from rscottjones

While in Harrison County, OH, I stopped by the Custer Monument Historic Site, the old home site of the infamous general. He’s buried at Little Bighorn MT, of course. Note the horse and buggy passing by in the first photo—I sure saw a lot of that, especially early in the trip.

I bet this was a fun company to work for. Here’s the video:

The pride of Newark is not what you expect. Loved finally getting here during my last trip.

Jen’s in the home stretch for her quest to visit all 433 units of the National Park System. She’s only 50ish from finishing, which more getting marked off next week.

I’m now “current” on the 433 park units, and—mostly due to Jen’s quest—have now been to 226 of the 433 at least twice. #goquesting

We also visited Hopewell Furnace National Historical Park in PA for Jen to see:

How American Industrialization Began: Hopewell Furnace showcases an early American landscape of industrial operations from 1771-1883, Hopewell and other iron plantations laid the foundation for the transformation of the United States into an industrial giant for the time. The park’s 848 acres and historic structures illustrate the business, technology and lifestyle of our growing nation.

We also hiked a short portion of the New England National Scenic Trail, which became an official national park unit several years ago, near Castle Craig CT. Jen needed it for her own parks quest, and I wanted to re-confirm it after losing my notes on which specific section I had previously hiked.

Before visiting Carlisle School, we stopped by the Cumberland County Historical Society, which had a photo exhibit on the “contrast photos” from the school. Essentially, these were “before and after” marketing photos showing how much the Native Americans had been “Americanized” during their stay.

We also made it to Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton PA, one of the premier train-related sites in the country. If you’re a fan of trains, you need to visit.

The vignette of a railroad tycoon at Steamtown National Historic Site ain’t lying.

I’ve never seen so many sinks in a brewery before! There were only 2 urinals and 3 stalls, so 10 sinks seems a bit…overzealous. Unlike the toilet seat covers, which are only available just inside the door (I guess they spent too much on sinks to afford 2 more seat cover dispensers). 🤷‍♂️

After visiting Carlisle School, we also made sure to stop by Jim Thorpe’s gravesite. You’ll never guess which town it’s located in (apparently, that became a contentious issue: 🔗, 🔗).

I also made it to Frances Perkins National Monument in Maine, my 433rd National Park unit—officially “re-completing” my quest to visit them all.

Perkins was the first female Cabinet Secretary, best known for writing many New Deal laws, including Social Security, labor relations, and immigration. She had her hands in a lot, including

Unfortunately, the building itself was closed when we visited, as renovations are in progress leading up to the official “national monument grand opening” later this summer. But we did enjoy a hike around her property while there.

Can’t believe I haven’t posted this yet, but I marked off my 432nd National Park unit during my trip—Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument in PA.

This was the first federal “off-rez” Indian school, made famous by being home to Jim Thorpe, the world’s greatest athlete."

Carlisle Indian Industrial School, as it was known then, was a major powerhouse in college football, the most successful one to ever go defunct. Coached by “Pop” Warner, it competed with and beat the best teams in the country, including Harvard, Yale, and Army (including Dwight D Eisenhower’s team). They’re often regarded as the “team that invented football.”

A few of the original buildings still stand, and it remains federal property today—the US Army War College—and requires a background check to visit.