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Opening Shots

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near Manassas, Virginia.
From this ridge, Colonel Nathan G. Evans stood watch over the Stone Bridge, prepared to contest Union efforts to cross Bull Run. His brigade of 1,100 Confederates anchored the left flank of a seven mile defensive line guarding Manassas Junction. At first light on July 21, Federals east of the bridge sent artillery shells screaming overhead. Skirmishers from both sides opened a sporadic musket fire.

After two hours Evans became suspicious; no Federal attack had developed. Soon he received a timely message via signal flag: "Look out for your left! You are turned!" Leaving a detachment here to guard the bridge, Evans shifted the balance of his brigade towards Matthews Hill, one mile to the west. There he hoped to intercept the Union advance and buy time for Confederate reinforcements to reach the field.

(War, US Civil) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

West Mound Church

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Taylor, Michigan.
Built by German settlers in 1882, this church was located on Eureka Road across from what is now Southland Shopping Center. Formerly known as West Mound United Methodist Church, it was donated to the City of Taylor and moved to Heritage Park in 1994 using TIFA funds. The church was restored by the Taylor Historical Society.

(Churches, Etc. • Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Town Hall

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Taylor, Michigan.

Marker 1 (in front of the Town Hall)
In 1847 Taylor became an independent township named after General Zachary Taylor who later became president. Taylor's first Township Hall was built in 1886 and housed the services of the Township Board, Supervisor, Treasurer and Clerk. Here citizens could pay their taxes and register to vote. It served the township until 1958 when a larger Hall was built. On May 13, 1968, Taylor officially became a City. This near replica of Taylor's first Town Hall was constructed by the Taylor Schools Building Trades class of 1990-91. Architectural services donated by Yops and Wilkie.

Marker 2 (on west wall of Town Hall)
The following students along with Robert Harple, Instructor, were responsible for the construction of this near replica of Taylor's first Town Hall: David Beard, Thomas Borden, Michael Clipper, Ronald Cosman, James David, E. Michael Donathan, Edward Dupie, Leonard Finney, Terrance Hawthorne, Scott Kincaide, James Langford, Raymond Machnik, Gerald Mishloney, Tracy Murray, Thorney Pattenaude, Shawn Potter, Edward Tamlin, Steven Sherrill and Harold Woods.

(Government) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Log Cabin

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Taylor, Michigan.
Taylor's oldest existing home was built circa 1850 near what is now Pennsylvania Road between Telegraph and Beech Daly. Andrew and Elizabeth Strong and their children were the first family to live in the house. It was constructed on timbers atop a mound of earth, a common practice to avoid flooding. The cabin was donated to the City by Fred Miller in 1985 and moved here in 1986 using Community Development Block Grant Funds.

(Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Welton Blanton Doby High School

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Wetumpka, Alabama.
W. B. Doby served as the first President of the Elmore County Teachers Association, Principal of Elmore County Training School, and as an ordained minister in the A.M.E. Church. Local leaders dedicated this school for African-American students on Sunday April 7, 1963, and honored Mr. Doby's legacy by naming the school after him. Built on 19 acres previously owned by Alabama Power Company, the County purchased the property for $32,700 and constructed the school for $382,915. Montgomery, Alabama architect S.D. Collier and the firm of Stuart-McCorkle designed and built the school. The original one-story design contained breezeways connecting the central unit to two other units. The central unit had 28 regular classrooms, a Library, Main Office, and rooms for Science, Home Economics, and Health. The other units featured a cafetorium, and rooms for an Agricultural class, Shop, and Band. The school known as W. B. Doby High School existed from 1963-197O until the end of segregation in public schools. After 1970, the county renamed the school to Wetumpka Junior High School, now an integrated school, and then eventually to Wetumpka Elementary School.

Listed in the Alabama Register of Landmarks & Heritage

(Education • African Americans) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Carnegie Library

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Girard, Kansas.

This property has been
placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places

by the United States
Department of the Interior

(Education • Charity & Public Work) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Logging in El Dorado County

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Pollock Pines, California.
By the end of the war with Mexico in 1847, California’s non-native population was a mere 15,000. The 49ers pushed the population of El Dorado County beyond 20,000 by 1850. As winter approached, the minors replaced their tents and shanties with wooden structures. Settlements and towns were erected almost overnight.

El Dorado County timber provided lumber to develop Sacramento, Placer and Amador Counties, and later to the mining towns of Nevada’s Comstock Lode. Without the benefits of today’s modern machinery, logging was very labor intensive.

The stump cuts of the virgin timber measured as much as 23 feet in diameter. Initially, the axe and hand-saw were the only tools available to harvest these giant trees. The logging industry has flourished in El Dorado County for more than 150 years.

