Central Virginia, Appomattox and the Blue Ridge Mountains

“I was with General Grant when Lee surrendered at Appomattox…..that was freedom….”

Private William Harrison, 45^th U.S. Colored Infantry

                  

More Civil War battles were staged in Virginia than any other state and many of those battles played out in and around the 34,000-sq. mile Blue Ridge Mountains’ region. The mountains are more than 1 billion years old, wind through eight states and are stunning in their majesty. Humans are documented in the area approximately 12,000 years ago. Native Americans lived and hunted there as well as considered it a spiritual center. virginia.org

The modern, 469-mile, Blue Ridge Parkway offers stunning panoramic views that are much the same as those visible in the 1800s. The 2,150-mile Appalachian Trail follows the mountains, with 226-miles in Central VA, and more of the trail system in VA than the any of the other states. Along the parkway there are numerous overlooks and wayside markers with geologic and historical information and there are exit roads so you can elect to experience only a portion of the road. appalachiantrail.org

The surrender at Appomattox Courthouse, 75-miles east of the mountains and 18-miles east of Lynchburg, became the iconic experience representing the end of the Civil War. The terms agreed to at Appomattox would govern the remaining 175,000  men’s surrenders, that of General Johnston in North Carolina on April 26, General Taylor in Alabama on May 4 and General Smith in Texas on June 2, 1865.

Appomattox County was established in 1845 from 4 existing counties to facilitate proximity to a seat of government. The county and the river took the name of an Indian village once located on the river’s shore. Thirty-acres were selected for a county seat with 2-acres set aside for the courthouse. Prior to then this tiny enclave, on a stage route, was known as Clover Hill. In the 1850s the town grew and in 1848 a tavern was built that would become the McLean House. historicappomattox.com

By 1860 the blacks in the county numbered 4,771, 171 were freedmen and they were 53% of the population. One Thursday each month was Court Day and livestock, foods and slaves were sold adjacent to the courthouse. After the war the vast majority of the former enslaved did not leave the area and black schools were opened in 1866.

Wilmer McLean said of the Civil War that, “the conflict began in his front yard and ended in his front parlor”, ironically that was true. In 1861 McLean resided on his plantation with his wife and 14 slaves. Bull Run, a stream, ran through his property in Manassas and the area would be the site and namesake of the Civil War’s first major battle on July 18, 1861. Confederate General Beauregard requisitioned McLean’s home as his headquarters and his barn became a field hospital. After the area was the scene in 1862 of the Second Battle of Bull Run he moved his family 120-miles to safer ground in Appomattox Court House. On April 9, 1865 McLean’s home was selected for the meeting of Grant and Lee to negotiate a surrender.

At 8 AM on April 9,1865 Lee found his escape route blocked by General Custer and that afternoon he surrendered to Grant. The path of Lee’s retreat can be followed on a driving tour that interprets the action between April 2-9. There are more than 25 markers and audio kiosks with maps, photographs and information. The sites of Lee and Grant’s Headquarters is marked as well as the site of the apple tree under which Lee waited for an initial response from Grant. 

Hannah Reynolds, an enslaved woman, was the only civilian wounded in the Appomattox battle. She was hit in the arm through a wall on the 9^th and died 3 days later. The site of this incident, a slave cemetery and a marker about Joel Sweeney who, taught to play the “banjar” by a slave, went on to international fame.

Appomattox Court House National Historic Park is a reconstruction of the village with eight tourable locations including the original 1852 Meeks Store, 1865 Woodson Law Office and reconstructed Slave Quarters. The Visitor Center is inside the restored courthouse and museum. Tours begin with the 15-minute orientation video. A display, “Enacting Freedom”, relates the story of the 5,000 black soldiers at Appomattox. Of the 7 black units the 8^th regiment was from Philadelphia and three units trained at Camp William Penn. Thirty-three percent were born free in the North, 10% freedmen from slave states and 50% escaped.

Lee asked Grant to write the terms, selected the surrender site and arrived around 4 PM. The McLean parlor is set up as it was in 1865. After the surrender a Pennsylvania band played “Auld Lang Syne” but Grant banned festivities. The Confederates were compelled to surrender their flags and it took 6-hours to stack their arms.

The exhibit in the original 1819 Clover Hill Tavern was used to print the parole papers needed by the Confederates to travel. Thirty-thousand passes were printed by April 11^th. Lee recruited blacks on March 23, 1865 in general order #14, offering them freedom and undisturbed residence. Thirty-nine paroles were issued to African American Confederates.

