Hello everyone! Want to take a little field trip with me? We’re jumping on this huge truck, and driving straight into the 1700s!
I’m not sure if other states have done this, but Virginia created four huge mobile museum for the 250th birthday of the United States, and they’ve been driving throughout the state. I was thrilled that one stopped in our small area for two days. Come join me on a mini tour! I won’t share all the photos, but I want to hit a few of the highlights of Virginia’s contribution during the American Revolution.
If you’ll remember, I’m from Virginia. I grew up just a few miles away from where Thomas Jefferson lived, and a few hours from Williamsburg, and a little over an hour from Richmond, and near so many president’s homes and the universities that they founded. For me as a child, it was just a normal day to play on the grounds of Monticello, wander through his gardens, and tour the house. When I moved away, then returned and took my children there, it was such a shock to see how much it had expanded! But it was just as wonderful as I remembered.
I will admit, as much as I’ve always loved history, Virginia’s history has always had a special place in my heart. And…I’ve a secret I can’t tell you about YET…but it’s also chock full of Virginia’s history.
So, join me on the mini tour! Ready?
When you boarded the 18-wheel truck, there was something really special about it. The sides folded out, and made a huge open room for the exhibit. It was divided into two, with the first room being much smaller. The first room, we are greeted by a digital Patrick Henry, as he gives his famous speech in St. John’s Church, Richmond, on March 23, 1775. Excuse his face looking a tad odd. He was a flickering digital screen and this was how he turned out.
After we listened to the speech, we looked around in the room he was in, and learned a little about why the colonies wanted their freedom from the crown. This was a small room, and we walked through the door into the much larger room where there were loads of interactive panels and screens, videos, and images on the wall to learn from.
Here’s a fun fact. While you’ve likely heard of the Boston Tea Party…did you know that Virginia had one too, in Yorktown?
One of my favorites, was this one: The Virginia Declaration of Rights. There was a video just nearby it, talking about how it was primarily written by George Mason (one of the Founding Fathers) proclaimed the inherent rights of individuals, including life, liberty, and property and asserted that government power derives from the people.
If any of that sounded just a bit familiar, that’s because this important document influenced both the U.S. Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights.
Throughout the room, on touchscreens, you got to learn about some of the important women in Virginia. Each one you touched shared a video or a still image and paragraphs about their life.
You also got to do the same for the different types of men who fought as revolutionary soldiers, including those of Virginia’s militia.
One of my favorite displays was that which told about Tarleton’s Raid. To sum things up, though he was only in his twenties, Banastre Tarleton was a part of the British Legion, which was made up of light infantry and calvary (dragoons) and most of the soldiers were American Loyalists, meaning colonists who were faithful to the British Crown. They wore short green jackets, which sometimes made them known as the Green Dragoons. To the colonists, he and his men were brutal, but to the Crown, they were heroes.
Well, since Virginia’s government had relocated to Charlottesville, Virginia, and their governor, Thomas Jefferson, lived there, that made it a tempting target to strike a crippling blow at the colonists. However, just by chance, a young man, Jack Jouett, whose father owned the Swan Tavern in Charlottesville, saw Tarleton and his men riding hard, took a shortcut through the woods, and just managed to get word out in time. Most of the men Tarleton sought managed to escape. The 1781 Charlottesville raid disrupted Virginia’s government but didn’t stop them. Supplies were damaged, but it could have been far worse, and history could be quite different from how it turned out.
Of course, there were so many famous battles in Virginia. Yorktown was another with an interesting story, and it was also the place where Tarleton and his men eventually surrendered to the French. Just in case you are curious what happened to the young British hero, he returned home, and became a member of Parliament.
We were there for a little over a half hour, long enough to see everything but not so long as to make others wait outside, since the truck could only hold so many at once. I was so glad for the opportunity to see the mobile exhibit with my own eyes, and to be reminded that large or small, so many people played a role in America’s fight for independence, and that a good number of them were lost to history, and their contributions will never be known.
