Category Archives: Historic Sites

Bonnie and Clyde are rumored to have been here

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imageThe story is that Bonnie and Clyde’s car was in need of repair and they stopped at the service station on the town square in Granbury, TX. While it was being fixed, they had a picnic on the lawn of the courthouse. The local law recognized them, but decided to leave well enough alone since they did have a reputation! They finished their lunch, picked up their car and skedaddled out of there. I’m not sure if that is true, but the building is certainly there.

The Baker-Rylee Building at 100 North Crockett Street in Granbury, TX was built in 1895 as a hardware store and has a limestone construction which is typical of the area. The Transcontinental Company bought the building in 1929 and removed two walls to make it into a service station. When my folks first moved to Granbury in 1981, it was still a service station though sometime in the early 1980s that use ceased. I remember going to it when it was an Italian Restaurant and now it is delightful restaurant called The Fillin’ Station. My swiss mushroom burger was one of the best that I’ve ever had and the fries and onion rings were also outstanding. The folks that work there are so very nice.

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Statue of General Hiram Bronson Granberry (Granbury)

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Granbury, Texas was named after General Hiram Bronson Granbury, which is sometimes spelled Granberry. His life spanned March 1, 1831 – November 30, 1864, passing away at the young age of 33 years. Per Wikipedia, he was a lawyer and country judge in Texas who later organized a volunteer company for the Confederate army and became its captain. He later was promoted to brigadier general  and was one of the almost 2,000 soldiers that died at the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864.

From what I’ve read, Granbury was buried near Franklin, Tennessee, where he died, and later re-interred at a different cemetery. Finally in November 30, 1893 (on what would have been his 62nd birthday) he was again re-interred in the city of Granbury, Texas, seat of Hood County, as the town was named in his honor. Although he was as close as Waco, Texas, I’m not finding anything to suggest that he was ever in his name sake city.

The statue which features Granbury in military garb and a confederate flag was erected in 1913. The statue was important from Italy and the base was created by Waxachachie monument maker, James Youngblood.

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The Peace Arch connecting the ties between the US and Canada

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imageThe Peace Arch spans the United States and Canadian border and commentates the signing of the Treaty of Ghent in 1814. The arch was dedicated in 1921 and was placed on the US National Register of Historic Places in 1996. Both countries flags fly on the monument. The Peace Arch and the associated area are considered to be an international park and one does not need to have a passport to visit it. The Peace Arch border crossing never closes.  It was a pretty quick passage for us, only about 45 minutes.

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Little Free Library #8353, Kent and the Neely Soames House

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todayMy dentist use to be kind of nearby, but she moved to a new office in Kent and I faithfully followed here. After my appointment, I wandered off to find a park that promised a pirate’s ship (that didn’t happen) and the adjacent Little Free Library. The historic home was just a bonus!

The Neely Soames House is located at 5311 South 237th Place, Kent in a residential area next to the Green River Trail. The house was constructed in 1884 making it the oldest standing residence in Kent. What I loved about the house was the amazing porch and wisteria. Looking at my photo, it looks like a one story house with abundant landscaping, but it is really a two story house with the wisteria almost completely covering the porch. More information including some interior photos can be found here.

The Little Free Library #8353 is around the corner from the Soames House was built by Orval Dealy at the request of the Kent Senior Center. It has a delightful paint job featuring children at the adjacent park. Inside there are about two dozen books, mostly paperback. The titles include The Fountainhead (which yes, I’ve read) in case you were on the lookout for a little light summer reading.

I found this interesting Pinterest Page with Little Free Libraries from around the glove.

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U.S. Soldiers Home Cemetery

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soldiers home cemetery

soldiers home cemetery

The Washington Soldiers Home Cemetery in  Orting, Washington is associated with the nearby Washington Soldiers Home.  There are 2,683 interments. The soldiers that are buried here fought in the Civil War through the Vietnam War and sometimes have wives and mothers buried next to them. While most of the soldiers are men, there are some women also.

Four of the soldiers are Civil War Congressional medal of honor recipients. They are George L Houghton, Alexander U. McHale, Albert O’Connor, and William Sickles (pictured).

For more information on this cemetery, you should go visit the real wonderful associated Facebook Page. The photos below also include one of Mt. Rainier from downtown Orting.

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Tacoma’s Liberty Bell

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17666669973_a11e74dbdd_kOn Saturday I was exploring the Museum District in Tacoma and we stopped to take a group photo near Union Station. A delightful security guard stopped to offer to take a photo with all of us in it. And then he told us about the often overlooked Liberty Bell in Tacoma. It is located down a staircase next to Union Station and tucked around the corner. It is available for ringing and makes a lovely tone.

Tacoma Weekly did a great article on how the bell got there.

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Olmstead Place State Park

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IMG_3031On my way back from visiting dear daughter, I stopped at Olmstead Place State Park outside of Ellensburg (921 Ferguson Road, Ellensburg, WA 98926). I was pretty excited to be able to use my Discover Pass, but I didn’t spend too much time since I was worried (rightfully so) about snow on the Pass. The park has 217 acres and plenty of pioneer artifacts. Perhaps my favorite part was the red winged blackbirds. There was an entire flock of them on the overhead wires. More information can be found here.

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Judge Wilson House in Lakewood

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15997589223_b0cde1332d_k(1)After a trip to the Lakewood History Museum, I went off on their driving tour beginning with the Judge Wilson House (a private residence). The map can be found here.

Per the driving tour map:

The Judge Wilson House, a Gothic Revival two-story structure, was built ca. 1885, the same year the Western Steel Company built a plant in the vicinity hoping to make the area, known as Lakeview, the new Pittsburgh of the west. Judge Wilson was the superintendent of the short-lived company which closed by 1893.

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Stonehenge

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IMG_2549Stonehenge had also been on my bucket list and I was so pleased to hear this world heritage site was part of this year’s tour. It was a little more of a production than I expected with the parking area being some distance from the site. But the folks that run it do provide transportation.

Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument that originated between 2000 and 3000 BC and because of the age of the monument, there is a great deal of mystery. I did learn that:

  • It is a burial site
  • The Druids would hold ceremonies here
  • For the most part, the public is no longer aloud to walk up to the stones
  • That over the years the stones have been straightened when in danger of falling over
  • The visitor’s center opened in December 2013 and I could have happily spent more time there
  • According to some myths, the stone were healing rocks

Here is a short BBC video on this history of Stonehenge and here is the official visitors webpage.

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Normandy, France

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14506191527_7833a0a1f0_kPer Wikipedia….During the Second World War, the D Day landings on the Normandy beaches, under the code name Operation Overlord, started the lengthy Battle of Normandy and resulted in the Liberation of Paris and the restoration of the French Republic. These landings were a significant turning point in the war.

The 172 acre cemetery contains the remains of 9,387 American military dead, who were primarily killed during the invasion of Normandy. We paused to visit the grave of Theodor Roosevelt, Jr., the son of president Teddy Roosevelt. One of President’s other sons, Quenton, is also buried there. Quenton died during WWI and his remains were reburied next to his brother at Normandy.

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