At Forbes, Rich Karlgaard explains how we can live better in places like — well, Albuquerque.
Category: Places & Travel
Fort Laramie (Wyoming)
… was designated a national monument on this date in 1938. It became a national historic site in 1960.
Fort Laramie — the Crossroads of a Nation Moving West. This unique historic place preserves and interprets one of America’s most important locations in the history of westward expansion and Indian resistance.
In 1834, where the Cheyenne and Arapaho travelled, traded and hunted, a fur trading post was created. Soon to be known as Fort Laramie, it rested at a location that would quickly prove to be the path of least resistance across a continent. By the 1840s, wagon trains rested and resupplied here, bound for Oregon, California and Utah.
In 1849 as the Gold Rush of California drew more westward, Fort Laramie became a military post, and for the next 41 years, would shape major events as the struggle between two cultures for domination of the northern plains increased into conflict. In 1876, Fort Laramie served as an anchor for military operations, communication, supply and logistics during the “Great Sioux War.”
Fort Laramie closed, along with the frontier it helped shape and influence in 1890. Its legacy is one of peace and war, of cooperation and conflict; a place where the west we know today was forged.
George Washington Carver National Monument (Missouri)
… was established on this date in 1943.
George Washington Carver’s boyhood home consists of rolling hills, woodlands, and prairies. The 210 acre park has a 3/4 mile nature trail, museum, and an interactive exhibit area for students. The cultural setting includes the 1881 Historic Moses Carver house and the Carver cemetery.
So, which is it?
Mumbai or Bombay?
MUMBAI, India, July 12 — A bank worker did not ….
BOMBAY, India (AP) — Authorities named two suspects ….
Bombay officially became Mumbai in 1997. Bom baía originated with the Portuguese and means good bay. The British converted it to Bombay. Mumbai is the name the area long had in the indigenous languages and is thought to refer to the mother goddess, Mumbadevi.
Don’t worry, be happy
LONDON (AFP) – The tiny South Pacific Ocean archipelago of Vanuatu is the happiest country on Earth, according to a study published measuring people’s wellbeing and their impact on the environment.
Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica and Panama complete the top five in the Happy Planet Index, compiled by the British think-tank New Economics Foundation (NEF).
The index combines life satisfaction, life expectancy and environmental footprint — the amount of land required to sustain the population and absorb its energy consumption.
Zimbabwe came bottom of the 178 countries ranked, below second-worst performer Swaziland, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ukraine.
The Group of Eight industrial powers meet in Saint Petersburg this weekend but have not much to smile about, according to the index.
Italy came out best in 66th place, ahead of Germany (81), Japan (95), Britain (108), Canada (111), France (129), the United States (150) and Russia, in lowly 172nd place.
…Selected others: 17. Philippines; 23. Indonesia; 31. China; 32. Thailand; 44. Malaysia; 62. India; 64. Iceland; 70. Netherlands; 87. Spain; 88. Hong Kong; 89. Saudi Arabia; 99. Denmark; 112. Pakistan; 115. Norway; 119. Sweden; 123. Finland; 139. Australia; 154. UAE; 156. South Africa; 159. Kuwait; 166. Qatar.
— Via Yahoo! News
Coronado National Memorial (Arizona)
… was renamed on this date in 1952. It had been first designated Coronado International Memorial, but an adjoining Mexican memorial was never created.
“As a result of this expedition, what has been truly characterized by historians as one of the greatest land expeditions the world has known, a new civilization was established in the great American Southwest” reported the House Committee on Foreign Affairs in 1939. “To commemorate permanently the explorations of Francisco Vásquez de Coronado…would be of great value in advancing the relationship of the United States and Mexico upon a friendly basis of cultural understanding,” stated E. K. Burlew, Acting Secretary of the Interior in 1940. It would “stress the history and problems of the two countries and would encourage cooperation for the advancement of their common interests.”
Roosevelt Campobello International Park
… was established on this date in 1964.
The Roosevelt Campobello International Park is not a unit of the United States National Park Service or Parks Canada. It is administered by a joint U.S./Canadian Commission, funded equally by the two countries.
The Roosevelt Campobello International Park is a unique example of international cooperation. This 2800 acre park is a joint memorial by Canada and the United States and a symbol of the close relationship between the two countries. Here are the cottage and the grounds where President Roosevelt vacationed, the waters where he sailed, and the woods, bogs, and beaches where he tramped and relaxed.
Independence National Historical Park (Pennsylvania)
… was established 50 years ago today.
