The Hotel Le Negresco

A contemporary picture of the Hotel Le Negresco.

The January/February edition of The History Channel Magazine has a nice article about the Negresco Hotel in Nice, France. Writer Kelly E. Carter did a wonderful job of laying out the historical significance of the stylish hotel along the French Riviera that is once again becoming a popular tourist destination for those not overly concerned with a budget. The article highlights the history of the building, notes some of the artwork that can be found there. The author also points out many of the celebrities that are known to have stayed there over the years.

Unfortunately, and much to my disappointment, Carter's only mention of the Hotel Le Negresco's witness to WWII history was one simple sentence:

"During World War II, the Negresco was seized by American soldiers and used as a rest home."

I thought that this period in the hotel's history deserved a bit more explanation, so I will quickly review that here.

This photo was simply labeled "Nice, 1944." But I believe that is the
Negresco Hotel down the boardwalk. Courtesy Edward R. Reuter.

Operation Dragoon, the U.S. Seventh Army's liberation of southern France, began on August 15th with beach landings centered around St. Tropez and airborne landings inland in the area of Le Muy. While French forces turned south to take the ports of Marseilles and Toulon, Seventh Army moved inland. Working up the coast of southern France, covering the right flank of Seventh Army, was the 1st Airborne Task Force (FABTF) that included the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion. Cannes and Nice were liberated by the 509th Combat Team (the Gingerbread Men with the 551st Parachute Infantry Battalion attached) at the end of August 1944. These cities along the Côte d'Azur jubilantly welcomed the Allied forces with parades and parties. The Negresco Hotel (mentioned on page 238 of "The Boldest Plan is the Best," if you'll forgive a shameless plug) was indeed occupied and operated as an officer's club and R & R center for the remainder of the war. While the 509th PIB and other units in Seventh Army operated in southern France, soldiers were able to visit the Negresco and others like it for a well earned respite from combat and living in the field.

The boardwalk in Nice, 1944 from the other direction.
Image courtesy of Edward R. Reuter.

Although I'm sure that the men would have rather seen places like Naples, Rome, Cannes, and Nice in happier times, these areas brought unforgettable memories for many of the veterans I interviewed. Most of these "country boys" had never seen anything so spectacular and most never went back. I might also mention that one of the celebrity guests Kelly Carter forgot to put on her list was Audie Murphy, but his stay in 1945 was as a new second lieutenant commissioned on the battlefield, not as a famous actor or author. Of course in my opinion, not just the Geronimos but all of the soldiers, sailors, and airmen who stayed in the Hotel Le Negresco and places like it are celebrities.

The photograph at the top of the post is of the Negresco today. I've included a couple of pictures of the boardwalk in Nice from the collection provided for "The Boldest Plan is the Best: The Combat History of the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion during WWII" from Mr. Edward R. Reuter; these photos were taken in 1944. You can find out more about the Negresco Hotel in Nice at the Hotel's website.

"War is a Racket" by Smedley Butler

The other day I picked up a copy of Steinbeck's "Cannery Row" and gave it a read. I kind of feel like my cultural literacy is lacking somewhat because I haven't read all the greats of American literature, especially Steinbeck, Hemingway, and Twain. Often I feel the same way about the classics of military history. You know, there are books out there that have been talked about for decades, but I never got around to reading them. Like Robert Leckie's "Helmet for my Pillow" or Cornelius Ryan's "The Longest Day." (No, just watching the movie doesn't count.) So I decided to start working some of these books into my reading pile. It's really pretty easy to acquire a large selection, between the library, Amazon, and used book sales. The other day I found a copy of Pappy Boyington's "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" at my library's used book sale and picked it up for only fifty cents! But before I could even begin reading it, something (I don't remember what now) reminded me of this quote:

“I spent 33 years and four months in active military service and during that period I spent most of my time as a high class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism. I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit of Wall Street. I helped purify Nicaragua for the International Banking House of Brown Brothers in 1902-1912. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for the American sugar interests in 1916. I helped make Honduras right for the American fruit companies in 1903. In China in 1927 I helped see to it that Standard Oil went on its way unmolested. Looking back on it, I might have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents.” 

