Quantcast
Channel: The Historical Marker Database - New Entries
Viewing all 103859 articles
Browse latest View live

Trans-Peninsular Line Midpoint Marker

$
0
0
Maryland, Wicomico County, near Mardela Springs
In Pre-Revolutionary Colonial America, these monuments marked the South West corner of the Three Lower Counties of the Delaware—at the time a part of the Pennsylvania Colony.

Originally determined by local surveyors (two small stones) circa 1750.

Verified by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon (Large Marker) circa 1764.

(Colonial Era • Political Subdivisions • Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Ship Harbor

$
0
0
Washington, Skagit County, Anacortes


THE NATURAL DYNAMIC
S
hip Harbor was formed by natural forces over thousands of years. It is maintained as a natural landform by the continued dynamic balance of these same forces. Preservation of this area requires that physical, chemical, and biological interactions continue uninterrupted.

Beach Dynamics
The beach is composed primarily of sand, silt, and mud, which is characteristic of a semiprotected bay. The currents and wave activity in the area result in a net eastward drift of water and nearshore sediment. Shannon Point, to the west, protects Ship Harbor from high energy tidal and wave action and prevents finer grain sediment from being washed away. The extensive eelgrass meadow below the shallow waters of Ship Harbor also serves to dampen wave and current energy, further helping to maintain and stabilize fine beach sediments.

Physical and Chemical Factors
A. Long ago, Ship Harbor was a much larger cove, probably extending back through the marsh to the hillside.

B. Over time, sediment was swept into this area from currents along the shore and runoff from the land. Gradually, a sand barrier (known as a baymouth bar) formed, creating a tidal lagoon in the back of the cove which would flood and ebb with the tides. As this sand barrier grew higher, water exchange with the ocean became less frequent.

C. Today, salt water will enter the marsh only when certain extreme conditions occur simultaneously, such as very high tides, extreme low barometric pressure, and strong northerly winds. Typically, the water in the marsh is slightly brackish, measuring two to four parts per thousand (0.2% to 0.4%) in salinity.

THE LIVING SYSTEM
S
hip Harbor is a natural embayment which contains highly diverse yet interrelated plant and animal species. The common thread linking all of these species is water - fresh, salt, and brackish. How these species interact depends largely on how each relates to and utilizes the water resources encountered here.

Subtidal/Eelgrass Bed
Eelgrass (Zostera marina), a seegrass that flowers and pollinates under water, forms an extensive bed (approximately 23 acres) at depths of one to fourteen feet in the offshore waters of Ship Harbor. Eelgrass is one of the richest types of habitat to be found in Puget Sound, providing habitat for an extensive array of other plants, as well as animals.

Intertidal/Beach
The intertidal or beach area is the fringe of the ocean where marine plants and animals cling to the surface or burrow beneath the sand and gravel substrate. The diversity of organisms found in this area is dependent upon tidal exposure and the specific substrate type. In addition, wave energy, water temperature, competition for space, and predation all contribute to the establishment of a particular niche for each organism.

Wetlands
The sedge/cattail wetland, or marsh habitat is a transitional area between the higher uplands and the open water. This area is extremely productive and of great value in the natural food cycle. Dead plant matter (organic detritus) and dissolved nutrients (phosphates, nitrates/nitrites and ammonia) form a complex ecological food chain which results in abundant and diverse plant and animal life.

THE HUMAN DYNAMIC
S
hip Harbor is a unique economic resource. Once, this was the site of salmon canning operations. Today, we recognize the economic benefits of preserving wetlands and eelgrass beds to help maintain local commercial fish populations.

The pilings throughout the tidal areas once supported dock loading operations for a large salmon cannery. The rows of posts still found throughout the marsh were used as racks for drying and tarring cotton web used for fish traps. Old cannery "tin piles" may be found throughout the area. The Fidalgo Island Packing Company began operations in 1894. The plant employed as many as 1000 workers, including many local Scandinavians, Indians, Chinese, and some Greeks. The plant closed in 1925 for economic reasons.