Independence National Historical Park, located in downtown (called “Center City”), Philadelphia, is often referred to as the birthplace of our nation. At the park, visitors can see the Liberty Bell, an international symbol of freedom, and Independence Hall, a World Heritage Site where both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were created. In addition, the park interprets events and the lives of the diverse population during the years when Philadelphia was the capital of the United States from 1790 to 1800. A section of the park where Benjamin Franklin’s home once stood is dedicated to teaching about Franklin’s life and accomplishments. Spanning approximately 45 acres, the park has about 20 buildings open to the public.
Are We There Yet?
Bruce Barcott begins his review of Cross Country by Robert Sullivan:
In the summer of 1981 my parents packed my sister and me into our 1973 Gran Torino station wagon and drove, on a route resembling a fishhook, from our home in Ventura, Calif., to Ensenada, Mexico, and then straight up the spine of I-5 to our grandparents’ house in Everett, Wash. Along the way, things happened. The Torino lacked air-conditioning, so we sucked motel ice cubes as we drove the length of California’s broiling Central Valley. My sister and I stared daggers at our father when he vetoed our plan to see the Trees of Mystery, a tourist trap near Crescent City. It was getting late, he said, and we had to make time. The next day the Torino’s transmission blew out near Grants Pass, Ore., and we “made time” sitting in a laundermat waiting for the parts to arrive. Agony in the doing and ecstasy in the telling, the trip has become a central part of our family lore. My sister and I can still crack each other up by muttering, “Trees of Mystery.”
Cross Country is subtitled: Fifteen Years and 90,000 Miles on the Roads and Interstates of America with Lewis and Clark, a lot of bad motels, a moving van, Emily Post, … kids, and enough coffee to kill an elephant.
“Cross Country” tells the story of one such trip: a simple west-to-east crossing that takes the Sullivans from his wife’s cousin’s wedding near Portland, Ore., to New York. Riding with the author in a rented Impala are his wife, his teenage son, his younger daughter and a rooftop luggage pack that threatens to disintegrate at highway speeds. Though technically a travel memoir, “Cross Country” aspires to be much more: a survey of cross-country road trips written with the languid pace and arcane detail that might characterize a six-day drive with a charming, talkative history buff.
Thanks to Veronica for the tip.
And click here for Jill’s take on our own family vacations.
An exciting day
Reopening today after six years are the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
The two share the Patent Office building in Washington and the building itself was always part of the attraction. Its construction began in the 1830s and, among much else, it served as the first American history exhibit hall — it displayed the Declaration of Independence, for example, and Washington’s tent. The Patent Office was also the site of Lincoln’s second inaugural ball (1865). For NewMexiKen, it was satisfying just to walk its halls (I worked three blocks away for six years and often went there during lunch.)
Now the building has been refurbished and the museums re-done. The reviews have been singing praises. I can’t wait to return.
Eye Level will be blogging the opening today.
Oh, Canada
Today is Canada Day, a holiday in that country celebrating its formation independent from Britain on this date in 1867. The holiday was called Dominion Day until 1982 (in Quebec Le Jour de la Confédération). Three British colonies were joined to form Canada — Canada (which included Ontario and Quebec), Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
It’s a day
… we honor two venerable American institutions.
On this date in 1864 Abraham Lincoln signed the land grant preserving Yosemite Valley.
And Lena Horne is 89 today.
Olympic National Park (Washington)
… was renamed and redesignated on this date in 1938. It had been Mount Olympus National Monument since 1909.
Glacier capped mountains, wild Pacific coast and magnificent stands of old-growth forests, including temperate rain forests — at Olympic National Park, you can find all three. About 95% of the park is designated wilderness, which further protects these diverse and spectacular ecosystems.
Olympic is also known for its biological diversity. Isolated for eons by glacial ice, and later the waters of Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Olympic Peninsula has developed its own distinct array of plants and animals. Eight kinds of plants and 15 kinds of animals are found on the peninsula but no where else on Earth.
Fort Union National Monument (New Mexico)
… was created on this date in 1954, when President Eisenhower signed a bill authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to acquire the site and remaining structures.
Fort Union was established in 1851 by Lieutenant Colonel Edwin V. Sumner as a guardian and protector of the Santa Fe Trail. During it’s forty-year history, three different forts were constructed close together. The third and final Fort Union was the largest in the American Southwest, and functioned as a military garrison, territorial arsenal, and military supply depot for the southwest. Today, visitors use a self-guided tour path to visit the second fort and the large, impressive ruins of the third Fort Union. The largest visible network of Santa Fe Trail ruts can be seen here.
Petroglyph National Monument (New Mexico)
… was authorized on this date in 1990.
