2021-03-24: Turning a 1400 Mile Drive into a 3404 Mile Road Trip! Day 2 in Virginia, DC, Maryland, and Pennsylvania

On this Day 2 of our 3400 mile road trip from NC to TX, taking the long route, we geocached our way from Virginia through Maryland, DC, West Virginia, and into Pennsylvania history. Picking up new geocaching counties along the way, we were sightseeing places of Revolutionary and Civil War prominence that included churches, houses, cemeteries and more. So come join us as we travel back in time...

Our first two geocaches were quick urban hides to get credit for the county. In Virginia, there are not only the counties but also some of the larger cities have their own "boundaries" separate from the county. So the first of the geocaches was for Spotsylvania County (GC1FYJ1) and the other just a few blocks away was located within Fredericksburg (GC82XNE).

Our next geocache and county was up the road into Stafford County. It was a old virtual geocache at a piece of Civil War history (GCB1C). This huge stone block base is all that remains of a train bridge which spanned the Potomac Creek. The Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad crossing this bridge was a major supply route for Confederate troops along the river. Early 1862, the troops were ordered to abandoned their positions here. The advancing Union troops found the bridge destroyed in an effort to slow them down. In May 1862, engineer Herman Haupt supervised the unskilled Union army soldiers in harvesting two million feet of lumber and reconstructing the bridge in just nine days (see photo at top of page). Over the next three years and continued destruction by the Confederates, the bridge was rebuilt four times using this same foundation. You can see the modern roadway through the trees on the right side.

Our next "county" geocache, one of Virginia's separate townships, was in Falls Church. Just a quick parking lot LPC (light post cache) (GC3XCZE), but it fills in a blank on the county map and keeps us moving forward.

Our next two geocaches are practically in the same spot at the intersecting corners of Arlington County, Fairfax County and Falls Church. Located in a small park in a residential neighborhood is the original 1791 survey stone marking the proposed western corner of the diamond shaped District of Columbia for the newly formed United States Capital. Maryland was donating land NE of the Potomac River, while Virginia was to donate land SW of the river forming the diamond shape. However, Virginia rescinded and we have the current half-diamond configuration of Washington D.C. today. The two geocaches located here are a virtual for the survey marker (GC6781) and a Challenge for finding 300 Virtual caches (GC572WE).

Just a short distance away, and in Fairfax County, is another Virtual geocache at this 9-11 Memorial (GCA072). There are a LOT of virtual caches in and around Washington DC, but we don't have the time at this point to get to them all. So we just try and grab a couple every time we pass through the area.

In an effort to not get too bogged down and spend the entire day in Virginia, I make another quick park & grab parking lot LPC find in Loudoun County (GC3V6QF).

We add Clarke County to our map by picking up a geocache in the County Seat of Berryville (GCXGQF). From the historical marker: "The year after Clarke County was formed in 1836, construction began on a brick courthouse based on county justice David Meade's design. The courthouse was remodeled in the Neoclassical style about 1850 when the portico and copula were added. Portraits of locally prominent judges and lawyers from the 1840's to the present are displayed in the courtroom. The last public hanging in Clarke County occurred here in 1905."

There was much to see around the courthouse square. One of which is this statue erected as a memorial to those Clarke County residents who fought and died during the Civil War defending states rights and the Confederacy.

The other was the Grace Episcopal Church and Graveyard erected in 1832. Do you know what the difference between a cemetery and a graveyard? Originally graveyards were burial grounds on church property, whereas cemeteries were land specifically designated for burials. Some very old churches actually have clergy or other very prominent members buried WITHIN the church under the floor. Their flat headstones would be down the isles between the pews.

My next two geocaches are in the Winchester Township. On previous roadtrips through Virginia I had just skipped the small townships, instead just focusing on the larger and rural counties. But I'm gonna have to fill these in on the map sooner or later. Might as well get to working on them.

