Passion for the Past: Harper's Ferry Vacation: I've Gone To Look For America

~~~Earlier this winter there were two British guys who came to America when their fellow Englishmen said they should not, that America was a horrible and unsafe place. Well, they came anyway. And do you know they had the time of their lives! They fell in love with our great country. They posted daily on their TikTok page, and those wonderful videos made it to You Tube. They fell in love with every state and area they visited, and people lined up to meet them. All the while they unwittingly became a part of contemporary American folklore.

So, in that same spirit, I am now posting about another of my American vacations - Harper's Ferry, West Virginia.

I hope you enjoy it~~~

I've Gone To Look For America indeed

......

Compared to many I know, I certainly am not much of an out-of-state traveler.

Heck! I'm not even much of an in-state traveler.

But over the course of time I've seen some very cool historical locations, such as Boston's Freedom Trail, Lexington & Concord, and Plymouth, Massachusetts, Colonial Williamsburg , Virginia, and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

Well, I've also been to Antietam in Maryland and Harper's Ferry in West Virginia.

My Antietam visit will be posted sometime a couple months from now, so this week I'll concentrate on Harper's Ferry.

It was the week following Easter, in 2006, and with the kids off for Easter break, we went on this wonderful holiday, which included meeting up with some of our reenacting friends upon arriving - all members of the 21st Michigan Civil War reenacting group I've reenacted with.

Originally starting in Gettysburg, we did plenty of touring there...and you can check that out by clicking HERE.

For this week's post, let's mostly remain in the 19th century - - and I would like to point out that on the way to Harper's Ferry we crossed The Potomac River! I had absolutely no idea we were going to do that!

Crossing the Potomac
See the bird?

"The Potomac River is famous for its deep ties to American history, particularly with George Washington (who lived on its banks and envisioned it as a trade route), its role as the backdrop for the nation's capital, and pivotal Civil War moments."
Everyone of us in the van were awestruck that we were crossing this historical river with a George Washington connection. George Washington's connection to the Potomac River spanned his life from surveying it in his youth to managing his estate, Mount Vernon, along its banks.

Plus...didn't he throw a silver dollar clear across? Well...okay...the legend that George Washington threw a silver dollar across the Potomac River is a myth; if he threw anything at all (like most boys would at least try), he would have likely thrown a piece of slate or stone across the much narrower Rappahannock River near his childhood home. The story, popularized to highlight his strength, is more than likely simply not true, for the first U.S. silver dollar was minted in 1794 when he was 62.

But I wanted to include this famous piece of American lore...just because. The story, from what I read, was popularized by Washington's adopted grandson, George Washington Parke Custis, as a display of his strength. Just lore, like wooden teeth and chopping down the cherry tree.

But we still crossed the Potomac!

Okay, so we were quite aways away from Mount Vernon, but it didn't matter to any of us.

Crossing the Potomac - not the same picture as above. There are slight differences.
Okay, so we were nowhere near George Washington's Mount Vernon, but still...

Harpers Ferry is located at the junction of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, which was a key area of interest for Washington's projects to improve navigation, and, from what I've read, in 1785 he took the Potomac, of which his Mount Vernon sits upon the banks, to Harper's Ferry.

We didn't take the same route - we took Highway 15 instead.

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia

"Filled with history, natural beauty, and plenty of Appalachian charm, Harpers Ferry is a Mountain State gem."

The town of Harpers Ferry witnessed the arrival of the first successful American railroad, John Brown's attack on slavery, the largest surrender of Federal troops during the Civil War, and the education of former slaves. Harpers Ferry was used by freedom seekers on the Underground Railroad. African Americans fought with John Brown to end American slavery. Colonel Tubman, as Brown called Harriet Tubman, helped to recruit and raise funds for the attack.

So much history here...and yet, I don't think I've ever heard anyone ever say, "Hey - let's take a vacation to Haper's Ferry!" Including us.

Back around April 2006 we were in Gettysburg and a friend mentioned about going to Harper's Ferry, which was not a long drive - an easy day trip. I'm certainly glad we went, for I honestly did not realize the history here.

Well, here are three presidents who have visited (two before they were president):
Thomas Jefferson

George Washington (as mentioned earlier)

and Abraham Lincoln.

How about a few famous Americans who were not presidents:
Lewis & Clark

John Brown

Robert E. Lee

Frederick Douglas

Stonewall Jackson

Now that's American History!

And I'm happy to say that, though I am not famous, I was there, too, as were my wife and kids!

I took a number of "town shots" while there.

Some of the scenes in the movie, Gods & Generals, were filmed here in Harpers Ferry.

