a quick parking lot geocache (GC8BC9X).

Since we didn't want to get into New Orleans during the busy evening hours, we decided to call it a day. Plus it was already after 5:00 PM and we were hungry and tired. Tomorrow morning we'll visit New Orleans while it is less crowded. Thanks for riding along and we'll see you again soon!

To follow along on our travels and keep up with my latest blogs, you may do so here of course by clicking the "Follow" button to the right. But also by using one or more of your favorite of these social media platforms: FacebookMeWeGabRedditParlorTwitterRVillageGETTRInstagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

Saturday, September 18, 2021

2020-03-28: Roadtrip Day 2: Driving Through Louisiana and into Mississippi on the way to Georgia

One thing I like about driving the backroads and byways on a roadtrip is that you never know what you're gonna see around the next corner. Whether it be a scenic overlook, a piece of history, or just something so crazy funny that it requires you to turn around for another look and capture it with a photo. Todays drive had something for everyone. So there's a lot to see now let's get rolling...



After waking up early in Shreveport, Louisiana and going for breakfast, I grabbed a quick urban geocache that was close by (GC7G3XD).

On the way to my next geocache, I passed this old church building. The sign out front said Antioch Baptist Church. It doesn't look like this facility has been used in many years. In preparing to write this blog post, I spent a few hours trying to research some history but kept coming up empty. I can't find anything on this old church.



So I arrive at the next geocache (GC1XVN5) which was just a simple and quick roadside cache to add a new county into the finds list. Upon arriving though and seeing the sign, I guess they take their "No Trespassing" pretty serious! I found the cache quick and got myself outta there!



After another quick roadside geocache (GC7QJ0X), I passed by these two old abandoned houses that were just slowly decaying and falling apart. I'm always curious as to what happened with these homes...



...especially this second house. It looked like it would have been a house to envy back in the day. Come to find out that it is called the Garland House. It was built in 1902 and placed on the National Register in 1994. It is a Queen Anne Revival design. This one is in great need of reviving.



Continuing eastbound on Hwy 2, the next geocache was at the Corney Creek Calaboose (GC26WWQ). A calaboose is a tiny jail. This calaboose in the town of Bernice, LA was built in 1902. The town of Bernice was established in 1899 as a sawmill town after Captain C.C. Henderson built the Arkansas Southern Railroad.



This next stop was rather sad. On the north side of Bernice is the old Mount Olive Cemetery (GC26HGV). This neglected forgotten cemetery contains between 40-50 burials dating as far back as 1860. However, I only saw less than 10 headstones in all this overgrowth. Some of the locals need to come out here and clean this cemetery up.





Still following State Highway 2 eastbound to pickup caches in these northern parishes, my next stop is an earthcache and a traditional cache at Elgin Springs (GC20PEP, GCJ4CV). It would have been a quick roadside stop, but I had trouble finding the traditional cache and had to DNF it. As for the earthcache, I got what I needed to answer the questions to log a find. No photos here since it really isn't much to see here. Not exactly what you picture in your mind when you think of natural springs.

To make up for the lack of photos at the springs, I was able to capture two great old car pics as an unexpected surprise. This one below of a 1920's sedan just rusting away among the trees along the highway. And the more humorous one I opened with at the top of the page.



These next two were just quick roadside park and grabs (GC73X26, GC23FEX).

Our next stop was a really cool piece of history in Oak Grove, LA. The Fiske Theatre (GC29ZM9) was first opened in April 1928 and at that time was the premier state of the art movie cinemas in Northeast Louisiana. It was owned and operated by the late Donald Fiske of Oak Grove. The Fiske Theatre was a two level cinema with a first floor that seated 500 people and a balcony that seats 250, as well as a cry room located on the back of the first floor for mothers with small children.

The Fiske Theatre was rebuilt in 1950 and relocated from just down main street to it's current location, and was operated continuously by the Fiske Family until 1987 as a first run cinema. It looks just about the same now as it did in the 1950's. In 1987 as Mr. Fiske's health began to fail him, the theatre was donated to the West Carroll Chamber of Commerce where it has been used mainly for gospel music concerts and other community events since then.



The theatre is in very good condition thanks to the hard work of the chamber volunteers and numerous grants for upkeep from the Louisiana State Legislature. After a two-month renovation period in the fall of 2008, the Fiske Theatre returned as a first run movie theatre on December 15, 2008 with a showing of "Fireproof". The theater is run by volunteers who share a passion for the preservation of this historic movie theater. Any proceeds go to the upkeep of this terrific piece of Americana. At the time of our visit to the Fiske Theatre was closed as the pandemic was just beginning to spread.

Next up was a geocache at the Cotton Museum (GC1CN8D). The Louisiana State Cotton Museum in Lake Providence provides a great introduction to one of Louisiana’s major agricultural crops, and certainly the one for which the Delta area is best known. Its main gallery features an extensive set of interpretive exhibits, including life-sized dioramas, farming equipment, a re-created juke joint and more, all packed into a replica gin house (where cotton fiber was ginned, or separated from the seed).


