2021-03-26: Day 4 of Turning a 1400 Mile Road Trip into a 3404 Mile Adventure! From Ohio into Indiana.

So today was Day 4 of our adventurous road trip where we turned a simple 1400 mile drive from NC to TX into a 12 day 3404 mile sightseeing tour! On this fourth day we finished traveling through Ohio and into Indiana, continuing to pick up new geocaching counties and finding more remnants of the old National Road. So come ride along with us as I share our geocaching adventures with you.

Waking up in Columbus, Ohio this morning, our first stop was for some Starbucks coffee. Well, Candy got a Starbucks coffee. I got the geocache in the parking lot (GC25QYX). Then we drove a few blocks away to a Dunkin Donuts where I then got a coffee and donuts for myself as well as a muffin for Candy.

Continuing our westbound roadtrip and following the Historic National Road (now US-40), we pulled into the Sunset Cemetery in Franklin County for several geocaches hidden here (GC77D86, GC4QFG8, GC54E7E, GC4ER7X). All three geocaches had a lot of favorite points awarded to them so we just had to stop by and find them. A nice Veterans Memorial was on display. But Jack's Cache was by far the favorite and even posted both a photo and video of it below. Be sure to have your sound turned up when playing the video!

(Turn Sound ON With Video!)

One of the advantages of driving the backroads on a roadtrip are the unexpected gems that get to be discovered along the way! Passing through the small Village of Lafayette in Madison County, Ohio, what first got me to stop was spotting this tour of Jeep history somebody had displayed on this fence. It was a perfect photo opp for the Geo Jeep Travel Bug!

Then taking a closer look at the old buildings along this stretch of the historical highway. This first one here I can't find much information on it. The plaque above the front entrance says "Deer Creek Tp, Sub-Dist No 1, 1906." I'm thinking it was an early school that has long been closed. One of the rear buildings has B. S. A. on it and can only assume that at some time in its historical past that the Boy Scouts of America had rented the building. If any of you can provide further details, please use the comment box below. It would be greatly appreciated.

This other building across the street is on the National Register of Historical Places. From the historical marker: "The Red Brick Tavern is a classic roadside inn and tavern from the heyday of the National Road. Constructed between 1836 and 1837, it was in operation when the road was completed past its front door. Over the years, the Red Brick Tavern was a popular place for travelers along the Historic National Road in Ohio. The Tavern hosted six presidents of the United States; John Quincy Adams, Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachery Taylor, and Warren G. Harding."

Running north and south along the west side of Lafayette is Deer Creek. To claim a geocache in Madison County we went to the Deer Creek Cemetery (GC1ZDYX) which is next to the creek. While some of my favorite geocaches are cemetery caches, I was more interested in the geocache next to the cemetery.

Crossing the creek about a 1000 feet south of the current alignment of the National Road / US-40, spans the remnants of an early railroad bridge This Interurban bridge was part of the railway that was part of the Springfield London Columbus route. This railway was run by the Columbus London & Springfield Railway from 1902-1939. The Interurbans provided a quick and cheap alternative to regular railroad for transporting people. As for the geocache, well I couldn't find it. Along with many others. It has since been archived.

The next county over is Clark County. It's also where my next two geocaches are located (GCZEFX, GCRDQC). In 1841, Ezra Baker gave the township land to the northeast edge of Enon for a cemetery. Land was added to the Enon Cemetery in 1884, in 1906, and again in 1978. There are earlier burials than 1841, but these were moved from family plots. Three Revolutionary soldiers, two War of 1812 soldiers, many from the Civil War, plus soldiers of more recent wars, are buried in the cemetery. There is a Soldier’s Monument, bearing the names of 31 local men who died during the Civil War, but not necessarily brought home for burial.

Continuing westbound a few miles and dropping down into Greene County, we make a stop for a quick geocache in the corner of a parking lot to claim the county (GC104NY).

After Greene was Montgomery County and the next three geocaches. The first one was located at the Polk Grove Cemetery (GC3W2YG). The cemetery is located next to the Polk Grove United Church of Christ. Since I didn't have time to look around the cemetery, I'll just leave you with this little tidbit. What's the difference between a cemetery and a graveyard? A graveyard is what they used to call a cemetery located on church grounds.

