Natchez, Mississippi Day 6 (GA437)

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.

Because we have 5,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

I’m currently in my 23rd year of full-time RVing and my lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails RV Resort in Bow, Washington. I’ll depart here later this morning.

 

 

 

Since my RVing life is changing (see above), I’m starting to re-visit previously visited places. So rather than constantly re-blogging past entries, I’ve decided to do something different.

  In 2011-2013, Mary and I did a 682 day, 12,679 miles in the motorhome and 8,000 miles in the Bronco, circumnavigation of the United States, which I called The Great Adventure. I called it so because other than my oldest granddaughter’s high school graduation in June in Connecticut, I didn’t know where we would be going or when we would be there!

So, unless I do something really different and unusual warranting a new blog entry, I’ll be posting entries from that trip.

This entry was posted March 24, 2013…

Note: Mary flew from Baton Rouge Airport, Louisiana on March 12 to her home in California. I’m hoping to get her back with me by mid-April. My current plans are to drift SLOWLY north along the Mississippi River to Memphis, Tennessee where I’ll then turn northeast heading for New England for the Summer. Can’t go north too fast because it’s still cold up there! The Mississippi River is rich in history…I expect it to be an interesting passage.
————————————————————————————————————–

The motorhome is still parked at the Loyal Order of Moose Lodge #1662 in Natchez, Mississippi.

 

 

Natchez remained mostly undamaged from the Civil War. Hence this old city with its narrow and many one-way streets remains a beautiful city. To read about Natchez, click this link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natchez,_Mississippi

 

 

In yesterday’s Blog post, I presented how I came to meet the younger sister of famed rock n roller Jerry Lee Lewis…Frankie Jean Lewis Terrell. If you happen to miss that entry, here’s the link…
http://wp.me/pDCku-7uq

 

 

Towards the end of that initial meeting, Frankie Jean got to telling of how, when she was a young child, the Lewis Family would go out to eat at Mammy’s Cupboard…a few miles south of Natchez, Mississippi. Also, that it had been many years since she had been there.

 

 

So, I said…”What are you doing tomorrow?”. A few moments later it was agreed that Frankie Jean, Jean the tour guide from the Delta Music Museum and I would go to Mammy’s Cupboard for lunch. They picked me up shortly before noon and a few minutes later we were there…

 

 

Here are some of the photos that I took…

 

 

 

 

 

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s only open for lunch from 11 to 2 and they were doing a booming business…

 

 

 

 

 

We had to wait about 10 minutes to be seated…

 

 

 

 

 

There was a sign on the wall that said…”Life is short – eat dessert first”…and that just what Frankie Jean did…

 

 

 

 

 

Not being a dessert eater, I had the Saturday special of rice and beans with a layered salad and Mexican Cornbread…

 

 

 

 

 

One of the nearby diners complained that the air conditioning was too cold, so the staff made her a paper hat to help keep her head warm…

 

 

 

 

 

On the way out I saw this sign…

 

 

 

 

 

and a small frame with photos showing the difference from now and 60 years ago when it was also a Shell Gas Station…

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s my attempt at enlarging the old photo…

 

 

 

 

 

and here’s how it looks today…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The meal was tasty indeed and a good time was had by all. Yesterday I told you that Frankie Jean is a Hoot…and so she was here. She just enjoyed chatting and laughing with everyone…never revealing who she is. She never publicly discloses that personal information.

 

 

You can read about Mammy’s Cupboard by reading this Wikipedia link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammy%27s_Cupboard

 

 

I found this short YouTube video about Mammy’s Cupboard on the Internet…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80WjQcbxt54

 

 

 

 

 

On the way back to Natchez we went by a place called Forks in the Road which was once the second largest slave-trading location in the South…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can read about this place by clicking this link…
http://usslave.blogspot.com/2012/04/forks-of-road-slave-market-at-natchez.html

 

 

Another fun and interesting day!

 

 

Today is laundry day…not an exciting Blog topic for tomorrow. So I’m saving what I did last (Saturday) night for tomorrow’s Blog posting. See you then!

 

 

Enjoying historic places is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

 

 

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Mississippi. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

 

 

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

 

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! MARY WROTE A MANY GREAT BLOGS…SO WHENEVER SHE PUBLISHED A BLOG POSTING THE SAME DAY THAT I DID…YOU WILL BE ABLE TO READ HER BLOG BY CLICKING THE BELOW LINK! DO IT NOW!

https://otrwjam.wordpress.com/2013/03/24/some-things-just-dont-work/

 

 

 

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

Forecast for today is sunny and 80 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Washington. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

 

 

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

 

 

There are more than 700 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://get.google.com/albumarchive/110455945462646142273?source=pwa

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

 

 

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet -2018

Baker, Louisiana Day 4 (GA427)

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.

