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SoonerTex
07-04-2008, 19:58
I was just watching the History channel and was wondering if anyone had information about Revolutionary or Civil War historic events that happened in areas close (Day Hikes) to where the trail is? As I plan my thru it might be fun to schedule in some side trips.

Thanks SoonerTex

rafe
07-04-2008, 20:07
The trail passes not far from Gettysburg, PA. And there's a Revolutionary War monument in Bennington, VT. Not to mention Harpers Ferry (John Brown....)

EarlyBird2007
07-04-2008, 20:22
For starters, the AT passes right through the site of the Battle of South Mountain in MD. There is a big memorial and other displays visible from the trail. The AT also passes within maybe 25 miles of Sharpsburg, MD, where the two bloody battles of Antietem occurred. And, of course the most famous Civil War battlefield of all, Gettysburg, is only about 25 miles from the AT. The best place the leave to trail to visit Gettysburg is at the US 30 crossing, near Caledonia State Park. They just opened a new Visitors Center in Gburg. It is definitely a can't miss. Lastly, Harrisburg is near the Cumberland Valley and Duncannon. No actual battles there, but they have a very good CW Museum.

I'm sure others can add to this, such as the many battlefields in Virginia. Front Royal comes to mind. I see somebody already mentioned Harpers Ferry, home of John Brown, etc.

SoonerTex
07-04-2008, 20:53
Thanks. Is it a good idea from a logistics standpoint to try and visit sites along the way.I am planning on giving myself 5-6 months to complete trail. How will most places feel about a someone wondering in carrying a backpack and wearing their best attire covered in trail grime? Would most of these areas have camping spots where I could stay and clean up before visiting? SoonerTex

rafe
07-04-2008, 20:56
Thanks. Is it a good idea from a logistics standpoint to try and visit sites along the way.I am planning on giving myself 5-6 months to complete trail. How will most places feel about a someone wondering in carrying a backpack and wearing their best attire covered in trail grime? Would most of these areas have camping spots where I could stay and clean up before visiting? SoonerTex

Gettysburg is a ways off the trail, so presumably you'd need to take a day off to get there, visit, and get back to the trail. There are lots of towns along the way and opportunities to clean up. ;)

Lilred
07-04-2008, 22:04
Read the book "The Ghost Whisperers" by 4 time thru hiker, Model T. It is all about the history that surrounds the towns along the A.T. Very good stuff about Civil War and the AT. Great Book.

I believe you can get it on Amazon or do a search on Model_T. His real name is J.R. Tate.

budforester
07-04-2008, 22:35
The AT is an amazing hike through history, but most things took place in the valleys. I had an uncle… he’s buried in the Confederate section of City Cemetery at Lynchburg, VA. He died while his unit was camped with the forces at Swift Run Gap, just prior to Jackson’s Valley Campaign. They were transferred there after First Manassas. My grandfather Bingaman was probably a Hessian soldier. He moved to a land grant on New River, VA (there was a Bingaman’s Ferry). He was killed in an Indian attack on his frontier homestead.

Appalachian Tater
07-04-2008, 23:02
Yellow Mountain Gap sticks out in my mind for the Revolutionary War because of the marker at the blue blaze that goes to Overmountain Shelter.


Appalachian Trail, Yellow Mountain Gap. Yellow Mountain Gap is the junction of the Appalachian Trail and Historic Bright’s Trace, route used by the “Overmountain Men” to cross the mountain enroute to the Revolutionary War battle at King's Mountain, S.C. The blue-blazed side trail leads 0.2 miles to a barn which has been renovated to shelter Appalachian Trail hikers. Keep right at forks in the trail and turn right onto the gravel road which leads to the shelter.

http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=3269

hammer
07-05-2008, 12:50
The area around Franklin, NC has been the site of battles from pre-revolutionary times through the civil war as I recall. The area was important because of the confluence of rivers and passes. There is a nice display in downtown Franklin.

saimyoji
07-05-2008, 14:17
Anyone ever hear of the trail being used by slaves? As in the underground railroad? Someone tried to convince me of this once. I didn't have the heart to give him a history lesson.

LIhikers
07-05-2008, 14:22
Fort Montgomery State Historic Site, located adjacent to NY's Bear Mountain State Park, is a revolutionary war historic site. You can walk there on a hiking trail that starts in the Zoo at Bear Mntn. or you can walk up the road 9W, about a 1/4 mile north of the Bear Mntn Bridge traffic circle. See http://nysparks.state.ny.us/sites/info.asp?siteID=36 for more info.

