Tag Archives: house

Massachusetts

Boston National Historical Park

2 Comments

Overview

Boston National Historical Park is famous for the 2.5-mile Freedom Trail that leads through historic downtown Boston, Massachusetts.  Tourists should not try to drive into the city because parking is difficult and the public transportation system is so good.  We recommend that you hire a guide or bring along your own information because almost nothing along the route has outdoor interpretive signs.

Highlights

Faneuil Hall, Charlestown Navy Yard, Bunker Hill Memorial, burying grounds, Boston Common

Must-Do Activity

One of our favorite misnomers in American history is that the Battle of Bunker Hill actually took place on Breed’s Hill north of Boston.  This first major skirmish took place shortly after the Revolutionary War kicked off in Lexington, Massachusetts in 1775 and is well-known for the Patriot commander that told his men not to “fire ’til you see the whites of their eyes.”  The 221-foot obelisk built to memorialize this fight (which the Patriots lost) was started in 1825 but not completed until 1843.  The National Park Service does not charge to climb the 294 stairs to its peak for great views of the area. 

Best Trail

The famous 2.5-mile long Freedom Trail through downtown Boston, Massachusetts is a walking path marked by a line painted on the sidewalk.  Of the many historic places you will pass along the route, some of the free ones include the site of the 1770 Boston Massacre, Faneuil Hall known as the “Cradle of Liberty” (and now a National Park Service visitor center), the site of the first public school in America established in 1635, several burying grounds, and the Old Corner Bookstore that has been turned into a restaurant.  You can also pay to enter the Old State House and Paul Revere House, among other sites.

Instagram-worthy Photo

If you keep walking the Freedom Trail north you cross the Charlestown Bridge to the Charlestown Navy Yard where you can walk aboard the USS Constitution (“Old Ironsides”), the oldest commissioned warship afloat in the world, and learn about it from active-duty U.S. Navy servicemen and women.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/bost/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None, except at specific buildings like the Old State House and Paul Revere House.

Road Conditions

Roads are paved, but traffic is bad and parking is expensive.  It is best to use public transportation to get into the city and then walk.

Camping

There are camping opportunities (reservations required) in Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, which are accessible by ferry from the city.

Related Sites

Minute Man National Historical Park (Massachusetts)

Boston African American National Historic Site (Massachusetts)

Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area (Massachusetts)

  • The Old State House charges admission to enter
  • Upstairs inside the free Faneuil Hall
  • Costumed re-enactor eating lunch outside Faneuil Hall
  • Paul Revere statue
  • The USS Constitution – the oldest ship in the US Navy
  • Scott belowdecks aboard the USS Constitution
  • Wondon (in his awesome tricorn hat) at the Bunker Hill Monument
  • Overlooking Boston from the top of the Bunker Hill Monument
  • Old burying ground in the middle of Boston
  • Ben Franklin statue near the site of the school he attended
  • The Old Corner Bookstore has been converted into a restaurant; burritos anyone?
  • To exercise your freedom (and capitalism), you can even pay to throw fake loads of tea into Boston Harbor.

Explore More – The live oak wood used to build the USS Constitution came from what island, now managed by the National Park Service?

California

Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area

2 Comments

Overview

Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area is co-managed by the National Park Service (NPS) and the U.S. Forest Service.  The NPS is in charge of Whiskeytown Lake, a reservoir west of Interstate 5, about 230 miles north of San Francisco, California.  Camping, hiking, gold panning, fishing, boating, and swimming are popular activities, but watch out for poison-oak.

Highlights

Waterfall Challenge, Camden House, gold panning, lake recreation opportunities

Must-Do Activity

Pick up an official Waterfall Challenge Passport at the NPS visitor center along with information on the four waterfall hiking trails.  Tower House Historic District includes the Camden House built in 1852 by a Gold Rush prospector, with seasonal tours offered by the NPS (it was temporarily closed in 2019 after the Carr Fire).  You can even pan for gold (with a $1 permit).