Today, I’d love to give one reader an ebook of a historical romance I wrote, also set in Virginia, and also with some history to it, about the Shenandoah National Park. Here’s the book you could win!
Elizabeth Lawrence is ready for her trip to Shenandoah National Park with its cascading waterfalls, fields of colorful wildflowers, and wooded hollows with trees that stretch to the sky. Sketchbook in hand, she expects to capture the park’s serene beauty, never imagining the hidden dangers that lurk within its depths—or the unexpected jolt her heart will experience.
Counting down his final weeks as a park ranger, Kyle Struggs expects to deal with the usual threats of the rugged terrain, not the whims of privileged visitors he’ll be serving as a private guide. Yet, as he gets to know the inquisitive Elizabeth, he realizes she’s nothing like he’d anticipated, and he quickly can’t imagine life without her.
But when a vengeful poacher kidnaps Elizabeth, their blossoming relationship is threatened. Now, Elizabeth must depend on her wits to buy time to survive, while Kyle searches the vast park to save her from the very dangers he swore to protect her against.
Find the book here to learn more!
To have a chance at winning, all you have to do it tell me some historical event that happened in your state or some historical figure from your state you’ve always found fascinating.
Sarah is wife to an amazing teacher and mom to two boys who are growing up just a little too fast. She spends her days working and writing in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.
We had a similar truck visit our local American Legion. I think it’s on a national tour, but not part of the federal 250 commissioned event.
I knew a lot about what you shared–I was a history minor in college, with a concentration from colonial through antebellum. I’ve also visited many Virginia historical sites over my lifetime.
Havre de Grace, Maryland almost became our nation’s capital! It was tied with the Potomac River site (what became DC), and the tie-breaking vote picked the Potomac site. HDG calls itself the “duck decoy capital of the world” and drops a duck on New Year’s Eve.
Ohhh!! Fun!! I love how states are sharing with these extra displays and events! That is a pretty fascinating fact about Maryland! I had no idea!
I got to see some of the tall ships for america’s 200 birthday. Born and raised in New Jersey we were about an hour from were they sat so a few days after all the celebrating we got to see those that stayed for a few days. Yes we watch it on tv but to see them in person WOW what a sight.
Ohhhh!! I bet that was a treat to see! I saw there are going to be a ton of those ships in Norfolk soon. I’d love to see them, but it won’t work for our schedule.
Good morning Sarah! Now this was neat! Thanks for sharing this. We always hear of Virginia and the 13 colonies of this era. It’s ingrained in most of us and part of our American history. You never hear about Florida. So, I took a drive into our history during those times. Pretty interesting. Here is a link:
https://myfloridahistory.org/frontiers/article/135
I have to grin. Being in a southern state, I had no idea that we were under British rule or supporters of them. Pretty interesting especially in less than 100 years we would be in a Civil War. Florida has seemed to be always in the tail end of things, or so seems to me. We do have the Olustee battle which is celebrated each February near Lake City, Florida. And we do have the oldest city in America, St. Augustine.
Thanks for sharing your experience in this traveling mobile of our history today. What a treat! By the way, I just finished Gus and Glinda’s story of your Red Ridge series. I enjoyed hearing Gus’s story. And have enjoyed this whole series!
Best wishes to you!
Wow! What an amazing article! I am so glad you shared that. I had no idea! And, thank you! I am so glad you liked Gus’s story!!
Revolutionary War reenactments at national park
Oh gosh, those are so fascinating! And require so much hard work!
The Toledo War where Michigan and Ohio claimed the same land. Ohio was given the land and Michigan was given the UP (upper peninsula).
Ohh I need to read more about that. That sounds really interesting!
I live in Mississippi, surrounded by Civil War history.
Oh gosh, yes you sure are!
George Rogers Clark went through Indiana –
How neat!! Isn’t it so fun to think about how you might have walked the same places as historical figures?! And they didn’t even know they were making history.
Here in Missouri during that time, the Battle of St. Louis happened in May, 1780, which they say was a critical turning point for control of the American West. At that time, St. Louis was just a village. Historically, the victory kept the Mississippi River out of British Control. I love your book cover, by the way….
