We stopped and had lunch at a McDonalds. Ms. Edwards took a nap in the afternoon while Cody was driving the van....I hear she kept waking herself up. While Ms. Edwards was driving she came across a logo on the back of the car that she found extremely funny..... A picture of it appears below...I am not sure if you can read it though....it says "If you can read this please turn my car the other way."
We arrived in Lexington after 6 PM when everything was closed...Ms. Edwards and I took on the roles of tour guide because we had the chance to explore Lexington last summer as part of the grant that she received. We drove through VMI and would have stopped at the George Marshall Museum had it been opened. We did stop and walk around Washington and Lee a little. Ms. Edwards showed everyone the building that Lee is buried in. We also showed everyone where Lee's horse Traveller is buried. While walking around the campus the students saw a little bunny.
Side view of the chapel that Robert E. Lee is buried in. From this angle you can see the location where his study is. It is on the far right side of the building. We were not able to enter the building because it was already closed. On the ride side of the building is also the location of where Traveller is buried as well as the Lee family. The Lee's are buried in a crypt that can only be seen by entering the building. Traveller on the other hand can be visited very easily.
Here is a different view of the chapel that holds Lee's tomb. This is how we would have entered the building if we had made it in time.
Here is the grave sight of Traveller. This was Lee's trusty horse during the Civil War. Traveller lived from 1857-1871. He was one of the horses used by Lee during the Civil War. His original name was Jeff Davis (ironic in a way). He was renamed Greenbrier and was finally named Traveller by Lee. Lee purchased the horse in February 1862 for $200. Traveller stepped on a nail in the summer of 1871. He had to be put down because he developed tetanus. His bones were initially buried on the grounds of Washington and Lee and were removed for multiple purposes.
In 1971, his remains finally found peace when his bones were buried a few feet from the Lee family crypt. Here is the marking that appears by his grave. It appears that people like to leave him a penny.
After leaving Washington and Lee we made a quick stop at Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson's house in Lexington Virginia. Once again we were not able to go inside the house due to the fact that it was closed. The students did have the opportunity to see the outside though.
This is the only house that Stonewall Jackson ever owned. He lived in the house while teaching at the nearby military academy VMI. Jackson taught Natural and Experimental Philosophy as well as artillery. He was not the best classroom teacher. He memorized his lectures and if a student interrupted him with a questions he would just begin the lecture from the start again. He was loved as an artillery instructor though. Jackson lived in this house with his second wife from 1851-1861.
After leaving the Stonewall Jackson house we headed to dinner. Mr. Conant's rule is that at least one meal needs to take place and a location we can't eat at in Maine. Since we had lunch at a McDonalds we had to find something different. We settled on Frank's. A pizza, sub, and pasta restaurant. The calzones that the students ordered were huge. They had enough food to last at least three meals.
From Frank's we made one more stop before leaving Lexington. We decided to find the grave of "Stonewall Jackson" Ms. Edwards told the students that they might find lemons on the general's grave. Unfortuntly there weren't any there. The students did have the chance to see his final resting place as well as another cute little bunny.
"Stonewall" Jackson was shot by "friendly fire" during the battle of Chancellorsville. His arm was ambutated in an attempt to save his life. He died a few days later from pnemonia. Upon hearing of Jackson's losing his left arm Lee is reported to have said "Jackson has lost his left arm and I have lost my right." His arm was buried near the battle. Jackson was buried in Lexington Virginia.
We left Lexington and found the curviest road that I have ever been on. It is called the Blue Ridge Parkway. Had the sun still been up I am sure the view would have been amazing. Unfortunetly we drove it in the dark. Watching the GPS system was fun though. we got to see all the twisty turns that we were about to take. Along the parkway we also saw at least 20 deers. They were not afraid of anything. They just stood by the side of the road watching us as we drove by.
We arrived in Bedford Virginia after 10:00 PM. One more day on the road over...Only one more long day of driving before we reach Birmingham Alabama.
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