Because we have 5,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

I’m currently in my 23rd year of full-time RVing and my lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails RV Resort in La Conner, Washington. I’ll depart here August 13th.

 

 

 

Since my RVing life is changing (see above), I’m starting to re-visit previously visited places. So rather than constantly re-blogging past entries, I’ve decided to do something different.

  In 2011-2013, Mary and I did a 682 day, 12,679 miles in the motorhome and 8,000 miles in the Bronco, circumnavigation of the United States, which I called The Great Adventure. I called it so because other than my oldest granddaughter’s high school graduation in June in Connecticut, I didn’t know where we would be going or when we would be there!

So, unless I do something really different and unusual warranting a new blog entry, I’ll be posting entries from that trip.

This entry was posted March 14, 2013…

 

Note: Mary flew from Baton Rouge Airport, Louisiana on March 12 to her home in California. I’m hoping to get her back with me by mid-April. My current plans are to stay here for a few days and then start SLOWLY drifting north along the Mississippi River to Memphis, Tennessee where I’ll then turn northeast heading for New England. Can’t go north too fast because it’s still cold up there!
————————————————————————————————————–

The motorhome is currently parked at VFW Post #4224 in Baker, a few miles north of Baton Rouge.

 

 

Yesterday I drove the Bronco the about 10 miles to the West Baton Rouge Museum which you can read about by clicking their official website link…
http://www.westbatonrougemuseum.com/

 

 

It is an excellently done museum where they have a large main building and several other buildings that have been moved from the plantations to that location…

 

 

 

 

 

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gwen Laviolette was my individual tour guide. She’s a retired French language school teacher, born in St. Martinsville, Louisiana and has lived in the area most of her life. She is very knowledgeable and provided me with a lot of information which greatly added to my visit there…

 

 

The museum is actually located in Port Allen…directly across the Mississippi River from Baton Rouge…is funded by the Parish and hence the name…West Baton Rouge Museum. You can read about Port Allen by clicking this Wikipedia link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Allen,_Louisiana

 

 

Gwen told me that in the past in this area of Louisiana…sugar was king. In 1900 there were 26 sugar mills…the last one closed in 2005. You can read about and see photos of that mill by clicking this link…
http://www.westbatonrougemuseum.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73%3Acinclare-plantation&catid=42%3Ahistoric-markers&Itemid=54

 

 

Here’s an excellent link showing the remains of that mill…
http://abandonedbatonrouge.typepad.com/abandoned_baton_rouge/2010/04/cinclare-plantation-sugar-mill.html

 

 

 

 

 

A 22′ model of a sugar mill…

 

 

 

 

Here are some more photos that I took…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Aillet House is an example of a small Creole plantation house…circa 1830…

 

 

 

 

 

As it once looked…

 

 

 

 

 

The interior of a slave cabin…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The interior of a plantation store…

 

 

 

 

 

Photos from inside the store…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Kirby is the head man of maintenance at the museum…

 

 

 

 

 

Other photos in the museum…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like I said earlier…a great museum…admission for seniors is only $2. A good value for the experience. Highly recommended if you find yourself in this area.

 

 

Enjoying interesting local museums is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

 

 

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Louisiana. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

 

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! MARY WROTE A MANY GREAT BLOGS…SO WHENEVER SHE PUBLISHED A BLOG POSTING THE SAME DAY THAT I DID…YOU WILL BE ABLE TO READ HER BLOG BY CLICKING THE BELOW LINK! DO IT NOW!

https://otrwjam.wordpress.com/2013/03/14/manufacturing-and-design/

 

 

 

 

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

Forecast for today is sunny and 75 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Washington. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

 

 

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

 

 

There are more than 700 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://get.google.com/albumarchive/110455945462646142273?source=pwa

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

 

 

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet -2018

Natchez, Mississippi – Day 6

Note: Mary flew from Baton Rouge Airport, Louisiana on March 12 to her home in California. I’m hoping to get her back with me by mid-April. My current plans are to drift SLOWLY north along the Mississippi River to Memphis, Tennessee where I’ll then turn northeast heading for New England for the Summer. Can’t go north too fast because it’s still cold up there! The Mississippi River is rich in history…I expect it to be an interesting passage.
————————————————————————————————————–

The motorhome is still parked at the Loyal Order of Moose Lodge #1662 in Natchez, Mississippi.

