During the past few years as we've visited our son's family in Mount Airy, Maryland, we have taken small day trips (sometimes 3- or 4-day trips) to see places of historical significance.
This year we flew to Maryland on Tuesday, October 8.
In the interest of privacy, I won't show lots of photos of them and their small children, with whom we visited until through Sunday, October 13.
Both Barbara and I had recently read The Pioneers by David McCullough, which tells the story of the settlement of the Old Northwest. We wanted to explore some of the places we had read about.
Our first stop was Marietta, Ohio, the first permanent settlement in the Old Northwest.
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| Photo of a Map in the Marietta College Library, Marrietta, Ohio, taken October 15 2019. The Northwest Territory was created by the U.S. Congress on Friday, July 27, 1787, when they passed the Northwest Ordinance. The Treaty of Paris of 1783 ended the Revolutionary War. It gave the land in the Northwest Territory to the United States. |
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Historical Marker about the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 in Marietta, Ohio
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| Weldon standing at the entrance gates of the Mound Cemetery in Marietta, Ohio, October 15, 2019. The cemetery got its name from ancient Native American mounds that were found in that part of Ohio and the Midwest, including some still preserved within the Mound Cemetery. |
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Cemetery information board telling about the Moundbuilders.
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| Grave stone of Commodore Abraham Whipple in the Mound Cemetery. Abraham is Weldon's second cousin six times removed. |
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| Weldon, standing next to the iron fence surrounding the Commodore's grave stone. Note the stairs leading to the top of a mound in the background, just right of center. |
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| Weldon at the base of the mound October 15, 2019 It is very near Abraham's grave. |
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Looking down from the mound at the cemetery. The Commodore's grave is inside the iron fenced area near the top of the photo and slightly left of center.
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| We spent time Marietta's Campus Martius: The Museum of the Northwest Territory. We also looked through an interesting exhibit at Marietta College. |
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| At about noon we left Marietta and headed north on I-77 towards Cleveland. In less than 1 minutes we took an exit onto Ohio SR-821 N/Cambridge Rd. In only a few more minutes we found Whipple, Ohio. Here I am at the entrance to Whipple, named after Commodore Whipple. |
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Continuing north on I-77 we passed by Whipple Ave in the vicinity of Canton, Ohio. (This photo was taken October 15, 2019 at 3:00 p.m.)
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We arrived at our hotel in Mentor, Ohio at about 4:00 p.m. on October 15. We had a light dinner at TGI Friday's. Then we tried to watch some Korean Dramas on Viki. The second episode died about twenty minutes into the episode.
The next day (October 16) we visited the Kirtland Temple owned by the Community of Christ.
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| Barbara in front of the Kirtland Temple, October 16, 2019 |
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Another view of the Kirtland Temple
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We also visited a number of other places, including (for example), the Newell K. Whitney Store, and the home of President James A. Garfield in Mentor, Ohio. His home has become known (unofficially?) as the first Presidential Library.
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| Inside the James A. Garfield home, a National Historic Site in Mentor, Ohio, October 16, 2019 |
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| Another room in the James A. Garfield home, Mentor, Ohio, October 16, 2019 |
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| Master bedroom of the James A. Garfield home, Mentor, Ohio, October 16, 2019 |
President Garfield was inaugurated as the 20th President of the United States on March 4, 1881. Four months later, on July 2, 1881, Charles J. Guiteau shot President Garfield at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington, D.C. The wound wouldn't have been fatal except for infections caused by his doctors. He finally died September 19, 1881.
We returned to Mount Airy, Maryland on October 17. It was an enjoyable and educational side trip.
