#94 Timucuan National and Ecological Preserve

Timucuan National and Ecological Preserve protects wetland areas North of Jacksonville, Florida as well as over 300 privately held pieces of land. The Kingsley Plantation, pictured above, is the oldest remaining plantation house still standing in Florida today. The site contains the antibellum era remains of slave quaters, a look into a dark part of America's past.

See more of my pictures from my January 2005 visit here.

#93 Fort Caroline NM

Fort Caroline National Monument is located just outside of Jacksonville, Florida. It contains the scaled down reconstruction of an 1862 French fort that lasted only a year before being destroyed by the Spanish.

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My Light

#92 Big Cypress NPres

Big Cypress National Preserve is a United States National Preserve located in southern Florida, about 45 miles west of Miami. The 720,000-acre Big Cypress, along with Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas, became the first national preserves in the United States National Park System when they were established on 11 October 1974. Big Cypress borders the wet freshwater prairies of Everglades National Park to the south, and other state and federally protected cypress country in the west, with water from the Big Cypress flowing south and west into the coastal Ten Thousand Islands region of Everglades National Park. When Everglades National Park was established in 1947, Big Cypress was originally intended to be included; however, because the land had not been purchased from its private owners, Big Cypress was ultimately released from the park system. Ecologically, the preserve is slightly more elevated than the western Everglades, and Big Cypress has historically served as home to Native Americans, including the Miccosukee and Seminole tribes, as well as early settlers who hunted herons and egrets to supply feathers to hat-makers in New York and Paris, and poachers who hunted American Alligators and Crocodiles to near extinction. The timber industry also operated in the area, and built railroads to haul out most of the cypress ecosystem's old growth trees. Big Cypress differs from Everglades National Park in that the Miccosukee and Seminole people have permanent rights to occupy and use the land, that the Native Americans and hunters may use off-road vehicles, and home and business owners have been permitted to keep their properties. As in Everglades National Park, petroleum exploration was permitted within Big Cypress, but plans are under way to buy out the remaining petroleum leases. In the 1960s, Native Americans, hunters, and conservationists succeeded at fighting an effort to move Miami International Airport's international flights to a new airport in the Big Cypress area, and then campaigned to put Big Cypress back into the National Parks System. Although construction of the new airport had already begun, it was stopped after one runway was completed, and it is now known as the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport. The preserve is the most biologically diverse region of the terrestrial Everglades, and while dominated by a wet cypress forest is host to an array of flora and fauna, including mangroves, orchids, alligators, venomous snakes like the cottonmouth and eastern diamondback rattlesnake, a variety of birds, and the Florida panther . The preserve is also home to nine federally listed endangered species including the West Indian Manatee, the eastern indigo snake , and the Florida Sandhill Crane. A number of campgrounds in Big Cypress are tailored to motor vehicles, where tourists planning overnight stays can park their vehicles and ORVs in designated areas. The southern terminus of the Florida National Scenic Trail is located in Big Cypress, and provides hiking opportunities during the winter months.For nature lovers who don't mind getting their feet wet, hiking throughout Big Cypress is enjoyable in all seasons, with most of the cypress country more hospitable to hikers than the dense sawgrass prairies of the central Everglades. Some of the most beautiful wading and walking can be found in cypress strands and prairies between the Loop Road and the Tamiami Trail. Because alligators are numerous and often large, wading through the cypress country requires constant alertness.

#91 Canaveral NS

The Canaveral National Seashore (CANA) is a National Seashore located between New Smyrna Beach and Titusville, Florida, in Volusia County and Brevard County, United States. The park, located on a barrier island, is home to more than 1,000 plant species and 310 bird species. CANA occupies 58,000 acres (230 km²) (including lagoons) and was created on January 3, 1975 by an act of Congress. The park's 24-mile long beach is the longest undeveloped beach on the east coast of the state. The southern part is also known as Playalinda Beach, the middle section as Klondike Beach, and the northern section as Apollo Beach. The John F. Kennedy Space Center is located at the southern end of the barrier island occupied by Canaveral National Seashore so access to the seashore is often restricted during launch-related activities at the space center. Mosquito Lagoon borders the other side of the Cape from the Seashore.

The rest of my pictures are located here.