[Diagram showing] Ship Harbor circa 1917

(Environment • Man-Made Features • Waterways & Vessels) Includes location, directions, 6 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

"Tomorrow Run 91"

$
0
0
British Columbia, Capital Regional District, Victoria


The Elks and Royal Purple
of Canada

commemorate
Al Howie's record setting
"Tomorrow Run 91"
Began at Mile 0 St. John's Nfld.
June 21 and ended September 1, 1991 at
Mile 0 Victoria B.C.
72 days - 10 hours later.
Our gratitude to all who helped us
raise funds for
Canadian children with special needs.

(Charity & Public Work • Fraternal or Sororal Organizations • Sports) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Twinning of Morioka, Japan and Victoria

$
0
0
British Columbia, Capital Regional District, Victoria


Placed here May 23, 1985
commemorating the twinning of
Morioka, Japan and Victoria
and to the memory of
Dr. Inazo Nitobe

Mayor Daizo Ota [and] Mayor Peter Pollen
————————
10th Anniversary of Twinning
Morioka, Japan
Mayor Ohta • Mayor Cross
Victoria, Canada
May 23, 1995
[Also in Japanese]

(Peace • Politics) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

British Columbia Indians World Wars Memorial

$
0
0
British Columbia, Capital Regional District, Victoria


This tablet in memory of the
British Columbia Indians
who gave their lives in the
World Wars 1914 • 1918 - 1939 • 1945

(Man-Made Features • Native Americans • War, World I • War, World II) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Giants Rooted Among Us

$
0
0
British Columbia, Capital Regional District, Victoria


Gaze up into a Giant sequoia. Let your imagination soar. Fully grown, they are the largest living things on the planet. Their ancestors stood among dinosaurs. Today, the Giant sequoia is found naturally in fewer than 100 groves in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. Giant sequoias were planted in Beacon Hill Park. Look for them along Circle Drive (behind you) and just off the Goodacre Lake path.

Shaped by Fire
Lightning-sparked forest fires are common in the mountains of California. The thick, spongy bark of mature Giant sequoias shields them from serious fire damage. Ground fires cannot reach the cones at the crown of the tree, but the heat of the fire forces them open to release their seeds, helping them to grow. Shrubs and smaller trees are destroyed by ground fires, allowing sunlight to reach the shade intolerant Giant sequoia seedlings. From fire comes new growth.

Did You Know?
Giant sequoia cones can remain closed and the seeds alive for 20 to 30 years. Eventually the seeds will be released from the heat of forest fire, cone damage in a windstorm, or torn out by feeding animals such as squirrels.

Living Reminders of Early Victoria
You may notice Giant sequoias towering majestically above many Victoria neighbourhoods. These are remnants of an early trend when the wealthy residents wanted the prestige of the legendary trees in their gardens. One day in 1889, a group of citizens planted 2,000 trees in Beacon Hill Park, including 50 Giant sequoias. Imported from California by R.P. Rithet & Company, Robert Rithet himself oversaw the planting and said, "I am certain they will succeed." More than a century later, some of those trees remain deeply rooted in the park and the history of this city.

Giant sequoia Facts
Common Names:
Giant sequoia, Sierra Redwood
Latin Name: (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

Related Species in Beacon Hill Park: Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)
Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

Long Lived: The oldest on record is more than 3,500 years old; the largest living is the General Sherman tree in California at 84 metres (275 feet) - the height of a 27 storey building!

Cones a Plenty: Giant sequoias average 200 seeds in each cone. Mature trees produce about 2000 cones per year. Larger mature trees may produce up to 50,000 cones.

Imported: Between 1860 and 1890, Giant sequoias were supplied to Victoria by three main sources: R.P. Rithet & Company, Layritz Nurseries Ltd., Samuel Price & Company.

Not for Sale
From the late 1800s to the 1920s, Giant sequoias were logged in California with only mild success. Desired for their size and rot resistant wood, logging companies soon discovered that the wood was also fibrous and brittle. When felled, the trees sometimes shattered upon hitting the ground. Instead of grand buildings, many Giant sequoias were instead milled into shingles and matchsticks. Eventually, land was set aside to protect most of the remaining groves. Today, tourism, rather than forestry, is their chief economic value.

