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BELAIR_141024_01.JPG: Belair on the Home Front
Southern Sympathizers
When the Civil War began, Prince George's County was full of Southern sympathizers. To keep Maryland in the Union, President Abraham Lincoln imposed martial law, and as the Prince George's Planters' Advocate on May 8, 1861, noted, "Maryland is thus subjugated without firing a gun." Here at Belair, owner George Cooke Ogle and his family struggled to maintain the plantation. Ogle's nephew, Richard Ogle Hodges, enlisted in the Confederate army, as did many local men.
Camps Union and Casey were built at Bladensburg, and Fort Foote, Fort Washington, and Battery Jameson defended Fort Lincoln. The Planters' Advocate noted on August 28, 1861, that "travellers are stopped at each station [camp] and examined -- the purpose being to intercept 'Contraband' articles."
When the Federals stopped steamboat travel on the Patuxent River in August 1861, the Planters' Advocate complained, "This is a great hardship on our people, who are not only deprived of getting supplies from Baltimore, but are unable to ship their produce, large quantities of which have accumulated at different landings on the river since the boats have stopped."
In 1864, Confederate Gen. Bradley Tyler Johnson raided the county, destroying rail lines at Beltsville, cutting telegraph wires, and bivouacking at the Maryland Agricultural College (now University of Maryland College Park). Johnson made his headquarters at the Rossborough Inn there.
After the war, George Ogle hoped a new railroad would bring prosperity, but Belair was heavily mortgaged. In 1871, he sold Belair, ending nearly 130 years of family ownership.
BELAIR_141024_17.JPG: Belair
Governor Samuel Ogle (1692-1752) owned Belair, built circa 1745. The Georgian Palladian style house stands on a tobacco plantation that included gardens, a vineyard, deer park, horse stables and numerous dependencies. Ogle's son, Benjamin (1748-1809), also served as Maryland's governor from 1798 to 1801. Belair house five generations of Ogles before passing out of family ownership in 1871.
James T. Woodward (1837-1910) purchased the estate in 1898, and began to revive Belair. His nephew William Woodward (1876-1953) inherited Belair in 1910, improving the estate and adding wings designed by New York architects William Delano and Chester Aldrich. Woodward continued the history of Belair's role as the "cradle of thoroughbred racing". From Woodward's first track win in 1909, the Belair stud would acquire fame for the next half century.
Purchased by the William Levitt and Sons developers in 1957, Belair served as the Bowie City Hall from 1864 to 1978. Belair was restored in 1995 and opened in conjunction with the Friends of Belair Estate along with the stable as a part of the City of Bowie Museums System.
BELAIR_141107_087.JPG: Central Reception Hall
BELAIR_141107_113.JPG: Anne Arundel County.
I Certify that Benjamin Ogle Jun.r Esq.r
and Ann Cooke both of the City of Anna:
:polis, were, on the twenty fifth day of February
in the year of our Lord one thousand seven
hundred and ninety six legally married
by me- Ralph Higginbottom, Minister of
the President Episcopal church, in
the State of Maryland
Annapolis April 14th 1796 six
Sep. 18. 1770.
I hereby certify, That by permission of Licence,
granted by His Excellency Robert Eden Esq.; Governor
& Commander in Chief in & over the Province of Mary:
land; Benjamin Ogle & Henry Margaret Hill were
this day lawfully married together, according to the
Form & Manner prescribed in the Liturgy of the
Church of England.
Dav. Love
Rector of Allhallows
BELAIR_141107_117.JPG: Anne Arundel County.
I Certify that Benjamin Ogle Jun.r Esq.r
and Ann Cooke both of the City of Anna:
:polis, were, on the twenty fifth day of February
in the year of our Lord one thousand seven
hundred and ninety six legally married
by me- Ralph Higginbottom, Minister of
the President Episcopal church, in
the State of Maryland
Annapolis April 14th 1796 six
Sep. 18. 1770.
I hereby certify, That by permission of Licence,
granted by His Excellency Robert Eden Esq.; Governor
& Commander in Chief in & over the Province of Mary:
land; Benjamin Ogle & Henry Margaret Hill were
this day lawfully married together, according to the
Form & Manner prescribed in the Liturgy of the
Church of England.