#90 Fort Matanzas NM

Created in 1924, Fort Matanzas National Monument is a United States National Monument run by the National Park Service. The Monument consists of a 1740 Spanish fort, Fort Matanzas, and about 100 acres of salt marsh and barrier islands along the Matanzas River on the northern Atlantic coast of Florida. It is operated by the Park Service in conjunction with the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument and several sites in the city of St. Augustine. Fort Matanzas guards Matanzas Inlet, the southern mouth of the Matanzas River, which can be used as a rear entrance to the St. Augustine. Such an approach avoids St. Augustine's primary defense system centered at Castillo de San Marcos. In 1740, Gov. James Oglethorpe of Georgia used the inlet to blockade St. Augustine and launch a 39 day siege. St. Augustine endured the siege but the Spanish realized the need to protect the inlet. Under Gov. Manuel de Montiano construction began in 1740 with completion occurring in 1742. Convicts, slaves, and troops from Cuba were used as construction labor. The Fort was sited on Rattlesnake Island and has a commanding position over Matanzas Inlet. The Fort is constructed of coquina, a common shellstone building material in the area. It is 50 feet long on each side with a 30-foot tower. The marshy terrain was stabilized by a foundation of pine pilings. The standard staff for the Fort was one officer in charge, four infantrymen, and two gunners, though more troops could be stationed if necessary. All soldiers at Fort Matanzas served on rotation from their regular duty in St. Augustine. Five cannons were placed at the Fort - four six pounders and one 18 pounder. All guns could reach the inlet, which at the time was less than a half mile away. In 1742, as the Fort was nearing completion, the British under Oglethorpe approached the inlet with 12 ships. Cannon fire drove off the scouting boats and the warships left without engaging the Fort. This brief encounter was the only time Fort Matanzas fired on an enemy. Spain lost control of Florida with the Treaty of Paris, 1763, and regained control with the Treaty of Paris, 1783. With the Spanish Empire deteriorating, Spain spent little effort maintaining the fort after this time. When the United States took control of Florida in 1819, the Fort had deteriorated to the point where soldiers could not live inside. The United States never used the fort and it became a ruin. In 1916, restoration work began on the badly deteriorated fort. In 1924, National Monument status was proclaimed. It was transferred from the War Department to the National Park Service on August 10, 1933. As an historic area under the Park Service, the National Monument was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. The Headquarters and Visitor Center were added separately to the National Register on December 31, 2008.

See the rest of my pictures here.

#89 Castillo de San Marcos NM

The Castillo de San Marcos is a Spanish built fort located in the city of St. Augustine, Florida, United States. It was known as Fort Marion from 1821 until 1942, and Fort St. Mark from 1763 until 1784 while under British control.The city of St. Augustine was founded by the Spanish in 1565. Over the next one hundred years, the city was defended by nine wooden forts. Following the 1668 attack of the English pirate Robert Searle, it was decided by the Queen Regent of Spain, Mariana, that a masonry fortification be constructed to protect the city. In October 1672 construction began on the fort that would become the Castillo de San Marcos.
The Castillo is a masonry star fort made of a stone called "coquina", literally "little shells", made of ancient shells that have bonded together to form a type of stone similar to limestone. Workers were brought in from Havana, Cuba, to construct the fort. The coquina was quarried from Anastasia Island across the bay from the Castillo, and ferried across to the construction site. Construction lasted twenty-three years, being completed in 1695.In 1670, Charles Town (modern-day Charleston, South Carolina) was founded by the British. Being just two days sail from St. Augustine, this was one of the events that spurred the fort's construction. In November 1702, forces under orders from Governor James Moore of Charles Town, set sail from Carolina in an attempt to capture the city.Upon their arrival at St. Augustine, the British laid siege to the city. All of the city's residents, some 1,200 people, along with all of the fort's soldiers, some 300, remained protected inside the wall of the fort for the next two months during the attack.The British cannon had little effect on the walls of the fort. The coquina was very effective at absorbing the impact of the shells, allowing very little damage to the walls themselves. The siege was broken when the Spanish fleet from Havana, Cuba arrived, trapping the British in the bay. The British were forced to burn their ships to prevent them from falling into the Spaniards' hands, and march overland back to Carolina. As they withdrew, they set fire to the city of St. Augustine, burning much of it to the ground.After the siege of 1702, the Castillo underwent a period of reconstruction. Beginning in 1738, under the supervision of Spanish engineer Pedro Ruiz de Olano, the interior of the fort was redesigned and rebuilt. Interior rooms were made deeper, and vaulted ceilings replaced the original wooden ones. The vaulted ceilings allowed for better protection from bombardments and allowed for cannon to be placed along the gun deck, not just at the corner bastions. The new ceilings required the height of the exterior wall to be increased from 26 to 33 feet.Tensions between Great Britain and Spain had been on the rise for years, and in 1739 Great Britain declared war on Spain. The conflict was known as the War of Jenkins' Ear. As part of the war, British General James Oglethorpe laid siege to the Castillo and the city of St. Augustine. Governor Manuel de Montiano, the Spanish governor of St. Augustine, prepared the defenses of the Castillo and the Spanish colony. Oglethorpe set out from the newly-created colony of Georgia and invaded Spanish-held land. After capturing the Spanish outposts of Fort San Diego, Fort Pupo, Fort Picolata and Fort Mose, he marched his troops toward St. Augustine.General Oglethorpe landed his troops on Anastasia Island across the inlet from the Castillo and the city. He began firing on the Castillo in hopes that a sustained bombardment and blockade would force the governor of Florida to surrender. However, a small vessel managed to get through the blockade by evading the lone British ship guarding the Matanzas Inlet to the south of Anastasia Island and set sail for Havana, Cuba. When they returned, they found that the ship guarding the inlet had gone, allowing supplies to be brought to the Castillo without opposition. The coquina walls of the Castillo once again withstood British bombardment, and on the morning of the 38th day of the siege the British withdrew their forces from the area.In 1763, the British finally managed to take the Castillo, but not by force. As a provision of the Treaty of Paris (1763), Britain gained all of Florida in exchange for returning Havana and Manila to Spain, captured during the Seven Years' War. On July 21, 1763, the Spanish governor turned the Castillo over to the British.The British would make a few changes to the fort, most notably its name, becoming Fort St. Mark. With Britain being the dominating power in North America, it was not felt that the fort was needed to be kept in first rate condition. This attitude was prevalent until the outbreak of the American Revolution.During the war, St. Augustine became the capital of the British colony of East Florida. Improvements were begun on the fort, in keeping with its new role as a base of operations for the British in the south. The gates and walls were repaired and several rooms had second floors added to increase the housing capacity of the fort. The Castillo saw action during the American Revolution mainly as a prison, holding several revolutionary fighters captured in Charleston when it was taken by the British. Major operations from St. Augustine were kept under control by the actions of the Spanish, who had declared war on Britain in 1779. Bernardo de Gálvez, governor of Spanish Louisiana, attacked several British held cities, capturing all of them. His actions kept the British occupied in the south, never letting them organize any major actions against the Americans from the Castillo.At the end of the war, the Second Treaty of Paris returned Florida to Spain. On July 12, 1784, Spanish troops returned to St. Augustine.[edit] Second Spanish periodReenactment of Spanish soldiers firing muskets.When Florida was returned to Spanish control, they found a much changed territory. Many Spaniards had left Florida after the hand over to Britain, and many British citizens stayed after the hand over back to Spain. Many border problems arose between Spanish Florida and the new United States. Spain had changed the name of the fort back to the Castillo de San Marcos, and continued to build upon the improvements that Britain had made to the fort in an effort to strengthen Spain’s hold on the territory. However, due to increased pressure from the United States and several other factors, in 1819, Spain signed the Adams-Onís Treaty, ceding Florida to the United States.Upon the hand over to the United States, the Americans changed the name of the Castillo to Fort Marion. Structurally, little was changed to the fort during this time. Many storerooms were converted to prison cells, due to their heavy doors and barred windows. Also, part of the moat was transformed into a battery as part of the American Coastal Defense System. During the Second Seminole War, Osceola was jailed at the fort in 1837. Many other Native American tribal peoples were held at the fort in later years.In January, 1861, Florida seceded from the United States in the opening months of the American Civil War. Union troops had withdrawn from the fort, leaving only one man behind as caretaker of the fort. In January 1861, Confederate troops marched on the fort. The Union soldier manning the fort refused to surrender it unless he was given a receipt for it from the Confederacy. He was given the receipt and the fort was taken by the Confederacy without a shot. Most of the artillery in the fort was then sent to other forts, leaving the fort nearly defenseless.The fort was taken back by Union forces on March 11, 1862, when the USS Wabash entered the bay, finding the city evacuated by Confederate troops. The city leaders were willing to surrender in order to preserve the town, and the city and the fort were retaken without firing a shot. Throughout the rest of the fort's operational history, it was used as a military prison.Beginning in 1875, numerous Native American prisoners were held at the fort in the aftermath of the Indian Wars.They became a center of interest to northerners vacationing in St. Augustine, who included teachers and missionaries. Volunteers participated in teaching the Indian prisoners English, Christian religion and elements of American culture. Such assimilation was believed to be the path necessary for the Indians' survival. Citizens raised funds to send nearly 20 of the prisoners to college after they were released from Ft. Marion. Among them were David Pendleton Oakerhater, as he became known, who later was ordained as an Episcopal priest and ultimately canonized as a saint. Encouraged to make art, the men created hundreds of drawings. Some of the collection of ledger drawings are held by the Smithsonian Institution and may be viewed online.In 1898, over 200 deserters from the Spanish-American War were imprisoned at the fort. This marked one of the last uses of the fort as an operational base. In 1900, the fort was taken off the active duty rolls after 205 years of service, under five different flags.In 1924, the fort was designated a National Monument and in 1933 it was transferred to the National Park Service from the War Department. In 1942, in honor of its Spanish heritage and construction, the fort was once again given its original name of Castillo de San Marcos. As a historic property of the National Park Service, the National Monument was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on October 15, 1966. The National Park Service manages the Castillo with Fort Matanzas National Monument. In 1975, the Castillo was designated an Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.Since being transferred to the Park Service, the Castillo has become a popular tourist attraction. It occupies 2.5 acres in downtown St. Augustine, Florida.

