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Coker Creek

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Tennessee, Monroe County, Tellico Plains
Here in the shadow of the Unicoi Mountains, the Coker Creek community suffered the effects of the Civil War. The conflict closed the lucrative gold mines here and brought devastation and terror to the inhabitants. Both the Union and the Confederate armies foraged for supplies from long-suffering civilians, while violent vendettas between rival bushwhackers continued for years.

Both armies used the Unicoi Turnpike Trail behind you (present-day Joe Brown Highway and Tennessee State Route 68) to move soldiers and supplies. Early in December 1863, after Confederated Gen. James Longstreet abandoned his siege of Knoxville, Union Gen. William T. Sherman ordered Col. Eli Long to pursue a Confederate wagon train south along this turnpike into northern Georgia. Long captured only a few of the 300 wagons.

Although the battles that occurred along the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad did not happen here, deserters from both sides—“bushwhackers”—attacked civilians and soldiers from behind trees, rocks, and curves. Reminders of murderous brutality are evident in the Coker Creek Cemetery. Lt. James K. Morrow, 3rd Tennessee Mounted Infantry (US), was “Bushwhacked on Steer Creek Road While Cradling Oats,” according to his tombstone, five years after the war ended.

The community slowly rebuilt itself. Gold mining resumed by 1869 but never attained antebellum production levels.

Civil War veterans are buried in the nearby Ironsburg and Coker Creek cemeteries. These graveyards, which also hold the remains of bushwhackers and their victims, are reminders of an era when war and suffering dominated these mountains.

“(In the Tennessee and North Carolina mountains) the warfare between scattering bodies of irregular troops is conducted on both sides without any regard whatever to the rules of civilized war or the dictates of humanity. The murder of prisoners and non-combatants in cold blood has …become quite common (as well as) almost every other horror incident to brutal an unrestrained soldiery.” — N.C. Gov. Zebulon B. Vance

(captions)
(lower left) Col. Eli Long - Courtesy Library of Congress
(center) Reverse of James K. Morrow tombstone - Monroe County Archives
(upper right) “Union Bushwhackers Attacking Rebel Cavalry,” Junius H. Browne, Four Years in Secessia (1866)

(War, US Civil) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Oswego West Side Forts

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New York, Oswego County, Oswego
British Toehold on Lake Ontario

During the French and Indian War, the Oswego River was the only British controlled waterway into the Great Lakes. French commander-in-chief, the Marquis de Montcalm, recognizing its strategic importance, wrote that Oswego was: "... the key of the Upper Country by its communication with the Five Nations (the Iroquois Confederacy), Albany and the River Hudson; defended by three forts - Fort Ontario on the right bank of the river, Forts George and Chouaguen (Oswego) on the left bank as well as a species of an earthen crown-work, serving as an entrenchment camp, having also a good port and a well sheltered roadstead."

Fort George
Called Fort Beef or Fort Rascal, the unfinished Fort George, built of logs and earth, was little better than a cattle pen and was garrisoned by a provincial force known as "the Jersey Blues." It was built to protect Fort Oswego.

Fort Oswego
Fort Oswego was a castle-like stone fort, but its strong appearance masked its weaknesses: built on low ground, the masonry mortared with mud, the structure was vulnerable to artillery. It was garrisoned by the 50th and 51st Regiments of Foot.

West Bank Fortifications

1727
A stone blockhouse called Fort Oswego is built to guard a growing trader's settlement and establishes England's first presence on the Great Lakes.
1740s
Seasonal trader's village thrives as up to 300 Dutch and English fur traders, in over 70 log huts, obtain furs from American Indians.
1741-1743
Fort Oswego is strengthened with an outer, U-shaped stone wall.
1752
Fort Oswego's garrison of 8 men mutiny and place their lone officer in irons.
1755
Fort Oswego is strengthened and Forts George and Ontario are built by Major General William Shirley. The Royal Navy's first Great Lakes squadron is built in the harbor.
Winter 1755-1756
The 700 troops left behind at the forts of Oswego are decimated by disease and starvation. Over half perish by spring.
Spring 1756
Troops are harassed by American Indian and Canadian raiders.
August 1756
Montcalm destroys all three forts, the trader's village, captures the British fleet and takes 1,700 prisoners

1
With more than 3,000 French, Indians, and Canadians, Montcalm's forces and artillery drove the British out of Fort Ontario. The British retreated across the river to the shelter at Fort Oswego.
2
1,500 Indians and Canadians waded across the river to surround the forts on the west side, while Montcalm's artillery was moved up to the high ground on the east side of the harbor to bombard Fort Oswego.
3
As British commander Colonel James Mercer prepared a break out attempt with 500 men, he was killed by a cannonball. Second-in-command, Lieutenant Colonel John Littlehales quickly sought a parley with the French and lost no time surrendering.
4
The British loss was catastrophic; three forts, 1,100 soldiers and sailors, 600 civilians including skilled craftsmen, the trader's village, the new fleet of seven ships, and over 100 pieces of ordnance.
5
Oswego was wiped from the map and Lake Ontario became French again. But, because of Montcalm's failure to hold onto this ground, the British would return and reoccupy Oswego in 1759.

(Forts, Castles • Native Americans • War, French and Indian) Includes location, directions, 10 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Avenue of Churches

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District of Columbia, Washington
To Your Left is Canaan Baptist Church. Its relocation here from Georgia Avenue in 1963 was the fulfillment of pastor Rev. M. Cecil Mills's dream to preside over the first African American church on this avenue of churches. The congregation paraded from their old church to the new and celebrated for an entire month.

Canaan Baptist replaced Gunton-Temple Memorial Presbyterian Church, whose white congregation had moved to Bethesda, Maryland. Like many white Washingtonians in the period following World War II, they left because of school desegregation and also because the suburbs offered newer housing.

Just across 16th Street is St. Stephen and the Incarnation, known as the first racially integrated Episcopal Church in the city. During the controversial tenure of Father William Wendt (1960-1978), St. Stephen's also became, known for its political activism. Father Wendt came under fire in 1967 for inviting civil rights activist H. Rap Brown to speak in the church. In 1974 he was censured by Episcopal Church leaders for permitting a woman to celebrate the Eucharist before the practice was accepted.

During the riots following the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination in 1968, St. Stephen's distributed emergency food and supplies.

The Northbrook Apartments across Newton Street were built in 1916 by prolific developer Harry Wardman, known for his blocks of substantial rowhouses and grand apartment buildings. As you walk to Sign 6, be sure to notice two of Mount Pleasant's original wood frame houses: 1626 and 1640 Newton Street.

(African Americans • Churches, Etc. • Man-Made Features) Includes location, directions, 17 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Silver Spring Armory

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Maryland, Montgomery County, Silver Spring
The Silver Spring Armory, completed in 1927, was significant for its association with the Maryland National Guard 29th Division's service during World Wars I and II. It was one of the major civic buildings constructed in Silver Spring during the early years that the community blossomed into an important suburban center.

Architecturally, the building was representative of early 20th century Armory design featuring distinctive medieval detailing with a two-story castellated "head house" and a one-story barrel vaulted perpendicular "drill hall." The arched entry to the "head house" was surmounted by a cast concrete panel which read "MARYLAND NATIONAL GVARD". The Armory was razed in 1998.

(Man-Made Features • War, World I • War, World II) Includes location, directions, 11 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Log House

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New York, Oswego County, Scriba
Site of the first
Log House
in Scriba. Built 1804
by Major Hill Stone
temporary hospital for
wounded soldiers 1814

(Settlements & Settlers • War of 1812) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

You Are Here - 1931

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Maryland, Montgomery County, Silver Spring
Brick Is Enduring. In 1931, the Lansdale, PA engineer Frank HM Klinge published the Atlas of Montgomery County; Volume One. Real estate atlases were created to assist fire insurance companies in assessing the risk associated with insuring a specific property. (Brick buildings, shaded in red on the plat, weren't likely to burn, so were a lower risk.) These historic atlases, commonly known as plat maps, provide important and detailed information to researchers wishing to understand the history and evolution of a community.

The above plat depicts buildings on a portion of the original "Main Street" -- Georgia Avenue. The majority of the buildings on Georgia Avenue between Wayne and Eastern avenues were built in the first half of the 20th century.