Tennessee Viking
07-05-2008, 14:46
I was just watching the History channel and was wondering if anyone had information about Revolutionary or Civil War historic events that happened in areas close (Day Hikes) to where the trail is? As I plan my thru it might be fun to schedule in some side trips.

Thanks SoonerTexThe AT is full of history itself, and off trail as well.

Smokies chaulk full of it
Shelton Graves
Overmountain Men crossing Yellow Mtn Gap into Roaring Creek Valley.
Hermit Greer and Grindstaff.
ATC museum

rafe
07-05-2008, 14:50
Anyone ever hear of the trail being used by slaves? As in the underground railroad? Someone tried to convince me of this once. I didn't have the heart to give him a history lesson.

Ironmasters Mansion (Pine Grove Furnace SP, in PA) was a stop on the Underground Railroad. If you ask, they'll give you a tour of the secret rooms.

saimyoji
07-05-2008, 15:45
Thanks.

Any other relics of such?

rafe
07-05-2008, 17:03
Thanks.

Any other relics of such?

I presume you know about Harpers Ferry...

Tennessee Viking
07-05-2008, 17:04
I was able to pick up a rail spike along Laurel Fork. Most of them have already been picked up, but a occasional one is found.

jaywalke
07-05-2008, 19:03
Minie Ball Hill is about two miles south of the AT at Wind Rock, east of Pearisburg. Not much to see there now, but apparently for years you could pick up the balls (ammo) all over the place. Union raiders came down into the area repeatedly to cut railway lines, and one pursued column dropped everything they carried in an effort to go faster. They were early ultralighters. :)

Nicksaari
07-05-2008, 20:44
the gaps of SNP; browns, jarman, rockfish, swift run, all of them have their own awesome historical significance. jarman gap, north of calf mountain, played a major role in westward expansion well before the civil war. originally a buffalo trail that the Powhatan & valley over the "Blew Ledge" mountains, as they recorded. the three notched/three chopt road began at the intersection of cary street/river road/ three choped road, here in richmond, va. and crossed jarmans gap.
present day rt 250 between goochland and charlottesville, and beyond to crozet. named for the markings in the trees along this trail, three axe chops on the trunk. Peter Jefferson, Thomas' father whom worked for the state as chief mapmaker and land surveyor, was responsible for notches in a large fifty mile swath. as the main westward road as far back as the 1600s, imagine the story that the gap could tell of those who passed into uncharted land all those years ago. backpackers, just like us. hikers.

i can drop bombs of historical knowledge all over whiteblaze if you guys want to hear more about the histories of the gaps, claudius crozet's tunnel which runs beneath rockfish gap, local celebrities, civil war theater crossings, graves stones, ruins, etc. just let me know if you want to hear it guys.:):-?:eek::sun

SoonerTex
07-05-2008, 20:50
Thanks to everyone. This is a big help and gives me good information to help with my thru plan. Looks like I may have to be selective or plan on a longer time on the trail. Do many that thru or section hike actually plan around outside trips or do most just go to hike the trail?

rafe
07-05-2008, 20:54
Thanks to everyone. This is a big help and gives me good information to help with my thru plan. Looks like I may have to be selective or plan on a longer time on the trail. Do many that thru or section hike actually plan around outside trips or do most just go to hike the trail?

Depends on what kind of hurry they're in. I would say, in general, a thru-hike precludes a whole lot of side trips, just because of the limited time available to cover a rather large distance. Section hikers and those on their 2nd or subsequent thru hike may have more freedom (time and $$) for side trips.

saimyoji
07-05-2008, 21:51
i can drop bombs of historical knowledge all over whiteblaze ...

Great name for a band: Bombs of Historical Knowledge. :cool:

Feral Bill
07-06-2008, 00:19
Fort Montgomery State Historic Site, located adjacent to NY's Bear Mountain State Park, is a revolutionary war historic site. You can walk there on a hiking trail that starts in the Zoo at Bear Mntn. or you can walk up the road 9W, about a 1/4 mile north of the Bear Mntn Bridge traffic circle. See http://nysparks.state.ny.us/sites/info.asp?siteID=36 for more info.

There are a number of other historic sites in Harriman/Bear Mountain. Old cemetaries, iron mines, abandoned villages, an uncompleted tourist railway, and more. The NY NJ Trail Conference has some publications for those interested.