The second geocache was another location along the historic National Road. Patty's Bridge (GC196PD), located in Englewood Metro Park, is named after the James Patty family who owned a 160-acre farm in Butler Township. The Patty's brick farmhouse, torn down in about 1975, was located on the high ground northeast of the bridge. The original stone abutments for the bridge are still in place and demonstrate the skill of the workman building the highway. The National Road was America's first interstate highway.

Thomas Jefferson was president when construction of the road began in 1807. It started in Cumberland, MD and reached this part of Ohio in about 1838. The original route of the National Road took it due west of Patty's Bridge and into Harrisburg (now Englewood) Ohio. After Englewood Dam was completed in 1922, the National Road (which later became U. S. Route 40) was rerouted to the south and over the dam. By 1840, the National Road was completed to Vandalia, IL and then later to St. Louis, MO. Today this road spans the entire United States from Cumberland, MD to San Francisco, CA.

We stopped for one more geocache in Montgomery County. It was for a tasty treat at the Esther Price Candies chocolate factory (GC44BKB). It was an expensive geocache. Yep, we bought about $60 worth of chocolates by the time we left!

 

Our final county geocache for Ohio was a quick roadside stop in Preble County (GC2PMGT).

Crossing over into Indiana, the first county is Wayne County. And for our next geocache we stopped at the Old National Road Welcome Center (GC1WJPK). The Indiana portion was built between 1829 and 1834, linking the eastern seashore with the western interior. The automobile revived The National Road in the 1920's. As cars and trucks took to the road, the federal government established a nationwide network of paved, all-weather highways.

The Old National Road was one of the first routes designated under the new federal highway numbering system in 1926, US Route 40, a transcontinental highway. Once again, the new road gave way to new opportunities. Like the blacksmith shops and taverns of the past, gas station, diners, and motels lead the way to a new era of prosperity. Until the 1970's, with the completion of Interstate 70, US-40 was one of the country's primary east-west routes.

Next door over in Henry County, my geocaching county stop was at the New Lisbon Cemetery (GC8RFP1). After finding the geocache, just a quick glance around and a photo before continuing down the road.

Wanting to make up time and get to Indianapolis before it gets too late, I hop onto Interstate 70. The next county is Hancock County. We stopped for a quick westbound rest area geocache (GCPTZV).

We finally pulled into Indianapolis and I head to the Indianapolis Speedway. But it was too late. The Speedway was closing. From there we drove to the south side of the city to the Holy Cross and St Joseph Cemetery. I was here once before way back in 2007. I was once an over-the-road truck driver. The trucking company I worked for had a terminal several blocks away. While I was there getting the truck serviced, I saw online that there were some famous interments in this cemetery and walked down to see them.

Now they have some much needed upgraded headstones to replace the neglected and broken previous headstones. And a new historical marker which reads: "There are few better known names in automotive circles world wide than Chevrolet. Millions drive the Internationally respected cars, but few know that the company and its revered name originated with three brothers, Louis, Gaston and Arthur Chevrolet. Of Swiss heritage, their story is one that reflects the very foundation of American society. Louis migrated to America at the turn of the 20th century, and after earning enough money, sent for his brothers.

"The brothers immersed themselves in automotive technology as designers, mechanics, and racing drivers. All three raced multiple times in the famed Indianapolis 500, with Gaston winning the 1920 classic. Capitalizing on their huge popularity, Louis founded the Chevrolet Motor Company in 1911. And, despite leaving the firm in 1916, the automotive giant retains the name."

After Gaston won the 1920 Indianapolis 500, he died later that year in a racing accident. Louis died of a heart attack in 1941. Arthur retired in 1942 to Slidell, Louisiana where after suffering from depression, he committed suicide in 1946.

To get credit for Marion County, we went to Concordia Cemetery just a block away. There we found two geocaches to complete the spot on the map (GC2B3N9, GC2B45F).

That was it for Day #4. We drove up to Crawfordsville in Montgomery County. That's the next county we need and the next location of our geocaches. So we found a place to stay there for the night. Tomorrow we'll finish up Indiana and start into Illinois. I look forward to seeing you back again.

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.

2018-06-09: Geocaching in Central Texas Through History, Cemeteries, an Elephant and Fairies!

Welcome to another edition of our AwayWeGo's Geocaching Adventures Blog. While I'm still way behind in my writing, I am hopeful that one day I'll catch up. I even stopped finding new caches for a few months at the beginning of this year in an effort to catch up. But none the less, much of what I tell you about is still there for you to see today if you like. So let's get started and see what we found on this day back in June 9, 2018.

