Maryland - Clarksburg - Part One

Clarksburg

Memorial Day, May 28, 2018 is the day we moved to Clarksburg, MD.

We don't know what we were thinking, driving on Memorial Day. Good grief we are crazy. A drive that should have been a little over 2 hours, took 5-hours.
Not only did we have lots of traffic, we also had a little mishap inside. The edging to our living room slide out fell off! Apparently the screws had worked themselves loose. Fortunately it was a fairly easy fix and nothing got broken.

We were so glad to pull into the Little Bennett Campground. It did take us awhile to set up as the site was not even close to level. Once we were settled in we loved this place. The sites are set wide apart with lots and lots of trees in between, and it was super quiet.

Site D-51 is a very long gravel pull through with full hookups. We did need to go and buy another section of sewer hose as ours was not long enough and getting the water turned on was tricky. There is a ring underneath the faucet that needs to be pulled down in order for the water to run, one of our neighbors knew the trick and helped us out. We had a picnic table and a fire ring.
The city run campground has lots of activities for kids, a general store and trails for hiking that Mielikki loved. Les found a turtle on one of his walks and Nancy found flowers and mushrooms. The laundry and bathrooms were clean. There is no WiFi but our Verizon signal was strong. We paid $36.00 a night with our Passport America discount.







Frederick, MD is a small town just north of Clarksburg. It is full of art, shops, restaurants and history. This is actually the first town that Nancy has found in our travels that could almost be home - it still doesn't beat Asheville, but close.

The Trompe-l'oeil Painted Bridge , or Community Bridge, is absolutely amazing. It is extremely hard to tell it is a flat surface, we had to keep touching it over and over again. It took William M. Cochran, a local professional public artist and trompe l'oeil master, and a team of assistants five years to created this illusion.
 The "bricks" are so life like and there are a number of hidden pictures. Warning: A lot of pictures to follow!

Real on left - painted on right

It was hard to tell where the real bricks and stones start and end.

Most of the hidden objects have a special meaning to the artist and/or the community and history of the town. Some of the ideas for the symbols came from around the world.

We found a lot of them but know we also missed some as well.

The walls on each side of the river have different items painted on them. The north side has a statue and a fountain. The south side an iron gate, it looks like you can open it and walk right through. 

Taken from the sidewalk

Taken from a window in
the art museum

You have to go into the Art Center in order to see the angel at the right angle for her to not look distorted.

The shoe print was rather special to us as it reminded us of Nancy's dad. When Katrina was little he cemented his patio and made impressions in the wet cement of Katrina's gyms shoes, which were about this size at the time.



The Delaplaine Visual Arts Education Center is free and filled with great local and regional art. They are very active in the community and offer lots of classes and events. Their library is filled with how-to and art history books, Nancy could have spent the day in there.
Each level of the stairwell is painted a different vibrant color and the walls are lined with posters of art history.

The river walk, Carrol Creek Linear Park, began as a flood control project in the late 1970's. Today it is a beautiful escape in the city.
The river is lined with art, places to rest, flower gardens, fountains and history. It is also home to some ducks and very large fish. There are businesses and residential buildings just off the walkway.

We fueled up with some coffee and bagels at the Bean and Bagel, the Steeler Fan sign made us think of our son-in-law, Steve. Then we headed off on a Historic Walk to find churches, homes, statues and more tromepe l'oeil paintings.

Calvary United Methodist

The 90-foot bell tower of the Calvary United Methodist Church houses eight peal bells. It is one of only forty in North America to have a tower like this.

Evangelical Lutheran Church ~ All Saints Episcopal ~ Evangelical Reformed

This is the third building the congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church used. It was built in 1854 and served as a hospital during the Civil War. The All Saints Episcopal Church is where Francis Scott Key attended, it was built in 1855. The Evangelical Reformed Church was built in 1848. Barbara Fritchie was a member and Stonewall Jackson attended when he was in town. Both of these also served as hospitals during the war.