- Major General Smedley D. Butler, USMC 

Smedley D. Butler

I first heard that quote in a Military History class at Cal State Fresno (a requirement for the ROTC program) in 1983. The professor read that quote to the class and he immediately had my attention. Thirty years later it popped in my mind again and I had to go to the library and check out General Butler's book and read it... again. That's a classic: a book that speaks to you so loudly you are compelled to read it again decades later.

Smedley Darlington Butler served in the United States Marine Corps for 34 years. He was awarded the Marine Corps Brevet Medal (one of only twenty to receive it) and two Medals of Honor. At the time of his death, he was the most highly decorated Marine in U.S. history. He served and fought in the Philippine-American War, the Boxer Rebellion in China, the "Banana Wars" in Central America and the Caribbean that included service in Haiti and Nicaragua. He was part of the occupation of Veracruz, Mexico in 1914, and served in France during WWI. In the later part of the 1920s, Butler commanded the Marine Expeditionary Force in China. I suppose that you can draw the conclusion that Smedley Butler knew about war.

Butler was an outspoken man. Because of his progressive views about big business capitalism, defense, and military spending in the early days of the Great Depression, he ran afoul of the Hoover administration. Butler was threatened with court martial for public statements criticizing the new fascist dictator in Italy, Benito Mussolini (in the early 1930s some folks in this country admired fascism as an effective methodology for dealing with the worldwide economic depression). Although he was obviously the best choice for Commandant of the Marine Corps, he was passed over for the job. Major General Butler quietly retired from the Marine Corps in 1931.

After his military service, Smedley Butler became an outspoken isolationist during the 1930s. He gained notoriety after being called to testify before a Congressional Committee investigating charges that there had been a fascist plot to overthrow President Roosevelt. Butler claimed that a group of businessmen had approached him about leading the insurrection army. (This is the subject of Jules Archer's book "The Plot to Seize the White House." I find the concept believable, but I admit I have not read the book.) During this period, some of Butler's speeches were combined into a short - 66 page - book that became an antiwar classic.

"War is a Racket" by Smedley Butler was first published in 1935. In the book, Butler lays out an argument that America's wars of the twentieth century were all fought for the profit of corporations, culminating with his listing of facts and figures on the profits made by industry as a result of supplying Allied armies (and in some cases alleging that we sold equipment to the enemy) during WWI. In his view, Butler saw the same situation occurring with the world gearing up for WWII. He advocated strictly using our military for defensive purposes only. His plan to ensure it included a constitutional amendment that forbade ground troops from every leaving the continental United States.

Smedley Butler did not live to see the mood of the country turn from isolationism in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor. He passed away on June 24, 1940. But his book became an antiwar classic, and also a military history classic. Because, despite the fact that in my opinion his message rings as true today as it did when he wrote it, "War is a Racket" also lets us see a viewpoint held by a large segment of the American population during the Depression years and the build up to the Second World War. A view that is often downplayed in historical texts of today. And in case you're wondering, reading this antiwar book did not make me question my decision to become an Army officer. It actually had the opposite affect. If anything, hearing both sides of any argument is a good thing. 

Remembering Vietnam

Dak To, South Vietnam. An infantry patrol moves up to

assault the last Viet Cong position after an attempted

overrun of the artillery position by the Viet Cong during

Operation Hawthorne. June 7, 1966. National Archives.

Although my passion is WWII and the "Old West," I'm still pretty much all over the map and the timeline of American History. (The "Roving Historian" is not just a physical thing, eh?) I took note of a couple of interesting news items concerning the Vietnam War this morning.  Several "this day in history" type newsletters and websites informed me that the Paris Peace Accords, the cease fire agreement that effectively ended the Vietnam War officially for the United States, was signed forty years ago yesterday, January 27, 1973. The reality was that combat for American soldiers would go on a little while longer. The other piece of news was from the New York Times. They reported that Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and journalist Stanley Karnow, a chronicler of the Vietnam War, passed away on the same day.