Dav. Love
Rector of Allhallows
BELAIR_141107_131.JPG: Ogle Family and Friends in the War of 1812
"... We have also learned the English are going to send a considerable force here..."
BELAIR_141107_136.JPG: The long, hot Summer of 1814 must have been one of worry and concern for the Ogle family, their local relatives, and friends.
The British marched through the region, undoubtedly creating unsettled and unhappy anticipation amongst all local residents.
A number of Ogle connections -- friends and family -- in the area and beyond, witnessed a summer storm of conflict between the new United States and Great Britain.
BELAIR_141107_139.JPG: Riversdale -- Near Bladensburg, Maryland
Riversdale was the home of Charles Calvert, his wife Rosalie Stier Calvert, and their children. Long-time close friends of the Ogle Family, the Calverts literally had a front row seat for the Battle of Bladensburg.
In a letter of June 24, 1814, to her family in Belgium, Mrs. Calvert wrote:
"We have also learned the English are going to send a considerable force here. Their ships are already in our Patuxent. They have burned several houses and tobacco warehouses. I do not know how it will all end..."
And later, on August 30, 1814...
"... I am sure you have heard the news of the battle of Bladensburg where the English defeated the American troops with Madison 'not at their head, but at their rear'. ... During the battle, I saw several cannonballs with my own eyes."
BELAIR_141107_143.JPG: Belair Mansion -- Collington, Maryland:
By 1814, Belair was home to Benjamin Ogle II, his wife Anna Maria Cooke Ogle -- and 10 of their eventual 14 children. That summer, Mrs. Ogle was expecting her 11th child, Eleanor, born in December, 1814.
In June, Benjamin was on the muster list of the 34th Regiment, stationed in the Nottingham-Upper Marlboro area. When the regiment mustered in July, his time was left blank.
During active duty in August, the roll recorded the presence of Edward Hazle, "substitute for Benjamin Ogle." Ogle likely had paid Hazle to take his place... perhaps out of concern for his expectant wife and children? His whereabouts during the Battle of Bladensburg are unknown.
BELAIR_141107_147.JPG: Bostwick -- Bladensburg, Maryland:
Built 1745/46, Bostwick was the home of the Lowndes Family -- Elizabeth Tasker Lowndes was the sister of Anne Tasker Ogle of Belair.
By the time the British marched through Prince George's County on their way to Washington, Bostwick was still held by family members, but was occupied by Col. Thomas Barclay, the British Agent for the Exchange of Prisoners of War.
BELAIR_141107_151.JPG: Halcyon House -- Washington, DC:
Benjamin Stoddert, the first Secretary of the Navy, married Rebecca Lowndes of Bostwick, daughter of Elizabeth Tasker and Christopher Lowndes, and cousin of Benjamin Ogle II and Anne Ogle Tayloe.
After living at Bostwick for a time, Stoddert began Halycon House in 1787. With their young children, the Stodderts likely witnessed the burning of Washington.
BELAIR_141107_156.JPG: Mt. Airy Plantation -- Richmond County, Virginia:
While not in Prince George's County, Mount Airy Plantation in Virgnia [sic], was home to some of Belair's extended family.
The Tayloe's at Mount Airy must have anxiously awaited news of the war as it sped through Prince George's County and Washington, DC.
Family concern was likely high for John Tayloe III's niece, Mary Tayloe Lloyd Key, and particularly for her husband, Francis Scott Key.
Held prisoner by the British, Key was on board a British ship during the bombing of Fort McHenry. He stood witness to the battle, and, upon seeing the victorious American flag by the "Dawn's early light," was inspired to write the "Star Spangled Banner."
BELAIR_141107_165.JPG: Ogle Hall -- Annapolis, Maryland:
Occupied by the Ogle Family since 1747, Ogle Hall was still the home of the widowed Henrietta ("Henry") Hill Ogle, wife of Benjamin Ogle I.
Having voiced her concern for the safety of her home when the British entered the Bay in the Revolutionary War, Henry Ogle no doubt dealt the same concern a second time.
In addition to concern for her houses, Mrs. Ogle must have had much more concern over the safety of her daughter, Anne Ogle Tayloe, and her grandchildren living in Washington.
Mrs. Ogle sustained a financial loss from the invasion -- losing 20 slaves when they fled to the British ship, the "Menelaus," seeking freedom with the British.