Next to the Evangelical Reformed Church is a Peace Station. There are post-it-notes available to write your answer to the question - "What will you do to make this world a more peaceful place?" There are also prayer cards, where you can request prayers or give thanks for prayers answered.






The stone tower of the Trinity Chapel is all that remains of the original church built in 1763. Its 1807 steeple holds the town clock. The original clockworks are in the Smithsonian Institution.

On September 10, 1862 the Confederate Army marched through Frederick. Many local Unionist showed their defiance by waving the Stars and Stripes at them. It is claimed that Barbara Fritchie waved her flag from the upper window of her house as the army marched by. She was immortalized a year later in a poem, The Ballad of Barbara Fritchie, by poet John Greenleaf Whittier. Historians have since pointed out that Jackson's army probably didn't pass her house. No one really knows for sure, but the poem helped to lift the spirits throughout the Union.




Earthbound is one of three "Angels in the Architecture" murals, also painted by William M. Cochran.

Outside the home of Dr. John Tyler sits a cast Iron Dog sculpture that almost didn't survive - he was stolen by the Confederate army to melt down for bullets, but fortunately he was saved. Dr. Tyler was one of the first ophthalmologists in the United States, and also one of first to perform cataract surgery.

The statue of John Hanson is in the courtyard of the Court House, a tribute to a man who got lost in history. He was actually the first President of the Continental Congress in 1781, (or sometimes referred to as President of the United States in Congress Assembled), which oversaw the new nation before the Constitution was ratified. George Washington became the official first President in 1789. The plaque says "So the people of Maryland and the United States may at last pay tribute to their first President."

Mount Olivet Cemetery is where Francis Scott Key, the author of our national anthem, is buried. He passed away at his daughter's home in Baltimore on January 11, 1843, and was buried nearby. In 1855, Key's family moved his remains to a plot in this cemetery where he could lie as he wished in the shadow of Catoctin Mountain. In 1898 he was moved one last time. The Key Monument Association re-interned Key and his wife Mary to the front of the cemetery and erected this monument over their graves. 

We found some other interesting headstones. Pointing hands on headstones and pillars, lots of crosses and crowns and very well preserved willow trees.

Anchors and ships were quite popular as well, and of course angels and statues.

Frederick County was central to the Civil War military campaigns of 1862, 63 and 64, and Frederick City served as a major hospital for soldiers of both armies. Hundreds of men died here. Many Confederate soldiers could not be sent home and a number of them were unidentified and needed to be buried here. There are 275 identified soldiers and 29 unknown buried in the famed "Confederate Row." 
There are two rows, as new headstones have been made for each solider so their names and dates can be read.
Union soldiers that were originally buried here, were later honored with reburial at the nearby Antietam National Cemetery


While in Frederick we did some early Christmas shopping when we stopped in at the Dragon Distillery. Because of the dog we couldn't take a tour, but the owners were very informative and even let us sample some of their spirits.
The Flying Dog Brewery is a quick drive down the road, in fact the two places have collaborated together for beer and bourbon.
They are dog friendly which always makes us happy. The beer was good, service was great and the Mac and Cheese Fritters from the food truck were amazing.


You know we went in search of Roadside Oddities.
In Frederick we found the Jug Bridge. It was an engineering marvel for early America. In 1800, traveling was not easy, you needed to ford rivers or use ferries when they were available and they could prove to be dangerous.
The Baltimore and Frederick-Town Turnpike Company revolutionized American roads, when they built the first leg of the National Road in 1805. In 1808, at the cost of $55,000 Leonard Harbaugh built a bridge in Frederick over the Monocracy River.
A distinctive stone "demijohn" (a popular bulbous, thin-necked bottle that often held whiskey), was placed on the bridge's east end. This gave the bridge its name. Rumors persisted that a real jug of whiskey was planted inside the stone version. The bridge, held by the Union Army, played a critical role in the Civil War.

