Tag Archives: museum

Fort Smith National Historic Site

March 31, 2020 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Overview

Along a segment of the Arkansas River serving as a border with Oklahoma, Fort Smith is a lovely 35-acre park surrounded by a bustling downtown and busy railroad track. The first fort at this site was established in 1817 to assist in the Cherokee relocation at the end of the Trail of Tears. A second fort was built nearby in 1838, occupied by both sides during the Civil War, then closed in 1871 when it became a Federal Court.

Highlights

Museum, restored courtroom, “Hell-on-the-Border” jail, Arkansas River

Must-Do Activity

The exhibits here demonstrate the harsh prison conditions and tell harrowing stories of frontier life that will make you cringe. Do not miss the “Hell-on-the-Border” jail in the basement and the restored courtroom. Outside, a reproduction of the gallows and several cannon emplacements provide a counterpoint to the idyllic riverfront setting.

Best Trail

A half-mile trail crosses the railroad tracks to the banks of the Arkansas River. The scenic beauty of the shoreline at sunset belies the turbulent history of this place, including its connection with the Trail of Tears, designated a National Historic Trail.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Take a photo in the painstakingly restored courtroom where Judge Isaac C. Parker heard 12,000 criminal cases during his 21 years on the bench in the late 1800s. He sentenced 160 persons to hang, and 79 executions took place right here at Fort Smith.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

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

Fees

$10 per person or America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

All roads are paved and there is free parking on site.

Camping

Two miles north of Barling, Arkansas, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers manages a campground on the Arkansas River.

Fort Scott National Historic Site (Kansas)

Pea Ridge National Military Park (Arkansas)

Explore More – Fort Smith was established in 1817 to assist in the Cherokee relocation at the end of the Trail of Tears, but what American Indian tribe already inhabited this region?

Montana, North Dakota

Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site

March 26, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Overview

When you park at Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site you are in Montana, but as you walk to the fort you cross into North Dakota, changing time zones from Mountain to Central Time. Strategically located near the confluence of the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers, the trading post lasted from 1828 to 1867 when it was sold to the U.S. Army who dismantled it to build Fort Buford two miles downstream. Fort Union primarily traded with Plains Indians for bison hides, since beaver skin top hats were out of fashion by that point.

Highlights

Museum, reconstructed fort, Fort Buford State Historic Site, Missouri-Yellowstone River confluence

Must-Do Activity

The National Park Service (NPS) visitor center is located inside the reconstructed Bourgeois (field agent) House, one of several buildings and palisades rebuilt between 1985 and 1991 using rot-resistant fir instead of the original cottonwood. After touring Fort Union, drive to Fort Buford State Historic Site where a visitor center (fee) opened at the two rivers’ confluence in August 2003 as part of the Lewis and Clark bicentennial celebration.

Best Trail

The Bodmer Overlook Trail climbs one mile to a point where Swiss painter Karl Bodmer sketched the fort in 1833. The trailhead is located north of Highway 1804.

Instagram-worthy Photo

The colorful Bourgeois House is where the trading post manager lived. A four-day fur-trade rendezvous is held annually at the park in June.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

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

Fees

None at the NPS site, but there is an entrance fee at Fort Buford State Historic Site.

Road Conditions

Access roads are paved.

Camping

There is a campground at nearby Fort Buford State Historic Site.

Fort Vancouver National Historic Site (Washington)

Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota)

You can touch bison hides and other furs inside the NPS visitor center.

Explore More – What famous ornithologist stayed at the fort in 1843?

Maryland

Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine

March 19, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Overview

More than 200 years ago, Fort McHenry survived a 25-hour bombardment from the British navy and inspired Francis Scott Key to write “The Star-Spangled Banner” (which did not officially become the U.S. national anthem until 1931). The flag flying the night of September 13, 1814 measured 42 x 30 feet! It is no wonder he was stirred while watching “the rockets’ red glare” from aboard a U.S. truce ship under British guard floating in the Chesapeake Bay outside Baltimore, Maryland. The Congreve rocket was a new type of weapon at the time, and, luckily for the Americans, very inaccurate.

Highlights

Museum, film, fort, twice daily flag changes

Must-Do Activity

Fort McHenry went on to serve as a temporary prison during the Civil War, when its many cannons were pointed towards the city of Baltimore so Confederate sympathizers would not secede from the Union. During World War I, the fort served as a veterans’ hospital before being designated a National Park Service (NPS) unit in 1925. Later it was re-designated Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, the only park with this unique distinction.