A Fine Balance
The Giant sequoias in Beacon Hill Park are young and small. Planted around the late 1800s to early 1900s, there trees are about 100 years old. They do not reach full height until they are 500 to 700 years old. For balance, roots grasp for other roots, trunks and branches grow thicker with age. Giant sequoias may live more than 3,000 years. Falling over due to high winds is usually how their life ends.

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

Korean War

$
0
0
Florida, Seminole County, Sanford
At the end of World War II, Korea was divided into two parts, north and south, at the 38th parallel. Troops from the Soviet Union occupied the north and the United States forces occupied the south with the intention of eventually unifying the country but Cold War fears made this impossible. In 1948, following a general election, the Republic of Korea was established in the south. At the same time, the Communist Democratic People's Republic of Korea was established in the north. On June 25, 1950 North Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel and attacked South Korea. The United Nations asked its member nations, including the United States, to stop the invasion. United Nations forces pushed the North Korean troops back and were in the the north by October 1950. Fearing the war would spread; Communist China entered the conflict and helped push the UN troops back into the south. President Truman approved a build up of the American military presence. Battles over territory were fought while peach talks went on for two years. The fighting ended when a cease fire was signed on June 27, 1953. A demilitarized zone was created along the 38th parallel and Korea remained divided. American troops remained stationed at the 38th parallel more than fifty years later.

(captions)
(photograph)
Lt. Col John F. "Jack" Bolt of Sanford was the only double ace fighter pilot in the US Marine Corps history. He flew with US Marine Fighter Squadron 214, "The Black Sheep Squadron," in World War II. During the Korean War he shot down six Russian MiG-15s, becoming the war's only Marine ace. He was awarded the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism during the war.

(photograph) - "Naval Air Station Sanford"
Naval Air Station Sanford was deeded back to the City at the end of World War II and used for civilian purposes until the outbreak of the Korean War. On May 1, 1951 the Navy reactivated the station to support operations of fleet carrier aircraft. Squadrons of Carrier Group 3 were the first to arrive at the station.

(image: military insignia) - "Fighting 31"
Carrier Air Group 3 squadron VF-31, stationed in Sanford in 1951, is the second oldest fighter squadron in the US Navy.

(Heroes • War, Korean) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Submarine Lookout Memorial

$
0
0
Alabama, Mobile County, Mobile

Panel 1: "The Eyes of the WWII Submarine"
Panel 2: "Submarine Lookout"
Standing his watch on a perch high above the deck, the lookout was the eyes of the submarine while surfaced. Often while submerged he was manning the sonar gear, thus becoming the ears also. Though always of junior rating, his keen sight and alertness were vital to the success and survival of his boat. No words could galvanize a crew to action faster than his excited shout, “Smoke on the horizon!” To his steadfast courage and vigilance, we dedicate this memorial.

Insignia:
U.S. Submarine Veterans, World War II
Alabama, Ala/Flo Chapters‘85

(Heroes • War, World II • Waterways & Vessels) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Otis Park

$
0
0
Indiana, Lawrence County, Bedford
A gift of newspaperman Fred B. Otis, May 13, 1937. The mansion was built circa 1865 by William A. Ragsdale. Pioneer stone worker, Nathan Hall purchased the property in 1875 and named it "Pine Hall." Later it was owned by industrialist Alvin T. Hert. The property was used as a private country club from WW I to 1937. The Second Principal Meridian passes north–south through this gate.

(Notable Places) Includes location, directions, 7 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Otis Park

$
0
0
Indiana, Lawrence County, Bedford
Presented to the City of Bedford October 31, 1935 by Fred B. Otis, editor of the Bedford Daily Mail. An area of 145.81 acres of beautiful landscape, including the fine old mansion, Pine Hall. Dedicated to refined recreation and pleasure of all the people of Bedford, especially those of the East End, where donor was born and spent his life.

(Notable Places) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Pine Hall

$
0
0
Indiana, Lawrence County, Bedford
Built 1865-7 by Wm. Ragsdale. Cost $25,000. Occupied by his family 11 years. Bought 1878 by Nathan Hall, pioneer quarryman. Occupied by his family 21 years. Bought and run as a dairy farm 1899 by Alvin Tobe Hert who named the estate Pine Hall. Owned by the Bedford Country Club 1923-1935. Mansion formerly surrounded by 37 pine spruce and hemlock trees.