Bridge Image from the internet

The Jug Bridge stood well into the automobile era, but collapsed in 1942, leading to a new bridge being built. The Jug was moved down the road a bit to this location, to make room for the larger road and bridge.

In Silver Springs, MD we found a Giant Acorn, the nut shaped gazebo has been used for picnics and weddings.


The Hand of NOAA sculpture sits at the entrance to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration building. The hand is releasing seagulls to the ocean, representing the mission of the agency of protecting and recording the environment.

The Easter Island Head in Kensington, MD looks like he is ready for a picnic, which seems fitting as he sits right next to a food truck.







In Germantown, MD we enjoyed a little shopping at the Lancaster County Dutch Market and we found an old Cider Barrel that serves cold drinks in the summer and a Water Tower painted like the earth.






Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (yes, he was named after is famous 2nd cousin, 3 times removed) and his wife, Zelda are buried in the St. Mary's Cemetery in Rockville, MD. Fitzgerald's life turned out much like his character in The Great Gatsby. He died penniless at the age of 44. At that time the catholic church refused to bury him. He was buried at a nearby cemetery with about 2 dozen people in attendance. There was no money for a headstone. Seven years later, Zelda died in a fire at the asylum she was institutionalized at. She was buried next to Fitzgerald.
Thirty years later a local woman's group contacted their daughter, Scottie, and asked if they could erect a plaque. They approached the church once more about burying them there, and this time the church agreed to let them be moved to the Fitzgerald family plot.
Scottie chose the headstone and the inscription. The last words of The Great Gatsby, "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."





Most of the other headstones in the cemetery had crosses, many with additional symbols. There were crosses and flowers, crosses with hearts and anchors and one that covered all their bases. It had a cross, flowers and a willow tree!

In part two, coming soon - well maybe -  we cover our explorations of Baltimore, MD and Gettysburg, PA.

Till we meet again...

Happy Trails to You!

Tips and things we have learned along the way. 
~ Tip will be in part two.

North Carolina - 2 stops: Asheboro & Tabor City

Asheboro

We left Asheville on May 2, 2018. Nancy may have shed a tear or two. We started this years journey at the same place we started last years.
Zooland Family Campground in Asheboro, NC is a large well maintained park. There are plenty of activities for kids and it is only 10-minutes from the zoo. Sites are gravel and grass, average width with a picnic table and fire ring.
Laundry and bathrooms were clean. There is no WiFi, our Verizon signal was good.
They have a nice dog park with obstacle course items, which Mielikki wanted nothing to do with. There are two trails, Nancy and Mielikki enjoyed the River Trail every day.

We paid $31.50 a night with our Good Sam discount.
We had planned to go to the Zoo but with Mielikki's surgery just prior to our leaving Asheville we didn't feel comfortable leaving her all day.
As you can imagine she was not a fan of the "cone of shame". In fact once it was on she would only stand in one spot and not move - after close to 30-minutes we knew we were in trouble. At night she wouldn't lay down even with Nancy laying on the couch petting her. So, Nancy ended up sleeping on the couch with Mielikki laying on the floor attached to her lead, and no cone. Well, sleeping would actually be the wrong word! Nancy had the lead around her wrist so she would know when Mielikki started scratching. This went on for three nights before the scratching stopped. No, our dog is not spoiled - just well loved. 😉

We had much nicer weather this time on our visit to the Pisgah Covered Bridge, last year it was raining. The bridge crosses the Little River and cost just $40.00 when it was built in 1911 by J.J. Welch. It is one of only two remaining original covered bridges in North Carolina.

The 54-foot long bridge is only one lane wide and became obsolete when it could no longer handle the increased traffic and weight of automobiles. It sits next to the concrete bridge that was constructed in the 1950's.
The inside of the covered bridge is filled with graffiti, but no worries, it is all done in chalk!
There is about a half mile loop trail that takes you from one side of the bridge to the other. It is well maintained and lined with trees and wild flowers. There is a wooden walking bridge about half way on the trail that crosses the river.