Best Trail

Star Spangled Banner National Historic Trail is not a hiking trail so much as it is a collection of sites related to the War of 1812 in and around the Chesapeake Bay and Potomac River.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Our flag is still there. This is officially the only NPS unit where the U.S. flag flies 24 hours a day. Daily flag changes take place at 9:30 a.m. and 4:20 p.m., weather permitting.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

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

Fees

$15 per person or America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

All roads paved to the designated NPS parking lot.

Camping

Patapsco Valley State Park is located west of Baltimore, Maryland.

Related Sites

Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument (District of Columbia)

Hampton National Historic Site (Maryland)

Fort Washington Park (Maryland)

Explore More – When a new state is added to the union, the newly redesigned flag is first flown over Fort McHenry, so when did that last occur?

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Alabama

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park

March 17, 2020 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Overview

It was near Daviston, Alabama on March 27, 1814 that a fortified village of Upper Creek (or Red Stick) Indians was attacked by a superior force under the leadership of Major General Andrew Jackson. Jackson started by firing cannons at the barricade for two hours, then his overanxious Indian allies pressed the issue by crossing the river to fight. Jackson quickly ordered his men to charge and overtook the stronghold. This proved to be the final battle of the Creek Indian War of 1813-14, which is considered part of the War of 1812. In the treaty that followed, the tribe ceded much of the land that became the state of Alabama to the United States. When Jackson became president in 1828, he signed the Indian Removal Bill and soon both the Upper Creeks and his former Indian allies were forced west on the Trail of Tears.

Highlights

Museum, film, auto tour, nature trail

Must-Do Activity

A short but good film is the best way to start learning about this lesser known yet important battle of the War of 1812 that brought fame to Andrew Jackson. A diorama in the visitor center illustrates the fortifications used at Horseshoe Bend. On the three-mile auto tour, only short walks are required from any interpretive pullout.

Best Trail

An alternative to the auto tour is a 2.8-mile nature trail that visits the same interpretive sites.

Instagram-worthy Photo

A tight curve in the Tallapoosa River in eastern Alabama provided the name for Horseshoe Bend National Military Park. Indian allies of the U.S. started the 1814 battle by swimming then paddling stolen canoes across the river to get behind the fortifications.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

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

Fees

None

Road Conditions

All roads paved

Camping

There is no camping allowed here, but Wind Creek State Park has a campground 25 miles southwest of the park.

Fort Smith National Historic Site (Arkansas-Oklahoma)

Russell Cave National Monument (Alabama)

Tiff with a model wearing traditional Creek garments

Explore More – Where did a much more famous U.S. victory during the War of 1812 take place under the command of Major General Andrew Jackson?

Ohio

Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial

March 12, 2020 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

Overview

Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial is located on South Bass Island in western Lake Erie. Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry not only had the best name in the War of 1812, his naval victory near here on September 10, 1813 was a turning point. The 1817 Rush-Bagot Agreement is still in effect today, assuring that the U.S. and Canada maintain the world’s longest undefended international border. The 352-foot tall memorial tower was built between 1912-15 and became part of the National Park Service (NPS) system in 1936.

Highlights

Museum, film, 352-foot tall memorial tower, black squirrels

Must-Do Activity

After departing from your ferry or airplane, head to the NPS visitor center for the free museum and film, then pay for your ticket to ascend the granite memorial tower in an elevator. On a sunny day the views from the 317-foot tall viewing level across Lake Erie are splendid, including the shoreline of Canada and the roller coasters at Cedar Point. The rotunda at the tower’s base also contains the remains of three American and three British soldiers who died during the 1813 battle.

Best Trail

It is about two miles from the ferry terminal to the NPS visitor center, but if the weather is nice it is a pleasant walk on roads that are not busy.

Instagram-worthy Photo

The windows facing the memorial tower at the NPS visitor center are mirrored, which makes for a really interesting and distorted reflection.

Peak Season

Summer (May to October is the only time you can enter the memorial)

Hours

Open seasonally: https://www.nps.gov/pevi/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

Free for museum, $10 per person for elevator to top of tower or free with America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

South Bass Island is only accessible by boat or airplane. Ferry service allows you to bring your own vehicle to the island, which is small enough to walk everywhere or drive in a rental golf cart.

Camping

South Bass Island State Park has more than 100 primitive campsites on the island and East Harbor State Park on the mainland has more than 500 campsites with modern facilities.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Ohio)

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park (Ohio)

Explore More – What is the significance of the “DON’T GIVE UP THE SHIP” flag?

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