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#88 Jimmy Carter NHS

Jimmy Carter National Historic Site in Plains, GA is one of the most underrated National Parks I have been to. It preserves a number of buildings important to the story of the 39th President of the United States. Those sturctures include his high school, which is currently used as the visitor's center, his boyhood farm just outside of town and his 1976 campaign headquarters, located in an old railroad depot.

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Wombat

This furry little guy is a Wombat. This picture was taken in Asbestos Range National Park in Northern Tasmania on the Bass Strait. The park has since been renamed Narawntapu National Park.

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One Week Off

Sorry- with all that has been going on, I decided to take a week off from my blog. Now that Basketball season is drawing to a close, I should be back on track.

Today's photo is another sunset, this one from Fort Myers Beach in January of 2003.

Pacific Ocean Sunset

This sunset photo is from the Pacific Coast near Port Orford, Oregon in 2005.

Amsterdam 2004

This post is dedicated to Roel, a former student of mine, who takes his interesting blog and love of travel to Amsterdam next week.

Here is a link to his blog.

#87 Andersonville NHS

The Andersonville prison, officially known as Camp Sumter, was the largest Confederate military prison during the American Civil War. The site of the prison is now Andersonville National Historic Site in Andersonville, Georgia. Most of the site actually lies in extreme southwestern Macon County, adjacent to the east side of Andersonville. It includes the site of the Civil War prison, the Andersonville National Cemetery, and the National Prisoner of War Museum. In all, 12,913 of the approximately 45,000 Union prisoners died there because of starvation, malnutrition, and disease.Reconstruction of part of the stockade wall.The prison originally covered about 16.5 acres of land enclosed by a 15-foot high stockade. In June, 1864 it was enlarged to 26.5 acres. The stockade was in the shape of a parallelogram 1,620 feet by 779 feet. Guard towers, called pigeon roosts, were established at 30-yard intervals. There were two entrances on the west side of the stockade, known as "north entrance" and "south entrance".A Union soldier described his entry into the prison camp:"As we entered the place, a spectacle met our eyes that almost froze our blood with horror, and made our hearts fail within us. Before us were forms that had once been active and erect;—stalwart men, now nothing but mere walking skeletons, covered with filth and vermin. Many of our men, in the heat and intensity of their feeling, exclaimed with earnestness. "Can this be hell?" "God protect us!" and all thought that He alone could bring them out alive from so terrible a place. In the center of the whole was a swamp, occupying about three or four acres of the narrowed limits, and a part of this marshy place had been used by the prisoners as a sink, and excrement covered the ground, the scent arising from which was suffocating. The ground allotted to our ninety was near the edge of this plague-spot, and how we were to live through the warm summer weather in the midst of such fearful surroundings, was more than we cared to think of just then."Photo of Andersonville prisoners and tentsAt Andersonville, a light fence known as "The Dead Line" was erected approximately 3 feet (0.9 m) inside the stockade wall to demarcate a no-man's land keeping the prisoners away from the stockade wall, which was made of rough hewn logs about 16 feet (4.9 m) long.[4] Anyone crossing this line was shot by sentries in the pigeon roosts.Andersonville Prison was frequently undersupplied with food. Even when sufficient quantities were available, the supplies were of poor quality and poorly prepared. During the summer of 1864, Union prisoners suffered greatly from hunger, exposure, and disease. Within seven months, about a third of them died from dysentery and scurvy and were buried in mass graves, the standard practice by Confederate prison authorities at Andersonville. Dorence Atwater, a soldier in the 2nd New York Cavalry kept a record of deaths at the camp.The water supply from Stockade Creek became polluted when too many Union prisoners were housed by the Confederate authorities within the prison walls. Part of the creek was used as a sink and the men were forced to wash themselves in the creek.[citation needed] According to National Park Service officials at Andersonville, the Stockade Creek remains contaminated to this day.The guards, disease, starvation, and exposure were not all that prisoners had to deal with. A group of prisoners, calling themselves the "Andersonville Raiders," attacked their fellow inmates to steal food, jewelry, money, and clothing. They were armed mostly with clubs, and killed to get what they wanted. Another group rose up to stop the larceny, calling themselves "Regulators." They caught nearly all of the "Raiders," who were then tried by a judge (Peter "Big Pete" McCullough) and jury selected from a group of new prisoners. This jury, upon finding the "Raiders" guilty, set punishment that included running the gauntlet, being sent to the stocks, ball and chain, and, in six cases, hanging.In the autumn of 1864, after the capture of Atlanta, all the prisoners who could be moved were sent to Millen, Georgia, and Florence, South Carolina. At Millen, better arrangements prevailed, and when, after General William Tecumseh Sherman began his march to the sea, the prisoners were returned to Andersonville, the conditions there were somewhat improved.A Union soldier who survived.During the war, 45,000 prisoners were received at Andersonville prison, and of these 12,913 died. A continuing controversy among historians is the nature of the deaths and the reasons for them, with some contending that it was deliberate Confederate war crimes toward Union prisoners and others contending that it was merely the result of disease promoted by severe overcrowding, the shortage of food in the Confederate States, the incompetence of the prison officials, and the refusal of the Confederate authorities to parole black soldiers, resulting in the imprisonment of soldiers from both sides, thus overfilling the stockade.A young Union prisoner named Dorence Atwater had been chosen to record the names and numbers of the dead at Andersonville for the use of the Confederacy and the Federal Government after the war ended. He believed the federal government would never see the list, and was right in this assumption, as it turned out. He sat next to Henry Wirz, who was in charge of the prison pen, and secretly kept his own list among the other papers. When Atwater was released, he put the list in his bag and took it through the lines without being caught. It was published by the New York Times when Horace Greeley, the owner, learned that the federal government had refused and given Atwater much grief. It was Dorence Atwater’s opinion that Andersonville was indeed trying to make soldiers unfit to fight.After the war, Henry Wirz, commandant at Camp Sumter, was court-martialed on charges of conspiracy and murder. The trial was presided over by Union General Lew Wallace and featured chief JAG (Judge Advocate General)'s prosecutor Norton Parker Chipman. A number of former prisoners testified on conditions at Andersonville, many accusing Wirz of specific acts of cruelty. Some of these accounts have subsequently been determined by historians to have been exaggerated or false. The court also considered official correspondence from captured Confederate records, perhaps the most damaging of which was a letter to the Confederate Surgeon General by Dr. James Jones, who in 1864 was sent by Richmond to investigate conditions at Camp Sumter. Wirz presented evidence that he pleaded to Confederate authorities to try to get more food and tried to improve the conditions for the prisoners inside.Unfortunately for Wirz, President Abraham Lincoln had recently been assassinated, so the political environment was not sympathetic. Wirz was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to death. On November 10, 1865 he was hanged. Wirz was the only Confederate official to be tried and convicted of war crimes resulting from the Civil War. The revelation of the sufferings of the prisoners was one of the factors that shaped public opinion in the Northern states regarding the South after the close of the Civil War.In 1891 the Grand Army of the Republic, Department of Georgia bought the site of Andersonville Prison from membership and subscriptions. The site was purchased by the federal government in 1910. The prisoners' burial ground at Andersonville has been made a national cemetery. It contains 13,714 graves, of which 921 are marked "unknown."