American Civil War Museum tells the story of the war through a series of thematic galleries using audio, video, memorabilia, photographs, artifacts and interactives. They succeed at relating both the African American and Confederate stories holistically. Highlights are an unbiased narrative about black participation in the Civil War and the sword and uniform worn by Robert E. Lee at the surrender. In a case in the center of the final gallery is displayed a lone chair belonging to Hannah Reynolds, she died a free woman. acwm.org

Experience Saint Lucia

Saint Lucia was possibly inhabited 3,000 years ago by the Ciboney and based on  archaeological research and artifacts it has been proven that “Iouanalao” island, “land of the iguanas”, was settled by the Arawaks around 2,000 years ago. They were invaded around 1,000 AD by the South American Carib Indians whose hostility extended to the first Europeans making colonization difficult. Columbus may have passed the island but in 1499 it was Columbus’ former navigator Juan de Cosa who placed it on his maps as El Falcon and 3-years later it was depicted on a papal globe as Santa Lucia. #travelsaintlucia

François Le Clerc, the notorious pirate ‘wooden leg’, and his band were the first Europeans to reside on the island. In the mid-1550s he attacked Spanish vessels from his base on Pigeon Island, now a 44-acre National Landmark connected to the mainland by a causeway. The park is actually a microcosm of the larger island with a menu of water-based activities, the ruins of an 18th-century fort, 2 beaches, nature trails, a history interpretation center and the option to climb the 330-ft. Signal Peak for stunning views of the NW coastline.

Pigeon Island is also the site of Saint Lucia’s most renowned annual events. International performers entertain crowds during the Saint Lucia Jazz Festival, the Roots & Soul Festival and the Saint Lucia Carnival. Saint Lucia’s lavish fêtes spill over from Pigeon Island and are staged throughout the island throughout the year. There is always a party and they include Creole Heritage Month, Food and Rum Festival and Dive Fest. Information is available online. stlucia.org/en/experiences/festivals-events

Sandals Grande St. Lucian provides accommodations and 5-star dining, activities and 2 courses offering challenging golfing opportunities near Pigeon Island. The multi-award winning resort is perfect for that special vacation. Guests can be wed in a chapel suspended over-the-water and spend their honeymoon in a private glass-floored suite also over-water. sandals.com/grande-st-lucian

The history of the 27-mile by 14-mile island is one of competing claims between Britain and France and it changed hands more than twelve times before Britain took ownership from France in 1814. Early on France was a dominant force and it was they who named the island after St. Lucy of Syracuse. In 1765 two Frenchmen started the first plantation and by 1780 more than fifty dotted the island. The French governor emancipated the slaves in 1794 but they were quickly returned to their former condition after the British invaded. When the British ended slavery in 1834 there were 13,000 slaves, 2,600 free blacks and 2,300 whites. Former enslaved individuals had to serve a 4-year apprenticeship, working for free ¾ of the week for their former master thereby adding years to enslavement. One of the last tangible vestiges of slavery is a slave jail In the Roseau Valley and a number of buildings used to house slaves. The site is preserved near the St Lucia Distillery.

Castries, the capitol and largest city on the island, was founded in 1650 as a fort and village of Carénage meaning “safe anchorage”. In the 1700s it was renamed Castries. It continues to serve as a safe port for cruise ships and sea transport to other islands. The Castries Market opened in 1894 and remains an important shopping venue for locals and visitors. Directly across the street is a craft market that is ideal for purchasing affordable handcrafts and souvenirs.

On May 11, 1999 the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception was designated a Minor Basilica. It is the largest church, 200-ft. by 100-ft., in the Caribbean and has a stunning interior. The church began construction in !891 replacing earlier structures. Of special note are murals by Sir Dunstan St. Omer and stunning Afro-centric stained glass windows. @Travel_StLucia

Derek Walcott Square memorializes the 1992 Nobel Laureate winner in literature. The 2-acre square dates from the 1760s and features a bust of Walcott and ample seating for contemplation.

With all the things Saint Lucia has to offer visitors are still awed by the islands’ stunning landscapes crowned by the 2004 UNESCO World Heritage Site, the 7188-acre Pitons Management Area. The 2,526-ft. Gros Piton and the 2,437-ft. Petit Piton are joined by the Petit Mitan ridge and are a portion of a collapsed stratovolcano area that spans 434-miles. There are numerous activities in the region but the international bucket list adventure is the challenging Gros Piton Nature Trail Hike. @TravelSaintLucia

Windjammer Landing Villa Beach Resort is an all-inclusive property situated on Labrelotte Bay. Accommodations all offer panoramic views from hillside villas. A plethora of activities are offered daily and off-site activities can be scheduled. Shopping venues, a world class spa and five restaurants are located on-site so that guests and their families need never leave to have the time of their lives. windjammer-landing.com

Saint Lucia is the destination of choice for experiential travel because of the beauty, number and variety of activities and serenity it offers. Why not experience Saint Lucia? www.stlucia.org/en


TRAVEL TIPS:
The National Harbor celebrates the December holiday in a huge way. Gaylord Resort will be celebrating a Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas! themed Christmas on the Potomac from November 15 – January 5. Resort highlights include Reindeer Rush Ice Tubing, Christmas Village, Winter Square ice skating, laser atrium show and ICE!, 2-million pounds of ice carved into intricate sculptures.
MGM National Harbor will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the song, “All I Want for Christmas”, in the best way possible. Mariah Carey will be performing there on December 9th. Details are available at www.ChristmasOnThePotomac.com.