Best Trail

Whiskeytown Falls, Boulder Creek Falls, Brandy Creek Falls, and Crystal Creek Falls are accessible by hiking a total of 11 miles, but it may take longer depending on your choice of trails and road closures.  The trails are steep and poorly marked in some places.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Whiskeytown Falls is 220 feet tall and is accessible on a 3.4-mile roundtrip trail, but we thought the most photogenic waterfall was Crystal Creek Falls.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/whis/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

$25 per vehicle or America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

Highway 299 on the north side Whiskeytown Lake is paved and accesses Oak Bottom Campground.  Some of the gravel access roads are rough, but passable even with passenger vehicles.

Camping

There are eight campgrounds around the lake, some tent-only, but RVs are allowed at Oak Bottom and Brandy Creek Campgrounds.

Related Sites

Lava Beds National Monument (California)

Lassen Volcanic National Park (California)

Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve (Oregon)

  • Boulder Creek Falls
  • Crystal Creek Water Ditch
  • Scott on the trail
  • Whiskeytown Falls
  • Tiff on the trail
  • Scott at Brandy Creek Falls
  • Whiskeytown Lake
  • Raven about the park

Explore More – In what year was the Central Valley Project begun that years later formed the 3,200-acre Whiskeytown Lake?

District of Columbia

Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument

Leave a comment

Overview

The house at 144 Constitution Avenue NE in Washington, D.C. has an interesting history.  First constructed by the Sewall family in 1799 near the new U.S. Capitol building, it was burned by British troops during the War of 1812.  After being renovated by Vermont Senator Porter H. Dale in the 1920s, it was purchased by Alva Vanderbilt Belmont as a replacement headquarters for the National Woman’s Party (NWP).  In 1972, it was named the Sewall-Belmont National Historic Site, affiliated with the National Park Service (NPS), who took over full control when it was established as a National Monument in 2016. 

Highlights

Historic artifacts, sculptures, tours

Must-Do Activity

Free tours are given at specific times (see Hours below) by the NPS, but otherwise visitors can read the museum displays on both floors of the house.  The name Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument refers to the aforementioned Alva Vanderbilt Belmont and Alice Paul, a militant suffragette who was arrested during World War I for picketing outside the White House.  The protesters were attacked by men on the street, vilified in the newspapers, and abused in prison where they were force-fed during hunger strikes.  In August 1920, these brave women achieved vindication with the passing of the 19th Amendment allowing all women the right to vote in the U.S.A.

Best Trail

The Sewell House has a placard outside as part of the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail.  In 1814, the British believed there were snipers posted inside the house and burned it down, one of the few private residences destroyed during their march through Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812.

Instagram-worthy Photo

A statue of Joan of Arc greets visitors in the front hallway of the house.  Our tour guide said that the statue is attached to the house’s foundation and is completely immovable. 

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/bepa/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

There is no designated parking lot, so you have to find street parking or take the Metro.

Camping

None

  • The front hallway of the house is lined by heroines of women’s rights
  • An actual banner used in the 1910s
  • A political cartoon from the 1910s
  • Scott’s mother in an upstairs bedroom
  • A political cartoon from the 1910s
  • An outside placard on the Star-Spangled Banner NHT

Explore More – In August 1920, which state became the 36th to ratify the 19th Amendment, officially adding it to the U.S. Constitution?

New York

Women’s Rights National Historical Park

Leave a comment

Overview

In 1848, Seneca Falls was a small rural town in New York and it still remains that way, but on July 19 of that year it became the focus of the world when it hosted the first Women’s Rights Convention.  Women’s Rights National Historical Park was established on seven acres here in 1980.  Some of the National Park Service (NPS) museum exhibits have not been updated since then, but they still make you think, which is the important point.

Highlights

Museum, film, sculptures, 1843 Wesleyan Chapel, Declaration Park, Elizabeth Cady Stanton house

Must-Do Activity

Nearly two centuries after the convention, some positive changes have been made, but walking through the second-story NPS museum reminds you that we have a long way to go.  The reactions in the newspapers from 1848 are not very different to those written in response to the women’s marches of 2017.  Next door, visitors can enter the reconstructed 1843 Wesleyan Chapel where the two-day meeting was held and read the still relevant Declaration of Sentiments written during the convention.  The NPS also offers free tours of the Elizabeth Cady Stanton house, a short drive away.  Two other houses in Waterloo, New York are also part of the park.

