Plimouth Plantation Several years ago, I took my daughter to visit Plimouth Plantation in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and the experience was amazing. Some background information on this wonderful attraction. The Plantation is the brainchild of Henry Hornblower, who started the museum with two English cottages, along with a fort on Plymouth's waterfront. This was his boyhood dream - telling the story of the Pilgrims and how they lived. Since then, the museum has grown to includ

Laundry and Machine Shop Hancock Shaker Village is located in Pittsfield, MA. It was founded in the late 1780's, and Shakers resided there until 1959 when the last Shaker passed away. Now you might wonder what Shakers are? Well, that is really the nickname given to a group of individuals who belonged to the United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing. This was a communal religious group originally founded in Manchester, England. They migrated to America in 17

Full view of Castillo de San Marcos Castillo de San Marcos is a beautifully preserved Spanish Fort in St. Augustine, Florida. This fort was built by the Spanish between 1672 and 1695, when it was finally completed. Before 1672, several wooden forts had been on the site, and the area had been attacked repeatedly until the Spanish government decided it needed a stronger fort. The fort originally protected the sea route for treasure ships as well as guarding the St. Augustine

Hancock-Clarke Parsonage The Hancock-Clark House is located in Lexington, Massachusetts, and is the boyhood home of John Hancock. Many of you will know that he and Samuel Adams were at this home from April 18th until April 19, 177,5 when the American Revolution began. History books record that they were warned by Paul Revere around midnight that the British were coming and should leave. Then, in a standard history class, we learn that Hancock and Adams leave around 4 am to

Middleton Plantation is located in Charleston, South Carolina, and is the home of Arthur Middleton, a Signer of the Declaration of Independence. Middleton Plantation is owned by the Middleton Family, but through their Foundation, which raises money to support this beautiful and historic site. First, a little background information on the Plantation. Henry Middleton, the father of Arthur Middleton, married Mary Williams, who was the only heir to her father, John Williams. He

Photo courtesy of the author One of the things I love to do is travel to historic American places to learn about our history. One such place is Philadelphia, where I visited many historic spots within the city. Previously, I wrote about the “President’s House,” which was essentially the original White House when the capital moved from New York to Philadelphia prior to moving to its final location in Washington, DC. Today, I am going to focus on the Liberty Bell and the histor

The San Jacinto Battlefield Monument is located in La Porte, Texas near the Chevron Oil Refinery. It is the site of the last battle between the Texians and the Mexicans during the 1836 Texas Revolution and it is majestic in its grandeur while encompassing a much larger area than I expected due to the refineries nearby. Just a little background on the Battle of San Jacinto. This is the last battle of the Texas Revolution which led to Texas’ independence. The Texians led by Gen

During the sweltering summer of 2023, I had the opportunity to visit Washington on the Brazos. It was initially for a project I was doing...

A few years back, I visited Fort Griffin when I was beginning a calendar project on Historic Forts of Texas that I was doing for a former...

Round Top Town Hall Last week I decided to spend a couple of hours driving over to Round Top, TX which is a well known small town in...

Picture courtesy of the Texas Historical Commission Website* When thinking about Texas, no one ever thinks about the French being...

President's House A few years ago, I had the opportunity to visit Philadelphia and take a class on the Constitution while I was attending...

Thomas Heyward, Jr. is not a name most people are familiar with, but he was a signer of the Declaration of Independence from South...

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to spend some time in Savannah, GA with a good friend of mine. IT was a wonderful weekend of...

Old Sturbridge Village is located in Sturbridge Massachusetts just off of I-84 and Hwy 21. It is a recreated 1830's New England Village...

Monument Hill is located in La Grange, TX and is the burial site of men who died during the Dawson Massacre in 1842 and the Mier...

On a trip down to visit relatives in Texas, I made a stop in Mansfield, MO with my two daughters to visit the final home of Laura Ingalls...

On a trip to Boston in 2011 as I walked around with my girls visiting different historical sites, we came across this unique garden...

Fort McKavett is located in Fort McKavett, Menard County, TX and is considered a ghost town. It was established in 1852 as part of a...

Fort Martin Scott Fort Martin Scott is located on Hwy 290 as you drive into Fredericksburg. For a long time, I didn’t pay attention to...