Vietnam: A member of the 5th Infantry Division
(Mechanized) looks out over the fog-shrouded
A Shau Valley, 1969. National Archives.

It is difficult for me to accept an exact date for the beginning of the Vietnam War as it pertains to the United States perspective. We had military advisers in South Vietnam as early as 1950 (one of them was my uncle, a veteran of both Korea and the early years of Vietnam). According to the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readustment Assistance Act of 1974, a Vietnam Veteran is, with a few prerequisites, anyone who served in Vietnam from February 28, 1961 through May 7, 1975.

I know what you're thinking, the dates don't match do they? Well, despite the signing of the Paris Peace Accords by all the parties involved, fighting in Vietnam continued, but formal combat operations were brought to a close by August of that year, 1973. The North Vietnamese Army (NVA) captured Saigon, the South Vietnamese capital in April 1975, marking the actual end of the Vietnam War. The U.S. Census Bureau reported in 2004 that there are 8.2 million "Vietnam Era Veterans" in the United States, 2.59 million of those served "in country." There were 58,282 Americans known to be killed in the Vietnam War and over 300,000 wounded. As many as 779 spent time as a Prisoner of War (POW), 660 of those were either freed or escaped. As many as 1,655 Americans are still unaccounted for and remain listed as "Missing in Action" or MIA.

Duc Pho, Vietnam: Members of the 25th
Infantry Division drink from their canteens
during a break in their patrol operations.
August 31, 1967. National Archives.

Stanley Karnow was a correspondent in Southeast Asia for thirty years. He wrote for publications like the Time, Life, The Saturday Evening Post, The Washington Post, and NBC News. After leaving journalism, he wrote history books. I, in my humble opinion, think his 1983 book, "Vietnam: A History," was the definitive work on the conflict. I enjoyed it because there was no subtext or bias, just factual reporting in a readable voice. Others must have agreed, because the book was the basis for the 13-hour PBS documentary series "Vietnam: A Television History" for the American Experience program. The book was a bestseller but the television series was even more popular, winning six Emmy Awards, a Peabody, a Polk, and a DuPont Columbia Award. Karnow went on to publish other works on subjects pertaining to Vietnam and other facets of American Foreign Policy. He won the Pulitzer Prize for his 1989 book "In Our Image: America's Empire in the Philippines." Mr. Karnow died Sunday at the age of 87.

509th PIB Update: A Gift From Down Under

My mail carrier brought me a real surprise this afternoon. A reminder of a friend in Australia that I have yet to meet in person. I was contacted last November by  Frank, who lives in a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia, concerning a research effort he was participating in. I never told Frank that my sister-in-law and her husband live near Adelaide, so through some weird association in my mind, I just had to help out. Just kidding..you know that I have to jump in on anything having to do with researching the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion. ;-)

You see, Frank has a friend who is the nephew of Kenneth Edney, a British paratrooper during WWII who happened to be killed in action at Anzio while he was with the Geronimos. Frank is helping his friend research the circumstances that led Edney to be with the 509th at Anzio, where no British Airborne units were deployed. There is also some confusion as to whether or not Private Edney was killed in action or taken prisoner and later died of his wounds. Kenneth Edney is mentioned in Richard Fisco's book, "Your Lives Will Be Beautiful," only in passing. Fisco mentions that he was with his scout section and again later, describing the circumstances of his death while on patrol in the area of Carano, Italy on January 30, 1944. My new friends in Australia report to have some documentation of other accounts that conflict with what Fisco remembered happening that day. I did not find Private Edney's name in any of the sources I used for "The Boldest Plan is the Best." I have to assume that he was with the Gingerbread men in an "unofficial" status. The questions I would really like to see answered is why was Private Edney with the 509th PIB at Anzio and under what authority? If anyone has any information about Private Kenneth Edney, his relationship and service with the 509th Parachute Infantry at Anzio, or in prior campaigns, I would certainly appreciate an email.