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#86 Ocmulgee NM

Ocmulgee National Monument preserves traces of over ten millennia of native Southeastern culture, including Mississippian mounds. It is located on the eastern side of Macon. Ocmulgee (pronounced "oak-mull-ghee") is a memorial to the antiquity of people in Southeastern North America. From Ice Age hunters to the Creeks of historic times, there is evidence of at least 10,000 years of human habitation. Between 900-1150, an elite society supported by skillful farmers lived on this site near the Ocmulgee River. They constructed a town of rectangular wooden buildings, huge pyramidal temple mounds, and at least one burial mound. Circular earthlodges served as places to conduct meetings and ceremonies. After this large early ceremonial center declined, other villages were built in the area by the later Mississippian "Lamar" Culture. These were the people encountered by Spaniard Hernando de Soto in 1540. During historic times, the great mounds continued to evoke awe and admiration. Naturalist William Bartram journeyed through Ocmulgee in the 1770s and described the "wonderful remains of the power and grandeur of the ancients in this part of America." In the early 1900s, the area was put into a large renovation, and the site was made into its present manifestation. On June 14, 1934, the park was authorized as a National Monument, which was formally established on December 23, 1936, under the National Park Service. As an historic unit of the Park Service, the National Monument was administratively listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. Ocmulgee has a visitor center that houses an archaeological museum that interprets the cultures of the Native Americans who had inhabited this site. A short orientation film and gift shop are also available in the visitor center. The park has 5-1/2 miles of walking trails. Near the visitor center is a reconstructed thousand-year-old ceremonial earthlodge. Visitors can reach the Great Temple Mound via a half mile walk or the park road. Other features in the park include a burial mound, temple mounds, prehistoric trenches, and the site of a colonial British trading post. The main section of Ocmulgee National Monument is accessible from U.S. Route 80, off of Interstate 16 (which passes through southwest edge of the monument). It is open daily except Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Lamar Mounds is an isolated unit of the monument, located in the swamps about 3 miles south of Macon. The Lamar Unit is open on a limited basis. This site is smaller than Moundville Archaeological Park in Moundville, Alabama.

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#85 Kennesaw Mountain NBP

The Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, fought here between General William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union army and Joseph E. Johnston of the Confederate army, took place between June 18, 1864, and July 2, 1864. Sherman's army consisted of 100,000 men, 254 cannon and 35,000 horses, while Johnston's army had only 50,000 men and 187 cannons. Much of the battle took place not on Kennesaw Mountain itself, but on Little Kennesaw and the area to its south. 5,350 soldiers were killed during the battle.

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#84 Chickamauga & Chattanooga NMP

Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park preserves the sites of two major Civil War Battlefields, The Chickamauga Battlefield and the Chattanooga Campaign. The Confederate victory at Chickamauga allowed the confederates to hold the heights around the city, an important transportation hub. In Chattanooga campaign, the Union retook the city and dashed confederate hopes of winning the Western theatre.

