2021-08-11: Visiting Montana, Little Bighorn Battlefield, and Custer's Last Stand

Welcome back friends, RV'ers, Geocachers, Jeepers, and fellow travelers. When we last left you, we had just arrived to our next RV park in Bridger, Montana. The last time I was this far up in the northwest was way back in 2008 as a truck driver. While driving a big rig you don't get to see too much except out the windshield. This time we have the GeoJeep to get around and do some sightseeing. Today we start out at the historical Little Big Horn and Custer's Last Stand. So click and follow along as we tour these sacred grounds...

The Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument Park (GC6F9E) covers an area of about 765 acres. It consists of the Battle of Little Bighorn that took place on June 25th & 26th, 1876 where Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and the 7th Calvary fell against the combined Cheyenne, Sioux and Arapaho force. It also includes the Custer National Cemetery and the battlefield site of the Reno-Benteen skirmish, about 3 miles southeast, with the Cheyenne-Arapaho warriors.

Following the fall of Custer and the 7th Calvary, the 11th Infantry led by Captain George K Sanderson buried Custer and his men on the battlefield where they fell. He also constructed the first monument on the site. From his official report dated April 7th, 1879 he wrote:

    "I accordingly built a mound out of cord wood filled in the center with all the horse bones I could find on the field. In the center of the mound I dug a grave and interred all the human bones that could be found, in all, parts of four or five different bodies. This grave was then built up with wood for four feet above ground. The mound is ten feet square and about eleven feet high; is built on the highest point immediately in rear of where Gen'l Custer's body was found."

In July of 1881, Lieutenant Charles F Roe and the 2nd Calvary built the granite memorial which still stands today on top of Last Stand Hill. About 220 soldiers remains were reinterred around the base of the new memorial, but left the markers in place where they had fallen.

In 1890, the stakes which marked where the soldiers had fallen were replaced with the marble markers you see today. Starting in 1999, the first of many red granite markers for the Cheyenne, Sioux and Arapaho Warriors were set in place where they fell.

To make it easier to spot for the hundreds of thousands of tourists who visit each year, Custer's marker was given a black background. Custer's remains had been reinterred to West Point long ago back in 1877, as well as many of the other officers remains were moved to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas or cemeteries across the country as requested by their families.

Custer National Cemetery was first designated as a U.S. National Cemetery on January 29, 1979 to protect the soldiers graves buried there. In December of 1886 it was re-designated as the National Cemetery of Custer's Battlefield Reservation to include soldiers graves of other wars. Eventually the name was shortened to Custer National Cemetery. Buried soldiers of the 7th Calvary, whos remains were discovered on the battlefield after the 1881 memorial was built, were reinterred here and listed as unknown.

The remains from 25 other cemeteries were transferred to here when frontier forts closed at the end of the Indian Wars. The fallen from many famous battles, Fetterman, Wagon Box, Hayfield, Big Hole and Bear Paw, now rest here.

Until reaching capacity in 1978, this cemetery accepted reservations for veterans and their spouses. There are soldiers here who fought in the Indian Wars, Spanish American War, World Wars I & II, Korea, and Vietnam.

There's a great book written by James Donovan that I highly recommend. "A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn: The Last Great Battle of the American West" is a great book put together from survivor accounts, official reports, and battlefield evidence. We listen to a lot of audio books while traveling down the road and this was one of our favorites. After listening to the Park Ranger give a summarized play-by-play of the battle, the welcome center recommended this book. We listened to it over the next couple of days as we drove around Montana.

After our visit to the battlefield site, we decided to go out geocaching and pickup some new Montana counties. The first one was also in Big Horn County in the town of Hardin. It was a travel bug hotel cache (GC4F5XD) located near the office to an RV park.

On the way to our next geocache, we crossed over into Yellowstone County. Along the side of Highway 47 was this old farmhouse that I just had to pull over and get a photo.