These one- to three-story durable brick buildings continue to be used nearly a century later. Virtually intact in 2009, these structures are enlivened by multicultural small independent businesses and institutions, offering goods and services to the community, just as when originally constructed. Addition of subsequent commercial and institutional structures presents a veritable timeline of Silver Spring's history and architectural style from the early 1900s to the present.

The site of the 1937 Silver Spring Post Office, 8412 Georgia Avenue, was previously occupied by a single family home known as The Elms. Built ca 1897, the wood frame house was occupied by Gist Blair, who served as Silver Spring's first postmaster from 1899 to 1906. It was later the home of Silver Spring's second postmaster, Frank L. Hewitt, and his family during the 1920s.

(Man-Made Features) Includes location, directions, 10 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Major William C. Dudley

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New York, Erie County, Evans
Ordered to join his regiment in the War of 1812, he dismissed school and rode to Buffalo. He was killed at the Battle of Black Rock, Dec 30, 1813. Erected by Evans Historical Society 1969

(Education • War of 1812) Includes location, directions, 13 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Lancaster Glass Works

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New York, Erie County, Lancaster
On this site stood one of New York State's pioneer glass factories. Established in 1849, by a group of glass blowers from Pittsburgh, Penna., it operated until 1904. The principal output was glass bottles, bitters bottles and whimseys. Erected by Erie County Sesquicentennial Committee 1971.

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

Cass County Veterans Memorial

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Michigan, Cass County, near Cassopolis

(Panel 1)
“Who More Than Self
Their Country Loved”
1946
(Panel 2)
Korean Conflict
1950 to 1955

Name - City - DOB - DOD - Rank

Eugene Waldo - Dowagiac - 10-11-23 - 7-16-50 - SFC
Donald Webber - Dowagiac - 10-20-30 - 9-26-50 - SGT
Melvin Wright - Dowagiac - 9-5-32 - 9-18-50 - SGT
Theodore Terkos - Dowagiac - 6-18-26 - 2-5-51 - SGT
James Balog - Marcellus - 8-8-29 - 12-2-50 - CPL
Roy Lapham - Cassopolis - 5-1-21 - 9-11-51 - PFC
Howard Smith - Marcellus - 4-14-27 - 3-7-51 - PVT
Donald Chaney - Edwardsburg - 5-22-30 - 8-10-50 - PVT

Dedicated to Nicholas and Beatrice Terkos
Proprietors of the Olympia Cafe Dowagiac Michigan
“Friends to all Veterans”
“Thank you Nick and Bea from all Veterans of Cass County”

(Panel 3)
World War II
Arthur F. Abendroth • Richard J. Anderson • Otis J. Avery • Charles W. Ball • Paul Edward Bainbridge • Richard A. Bickle • Millard Bivvins • Wilbur Eugene Bolin • Emil J. Brown • James V. Burrows • Harley F. Byers • William Calahan • John C. Clancy Jr. • Howard Clark • Austin Willis Clute • Raymond T. Cowham • Alvin Cox • Benhardt Dahlke • Paul Gene Davis • Ernest W. Dohm • George Thomas Earl • Everett E. Edgerly • Charles W. Eisenhauer • Bob Ely • Edward L. Essex • Earl R. Fickies • Douglas H. Fox • Arthur S. Frisbie • Edward Thomas Gardner • Billy Y. Hartsock • Jay Hemminger

(Panel 4)
World War II
Harold Lee Gray • Carl P. Hoppe • Howard Hough • Wayne J. Huff • Clarence Ted Huston • James F. Hutton • J. Norton Jones • Marvin Kennedy • Duane Kesterke • Dale Edward Kuhns • Leroy Richard Lane • Gerald Larkin • Edward H. Lasseter Jr. • Dale Lyon • Casimir Majewski • Joel B. Mann Jr. • Joseph Marlow • Edward Arthur Mayhew • Leo Myers • Ray M. McKenzie • Joseph Ostrowski • Ross S. Overton • Bernard C. Pardun • Robert D. Perkins • Paul Weston Pompey • Lloyd Puffer • Lisle P. Pullin • Dale Rantz • Robert Robbins • Gordon Ford Rohlfs • Robert Scheetz • Harold E. Schutlz