I don’t know too much about that battle, but I sure plan to look it up now! Can you imagine, St. Louis just a village…wow!! And, thank you!
This is wonderful! Too bad more states would not do this. We should all be made aware of the historical facts of our own state. Nowadays no one is even interested, but at my age of 81, I am very much into my family’s history and where we came from as well as what part my ancestors played in the drama of our past. We love to check on the history of a region when we had the opportunity to travel over most of the United States.
I agree, we should all know about our states, and all of the others too! There are so many amazing things that happened, and I love thinking about how our ancestors had no idea at all some of the things they were doing them shaped the future! We might be doing the same!
Oh but this sounds like such a cool little time. I love learning about history and about the women who helped make history. Thank you for sharing. So glad you had a fabulous time in these wonderful trucks.
Illinois officially became the 21st U.S. state on December 3, 1818. Originally a French territory, it grew rapidly with the construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal and later the railroads, transforming Chicago into a major national transportation and economic hub.
Oh but your book looks wonderful. Thanks for the chance.
I did not know that Illinois was originally French territory! That’s so neat! I have always wondered why there isn’t a larger population that speaks French here in the US, like there is in Canada!
There is the battle of Perryville that is reenacted around here every year and Old For Harrod is also located here. There are a lot of things from the Civil War around here. There is also a medical museum located new by which is very interesting.
Oh that medical museum is really neat, I bet!! I am so grateful that we’ve come so far in that department!
I live in Eastern Wyoming. Our ranch sits on land, along the Platte River, that the Oregon and Mormon Trails traversed. About 2 miles west of us is the site of the Grattan Fight, aka, Grattan Massacre. The fight is often referred to as the beginning of the First Sioux War with the Plains Indians. 19 August 1854, Lt. John Grattan led 29 troops and an interpreter from Ft. Laramie to confront the Brule Lakota over the shooting of an emigrant’s lame cow. Shooting erupted with 29 of the troops killed, one survivor made it back to the fort but later died.
History of America’s Westward expansion abounds in my part of the country. Ft. Laramie, located ten miles west of me, was the largest military outpost on the Northern Plains, saw thousands of emigrants pass through and was the location of numerous treaty signings.
Oh my goodness, you have quite a bit of history there! I know in some places, the wagon tracks can still be seen. I can’t imagine what it would be like, to just look out the window, and know that so many people who changed history were looking at the same landscape, just hundreds of years before.
I live in Tennessee and we have so much history – it is difficult to pick one thing?. I think The Trail of Tears is fascinating but also very sad. I am fascinated by the stories of the Cherokee who evaded the military and stayed behind by hiding I. The mountains of Tennessee. Some of those who stayed behind are some of my ancestors and make me proud. I grew up hearing wonderful stories about their survival.
Tennessee does have so much history! A lot of historical figures too! The Trail of Tears also makes me sad. How terrible they were treated. It breaks my heart.
I grew up in Colorado not far from Bent’s Fort on the Santa Fe Trail. It was one of the most important forts on the Frontier.
I am going to look that up, and read about it! I don’t think I know anything about Bent’s Fort!
Great history! I got to see the traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial when it set up in my area once and it brought me to tears. Such a moving experience.
We have the U.S. Marshal’s Museum in Fort Smith, Arkansas, not too far from where I live, and also Judge Isaac Parker’s courtroom (the Hanging Judge) at the Fort Smith Museum of History. There is also a statue of Bass Reeves, an African American marshal who served under Judge Parker. His history is fascinating!
Oh those are some great things near you!! I’d love to see some of those one day!
Amazing! We had a similar truck come through NH last year that commemorated the Tuskegee Airmen and Womens Air Service Pilots of WWII. What a great way for people to access history that might not regularly be able to.
Oh my gosh! I bet that was SO interesting! I feel like I had to drag the family along with me, but once there, they enjoyed it!
My state of FL, and the county I live in, is where we send up rockets! I can go outside in my yard and watch them!
We’ve had a few of the SpaceX ones zip over our house! We’ve never seen one of the NASA ones though. You must get a lot of noise from that!
The State of Alabama has been central to the US Space Program since 1960. We are home to the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL.
Would love to be able to visit Virginia’s Mobile Museum. Really interesting. I have visited Williamsburg. My daughter recently went to Monticello and loved it so much that she went more than once while in the area for work. Thanks for sharing all this with us.
I am not surprised she loved Monticello! It’s such an amazing place. And do you know, I had no idea about the flight center there!
Well, here in the Toledo Ohio area we have Fort Meigs from The war of 1812. We also fought with the state of Michigan over where the state libe would be. There is actually a road south of the state line called Old State Line!
The Old State Line! I love that! I wonder why they fought so much on the state line. I’ll have to look that up.
I live in Florida and what I remember the most is book banning. I am very disappointed in those in power.
I agree. I’m folding up my little soapbox, and shoving it into my pocket before I stand on it, but yes. I do not agree with that at all. Books, and history, shouldn’t be censored.
Good Wednesday Afternoon Sarah,
I’m originally from Michigan, which was President Gerald R. Ford’s home state.
Now I live in South Carolina where Robert Smalls, a former slave who commandeered a river boat and lead a group of slaves, including his own family, to freedom. Later he served in the South Carolina Congress.
Thank you for the chance to win your book, Sarah!
Julie Bullock
You’ve got some great history there! I read a book to my youngest this past year about him! What an incredible and scary thing.
We live in Indiana. Wilbur Wright was from Indiana. Your article was very interesting. Thank you for sharing.
Indiana has some really interesting things that happened there!
Something that has amazed me for years happened in your state. President John Tyler was born in Virginia in 1790 and his grandson died last year in May of 2025!
My gosh, the spanning of centuries!! That’s just crazy!!
I grew up between Saratoga and Lake George, New York, about 50 miles north of Albany. So much early American history in that area. There is a reconstructed fort that was important in the French and Indian War at Lake George. Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain has some of the original stone walls as well as some reconstructed parts. It played an important part in both the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. Both of these forts are wonderful museums and Ft Ti is in a beautiful location on Lake Champlain. My grandparents’ farm was near the Saratoga Battlefield National Historic Park where one of the crucial battles of the Revolutionary War took place. When we were kids it was still a state park where we would have family picnics. There are houses in the town where I went to school that were part of the Underground Railroad in the 1850’s and 60’s. One has become a local museum, and you can see the pit where people would hide below the floorboards. They have letters and journals describing the experience.
Where I live now in Central Washington State has played an important part in more recent history. As a result of the Reclamation Act of 1902 and the continued development of Bureau of Reclamation projects the Columbia Basin with water from Grand Coulee Dam is the largest irrigation project in the US. The Manhattan Project on what is referred to now as the Department of Energy Hanford Site developed the nuclear material for atomic bombs in WWII. It is now a research facility and still a restricted area although the B reactor is a National Historic Site. I have toured it but it was a scary experience in some ways in spite of the assurances that it is decontaminated.
The trucks you described are a wonderful way to bring history to so many people who aren’t always able to travel. Thank you for sharing.
Ohh wow! You’ve seen some amazing things! I’d love to visit those sites one day. I’ve never been to New York.
My county – Vance County in North Carolina
– Vance County, located in North Carolina’s Piedmont region, was established in 1881 and named after Civil War governor Zebulon B. Vance.
Zebulon…I love that name. I don’t think I’ve ever heard it before.
I live in Arkansas and we have old Washington historic State Park which served as the capital during the Civil War The first Bowie knife was made here. It is also the home of Bill Clinton. We also have a diamond mine in Murfreesboro where you get to keep what you find.
I have heard about that diamond mine! And seen some photos of things found even in recent years! Amazing!
The Battle of Fallen Timbers. Thank you for the opporutunity. God bless you.
Oh, I need to read up about that one.