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#83 Russell Cave NM

The Russell Cave National Monument is a U.S. National Monument in northeastern Alabama, United States, close to the town of Bridgeport. The Monument was established on May 11, 1961, when 310 acres of land were donated by the National Geographic Society to the American people. It is now maintained by the National Park Service. The National Monument was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966.With a mapped length of 7.2 miles, Russell Cave is the third longest mapped cave in Alabama, is ranked 90th on the United States Long Cave List, and is currently listed as number 314 on the World Long Cave List. Its exceptionally large main entrance was used as a shelter by prehistoric Indians from the earliest known human settlement in the southeastern United States, through to European colonization. The surrounding forest provided food, tools and fuel for fires.
The rock from which Russell Cave was carved was formed over 300 million years ago at the bottom of an inland sea covering the region. Due to continental drift, the area that is now northeast Alabama was located very close to the Equator at the time this limestone was forming. This area is now located in a temperate climate, but 300 million years ago it was a shallow, tropical sea. Carbonaceous deposits of skeletons and shells were slowly transformed into limestone. Rainwater, mildly acidic from atmospheric carbon dioxide, slowly dissolved a portion of the limestone rock result in the formation of the cave. About 9,000 to 12,000 years ago, the collapse of a cavern roof beneath a hillside near Doran's Cove created a sinkhole and exposed Russell Cave.Until shortly before the first occupation by Native Americans, the cavern was uninhabitable due to the presence of a large stream which occupied the entirety of the cavern. A fortuitous rockfall from the cavern roof diverted the stream to one side, however, exposing a portion of the cave floor. The first occupants dwelled on this irregular floor of rock slabs. Debris from occupants and deposits falling from the ceiling slowly raised the floor. The floor ultimately was raised an additional seven to eight feet and up to 30 feet near the upper entrance. In the 1960s, the United States Bureau of Mines installed bolts with a length of 15 feet to prevent additional collapses of limestone rock.The cave mouth faces to the east preventing the ingress of a cold north and northwest winds and allowing in the morning sun. According to a published cave map, the cave has five entrances in addition to the Main Entrance. Three of the entrances are referred to as Canoe Entrances while the other two are named the Picnic Entrance and Pig Entrance.A natural spring flows into the cave and travels underground for 1.5 miles (2.5 km) before joining Widow's Creek and, ultimately, the Tennessee River.Chipped flint points and charcoal from campfires provide evidence that occupation of Russell Cave began nearly 9,000 years ago by Archaic period Native Americans. The charcoal remains of the first fires in the cavern date to between 6550 and 6145 BCE based on radiocarbon dating. As they maintained their existence as hunter-gatherers, it is likely that the cave was only occupied during the autumn and winter seasons. According to John Griffin, the issue of seasonality (during what season or seasons the cave was utilized) remains to be determined. Evidence indicating inhabitance in autumn and winter include deer bones and passenger pigeon remains. The presence of shellfish artifacts clouds the determination somewhat since shellfish would have been easier to procure during periods of dry weather in mid-spring and late summer. However, William Clench has suggested that the occupants may have brought mussels and snails to nearby bodies of water (Dry Creek and/or Crownover Springs) for use as needed including in autumn or winter. Based on the existing information, Griffin is "strongly inclined" to view Russell Cave as a place of winter occupancy.In addition to serving as a shelter (presumably for several related families totaling 15 to 30 individuals), the cave would have provided a constant source of water due to the lack of freezing temperatures in the cavern. The surrounding hardwood forest and nearby Tennessee River served as sources of food throughout the year. The food sources would have included aquatic animals (fish, turtles, shellfish), birds (including turkey), small mammals (squirrels, raccoons, rabbits, gray foxes, skunks, bobcats, porcupines, peccaries), nuts (including acorns), seeds, and roots. Larger animals such as deer and black bears were also commonly hunted when the seasons permitted. Griffin has stated that the dominant animal food sources for these occupants were deer and turkey. As gatherers, these occupants also would have consumed fruits and berries although these plant foods may have been scarce or unavailable during the seasons of cave occupancy. Generally speaking, hunter-gathers relied more heavily on plant foods than they did animals. Indirect evidence of gathering includes pits for storage of nuts and seeds, mortars and pestles, and nut stones.Goosefoot, also referred to as Chenopodium, is a small flowering plant with edible seeds that may have been cultivated in small gardens. The evidence for this is uncertain, however. This also leads to an uncertainty in the timeframe of the suspected cultivation (believed to be during Archaic or Woodland periods).These early cave dwellers were efficient consumers of game. Flesh was roasted or stewed while hides were made into clothing and bones were made into tools.Examples of fishing hooks fashioned from boneThe chief weapon of these occupants was a short spear (tipped with stone point) propelled by an atlatl (throwing stick). The points were chipped from chert which occurs as nodules and veins in limestone near the cave.Chert was also utilized to fashion knives and scrapers. They turned bones into awls and needles indicating the production of clothing from hides or manufacturing of baskets. Small pieces of bone were also used to make fish hooks. No ornamental works have been found in this layer of deposits.Other items such as baskets and articles fashioned from wood and hides were probably produced but have not been preserved by the soil.Around 1000 BCE, the implements of the Native Americans utilizing Russell Cave underwent a dramatic change. Pottery appears for the first time. Smaller weapon points indicate that the bow and arrow had replaced the atlatl. Tools fashioned from bone were more refined. Other domestic implements provide the first evidence of gardening at the site. Additionally, bone and shell appear in ornamental artifacts. Evident throughout the Woodland period is an increase in the amount of hunting at the expense of other activities. During this period, it is clear that the cave had become simply a hunting camp. In the seasons away from the cave, the natives probably joined other groups at summer villages larger than those of the Archaic period.These changes occurred in groups throughout the eastern United States