The geocache (GCKNZ4) was near a boat access ramp along the Big Horn River at I-94 and Highway 47. The geocache is called Manual Lisa. A little history lesson from the cache description:

    "Manual Lisa was a Cuban native. He lived 1772-1820. He was called Nebr, first white settler. He came up the Missouri in 1807 to start a fur trading venture. He built the 1st Fort Lisa on the Big Horn River. This fort was also called Manual Fort or Fort Manual. Unfortunately, he had to abandon the fort due to pressure from the British and the Indians. He was married to Mary Hampstead Keeney of St. Louis and they traveled between St. Louis and the Bighorn. She assisted the Yellowstone Expedition which had established its headquarters near the Lisa Trading Post. Manual Lisa saw himself as an Indian benefactor not an exploiter. He wrote to William Clark in 1817 (three years before he died) that he had distributed various seeds to help the Indians grow things. Some of these seeds were pumpkins, beans, turnips, and potatoes. He also loaned them traps and arranged for black smithing as needed.

    "There is a stone in this area (unfortunately they are on private land) where he carved his name M. Lisa-1807 and another stone with Colter 1810. They are somewhere around the mouth of the Bighorn. The Bighorn and the Yellowstone rivers flow together in this area. There are pictures of these stones at the cafe/casino in Custer, Mt. The pictures were taken in 1920 and you can clearly see the names. The Chamber of Commerce in Hardin, Mt. is trying to put more information together on historical sites in this area."

Well I didn't get to see the 200 year old names carved in the stone. But I did get a good view of the Big Horn River and an old bridge around the corner.

Going east on I-94, we cross over into Treasure County. Just off the Hysham exit is the Memorial Vale Cemetery and our next geocache (GC51TNW). There was a caretaker out there installing a new headstone. After watching for a few minutes, he didn't seem to care much about our activity. So I jumped out of the GeoJeep real quick, found the cache, signed to log, and went on our way.

 

And finally, the last geocache was further down I-94 into Rosebud County. Just a quick earthcache at a highway rest area (GC1GCXE). Now on back to the motorhome to end the day. Thanks for riding along. 

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: Facebook, MeWe, Gab, Reddit, Twitter, GETTR, Instagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

2021-06-27: Geocaching and Sightseeing History in Gary and East Chicago Indiana

Hello again and welcome to our adventures. We're winding down our little side road trip while our "new to us" used American Eagle motorhome is almost ready to take delivery. On this day we explored the towns of East Chicago and Gary in northwest Indiana. East Chicago is my fathers hometown and we'll pay a visit to his childhood home. And over in Gary was the childhood home of a world famous celebrity. So join us as we grab some geocaches and take a look around at what remains of this town...

Our first geocache of the day was in South Bend, Indiana for Saint Joseph County. A virtual geocache (GCA525) was located at the LaSalle Landing Park. Unlike a traditional geocache, a virtual geocache doesn't have a container with a log sheet to sign. You typically have to gather some answers at the location and email them to the creator of the virtual cache to get credit for finding it. The coordinates bring you to this stone monument with the depiction of the French explorer LaSalle, the first white man to visit this region, passing from the St Joseph River to the Kankakee River in the late 1600's.

Next door in the now Riverview and Highland Cemeteries is another historical marker recognizing the Council Oak. It was here that three years after his first crossing, LaSalle met with the Miami and Illinois Indians to enter into a treaty to resist the aggressions of the Iroquois. After surviving two lightning strikes, the centuries old oak tree was eventually taken down by a tornado in 1990.

Also located within the cemetery was a famous resident well known in the sports world. Knute Rockne (GC276Q6) emigrated with his parents from Norway to Chicago at the age of five. After graduating high school, he worked at the post office for four years to save enough money to enroll at the University of Notre Dame. He earned All American Honors playing football for Notre Dame in 1913. After a few years playing professionally, he ended up back at Notre Dame. During his 13 years as head coach of the Fighting Irish, he achieved an astounding record of 105 victories, 12 losses, and 5 ties, as well as 3 National Championships. Rockne died in a plane crash in 1931 at the age of 43.

