Iowa to the Land of Lincoln

We enjoyed great pasta and good conversation at dinner out with our Iowa cousins Friday evening. What a really great restaurant Monica’s was….if you are ever in Iowa City check it out!  But it was early to bed for us as we’d experienced 3 non-stop days!
Leaving Iowa City we traveled back on I-80 across the Mississippi  and turned south towards Peoria on our way to Springfield IL to experience some Lincoln history.  Beautiful rolling and flat farmland with 99% corn and soybean farms.  An occasional Grain elevator and small town dotted along the way. We traveled both on Interstate and Illinois state roads and did not experience any bad traffic all day.

I always wonder why there are one or two wind turbines out by themselves..we saw two out in the middle of nowhere.  Often when we see a large turbine farm there are a certain % not working. We came upon one large group today and of the maybe 100 only 2 were working..why is this? 
You can see we had beautiful blue skies – and with temperatures in the low 80’s it was a perfect day!
We continued south through Peoria and continued through Lincoln to Springfield.  We stopped at a Steak n’ Shake for lunch. Ben had a shake on his mind.  We had lunch with many teams of soccer and cross country teams – the place was swamped but the service was good considering and the food was great!  We had a burger and shake – Jane had Salty Carmel Pretzel and Ben had Turtle with  Chocolate, Carmel and Nuts…both were excellent.

Carmel Pretzel Shake
About 30 miles further south we found Double J Campground  and set up camp. Very nice location in a cottonwood grove. Lots of shade but with a sunny spot here and there if you wanted the heat.

Our site at Double J Campground
Since this was our first night camping on this trip it was time to discover if we had forgotten anything!  OH MY – the coffee basket and carafe were missing from the coffee pot!  Ben had used them when he camped during his time at Penland Arts & Crafts School a week ago – Jane took them out and put them through the dishwasher – and that is where they remain!  Not good!  Back up the road 6 miles to a Walmart to buy another pot.  Amazing that it although a different brand – is an exact fit!  so now we have a second pot in case this one quits!
We were quite impressed by the Walmart – tan color with white columns – then we noticed a Lincoln quote painted over the doors….I guess this really is Lincoln Country!
Dinner tonight was the plan-overs from last nights pasta dinner – it may have been even better the second night!  Thanks again Nora Lee and Wayne!
Evening came earlier than we had realized. Dark by 7 PM.  A great surprise was this lovely sunset over the nearby lake.

Tomorrow we drive back about 8 miles into Springfield to see all the Lincoln historical sites. Tonight reading and a little TV this campground had internet and cable TV. 

Nesmith Family Reunion

From Indianapolis we traveled another day to Iowa City arriving about 3:00.  We started out in rain and lots of traffic at 8:15 AM

Indianapolis traffic and rain

Soon the sun came out and we enjoyed a pleasant drive through more corn and soy bean farmland. We passed into Illinois with little change in scenery.  One thing we noticed different from our trip a couple years ago was the roads in Indiana were no longer the worst in the country.

 

Farmland in corn - green but turning brown and ready for harvest.

After a stop for lunch we crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa near Davenport and headed on west towards Iowa City.

Jane had made group reservations at a Country Inns and Suites in Coralville for any family members who needed a hotel for the reunion. It turned out to be a great location.

Our reunion that started out as a visit to the small Kellogg Iowa Museum for 4 cousins who spent summer vacations in Kellogg in the 1940’s and 1950’s ; had grown to a gathering of 25+ relatives most of them living much closer than the 4 cousins who now lived in Montana, Tennessee, South Carolina and Iowa. This was the first time these 4 cousins had all been in the same location in over 50 years!

After a nap we met up with two cousins who arrived from Minnesota and headed to the Iowa University Club for the gathering of cousins. What fun we had renewing old acquaintances and meeting new relatives.

Ranging from cousins in their 80’s to a 5 year old – much conversation, great food and drink, and memories were enjoyed by all.

 

As a surprise after a delicious dinner was a red velvet birthday cake to be shared by all celebrating birthdays today were Jane and Samantha.

Jane and Samantha

Friday Morning we got up and headed to Kellogg – about an hour west on I – 80.

Kellogg is a small town that is now a bedroom community for the larger towns of Grinnell and Newton about 10 miles east and west.  Most of the main street is now the Kellogg Museum. We enjoyed seeing their great collections of items donated by families in the area. Of particular interest were the Locker where  meat stored there in the freezer was retrieved by residents and where we all remembered Grandad taking us for the best ice cream cones !