BELAIR_141107_326.JPG: Woodward Hall:
Belair's restoration and revival began in 1898 when New York banker James T. Woodward (1827-1910) purchased this estate as a country retreat in his native state. His nephew William (1876-1953) inherited all of his uncle James' estate, including Belair, and the presidency of the Hanover Bank. William's interest in Thoroughbred horses commenced here. His son, William Junior (1920-1955) briefly revived the estate's racing fame until his untimely death in October 1955 by a gunshot wound from his wife Ann (1915-1975). The Grand Jury found the shooting a mistake and she was acquitted.
Reflecting, Belair's long association with Thoroughbred racing dating to Governor Samuel Ogle importing "Spark" and "Queen Mab" from Great Britain in 1747, the Woodward family continued that legacy with two Triple Crown Winners, Gallant Fox (1930) and Omaha (1935).
Cupboards bearing horse silhouettes were installed by the Woodwards to hold riding gear probably about 1914.
The paintings currently on exhibit are Woodward Thoroughbreds. The paintings are on loan from the National Museum of Racing and Thoroughbred Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, NY. However, the small picture is Charles XII, who won the St. Leger Stakes in 1839. He was a brown horse foaled in 1836 to Voltair out of the mare Wagtail. William Woodward Sr. had a similar painting by the same artist John F. Herring (1795-1865).
BELAIR_141107_410.JPG: Mr. and Mrs. John Mitchell for whom Mitchellville, in South Bowie, are named.
BELAIR_141107_502.JPG: Slavery in the American Colonies:
The earliest recorded arrival of Africans in the colonies occurred in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. When Maryland's first settlers arrived in 1634 aboard the Ark and the Dov, two black men -- Mathias de Sousa and Francisco Peres -- were aboard. De Sousa, however, was not a slave. He was indentured to Jesuits on the voyage.
Indentured servants initially comprised most of Maryland's labor force, but, but the 1660s, the flow of white indentured servants failed to keep pace with the need for labor and servant prices began to rise. For the business of producing tobacco in the Tidewater, black slaves proved more cost effective.
Most slaves were taken from the area between the Gold Coast and the Niger Delta, which came to be called "The Slave Coast." Slave trade extended from West Africa to include such areas as Angola and some East African countries.
Once aboard ships, chained together by hands and feet, slaves have little room to move. Packed together, many died of illnesses like smallpox and dysentery on their journey; some committed suicide by refusing to eat. Others were crippled for life as a consequence of chains they wore during confinement in holds of ships.
Eventually, a system known as the "Triangle Trade" evolved. Merchants in Europe transported goods to Africa -- textiles, guns, alcohol, and iron -- which were exchanged for slaves. Vessels made tier way east and south, and then north; captains sold slaves in the Caribbean and the American colonies, dispersing cargoes of rum, molasses, timber, spices and other goods along the way, before returning to Britain and Europe with such American goods as produce.
Along with London and Bristol the British port of Liverpool was heavily involved in the slave trade. Christopher Lowndes, brother-in-law of Col. Benjamin Tasker, was a Liverpool native; he arrived in Maryland in 1738 as factor for a Liverpool firm -- and probably [was] well acquainted with the burgeoning slave trade. Lowndes and Tasker took possession of the cargo of the snow [sic] "Elijah" in 1752 -- 140 slaves to be sold aboard the ship while at anchor in the Severn River off Annapolis.
BELAIR_141107_518.JPG: "Ran away from the Subscriber..."
The desire for freedom created a constant flow of runaway slaves. The pages of the Maryland Gazette are filled with advertising for runaway slaves, such as Governor Ogle's "Negro Joe... his cook" who went off on a boat for Philadelphia in 1744.
...
During the War of 1812, many slaves, given promises of freedom for fighting with the British, ran off to never be recovered. Others were carried off by British troops. The Treaty of Ghent, which ended the war, prohibited British officers from transporting runaway slaves. Those with claims were encouraged to come forward without delay. Henrietta Ogle, in the company of Louis Neth of Annapolis, boarded a vessel in the Chesapeake Bay to lodge just such a claim. Seven years later, after her death, Benjamin Ogle II credited to her estate the receipt of $3,402 "for Negroes under the Treaty of Ghent."