Back to the boomerang:  So during our correspondence we traded a few emails and I signed a copy of the book for him. As token of appreciation Frank sent me a boomerang! I LOVE IT! Actually, I'm looking at it right now sitting on a shelf over my desk. You know, the best thing about the adventure of researching and writing a history book is the contact with the readers and meeting people who share your interest in that piece of history that is so important to you both. Thank you, Frank. That was a classy gesture. I wish you good luck in solving your "history mystery" and I hope I have the opportunity to travel "down under" one day to meet you in person.

Palatable History Through Fiction

Book Review of "The Fort" by Bernard Cornwell

As you know I enjoy a good historical fiction. The closer the plot is to the historical record the better. One of the books that really turned me on to history years ago was the Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (the greatest historical fiction book of all time, in my humble opinion) and I still run out and pay full price for hard cover as soon as anything by Jeff Shaara is released. I was pleasantly surprised when one of my holiday reads, The Fort by Bernard Cornwell, turned out to be factual historical fiction, a really exciting tale well told and with only minor exceptions, an accurate historical narrative.

Bernard Cornwell is a British author most well known (to me anyway) for his immensely popular Richard Sharpe series about the Napoleonic Wars. He has also written series in the foreground of post-Roman Briton, the Hundred Years War, and Ninth Century England. Occasionally he does venture into American history. I've read a couple of Cornwell's books previously. Namely "Rebel," the first is a series about the Civil War, and "Redcoat" that is set in the American Revolution. Both books were enjoyable reads, but were only a fiction story set in the period. I found a hardback copy of "The Fort" at my library's used book sale recently. I thought it would be the same as the other Cornwell novels - certainly worth the $1 I paid for it - and would make a good Christmas vacation book. I was wrong.

A narrative of the American Revolution, "The Fort" turned out to be Shaara-esque historical fiction. The story is a retelling of the Penobscot Expedition of 1779, where Massachusetts militia and naval vessels sailed to the Penobscot River in (present day) Maine to expel British forces who had recently arrived there to construct a fort and establish a base for naval operations. Upon arrival the Americans outnumbered the British defenders in their woefully unfinished fort and had the initiative. However, the initiative is lost through a series of incompetent decisions on the part of the American militia commander, and lack of action on the part of both him and the American naval commander, born of stubborn pride. The British forces, led by a professional soldier, are able to hold out for weeks until rescue arrives in the form of British warships dispatched from New York. The entire American fleet is lost and the adventure is arguably the worst American naval disaster until Pearl Harbor. In case that isn't interesting enough, the American artillery is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel of militia by the name of Paul Revere. In this novel as in real life, Revere's performance on this operation does not exactly make his country proud or live up to the reputation that is evolved by Longfellow' poem.

Cornwell provides a section of historical notes at the end of the novel that provides the background of the Penobscot Expedition. He also points out the few places where he "took artistic license" to advance the story. The main departures being how many times the Americans tried to lure the British out of their fortifications in small numbers in order to ambush them, and who was present at a truce meeting to inquire about a wounded and captured officer. 

I assume that using a factual plot line from history is new, or certainly seldom used vehicle for Cornwell. That's not to say that his other books are not well researched, I believe they are. I'm saying that he is good at choosing, researching, then re-telling a historical narrative. I enjoyed this book and I learned about an event in our country's history that I dare claim has been down played? This book is getting the best recommendation I can give a novel: I'm sending it to my dad to read. 