(Panel 5)
World War I Veterans
1917 - 1918

In everlasting memory to honor the Cass County Michigan World War I veterans who paid the supreme sacrifice for their country

Name - Age - Year of Death

Pvt Reem R. Bronson - 29 - 1918
Pvt James L. Buckley - 26 -1918
Pvt Edward Chavous - 25 - 1919
Seaman Millard Cooper - 20 - 1918
Pvt Karl F. Dyer - 20 - 1918
Robin East - 27 - 1918
Lyall G. Eggleston - 21 - 1918
Pvt Eugene Ewing -   - 1919
Pvt Claudius Graham - 31 -1918
E. Laverne Hill -   - 1918
Pvt Fred Hodgson - 23 -1918
Pvt Stanley Holleger - 27- 1918
Corp Floyd Ibbotson - 24 - 1918
Lt Efton M. James - 28 - 1918
Sgt Carl R. Kibler - 24 - 1920
Pvt George A. King - 27 - 1918
Pvt Ward Kline - 21 - 1918
Pvt Zolla F.H. Langlan - 31 - 1919
Corp Maurice G. Lyon - 24 - 1919
Pvt Elmer Mathews -    - 1919
Pvt Otis Messenger - 25 - 1918
Pvt Max S. Moore - 19 - 1918
Pvt Glen Quimby - 25 - 1918
Lt Howard Redner -   - 1918
Corp August K. Richey - 27 - 1919
Pvt Warren M. Rutherford - 22 - 1918
Pvt Dwight Shingledecker - 23 - 1918
Pvt David H. Starrett - 23 - 1918
Pvt Ward Stillson - 27 - 1919
Pvt Harry Surran - 29 - 1918
Lt Charles H. Swan -   - 1918
Pvt Henry Thompson - 26 - 1918
Pvt Avery B. Wilkinson - 18 - 1917
Pvt Russell A. Wood - 27 - 1918

Presented and dedicated by the Doe-Wah-Jack American Legion Post #563 and the Cass County Veterans Advisory Committee
30 May 1991

(Panel 6)
World War II
Theodore J. Schrock • Robert C. Shafer • Arthur W. Sherry • Lyle F. Showers • Jack Simbulan • A.J. Smith • Ernest A. Sopher • Donald K. Spalding • Marvin Stahl • Richard H. Strickland • William Roger Suits • John Suski • James T. Swisher • Roy Allen Thornton • Gerald Turner • Victor Verner Veach • Robert James Verde • Eugene Phillip Wagar • Walter G. Waterson • Leo R. Webster • Kenneth Weeks • John Wendl • Phillip Delos Williamson • Edward M. Winchester • Lynus Yeager

(Panel 7)
Vietnam
For Those Who Served and Died for Their Country
1963 - 1975

Name - Rank - Svc - DOD - City

Bell, Wayne Morris - CWO - AR - 10-12-68 - Cassopolis
Clime, Ralph John - WO - AR - 6-19-69 - Marcellus
Edgerly, John Wallace - PFC - MC - 8-12-66 - Dowagiac
Frist, Michael B. - PFC - AR - 2-8-71 - Dowagiac
Gressel, John Vincent - 1LT - AR - 7-29-68 - Dowagiac
Haines, John Loda - SGT - AR - 3-6-68 - Vandalia
Hall, Jeffrey H. - SP4 - AR - 6-19-68 - Dowagiac
Hensley, Gary Lee - SP5 - AR - 11-3-67 - Cassopolis
Huscher, John Randolph - SP4 - AR - 2-19-68 - Dowagiac
Kauffman, Ernest Lee - PFC - AR - 2-20-68 - Vandalia
Lozier, William Ear - 2LT - AR - 2-2-68 - Cassopolis
Nicol, Michael William - SP4 - AR - 6-29-71 - Marcellus
Personette, Michael D. - LCPL - MC - 9-23-68 - Cassopolis
Richmond, Robert Stanley - CAPT - AR - 3-21-70 - Marcellus
Scott, Daniel Lee - SP4 - AR - 8-7-67 - Edwardsburg
Smith, Smith, Steven Robert - PFC - AR - 1-30-68 - Edwardsburg
Stolley, William R. Jr. - LCPL - MC - 3-14-69 - Dowagiac
Wenger, Robert Lee - CPL - MC - 7-23-66 - Dowagiac
Bonine, Thomas - WO - AR - 6-3-69 - Cassopolis
Shafter, Gary - LCPL - MC - 5-27-68 - Cassopolis