Driving over into Lake County, we arrived in Gary, IN. The first thing I see that I remember hearing about was the U.S. Steel plant. It was where my grandfather worked. Gary Indiana was named after Elbert Gary, a co-founder and longtime chairman of U.S. Steel. When U.S. Steel bought the land to build the factory, they also created the Gary Land Company to design and build a town for their workers. At its peak, the Gary plant was the highest producing steel plant in the world.

Near the entrance to the plant is the EJ&E 765 locomotive (GC1VPVD). The Elgin, Joliet & Eastern train engine was built in 1929 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia. When the EJ&E railroad switched its fleet to diesel engines, U.S. Steel saved it from being scrapped. It sent it to northern Minnesota's Iron Range, where it moved iron ore and taconite bound for Gary Works and other steel mills. Retired and restored it now sits at a roadside park for all to enjoy.

Turning south down Broadway, we passed some of the abandoned buildings around town. With the 1970's came a declining steel market and massive layoffs. U.S. Steel has laid off nearly 30,000 employees. The population of Gary has gone from 175,000 in 1970 down to 69,000 in 2020. It's turning into a modern day ghost town with an estimated 13,000 abandoned structures around town.

One of those buildings was the Palace Theater. Built in 1925, it featured vaudeville acts, live stage shows, and motion pictures bringing in more than 2000 patrons every weekend. From the very beginning it was one of Gary's most popular entertainment venues. But as the city began to decline so did ticket sales. The final live show was performed on January 3, 1972.

I'm switching the next two stops in order for the story to flow better. Over in East Chicago, Indiana, my father grew up in this house on Vernon Ave. This 3-bedroom, 1-bath, 877 square foot house was built in 1930. My father was born in 1932. Along with his parent, I believe he lived here with his four siblings until he joined the Air Force.

He once told me, after returning from his 50th high school reunion, about this girl that once lived down at the end of the street. Her name was Katherine and she walked with a limp. Going to the same schools, they sometimes were in the same class. When she was 19, she married Joseph Jackson and they moved to this house Gary. Joseph became a crane operator at the steel plant where my grandfather also worked.

Joseph and Katherine had 10 children over the next 16 years. This house built in 1949 was just a 2-bdr, 1-bath, at 867sf would be a bit crowded for this large family. One of those children was international pop superstar Michael Jackson. After the family's "Jackson 5" musical group signed their Motown contract in 1969, Joseph moved the family away from Gary to California.

Again, it wasn't until 50 years after graduation at his high school reunion, while sitting around a table reminiscing with classmates about whatever happened to this person and that person, he learned about the girl who lived down the street.

While sitting at a stoplight in East Chicago, Indiana, this building at the opposite corner caught my attention. The Calumet Trust and Savings Bank was constructed in 1916. From what I could gather on the internet, it was abandoned at one time with a partially collapsed roof and water in the basement. But the outer walls and columns are still intact. If only I could have it lifted and moved somewhere else.

OK, back to heading out of town and picking up more geocaching counties. Taking I-65 south into Newton County, I stopped in the Roselawn Cemetery (GC2BE8R) for our next geocache. I didn't take the time to look around cause I wanted to keep moving.

In Jasper County, the next geocache took us to this old abandoned school house (GC8P79B). It was hard to get a decent photo with all the trees surrounding it. But from what my research has found is that it was called the "Newton Township School" and was built in 1923. It was closed in the early 1960's with the rural school consolidations. I couldn't find the geocache here for the school. But I did find another at a nearby stop sign for the county.

Still moving south on I-65, I was able to find a quick geocache (GC8QDK6) in Benton County as we barely passed through the corner of that county. A mile to the east and we're in White County and finding another quick roadside geocache (GC8QDK3).

