This is the only mention I’ll make of it, but today marks three calendar months since The
Thin Blue Ride commenced in Astoria, OR of June 10th. Still hard to believe...
Today was spent doing more tourist stuff, mostly centered around Yorktown since we wanted to tour the battlefield. Of course, the Park Service also had a small museum that we went thru and there was a 30 minute film we watched that gave us the broader perspective before we commenced the battlefield tour. We also walked the historic Main Street of Yorktown which is on the hill above the beach, and while doing so ran across a local museum in the old County Courthouse. The museum was in the basement and the volunteer on-duty docent du jour recruited me to go downstairs for the guided tour. The upstairs was a collection of local art by 300 area artists. Guess where Susan went? Probably for the best - for both of us. I saw a lot of quilts hanging in there...
Here’s the day in pics...
This is our bobblehead shot of the day. The stone house behind us is surrounded on three sides by Civil War graves. Interesting since we went looking for Revolutionary War stuff. However, directly opposite the house behind us lie earthworks from the 1st siege line to surround Yorktown during the Revolutionary War and from which French artillery reduced the English earthworks near Yorktown.
This is a better shot of the Civil War graveyard. The reader can make out the tombstones atop each grave. Interestingly, most of the unknown dead were buried two to a grave. And in an odd tradition, there were coins on many of the grave markers, unknown and named alike. They indicate that someone stopped by to visit the deceased soldier. In modern military tradition the coin left indicates in what manner you served with the deceased. Penny - just paying your respects. Nickel - you went thru boot camp with the deceased. Dime - your served with the deceased. Since there were modern nickels, dimes and even quarters; I'm guessing that not everyone who leaves a coin understands the tradition.
Hey Sig - check this out. (I know he reads the blog) Which one do I choose? Answer: neither. Just stand between the two, look bewildered and wait for Susan to take the pic. These were actual French cannons on replica carriages behind a rebuilt section of the original French section of the first siege line around Yorktown. Cool factor: 7.5.
This is the last remaining section of a portion of the English fortifications surrounding Yorktown. It was known at the time as redoubt 10 and was the last in a chain of redoubts connecting English earthworks around the town. It was also right next to the James River. That being the case, a good portion of the redoubt had subsequently washed away when the river bank eroded over the years. This remaining piece was re-discovered in the 50s. It was the taking of redoubts 9 and 10 by French and American forces that forced Cornwalis' surrender to the allied French and American forces.
Speaking of said surrender, the Moore house in this photo is where surrender negotiations took place between Cornwalis' representatives and those of the allied French and American forces. The house had been thru 50 owners and the Civil War (hence the nearby graveyard) and is lucky to have survived at all. During the Civil War, Union soldiers razed all the outbuildings and had even started stripping the siding from the house for campfires. It was eventually bought by the Park Service and renovated.
This is the very room in the Moore house in which the terms of surrender were negotiated - for 13 hours. As it happened, only one person in the room spoke both French and English - one of the American representatives.
At this point (after noon) we were ready for some lunch and took a break to head back into Yorktown for same. And when we got there...
Who do I find standing on the street corner discussing tactics but Washington, de Grasse and Lafayette! I stepped in to provide some input. In this pic I was telling 'em "They're gonna shoot at ya from over there."
Once they all found out who I was, we came to terms and shook hands all around. Everybody seemed OK with me except for de Grasse. He seemed a bit out of sorts.
So - I figured what the heck - these French are always kissing each other on both cheeks anyway. Apparently de Grasse doesn't subscribe to that particular French custom. C'est la vie!
After lunch and that whole awkward thing with de Grasse (Washington told me not to worry about it) it was time for our walking tour of Yorktown's historic Main Street.
There were a lot of historic homes there. Some still privately owned and some owned by the Park Service. Since there was no placard out front, we think this one was privately owned.
Same with this one. Note the classic architecture.
This one was a former colonial custom house in which duties and tariffs were collected when ships arrived in port. Business went downhill with the commencement of hostilities. It is now owned by the DAR and used as their local chapter's meeting hall.
This one belongs to the Park Service and was formerly the home of one of Virginia's early Governors by the last name of Nelson, Jr. He was also a big player in the Revolutionary War, becoming a general in the Colonial Army.
At the end of our walk we came out next to the Victory Monument. Today's perspective on it was entirely different than when I pulled in to town on Sunday. So it warrants another appearance. The docent at the local museum told me that this was actually the second such monument. Recall that for 100 years after being authorized, the US Government did nothing to erect this monument. During those intervening years, an industrious and patriotic local endeavoured to erect a monument at his own expense at the location where Cornwalis had surrendered. When the Park Service took the area over, the monument he had erected was declared to be in the wrong place and demolished with the rubble thrown into the trees behind whence it had formerly stood. As a local stir developed concerning this issue a few years ago, the park service retrieved the rubble and had it ground up, then gave it to the DAR who used the material in their garden. At least that's how the local docent told the tale.
At the conclusion of our walking tour we ended up back down by the beach and parched. So we stopped in at a local watering hole for something to drink. As we sat there, this sailing ship returned to the dock. The sails are all down in this pic so it must be under motor power, but when I first saw it there were three still flying. We think it's a tour thing. You know: just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip - that started from this tropic port, aboard this tiny ship. The mate was a mighty sailin' man, the Skipper brave and sure, five passengers set sail that day, for a three hour tour, a three hour tour. C'mon! If ya don't get it, you weren't paying attention in history class.
Till next time.
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