marking the beginning of the Woodland period. During this period, burial mounds were first built, the population increased, and trade became important.Changes in the shape and style of artifacts at Russell Cave during the Woodland period serve as a basis for identifying cultural subdivisions within the period. For example, early pottery of the period is decorated with fabric impressions while later pottery is decorated with impressions made by carved wooden paddles.After the close of the Woodland period (around 500 CE), Native Americans made less and less use of Russell Cave. Occasionally, small parties of hunters left objects distinct from those of the Woodland period occupants. These visitors (Mound Builders of the Mississippian period) came from permanent villages which had successfully implemented agriculture near the rich river bottomlands. The last occupants departed around 1000 CE.Centuries later, Cherokee Indians occupied this part of the Tennessee Valley. They and the subsequent European settlers made little use of the cave. The few objects that they left were found very close to the surface. The only modern historical artifact found at the site was a metal fishing hook.The expedition of Hernando de Soto passed within 100 miles of Russell Cave in 1540.Russell Cave was named after Colonel Thomas Russell, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War from North Carolina, who owned the property at the time when maps of the area were drawn. The surrounding land called Doran's Cove is named after Major James Doran, the brother-in-law of Russell and the original owner of the land. The land was purchased by the National Geographic Society and donated to the American people. The area was designated as a National Monument in 1961 during the presidency of John F. Kennedy.Archeological field surveys have uncovered the records of the cave's occupants. Around two tons of artifacts have been recovered from the site.These discoveries include charcoal from fires, bones of animals (as remains of hunted game and as bone tools), spear and arrow points, sherds of pottery, and the remains of several adults and children buried at the site. The bodies, ranging in age from infant to 50 years, were buried in shallow pits in the cave floor and were not accompanied by artifacts.The first relics were discovered in 1953 when four members from the Tennessee Archeological Society and University of Chattanooga began digging in the cave. This first excavation reached a depth of six feet. Upon realizing the extent and importance of the site, they contacted the Smithsonian Institution which conducted three seasons (1956-1958) of archeological digs in cooperation with the National Geographic Society reaching a depth of more than 32 feet. An additional excavation was performed in 1962 by the National Park Service to a depth of 10.5 feet . This final excavation completed the archeological record and established an on-site exhibit.Analysis of the distribution of the artifacts among functional categories (fabricating and processing tools, domestic implements, weapons) using an experimental technique proposed by Howard Winters[18] reveals that the ratio of non-weapon artifacts to weapons was very low. This is indicative of a hunting camp with lack of permanent occupancy.[7] It should be noted that the picture of prehistoric life gained from Russell Cave is incomplete due to the incomplete nature of archeological records and because Russell Cave only represents a portion of the annual life cycle of the inhabitants.Studies of historical geology and paleobotany have shown that the flora and fauna of the Eastern Forest Region remained essentially unchanged for thousands of years. This began to change with the arrival of European settlers who removed trees for timber and to open land for subsistence farming and commercial farming.The cave is populated by both the brown bat and northern long ear bat. The cave stream contains fish known as sculpin. Snakes of the surrounding area include the copperhead, timber rattlesnake, rat snake, and kingsnake. Over 115 species of birds have been identified by researchers at Russell Cave, a site on the North Alabama Birding Trail. Although the site is now below the southern boundary of their range, porcupine bones have been found in digs at the earliest occupational levels. The peccary, also hunted by the occupants, is no longer found in this region.Russell Cave National Monument is located on County Road 98 near Bridgeport, Alabama. The site is open year round, seven days a week (closed on New Year's Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day). Hours of operation are 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Central Time. There are no fees to enter the park or tour the cave.A diverse range of attractions are presented to visitors of Russell Cave National Monument.The visitor center at Russell Cave National Monument is named after Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor, the editor of National Geographic Magazine from 1903 to 1954 and president of the National Geographic Society from 1920 to 1954. The visitor center was dedicated in 1967.[19] In the center, guests can view museum exhibits, watch documentary films about the lifestyles of prehistoric peoples, or purchase items from the gift shop or bookstore.Guided tours of the cave shelter are conducted by National Park Service Interpretative Rangers. The cave shelter includes the areas that were occupied by the prehistoric groups and features a diorama depicting activities of the occupants. The cave shelter is located approximately 300 yards (300 m) from the visitor center and is accessed via an elevated wooden boardwalk.Boardwalk to cave shelter at Russell Cave National MonumentRussell Cave is one of the most extensive cave systems in Alabama with over seven miles (11 km) of mapped passageways.[20] Due to the discovery of several rare species (including a species of scorpion that exists nowhere else in the world other than Russell Cave) recreational caving is no longer allowed. Visitors interested in caving should contact the visitor's center for current information on this policy.Russell Cave National Monument offers visitors two trails: the Nature Trail, a 0.6-mile paved trail, and the Backcountry Trail, a 1.2-mile (1.9-km) dirt trail. Both trails provide good opportunities to observe the forest, wildflowers, and Montague Mountain. Points along the trails feature plants utilized for food, tools, and other daily necessities.Each year during the first weekend in May, the Russell Cave National Monument hosts a Native American Festival. The festival includes performances of storytelling, dancing, and Native American flute playing. A historical reenactment of a Cherokee encampment is conducted. At this event and at other times throughout the year, demonstrations of Native American lifestyles and weaponry are conducted. Weapons demonstrations include flintknapping to produce points (arrowheads), use of the atlatl for spear throwing, and use of a bow and arrow. Other demonstrations feature wood carving, handbuilding of pottery, and fire building.

