Ward and I are taking a little staycation for an extended weekend. Today was our second day.
We modified our plans slightly today because of the excessive heat we're having, meaning that we took an early morning hike in a park closer to home than originally planned. We hadn't been to this park in at least 5 years, so it was time to go back. The air was cool in the shade, and the surrounding forest was a lush green. We walked 3.5 miles and only started to feel the heat at the end. We headed back home, sweaty but content.
Then I wasn't sure I wanted to do the next thing we had planned: to visit the Union Mills Homestead because of the heat. We had stopped here a few years ago but got there just as they were closing. Another thing on our mini bucket list was to return when we could get a better look at things. However, I was worried about the heat of the afternoon, but Ward was encouraging, so off we went. As it turned out, there were two parts to the tour, both inside. The hot outdoor parts were where you looked around on your own, so we cut those parts short.
We were lucky once again in that we were the only people there and had the tour guides all to ourselves. BTW, the attendance at museums is down all over. Seems that people would rather Google about something than visiting it. I just hope they can stay open because I like to visit them. Anyway, below are a few more details of our Friday.
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| An added bonus was the trail was paved. However, we didn't need to worry about muddy paths because it hadn't rained here in a while. |
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| The trail was part of a stream-bottom county park. The county bought up most of the land around the streams and made them into parks to prevent development (and really the land was unsuitable for building.) We crossed over the creek many times during our walk. |
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| Next up was the Union Valley Homestead, established in 1797. Six generations of the same family continuously lived in the house until the mid-1950s. Then it was inherited by two brothers, who happened to be history professors, who decided it would make a good museum. |
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| One of the reasons they thought it would make a good museum was the number of records the family still had from the beginning. It was one of the most extensive collections of family papers in the US, just behind John Adams. Not to mention all the family furniture, artwork, appliances, utensils, etc. - all original, no reproductions. |
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| No photos were allowed inside, so here's a picture of the other side of the house. Notice the different pink and gray parts of the house. That happened when a brother and sister lived at different ends of the house and couldn't agree on what color it should be. |
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| After a very informative tour of the house, we moved to the grist mill. Our tour guide had worked at Colonial Williamsburg for 30 years before returning to his roots as a grist mill operator. He runs this one and does all the repairs to keep it running. |
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| It was fascinating to see all of the gears and other parts made from wood when today, metal is used for these things. Of course, Ward was very interested in the mechanical and woodworking aspects of the operation. I was curious to see what buckwheat grains looked like because I have only seen buckwheat after it was made into flour. Too bad I didn't get any pictures to show you, but they are triangular black seeds. |
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On the way home, we stopped at Dairy Queen and shared a Girl Scout Thin Mint Blizzard. We had a good time, and I'm glad Ward forced encouraged me to go.😊 |
Tune in tomorrow to see if Ward can convince me to leave the house to venture into the heat of the day to explore more things on our mini bucket list, a.k.a, what we've been meaning to get around to.
What fun! Can't wait to hear the next staycation adventure.
ReplyDeleteWe are being very purposeful with this staycation. If left to my own tendencies, I'd just stay inside and read a book and do laundry. :)
DeleteSuch a pretty place for a hike! I'm not a hiker but think I would enjoy hiking some place if there were paved trails! That house would be fun to explore too! Looking forward to seeing what lies ahead for your adventure potentially tomorrow!
ReplyDeletebetty
The trail was in great shape. I had forgotten it was paved. It was quite nice and not crowded which it had the potential to be because there are a lot of neighborhoods near it. I guess going early in the day helped.
DeleteI love the story of the different house colors. I'm sad to hear that museum attendance is down. Seeing historical places in person is so much more interesting than googling it. I'm enjoying your adventures, especially now when we are driving for what feels like endless hours. It's a good distraction.
ReplyDeleteIf your driving feels like endless hours, it is probably because it is. Another benefit to a staycation is everything we're doing is within an hour or two of our house. Of course, we aren't seeing something very different when we are staying close to home, so maybe on our next vacation, we'll go a little further afield.
DeleteAs well as museums, library attendance is down since COVID. In many areas, people found another way to do things.
What an interesting place to visit! I looked up their website and read up about the museum and the history of the homestead. I'm sure the inside of the house would have been very interesting to see. I found a video online of the mill, which was very interesting to watch. I'm afraid I'm guilty of not visiting museums or going into libraries since the outbreak of Covid. I do appreciate you sharing your experiences with us so that we may learn a little more about these places. :)
ReplyDeleteWe have visited many historic houses and this was one of the better tours. First of all, six generations of the same family living in the same house is unusual, And I don't think we've ever been in a house where all of the furniture was original. You would have appreciated the various murals painted on the walls by one of the later residents. She especially liked grapes and flowers and painted various versions of those.
DeleteThat would be interesting, to see the wood made gears and wheels. I don't think I've seen a buckwheat seed either.
ReplyDeleteThe miller said he didn't like to work with buckwheat because it made more of a mess than the other grains. One time, he had some Japanese women in the tour who were thrilled to get the buckwheat hulls to use in pillows, etc. After that, he saved the hulls for them. I'm not sure it was less messy, but he had less waste.
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