Dedicated by the Cass County High School Students
30 - May - 1989


(War, Korean • War, Vietnam • War, World I • War, World II) Includes location, directions, 11 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Tennessee Overhill Experience

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Tennessee, Monroe County, Tellico Plains
Tellico Plains
Early Iron and Logging Industries
Tellico Plains
’ first industrial venture, the Tellico Iron Works, started around 1825 with the construction of a foundry by an early white settler. Local legend, however, holds that native residents of the important Cherokee town of Great Tellico began the bloomer before 1812. After 1843, a family of New York industrialists operated the iron pit mines, furnaces, mills and shops, and supporting charcoal industry. Pig iron and finished products, such as iron skillets and kettles, were produced for export and bar iron for local blacksmiths. During the Civil War, Confederates produced munitions and other armaments, and railroad equipment at the iron works until federal troops burned it in 1863. The Mansion, a French-style house built in 1846 for the ironmaster, is still a landmark private residence.

(captions)

(lower right)This site is part of the Tennessee Overhill Heritage Trail and is an official Tennessee 200 Bicentennial Project. Interpretive signs, museums, historic sites and a guidebook tell the story of the industrial Revolution as it happened in McMinn, Monroe, and Polk Counties. For more information concerning other sites, contact the Tennessee Overhill Heritage Association at 423-263-7232

The Tennessee Overhill Experience: From Furs to Factories was funded by the Tennessee Department of Transportation; Tennessee 200, Inc; East Tennessee Foundation; and the counties of McMinn, Monroe, and Polk.

(upper center) Felling trees at Big Fodder Stack Cave, 1918

While Tellico Plains’ early iron industry required considerable timber for fuel, nearby virgin forests continued to flourish. From the 1870s until the 1920s, logging sawmills, and related wood finishing and tanning industries ushered in a cash economy and jobs; however, the magnificent, old forests were destroyed. At peak of logging, 40 timber crews operated locally. Babcock Street, lined with former company houses, is named for a Pittsburg company that once employed 700 workers here.

(upper right) Mess Hall at Tellico River Lumber Camp near Citico, circa 1915.

Photographs courtesy of Charles Hall

(Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • War, US Civil) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Great Gorge Route

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New York, Niagara County, Niagara Falls
The Great Gorge Route (1895-1935) once offered spectacular trolley rides through the Niagara Gorge. Initially, the route ran from Niagara Falls to Lewiston, NY. After the Lewiston-Queenston Suspension Bridge opened in 1899, however, the line connected with Canada's railway along the gorge rim, creating a 20-mile circular route. The 'Belt Line' offered breathtaking views and scenic stops.

Rock falls, washouts, ice avalanches, and other mishaps made the gorge quite dangerous at times, resulting in some injuries and deaths. Flooding took its toll as ice floes rose out of the river and damaged the tracks. In 1932, when the Canadians did not renew their lease, the popular circular route ended. Soon after 5,000 tons of rock fell onto a large section of track in 1935, the trolley line stopped running. Today, hiking trails exist where the Great Gorge Route once travelled.

Trolley passing by 'Giant Rock,' a popular stop for photographers.

Open trolley cars ran in the warmer months; closed cars were used during cold weather.

President William McKinley (center) on a special trolley to Niagara Falls (September 6, 1901). After his excursion, he returned to Buffalo's Pan-American Exposition for a public reception where he was shot. He died a week later.

Open car #677 along Whirlpool Rapids, June 1927.

Special cars, built with wicker chairs and other conveniences, catered to prominent visitors.

This electric observation car, equipped with searchlights to illuminate the Whirlpool Rapids, was a popular tourist attraction.