See my pictures here.

St. Michael 1985

This photo is priceless.

Maidstone House

This is the house on Maidstone in Canton, Michigan where I grew up. It looks nothing like the now as the current owners have repainted it.

#82 Stones River NMP

Stones River National Battlefield, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, along the Stones River, preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Stones River. The fierce midwinter battle took place here from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863. The Confederate Army withdrew after the battle and ceded control of Middle Tennessee to the Union.The site was established as Stones River National Military Park on March 3, 1927. It was transferred from the War Department to the National Park Service on August 10, 1933, and redesignated a national battlefield on April 22, 1960. As with all historical areas administered by the National Park Service, the battlefield was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. Included within the battlefield boundaries is a portion of Fortress Rosecrans, an earthenwork fortress built under the orders of Union General William Rosecrans. Of the battlefield's 708.32 acres , 494.19 acres are federally owned.Stones River National Cemetery — 6,850 interments, 2562 unidentified — is within the park; grave space is not available. The cemetery contains the Hazen Brigade Monument, considered by the National Park Service as the oldest U.S. Civil War monument as it is still standing in its original location, although the 32nd Indiana Monument at Cave Hill National Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky is a year older.The cemetery was established on March 29, 1864 by the order of Major General George H. Thomas. Under the supervision of Chaplain William Earnshaw, the 111th Regiment United States Colored Troops disinterred bodies from the battlefields of Stones River, Murfreesboro, Franklin, Shelbyville, Tullahoma and Cowan. Burials began in 1865 and were completed by 1867. The cemetery was transferred from the War Department to the National Park Service on August 10, 1933.