As you walk among the petroglyphs, you are not alone. This world is alive with the sights and sounds of the high desert – a hawk spirals down from the mesa top, a roadrunner scurries into fragrant sage, a desert millipede traces waves in the sand. There is another presence beyond what we can see or hear. People who have lived along the Rio Grande for many centuries come alive again through images they carved on the shiny black rocks. These images, and associated archeological sites in the Albuquerque area, provide glimpses into a 12,000 year long story of human life in this area.
Petroglyph National Monument stretches 17 miles along Albuquerque’s West Mesa, a volcanic basalt escarpment that dominates the city’s western horizon. Authorized June 27, 1990, the 7,236 acre monument is cooperatively managed by the National Park Service and the City of Albuquerque.
Petroglyph National Monument protects a variety of cultural and natural resources including five volcanic cones, hundreds of archeological sites and an estimated 25,000 images carved by native peoples and early Spanish settlers. Many of the images are recognizable as animals, people, brands and crosses; others are more complex. Their meaning, possibly, understood only by the carver. These images are inseparable from the greater cultural landscape, from the spirits of the people who created them, and all who appreciate them.
Petroglyph National Monument is a place of respect, awe and wonderment.
Pecos National Monument (New Mexico)
… was redesignated Pecos National Historical Park on this date in 1990.
Pecos preserves 12,000 years of history including the ancient pueblo of Pecos, two Spanish Colonial Missions, Santa Fe Trail sites, 20th century ranch history of Forked Lightning Ranch, and the site of the Civil War Battle of Glorieta Pass.
Thomas Jefferson Memorial (Washington, DC)
A national memorial to Thomas Jefferson was authorized on this date in 1934. It was dedicated in 1943.
Thomas Jefferson-political philosopher, architect, musician, book collector, scientist, horticulturist, diplomat, inventor, and third President of the United States-looms large in any discussion of what Americans are as a people. Jefferson left to the future not only ideas but also a great body of practical achievements. President John F. Kennedy recognized Jefferson’s accomplishments when he told a gathering of American Nobel Prize winners that they were the greatest assemblage of talent in the White House since Jefferson had dinner there alone. With his strong beliefs in the rights of man and a government derived from the people, in freedom of religion and the separation between church and state, and in education available to all. Thomas Jefferson struck a chord for human liberty 200 years ago that resounds through the decades. But in the end, Jefferson’s own appraisal of his life, and the one that he wrote for use on his own tombstone, suffices: “Author of the Declaration of American Independence, of the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom, and Father of the University of Virginia.”
Some fortunate wedding parties are able to have photos taken at the Jefferson Memorial among architect John Russell Pope’s beautiful columns and curves.
The battle at Little Bighorn
… took place 130 years ago today. Dee Brown wrote the following for The Reader’s Companion to American History:
In 1876, under command of Gen. Alfred Terry, Custer led the Seventh Cavalry as one force in a three-pronged campaign against Sitting Bull’s alliance of Sioux and Cheyenne camps in Montana. During the morning of June 25, Custer’s scouts reported spotting smoke from cooking fires and other signs of Indians in the valley of the Little Bighorn. Disregarding Terry’s orders, Custer decided to attack before infantry and other support arrived. Although scouts warned that he was facing superior numbers (perhaps 2,500 warriors), Custer divided his regiment of 647 men, ordering Capt. Frederick Benteen’s battalion to scout along a ridge to the left and sending Maj. Marcus Reno’s battalion up the valley of the Little Bighorn to attack the Indian encampment. With the remainder of the regiment, Custer continued along high ground on the right side of the valley. In the resulting battle, he and about 250 of his men, outnumbered by the warriors of Crazy Horse and Gall, were surrounded and annihilated. Reno and Benteen suffered heavy casualties but managed to escape to a defensive position.
Evan S. Connell’s Son of the Morning Star is generally regarded as the finest book on the battle; indeed, one of the finest on western American history. James Welch’s Killing Custer tells the story more from the Indian perspective.
Landscape photo credit: Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. Custer marker photo: NewMexiKen 1995.
Ford’s Theatre (Washington, DC)
… was designated a national historic site on this date in 1970.
America’s transfer from civil war to peace was made more difficult on April 14, 1865, when Abraham Lincoln was shot and killed, just five days after General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House. A well-known actor, John Wilkes Booth, desperate to aid the dying Confederacy, stepped into the president’s box. Booth’s decision to pull the trigger altered the nation’s power to reconstruct after the war. Booth escaped into the night as Abraham Lincoln was carried to the Petersen boarding house across the street. It was there that President Lincoln died early the next morning, and became the first American president to be assassinated.
