September 20 - What a day in Camden!

We left for Camden at 8:45 am. There was low lying fog as we passed the scenic viewpoint at the end of the road where our cabin was. It was 65 degrees but was forecasted to be 90 degrees in Camden. 

We passed Athens on the road to Princeton - the picture above shows the fog - Athens has some old gingerbread houses that were probably gorgeous at one time. 

I am surprised at all the golden rod along the roads - sometimes fields and fields of it. Are people growing it? What can it be used for?

We passed through the tunnel under White River mountain. There was a sign along the highway "Purple Heart State" with a cop nearby laying in wait! We went through another tunnel - Big Walker Mountain Tunnel. How did they ever build these tunnels through the mountains!! 

We passed by many farms and and cattle between the mountains. There was also a lot of road works. We saw 2 UPS trucks pulling UPS wagons - first time I've seen that - is that more efficient for the driver or more work? 

We were driving down one main road and all of a sudden the road ended - no sign indicating which way to go! 

We made it to Charlotte about 11:25 am. We stopped at a friendly visitor center in South Carolina. One of the guys' mother was from Crete - he told us that Greece had a history of dred locks from 300 BC! He said his family was just like the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

Another greeter told Vickie that Camden was historic for Revolutionary War battles - Americans lost but it was a turning point in the war. Of course my brother already knew this - he is a history buff.

We got off the highway and started driving a wooded country road for miles - we were following an old pickup truck for a while - maybe we were driving through a forest - there was only one area with houses - it was on a lake and was full of boats and maybe a resort? We finally reached Camden about 1 pm maybe.

Vickie's cousin Barbara and her son Tim couldn't have been more welcoming - they were so happy to see Vickie and Johnny. They caught up, and then Vickie and Barbara reviewed some of their family history. 

Barbara has a friendly black dog - some kind of spaniel maybe? She also has a nasty cat who scratches and bites Barbara, but she is too kindhearted to get rid of it. She has bird feeders in the yard and a humming bird feeder outside the living room window - I watched humming birds feeding while we sat there. 

Barbara also has a pet duck - she bought it at an auction where they stuffed it into a box for her to take it home - in the process they broke the poor ducks' wings - so it is now wingless! He waddles up from the pond and pecks at the garage door to be fed!!

Here is a link to see the poor thing waddling along: 

https://youtube.com/shorts/XaS1x_0YoHY?feature=share

Barbara had a nice charcuterie for us. Then we all took a drive to the cemetery where her husband Jim was buried. Then we drove through the downtown and to the visitors center where Barbara works part-time. It was a terrific set up - very educational and interactive. The National Park Service is set up beside the Camden visitors center - the house that British Lord Cornwallis took over is on the NPS.  The battle of Camden was the worst American defeat in the war. 

Camden is also horse country - they have a steeplechase course there. We want to come back here and explore the area more.

We headed back to Barbara's and said our goodbyes.  It had been a wonderful visit - Barbara is so warm and kindhearted - Tim was quiet but was also very friendly. We promised to come again and stay for a couple of days.

We headed for Pipestem about 4 pm. We had gone along for about an hour and suddenly we got a flat tire! Johnny pulled over on route 77 at exit 75 in Rock Hill - we were right at the exit - not the best place to pull over. Johnny called AAA - they were sending someone. He also tried calling the Prep Boys who told them they were open until 7 and to call their tow company - they could fix the tire if we got there by 7. Of course we couldn't get through to the Prep Boys' tow company by phone or online. AAA said that someone should be there by 6:50ish. The tow company called and said they would be there about 7. Johnny called the Prep Boys who were sorry that they could not stay open a little later to fix our tire. So we started looking into hotels in Rock Hill since no place was open to fix the tire - every other place had closed by 6. 

