Tale of Two Cities

A short while ago, a friend of mine flew in from Chicago to visit.  We had known each other for some time (and for more years than I probably should admit too) but have never met in person.  We met "chatting" on-line and when the chat site closed down, continued our friendship through each others blog.

It was so nice to see her in person, finally!

We didn't have a whole lot of time, just a couple days, and have talked about so many places in the "Philly" neighborhood - we had to make a short list from a very long list of things to do and see (and places to eat at!)

Fortunately, she said, "Remember Paoli!" - and so we went to the Paoli Massacre site (actually located in Malvern) and looked at the corn fields that grew wheat.  The Battle of Paoli (also known as the Battle of Paoli Tavern or the Paoli Massacre) was a battle in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 20, 1777, in the area surrounding present-day Malvern, Pennsylvania.

Paoli Massacre Monument

 George Washington left a force under the command of Brigadier General Anthony Wayne behind in order to monitor and harass the British as they prepared to move on the revolutionary capital of Philadelphia. On the evening of September 20, British forces under the command of Major General Charles Grey led a surprise attack on Wayne's encampment near the Paoli Tavern.

A total of 272 men were killed, wounded or missing from Wayne's division after the battle.  The British lost only 4 men.  After visiting the fields - we had dinner at the "Paoli Tavern" and shared excellent food and drink with the ghosts of battle.

Paoli Tavern - now the General Warren Inne

The next morning, we went to Valley Forge National Historical Park - and visited the statue of "Mad" Anthony Wayne - who rides a horse and looks toward his home (Waynesboro) and the nearby Paoli Massacre site.

Mad Anthony Wayne Statue (with friends)

The weather that morning was as nice it gets - we visited the outer line of defenses and stopped to see the arch, which honors General George Washington as a Mason, and the men that served under him through their suffering at Valley Forge.

Valley Forge Masonic Arch

George Washington stayed in a tent until his men had built themselves shelters, crude log huts of 9-12 men hardly big enough for that many men to simply stand up in.  Once satisfied his men were housed the best as could be expected, he (and Martha) moved into the home of Issac Potts.  There my friend and I woke up a sleepy park ranger and asked questions just to see if he could talk (well, sort of, anyway..)

Washington's Headquarters - Valley Forge - Issac Potts House

The real "blessing" of the months long stay at Valley Forge were the lessons in soldering, drills on marching in large formations, weapons firing, use of the bayonet, and responding to drum beaten orders. Lessons given by Baron Friedrich von Steuben.

"On February 23, 1777, von Steuben reported for duty to Washington at Valley Forge. Von Steuben spoke little English and he often yelled to his translator, "Over here! Swear at him for me!" Colonel Alexander Hamilton and General Nathanael Greene were of great help in assisting Steuben in drafting a training program for the Army, which found approval with Washington."

My friend and I found the Baron little troubled by a wasp nest that had been made in a most vulnerable place or perhaps we too, might have been called upon to swear at them for the Baron..

Von Steuben

From Valley Forge, we headed downtown to the National Constitution Center and visited the statues of all the signers (and 3 non-signers) of the U.S. Constitution.  We then sort of saw the Liberty Bell - (the line was miles long, so we unfortunately had to skip a close up encounter and settle for peeking in a streaky window.)  We visited Independence Hall, something I have not done since my Grandmother took me there when I was about 7 years old.  With the day growing warmer, we walked to Restaurant Row on South Street, where we partook in a hearty German meal and learned some German (Bier trinken und Deutsch sprechen!) in the Brauhaus Schmidt (after finding it when it got temporarily lost).

Liberty Bell and Independence Hall

After another delicious meal, we got the car out of the parking garage (finally!) and went to see Fort Mifflin - which is conveniently located to the airport my friend was to fly home from and inconveniently closed when we got there.  I talked the park ranger into letting us in for a few minutes after explaining my out of town friend might not ever have a chance to see the place again.

That morning, we stood on the banks of Valley Creek and the Schuylkill River at Valley Forge.  Our too brief time together came to a close with us standing on the banks of the Delaware River at Fort Mifflin.

 

I left my friend worn out and probably a bit "overloaded" - and hope sometime, soon, there will be a next time.

...and truth be told, for me, the highlight of the entire weekend was hugging her hello - followed closely by her company over a good meal.