On September 6, 1935, 5,000 tons of rock fell onto the trolley tracks. The line was abandoned soon after.

In 1936, after the abandonment of the Great Gorge Route, all but a few trolleys were intentionally burned.

Time Line
1886 - Niagara Falls and Whirlpool Railway company is formed.
1891 - Captain J.M. Brinker of Buffalo purchases and reorganizes the company as the Niagara Falls and Lewiston Railroad Company.
1895 - Work on the roadbed begins in April at Lewiston and is completed to Whirlpool Rapids. First trial run on tracks occurs in July; line opens to public in August.
1896 - Route completed from Lewiston to Niagara Falls, NY.
1899 - Lewiston-Queenston Suspension Bridge opens; trolley line connects to Canadian railway along gorge rim.
1901 - President William McKinley rides trolley through gorge on September 6. Late that day, he is shot at the Pan-American exposition in Buffalo.
1905 - Evening searchlight excursions begin in the gorge.
1915 - Trolley descending the escarpment at Queenston, Ontario, derails, resulting in many deaths and injuries.
1917 - Section of track near Whirlpool Bridge is washed out, causing the trolley to leave the tracks and flip over into the river, resulting in many deaths and injuries.
1924 - Niagara Falls Power Company purchases trolley line.
1932 - Canadian line fails to renew its lease, ending the circular 'Belt Line' route.
1935 - The Great Gorge Route goes out of service soon after 5,000 tons of rock fall onto a large section of track.
1936 - Trolley cars are burned and steel parts salvaged. Rails are removed from gorge.

(Disasters • Entertainment • Environment • Railroads & Streetcars) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

West Middlebury Baptist Church

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New York, Wyoming County, Middlebury
Organized with 17 members March 11, 1811. Present building dedicated June 21, 1832. State Education Department 1950.

(Churches, Etc.) Includes location, directions, 6 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Second Battle of La Prairie

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Quebec, de Roussillon MRC, La Prairie
French text on marker appears above English text below

On August 11th, 1691, a few hours after the attack on Fort La Prairie, Major Peter Schuyler and his Indians suffered a severe defeat at the hands of the French and their indian allies, under the command of Captain De Valrennes. The French lost the following officers: Lieutenants Le Varlet, Le Ber, Duchesne, Denys De La Bruère and Depeiras.

Ce site est le don de David Daigneault
(translation: This land was donated by David Daigneault)

(Native Americans • Notable Events) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Lewis Cass

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Michigan, Cass County, Cassopolis
Born New Hampshire 1782. 18 years Governor of Territory of Michigan (1813-1831). Served Nation thirty years as Senator - Minister to France - Secretary of War - Secretary of State. Visited Zion Lodge No. 1 1812 - later affiliated. Permanent Michigan resident. Served three terms Grand master of Ohio. First Grand Master of Masons in Michigan 1826-1829.
Organized Cass County 1829 and named in Governor Cass' Honor - Cassopolis created a Village in 1863, became County seat also named to honor of Lewis Cass.
Died June 1866 - - - - Received Last Masonic Rites June 20, 1866.

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

Tellico Iron Works

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Tennessee, Monroe County, Tellico Plains
Throughout the Civil War, both sides depended on the iron industry for vitally important munitions. The Tellico Iron and Manufacturing Company, then located one mile east, caught the attention first of the Confederate army and eventually of Union Gen. William T. Sherman himself.

In 1843, Elisha Johnson, former mayor of Rochester, N.Y., and his brother Ebenezer Johnson (died 1849) purchased the Tellico Iron Company. Established in 1824 amid rich deposits of brown hematite, it produced what was touted as “the finest grade of iron ore in the world.” After the war began, the high quality of Johnson’s iron influenced the Confederacy to seize his company. Co. H.B. Latrobe supervised the works to ensure that Johnson’ Union sympathies did not affect the production.

Early in December 1863, Union Gen. William T. Sherman marched into East Tennessee to relieve Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside’s troops in Knoxville, where Confederate James Longstreet besieged them. On learning of the Confederacy’s use of the ironworks, Sherman accompanied Gen. Morgan Smith and his troops there. They established headquarter at the Johnson house on December 9-11. Johnson was accused of operating the ironworks to support the Confederate army. Sherman presided over a trial in the house and acquitted Johnson, perhaps because of Johnson’s Northern birth and sympathies.