TurnHere
A video about Albuquerque’s Nob Hill from TurnHere, a great site with informative and interesting videos about tourist locations everywhere.
Prince William Forest Park (Virginia)
… was renamed from Chopawamsic Recreation Demonstation Area on this date in 1948. The trails and campsites were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps.
Established in 1936, the 15,000 acre Prince William Forest Park is the largest protected natural area in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region. The park is the largest example of Piedmont forest in the National Park System. The park also protects the Quantico Creek watershed and is a sanctuary for numerous native plant and animal species.
A variety of recreational opportunities are available, which include wildlife viewing, 37 miles of hiking trails, and 21 miles of bicycle accessible roads and trails.
Monocacy National Battlefield (Maryland)
… was first designated Monocacy National Military Park on this date in 1934. It was redesignated a national battlefield in 1976.
Known as the “Battle That Saved Washington”, the battle of Monocacy on July 9, 1864 between 18,000 Confederate forces under General Jubal Early, and 5,800 Union forces under General Lew Wallace, marked the last campaign of the Confederacy to carry the war into the north. One of the objectives of this campaign was to capture Washington, D.C.
Although this battle was a military victory for the Confederates, it was also a defeat. Time spent for battle cost the Confederates a day’s delay in marching on the federal capital. General Lew Wallace’s defense along the Monocacy bought critical time to allow Washington to be reinforced. Early’s raid would be thwarted and the war would be taken to the south for the rest of the war.
Let’s all move to Elk Grove
Elk Grove, Calif., had the nation’s fastest growth rate among large cities (100,000 or more population) between July 1, 2004, and July 1, 2005, according to new U.S. Census Bureau population estimates.
Located south of Sacramento, Elk Grove is a relatively new city, having incorporated less than six years ago. Elk Grove’s population increased 12 percent during the period, to 112,338. It was joined on the list of the 10 fastest-growing cities by three others in California: Moreno Valley (ranking sixth), Rancho Cucamonga (seventh) and Irvine (10th). These three cities are each located in southern California.
Florida had three cities among the fastest growing: Port St. Lucie (third), Cape Coral (fifth) and Miramar (eighth). Two cities in Arizona were in the top 10 — Gilbert (fourth) and Chandler (eighth) — and, relatively nearby, North Las Vegas, Nev., was second.
Phoenix had the largest population increase of any city between 2004 and 2005. San Antonio; Fort Worth, Texas; North Las Vegas, Nev.; and Gilbert, Ariz., rounded out the list of the five biggest numerical gainers.
New York City continued to be the nation’s most populous city, with 8.1 million residents in 2005. This was more than twice the population of Los Angeles, which ranked second at 3.8 million. The estimates show that among the 10 largest cities, one change has occurred in the rankings: San Antonio has replaced San Diego as the nation’s seventh most populous city.
Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site (North Dakota)
… was established on this date 40 years ago.
A trip to Fort Union takes you back in time to the mid-19th century, the heyday of Fort Union and the fur trade on the Upper Missouri river.
Tour the partially reconstructed fort and walk where many famous folk from several countries and cultures walked, folk such as Kenneth McKenzie, Alexander & Natawista Culbertson, Father Pierre DeSmet, Sitting Bull, Karl Bodmer, and Jim Bridger.
Fort Union Trading Post was the most important fur trading post on the upper Missouri from 1828 to 1867. At this post, the Assiniboine, Crow, Cree, Ojibway, Blackfeet, Hidatsa, and other tribes traded buffalo robes and other furs for trade goods such as beads, guns, blankets, knives, cookware, and cloth.
Today, the reconstructed Fort Union represents a unique era in American history, a brief period when two different civilizations found common ground and mutual benefit through commercial exchange and cultural acceptance.
NPS Photo by Linda Gordon Rokosz
Appomattox Court House National Historical Park (Virginia)
… was designated a U. S. War Department Battlefield Site on this date in 1930. It became a National Historical Monument in 1935 and a National Historical Park in 1954.
Walk the old country lanes where Robert E. Lee, Commanding General of the Army of Northern Virginia, surrendered his men to Ulysses Grant, General-in-Chief of all United States forces, on April 9, 1865. Imagine the events that signaled the end of the Southern States’ attempt to create a separate nation. The National Park encompasses approximately 1800 acres of rolling hills in rural central Virginia. The site includes the McLean home (surrender site) and the village of Appomattox Court House, Virginia, the former county seat for Appomattox County. The site also has the home and burial place of Joel Sweeney – the popularizer of the modern five string banjo. There are twenty seven original 19th century structures on the site.