I thought the "characters" in this novel were well developed and the book itself was fast paced. Unfortunately, the most disappointing thing about "The Fort" for me was reading the reaction to the book of the one and two-star reviews on Amazon. I wonder how a person can be critical of the plot and characters of a story that is true? I hope Mr. Cornwell writes more books like this. "The Fort" is a keeper, and it is going on the shelf right next to my collection of Shaara novels. ;-)

100 Years of Army Aviation

The Army first took to the air in balloons
Photo from www.army.mil

The Wright brothers made their famous flight of the first heavier-than-air, engine-powered aircraft on December 17, 1903 at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. I knew that. The United States Army purchased their first airplane on August 2, 1909, less than six years after the first powered flight. I did not know that. Less than 90 days later, the first two Army pilots had passed their check rides and by 1914 the Army had created an operational Aviation Section under the command of the Signal Corps. That means that we've had over 100 years of Army Aviation. Having served as an Army aviator in my impetuous youth, I'm a little embarrassed about not knowing that.

My wife, Sheila, actually rescued me from my ignorance when she sent me a link to an Army website titled "100th Anniversary of United States Army Aviation." She thought I "might be interested in it." Was I?! You betcha. The site contains historic photo sets from different periods in Army Aviation history, and a really excellent timeline. Way to go, Army! This website inspired my to do a little more investigating and write up a "Summary History of Army Aviation" for MilitaryVetShop.com.

An early Wright Flyer, circa 1909.
Photo from www.army.mil

Of course we used balloons for military observation since the Civil War. Nevertheless, it is amazing to me that certain leaders within the Army could see the potential military use of powered flight, even when it was in its infancy. (We'll conveniently omit the fact the the Wright brothers did a spectacular sales presentation.) As a matter of fact the Army had its personnel participating in the trials, resulting in the first aviation related death of a soldier on September 17, 1908. Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge was killed in an aircraft crash while doing a test flight with Orville Wright. Orville was injured, but obviously survived.

A much thinner and younger
Roving Historian, back when I
was blissfully unaware of my
 own mortality.

I went through Rotary Wing Flight School at the U.S. Army Aviation Center at Fort Rucker, Alabama in 1984-85. It was the hardest school, in both academic performance and demonstration of acquired (flying) skills, of any course of instruction I have ever been though. That is, of course, with the exception of the Instructor Pilot course three years later. During just over ten years of service I became rated in the UH-1 Huey, the OH-58 Kiowa Scout, the UH-60 Blackhawk, and the CH-47 Chinook. It was a very exciting period in my life, and at times it could be scary too. Many came before me and did what I did. That made every new experience easier to imagine and then make happen. I like to think that I trained more than a few others to take my place before I left. However, I just can't wrap my brain around the level of courage it required to walk out and look at that funky Wright Flyer and climb in beside the former bicycle mechanic who was now selling this contraption to the Army. But aren't we glad they did?

Congratulations, Army! On 100 years of Aviation.

The Indifferent Stars Above

Need I admit it on every post? Yes, I have a book problem. So many intriguing titles come up on my radar that I am constantly adding to my stacks of books in the house and my Amazon wishlists. Some sit in the queue for years while others jump into line ahead of them. I'm still trying to get around to reading all of the classics of American history, not to mention working through all of the great history books that come out every year. For example, can you believe I'm just now getting around to reading Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee?" And not that new version either. I'm reading the paperback version from 1971 that I found in a used bookstore years ago...but I digress...

In 2010 I saw a book about the Donner Party that looked interesting at the time, but I put it on the back burner while I was into a WWII phase with occasional injections of Civil War and French and Indian War books. Lately I have been getting into western history (Wild West?) subjects and California history so I went down to the library (my library's online catalog has wishlists too!) and checked out "The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of A Donner Party Bride" by Daniel James Brown. I liked it. I would urge you to give it a read.

If, for some reason, you've never heard the story of the Donner Party, here's the gist: In 1846, the first major year of travel on the Oregon Trail and the California Trail, several families including a few single workers, their oxen, horses, dogs, etc. take a recommended "shortcut" that in fact puts them more than a month late in crossing the Sierra Nevada mountains. They are trapped for the winter at the top of the mountains, running out of food, eating all of their animals, and eventually some of their own people who died from starvation and exposure. After the survivors were rescued the event became stuff of legend. Donner Pass along Interstate 80 and a California State Park were named for the pioneer group and every student in California public schools learns the tale.