Most of our Nesmith Family Group outside the “Locker” in Kellogg

We were also able to visit the one room school house that had been moved from another location to the main street.  Jane was particularly interested in this since her mother had taught in a similar school house that was located 3 miles south of Kellogg. Buena Vista #1. 

Typical One Room School

Can you see the wood burning stove in the front corner?  Teacher started the fire before the students arrived each day.

We showed one of the younger generation where Grandmother and Grandad Nesmith had lived. The children of the MN cousins really enjoyed learning of the place they had never seen and meeting their “southern relatives”.  “Do we have a northern accent?” they kept asking.

Grandad’s House – so different now!

Our visit to Kellogg ended with a visit to the cemetery where graves of Grandmother and Grandad Nesmith as well as parents of two of the cousins were located. Note the name of the cemetery – Our Silent City.

On the way back to Iowa City we stopped for trip back in time – A Maid-Rite sandwich.  A loose hamburger meat sandwich popular in the 30’s and 40’s across the mid-west. The chain still exists today.

A great time was had by all at our reunion.  We made plans to eat dinner tonight with a cousin who lives in Iowa City so were looking forward to making more memories.

Kingsport to Indianapolis

On the road to Jane’s Nesmith cousin family reunion!  We will combine this trip to Iowa with the last half of the Historic National Road that we began earlier this summer. It was a beautiful morning and we got an early  (8 AM)start to drive the nearly 400 miles to Indianapolis IN. The day was going to be primarily driving and listening to a book on CD so the story is told mainly in photos!

Over Bays Mountain leaving Kingsport

Quick breakfast on the road.

Cherokee Lake as full as we have seen it thanks to our wet summer.

East TN from atop Clinch Mountain

Historic Cumberland Gap

Cumberland Gap Tunnel

Beautiful Horse Farm near Lexington KY

Lunch Stop at a KY Rest Stop – flags at half mast for 9-11 and most of visitor center closed for sequestration. Restrooms only part open.

Only part of Cincinnati we saw as we skirted the city to the south.

IN farm with tall corn – much taller than our TN variety

We found our way to a Comfort Inn south of Indianapolis and stopped for the day about 3:30.  It had been an uneventful day with one exception. The GPS took us off the Interstate just after crossing the Ohio River into Indiana.  We believe it was taking us the shortest route which may have included this 15 mile trip on IN Route 1 through some beautiful farmland.  We even passed a road that went to the “South Slopes Ski Resort”. Can’t help wondering how high the Ski lift could have been in this fairly flat farmland!

With few choices for dinner without getting in the Sprinter; we walked across the parking lot to a Denny’s and had a surprisingly good dinner.   

History, Good Friends, and Home

Saturday, June 29, 2013
A great nights’ sleep, a yummy breakfast and we were off to explore Lexington with our friends. Lexington is a very old town with history from the 1700’s. We visited both Washington and Lee University and Virginia Military Institute which were begun in the 1700’s. The Chapel at Washington and Lee was also a museum housing the graves of the Robert E. Lee family. George Washington was instrumental in the success of the college when he made a financial contribution to the struggling school which was then named Washington College. After the Civil War, Robert E. Lee became the president of the College where he remained until his death in 1870. He is known for expanding the role of the college into the sciences, engineering, etc. There was a very nice museum here as well as a sculpture of Lee in repose in his military uniform. The sculpture was very intricate and my photo does not do it justice.

VMI is very close by and much larger than Washington and Lee. VMI is a state military school as opposed to WL which is a private college. VMI was instrumental in training many of the officers for the south in the Civil War. “Stonewall Jackson” is buried nearby. George C. Marshall was an alum and our short visit did not allow us to learn all the history of this location. We did visit their chapel and smaller museum.

After touring around this fascinating town for a while we settled on lunch at The Bistro on the main street. After a tasty lunch with our friends we got back in our Sprinter and headed south on I 81 for the last part of our journey. We listened to the remainder of our mystery and crossed into TN arriving home at about 5 PM.
We unloaded the essential things saving the majority of the task for tomorrow. After an enjoyable trip we were glad to be home!

Unplanned WV Excursion

Friday, June 28, 2013

After a good nights’ sleep and a quick breakfast we were on the road again. Our destination was Fairfield Virginia and a short visit with long time friends who have recently relocated there. We started out driving south on I 64 with plans for a short stop at the New River Visitor Center for a National Park Stamp.