Nicksaari
07-06-2008, 11:51
Great name for a band: Bombs of Historical Knowledge. :cool:


looking to fill the rest of my 'packers band, "Bombs of Historical Knowledge".
i play the drums, and i carry a thirty three pound pack.




but seriously, i want to drop bomb all over whiteblaze; i had a minor in Va history, and i love to speak the language if you want to listen. just let me know, or better yet, ill just spend thirty minutes a day reiterating historical significance along our AT. hundreds of hours reading of history. PATCs old website had some great articles on the ATs past. the new site does not include these links, but i remember it all.
browns gap, in southern Shenandoah, was the home to the first turnpike over the blue ridge. completed in 1805 by the the families brown and jarman. stonewall jackson's valley campaign ran full speed up Madison run (president Madison's family) into browns gap, and bivouacked more than six thousand men and caravan that night.
so the story goes, jackson charged them up the west side, and the infantry, most of whom were good ol virginia boys from the surrounding countryside in the valley and central va. exhausted, once they reached the gap, the men crashed immediately, and began to sleep, and jackson said, "let them sleep, i will take watch."
east of the AT in brows gap, about thirty feet down brows gap fire road, to the left upon a small hill, there is a visible path up the hill that leads to a lone soldier's grave who died that night they stayed in the gap. they buried him right where he fell, i guess. its very strange and somewhat moving to see this soldiers grave all alone.
the funniest thing is that these people and stories and histories had no idea that where they walked, passed, camped, lived, have become a senic footpath that is out beloved trail. but though certain mediums, their stories live on forever.

browns gap turnpike operated for the next 140 years or so, officially becoming a fire road after SNP was instituted in the thirties. old road maps of virginia include this road, it gives me a semi when i see these old maps.

Appalachian Tater
07-06-2008, 13:59
You go right by Capt. George Pearis' grave outside of Pearisburg. There was a "Battle of Pearisburg" during the Civil War.

http://gilescounty.org/pearisburg.html

Hikerhead
07-06-2008, 14:14
looking to fill the rest of my 'packers band, "Bombs of Historical Knowledge".
i play the drums, and i carry a thirty three pound pack.




but seriously, i want to drop bomb all over whiteblaze; i had a minor in Va history, and i love to speak the language if you want to listen. just let me know, or better yet, ill just spend thirty minutes a day reiterating historical significance along our AT. hundreds of hours reading of history. PATCs old website had some great articles on the ATs past. the new site does not include these links, but i remember it all.
browns gap, in southern Shenandoah, was the home to the first turnpike over the blue ridge. completed in 1805 by the the families brown and jarman. stonewall jackson's valley campaign ran full speed up Madison run (president Madison's family) into browns gap, and bivouacked more than six thousand men and caravan that night.
so the story goes, jackson charged them up the west side, and the infantry, most of whom were good ol virginia boys from the surrounding countryside in the valley and central va. exhausted, once they reached the gap, the men crashed immediately, and began to sleep, and jackson said, "let them sleep, i will take watch."
east of the AT in brows gap, about thirty feet down brows gap fire road, to the left upon a small hill, there is a visible path up the hill that leads to a lone soldier's grave who died that night they stayed in the gap. they buried him right where he fell, i guess. its very strange and somewhat moving to see this soldiers grave all alone.
the funniest thing is that these people and stories and histories had no idea that where they walked, passed, camped, lived, have become a senic footpath that is out beloved trail. but though certain mediums, their stories live on forever.

browns gap turnpike operated for the next 140 years or so, officially becoming a fire road after SNP was instituted in the thirties. old road maps of virginia include this road, it gives me a semi when i see these old maps.

This sign is 3/4 mile south of Brown's Gap at a SLD overlook.

veteran
07-06-2008, 14:32
North of Harpers Ferry and west of Boonsboro

Not only was this the first major Civil War engagement on Northern soil, it was also the bloodiest single day battle in American history.

http://www.nps.gov/archive/anti/home.htm

http://www.nps.gov/archive/anti/directions.htm

Jack Tarlin
07-06-2008, 16:16
Sooner:

You've got some great ideas so far, didn't know there that many people interested in history here.

A few more ideas: Antietam is very close to Harpers Ferry, and it's actually an easy bike ride along the C&O canal path. Talk to Laura at the Outfitters when you get to Harpers; she can fill you in on where to get a bike. Taking a full day off the Trail and biking to the battlefield would be pretty cool.