Historian: Anthony M. Belli

(Horticulture & Forestry) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The California Gold Rush

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Pollock Pines, California.
The California gold rush followed Captain John Sutter’s logging effort in the Coloma valley. On January 24, 1848, James W. Marshall found gold in the tail-race at Sutter’s Mill. This discovery incited the greatest migration of mankind in history to the Western slopes of the Sierra Nevada Range. For the original “49ers,” who mined the gold rush, a gold pan and sluice box were trademarks that faded into history when gold mining became a large industry. The four original Sierra trails leading to the gold camps all converged in Pollock Pines.

Historian: Anthony M. Belli

(Notable Events) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Bullion Bend Robbery

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Pollock Pines, California.
On June 30, 1864, two Pioneer Line coaches were stopped at gunpoint on the Pony Express Trail at a sharp bend on the trail forever to be known as Bullion Bend in Pollock Pines. Both coaches were robbed by a band of Confederate irregulars, all members of a secret society known as the Knights of the Golden Circle. The spoils from the robbery were to be used to recruit soldiers in California for the Confederate Army. Hours after the holdup, El Dorado County Deputy Sheriff, Joseph Staples, became the first officer in this county’s history to die in the line of duty. He was killed in the gunfight at the Somerset House while attempting to arrest the men responsible for the infamous Bullion Bend Robbery.

Historian: Anthony M. Belli

(Notable Events) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Mormon Emigrant Trail

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Pollock Pines, California.
Shortly after James W Marshall discovered gold at Sutter's Mill, his Mormon laborers were re-called to the Great Salt Lake Valley, Utah. On April, 9, 1848, a plan was devised to cut a wagon trail through the uncharted Sierra Nevada frontier. The trail would become the present day Mormon Emigrant Trail. In June, the wagon train departed Pleasant Valley with 45 men, one woman and 17 wagons, several yoke of oxen and 300 head of cattle.

Their first camp site was made July 4, 1848 by Mormon scout, Jason Calvin Sly at today's Sly Park. From there the wagon road was cut inch by inch, through the austere Sierra mountain range. When completed the Mormons had built the first east-west wagon road into Northern California. Tens of thousands used this road during California's gold rush for commerce and stagecoach travel.

Historian: Anthony M. Belli

(Roads & Vehicles • Exploration) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Erie Canal at Amherst

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Amherst, New York.
During more than 175 years of existence, the Erie Canal has followed more than one path. In some places, two or three generations of Canal infrastructure still exist side by side. When technology, especially mechanized boats, made it possible for the Canal to cross lakes and follow wide rivers, the Canal veered off in new directions. The Canal channel dug in the 19th century, and the old locks constructed before the Civil War, now sit abandoned. "Ports" founded to handle Canal traffic lost their original reason for existence. The ever-increasing size of barges during the 19th century explains why section sof the canal became obsolete. As the need for greater csrgo capacity grew, barges became to broad and deep to navigate the original locks. By the Civil War, canal infrastructure had to be widened or else abandoned. With the aid of larger cranes and dredges, the Canal was maintained and enlargened. Here along Tonawanda Creek, they scoured existing creeks deeper to accommodate canal trafic and increase water flow. Steam shovels took huge bites of earth and rock. Cantilevered cranes, with clamshell buckets that could swing in wide arcs, moved tons of debris, while hydraulic dredges siphoned up silt that had accummulated on the Canal bottom. Market-driven demand plus technologocal innovation resulted in an ever-evolving Canal, three generations of infrastructure and profound changes to the communities that it served.

Tow Path Bridge 170 over Tonawanda Creek at Pendleton, May 1905.
1817-1825 30 tons; 1830-1850 75 tons; 1850-1862 100 tons; 1862-1899 240 tons; After 1900 450 tones; 1900-1930 1000-3000 tons.

[north side:] Welcome to the Erie Canalway Trail, a multi-use trail fr walking, bicycling, cross-country skiing and other recreational activities. The trail parallels active and historic sections of the legendary Erie Canal spanning 360 miles across New York State from Buffalo to Albany. The Erie Canalway Trail is an ideal close-to-home recreatioal resource and a great long distance bicycling destination. Initiatives between the New York State Canal Corporation, federal and state agencies, non-profit groups, volunteers and local governments have created this great network of trails for public use.
Enjoying the Canalway Trail:
The Erie Canalway Trail is intended to accommodate a variety of users. It is important to extend courtesy to all trail users and respect their rights. In order to avoid conflicts, trail protocol dictates that bicyclists should yield the right-of-way to all trail users. In addition, please observe the following tips for safe trail use. •Stay to the right except when passing •When stopped, move over to let others pass •Give a clear warning before passing •Keep pets on a short leash
Hours of operation and Other information:
The Trail is Open from Dawn to Dusk. In case of emergency call 911. For more information about the Erie Canalway Trail or the New York State Canal System, Please Call: 1-800-4 Canals 4 or Visit Us Online at: www.canals.ny.gov An on-line interactive map of the Erie Canalway Trail showing services and attractions is available at http://ptny.org/bikecanal/map/

(Waterways & Vessels) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

William McIntosh

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Newnan, Georgia.