Johnny and Vickie had done all the calling because I had one bar on my phone and could not use it. I was thinking that if I had been driving alone and this happened, what would I have done with no cell service? I had a single bar of data but couldn't pull up anything on the internet.  We were waiting for 2 hours in a dangerous location - no one stopped - no police came by. Could I have called 911? How long would I have sat there? Johnny and Vickie had cell service - maybe it's time for me to get a new phone.

The tow company arrived and put the donut tire on after inflating it with air.  Johnny drove to a Comfort Inn in Rock Hill that Vickie had found online. We had no luggage - no pajamas, no clean clothes. They gave us toothbrushes and toothpaste. We got two rooms - ordered Dominoes delivery - we watched the end of The Holocaust in our separate rooms before going to bed. 

The Holocaust ended with a service in Dachau concentration camp. I had visited this camp in 1978 with my friends GeeGee and Julie. I remember how terrible those gas chambers and ovens were - the whole place was terrifying and heart breaking. We were traveling on a bus tour with Abe, an older Jewish man whose family was murdered in a concentration/killing camp. It was awful to see his fear and pain. It is unfathomable to think that humans could do these things. But it is worse to see the rise of white supremacy again - to see the overturning of basic rights - to see the breakdown in our institutions - to see the mass killing of blacks, Jews, LGBTQs because they are different from the killers, the killings of innocent school children by young white men who feel alienated or bullied. It all reminds me of the Nazis and the cruel atrocities that they inflicted on millions of innocent peoples. As they say, history repeats itself.

I am home now preparing to publish this episode of the blog because I wanted to include some pictures I took at Dachau.

Dick and Diane Chernoff, Abe and GeeGee in East Berlin - Abe was afraid to go into East Berlin in case he would be detained because he was Jewish. But we all rallied around him.

Barbed wire with machine gun turret in the background. 

The sign includes the saying "Never Again."

This memorial sculpture was made by former prisoners - if you look closely there are skeletons incorporated into it.

This crematorium had 2 ovens to burn bodies. 

The two ovens that burned thousands of bodies. I remember thinking the room still had an odor to it.

This newer building held showers to gas prisoners plus 4 new ovens to keep up with burning the bodies. The gas chamber was never used.

Jewish Memorial Synagogue and Liberty Bell.

Jewish Memorial

September 19 - Great day in Beckley!

Monday morning we rested a little after the long drives to get to Pipestem. Then we decided to take a drive to Beckley to see the Coal Mine Exhibition there. We particularly wanted to try the tour of an old coal mine. We arrived at the perfect time - a tour was starting in 5 minutes - just in time for me to get my sweatshirt from the car. We sat in old cars with seats on both sides - my feet were squished - not enough room to move my legs. There was an engine car pulling 2 cars - we were lucky the other car had no passengers. The guide was a retired coal miner with 40+ years of experience working in mines.  He took us down 1500 feet underground. There wasn't much light, it was cold, damp with water dripping from the ceiling. We were told not to put our hands or feet out of the car because of outcroppings in the mountain. We couldn't put our hands up or stand up because of some metal plates sticking out of the ceiling.

The miner stopped to show us a one ton car filled with bituminous coal - I think he said the miner was paid $2/ton - sometimes they brought their young sons into the mine to help them fill the car - but the son did not get paid. He showed us a piece of wood that would have the miner's name on it - he put this into the bottom of the car - when the car was emptied of coal, the wood would be there to prove who had filled it - without the wood, another miner could steal a miner's car full of coal and get paid for it.

The miner had to buy all his equipment at the company store. The only thing the company paid for was the timber used to hold up the walls and ceilings of the mine - the miner had to even buy his own blasting powder and equipment to open up a section of the mine. There was not enough room for the miner to stand up straight. The miner was paid in script made by the company - he had only the company store to do his shopping - other stores outside the coal town might accept the script but at a fraction of its value.  The company did provide housing, but if the miner was disabled or killed, his wife and children only had 3 days to move out. And where would they go! "The miner was in bondage to the company."

