A Civil War Summer ... (2007)

As this summer draws on, I am reminded of what my family was doing exactly four years ago. We were touring Civil War battlefields.

When I tell people that we spent a month on a "historical vacation", I receive different reactions. Some folks think it's really neat that we want to experience and view history firsthand. Some others think that a vacation like that is totally boring. My family loves history, loves the history of the United States, and loves the United States. So we set off in the summer of 2007 to see some of the most famous Civil War battlefields and to tour Washington, D.C.

Fun Fact: During the Civil War, the South named battles after the nearest towns, while the North named them after the nearest body of water.

We visited Manassas (Bull Run), Sharpsburg (Antietam), Gettysburg, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, The Wilderness, and Spotsylvania Courthouse Campaign. In D.C., we visited the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, the National Botanic Garden, Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the Navy Yard, Arlington National Cemetery, and the Library of Congress. We visited Mount Vernon, Great Falls National Park, and Hershey and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. We drove down part of the Blue Ridge Parkway and finished up our trip in Atlanta. What a trip!

Here are some highlights:

Here is the family at Great Falls National Park!

Dad and AJ reading a marker in a field at Gettysburg, arguably the most famous battle of the Civil War.

The fam on the USS Barry at the Washington Navy Yard.

This isn't the best picture, but it's one of the funniest pictures of our trip. Dad and AJ are acting very upset in front of Jackson's Shrine, where Stonewall Jackson died. Stonewall is one of AJ's favorite Confederate Generals.

The view from some of the grave sites at Sharpsburg. Such a mix of somber history and beauty!



I am so grateful to have had the chance to see and experience important American history up close!

A quote by Robert E. Lee that I think sums up my life quite well:::
"Get correct views of life, and learn to see the world in its true light. It will enable you to live pleasantly, to do good, and, when summoned away, to leave without regret."