The Birkhead Mountain Wilderness, in Troy, NC was established in 1984. But the mountain has a much longer history. It is considered to be the oldest range on the Northern American Continent. Evidence of early Indians dating back over 12,000 years has been found here. The Catawba Indians settled here in the 1600's and traders arrived in the 1700's.
The Birkhead family arrived in the mid 1800's and over the years acquired the 3,000 acres, which is where the name comes from. Many tenant farms were scattered across the area. There are four interconnecting trails ranging from 1.4-miles to 5.9-miles. We hiked the Thornburg Trail at 1.8-miles, which takes you through the Thornburg farmstead, circa 1850's.

We crossed creeks and climbed over fallen logs.





One section was covered with hundreds of spider webs that made us think of the Harry Potter movie! A tree was covered in little nests, of what we assume are caterpillars of some sort. A Tulip Tree flower landed gracefully in the crook of a branch.





In the middle of the path we came across a dozen or so butterflies.











Farther down the path in the middle of nowhere we found this sign.
It must be pretty old for cigarettes to be a dollar something a pack. The funny part is the words say do not shot this sign as children play here!!








Tabor City

May 6, 2018 was moving day to Tabor City, NC.

We stayed at the Carrollwoods Campground and Vineyard. It is a beautiful place and well maintained. Sites are gravel with a mulch area and wider than normal with lots of shade trees. There were plenty of places to walk the dog, the vineyard and around the pond being one of our favorites.

The fenced dog park is the nicest one we have ever seen. It is full of trees, so plenty of places to play in the shade. There are two trails for hiking as well. WiFi was good, Verizon signal weak. Laundry and bathrooms were very clean.



All of this and wine tasting too! We paid $39.19 a night with our Good Sam discount.

Willmington, NC is about an hour away and we spent two days there. Les needed to get his prescriptions filled at the VA Hospital, which of course can't be done in just one day.
First day out we headed to the tip of the peninsula and went to the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area. It is in Kune Beach and touches both the Atlantic Ocean and the Cape Fear River. The views were great, and we found a tree that looks like it is going out for a walk. We walked the beach, put our toes in the ocean and collected some shells and driftwood.

After all that salty air we needed a little refreshment and the Good Hops Brewery was just the place to get some.



On our way to Wilmington we made a stop at a very unique Roadside.

Mary's Gone Wild really is the perfect name! Mary, received a vision many years ago from God on how to reverse paint on glass. She had never painted anything before, but gathered the supplies and followed the vision and the rest as they say is history.
This started what is now a conglomeration of art and glass bottle structures.

Front and back of one of her paintings. 

Top left - piano keys used on the Ferris wheel

There are multiple buildings filled to the brim with bottles, art work and an assortment of other trinkets and tools. One building is all Coke-a-Cola items, another is filled with doll furniture and a large doll house that Mary made.

One room is used for prayer and meditation. The walls are covered with bible verses and there is a large collection of bibles. There are three large rooms used as her gallery with paintings everywhere. Plus, the floors and ceilings are all painted.

Bottom pictures - L: floor  R: ceiling 

Last but not least there is a whole section of treehouses!

Other Roadside Oddities we found....

Tabor City gave us the Newspaper Boy which reminded Nancy of the musical Newsies. In 1953 the Tabor City Tribune won the Pulitzer Prize. Horace Carter, owner and editor, was troubled by the Ku Klux Klan and wrote over 100 stories and editorials exposing what he felt to be a dark force of injustice.
The original Tabor School House, built in 1870 is just down the road.

In Bolton, NC we found Boo-Boo Bear outside a daycare center and his original home. where you can get just about any sculpture you can imagine including a Uni-Royal Girl.