(Notable Buildings) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Order No. 11

$
0
0
Missouri, Bates County, Butler

By 1863 the Union Army’s inability to control Confederate Guerrilla activity in western Missouri exploded. On August 25, 1863, Union General Thomas Ewing issued Order No. 11 four days after Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence, Kansas. Residents in Bates County, and parts of Cass, Jackson and Vernon Counties, were forced to evacuate in an effort to disrupt Confederate supply lines of food, horses, and shelter.

The entire population of Bates County was banished. Union soldiers torched homes and towns. Fire consumed the land. Residents became refugees regardless of allegiances. Hardships inflicted upon civilians were stern and merciless.

Official county business was not conducted again until 1866. Only about one-third of the residents returned. Awaiting them was total devastation and tax bills for three years’ delinquent property taxes. The land of those who did not return was forfeited and sold to new settlers, many being from northern states. Bates County was changed forever.

Missouri artist George Caleb Bingham, a Union officer, memorialized the cruelty of Order No. 11 in his 1868 painting, “Martial Law.” The people who endured the dark days of Order No. 11 have not been forgotten. Their stories and sacrifices continue to be remembered.

(War, US Civil) Includes location, directions, 1 photo, GPS coordinates, map.

Site of James Gregory House

$
0
0
Indiana, Lawrence County, near Bedford
Here on March 11, 1818, Ambrose Carlton, Thomas Beagley and James Scotts, commissioners, organized Lawrence County and its first five townships, appointed officers, fixed Palestine as county seat and ordered first elections. The first court convened here on June 4, 1818.

(Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Alamo Institute

$
0
0
Texas, Van Zandt County, Ben Wheeler
In 1890 Van Zandt county had 81 schools but none for higher learning. In April 1890, Prof. James F. Davidson and J. W. Downs held a community meeting in the Old Clough School House in Ben Wheeler. They presented a plan, adopted unanimously, to establish Alamo Institute if citizens transferred control of Clough School. The institute’s main building was completed in time for the fall semester. By 1894 the campus included a pair of two-story buildings. Courses included history, Latin, science, music and voice culture. Alamo Institute closed before 1911. State representative, county and district attorney, and U. S. Congressman Morgan G. Sanders was the most prominent graduate. (2009) Marker is property of The State of Texas

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

Morgan G. Sanders

$
0
0
Texas, Van Zandt County, Ben Wheeler
Legislator Morgan Gurley Sanders was born near Ben Wheeler. He published newspapers, worked as journal clerk of the state senate and was admitted to the State Bar of Texas before winning a seat in the state legislature. His public service as a Democratic politician included terms as a state legislator (1903-07), Van Zandt County attorney (1911-15), district attorney (1915-17) and U.S. Congressman (1921-39); he also continued to practice law. In 1931, Speaker of the House John Nance Garner appointed Sanders to his previous position on the powerful ways and means committee. Sanders lost his seat in a 1938 election. Twice widowed and married three times, he remained active in Van Zandt County until his death. (2010) Marker is property of the State of Texas

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

Union Cemetery

$
0
0
Tennessee, Henderson County, Parkers Crossroads
At least 30 Union soldiers were killed during the battle at Parker's Crossroads. Those who were killed in action were buried here shortly after the battle took place.

Those burials took places according to orders issued by the War Department in April 1862 directing commanding generals to "Lay off lots of ground in some suitable spot near every battlefield … and to cause the remains of those killed to be interred, with headboards to the graves bearing numbers, and where practicable, the names of the persons buried in them." Registers were to be kept listing the names of the persons buried. Records of burials were ultimately sent to the quartermaster general's office in Washington, D.C.

Immediately after the war ended a concerted effort began to identify the resting places of the Union dead and to remove them to national cemeteries, many of which were founded in those early post-war years. In July 1867 the bodies of the soldiers buried here were exhumed and reinterred at the National Cemetery in Corinth, Mississippi.

The monument was erected by the Parker's Crossroads Battlefield Association in 1994 to commemorate the initial resting place of the Union soldiers killed in action.