We continued eastbound on US-24 into Carroll County. I stopped at Yeoman Cemetery (GC1FV19) for another geocache. There are just over 1000 internments dating back to 1844.

Our last geocache for the day was at the Davis Cemetery in Cass County (GC3KB5K). The Davis Cemetery has over 3000 internments dating back to 1836. From the Find-A-Grave website: "William was a soldier in the Revolutionary War serving a total of 70 months. He married Lydia Busson in NC, about 1781 and parents of 10 children. They began housekeeping in VA just over the NC line. When the war was over they moved to Warren County, GA, now Columbia County, and lived there 21 or 22 years. The family moved to Preble County, Ohio in 1805 and lived there until 1835 when they moved to White County, IN then to Cass County, IN. Children: Arron, Joseph, Mary, Newberry, William, Jeptha, Mahala, Diadama, Clementine, and Clarrisa."

 

That's it for today. We still have nearly two hours of driving to get back to Decatur. Thanks for joining us.

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: Facebook, MeWe, Gab, Reddit, Twitter, GETTR, Instagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

2021-06-19: Visiting the Fort Wayne in Indiana and Finding a Prince in a Cemetery

Hello again everyone. You may recall from my last blog post that we were in Indiana to purchase our motorhome. It was being sold on consignment so there were some things that needed to be taken care of as well as a full cleaning and detailing. After looking it over and getting all the paperwork in order, that afternoon we drove up to Fort Wayne, Indiana to grab dinner and check out the old fort.

It wasn't until now when I started writing this blog that I discovered that this fort is a re-creation of the third and final version of the old Fort Wayne. And that it isn't even in it's original location. The original site of the old fort is in downtown where the city's Fire Station #1 is located. The only remains that exist is an old well with a commemorative plaque on it.

The history of Fort Wayne goes way back to the Miami Tribes in the late 1600's. The area originally known as the village of Kekionga was settled near the confluence of the St Joseph, St Mary's, and the Maumee Rivers. Frenchman Jean Baptiste Bissot began visiting Kekionga in 1702 and later built the original Fort Miami in 1706. It was part of a line of forts and trading posts spanning from Quebec to St Louis.

France ceded the territory to Britain in 1760 after the French and Indian Wars. However a short time later in 1763, during Pontiac's Rebellion, the native tribes regained control of the region and the British abandoned the fort. It wasn't until 1772 that Britain would reestablish a friendship with the tribes and reoccupy the fort.

After the Revolutionary War and the Treaty of Paris in 1783, Britain ceded the area to the newly formed United, American General Anthony Wayne established Fort Wayne in 1794. General Wayne had pushed the tribes out of Ohio to the west and built a new fort to replace Fort Miami. He made a treaty with the Native Americans to end the fighting and promised they would have the lands west of the fort. This is the reason why the region west of Ohio was called Indiana.

A few more photos of the recreated Fort Wayne.

After the fort, we went over to the huge Lindenwood Cemetery in Fort Wayne to find a whole bunch of Geocaches hidden there. (GC941RY, GC99RBT, GC977G5, GC977FP, GC977H5, GC941TN, GC93Y7J, GC1HJK1, GC977GR) There are over 67,000 internments at the Lindenwood Cemetery which was established in 1859 and covers 175 acres. Among the permanent residents are politicians, athletes, veterans, and even a notorious bank robber from the Dillinger Gang.

However, there was one headstone that caught my attention. I took the photo and now researching for this blog I find the rest of the story. To long to repost here, but about a child named Prince Kaboo from a small village in West Africa. Captured by a neighboring tribe and held for ransom, he escaped, made his way to a missionary and eventually to America. A fascinating story of faith that I hope you follow these links to the Find-A-Grave website and the GodReports website to read the full story.

So that was the rest of our day today. While they work on the RV this week we're gonna take a road trip to Connecticut and back in search of a haunted cemetery. Join us as we go and see what other interesting places we discover on our adventures.