Also, a few weeks before you get there, when you get to Glasgow or Buena Vista, VA, you're just a few miles from Lexington, VA. A visit to the Virginia MIlitary Institute would interest you; plus Stonewall Jackson's house is right in the center of town, as is the Lee Chapel (and burial place) on the Washington and Lee campus; Jackson's grave is in the town cemetery just a few blocks away.

One idea.......I always pack a copy of Michael Shaara's Gettysburg novel "The Killer Angels" when I'm in Northern Virginia and Maryland, and I re-read it as I go north (the novel opens on South Mountain, where you'll be hiking for several days). It's one of the finest historical novels you'll ever read.

Cookerhiker
07-06-2008, 16:34
When I was growing up in Northern NJ, my early hikes in Harriman Park included a place called Claudius Smith's den. It was some kind of hideout and all I could remember was he was a revolutionary war figure. So I googled and lo-and-behold: http://nynjctbotany.org/whudson/nyclauds.html

budforester
07-06-2008, 20:14
[quote=Nicksaari;660010]but seriously, i want to drop bomb all over whiteblaze; i had a minor in Va history, and i love to speak the language if you want to listen. just let me know, or better yet, ill just spend thirty minutes a day reiterating historical significance along our AT.quote]

I nominate Nicksaari to write the History- along- the- AT article. This is a fascinating subject and, for me, the historical aspects would be as significant as the sense of walking in nature.

rafe
07-06-2008, 20:24
How about this odd tidbit... Herman Melville wrote "Moby Dick" with a view of Mt. Greylock from his window as he wrote. It's suggested that the shape of the mountain from his vantage resembled that of a whale. In any case, he celebrated atop Greylock after his writing was done. (Link (http://www.hawthorneinsalem.org/Literature/Melville/LiteraryLinks/Images.html))

Nicksaari
07-06-2008, 23:35
to be honest, i really just am prone to Virginia history. i know a lot about SNP and southward to about Roanoke. and then there's the history of the trail north of the park; manassas gap, Ashby gap, paris gap, northward over the roller coaster on into harpers fairy. but yeah, when i get around tomorrow, ill type some type of history lesson. ill try to find that old web page...

Wonder
07-07-2008, 12:34
The trail passes near Jim Thorpe and many coal areas.......this is where many of Penns. fighting men came from in the Civil War. The Irish and Ukraine mine workers couldn't afford the $300 fine to avoid the draft......there for, were forced to fight, yet still denied full citizenship

Wonder
07-07-2008, 12:35
How about this odd tidbit... Herman Melville wrote "Moby Dick" with a view of Mt. Greylock from his window as he wrote. It's suggested that the shape of the mountain from his vantage resembled that of a whale. In any case, he celebrated atop Greylock after his writing was done. (Link (http://www.hawthorneinsalem.org/Literature/Melville/LiteraryLinks/Images.html))


I heard recently that Moby Dick was actually based on a true story.....I still have to look it up.

Wonder
07-07-2008, 12:49
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moby_Dick

Lilred
07-07-2008, 16:05
[quote=Nicksaari;660010]but seriously, i want to drop bomb all over whiteblaze; i had a minor in Va history, and i love to speak the language if you want to listen. just let me know, or better yet, ill just spend thirty minutes a day reiterating historical significance along our AT.quote]

I nominate Nicksaari to write the History- along- the- AT article. This is a fascinating subject and, for me, the historical aspects would be as significant as the sense of walking in nature.

It's already been done as pointed out in my earlier post.

budforester
07-07-2008, 16:28
[quote=budforester;660140]

It's already been done as pointed out in my earlier post.

Thanks Lilred, I found Model T's website (http://modelt.homestead.com/Our_Products.html).

Wags
07-07-2008, 17:25
i read the story that moby dick was based upon. it was probably the best survival book i've ever read

http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Sea-Tragedy-Whaleship-Essex/dp/0141001828

SoonerTex
07-07-2008, 19:59
Thanks again for all the great information, websites and book suggestions. Just got back from our local used bookstore , but did not find Model T's book there. I guess I will come into the 21st century and order something on line. SoonerTex

Bearpaw88
07-07-2008, 21:12
I thought Model-T's book was a great idea. It would be nice to see more books written on the historic past of places on or near the AT, and books that specifically relate only history. Model-T's book was good but it does skip around quite a bit. There is everything from Native American lore, experiences on his thru-hikes, Civil War history, and local history written in his book. I found it entertaining and informative but I'd rather it been more informative.