Having worked only 5 days this week instead of the usual 6 days, I took the opportunity to go out on a Geocaching Adventure with my wife today. We decided to take a drive up to Hico, Texas to get some chocolates. It's a few hours away, but the chocolate is worth it! Along the way we'll be grabbing some caches and sightseeing on this roadtrip.

Our first geocache is called "Iron Elephant" (GC5XFB3). The cache was placed along the roadside where this rather large sculpture of an elephant happens to be sitting. It was hard to get a decent photo from the phone with it sitting so far off the roadway. As I was pulling away and passing by the Rockin-R Ranch gate, I saw another large statue of a giraffe. Again, sorry for the poor photo quality. But if you happen to be driving up SR-36 near Whiteway, TX, keep your eyes open for some large wildlife!

Just up the road in Whiteway is the Evergreen Cemetery (GC171KZ). Whiteway (formerly Whitesboro), in southeast Hamilton County, was established to serve the needs of motorists between Jonesboro and Hamilton. The settlement had a school, a church, a cemetery, and scattered farm units in 1936. At one time its population was fourteen; in 1966 four inhabitants were reported. Whiteway was named for Steve White, a local resident, whose sons established and operated the filling station, garage, body shop, and grocery. Whiteway appeared on local maps during the late 1980's, but no population figures were available. By 2000 the population was listed as ten. There was a John Stephen White (1880-1964) buried in the cemetery, but I'm not sure if he was the one the town was named after.

On the way to our next cache, I saw this old covered wagon sitting on the property corner of this ranch entrance. I just had to pull over and take a photo. You never know what you may find driving the rural backroads of this country.

Our next geocache was at the Rock House Church and Cemetery (GC10924).There's not much left to the actual church structure. I forgot to even get a photo. The cemetery is in dire need of some TLC. Mostly overgrown with weeds and shrubs. Some of the headstones have been broken.

Trying to research, I can't find any history on this church or the cemetery. The only thing that I can find is that there are 115 burials here dating back to 1870. Other than that... if you know of any information I'd be happy to hear from you.

Not too far away was our next cache at Bulman Cemetery (GC1CW5R). Established in 1884 because of the death of Emily Bulman, the wife of the Rev Henry Jefferson Bulman who was one of the early settlers in the area. There are just over 140 burials in this cemetery. One of the interesting displays by a headstone is this red boot in a basket.

Continuing northbound, we came upon this small town called Fairy, Texas. There wasn't a geocache in this town so it didn't come up on my radar. But I did take a quick stop for a few photos.

Fairy was first known as Martin's Gap for James Martin, an early settler who took an oxcart through the mountain gap, which wasn't an easy thing to do back in the day. When the post office was established in 1884, the town was named for Fairy Fort, the daughter of Confederate Army Captain Battle Fort. At a mere 2' 7" and about 28 lbs, Fairy Fort was one of the smallest Texans on record. She was married and divorced twice and had only one child, by her first husband, who died at birth in 1893. She died on October 22, 1938 at age 73 and is buried in the Fairy Cemetery.

Photo credit: TexasEscapes.com

The town of Fairy had a cotton gin from 1900 to about 1936 and schools, churches, and businesses serving the greater ranching and farming community. In 1947 Fairy had a post office, three churches, three businesses, and 150 people. The post office closed in 1957, and the Fairy school district was consolidated with the Hamilton schools in 1967. In 1980, 1990, and 2000 the population was thirty-one. Pictured below is one of the remaining churches and a tree carving in town.

Maybe next time through they'll have a geocache to find or I'll hide one myself.

We finally arrived in Hico, Texas and our chocolate destination! Wiseman House Chocolates is a must stop when visiting Hico. This is our third time here and the chocolates are some of the best we've ever had.

Next a quick stop by the Hico Cemetery for our next geocache (GC6YNN7). There's just over 4000 interments dating back to 1862.

Then off to the Carlton Cemetery (GCT77Q). On July 9, 1867, a farmer J. E. Pinkerton traveling to Carlton on horseback, became bogged down in a muddy swamp while crossing Tywhappatee Creek. While struggling to free his horse he was attacked and killed by a band of renegade Comanche Indians. This occurred the same day that renegade Comanche Indians attacked the country school house seven miles northeast of Hamilton. Two children were taken captive and their teacher Ann Whitney lost her life protecting her students. It is unknown which attack happened first. Pinkerton was the first burial  in what became Carlton Cemetery.

