Old Ironsides Still Going Strong

We got up about 6:30 am this morning and got on the road by 8 am, to try to beat the rush and be first in line at the USS Constitution in Boston. We had a moment of panic when I looked on the internet to see where the best place to park would be, and the only place mentioned was a garage that our RoadTrek wouldn’t fit into. All the RV bloggers were saying not to drive into Boston, no place to park, not safe to leave the vehicle, etc. etc. I finally called a campground outside of Boston to see if we should stay there and take public transport into the city. The guy there was really nice and said since it was Sunday, and not really the height of their season yet, he thought we’d be OK finding some parking on the street. So we went with our original plan, just driving in and looking for a parking place, and it worked out fine. Traffic was light on a Sunday morning and we found a space in a nearby lot (mind you, it cost us $20, but not so bad when you consider that all the Constitution stuff was free…)

We arrived early at the Boston Naval Yard, where the Constitution is docked, and went through security—just like airport security. I got a little antsy and opened the door out to where we were supposed to line up to get on the ship about 15 minutes before it was supposed to be open, and the ranger had to call us down. We behaved ourselves after that.

The Constitution looks fabulous for her age—211 years! This ship has been through some serious history. Never defeated in battle, she soundly trounced 4 British ships in the War of 1812—they were shocked when their cannon balls bounced off her sides, leading to her famous nickname. (The Brits were highly incensed that this upstart nation had the nerve to design a different type of ship that was so much better than theirs—after all, they were supposed to rule the seas!) As I said in yesterday’s blog, this is the world’s oldest warship that’s still afloat. Would love to see her with full sails!
The tour was informative, delivered by real Navy sailors in 18th century garb. We talked to a couple of them about how they got this plum duty, and they had to beat out a lot of others—it’s a very competitive slot. They’re obviously proud to be doing the job.

Carol just before boarding.

Jack about to salute before going onboard.

I got to test the hammocks and we were allowed to wander pretty much all over the ship. We’ve been talking about seeing the Constitution for several years now, ever since our good friend Frank DeBord gave us the book Six Frigates to read. It tells the fascinating story of how our Navy got started, with six original ships, of which the Constitution is one. As it turns out, it’s a good thing we saw her now, because next year she’s going into dry dock for renovations, for several years! So if any of you are thinking about seeing this piece of our history, this year would be a good time.

Carol trying out the hammocks. (Jack says they are not like they were on the USCGC EAGLE.)

A view of part of the gun deck. (Jack says definitely not like on the EAGLE.)

Carol at the helm. (No comment from Jack.)

After touring the ship, we went through the nearby Constitution Museum. It’s largely geared to kids, but it did have some good displays on the three battles the Constitution won during the War of 1812. She fought two British ships in one battle and defeated them both. Nearly destroyed them, in fact.

Back on the interstate and heading north for even more history, this time searching for the Maine home of Revolutionary hero Henry Knox. We love Henry Knox, ever since we both read a high school level book on the American Revolution that we picked up at a bookstore a long time ago. It told how Henry managed to pull off a daring maneuver that succeeded in chasing the British ships out of Boston Harbor. After the colonists won the battle at Ticonderoga, Henry had the idea of hauling the big guns from Ticonderoga about 300 miles over mountains and ice-covered lakes and rivers down to Boston and installing them on the heights overlooking the harbor under cover of darkness. Somehow he talked Washington into this crazy plan and Henry miraculously managed to pull it off. Took the British totally by surprise—they were blockading Boston Harbor and suddenly woke up one morning to discover giant cannons pointing down at them. They wisely decided to leave! So Henry was a big favorite of Washington and he was named Secretary of War during Washington’s presidency.

Henry retired with his wife and family up here to a little town in Maine named Thomaston, where his wife had a large piece of land from her family. They built a beautiful mansion and named it Montpelier. It’s a lovely spot, now a museum, and the grounds are in the process of being brought back close to the state Knox planned for them. Unfortunately he died relatively young, and didn’t have the opportunity to bring many of his plans to fruition. Also unfortunately, it’s only open on Thursday, Fridays and Saturdays, so we don’t get to tour the house, but we at least got to spend some time walking around the house and grounds and snap a few photos.

Henry Knox's Montpelier in Thomaston, Maine. (Knoxville in Tennessee and Fort Knox in Kentucky - where our nation keeps its gold - are named to honor General Henry Knox.)

 

 

 

We’re now happily and cozily tucked away in a small, peaceful campground overlooking the St. George River. Had a nice supper of salad and soup and getting a little bit sleepy after our early morning. All for now!

State count: 9 [Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine]
Starting mileage, 124,375; ending mileage, 125,254
Where we are: