Our Travels During 2021

January 3, 2021. We left the Houston area to start on our journey east. 

Hwy 146 bridge over Tabbs Bay leaving Houston

Roadside America Museum, Hillsboro, Texas

We saw the Roadside America Museum highlighted on Texas Bucket List and knew it was close to where we usually spend our week out from Tres Rios in Whitney. Hillsboro is about a 30 minute drive from Whitney, so one Friday afternoon we decided to drive down there, have lunch, and then went to the museum.

What a fantastic array of memorabilia from all venues ~ restaurants, soda fountains, cars, etc. We were the only two in the museum that day and were given a personal tour of his museum. Carroll Estes purchased and renovated the Old Ford Dealership Building in order to showcase his collection. 

The Women Suffrage Movement in Texas

We went to Huntsville, Texas to visit the Sam Houston Museum and found ourselves in the main museum where they had a display on the Texas suffrage movement. When we were in Maine we went to the Maine State Museum where there was also a display on the women's suffrage movement. Now we learn about Texas and other women involved in the movement.

Sam Houston Museum & Statute, Huntsville, Texas

We visited the Sam Houston Museum & Statute (which you can see as you drive along I-45 in Huntsville). Who is Sam Houston? Husband, father, attorney, statesman, warrior, United States Senator, Governor of Texas. General Sam Houston was born in Rockbridge County, Virginia on March 2, 1793. He was the son of Major Sam and Elizabeth Paxton Houston and descendant of Sir Hugh of Padivan, the founder of Hughstown Castle of Scotland. 

Sam Houston was a Congressman and Governor in Tennessee. Sam Houston arrived in Texas in 1832; was a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence on March 2, 1836. He was Commander-in-Chief of the Texas Revolutionary Army; victor at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836. He was President of the Republic of Texas twice; Congressman of the Republic of Texas; United States Senator from Texas, and then Governor of Texas. He died in Huntsville, Texas on July 26, 1863.

Sam Houston, 1793-1863

Salmon Lake Park, Grapeland, Texas

As I was searching for parks along our route from Linn Valley, Kansas south toward Houston, Texas, Salmon Lake was roughly 180 miles from our previous campground and on the route we needed to take. It was a little longer drive than we usually do, but it was the only park that was not far off the beaten path. We arrived there on Thursday, June 24, paid for our stay, and headed in to find a spot. As we drove in, we try to fit the roads to what the map looks like. After figuring it out, we headed to the field to find a 50amp site. 

Texas State Railroad, Palestine, Texas

The Texas State Railroad took us from Palestine, Texas to Rusk, Texas. The ad looks really good online and in their Facebook advertisement. They call it the "quintessential daytrip, only a few hours from the metropolitan communities of Dallas and Houston, will create a memory that will last a lifetime." I picked the "open air car" with bench seats and open windows so we could have a nice breeze on the trip. We were in one of the last two cars and we had to walk through the airconditioned cars with tables set up for the guests to get to our car. I liked the open air cars better because with the bench seats you could sit in both directions as the seat back moved to accommodate this. However, it was noisy there with the wind, train whistle, and kids running back and forth and we could not hear the story told over the speakers. Even with these issues, when we walked through the air conditioned cars the smell from the toilets was almost overwhelming. I don't know if they had to smell it the whole trip, but sitting in the back was worth while.

Palestine Depot

Eastern Trails Museum, Vinita, Oklahoma

The Eastern Trails Museum sits along old Route 66; its exhibits feature a local Civil War battle, railroads, ranching, mercantile, post office, homecraft, ancient points and pipes, schools, Cherokee influence, military, tools, Will Rogers' youth, and more. Vinita was founded in 1871 with Tom Buffington as its first Mayor, serving four terms, he was also Chief of the Cherokees from 1899 to 1903.

St. Philippine Duchesne Memorial Park & Shrine, Centerville, Kansas

The St. Rose Philippine Duchesne Park memorializes the lives and the work of early Kansas settlers and is the original site of the Potawatomi Indians and Missionary community at Sugar Creek Mission. This park has been well preserved, and serves as a spiritual, educational, and recreational opportunity for Catholics, and for those who will appreciate this rich piece of Kansas history. The correct address for the park is 8499 W 1525th Road, Centerville, KS 66014. 

The entrance to the park has been enhanced by a fort-style gate to visualize the frontier days of the mid 1800’s. 