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: Facebook, MeWe, Gab, Reddit, Twitter, GETTR, Instagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

2021-04-01: Cruising Route 66 Through Kansas and Oklahoma on Day 10 of Our 3400 Mile Roadtrip Adventure

Today was a very busy day. We continued to follow the historical Route 66 through the corner of Kansas and all the way down to Oklahoma City. There were many roadside attractions to see, many geocaches to find, and some new counties to get, and we tried to visit as many as we could. But we still had to put some miles behind us as our goal is to eventually get down into Texas for the next work project. So join us in the GeoJeep while we share the history and photos from "The Mother Road."

After leaving Joplin with coffee and breakfast, our first geocaching stop was in Kansas... wait no... Oklahoma... or is it Missouri? I guess it depends on where you stand, or park, or... well you get the idea. The virtual geocache (GC6F6D) technically is located in Oklahoma. The stone monument you see was erected in 1938 to mark the spot determined way back in 1857 as the Tri-State intersection. Sadly it had been vandalized, graffitied, and the original plaques stolen. Over the years it had been determined that the monument was off by 50 feet. In 2004, the Missouri Association of County Surveyors rectified the error with a "stand-in-three-states" plaque on the ground marking the correct location. I think this is my third tri-state corner marker that I've been to.

Ok, now that we've got that out of the way... back to Route 66. We stopped for three caches in Cherokee County, Kansas. A quick cemetery geocache (GC497WV) in Galena. A roadside park (GC85F4E) in Riverton highlighting the rather short stretch of Route 66 which passes through Kansas.

Then back over to the original Route 66 alignment and another old historical bridge. Built in 1923 as part of the Jefferson Highway, three years before the US-66 designation, the Rainbow Bridge is a concrete arch bridge and spans 130 feet across Bush Creek. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 and is the only one like it within the entire state of Kansas.

And finally a virtual geocache (GCBBF6) at the historical marker for Baxter Springs. Also here in Baxter Springs is this restored old gas station which is now used as the Route 66 Visitors Center. Built in 1930 by The Independent Oil and Gas Company, it was purchased by Phillips 66 Petroleum Company later that year. The original brick house style was modified in the 1940's to an "L" shape adding on a garage for service repairs. The gas station was in use up until the 1970's. After restoration, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003.

Route 66 enters Oklahoma into Ottawa County. Passing through the town of Commerce, I saw this little Marathon gas station which was built in 1927. They don't sell gas anymore. But they do sell cookies, candies, and other tasty treats. We resisted the urge to step inside and only left with a photo.

A couple of blocks to the south is the Hole-in-the-Wall gas station. This Conoco Station was built out from a wall of another business in 1929/30. It now serves as a Route 66 Gift Shop.

Following the Mother Road south through Miami, we found this rather unique older section of the original highway. With the early age of automobile travel in the 1900's, Oklahoma began improving the Ozark Trails turning them into an "Auto Trails" system of roadways connecting small rural towns. Working with very tight budgets while trying to still get the distance needed, they paved what came to be known as "Ribbon Road" or "Sidewalk Highway." (GC2ZXEE)

Kinda hard to tell from this photo, but it's basically a one lane paved road that's 9-feet wide with 5-feet wide gravel shoulders. Completed in 1922 as Federal Highway Project No. 8, four years prior to the Route 66 designation. Running from Miami to Afton, this 15.49 miles of narrow road is the only remaining 9-foot section of original pavement on the Old Route 66 system. While it was officially taken out of service in 1937, you can still drive on it today. Just be careful of oncoming traffic!

Passing through Afton, I see these rock walls and stop for a photo. No signs posted and can't find anything online about it. Old gas station? Old store? The ground out front of the sidewalk looks like there may have been gas pumps there. If you know, please leave a comment.