To commemorate
the courage and fidelity of
the Creek Indian Chief
William McIntosh
In his youth he shielded pioneers, during
the Revolution, from hostile tribes.
He attained distinction in the war of 1812
and guided General Jackson and his troops
over the Indian trails to New Orleans.
On February 12, 1825, he signed the treaty
by which all lands west of the Flint River
were ceded to the State of Georgia.
For this he was slain by a band of Creeks
who were opposed to the treaty.


(Native Americans • War of 1812) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Maj. Stephen W. Pless

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Newnan, Georgia.

Maj. Stephen W. Pless
United States Marine Corps.
awarded the
Medal of Honor
Jan. 16, 1969
for his service during
the Vietnam War

{Marine Corps. Emblem}
U.S.M.C.

(War, Vietnam • Patriots & Patriotism • Heroes) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Site of Abilene's First School

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Abilene, Texas.
This site was set aside for use as a school by Stoddard Johnston, a newspaperman who platted the town of Abilene in the early 1880s. While the first schoolhouse was under construction in the spring of 1881, classes were held in a tent pitched between Hickory and Cedar streets. As was typical in early frontier towns, the schoolhouse also served as a community center and was used for church worship services. By 1884, the student population had outgrown the schoolhouse, and a new structure was built elsewhere. This site is a reminder of Abilene’s early educational history.
Texas Sesquicentennial   1836 - 1986

(Education) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Sell/Schonsheck House

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Taylor, Michigan.
The Sell/Schonsheck House, standing in its original location, was built circa 1900 by George W. Sell. The Sell family moved to Taylor in 1871 and farmed eighty acres of land. The produce was shipped by horse-drawn wagon to the Wyandotte market. Timber was culled on part of the property, and, at one time, a sawmill was located near the site. The bell atop the house, a replica of the original, was used to signal mealtimes, emergencies and the end of the farmhand's workday. The house and property were purchased with a grant from the Michigan Land Trust Fund.

(Agriculture • Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Johann Christian Heyl

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Columbus, Ohio.

Side A
Johann Christian Heyl (1788-1877), the first German and first Lutheran to settle in Columbus, was one of the original 15 settlers of the city. A baker by trade, Heyl came to bake for the soldiers quartered in Franklinton during the War of 1812. He founded the city's first Lutheran Church and helped financially underwrite the German Theological Seminary, which later became Capital University. An early civic leader, Heyl served on City Council for 14 years, was County Treasurer for 8 years, an associate judge in the Court of Common Pleas for 14 years, was appointed to the first public school board, and was the first Chief of the Fire Department. His Sunbury Road home was a stop on the Underground Railroad.

Side B
Johann Christian Heyl operated a hostelry at Rich and High streets for 28 years in the early 1800s, first known as the Swan and later as Franklin House. Due to its close proximity to the Statehouse and location just north of the entrance to the National Road on High Street, it was a popular stop for members of the General Assembly and center of many civic events. One such notable event was the Great Squirrel Hunt. Heyl organized the hunt at a time when squirrels were overrunning Columbus and farmers' crops were threatened. On Saturday, August 31, 1822, at two in the afternoon, hunters gathered at Franklin House and within hours collected 19,600 scalps.

(Settlements & Settlers • War of 1812 • Abolition & Underground RR • Charity & Public Work) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Hanford Village

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Columbus, Ohio.
Hanford Village was founded in the early 1900s just east of Columbus proper with its own mayor, police force, fire department, businesses, and park. After World War II, a subdivision of Hanford became a segregated community for returning African American veterans to settle using the G.I. Bill. Hanford then became one of the few places involved in an all African American post-war housing development program in the United States. During the 1960s, President Dwight D. Eisenhower's Federal Interstate Highway System Act resulted in construction of Interstate 70 which split Hanford Village into two sections and tore apart the community. However, since the division, the residents of the village have worked to maintain its sense of community and unity.

(Settlements & Settlers • African Americans) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Newark & Washington Park in the 19th Century

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Newark, New Jersey.

