Historical Markers, Interpretive Signs

"There were seven democrats... and you ate five of them"

I don't think quotes can get much better than that

When I was a kid we'd stay at Lake San Cristobal for two weeks every summer.

Eventually, my dad bought two crapped out dirt bikes (Suzuki 80 Hillbilly's) for a hundred bucks from the owner of the Golconda Resort. We rebuilt them together and they made the next few trips with us.

One year, a buddy of mine came along and we rode to the Packer Massacre site, just a short distance from the lake, at midnight. Have to say, it was eerie.

Rode those little two-strokes all over the area, stopping to adjust the carbs the higher we went...as I recall.

I confess that I'd never heard of the Bannock War.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bannock_War



This monument is in western Idaho, where I was traveling today.

Last week we did a WONA (War Of Northern Aggression) ride thru Mississippi and Tennessee, with a short cut thru Alabama, North Carolina, and Louisiana. I have a ton of shots from battlefields, but those belong in a different thread, i think. But some are not Civil War related, so here goes.

This one was in downtown Memphis.

Clarksdale, MS.

Exit Natchez Trace Parkway at MM 30, on MS 552 (I think)....go past Alcorn State and watch for the sign. This was so far back in the boonies I don't think they even knew how to play banjos..... the road coming out into Port Gibson had vines hanging down, a good ride!!!

The sign is hard to read, but essentially a plantation owner (21,000 acres!) built the house (McMansion?) in 1861 right before the war broke out, died a couple of weeks later. The wife and kids lived there during the war, but lost everything in the re-construction era. The house burnt down in 1871. No existing pictures but someone discovered a drawing by one of Grant's Union soldiers...

Wonderful place, my second visit. Amazing how much people love a good dog. This is the interpretive sign....self explanatory.

Where Robert Johnson sold his soul to the Devil. You may remember this from "O Brother, Where Art Thou". and other blues legends...

Volcano, WV



As it looks lately

Humpback Covered Bridge, VA





The other side of the bridge. Pretty cool old bridge.

Stratton Mountain, VT

9 foot wide concrete curb and gutter section of Route 66, Oklahoma.

In 1806 on their return journey from the Pacific back to St Louis, Clark and Lewis split up and explored different directions.

With no map, Clark used his compass, sexton and the sun to figure out how to get from Bozeman Montana back to the Missouri River in North Dakota, most impressive. He had already figured out the gps coodinates of the two locations and theorized that the Yellowstone River would have to meet up with the Missouri River. Clark and 27 others made canoes out of buffalo hides and willow bush limbs and headed out.

The only time Sacajawea actually guided the captain was from south of today's Bozeman towards Big Timber, MT, thru Bozeman Pass...roughly 25 miles.

I retraced their route this summer. If you've seen the movie "Lonesome Dove" this route goes through the supposed site of the Indian chase and the town of Miles City, MT were Gustus (one of the characters) had his legs amputated.

Marker for Sacajawea:



Monument to Sacajawea:



Series of pretty amazing campsites that Clark chose on their downstream route of the Yellowstone River. An amazingly beautiful river.

Standing in one of Clark's campsites:



Campsite across the river under the trees:



Campsite to the right banks:


Campsite in the middle of nowhere on a very remote rural road, but campsite looked like a city park.





Another campsite on an island:


Another campsite, but was marked as Private Property so I could only see it from a distance and was not sure I had the right location ......



as mentioned, not sure I had the right site of their camp, until I turn around to leave and saw this road name sign.



South Clark Road.

Map of Clark's and main party's campsites from Bozeman(Billings), Mt to Reunion Bay, North Dakota...paralleling the Yellowstone River.

Nathan hale Pryor (member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition) was one of the first to explore that area. L & C Exp. was over in 1806' and Pryor soon after the exp. was on his way to Oklahoma.

Pryor married an Osage Indian, as did several other Exp members....apparently Osage women were quite attractive.

Pryor Oklahoma was named after Sgt Pryor. Nathan Pryor is buried in the area..gravesite is on my bucket list.

More details at this link.

http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/P/PR024.html

If u two want another marker to track down find his gravesite and Pryor Creek, also named after him.

I grew up in Pryor and lived there until about three years ago. They moved his gravesite from the creekbank to the city cemetery in the early 80's. I never got around to seeing it before they moved it.

The official town name is Pryor Creek.

picture of grave please..!!!!!!!

I'll get one next time I'm there. My family still lives there so I go about once a month.