Here is a link to us descending the 1500 feet into the mountain: 

https://youtube.com/shorts/Nw57L19Tms4?feature=share

Here is a link to some of his talk: https://youtube.com/shorts/nQm-nAhL0Ok?feature=share

The miner also talked about the importance of safety. He showed us how the miners used to wear caps with flames on them for light - he showed us some improvements for lighting - he talked about the dangers of methane gas and how to test for it. Then he extinguished all the light so we were sitting there in the pitch black! That was scary! Here is a link to see us in blackness:

https://youtu.be/DLGx1haspvo

The miner talked about how the miners had tin buckets for their meals - some kept water in the bottom compartment - some times other miners stole a miner's water. He also talked about the importance of rats - he said the miners fed them!! If they saw rats leaving, they knew something bad was about to happen - a cave in or methane gas buildup - he said many miners had been saved by rats. Makes me think more highly of rats but I still don't want to see one!!

He also showed us how mining went from pick and shovel to miner controlled machines like the scoopers below.

When we came out of the tunnel, we explored the museum that had all kinds of miner equipment, information about unions. 

The retired miner had shown us one of these scooters.

Mine Workers Union flags - the coal companies fought hard to prevent miners from unionizing - like big companies today the coal company was making big profits but didn't want to pay the workers a living wage or benefits - the coal company provided and directed coal town schools, churches, any kind of health care.

We then walked over to a miner's 3 bedroom house - the house didn't seem half bad - like something my grandmother might have had in the 20s or 30s - until we learned that the miner might have 8-12 kids and might rent 1 of the 3 bedrooms!! He told us that in his grandparents' time there was subsistence farming, logging or coal mining - no other job options. One of his grandfathers was disabled on the job - the company gave him a $2000 settlement which was a lot at the time but would never last his lifetime.

We visited the company church - interesting to see benches dedicated to Mannings! I wouldn't expect that they would be related to us.

You can just make out the engine and 2 cars coming down the track from the left - it exits the mine and drives back to the boarding area. The coal mining company's executives would live in these large homes.

The company store above is the visitors center - we bought tickets in here and boarded the coal cars out back. The museum is upstairs and the gift shop is downstairs.

When we were talking about going back to West Virginia, a friend suggested that we visit Wheeling up in the northwest corner of West Va, but unfortunately we couldn't synch our available times. But Charlene mentioned Tamarak in Beckley - it carries products made by almost 3000 artists and artisans from fifty-five countries. There were gorgeous products there! There was also a dining area so we had lunch after taking a look around.

Tamarack 

I love the recycling in these pieces!

The dining area

On the way home from Tamarack we stopped and bought something for supper back at Pipestem where we just relaxed and then watched another episode of Ken Burns' Holocaust. I've read a lot about the Holocaust and follow the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on Facebook, but it was still difficult watching the documentary. The similarities to today's events are harrowing. 

We are heading to Camden, South Carolina to visit Vickie's cousin - it is a 4-5 hour drive so it will be a long day.

September 18, 2022

So Sunday morning we got up and had a bit of breakfast at the hotel before starting off for the day. Johnny wanted to see what Petersburg looked like so we took a drive downtown. Johnny knew that Petersburg had played an important tole in the Civil War, but I didn't know anything about it. I have since learned that it played a role in the Revolutionary War as well. It grew so much as a transportation and industrial hub that it was the second most important city in Virginia after Richmond before the Civil War. This caused its importance in the Civil War - the Unionists wanted to gain control of Petersburg to disrupt supply lines to the Confederate capital in Richmond. There was a 292 day siege of Petersburg by the Union Army that was finally able to force the Confederates to retreat. General Robert E Lee's forces were eventually surrounded, and he was forced to surrender at Appomattox Court House.

Petersburg had an up and down history like so many of the places we have visited. It faced loss of industries; Jim Crow laws were instituted; white flight took place - just to name a few causes. The city had about a 73% majority of African-Americans in the 2020 census. It is trying to build on its historic past by renovating its many historic buildings. We loved the architecture - the run down and renovated - we would definitely return to spend more time here.