Natchez remained mostly undamaged from the Civil War. Hence this old city with its narrow and many one-way streets remains a beautiful city. To read about Natchez, click this link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natchez,_Mississippi

In yesterday’s Blog post, I presented how I came to meet the younger sister of famed rock n roller Jerry Lee Lewis…Frankie Jean Lewis Terrell. If you happen to miss that entry, here’s the link…
http://wp.me/pDCku-7uq

Towards the end of that initial meeting, Frankie Jean got to telling of how, when she was a young child, the Lewis Family would go out to eat at Mammy’s Cupboard…a few miles south of Natchez, Mississippi. Also, that it had been many years since she had been there.

So, I said…”What are you doing tomorrow?”. A few moments later it was agreed that Frankie Jean, Jean the tour guide from the Delta Music Museum and I would go to Mammy’s Cupboard for lunch. They picked me up shortly before noon and a few minutes later we were there…

Here are some of the photos that I took…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

It’s only open for lunch from 11 to 2 and they were doing a booming business…

We had to wait about 10 minutes to be seated…

There was a sign on the wall that said…”Life is short – eat dessert first”…and that just what Frankie Jean did…

Not being a dessert eater, I had the Saturday special of rice and beans with a layered salad and Mexican Cornbread…

One of the nearby diners complained that the air conditioning was too cold, so the staff made her a paper hat to help keep her head warm…

On the way out I saw this sign…

and a small frame with photos showing the difference from now and 60 years ago when it was also a Shell Gas Station…

Here’s my attempt at enlarging the old photo…

and here’s how it looks today…

The meal was tasty indeed and a good time was had by all. Yesterday I told you that Frankie Jean is a Hoot…and so she was here. She just enjoyed chatting and laughing with everyone…never revealing who she is. She never publicly discloses that personal information.

You can read about Mammy’s Cupboard by reading this Wikipedia link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammy%27s_Cupboard

I found this short YouTube video about Mammy’s Cupboard on the Internet…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80WjQcbxt54

On the way back to Natchez we went by a place called Forks in the Road which was once the second largest slave-trading location in the South…

You can read about this place by clicking this link…
http://usslave.blogspot.com/2012/04/forks-of-road-slave-market-at-natchez.html

Another fun and interesting day!

Today is laundry day…not an exciting Blog topic for tomorrow. So I’m saving what I did last (Saturday) night for tomorrow’s Blog posting. See you then!

Enjoying historic places is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Mississippi. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2013
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Baker, Louisiana – Day 4

Note: Mary flew from Baton Rouge Airport, Louisiana on March 12 to her home in California. I’m hoping to get her back with me by mid-April. My current plans are to stay here for a few days and then start SLOWLY drifting north along the Mississippi River to Memphis, Tennessee where I’ll then turn northeast heading for New England. Can’t go north too fast because it’s still cold up there!
————————————————————————————————————–

The motorhome is currently parked at VFW Post #4224 in Baker, a few miles north of Baton Rouge.

Yesterday I drove the Bronco the about 10 miles to the West Baton Rouge Museum which you can read about by clicking their official website link…
http://www.westbatonrougemuseum.com/

It is an excellently done museum where they have a large main building and several other buildings that have been moved from the plantations to that location…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

Gwen Laviolette was my individual tour guide. She’s a retired French language school teacher, born in St. Martinsville, Louisiana and has lived in the area most of her life. She is very knowledgeable and provided me with a lot of information which greatly added to my visit there…

The museum is actually located in Port Allen…directly across the Mississippi River from Baton Rouge…is funded by the Parish and hence the name…West Baton Rouge Museum. You can read about Port Allen by clicking this Wikipedia link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Allen,_Louisiana

Gwen told me that in the past in this area of Louisiana…sugar was king. In 1900 there were 26 sugar mills…the last one closed in 2005. You can read about and see photos of that mill by clicking this link…
http://www.westbatonrougemuseum.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73%3Acinclare-plantation&catid=42%3Ahistoric-markers&Itemid=54

Here’s an excellent link showing the remains of that mill…
http://abandonedbatonrouge.typepad.com/abandoned_baton_rouge/2010/04/cinclare-plantation-sugar-mill.html

A 22′ model of a sugar mill…

Here are some more photos that I took…

The Aillet House is an example of a small Creole plantation house…circa 1830…

As it once looked…

The interior of a slave cabin…

The interior of a plantation store…

Photos from inside the store…

Mr. Kirby is the head man of maintenance at the museum…

Other photos in the museum…

Like I said earlier…a great museum…admission for seniors is only $2. A good value for the experience. Highly recommended if you find yourself in this area.