I'm sure I've mentioned before that one of the hallmarks of a good book for me is when I either learn about something I didn't know, or some mythology was dispelled. That was certainly the case with Indifferent Stars. Having grown up in California I held on to the sanitized version of the Donner Party tale as taught to me in school. I thought that they were a cohesive group of family and friends who, under the leadership of (obviously) the patriarch of the Donner family and through no fault of their own, were caught by early snow storms in the mountains and suffered the consequences. A cautionary tale indeed, meant to make the junior high version of the Roving Historian understand the hardships of the pioneers.

Here's the truth as illuminated by Daniel Brown:
The group of three families and some single hired men that became known as the Donner Party did not really come together until they left Fort Bridger in modern day southwest Wyoming. The wagons caught up to each other attempting to make it through "Hastings Cutoff," a supposed shortcut blazed by historic ne'er-do-well Landsford Hastings. The cutoff turned out to be a trail uncut for wagons through the Wasatch mountains of Utah. Rather than saving time it cost the pioneers weeks, thus causing the emigrants to get caught in the Sierras by impassable amounts of snow.

The party was under the leadership of George Donner in name alone. Actually Franklin Graves, the father of the bride referred to in the subtitle of the book, turns out to be a more capable, while informal, leader of the group. Rather than operating as a cohesive team fighting against the elements, the situation more or less turned into "every family for themselves." There were actually three different camp sites in the pass and, with few exceptions, each family hoarded their own supplies. Yes, there were several, independent, incidences of cannibalism.

Daniel Brown writes well. But it is the story itself that makes "The Indifferent Stars Above" a page-turner. There is intrigue, there is murder, there is stupidity, selfishness, and cowardliness. Yet this story also has examples of self-sacrifice, bravery, and fortitude. You'll have the opportunity to transport yourself across time and try to understand what would make a man pack up his family and everything he owns to travel to a mythical land that the only things you know about it were read in a tourist guidebook and where there is a rather good chance that someone you know will die along the way. You will certainly appreciate the hardships of the emigrant trail in reading this "worst case scenario." Much more than the junior high version of you could ever comprehend.

Recommendation: Make Your Own Documentary

I really enjoy watching documentaries. Heck, I like the American Experience better than most movies that have come out lately. I was seriously thinking about writing Ken Burns an email and telling him he's not working hard enough; I'm tired of waiting so long between premieres. So it shouldn't come as a shock to you that I (and I suspect there are many others out there) have always had a closeted desire to make documentaries myself.

Geek that I am, the first thing that I do when something bright and shiny floats by in my mind is to go to Amazon or the library and look for a book on the subject. Like my dad told me when I was a kid: "Anything you can think of, someone's written a book about it. In the library you can learn how to do anything." A few months ago I picked up the book "Making Documentary Films and Videos: A Practical Guide to Planning, Filming, and Editing Documentaries" by Barry Hampe. I've had it on the shelf for a while and I recently picked it up and read through it. You know how it goes, more bright shiny things distracting me, but I can honestly say I wish that I had read it sooner. Why? Because, along with technique, the book gives you an appreciation for how much work goes into producing, writing, filming, and production of the simplest of documentary films.

Right out of the gate let me say that this book is not for those who want to make a two-minute short for YouTube. The author acknowledges that with the technology available to us today, just about anybody can become a documentary filmmaker. But the book is written for those who might want to work on a production that rivals a full-length film, like Mr. Burns' Prohibition. That's not to say that there isn't a great deal of useful information for those of us who want to do short videos.