During the Civil War, the Union and Confederate armies each used the Frederick County Courthouse (GC4XT0K) as a hospital and a prison. The Greek revival style courthouse was completed in 1840. It was the third courthouse constructed on this location. In 1758, the first courthouse was the site of George Washington's first election to office, when voters here elected him a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses.

Though these buildings have not been around that long, Colonel James Wood, a native of Winchester, England, laid out and founded the new Winchester in Virginia prior to 1743. It received a charter of incorporation from the colonial legislature in February 1752. Colonel Wood was the first surveyor of Orange County from which the county of Frederick was carved by an act of the House of Burgesses passed in 1738.

The Taylor Hotel, also our next virtual geocache (GC890KN), was a major stopping point for travelers because of its location on the Valley Turnpike and also was the center of town life. During the Civil War it was the headquarters for several commanders, most notably Confederate General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson. This is the Taylor Hotel below as it looks today.

Arriving in November 1861, his stay at the hotel was short. Continuing crowds of people eager to meet the famous Stonewall Jackson, he moved a few days later to a private residence of the Lewis T. Moore house, which is now the Stonewall Jackson Headquarters Museum (GC4XT6Y) pictured below. He used this as his headquarters until March 1862 when he left Winchester to begin his Valley Campaign.

Finally exiting Virginia and making our way into West Virginia, our next stop was in the town of Middleway to grab a geocache for Jefferson County (GCM0TN). From the historical marker: Middleway, founded in the late 1700's, flourished as a trading center for most of the 1800's. About 1820, the Lutherans and German Reformed congregations joined together to build this church. Some years elapsed and the building was erected and finally the Presbyterians agreed to bear one third of the cost. Services were alternated, thus the name Union Church.

As the village declined, the Union Church and its cemetery deteriorated. In a more recent act of destruction, vandals smashed tombstones with bats and knocked others askew. The nearby Grace Episcopal Church, built in 1851, (pictured below), having acquired the forsaken property, stepped in and has restored the site to its former dignity.

For Berkeley County, I stop for one of the famous WVTim gadget caches. Since 2012, it has had over 1400 finders and awarded nearly 700 favorite points. Located on the grounds of a fire station, it's made to look like an old fire house. I'm not gonna give you the GC code to this one cause I'm gonna tell you how it works. In order to open the compartment that contains the log sheet, you must first open the compartment which contains a package of balloons. Insert the balloon into tube on the side leaving enough around the tube for you to blow on and inflate the balloon. As the balloon expands on the inside, it opens the door containing the swag and log sheet. A fairly simple gadget cache but fun none the less. Oh and please take your balloon with you as you don't want another cacher to using the same one as you.

Up next in Morgan County, I stopped for a quick guard rail cache (GC4AX47) but still a significant point of history. From this point along the banks of the Upper Potomac River, Stonewall Jackson began shelling Hancock, Maryland from Orrick's Hill, January 5, 1862 after it refused to surrender Jackson's men were able to plunder a large cache of rifles, ammo, and blankets from a supply train that came into Alpine Station. After destroying remaining supplies, the B&O Railway track and the bridge over the Great Cacapon, Jackson marched his army of 8,500 men to Romney and captured it.

Crossing the bridge over into Maryland, we followed the river westbound until we got to that narrow piece of Maryland that separates West Virginia from Pennsylvania. Turning north a few hundred feet into Pennsylvania for our next geocache in PA's Fulton County and a significant piece of survey history. Here is located a stone survey marker for the Mason-Dixon Line (GC2BCKX).

The Mason–Dixon Line was surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the resolution of a border dispute between British colonies in Colonial America. The disputants engaged an expert British team, astronomer Charles Mason and surveyor Jeremiah Dixon, to survey what became known as the Mason–Dixon Line. It cost the Calverts of Maryland and the Penns of Pennsylvania £3,512/9 to have 244 miles surveyed with such accuracy. To them the money was well spent, for in a new country there was no other way of establishing ownership.