And finally our last geocache for the day was at the Toliver Cemetery (GC14DV8). Burial place of pioneer settlers, including James H. Neel, one of first seven men to bring families here in 1852. His home was a quarter mile to the east of cemetery. He was also postmaster of Resley's Creek Village 1858 to 1866.

That's it for today. Don't forget to follow along with us on Facebook to get the latest updates and occasional pictures not found in our blog posts. See you next time.

2017-10-28: A Crumbling School, Cemetery, a Bridge, Dinosaurs, and Chocolate!

Welcome back and WOW what a day! Today we have everything from a crumbling school, to a cemetery, an old bridge, going way back to the days of dinosaurs, and finishing the day with decadent CHOCOLATE! So lets get started...

After finishing up work yesterday in West Texas, we made the long drive to Killeen last night. Today was a day for geocaching and exploring. After breakfast, we made our way up to Bosque County for our first cache and a new county. The Mosheim School (GC15B39) is a crumbling landmark of an era faded into the past. The town formerly known as Live Oak was settled in the 1850s with Jonathan Dansby given as an early (if not the first) settler.

A man named Jeff Howard built the first store in 1886 and submitted the name Mosheim for a post office which was granted the following year. In 1896 Mosheim had fifty people, a school, and several businesses. The population went from 171 in 1904, to 100 by 1925 and then reached its zenith in 1941 with 200 Mosheimers. It remained close to 200 until the late 1960s when it declined to 75. The town lost its post office in 1976.

The school was built in 1923 and by 1970 it had closed it's doors. Looking at various photos of the school online, the taller section above the entry along with the roof had collapsed sometime between 2013 and 2016. There's a really good article at the KWTX website talking to two locals who grew up and went to that school.

Just up the road is the town of Clifton, where we found our next two caches at the cemetery (GC6RW7N, GCT7BK). Clifton was founded in the winter of 1852–53, when the families of Samuel Locker, Monroe Locker, Frank Kell (whose grave and statue in the photo), and T. A. McSpadden settled in the vicinity. The town was named Cliff Town after the limestone cliffs that surround it. Over the years the name was altered to Clifton. The site was originally on the banks of Clear Branch. The Masonic hall and a log schoolhouse were the first public buildings. The post office was established in 1859. The First Presbyterian Church of Clifton was organized in 1861 and is the oldest church in continuous service in the county. The Baptists built the first church building in Clifton in 1884–85. After the Civil War J. Stinnett built a flour mill that was powered by the Bosque River. It was replaced in 1868 by a limestone mill, which was eventually converted to the electric power plant that provided the first electricity for Clifton homes. A three-story school known as Rock School was built around 1870 and served the community for more than twenty years. In 1893 a new building was constructed on property donated to the Clifton school system.

In 1880 the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway built a station a mile south of Clifton. Merchants moved their businesses closer to the railroad station, and the town thrived as a business and trade center. The Merchant Exchange and Flour Mill, the first steam flour mill in the Bosque valley, was established in 1887 or 1888. The Clifton Record, a newspaper that began publishing in 1895 under the ownership of W. C. O'Brian, continued to serve the community through the years. Clifton also served as the county seat between 1890 and 1892. Clifton Lutheran College, later known as Clifton College, opened in 1896. The community was incorporated in 1901. An earlier attempt at incorporation in 1891 failed when the election results were declared invalid. A fire on December 23, 1906, destroyed a large portion of the business district, which was eventually rebuilt. The Clifton Volunteer Fire Department was organized in 1907. The town's need for a hospital was met by Dr. V. D. Goodall and Dr. S. L. Witcher in 1938. The Lutheran Sunset Home for the elderly was established in Clifton in 1954. The town had an estimated population of 204 in 1904 and 3,195 in 1990. It had 100 businesses in the 1980s. In the early 1990s an exotic-animal preserve open to tourists was located southwest of Clifton on Farm Road 3220. In 2000 the population was 3,542 with 262 businesses.

After leaving the cemetery, we headed to the north side of town to visit a piece of history before it becomes history. The Clifton Whipple Truss Bridge (GC6RW6C) was built in 1884. Still in use as one of only two bridges crossing the North Bosque River east of town. It had asphalt over the original wooden planks. But it's days are numbered. You can kinda see in the photograph, they're building a new modern bridge right next to it. And the word is when the new one is completed that the planks will be removed making it impassable. That's a shame. I like these old bridges. They should at least leave it for pedestrians, fishing, or just because.