Best Trail

There is a walking tour through historic downtown Seneca Falls that includes the National Women’s Hall of Fame (admission charged), only a short distance from the NPS museum. 

Instagram-worthy Photo

Declaration Park between the NPS museum and the Wesleyan Chapel has a waterfall wall inscribed with the Declaration of Sentiments and its signers’ names.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/wori/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None, except at the unaffiliated National Women’s Hall of Fame.

Road Conditions

All roads paved, but street parking is limited.

Camping

Cayuga Lake State Park has a large campground only 4 miles east of Seneca Falls, New York.

  • Scott outside the NPS visitor center
  • Sculptures inside the NPS visitor center
  • Tiff inside the upstairs museum
  • Bustles gone wild
  • Wesleyan Chapel
  • Inside the Wesleyan Chapel
  • Artwork from the Geneva Middle School
  • Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s house in Seneca Falls

Explore More – Why is there a sculpture of abolitionist Frederick Douglass in the lobby of the visitor center?

Virginia

Colonial National Historical Park

Leave a comment

Overview

Jamestown and Yorktown, Virginia are linked by the 23-mile Colonial Parkway, which passes through the well-known tourist attraction of Colonial Williamsburg.  After the colony of Fort Raleigh proved a disaster, it was not until 1607 that the first successful English settlement was founded at Jamestown, Virginia.  On October 18, 1781, General Charles Cornwallis surrendered his British troops at Yorktown, effectively ending the Revolutionary War.  Though it was more than two years before a peace settlement was reached and General George Washington was able to march back into New York City, from where he retreated in 1776. 

Highlights

Historic structures, Voorhees Archaearium, glass blowing demonstrations, French ship replica, cannons, historic trails, Yorktown Victory Monument

Must-Do Activity

Remember back in 1777 in the aftermath of the battles of Saratoga when the French said they would help kick the British out of the 13 colonies?  Well, not much happened until nearly four years later when Admiral de Grasse defeated the British fleet at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.  The ships were unable to resupply General Charles Cornwallis’ troops at Yorktown, who then faced a siege by the combined American and French forces.  Inside the National Park Service visitor center at Yorktown is a replica of a French ship that you can walk aboard without getting seasick.  It also has a replica of General George Washington’s battlefield tent.  Outside, cannons abound along the auto tour.

Best Trail

Five miles of trails wind through Old Towne and New Towne in Jamestown, Virginia.  There is an entry fee charged, since most of this section of the park is run by the non-profit organization Preservation Virginia.  This includes admission to the excellent Voorhees Archaearium, a museum built atop the foundation of the historic statehouse.  Do not miss the reproduction glassblowing house.  This area also contains portions of the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary War National Historic Trail and Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail.

Instagram-worthy Photo

The original 1607 James Fort was triangular in shape and, of course, had cannons facing the James River.

Peak Season

Summer, though it can be muggy

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/colo/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

Visiting Yorktown is $10 per person or free with the America the Beautiful pass, but entering Jamestown requires a payment of $20 per person or $5 per person with the America the Beautiful pass.  There is a separate entry fee for nearby Jamestowne Settlement living history museum , but it is free to walk the streets of Colonial Williamsburg (more info on our other travel blog).

Road Conditions

All roads paved

Camping

There is no camping permitted within the park, but several private campgrounds can be found in the area, as well as numerous hotels since you will probably want to spend more than a day given the park’s proximity to Colonial Williamsburg.

  • Tiff with a statue of Pochantas
  • Cemetery in Old Towne Jamestown
  • Preservation Virginia is continuing to pursue archaeology on site
  • Tiff outside the Voorhees Archaearium
  • The NPS museum at Jamestown can be overwhelming in detail
  • Scott inside the replica French ship in the visitors center
  • The ship is furnished just like it would have been in 1781, cannons included.
  • George Washington was 6’2″ and so is the door in the museum
  • Tiff with Wondon in a cannon
  • The 95-foot tall Yorktown Victory Monument was dedicated in 1884
  • Don’t forget to stop at the Jamestown Glasshouse along the Colonial Parkway

Explore More – When an “ill” General Cornwallis sent his second-in-command to formally surrender his 8,000 troops, General George Washington was insulted and deferred the honor of accepting to whom?