Tuesday, 3/2, I went to a cemetery (Graham cemetery) full of family names (Grinstead, Roush, Weaver, Curry) in New Haven, WV. I may have to explore that cemetery one more time on my way to Ohio this weekend.
Above is a cluster of gravestones of Grinsteads. My grandfather's family came from New Haven, and I bet there are still Grinsteads living in the area.
After leaving New Haven, I headed toward Summersville, WV. Just down the road from Summersville is the New River Gorge Bridge which I wanted to cross. I stopped and walked to a viewpoint and walked through the visitors center. If you are into bridges, it would be a great park to explore. I crossed the bridge twice since I had to come back to head to Cass Scenic Railroad State Park.
I headed on to Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. The website was not clear on whether it was open for train rides this time of year. It was not. Too bad, because it was a beautiful day and it would have been a great train ride. They open in May, so maintenance guys were working and people in the gift shop had a lot of time to answer questions and help me on my way to Charlottesville.
I could spend a lot of time in Charlottesville area. Monticello is beautiful and there were knowledgable guides and docents all over the place with a very small number of visitors. I was glad to finally see Thomas Jefferson's home, his architecture and inventions.
Monticello above.
Sally Hemings' slave quarters were interesting to see. Nothing like Jefferson's home. They have added a lot of information and guidance on the slaves and lives of her family since the genetic testing in 1998 pretty much confirmed that her children were also Jefferson's children.
Jefferson was a brilliant man who admitted that future generations would have to solve the slavery problem. He could not in his time.
After Monticello, I walked to the pedestrian mall in Historic Charlottesville.
I had a cup of coffee here and visited some of the art boutiques on the mall. Notice there are no crowds at all. I bet on a summer weekend it is ... vibrant. Lots of breweries, restaurants, art boutiques and interesting people here.
I decided to walk to University of Virginia and see the rotunda and campus. It was a bustling campus. Lots of students walking everywhere. Cars, buses, scooters, and me just lollygagging along.
The Jefferson-designed rotunda was beautiful, as I expected. I had seen it earlier in the day from his grounds at Monticello from a distance. The guide explained that Jefferson liked Octagonal designs architecturally. The dome at Monticello and the dome of the rotunda at UVA were very similar.
Not sure where I'll be in the next few days, except for watching some UVA womens tennis, so I'll add another blog entry in a couple days.