Mason and Dixon's actual survey line began to the south of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and extended from a benchmark east to the Delaware River and west to what was then the boundary with western Virginia. The surveyors also fixed the boundary between Delaware and Pennsylvania and the approximately north–south portion of the boundary between Delaware and Maryland. Most of the Delaware–Pennsylvania boundary is an arc, and the Delaware–Maryland boundary does not run truly north-south because it was intended to bisect the Delmarva Peninsula rather than follow a meridian.

And finally our last geocache of the day was a virtual (GCED74) at the Sideling Hill Welcome Center on I-68. The Interstate 68 highway through Maryland is also known as the National Freeway. It runs parallel to US-40 and the original National Road which was built in the 1800's. I'll talk more about the National Road more next week when we visit some of the remnants along the way including the first toll booth in the United States.

That's it for today. 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, Parlor, Twitter, RVillage, GETTR, Instagram, and TruthSocial. These all link directly to my profiles. Again, please feel free to comment and / or share.

2017-12-30: Spending a Day in Washington D.C.

As you recall from yesterdays blog, I had just arrived in Baltimore to surprise my wife who had gotten sick since she arrived a few days ago. This morning she felt slightly better. I think it was the fact of my showing up which cheered her up. Despite the below freezing temperatures outside, she didn't want to be sitting around inside the hotel all day long. So we decided to take a drive down to Washington D.C. for as long as she could stand it.

Our first stop was a Starbucks around the corner from the hotel to grab a nice hot cup of coffee. Followed by about an hour drive as we made our way into DC and found parking near the water at the Tide Basin Parking Area just south of the Washington Monument.

We walked across the lawn and up the hill. The Washington National Monument Society was founded on September 26, 1833 by Chief Justice John Marshall to raise private funds to erect an obelisk. It wasn't until July 4th, 1848 before the first cornerstone was laid. A zinc case filled with a copy of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, coins, newspapers, and mementos was places inside the 24,500 pound marble cornerstone.

By the Fall of 1854, the Society had exhausted all of its funds for the project and only completed 152 feet in height. Finally on August 2, 1876, Congress appropriates $2 Million for the completion of the Washington Monument. A second cornerstone is set on August 7, 1880 at the 150 foot level, marking the resumption of the shaft. Finally on December 6, 1884, the capstone and aluminum point are set in place marking the completion of the Washington Monument, thirty-six years after it began. Dedication ceremonies were held on February 21, 1885.

Walking down towards the reflecting pool, we arrive at the National World War II Memorial and grabbed a virtual cache (GC7B6JK). The WWII Memorial opened on April 29, 2004, with a dedication ceremony on May 29, 2004 for a 4-day "grand reunion" of veterans on the National Mall. 

Twenty-four bronze bas-relief panels line the entrance and tell the story of America's experience in the war. Granite columns representing each U.S. State and Territory at the time circle a pool and fountain, though with the below freezing temps it was drained and off. Two massive victory pavilions represent both the Atlantic and Pacific campaigns. And a wall of 4,048 gold stars to remind us of the over 400,000 Americans who sacrificed their lives for Freedom. Of course when you're visiting you just have to get the pic next to your home state!

Now on our way towards the Lincoln Memorial and another virtual cache (GCEB2). You can see in the photo that the reflecting pool had been drained and was now a thin layer of ice covered with snow.

In March of 1867, just two years after Lincoln's assassination, Congress incorporated the Lincoln Memorial Association to build a memorial to the slain 16th President. Modeled after the Parthenon in Greece, architect Henry Bacon felt that a memorial to a man who defended democracy should echo the birthplace of democracy. Ground was broken for the foundation on February 12, 1914. The memorial is surrounded by 36 columns, one for each state in the union at the time of Lincoln's death. Above the colonnade inscribed on the frieze are the names of the 36 states and the date they entered into the union.