The Union Dead
The names below are those of the men killed during the Battle of Parker's Crossroads and who were probably buried in this cemetery.

122nd Illinois Volunteer Infantry
Private John Baird
Private Roswell Briggs
Second Lieutenant Pleasant L. Bristow
Private Jesse T. Bryant
Private Joseph S. Crossgrove
Private John W. Davis
Private George W. Finch
Corporal Reuben R. Fletcher
Private James T. Gibson
Private Samuel F. Hicks
Corporal William B. Moore
Private Henry Opperman
Private Samuel W. Peter
Private Evan F. Richmond
Private Ernst Russell
Private James Thornton
Private Henry M. Wilcox

50th Indiana Volunteer Infantry
Private John W. Browning
Second Lieutenant Daniel J. Dean
Private James R. Dougherty
Corporal Samuel H. Taylor

39th Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Corporal Jacob Koontz
Waggoner Dimmick Layton
Private Jonah Stearns

7th Wisconsin, 7th Battery Light Artillery
(Badger State Flying Artillery)

Second Lieutenant Samual Hays
Sergeant M.I. Marsden
Sergeant A. Wallwork
Archaeology at the Cemetery

An archaeological investigation conducted in November 1993 verified that this was the location where Union casualties were buried following the Battle of Parker's Crossroads. Two more excavations were conducted 1994. These limited investigations demonstrated conclusively that this was the original Union cemetery. Differences in soil color and texture allowed the archaeologists to identify the location of a number of burials. During the excavations the remains of one individual, mistakenly left behind when the others were relocated, were uncovered.

(Cemeteries & Burial Sites • War, US Civil) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Indiana (Oolitic) Limestone Quarries

$
0
0
Indiana, Lawrence County, Oolitic
Largest building stone quarries in the world, in continuous operation since the 1830s. These quarries have produced stone for many of the world’s largest and finest memorials, buildings and bridges.

(Industry & Commerce) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Ferry Bridge

$
0
0
Indiana, Monroe County, near Gosport

(Side One)
Pennsylvania through truss iron bridge built 1903 by Lafayette Engineering Co.; crosses West Fork of White River, spans 316 feet, and rests on concrete and stone abutments. One of longest single-span iron bridges in Indiana; longest highway bridge of its type. Has unique iron framework, original lattice railing. Replaced Seacrest’s Ferry.

(Side Two)
Commissioners from Owen and Monroe counties met 1901 to plan for a bridge. Owen paid two-thirds of cost, Monroe one-third. Served as vital link between Gosport and Spencer and Bloomington. Closed to vehicles and bypassed by the modern bridge to the west 1990. Listed in National Register of Historic Places 1996.

(Bridges & Viaducts) Includes location, directions, 8 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Medora Shale Brick Plant

$
0
0
Indiana, Jackson County, Medora

(Side One)
West Lee Wright laid out Medora 1853. Sample of local shale was made into brick “excellent for building and paving” 1904. Medora Shale Brick Company organized 1904. Construction began by 1910, one south of here along Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railroad, with six beehive kilns—round structures wrapped with steel bands and squared chimneys.

(Side Two)
By 1927, ten kilns were at the site. Plant closed 1990s. In 1007, ten kilns remained. Medora was part of a large industry making a variety of clay products for agriculture, street paving, and building construction, which contributed to Indiana’s growth as a leading industrial state. In 1920, Indiana was seventh in U.S. for production of clay products.

(Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Hoagy Carmichael

$
0
0
Indiana, Monroe County, Bloomington

(Side One)
Born and reared in Bloomington, he is considered one of the most important American songwriters of the twentieth century. Began attending Indiana University 1920; graduated with a law degree 1926. Tried law as career, but returned to music. Inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame 1971. Died on December 27, 1981 in California; buried in Bloomington.

(Side Two)
Hoagy wrote that he composed “Stardust” in part on the piano of the Book Nook located here. Among his other popular songs were “Heart and Soul,” “Georgia on My Mind,” “Lazybones,” and “Old Buttermilk Sky,” which was nominated for an Academy Award 1946. Won an Academy Award 1951 for “In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening” from Here Comes the Groom.

(Arts, Letters, Music • Entertainment) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
Viewing all 103859 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images