One of the new businesses

Coffee shop customer!

We loved these old buildings being converted into businesses, apartments, condos - some kept the original exteriors. I think this one says Robinson & Purdy Corp. - "Cotton & Tobacco" "Peanuts."

The old Coca-Cola Bottling Works now houses the Buttermilk Bake Shop. We decided to stop in. My sisters had been texting about buying or baking scones for the Queen's funeral so I was on the lookout for scones.

Vegan cookies - we bought one because my son Dan is vegan - Johnny ate it and said it was okay - he didn't remember it was vegan!

This was the closest I came to a scone with strawberry jam and clotted cream - fresh strawberries and whipped cream in a sugar donut.

Our purchase from the bakery - I believe they were my scone, turtle cupcake, strawberry short cake, chess pie, and a cherry cupcake. My scone was fabulous. Vickie said the turtle cup cake and chess pie were just as good. The others are still in the fridge.

Vickie has Barnhart relatives so she is taking a picture of the old Virginia Branch Barnhart Mercantile Co.

We headed on toward Appomattox Court House saying that we would definitely come again to Petersburg to see its progress.

J&V wanted to get some kind of frozen food to keep the desserts from the Butter Milk Bake Shop cool. We were looking for a good while for a grocery store or a supermarket - we were on back roads and never found out where people bought their groceries. We finally reached Crewe where there was a small market that included a butcher. It wasn't very big and some of the vegetables like cauliflower had dark spots on them. But Johnny and Vickie found a frozen package of Hush Puppies - they are a southern specialty I think - deep fried little cornmeal balls. They did the trick for the other goodies in the refrigerated bag. 

The market had gorgeous mums - and so many of them! They also had all types of pumpkins.

We arrived at the Appomattox Courthouse National Park. The temperature was in the high 80s by this time but not humid. Below is the Court House which houses the visitors center - the entrance is behind the staircase - you don't have to climb the stairs! It has lots of interesting information on the Civil War and a diorama of the park.

We walked over to the McLean House - Union General Ulysses S Grant was using it as his headquarters. We saw the room where Robert E Lee surrendered to Grant. We also saw Grant's bedroom and 2 dining rooms - one upstairs and a more formal one downstairs - the tables had china ware and scones!

The McLean House - the white small building is the well house where they obtained water. 

The upstairs table with blue china 

Pictures of the downstairs dining room - more formal - nicer china - and more scones!! We thought the scones were hysterical because of the text messages with my sisters about baking or buying them to watch the Queen's funeral the next day!

We also walked over to the outside kitchen on the left and slave quarters on the right below.

I was surprised - shocked really at a display in the slave quarters - that explained that 8.5 million Africans were sold into slavery and sent to the Americas!

Court Day was the first Thursday after the first Monday every month - it was during Court Day that Africans were auctioned off with cattle. That is so sickening.

Leaving Appomattox, we headed for Boone's Mill where Vickie's parents and relatives are buried. Vickie has been working on her genealogy so she was checking all the gravestones for names and dates  of Peters and Barnharts. I had taken pictures of some of them the last time we were down - I took even more this time. Such as:

As we left Boone's Mill, we passed a Trump Store selling ice cream!! I kid you not!

Would you buy ice cream from this guy? I only got the pictures because we were stopped at a red light!

As we headed for Pipestem, we passed several miles of traffic backed up on the north bound side - there had been an accident - the Emergency Response Unit was there. We were thanking our lucky stars it was on the other side. We finally reached Pipestem State Park, checked in and brought in our belongings about 9 pm. 

 

Appotomax

Crewe market - butcher, veg - some moldy or with black spots - loads of mums and pumpkins

Farmville 

Lots of farms today with bales of hay 

Lynchburg fort early - riverfront being modernized

Several miles of traffic on north side of 81 from an accident. Emergency Response unit was there too.