Elisha Johnson’s Union loyalties saved his house from Sherman’s torch, but Union soldiers completely demolished the Tellico Iron Works before leaving for Chattanooga on December 12.

(captions)
(lower left) Elisha Johnson Courtesy Monroe County Archives; Gen. William T. Sherman Courtesy Library of Congress
(upper right) Elisha Johnson house - Courtesy Sharon Cain
(lower right) Iron bars, Tellico Iron Works - Courtesy Charles Hall Museum

(Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • War, US Civil) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Red Caboose

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Tennessee, Coffee County, Tullahoma
The car displayed here is a side bay window model caboose built in 1964 by the Louisville & Nashville Railroad at the company’s South Louisville yards. The exterior is restored to the original L & N red. The purpose of a caboose was to provide crewman a better view of potential problems with the train. Some of the earliest cabooses were designed with a cupola or “crow’s nest.” As train cars became taller, however, the side bay window was introduced. The early wooden L & N cabooses were distinguished by cupolas, while the Nashville, Chattanooga, and St Louis Railway cabooses were designed with the side bay window style. After the NC & St. L merged with the L & N in 1957, the L & N incorporated the bay window design.

The Flagman
Originally, the flagman’s main responsibility was to protect the rear of the train from mishaps or collisions. When idle on the tracks, he placed red flags, and lit fuses and lanterns far to the rear, to warn approaching trains. Since the invention of radio in the 1920s, the dispatcher has taken over the function of alerting approaching trains, and the flagman’s duty is to assist the brakeman in switching cars in and out of the train.

The Conductor
The caboose was the office car of the train. The conductor, the flagman, and the rear brakeman normally rode in the caboose. Contrary to popular belief, the conductor was in charge of the train—not the engineer. His responsibility was to check the waybill, and inventory of each car’s content and destination, and direct the train crew in setting or picking up cars for the train.

The Brakeman
If the train needed to be stopped, the rear and front brakemen worked in tandem using hand brakes on each car. After air brakes were introduced in the early 1870s, brakemen were used to switch rails and couple cars.

Today, the caboose is obsolete. Instead, a small device with a flashing red light mounted on the last car protects the rear of the train and measures the air brake line pressure. Detect detectors placed every twenty or so miles along the track tell the crew if there are any problems.

The rail line between Nashville and Chattanooga was completed in 1854. A spur line to Manchester and McMinnville was added in 1855. This made Tullahoma an important railroad junction in lower middle Tennessee. The two lines are still in operation today as CSX and the Caney Fork and Western Railroad, respectively. Switcher crews service customers from Wartrace to Sherwood, and at least two shippers use the railroad, the L.P. Gas Distributor and the Kokomo Grain silo.

(Railroads & Streetcars) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Signs of War

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Maryland, Prince Georges County, Riversdale Park


"We have been in a state of continual alarm." - Rosalie Steir Calvert, 1814

From her home on August 24, 1814, Rosalie Stier Calvert saw rocket fire as the Battle of Bladensburg raged two miles away. Soon she would learn of the British victory and know from the reddened skies over Washington that the enemy had reached the city.

Her husband George and their field-hands helped to bury the dead after battle. Mr. Calvert visited injured British officers recuperating in Bladensburg.

(War of 1812) Includes location, directions, 6 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Oesterlen Well Site / Old Mill Stream Fairgrounds

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Ohio, Hancock County, Findlay

Oesterlen Well Site
The site of the natural gas well generally credited with the beginning of the "Gas Boom" in Hancock County is approximately 300 feet west of this marker. German physician, Dr. Charles Oesterlen drilled the well on his land in 1884. In Dec. 5 of that year the well reached a depth of 1092 feet and produced 250,000 cubic feet of gas in a 24-hour period.

Old Mill Stream Fairgrounds
The Hancock County Agricultural Society was organized on March 26, 1938. The Society soon purchased an 80 acre farm once owned by Tell Taylor, composer of the song "Down by the Old Mill Stream," and held its first fair on this site October 13-15, 1938. The county fair has been held here every year since then except for 1942 during World War II.