Overview
This land on which the Polhemus House was located (and where the Museum is now) is part of the James Street Commons Historic District, listed in the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places and geographically defined by Washington Park. The James Street Commons Historic District is significant for its association with the development of Newark from its founding in 1666 to its transformation into a vibrant industrial city in the post-Civil War period. The house’s period of significance began c 1863—its approximate date of completion—and ended in 1948, the year in which it was sold for commercial use and ceased being the home of the Polhemus family. It was the last remaining 19th-century townhouse on Washington Park.

The house was constructed of load-bearing brick masonry with a timber-framed roof. The primary (east) façade featured bold projecting ornament in the Italianate style. This house set the architectural tone for the affluent homes that ringed Washing Park in the 19th-century.

From Agriculture to Industry
Newark was a rural, mostly agricultural community until the 19th century, when industry gradually took on a larger and larger role in the life of the city. By the time the incorporation of Newark in 1836, the city was teaming with leather-makers, shoemakers, hatters, politics, tin markers, tailors, blacksmiths, masons, carpenters, carriage makers, and the buildings needed to house them. The city’s waterfront location, the 1831 opening of the 102-mile Morris Canal across New Jersey linking Phillipsburg to Newark, and the establishment of the New Jersey (NJMRR) and Morris and Essex (M&E) Railroads in the 1830s accelerated mechanization and industrialization.

The 1840s through the 1860s were a period of rapid growth for the city. The 1840s was the beginning of Newark’s rise as an industrial center, known for the production of rubber, soap, beer, thread, glue, leather, trunks, shoes, hats, silver, jewelry, cutlery, tobacco products, varnish and fertilizer. Newark’s importance as a major manufacturing center brought with it a rapidly expanding population, from 17,290 in 1840 to 181,000 by 1890. Growth was fed by immigration, first from Ireland and Germany, and later from Italy and Eastern Europe. As the state’s largest city, as well as its financial and business center, Newark quickly developed from a rural outpost into a dense urban cityscape of industrial and commercial buildings, residences, schools, houses of worship, hospitals, and other institutions, (in the early 20th century Newark’s manufacturing opportunities made it a focus of Great Migration of African Americans from the Southern United States.

Residential Neighborhood
The Washing Park neighborhood’s 19th century development was very much a reflection of Newark’s development into a major industrial city. In the 19th century, before zoning laws segregated uses, the area around the James St. Commons/Washington Park developed as a mix of residential, commercial, and institutional properties. Between the late 1850s and the late 1880s, the resulting rise of the merchant and professional classes created a demand for appropriate housing and commercial and institutional services, including new houses of worship.

20th Century Transition
In the early years of the 20th century, the homes around the park gave way to large-scale commercial and institutional buildings—many of which hare extant today—including the Veterans Administration Building on Washington Place (formerly Globe Indemnity Insurance Co. 1920) and the following buildings on Washington Street: the Newark Public Library (1901), the South Wing of the Newark Museum (formerly the Young Women’s Christian Association, 1913), the main building of the Newark Museum (1926), the American Insurance Company Building (1930), and the Second Presbyterian Church (1930), Only Washington Park, St. Patrick’s Pro-Cathedral (1849), across Central Avenue to the south, the Fewsmith House (c. 1870), across Washington Street, the Ballantine House (1885) and Carriage House (1885) and the Ward Carriage House (1869) on the Museum campus remain from the Polhemus House’s historic residential context.

(Colonial Era • Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Mount Vernon Community School

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Columbus, Ohio.

Side A
Until the 1970s, Pilgrim Elementary school was different from today. Pilgrim had a smaller playground with a brick wall around it. The gym was used only for physical education classes and most students went home for lunch, while others ate lunch in the classrooms. Fifth grade students had the responsibility of collecting milk money from the kindergarten students. During lunch, the fifth graders would use a milk machine to deliver the milk to the kindergarten students.

Side B
Pilgrim Elementary School, now East Pilgrim, was the community school for the Mount Vernon area and was a focal point for community activities. The Parent Teacher Association was active with members of the community and the school was used as a meeting place. The 1977 Ohio Supreme Court case of Penick v. The Columbus School Board ended the segregation of schools in Columbus. Students from Pilgrim were bussed to other schools in the district.

(Education • African Americans) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Byer/Nail House

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Brentwood, California.
This house, which serves as the museum for the East Contra Costa Historical Society, was originally built by Johnson and Elizabeth Fancher in 1878. In the early 1880's the Fanchers sold the house and surrounding acreage to John and Letitia Byer. In 1922, after the death of Mr. and Mrs. Byer, the house and surrounding acres were sold to their granddaughter and her husband, Zelma and James Nail. In 1984, Clelland Nail (the only child of James and Zelma) inherited the house and 8 acres. Clelland and Margarette Nail donated the house and 1.3 acres to the East Contra Costa Historical Society in 1986.

(Agriculture) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
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