Probably the most valuable part of the book for me was Chapter 20 The Script. I'm proud to say that I've written a book and a number of articles, but I had no idea how to write a script for a documentary. Trust me, from my limited experience in playing with my little handheld Panasonic Video Camera, and Pinnacle Studio for editing and voice-over, I know that the end result will be tremendously more professional if you write down what you are going to film and what you are going to say long before you start filming. The author devote sixteen pages to writing and formatting the script, which is all I really felt I need. (Although I know that there are many volumes dedicated to the art and science of script writing.) The "Two-Column Script Format" (pg 201)  just makes sense. The book includes a chapter sample of a script and a full treatment of a couple of documentary scripts is included in the appendix.

The author, Barry Hampe, has had a long and full professional career having participated in the making of over 200 documentaries. He talks to his reader in a forthright and straightforward style. This book is about no-nonsense information, presented in an interesting and palatable form. This might not be the sole-source for you if you want to make documentary films but I think it should be on your reading list. After all, I now know what "shooting B-roll" means. ;-)

National Public Lands Day...

And our trip to Sol Duc Falls...

Sol Duc Falls in Olympic National Park.

National Public Lands Day

Saturday, September 29, 2012 was National Public Lands Day. In honor of that day, access to many State and National Parks, as well as other federal lands was free. When I heard about that, I thought it would be a nice "date day" to take Sheila up to Sol Duc Falls in Olympic National Park. Of course we had fun and enjoyed remembering the other times we'd visited (it took us a while to piece together that we had first visited sometime around 1995, then took relatives there again in 2005, and 2009). This morning, being the geek that I am, I thought about our day trip yesterday and then decided to do a little checking up on what National Public Lands Day was all about and the history of Olympic National Park and the Sol Duc area.  Here's what I found out:

National Public Lands Day (NPLD) is an annual event whose purpose is to educate Americans about the environment, our natural resources, and our responsibilities as stewards of those resources. Participating agencies and organizations plan educational events and volunteer projects to enhance the use of publicly held lands. The first NPLD was in 1994 with three sites and 700 volunteers participating. That initial success created an annual event. Last year, more than 170,000 volunteers worked at 2,067 sites across the United States. According to the NPLD website, here's some of what those volunteers accomplished:

• Collected an estimated 23,000 pounds of invasive plants
• Built and maintained an estimated 1,500 miles of trails
• Planted an estimated 100,000 trees, shrubs and other native plants
• Removed an estimated 500 tons of trash from trails and other places
• Contributed an estimated $17 million through volunteer services to improve public lands across the country

Bridge over the Sol Duc River, at the falls.

This year eight federal agencies as well as those at the local, regional, and state level participated, making the NPLD the nation's largest single day volunteer event for public lands. To my chagrin, I did not know any of this when I set out on Saturday morning. Next year, rather than just enjoying a free day in a National Park, I promised myself I would volunteer. 

Sol Duc Falls, Olympic National Park

If you've never been, go. I think that Olympic National Park is one of the most beautiful places on earth. That's why between bouts of wanderlust, Sheila and I have lived in the Puget Sound three different times in our lives. Olympic National Park is 632,000 acres of preserved wilderness. This park includes alpine meadows, glacier topped mountains, temperate rain forest, and about 63 miles of wild northern coastline.

Sol Duc Hot Springs Hotel, c. 1913. Image courtesy of
the Forks, WA Timber Museum.

Americans came to the Olympic Peninsula beginning in the 1850s, attracted by the natural resources available here, meaning land, lumber, and fish. The first step in protecting the area that would become the National Park was in 1897 when President Grover Cleveland designated portions of the peninsula as the Olympic Forest Reserve. FDR signed the Act that created Olympic National Park in 1938. In 1976 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated Olympic part of an international system of Biosphere Reserves. For more in-depth history of the park, check out this pdf from the NPS.

Visitors in the 1920s travel to Sol Duc Hot Springs. Image
courtesy of the Clallam County Historical Society.

The bridge at Sol Duc Falls, c. 1920.
Image from Univ of Washington
Library Special Collections Division,
PH Coll 341.