Do you see the Dry Goods store?

That's where we're headed next~

"Step through the doors of this exhibit and be taken back in time

to an 1860s store where you could buy anything from cloth and

hats to spices and household items."

Although Harpers Ferry was in a slave state, whites and African-Americans, slave and free, patronized these stores together.

The merchandise shown in the pictures here includes typical items of the 1850's including fabrics, decanters, patent medicines, writing implements, hardware, and general notions.

As I've heard said at another historic general store: "the Amazon.com of its time."

Then there's Jefferson Rock:

Thomas Jefferson stood on the rock on October 25th, 1783, enjoying the view so much that he wrote about its beauty in his famous work, 'Notes on the State of Virginia.' According to Jefferson, the view alone was “worth a voyage across the Atlantic."

Yes, that is the Potomac River there.

The structure now known as John Brown’s Fort was erected in 1848. It was in this building that John Brown and several of his followers barricaded themselves during the final hours of their ill-fated raid of October 16, 17, and 18, 1859.

On July 3, 1859, Brown arrived in Harpers Ferry, accompanied by his sons. In the preceding months, Brown raised money from other abolitionists and ordered weapons — pikes and guns — to be used in his war against slavery.

John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was an ultimately failed effort by the abolitionist; from October 16 to 18, 1859, Brown tried to initiate a slave revolt in Southern states by taking over the United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. His goal was to instigate a major slave rebellion in the South.

The main reason John Brown's raid at Harpers Ferry failed was because the armory that he attacked was surrounded by a regiment. As a result, he was easily discovered by the soldiers patrolling the area. He was arrested and later executed.

During the Civil War, the John Brown Fort was used as a prison, a powder magazine, and perhaps a quartermaster supply house. Union troops admired the fort as they passed while Confederate troops cursed it. Many troops broke pieces of brick and wood off the fort as souvenirs. It was the only Armory building to escape destruction during the Civil War.

Early in 1803, Meriwether Lewis traveled to Harpers Ferry for supplies needed for his journey. He relied on the U.S. Armory and Arsenal at Harpers Ferry for guns and hardware - among other things - that would meet his unique requirements. In addition to procuring supplies, Lewis also attended to the construction of a collapsible iron boat frame.

Lewis had only expected to stay in Harpers Ferry for a week, but instead

was forced to stay over a month as the boat frame was built.

On April 20, 1803, Lewis wrote President Jefferson:

“My detention at Harper's Ferry was unavoidable for one month, a period much greater than could reasonably have been calculated on; my greatest difficulty was the frame of the canoe, which could not be completed without my personal attention to such portions of it as would enable the workmen to understand the design perfectly. -My Rifles, Tomahawks & knives are already in a state of forwardness that leaves me little doubt of their being in readiness in due time.”

By April 18, 1803, when the boat frame was finished, Lewis left Harpers Ferry for Lancaster and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eleven weeks later, on July 7, Lewis returned to Harpers Ferry to pick up his supplies.

Here is a representative listing of Meriwether Lewis's Harper's Ferry Acquisitions (taken from a placard at the site):

1) 40 Fish Gigs with a single Barb point

2) 36 pipe tomahawks "for Indian presents"

3) 24 pipe tomahawks

4) 24 large knives

5) 15 rifles

6) 15 powder horns and pouches

7) 15 pairs of bullet molds

8) 15 wiper or gun worms

9) 15 ball screws

10) 15 gun slings

11) 1 small grindstone

12) 1 collapsible iron frame boat

13) Extra parts of locks

14) Tools for repairing arms

On July 7, Lewis returned to Harpers Ferry to pick up his supplies. The following day he wrote President Jefferson:

"Yesterday, I shot my guns and examined the several articles which had been manufactured for me at this place; they appear to be well executed."

He secured a driver, team, and wagon to haul the supplies to Pittsburgh, and Lewis finally left for the last time on July 8, 1803.

Thank you to Pearl & Bill Jones for convincing us to go to Harper's Ferry, for this was quite an unexpected pleasurable stop while vacationing at Gettysburg.

Coming up in the not too distant future here on Passion For the Past I will highlight our adventures at the Antietam Battlefield in Sharpsburg, Maryland.

Looking for America indeed!

Until next time, see you in time.

Here is a listing of our other American History vacation visits:
You just read about Harper's Ferry, West Virginia

Gettysburg

Antietam Battlefield - Coming Soon!

Colonial Williamsburg

Boston's Freedom Trail

Then, near where I live in Michigan, let's go to Deaborn to the Henry Ford Museum to see American History there: