There is History Everywhere!

[PaigeBooth]

There is history everywhere you go! Two days ago, I was visiting Purcellville, VA, and discovered an incredible Civil War site right there in town.

On Saturday, July 16, 1864, Confederate General Jubal Early's army passed through a crossroads in Purcellville, VA, as it marched west to the Shenandoah Valley. Union forces, however, had been pursuing Early and his men through Leesburg, VA, earlier that morning.
As Early and his army passed through the crossroads area in Purcellville, the 21st New York Cavalry, under the command of Colonel William Tibbetts, discovered Early, his army and their train of wagons passing through the crossroads.
Thinking quickly, Tibbetts divided his regiment and attacked Early's army viciously, capturing 200 wagons and 150 prisoners in a matter of minutes.
Luckily for the Confederates, Confederate General Robert Rodes and Stephen Ramseur, whose infantry had already marched past the crossroads, returned in haste when they heard the fighting and counterattacked.
Soon, the Confederates had successfully regained 118 of their wagons and 96 of their prisoners.
After the skirmish was over, residents of Purcellville eagerly flocked to the crossroads area to see what damage had been done. The famous Captain Elisha Hunt Rhodes of the Rhode Island Infantry, described the seen, saying, "We found many broken down and burned wagons which the Rebels had abandoned."

Attached is a picture of me standing by the crossroads area in Purcellville, and also a picture of General Early and General Tibbetts.

I also had the opportunity to visit many other fascinating historical sites during my visit to surrounding areas, including Berkeley Springs, WV, where I visited George Washington's bath tub; amazing site!!!
To see pictures of Washington's bath tub, you can visit my Twitter page, just touch or click the link below:
https://twitter.com/April14th1865

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Pictures:

[LincolnMan]

Lol. Before I went to your page I envisioned an actual bathtub! Silly me!

[PaigeBooth]

(07-08-2016 08:24 PM)LincolnMan Wrote:  Lol. Before I went to your page I envisioned an actual bathtub! Silly me!

Bill, I suppose the word "bathtub" is a bit deceiving! I really had a great time visiting Berkeley Springs; there is a lot of amazing history there. It is easy to see why Washington enjoyed the area so much-- while nearby spring waters are 50 degrees, the water at Berkeley Springs is always 74 degrees. I put my hand in the water and although it felt comfortable, I think that to bath in it I would like it a little warmer! Washington, however, loved Berkeley Springs. In fact, he liked the area so much he even built a summer home on the two lots of land he owned in Berkeley Springs and made certain the house overlooked the springs.
These springs were actually considered "healing springs" and believed by Native Americans to contain healing powers. They believed this because the water contains a vast variety of minerals, and is said to be helpful in treating rheumatism, diabetes paralysis and other diseases. I found this particularly interesting because it reminded me of Franklin Roosevelt's "Warm Springs" in Georgia. Much like Berkeley Springs, the water contains a great amount of minerals, and FDR believed it treated his polio.
Unlike FDR, however, I was told at the museum in Berkeley Springs that, after testing the waters, George Washington did not believe the waters had any healing powers-- he simply enjoyed bathing in them.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Brrrr, to enjoy a bath it must be 90℉ for me...