From the chamber of the memorial, one can appreciate the different stones used in its construction. The terrace walls and lower steps comprise granite blocks from Massachusetts - the upper steps, outside facade, and columns contain marble blocks from Colorado - the interior walls and columns are Indiana limestone - the floor is pink Tennessee marble - the ceiling tiles are Alabama marble – and the Lincoln statue comprises 28 pieces of Georgia marble. These building materials may seem random, but Henry Bacon specifically chose each one to tell a very specific story. A country torn apart by war can come together, not only to build something beautiful, but also explain the reunification of the states. The Lincoln Memorial was dedicated on May 30, 1922.

 

On the way back, we stopped by the Korean War Veterans Memorial and our 3rd virtual cache (GC2657). The memorial was designed and financed by private contributions and erected under the direction of the Korean War Veterans Memorial Advisory Board composed of Korean War veterans appointed by President Reagan. Dedicated on July 27, 1995, the memorial consists of four parts: the 19 stainless steal statues, the Mural Wall, the Pool of Remembrance, and the United Nations Wall.

Next up was the D.C. War Memorial. The first plans were submitted to the memorial commission in 1919 and became reality with the passage of Resolution 28 in 1924.  The 499 names of the men and women from the District of Columbia who gave their lives in World War I are inscribed as a perpetual record of their patriotic service to their country. 

A circular, open-air, Doric structure built almost entirely of Vermont marble, the memorial has an overall height of 47 feet and a diameter of 44 feet, large enough to accommodate the entire U.S. Marine Band. It was intended that the structure be a memorial and a bandstand and that each concert would be a tribute to those who served and sacrificed in the war. Construction was completed in 1931 and the memorial was dedicated by President Herbert Hoover on the national observance of Armistice Day, November 11, 1931, "13 years to the day and to the house the armistice took effect."

This next item is probably overlooked by most everyone who visits the monuments here in Washington D.C. I know I would have walked by it with only a thought of that it looks like an over-sized fancy fire hydrant. Thankfully being a Geocacher, this was highlighted and made into a virtual geocache. The Japanese Stone Lantern (GCF2A6) continued the gift giving cycle that began in 1912 with Japan's donation of the famous cherry trees.

Presented to the city of Washington on March 30, 1954, this stone lantern symbolizes the enduring cultural partnership that re-emerged between Japan and the United States after World War II. The lantern is one of two, memorializing Tokugawa Iemitsu, the third shogun, or military lord, of the Tokugawa Dynasty, under his posthumous name Daiyuinden. Carved in 1651, it stood for over 300 years on the grounds of the Toeizan Kan’eiji Temple which contained the remains of the Tokugawa Shoguns. The temple was located in the ancient city of Edo, present - day Tokyo, in Ueno Park, a place famous for its cherry blossoms. Its mate stands there to this day.

The view across the Tidal Basin sits the Jefferson Memorial. In June of 1934, Congress approved the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Commission to direct the erection of a memorial to the 3rd President. Modeled after the Pantheon of Rome, it follows the style of Jefferson's two most famous buildings; Monticello and the University of Virginia Rotunda. FDR laid the cornerstone on November 15, 1939. The dedication was held on April 13, 1943, Jefferson's 200th birthday. Because construction took place in the midst of WWII, the original statue of Jefferson was made of plaster because of the restrictions placed on certain metals needed for the war effort. A 19 foot bronze statue replaced the original plaster one in 1947.

That's about all Candy could handle of the freezing temperatures. I'm surprised she made it this long as sick as she was. Fortunately after the two hour walk, we're back at the car AND a heater! A few minutes later and we're warming up and thawing out. Halfway back to the hotel we spot an Olive Garden and decide on some HOT soup and a salad. We spend the remainder of the day staying warm in the hotel, give her some cold and flu medication, and getting some rest. I gotta start my long drive back to Texas in the morning. Thanks for stopping by and following along. Hopefully you kept warm.