Summer Days, Cemeteries & History

You know how it is when company stays with you - you don't want to bore your guests, therefore you rack your brain for fun and affordable things to do and places to see. Am I right? Well, that was me when my girl Sam came to visit us. We had a week to fill up with activities (yikes!) but we pulled it off with style! I think we even earned another visit from her in the future! 

One of our greatest days together was our visit to the Old City Cemetery. To those who think cemeteries are too creepy to explore must not appreciate the rich history that can be found there. We had a surprising blast walking through the cemetery and its museums and arboretum. I have to say it's the most beautiful cemetery I have ever been to. I love it there!

Okay, so a crab apple taste test isn't a weird thing. I did that all the time as a kid. I even grabbed one and nibbled at it (though I am rarely seen in pictures. Such is the life of the one behind the lens!)

But when these two crazies found whatever strange nut (or whatever it is!) and decided to taste it, I bowed out. No thank you... I have this fear of poisoning myself by accident. Not risking it...

And based on Strom's reaction, it would appear I made the right decision by not partaking in the fun. 

As we left the goats (after cooling off in the open museum/gift shop) one of the volunteers [we had just spent time with] that runs the cemetery found us and said he had an hour to kill and asked if we'd like to see the inside of any of the museums - something you would normally pay for. Um, yes please! We loved him. He was awesome. 

Inside the Pest House Medical Museum: Dr. John Jay Terrell's office and "hospital." Here we learned Dr. Terrell was ahead his time in his treatment of disease, namely smallpox. He brought the death rate for Civil War soldiers from 50% down to a mere 5% with his advanced theories, such as laying sand as a floor covering to sweep out disease and painting the walls black to help with eye sensitivity. 

Yeah, ew. Thank the good Lord for Dove soap. I'm not sure that stuff would really service the cleaning process.

Pay no mind to the modern paper towels... Oops! And believe it or not, the hoop thing was how messages were passed from station to train. The visual makes me grateful for my cell phone. 

A statue given to a very poor black family, something not done often back in the 1860's. Though the details are unknown, the toes on the back of the statue lead historians to believe it was a gift from a close, wealthy friend. Such detail was not taken back in the day.

2000 Confederate soldiers (and one Union man) are buried in that plot. Simply fascinating how the records were kept and care given.