Enjoying interesting local museums is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Louisiana. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2013
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

HARLINGEN TEXAS

When Jim arranged to be near an airport I questioned Harlingen? Why drive the whole of Texas to the southernmost tip?. My weather wimp declared this is what they call Winter Texans, where retired Texans like to winter for the heat. Yesterday in the bitter cold we ventured out in the rain to visit the Harlingen Arts and Heritage Cultural Museum. And, yes, I’m poking fun at Jim about the horrible weather.

At the center, the staff was removing their Christmas Extravaganza and the museum exhibits were in temporary storage. The local organizations and businesses trim themed trees for everyone to enjoy for the season. A couple trees hadn’t been dismantled yet and the display must have been spectacular. Open for visitors were three buildings, Harlingen founder, Lon Hill’s house, Paso Real Stage Stop and the old Harlingen Hospital.

Lon Hill moved with ten wagons to this part of the world and built here and settled in and founded the town. The house above was his second house, which is open to the public.

The completely furnished house was quite beautiful.

Notes on various items were attributed to family members who donated stuff for the museum.

I was impressed with how prosperous the Hill family was, considering he was from the approximate same generation as my grandparents who struggled and worked very hard but didn’t live as sumptuously as the hills off the land. Then from one note I learned that Lon brought his slaves with him and it all became quite clear. I tend to forget that Texas was a slave state.

The curator’s told us the next cultural center exhibit would be their yearly quilt show, beginning January 16th. We will miss it, but the Hill house bedrooms had many nice quilts on view besides this crazy quilt. The house was very worth visiting and well done.

Someone rescued the school bell.

The Stage Stop had the most beautiful cash register. Makes one long for the days of such craftsmanship.

The old PBX machine reminded me of my first major job at age 17 working one not much bigger than this. The Stage Stop also served as a telegraph office and post office.

The hospital, like the house was so completely furnished, it made one think they just walked away and left everything in it. A very complete dental office above.

The color blindness test gave me a chuckle.

The eye doctor gave very simple tests, but, glasses were such a precious invention. The optician performed such a needed service for those times. And, I swear the eye chart is the same one used today.

The surgery, cribs, hospital beds, pharmacy, all so complete and well done. So often we see medical items in a museum, but the whole hospital completely furnished is an eye opener. The braces on this wall give evidence of the horrible polio epidemic that struck during my own time.

I’m beginning to rightly own the title of old-timer I suppose, though I certainly don’t feel old. The buildings were unheated and we moved through quickly and on to the grocery store to stock up on things I like to cook. (Jim is a mono eater.) But, I gotta have Greek yogurt, onions, garlic, lentils, lots of veggies and, the spinach souffle I made and the soup for today, heated up the motor home.  Tasted great.

Fort Barrancas, Pensacola, Florida

Jim says: Barrancas in Spanish means “bluffs” and that’s where this fort is built…on the bluffs overlooking the entrance to Pensacola Bay. The Spanish completed Fort San Carlos de Barrancas and Bateria de San Antonio (the water battery) in 1797. The water battery used to bounce cannon balls off of the waters in the bay and into enemy ships. The water battery makes Fort Barrancas very unique as it is the only one in existence in all of the forts in the United States.

From 1839 to 1844, the U.S. Army with a force of some 60 contracted slaves made improvements to the Spanish water battery and built Fort Barrancas over the ruins of San Carlos de Barrancas. It is said to contain 6 million bricks.

I’ve been to many old forts in my travels and spent and enjoyable 1.5 hours exploring this most unique one.

Here’s a few photos I took…

Enemies attempting to enter Pensacola Bay had to approach from the Gulf of Mexico (bottom of photo).

Three forts protected the bay entrance. This diagram shows the range of their guns and overlapping fields of fire. Fort McRee no longer exists…the remains are underwater.

This model shows Fort Barrancas and the white part is the Water Battery and it faces the entrance to Pensacola Bay.

This view of Fort Barrancas shows the only entrance via a drawbridge. The Gulf of Mexico is to the left of this view.

The entrance to Pensacola Bay as seen from the wall atop Fort Barrancas.

Fort Barrancas as seen from the Water Battery. The Gulf of Mexico is at my back.

To see the other 50 photos I took, click this link…
http://picasaweb.google.com/jimjrver/FortBarrancasFL041510

Fort Barrancas is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore and is part of the National Park system. Here’s the official government website…
http://www.nps.gov/guis/planyourvisit/fort-barrancas.htm

Here’s a Wikipedia informational link about the Gulf Islands National Seashore…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Islands_National_Seashore

Here’s a Wikipedia informational link about Fort Barrancas…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Barrancas

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2010
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.panamaorbust.com