We looked around the Tamarack Center – a WV craft center – interesting building but that is about it.

We were both watching for the signage for the Visitor Center since it was not noted on our map.

Finally we put it in the GPS and were directed to exit at an upcoming exit. This was the start of a 90 minute adventure on the back roads of WV! Review of maps conflicted with the GPS but we journeyed on certain we would soon come to the river. We passed through very small towns, going up and down mountains on very curvy roads – about as bad as they can be with “hairpin” curves. When we went up the rhododendron was blooming and quite pretty. When we went down there would be small towns – in various levels of repair. We had little choice but to continue…. until we came to the New River – AT RIVER LEVEL. There was an old bridge crossing the river but – the state had installed a bar across the road at the entry to the bridge – the sign said clearance 9 feet.

When we had the air conditioner installed on the Sprinter this past winter, it increased the height significantly – we think around 10 feet but we are not 100% sure. Oh no – will we have to retrace our journey!? A man working nearby talked with Ben. The guy must have had this situation before…he said “Oh, I think you can make it – the clearance over near your side of the bridge is 10 feet or more – I will watch and let you know if it is too close”. We started and he said we had about 8 inches of clearance…so we drove slowly across hoping the other side was the same height! The river was probably 6 feet or so below the level of the bridge.

We made it and continued on with much the same terrain as we climbed back out of the river valley. We passed by Prince WV (very small) which had what seemed to be a functioning train station. There were abandoned coal mines and other support functions in several areas.

Finally we came to a larger road and found it on the map…in about 15 minutes we ended up back in Beckley WV – some miles before we began looking for the New River Visitor Center earlier! We had driven in a circle. In Beckley we stopped at a Sheetz and ordered lunch before traveling through Beckley and getting back on I 64 to try it again.

This time we saw the sign – there were the signs we had seen and one that we had missed – the one telling you to exit! The visitor center was small and constructed on the site of an elementary school that was no longer used. From this visitor center you could not even see the New River. The displays were primarily related to ecology. I got the National Park Passport Stamps but this visitor center is certainly an example of a “pork” project of WV Senator Byrd! When we were leaving the center to return to I 64 we saw the road we had traveled on earlier – bet if we had gone the opposite way from what we did when we left I 64 the first time we might have ended up at the Visitor Center! Oh well it was an interesting experience.

We continued on across WV and entered VA. The mountains and farmland as we neared I 81 were beautiful.

At I 81 we drove a few miles north to Fairfield which is a little north of Lexington and arrived at our friends home. They had purchased the model home in a new small development of about 15 homes. This was a great location for them; near their children who live in Lexington about 12 miles to the south. The home was perfect for them.

We spent the late afternoon enjoying visiting and experiencing nature at its best! There is a lovely small pond behind their home. There were beautiful water lilies blooming while the sun was shining.

There were many brightly colored red-wing blackbirds living in the cat tails around the pond edges. My photos do not do the area justice.  I dropped my camera back in Uniontown and have only my i-phone which can zoom but not like my camera. The mountains in the distance were a beautiful back drop to the pond.

Then after dinner suddenly the barn swallows came – hundreds of them. They would zoom by and swoop down to gobble up some sort of insects from the pond. Then after about an hour – they were gone as quickly as they came. Next came the fireflies – and they appeared as twinkling Christmas lights in the trees below the pond. It was an absolutely magical sight. We also experienced a concert by a bull frog. Visiting with good friends in such a wonderful setting was a great end to our fun week of exploring.

PA, WV, OH, and WV again…and RAIN

Thursday June 27, 2013

Heavy rain soon after we awoke at 8 AM…change of plan.. we quickly dressed, broke camp, and headed to somewhere dry for coffee. We can easily make coffee and cook in the Sprinter – in fact do it everyday – but we were out of most breakfast food and not looking forward to sitting around in the rain when we had a long day ahead… we were on the road by 8:30!

We found coffee in Chaulkhill – right where the road from Ohiopyle joins UW 40. Ate the pastries we had gotten yesterday in Ohiopyle and off we went. We stopped for only two interesting sites – first was the Searight Toll House named for William Searight who was commissioner of the National Road for many years and the author of “The National Pike” which is the most comprehensive history of the road.

Searight Toll Booth

The second and last interesting remnant of the road in PA was the “s” bridge. Unique in that it is built in the shape of an “s”. This was an architectural feat in the day. Luckily the rain had diminished to only a drizzle for our short hike to the bridge. Note in the photograph the road markers – these follow the road mile by mile. Also the Inn on the far side of the bridge is from the 1800’s. Looks as it is a private home today.