Also on the grounds of the museum is an impressive array of old plantation buildings, such as a sharecropper’s cabin, a schoolhouse, and a small chapel. And of course an old outhouse where the cache was hidden inside the business deposit area.



One more quick roadside geocache in the town of Transylvania (GC1CN8Z) along with the above museum are two caches for the East Carroll Parish completing the northern counties in Louisiana.


Now we face the Mississippi River and need to cross over. Most would go south to I-20 and cross over into Vicksburg. Been there, done that, and already have those counties. So I turn north into Arkansas. I stop for two quick geocaches along US-65 for Chicot County (GC2QTFTGC2R0NT). Then took US-278 to cross the great river.

Passing through Greenville, Mississippi, I spotted this riverboat and stopped for a quick photo.



The next few stops were part of the Mississippi Blues Trail. In the small town of Holly Ridge you'll find the final resting place of three bluesmen (GC15CJ1). Charley Patton (1891 - 1934) was the most influencing figure in the pioneering era of the Delta Blues. He helped define not only the musical genre but also the image and lifestyle of the rambling Mississippi bluesman. He roamed the Delta using Dockery as his most recent base, and lived his final year in Holly Ridge. Patton and blues singers Willie James Foster (1921 - 2000) and Asie Payton (1937 - 1997) are buried in the Holly Ridge Cemetery.

In the next town of Indianola, MS, I found the B.B. King Corner (GC4MZKG). It was on this corner, when Riley B. King was just a young man of 17, that locals first heard the musician destined to become the "King of the Blues." On June 6, 1980, BB King placed his handprints and signature here in the sidewalk to the left of the guitar.



Our last geocache of the day was at the Indianola City Cemetery (GC30XD5). This is a large well maintained cemetery with over 3,000 interments.



We ended the day in Greenwood, MS, a little more than 300 miles after we started. I picked up some new counties and parishes to fill the map. And we saw a lot of great roadside attractions, planned and a few surprises too. Tomorrow is another day and we still have a long way to go and a lot to see. I hope you come back and join us. See ya next time...

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Saturday, January 23, 2021

2019-05-03: Moving Day Roadtrip from Texas to North Carolina Day 1 in TX, LA, & MS Cemeteries, Historical Sites and an Old Church

Well it's that time again. I finished up on the wind farm down in South Texas and have to be in North Carolina on Monday to start a solar project. So another roadtrip is ahead of me. Supposed to be 2-3 months there in NC. Unfortunately the wife will still be here in Texas working. But hopefully the time will pass quickly and the next project will be back in Texas. But for now, lets hit the road and see what kinda cool places we can find.
 


My first stop, after Duncan Donuts for iced coffee and a bagel of course, was just outside of Waco, Texas. "Sleepy Hollow" (GC3D0BB) was a cemetery and the location of a geocache. Unlike the typical cemeteries I visit, this one is a pet cemetery! I think I've only encountered maybe one or two pet cemeteries before. This one had a doghouse and a fire hydrant as headstones. One thing I didn't see were any zombie cats or dogs that have been resurrected!



Also a little further east outside of Waco was the "Shootout at the Double EE" (GCGM3X) Ranch Road is a virtual geocache. On April 19, 1993, the FBI and ATF raided the compound of the Branch Davidian Church. After 100 canisters of tear gas being deployed over a 6 hour period, a fire broke out and the compound was engulfed in flames. David Koresh and 75 of his followers, including 25 children, perished in the blaze. Only nine managed to escape. The church has since been rebuilt.



My next two geocaches are in Corsicana, Texas at the Oakwood Cemetery (GC3EXG7, GC4G8EJ). There are nearly 14,000 burials dating back to 1833. There are several historical markers throughout the cemetery as well. One of the caches highlights a native of Huntsville, Texas, Samuel R. Frost grew up in Navarro County and in 1863 enlisted in the Confederate army. After the Civil War, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1870. In the years that followed, Frost served as Navarro County attorney, county judge, district judge, and state legislator. He and his wife, Mary (Winkler), were the parents of nine children. The town of Frost (20 mi. W) was named in his honor.

Another interment, and a more recent one, is Aaron Dale Allston (1960-2014). He is the author of 13 Star Wars novels as well as many other science fiction, game based fiction and mystery novels, short stories and technical guides for writers.

But the one historical marker that caught my attention was by the grave of David Reed Mitchell. Like myself, he was also a surveyor. From the historical marker: "Born in 1797 in North Carolina, arrived in Robertson County, Texas in 1845. He was a surveyor by trade, and had surveyed the upper Trinity and Brazos river areas in 1844. He became surveyor of the Robertson County land district, as well as the original land of Navarro County and Corsicana.

Mitchell was also a land speculator of sorts, and by 1847 he owned a large amount of land in Navarro County. With two partners, Thomas I. Smith and James C. Neill, he donated one hundred acres on which the town of Corsicana was founded. For a time he operated an inn in the town, sometimes referred to as the "lower hotel" because of its location in proximity to another hotel run by pioneer Hampton McKinney.