We explored a couple of cemeteries.
The Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington, NC was part of the Rural Cemetery Movement that began in the mid-Nineteenth Century. In 1852 prominent Wilmington businessmen purchased 65-acres of land located at what was then outside of the city limits. The first burial was for six-year old Annie DeRosset, on February 5, 1855. She was the daughter of the cemetery president, Dr Amand John DeRosset.

The cemetery is unique in that each section is raised up from the road with stairs taking you up to the grave sites. Many movers and shakers of Wilmington are buried here. Like other old cemeteries, Oakdale is filled with eloquent epitaphs and symbols. (this link takes you to a page describing the symbols) There are graves from all wars, including a female Confederate spy. One section is devoted to the victims of the Yellow Fever epidemic.

We found metal crosses and beautiful Celtic crosses. A small wooden tree cross is for Nancy Martin who was on a sea voyage with her brother in May of 1857 when she became ill and died near Cuba. Her body was placed in a large cask filled with rum and returned to Wilmington for burial. The rustic cross bears the name Nance, as this was what her brother called her. He was later lost at see during a Hurricane, while delivering lumber to Cuba.

One of the more popular graves is for river boat Captain, William Ellerbrock and his faithful friend "Boss", his dog. Both died on February 11, 1880 while fighting a fire on the river docks.

This was the first All Seeing Eye of this type that we have seen. It symbolizes God and was heavily used as a Masonic symbol.

Welch's Creek Cemetery is a small cemetery in the middle of farm fields just outside of Whiteville, NC.
It is the resting place of Mille and Christine McCoy. They were conjoined twins born into slavery on July 11, 1851 to Jacob and Monemia, slaves of blacksmith Jabez McKay.
At 10 months of age they were sold to John C Pervis, who ran a side-show circus, with the agreement that McKay would receive a percentage of exhibit fees. Fourteen months later they were sold to a showman named Brower, who was backed financially by Joseph Pearson Smith. Brower lost the twins in a swindle to a Texas landowner. This left Brower destitute and Smith holding a promissory note for the twins. The girls were handled by several managers before being reclaimed by Smith in Britain in 1857. The Emancipation ended there slave status in 1863. Before this time they had been showcased in fairs and freak-shows in several US cites, Canada and Britain where they met Queen Victoria.
Smith traveled to Britain to collect the girls and brought their mother with him. He provided the girls with an education and taught them to speak five languages, dance, play music and sing. They had a successful career as "The Two-Headed Nightingale". There motto was "As God decreed, we agreed," and strove to turn obstacles into assets. In their 30's they moved back to the farm where they were born, which their father had bought from Jabez McKay and left to them. On October 8, 1912 they passed away at age 61 from tuberculosis. Christine died 12 hours after her sister.

The cemetery has a number of other interesting grave sites, most are mounded cement with a small plague placed in the center. The plaques have crosses, Jesus alone, Jesus with children and Jesus on the cross.

We thought the McCoy gravesite was at the Whiteville Cemetery so we visited it first. Along with a few unique older headstones we did find some beautiful new ones.

We can imagine years from now someone else finding them and marveling at the workmanship just like we do for the ones from the 1800's.










Up next is Chocowinity, NC where we visited the Outer Banks.

Till we meet again...

Happy Trails to You.

Tips and things we have learned along the way.
~ You can learn so many things on the Internet.
As mentioned before we plan all of our trips using the internet, and of course we can waste a great deal of time on social media, playing games and an assortment of other things.
We have also used it to learn how to make a number of repairs. Of course, you can find a zillion things on Youtube.  Not only repairs but remodels and more. There are also sites just for RVing.
RV Repair Club has 100's of videos covering inside and outside repairs, as well as a blog and newsletter.
The RV Geeks have lots of resources along with videos.
Just Answer is a live chat site where you can ask RV Techs questions, they also have techs for other vehicles from heavy equipment to boats.

Shinny new fender

During our stay in Asheville Les replaced our water pump that had broken and we replaced the tow-dolly fender that got ripped off when the tire blew back in November. We saved a ton of money doing them ourselves as opposed to having the work done.