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

Cherokee Heritage Trails

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Tennessee, Monroe County, Tellico Plains
Cherokee Heritage Trails (Tsalagi Usdi Nvnohi) wind through the mountains of North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia, in the heart of Cherokee homelands that once encompassed more than 140,000 square miles. Here, where Cherokee people have lived for thousands of years, visitors can explore places of myth and legend sites of villages, memorials, museums, and other places of significance in the Cherokee story.

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians has more than 13,000 members. Many live on or near the Qualls Boundary, tribal lands that include the town of Cherokee, North Carolina. Annual festivals and events at some trail sites offer opportunities to meet Cherokee storytellers, basket weavers, stone carvers, wood carvers, gospel singers musicians and other artists from the Eastern Band. Enjoy sampling traditional foods, watching Cherokee stickball games, and hearing the Cherokee language.

Museum of the Cherokee Indian, the main interpretive center for the Cherokee Heritage Trails, is a good place to begin. It tells the story of the Cherokee people through an award winning interactive exhibit that gives an overview of Cherokee heritage and experience. Owned and operated by tribal members, this museum is located in Cherokee, North Carolina, the main population center for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Other interpretive centers serve as starting points for many sites and one day scenic drives.

In North Carolina
Junaluska Memorial and Museum in Robinsonville presents the Snowbird Cherokee community and the story of Junaluska.
Scottish Tartans Museum in Franklin orients visitors to Cherokee Middle Towns locations along the Little Tennessee River and describes the relationships of the Scots and Cherokees.
Cherokee County Historical Museum in Murphy interprets the Trail of Tears and the “leech place” of Cherokee lore.

In Tennessee
Sequoyah Birthplace Museum in Vonore focuses on Sequoyah and the Overhill Cherokee towns.
Red Clay State Historic Area commemorates 19th century Cherokee life and the removal of Cherokees from eastern Tennessee.

In Georgia
New Echota State Historic Site near Calhoun interprets 19th century Cherokee renaissance and removal.

The Cherokee Heritage Trails Guidebook provides maps, photographs, stories and perspectives of Cherokee people to help visitors explore sites that cluster near these centers. Find updates on trial sites, a calendar of events, a Cherokee Artist Directory and more on the website www.cherokeeheritagetrials.org.

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

Captain Iven C. Kincheloe Memorial

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Michigan, Cass County, near Cassopolis

(Marker 1)
Captain Kincheloe
Born July 2, 1928, was a Korean War fighter ace who flew the rocket-powered Bell X-2 to a world record altitude of 126,200 feet on September 7, 1956. He died July 26, 1958, in the service of his country while flight testing an experimental aircraft.

(Marker 2)
Ace Pilot of the Korean War
Iven Carl Kincheloe (1928-58), space pioneer, grew up one mile from this site. The 1945 Dowagiac High School graduate was licensed to fly at 16 and graduated from Purdue University in Aeronautical Engineering in 1949. Entering the USAF from ROTC, he flew 131 combat missions in the Korean War, becoming the 10th jet ace of the war on April 6, 1952. He earned the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross and three Air Medals.

(Marker 3)
The First Spaceman
After his Korean War service, Captain Kincheloe trained to be a test pilot. Assigned to Edwards AFB, he flew experimental rocket aircraft and piloted the Bell X-2 to a record 126,200 feet, the fringes of outer space, on September 7, 1956. Kincheloe received the Mackey Trophy and was hailed as “The First Spaceman.” Chosen as the first pilot of the North American X-15, he was a national hero and spokesman for the USAF and space program.

(Marker 4)
Kincheloe’s Legacy
Captain Kincheloe died in a jet crash on July 26, 1958 and never flew the X-15. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery and awarded the Legion of Merit. Kincheloe AFB in the Upper Peninsula, the Iven C. Kincheloe Award and Dowagiac’s Kincheloe Elementary School honor his legacy. With this monument, Cass County remembers the dreams, spirit and achievements of Iven C. Kincheloe, the First Spaceman.

(Air & Space • War, Korean) Includes location, directions, 10 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
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