David Reed Mitchell married Mary Ann Higgins, and they were the parents of five children. Mitchell continued to live in Corsicana until his death on Oct. 7, 1853. He was buried in Oakwood Cemetery, and the citizens of Corsicana erected a monument at his grave in 1899. Of the three partners who donated land for the city of Corsicana, Mitchell is the only one buried here."



Before leaving Corsicana, I had to stop and get one more geocache here. "The Fruitcake Factory" (GCF11B) is located at the Collin Street Bakery. Yes, that dreaded fruitcake that usually makes an appearance around the Christmas holidays. The Collin Street Bakery is the largest producer of fruitcake in the world. They have been baking since 1896 and are shipping to almost 200 countries around the globe.



Another goal of this roadtrip is to pickup new geocaching counties. I've already completed my Texas counties. Now that I've crossed over into Louisiana it's time to pick off a few more of those. Bienville Parish was the first one with a quick roadside park and grab geocache (GC5BQVX).

My next geocache and county was in Quachta Parish in the town of Calhoun. "Breaker 19" (GC1V79Q) was a creative cache at a CB shop. I posted a photo below and also my first attempt at bringing you a video. Hopefully it works.





Just up the street in Calhoun was the Mount Zion Cemetery. There wasn't a geocache there, but it's still hard to pass up an old cemetery. There are over 500 interments that date all the way back to 1852 belonging to an eight year old boy named Robert Simmons Gaston who died in 1852 while visiting this country with his mother.



Located in Richland Parish, Holly Ridge was established in the early 1900's as a sawmill town in the middle of a large farming area. The company started with making barrel heads and later changed to the lumber industry. The company that owned all the timber land was Chess and Wymond out of New York state. Mr. Franklin leased all the land and cut all the timber. After the timber was gone it became a large farming area owned by the Franklin family. A quick roadside geocache (GC29MH5) in Holly Ridge off of I-20 to claim that county. Some dark clouds overhead isn't very promising though. I did get some heavy rain along the Louisiana / Mississippi state line.



After the rain and crossing over into the state of Mississippi, I jump off of I-20 and drive up into Madison County and the town of Annandale. There I find my next virtual geocache at the Chapel of the Cross (GC29MH5). After John and Margaret Johnstone arrived in Mississippi from North Carolina in 1840, they lost two of their sons that same year and buried them on their land, which would become the Annandale Plantation. John had the idea to build the chapel but died in 1848 before he accomplished it. The Gothic Revival chapel was erected in the 1850's by his wife Margaret L. Johnstone as a memorial to her husband.



Behind the chapel is the cemetery which now contain over 250 interments, the oldest being the two sons from 1840. The geocache page mentions one grave in particular as a question from which you need to answer in order to claim credit for the virtual geocache. But it doesn't give you the history of the grave. Henry Grey Vick was killed in a duel at age 23, just days before he was to marry Helen Johnstone, the daughter of John and Margaret. Helen was said to have worn her wedding dress to Henry's funeral. And legend has it that the "Bride of Annandale" continued to love Henry the rest of her life, even after marrying George Harris, and that her ghost is often seen sitting on a bench near Henry's grave.





Now that the sun is down and it's dark out, my plan is to keep going as long as I can find the geocaches. If I can't find a cache and need the county, then it's time to find a hotel and wait for daylight.

But next up is another virtual cache in Canton, MS. "Casey's Intended Destination" (GCF5FE) was located at the old train depot, now a museum. Canton was the destination of the famous train engineer John Luther "Casey" Jones when his train derailed after colliding with a stalled freight train 15 miles up track. He was traveling at about 75 MPH when he noticed the broken down train cars still on the track about 300 feet ahead near a side track switch.

While he could have jumped off the engine to save his live, as did the fireman on board, he stayed with the engine pulling on the brake and reversing throttle to protect those on the ground and passengers of the other train. He managed to slow down to approximately 35 MPH before colliding with the caboose and 3 of the freight cars when his train derailed. He died upon impact and time was recorded at 3:52 AM by his cracked watch.

I would liked to have gotten some more photos of the outside and down the side with the tracks in view. It was lit up enough. But there were some shady characters hanging out across the tracks on this Friday night. So a quick photo of what I needed for answers and moved on. (answer covered)



From here to the Alabama state line, I found several quick parking lot geocaches in Leake County (GC3CMVJ), Neshoba County (GCV8ZT), and Kemper County (GC7KCNW). Then I continued over into Alabama where I already had the next  few counties. Getting close to midnight I found a hotel in Birmingham for the night.

A long drive today, but I did get to pick up some new counties and see some great places. I especially like that old chapel in Mississippi and wish I got there just a little earlier to get some better photos.

Anyway, tomorrow is another day and another adventure. Do I make it all the way to NC or stop short. Guess you'll have to come back to find out. See you next time...