Then we watched and watched for our entry into WV and never did see a welcome sign. We had been seeing evidence of oil wells and fracking as we came through western PA and it was even more evident in WV. There were makeshift RV lots where the workers were staying in many places.

Wheeling arrived soon – the National Road only lasts for 18 miles in WV. The original section extended from Cumberland to Wheeling.

Wheeling did not much interest us so we headed on across the Ohio River into Ohio. The two road signs for WV and Ohio are posted below but the WV is not very clear through the rain…

 

It is now nearly 1 PM and we are getting hungry. Trip Advisor sent us to the Bear’s Den in Cambridge and had a fantastic steak sandwich. We were stuffed but noting the desserts when we left made us wish we had enough space for one!

We got on I 77 and headed south towards Charleston WV. Nothing to report along this route but more rain….and we are now listening to another CD book. This time Collateral Damage by Robert B. Parker.

5 Pm we arrive at a Day’s Inn – no camping in the rain for us! We watched FOX news for the first time in a week and had dinner at a nearby Cracker Barrel. Today has been the only really poor travel day of our trip.

Connecting with the past

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

We had heavy rain most of the night. Never did have lightening and thunder or hail but we had plenty of rain! Ohiopyle is the Indian word for “rushing white water” – and that is what the water here looks like. There are rapids and lots of white water rafting enterprises in the park as well as biking and hiking trails. There is a very small town right past the park which has outfitters, rental of bikes etc and several eating establishments. The Campground is nice but the bathrooms are only adequate and could use a little upgrading!

We headed off towards Hopwood and Uniontown. Along the way we stopped at Fort Necessity National Battlefield. The battle was one of the first the George Washington took part in as a young Lt. in the British Forces. He was battling the French and Indians in the War of 1812.

The Visitor Center also had an interpretive display about the National Road. It was very well done. In looking through their resource materials, Jane found she already had a copy of the most complete book written about the National Road – a soft bound copy now sells for $33. We have a hard bound copy that also includes a 1916 Travelogue of the National Road. They did not have that in print there.

The National Road Exhibit was very well done with several scenes to make you feel you were part of traveling the road.

Interesting quote from the museum…

Also associated with the battlefield was the Mount Washington Tavern - a fully furnished Tavern and Inn of the 1800’s.

Mt. Washington Tavern and Inn, Tavern Room, and Barn for Wagons

It was very nice and furnished very appropriately. They even had a small barn to the rear much as the Inn’s of the Road had.

We continued on towards Uniontown and Stopped for Lunch at the Stone House Inn. An Inn of the 1800’s still operating today.  Ben had chicken and dumplings and Jane had a hamburger. The interesting thing about the lunch was the biscuit with the chicken and dumplings was a blue cheese biscuit.  Both were excellent. We also took a few photos of the lobby and dining room. We ate in the Tavern section and avoided a pretty heavy thunderstorm by eating inside.

We continued on towards Hopwood and Uniontown. Hopwood was really a suburb of Union Town. We had no addresses to look for so continued on to Uniontown and found both the location of the Tavern at the corner of Main and Arch. While we were not 100% sure which corner – it really would have made no difference. All corners were without buildings. We photographed all corners and the environs.

We also had an address where Aaron Wyatt (Jane’s great great great grandfather) had lived – address was now a one block high rise public housing facility. But the next block still had some very old looking several story buildings that were probably mulit-family dwellings. Oh one will never know for sure...

Above is newly constructed housing and below is nearby old building in poor repair.

We went to the Pennsylvania Room at the Uniontown Public Library and searched around in photos, maps, etc for about 2 hours. Two of their resource books, Jane’s mom had in her possession. The Nesmith family history they have was written by a distant Nesmith cousin – and Jane has a copy. So it appears Jean Beck did a pretty good job. Many many hours spent here might yield photos of the buildings we were looking for… but we did not have that much time. We already had wedding records, death records etc. So the day gave us the flavor of the community and the time when Jane’s relatives lived here, and the satisfaction of having been in these places.

Getting to be late afternoon we headed back to camp and sat around a while reading until we were hungry and then Jane whipped up a quick supper in the microwave. Does not look rain tonight but it is much cooler – in fact we have not even turned on the ac yet.

Tomorrow we move on to finish the last leg of this portion of our National Road journey.