Taking a detour off of Route 66 for a moment, we drove down I-44 to the small Oklahoma town of Big Cabin. Back in my truck driving days passing through here and just as you exit off the interstate at US-69, there's a gigantic Indian Chief statue proudly greeting you as you enter the truck stop. I wanted to stop by here again so that Candy will get an opportunity to see it. Erected on August 9, 2001, the Tall Chief stands at 46 feet and weighs in at 15,500 pounds.

We continued a short drive further south in order to grab another county and a historical virtual geocache (GCFDCD). Just a few miles away in Mayes County is the County Creek Battlefield. Down the backroads through the woods to arrive on a hill with multiple historical markers creating a mental picture of this Civil War battle. On September 18, 1864, a Confederate force of 2,000, mainly General Stand Watie's Indian Brigade, intercepted a Union supply train en-route from Kansas to Fort Gibson. The convoy of 130 wagons worth $1.5 million was captured after a heavy engagement. This was the last Civil War battle in Indian Territory.

Making our way back to continue our drive down Route 66, we arrive in Rogers County. Approaching the town of Chelsea, the historical Pryor Creek Bridge (GC6F24Y) was built in 1926 and carried U.S. Highway 66 traffic from 1926 to 1932, when a new alignment of Route 66 bypassed the bridge.

Once in Chelsea you have to stop for the underground pedestrian bridge (GC6QCMW). Instead of the usual crosswalk from corner to corner, the town built this tunnel to cross Route 66. I guess it was much busier and harder to cross the street back in the day.

A little further down Route 66 and still in Rogers County, we make a stop for the World's Largest Totem Pole as well as a virtual and a traditional geocache (GC9251, GC6M4FJ). Built by Ed Galloway from 1937 to 1948, it stands at 98 feet tall. It was made with 100 tons of sand and rock, 28 tons of cement, and 6 tons of steel. There are 200 carved pictures with four 9 foot indian chiefs at the top.

Our next virtual geocache (GCH7V1) was located in the town of Foyil, just a few more miles down the road. A graduate of Foyil High School, Andrew Hartley Payne (1907-1977) won the 1928 Great Transcontinental Footrace which began in Los Angeles on 3-4-1928 and ended 3,422.3 miles later in New York City 5-26-1928.

Then a short time later we passed this bridge from the 1936 Route 66 alignment. This 24 feet wide bridge replaced the 18 feet wide version from 1925. Now it leads to Molly's Landing Restaurant. I don't think this is the original location of this bridge.

The remains of the Old Route 66 alignment go down the hill to the left from this photo and head down towards the Verdigris River. There's a geocache (GC8H9MC) at the dead end about 1500 feet away from here. There's also an old cemetery up on the hill here. The River Hill Cemetery has about 20 internments dating back to 1882.

Our last geocache for Rogers County was in Catoosa. The Blue Whale (GC4ADE) is a popular Route 66 roadside attraction built by Hugh S. Davis from 1970-72. The Blue Whale is 20 feet tall and 80 feet long and took nearly 3000 hours to build.

Arriving down in Tulsa County, we starting searching for the virtual geocaches in the area. The community of Broken Arrow was named because reeds, found in abundance along streams and riverbeds, were broken to make arrow shafts. The Arkansas Valley Townsite Company chose the site for the town along the proposed MK&T Railroad in September 1902. The first virtual geocache was at Centennial Park (GCEABB) which was dedicated in 2002.

The next virtual geocache was at the Veterans Memorial Park (GCG235). Along with this wall of local veterans, there are two statues dedicated to Major William H. (Hank) Miesner Jr (1939-2003) and Lt. Col. Ernest Childers (1918-2005).

Speaking of memorial parks, we drove a couple of miles away to the Memorial Park Cemetery. It was there we found our next virtual geocache at the gravesite of comedian Sam Kinison (GC48BE). The son of a Pentecostal Preacher, he became a preacher himself at an early age. At age 24, after his first divorce, Kinison gave up preaching and became a comedian. In 1992, he was killed in a car accident when his vehicle was struck by a drunk driver. He was 38 years old.