On the north side of Olympic National Park is the Sol Duc Valley, carved out of the mountains by the Sol Duc River. Along with excellent hiking opportunities, you'll find two attractions at Sol Duc: the Sol Duc Hot Springs and Sol Duc Falls. I don't know who the first European settler was to see Sol Duc Falls. However, in the very early twentieth century, large tracts of timber were purchased around what would later become  national park and national forest land. On of these "timber barons " Michael Earles, built a grand hotel at the sight of a natural mineral hot spring on the Sol Duc river. The hotel opened on May 15, 1912 and one of the obvious attractions for city folk coming to take a mineral bath was the waterfalls a short 2 to 3 mile hike up the river. Visitors have been making their way to view the falls ever since. Unfortunately, the hotel was short-lived, burning down in an accidental fire in 1916. But the reputation of the hot springs and waterfalls had already gotten out. The National Park Service eventually purchase the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort in 1966 and made it park of the park. The trail up to the falls is an easy hike of only eight tenths of a mile. The falls are beautiful year-round, but come in the spring and early summer when the rain and snow melt make for a magnificent experience. You'll know why Native American people, the Quileute, named this river valley "Sol Duc," which means sparkling waters.

These historic images, and others, can be viewed at the Olympic Peninsula Community Museum online.

History of the Labrador Retriever

Did you know that the Labrador Retriever did not come from Labrador? Actually, the dogs originated in Newfoundland. The fishermen of the island used a type of dog they called a "St. John's" dog that would dive in the water to retrieve lost fishing gear. The dog became coveted by hunters of waterfowl and the next thing you know some well-to-do English types had taken some of the dogs to Great Britain to breed as hunting dogs. To distinguish from the larger "Newfoundland" breed of dog, the Brits started calling the St. John's dogs "Labrador dogs." Hey, both islands are in Canada, right?

As you know, my main interest is military history.  But on occasion I like to go do something different.  So for the Thinky Tees store I wrote a brief history of the Labrador Retriever. (I actually appreciated the break from an article on U.S. Navy destroyers I'm working on.) Go read the long version, it turned out to be a really fascinating story. I enjoyed learning where and how our most popular breed of dog came to be.

Book Recommendation:

Along those same lines of "doin' somethin' differnt," I went back the other day and re-read a book that we used in one of my college classes. I had liked it so much in school that when I ran across it on the shelf in the local library I had to check it out and read it again. In Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1940: How Americans Lived Through the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression author David E. Kyvig reviews the advent of incredible technologies that we take for granted today. It's a fascinated read where you'll discover when household electricity became readily available.  With it came an incredible age of technological innovation that brought to your home everything from items that ushered in social change, like the radio, to what we now consider mundane conveniences, like washing machines and vacuum cleaners. I absolutely give it five stars. ;-)

66 Years

I've mentioned before that I enjoy different newsletters and "this day in history" type factoids.  Every morning I look forward to my History Channel "This Day in History" email. Today's lead article informed me that on August 20, 1911, the first around-the-world telegram was sent. Started by the New York Times to see how long it would take to travel the 28,000 plus miles around the globe, the message left New York at 7:00 pm and was passed by 16 different operators to arrive back to the sender sixteen and a half minutes later. The article also points out that 66 years later, to the day, on August 20, 1977, NASA launched the Voyager II spacecraft. Voyager II was the one that carried the copper phonograph record called "Sounds of Earth" with greetings in 60 languages, etc.

In only 66 years we went from sending Morse code by cable around the world to sending a record across the solar system. Amazing. That number, 66, stuck in my head.  Later, I recalled that it was 66 years from the Wright Brothers' first flight at Kitty Hawk (December 17, 1903) to Neil Armstrong's walk on the moon (July 20, 1969). More amazing.  Okay, I know it's just coincidence. But already this morning I talked on a cell phone, sent a text message, and I'm about to publish my observation on the Internet for anyone in the world to read. It sure makes me wonder what we'll be doing 66 years from now.