DeKalb County, Georgia: The Presence of the Past

The history of DeKalb County has been archeologically traced back as far as the late Ice Age and Indian mounds from the Late Archaic Period have been found that predate the 1567 Spanish claim to the land by thousands of years. When Juan Pardo surveyed the region two significant Indian trade trails already existed and members of the Creek Confederacy the, “People of One Fire”, lived there. Europeans encroached on native land illegally until the 1821 Indian Springs Treaty forced natives to move and more Europeans quickly settled in large numbers. discoverdekalb.com

DeKalb was carved from three other counties and named to honor Johann de Kalb, a Bavarian who changed his name and served in the American Revolutionary War, in 1822. Approximately 10% of Atlanta is located In the county, the most diverse in the South and more than 64 languages are spoken. Just as the population is diverse so too are the shopping, dining, accommodation and activity options. One of the most interesting aspects of discovering DeKalb is uncovering singular cultural and historic connections that resonate in our time.

The 1992, 160,000-sq. ft., Fernbank Museum of Natural History is the natural place to begin your explorations in the exterior Dinosaur Plaza where a family of bronze prehistoric Georgian Hadrosaurs greet you. The museum interprets the development of the earth, prehistoric world, international cultures and state specific displays. Visitors are greeted in the atrium with Giants of the Mesozoic, reproductions of the 47-ft. long Giganotosaurus, the world’s largest carnivorous dinosaur and the 123-ft long plant eating Argentinosaurus accompanied by two flying reptiles. Highlights of the museum include A Walk through Time in Georgia, the fiber-optic ceiling Star Gallery and a 4-story 3D theater.

The adjacent 16-acre WildWoods offers elevated boardwalks with treetop views and leads to Fernbank Forest, the oldest old-growth Piedmont forest in a major US city. Six trails are available to access the 65-acre area and view trees up to 16-stories tall. fernbankmuseum.org

Emory University’s Michael C. Carlos Museum’s roots date back to 1876. The museum’s current collection is one of the most wide-ranging in the nation and thematic galleries are dedicated to major works from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Near East, ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. Highlights include mummified animal remains and Late Egyptian Period mummies with coffins and Nubian artifacts. Emory focuses on education and research and their outstanding schedule of programs reflects this fact. carlos.emory.edu

Stone Mountain State Park, Georgia’s most visited attraction, is easily one of the most controversial in the country. Geologically the mountain is part of the granite core of a volcano. DeKalb’s first European colonists were met by regional natives who had inhabited the top of the mountain for ceremonial and meeting purposes for 8,000-years. In the 1830s the granite was quarried and in 1847 it was named Stone Mountain. During the Civil War Union General Sherman’s troops bivouacked there and postwar Shermantown a part of Stone Mountain Village, was established at the mountain’s base by emancipated African-Americans.

Carved on the north face of the mountain is the largest bas-relief  sculpture in the world depicting the Confederate generals Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. In 1914 the United Daughters of the Confederacy moved to create a Confederate memorial on the face of the mountain and in 1915 William Simmons reignited the KKK in a ceremony atop Stone Mountain. The carving remained incomplete and was purchased by the state in 1958 for $2-million as a “memorial to the Confederacy” but would receive no tax dollars. It was dedicated in 1970 and completed in 1972.
Activities in the 3,200-acre park include hiking, biking, fishing, golfing, Summit Skyride and Historic Square, reconstructed original GA plantation and farm  homes from 1792-1875 including  slave cabins. A seasonal laser light show of the carvings now contains Dr. King, imposed at one point, over the generals, and a portion of the “I Have a Dream Speech”. stonemountainpark.com

Many people became familiar with Atlanta’s Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the Walking Dead. No scenes were actually filmed there but you will be happy to know that you can visit the facility with a little planning and ID. European maladies began to wipe out Native Americans on contact in the 1500s and de Soto’s 1540 expedition heralded massive outbreaks of disease. The death rate has been estimated as high as 95%. This, the US’s first public health crisis went uncontrolled but it would not be the last. In 1798 the Marine Hospital Service (MHS) was founded to monitor healthcare for merchant seamen and in the 1800s services were expanded to include medical inspections of immigrants, national quarantines and interstate disease prevention and control. Malaria was a huge health issue in the 40s facilitating the creation of the office of Malaria Control in War Areas. Agency efforts were centered in the southeast because many of the WWII bases were located there and it was the region with the largest number of disease transmissions. Atlanta was selected on July 1, 1946 as the headquarters of the Communicable Disease Center.

The David Sencer Center for Disease Control Museum at the 45-acre CDC Headquarters. offers self-guided and guided tours of the three main areas over 2-levels, temporary exhibits, “The Story of the CDC” and “The Global Symphony”. Five short videos orient you to the exhibits that include galleries on specific diseases, service history and procedures combining artifacts, dioramas, videos and interactives. The tour ends with an opportunity for a photo op in a full safety suit regalia. cdc.gov/museum

DeKalb County provides a wonderful way to connect history with modern culture through visits to unique sites and attractions. Enhance your vacation, learn something!