OK, we don't have time to get to all there is to see in Tulsa. It is already late in the afternoon. So we make our way back to Route 66 and head down into Creek County.

Upon arriving in the town of Sapulpa, our first stop is another virtual geocache at the Sapulpa Trolley and Rail Museum (GCG4JG). The trolley on display here is called the Maggie M., which was built in 1919. The Sapulpa Trolley Company went out of business in 1933. It was donated to the museum in 1997.

The next three geocaches were on the west side heading out of town. There was a letterbox cache at The Heart of Route 66 Auto Museum (GC859VG). Unfortunately, being late in the day, the museum was closed. But the HUGE gas pump outside made for a great roadside attraction and photo ops.

This was followed by the historic Rock Creek Bridge earthcache (GC6Q151). This bridge was built in 1921 to serve the Ozark Trail. It became part of Route 66 in 1926. The bridge was used by motorists traveling "The Mother Road" until a new highway was built to the south of here in 1952.

Then just a few hundred feet down from the bridge was what remains of the Teepee Drive-In Theater (GCG4K2). The drive-in first opened in the 1950's and remained open until the late 90's. At the time of our visit, it was still closed. However, in preparation for writing this blog, I have discovered that the drive-in has been renovated and reopened in the Spring of 2023. And a really cool addition is that along the back row they have several retro RV trailers that can be rented out through Airbnb.

Another geocache in Creek County was at the Magnolia Memorial Gardens Cemetery (GC3AZXC) located just north of Bristow. This cemetery has almost 3,000 internments here dating back to the early 1900's. Most impressive is this 2-story chapel on the grounds.

Our last geocache in Creek County was a roadside attraction called the Route 66 Shoe Tree (GCHPFX). I'm not sure when this started, but it was just a tree along the side of the highway that people tossed their old shoes up and had them hanging from the branches.

Continuing westbound into Lincoln County, our next stop was the Seaba Station in Warwick, Oklahoma. Currently a motorcycle museum, it was originally built in 1924 as a gas station and garage. It stayed in operation serving travelers for many years until 1996. Then the building was restored and the museum opened a few years later in 2000. Unfortunately, the geocache (GC346Y6) was kept indoors and we couldn't sign the logbook after hours.

Now into Oklahoma County. Our next geocache stop (GC4759Y) was located at another historical Route 66 gas station, or what was left of it anyway.  According to the sign: supposedly built in the late teens or early 1920's, before electricity made it out to this rural area. Cold soda pop were only sold on the days when the ice man made it by. Chocolate candy was only sold during the winter when it was cold, otherwise it would melt.

Times were tough back in those days and it was hard to make an honest living. The station owners bought plates to make counterfeit ten dollar bills. A room was added to the back of the station and the only entrance was through a window. After one person was caught passing the fake bills and arrested, their identification gave the address. They were eventually traced back to the gas station. The plates were found, the crime spree terminated, and the owner taken to jail. The old station was closed, never to open again. Many years later and nothing to do with the counterfeiting, a murder victim was found in the abandoned building. The victim was never identified and the mystery never solved.

Our last stop of the day was at Pops 66 (GC162WP), an the iconic destination and must-see landmark on Route 66 in Arcadia, Oklahoma. It features a family-friendly, full-service restaurant, gas station, convenience store, tons of bottled soda, and a 66-foot-tall pop bottle outside that dazzles with multicolor LED lights when the sun sets.

Needless to say after browsing the store for about an hour, we left with a huge assortment of good and "gross" sodas!

That's the end of our LONG day. Twelve hours of driving and sightseeing the roadside attractions along the historic Route 66. Tomorrow we finish up Oklahoma and arrive at our destination in Texas.

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: Facebook, MeWe, Gab, Reddit, Twitter, GETTR, Instagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.