Around the corner from the bridge was this rock structure. Wasn't sure what it was as there were no signs or anything. Perhaps a part of the old mill? So I began to Google for answers. Not even close to being an old mill. The City of Clifton offered the State of Texas 80 acres of land along the Bosque River for a state park. The state never accepted the donation, and the area remained a city park. Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Company 878 arrived in June 1933 to begin work on the park. The CCC built picnic and fireplace units, a semicircular seating area, entry portals, concession building and latrine all out of limestone. The CCC left their camp in Clifton in January 1934. This is what remains of the abandoned latrine!

Then there's this building on the corner. The sign says "First Chance," but I couldn't find any information on it. Then Bryan Davis from the BackRoads of Texas FB Group was able to help me out. He sent me this information: "My late friend Anna (Wood) Compton knew a lot of local history. Not sure many will recognize this photo from 80 years ago. This was a popular stopping point just before crossing the Bosque River on the west side of Clifton, where the old Whipple Truss Bridge stood. Anna lived here with her parents in the 1930s and her dad sold bait and tackle, picnic supplies, barbeque, cigarettes, and other goods. The Wood family lived in a back room partitioned with a sheet from public view. What fascinated Anna and me was that nothing appeared being done to preserve the limestone structure which was her childhood home. I've been told it is the oldest structure in present-day Clifton, pre-dating the move of Clifton to its present location with the arrival of the railroad about 1881. I recall Dan Orbeck and Ferman Grimm saying their families also owned the structure at various times. I'm sure there are issues with it being in a flooding zone, but I hope some measures are being taken to insure this landmark, which has survived some 150 years and numerous floods, receives proper preservation."

Thank you Bryan. I never thought the building would have been that old! Here's a picture Bryan sent me from back in the past:

From there we drove north on up into Somervell County and a town called Glen Rose. The town had a couple of statues around the courthouse square.

Also in the town square, is the tiny Hopewell Post Office and our last cache for the day (GC9B44). There are (or were) Hopewells in Franklin, Houston, Red River, Smith, Upshur and Williamson Counties. Somervell’s Hopewell is now covered by Squaw Creek Lake. Fortunately, great effort was taken to preserve a part of the forgotten community by moving its tiny post office to Glen Rose to sit on the courthouse square next to the museum. It's short history lasted from 1901 through 1904.

From there we drove over to the Dinosaur Valley State Park. In 1908, a flood of epic proportions roared down the Paluxy. It washed out all bridges and culverts on the river and scoured the riverbed. A year later, nine-year-old George Adams discovered something amazing in the river:  large, three-toed tracks - theropod tracks. Nearly 20 years later, a fossil collector for the American Museum of Natural History in New York named R. T. Bird saw one of the theropod tracks in a shop in New Mexico. He decided to come to Texas and check out the site. While exploring in the river, he was amazed to discover what looked like sauropod tracks, along with the theropod tracks. The tracks were the first proof that sauropods walked on land. The park opened in 1972 to preserve these valuable dinosaur track sites and to allow people to learn from and enjoy them. They also have some nice hiking trails along the river.

Getting late in the afternoon, and both starving by this point, we stopped in the town of Hico for dinner at the Jersey Lily's Mexican Restaurant. It was pretty good. The town is also known for this legend that supposedly Billy the Kid really wasn't shot and killed in his young life. But lived out a long life under an alias here in Hico. But what we REALLY liked best about this whole town was a visit to Wiseman House Chocolates! While at the restaurant I was looking up other things and town and saw this place. We just had to go visit after dinner. And it was a good thing we did!

They had this pure hot chocolate that was the best hot chocolate we've ever tasted. Something about taking pure melted chocolate, adding a tiny bit of water to keep it from hardening, and sipping it from a shot glass. So rich and delicious that's all you really need. The best chocolate I've ever had. We ended walking out with over $100 worth of several different types of chocolate, including this pure chocolate high healed shoe for Candy! I think it'll just be displayed in our kitchen forever. I can't see eating this shoe. Does chocolate go bad? Guess we'll never know.

Well that's the end of a wonderful day! I thank you for reading and following along in our adventures! Until next time...