#81 James A. Garfield NHS

James A. Garfield National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located in Mentor, Ohio. The site preserves the property associated with the 20th President of the United States, James Abram Garfield.Garfield acquired the home in 1876 to accommodate his large family. The home, named Lawnfield by reporters, was the site of the first successful front porch campaign in 1880. That same year, he had 11 more rooms added to the building to accommodate his large family. James A. Garfield was President from March 4, 1881, until his death on September 19, 1881. Four years after his assassination, the Memorial Library wing was added by Mrs. Garfield and her family - setting the precedent for presidential libraries.The Garfield family lived in the mansion up until 1936, when the house and all of its contents were given to the Western Reserve Historical Society by Garfield's children. Later, on December 28, 1980, the United States Congress would authorize it as a National Historic Site.Later in the 1990s, a $12.5 million restoration would take place over the course of six years, with a grand re-opening held in 1998.[2] The house was restored to its 1886-1899 farm furnishings through extensive research by the Denver Service Center of the National Park Service. Using documentation of the time, and detailed renovations, it is one of the most accurately designed of the 19th century Presidential sites. The James A. Garfield National Historic Site has since been operated by the National Park Service with the Western Reserve Historical Society.Of the hundreds of specimens of antique Victorian furniture, over 80% of it was owned by the Garfield family themselves in the 1880s. Many other were acquired or recreated by the National Park Service to supplement the collection. Ten wallpapers were also reproduced from either photographs or samples found under the layers of wallpaper that had accumulated over the years.

#80 Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural NHS

Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site preserves the Ansley Wilcox House, at 641 Delaware Avenue in Buffalo, New York. Here, after the assassination of William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt took the oath of office as President of the United States on September 14, 1901.The oldest part of the National Historic Site includes the lone surviving structure from the Buffalo Barracks compound. Due to tensions between the U.S. and Anglo-Canada, a military post was constructed to ensure border security. Built in 1839, the post encompassed all the land from Allen Street to North Street and Delaware Ave to Main Street. The structure that would later be incorporated into the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site started life in 1840 as the Barrack's officer's quarters.After the post was disbanded in 1845, the home reverted to a private residence. Subsequent owners continued to modify the structure adding and demolishing out structures and additions. In the late 1800s, Dexter Rumsey gave the property to his son-in-law Ansley Wilcox and his wife Mary Grace Rumsey. The newest inhabitants made extensive renovations to the structure. Plans of these renovations are still on file at the Historic Site.In 1901, while attending the Pan-American Exposition, anarchist Leon Czolgosz twice shot President William McKinley. Although early doctor's reports on the President's condition were positive, McKinley's condition soon worsened. Vice-President Theodore Roosevelt rushed back to Buffalo, but arrived only after McKinley had died.Interior of room in Wilcox House where Theodore Roosevelt took the oath of Presidency.It was decided to conduct the inauguration immediately due to the tragic and politically charged circumstances of the President's death. The most appropriate site was determined to the Wilcox home. Approximately 50 dignitaries, family members and cabinet officials gathered in the front library for the inauguration. Federal Judge John R. Hazel administered the oath. No photograph image exists of the ceremony itself, although the room was heavily photographed after the inauguration had concluded.The Wilcoxes continued to live in the home until their deaths in the 1930s. The home's furniture was sold at a public auction and the property became the Kathryn Lawrence Restaurant. The proprietors removed interior walls, demolished a carriage house, and painted many of the finished wood surfaces before the restaurant ceased operations in 1961.

#79 Women's Rights NHP

Women's Rights National Historical Park was established in 1980, and covers a total of 6.83 acres of land in Seneca Falls and nearby Waterloo, New York. The park consists of four major historical properties including the Wesleyan Chapel, site of the First Women's Rights Convention. The Elizabeth Cady Stanton House (pictured above) , and the homes of other early women's rights activists (the M'Clintock House and the Richard Hunt House) are also on display. The park includes a Visitor Center and an Education and Cultural Center housing the Suffrage Press Printshop.

#78 Fort Stanwix NM

Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort whose construction was started on August 26, 1758, by British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York, but was not completed until about 1762. The fort guarded a portage known as the Oneida Carrying Place during the French and Indian War. A reconstructed fort has been built at the site by the National Park Service, and the Fort Stanwix National Monument lies in the center of the modern city. Fort Stanwix was abandoned in 1768 and allowed to go to ruin. In 1768, Fort Stanwix was the site of an important treaty conference between the British and the Iroquois, arranged by William Johnson. By the time of this treaty the fort had become a dilapidated inactive fort. The purpose of the conference was to renegotiate the boundary line between Indian lands and white settlements set forth in the Proclamation of 1763. The British government hoped a new boundary line might bring an end to the rampant frontier violence, which had become costly and troublesome. Indians hoped a new, permanent line might hold back white colonial expansion. The final treaty was signed on November 5, and extended the earlier proclamation line much further west. The Iroquois had effectively ceded Kentucky to the whites. However, the Indians who actually used the Kentucky lands, primarily Shawnee, Delaware, and Cherokee, had no role in the negotiations. Rather than secure peace, the Fort Stanwix treaty helped set the stage for the next round of hostilities.

The Guys at the Wedding

I love this picture of my groomsmen and ushers after my wedding.