Mammoth Cave Wildlife Museum, Cave City, Kentucky

You don't have to travel to Africa, India, or a big city zoo to see some of the rarest animals on the face of the earth. Since 1969 the MAMMOTH CAVE WILDLIFE MUSEUM features some of the greatest animals ever. The museum has nearly 14,000 square feet of exhibit area containing rare and exotic animals such as tigers, lions, bears, leopards (including the Snow Leopard - one of the rarest cats in the world), deer, sheep, ox, and much more. It is Kentucky's first and largest outstanding wildlife museum. The museum doesn't stop at the big animals; they also have a huge selection of marine life, insects, birds, and many more creatures.

Military Memorial Museum, Crossville, Tennessee

The Military Memorial Museum was founded in 2002 by Robert and Nita Boring. The museum has grown through donations from local veterans and military buffs across the country and from around the world. It is housed in the old courthouse, which had caught on fire while still used as a courthouse. This fire weakened the flooring upstairs, so it is now used as a storage area and not open to the public. There are a couple of veterans who volunteer in the museum and give a small tour to visitors. The museum is supported by a board of directors and a cadre of volunteers.

The collection covers military history and artifacts from the Civil War to the present conflicts. The museum is centrally located across from the historic Cumberland County Courthouse landmark. 

Cumberland Homesteads & Tower Museum, Crossville, Tennessee

Crossville, Tennessee is a small city midway between Knoxville and Nashville, north of Chattanooga. People lived in the area for many years and in the years leading up to the 1929 depression found thousands of unemployed miners, textile mill workers, and farmers.

The Cumberland Homesteads project emerged from the New Deal era begun with the election of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 when the country was in the grip of the Great Depression. President Roosevelt called a special session of Congress to enact a series of measures to deal directly with the severity of the economic decline that was affecting the lives of millions of people. The unemployed people of this area applied for one of the proposed 250 Homesteads to be constructed and purchased by the selected Homesteaders who had to meet rigid requirements of “high character, ability, honesty, and willingness to work and cooperate with the government in this planned community.”

The Cumberland Homesteads Museum is dedicated to their history.

Homesteads Tower

Andy Griffith Museum, Mt. Airy, North Carolina

During our stay at Lake Myers in Mocksville, I discovered the Andy Griffith Museum in Mt. Airy, about an hours drive north of where we were staying. We love watching Andy Griffith, mostly when he was the sheriff of Mayberry with Barnie, Aunt Bea and Opie. In fact, we still watch the shows that run on some of the channels. It's not a huge museum; it does not take a long time to go through it. There are two levels - the upper part deals with the history of Mayberry and touches a little on when Andy Griffith played Matlock. The downstairs tells a little about Barnie's girlfriend, Thelma Lou (Betty Lynn) along with an exhibit about a set of Siamese Twins that lived in Mt. Airy.

N.C. Transportation Museum, Spencer, North Carolina

The North Carolina Transportation Museum is located on the site of what was once Southern Railway's Spencer Shops, the largest steam locomotive repair facility in the southeast. This 60-acre site features an authentic train depot, antique and vintage automobiles, locomotives and railcars from the heyday of railroading, aviation exhibits, and North America's largest remaining roundhouse. They offer seasonal train rides, guided tours for scheduled groups, specialty tours offered seasonally, and events throughout the year.

Botanical Gardens, Gainesville, Georgia

Our truck was due for some much needed differential work, so we took her to Greene Ford in Gainesville. There was a Ford dealer closer to Fort Yargo, but they would not work on our truck, giving us the excuse that it was too old and had too many miles on it. So we would not have to sit and wait for the three hours it would take for them to do the work, Jack and Tam'ra came and picked us up whereupon we all went to the Botanical Gardens for a couple of hours before having lunch.

I always enjoy walking through nature ~~ flowers and greenery. It is so peaceful and beautiful. Tam'ra goes there often to take art lessons and has a pass to get in. 

Boyett's Grove & Citrus Attraction Museum, Brooksville, Florida

We have been going to the Tin Can Tourists rally at the Sertoma Youth Ranch for many years now, but was cancelled this year. I started to look for things to do in the area and discovered Boyett's Grove & Citrus Attraction Museum, just a few miles from the Ranch. Boyett's is located in Brooksville, Florida at the top of a hill on Spring Lake Highway.