On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation freed those held in bondage in states "in rebellion against the United States." Maryland was not in rebellion, so its saves remained in bondage. In September of 1864, Maryland voters (white men) went to the polls to accept or reject a new State constitution. It contained a Declaration of Rights:
"Hereafter, in this State, there shall be neither slavery not involuntary servitude, except in punishment of a crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, and all persons held in service or labor, as slaves, are hereby declared free."
Slavery in Maryland came to an end, and with that end came the conclusion of a long chapter in Maryland history and the beginning of a new way of life for black and white alike.
BELAIR_141107_541.JPG: To Go... or to Stay?
Choosing to Flee ... Hoping To Be Free? ...
As the British marched through the Chesapeake in 1814, their leaders offered a choice to the area's enslaved population. That choice offered those who had lived a life of bondage a chance to throw off their chains. In December of 1814, on a cold, dark night between 20 and 30 slaves fled the City of Annapolis, going to the British fleet anchored off Kent Island. Twenty of them -- men, women and children -- were the property of Henrietta Hill Ogle, matriarch of Belair.
Most of Mrs. Ogle's slaves escaped from her property at Talley's Point near Annapolis, but Thomas Timmons, a waiter, fled from her home in Annapolis (Ogle Hall). Another slave, Sam Williams, escaped from her property at Horn Point.
When Mrs. Ogle received word of the escape, she and a friend named Lewis Neth boarded the British ship Menelaus to seek return of the runaways. British forces advised that her slaves had been carried to Bermuda, and turned her away. Mrs. Ogle returned home without her slaves; Sam was eventually captured and returned to her.
No record exists to tell us what Sam, Thomas Timmons or the others took with them, or what loved ones and possessions they left behind.
We can only imagine the fear and emotions that likely ran rampant as they fled in the dark winter night... the thrill of being free, the departure from the familiar, the wrenching absence from beloved family and friends. Could you make a similar decision? What would you take, if you could take anything, with you? What would you say to those you were leaving? How would you have reacted if caught? Share your thoughts on the adjacent panel.
BELAIR_141107_550.JPG: The People of Belair:
Through the years, enslaved persons tilled Belair's fields, cared for prized Thoroughbreds, nurtured children and helped to maintain a plantation household. We have no knowledge of their origins, their personalities or even their final resting places. Only their names and values, in a partial listing here, give testimony to their service.
BELAIR_141107_557.JPG: African American Slaves at Belair:
Belair could function as a plantation because of enslaved labor. While the presence of slaves is documented through 1864, living spaces are not defined not nor are specific tasks generally given.
Some slaves surely lived in the house, either in the cellar or on the third floor, in the kitchen dependency or in small dwellings around the exterior of the mansion. Archaeological investigations at Belair have revealed the presence of a number of structures forming a forecourt in the front of the house. The Federal Tax Assessment of 1798 describes structures on the property, including a brick meat house, a windmill, a tenant house and
... a frame Negrl 24 by 25, two long negroe houses 13 feet square ... 1 negroe house 12 by 10 adjoining Isaac Land.
In addition to real estate, the Federal Tax Assessment also listed the number of "taxable persons" both free and enslaved.
Number of slaves: 45
Number of slaves above the age of 12 years and under 50 years subject to taxation: 18
Others undoubtedly lived near fields they worked, at other Ogle/Tasker properties such as the Annapolis townhouse, or other Ogle plantations such as The President near Annapolis.
Slaves typically lived in small one-room cabins of frame or logs chinked with mud. Fireplaces provided heat and light; furniture was sparse, consisting of straw mattresses or wooden bedframes lashed to the walls with rope, crude tables and chairs, and small cooking utensils and receptacles.
Slavery continued at Belair until the adoption of the Maryland Constitution of 1864, when all Maryland slaves were set free. The 1844 Inventory of the Estate of Benjamin Ogle II contains 68 slaves on the property. After the Maryland Constitution of 1864 freed all slaves within the state, George C. Ogle filed a claim for compensation for 41 slaves. Without slave labor to farm the land, the Ogle family fell into debt, and, as a consequence, were forced to sell Belair in 1871.
BELAIR_141107_564.JPG: "... Put to work in making tobacco"
Tobacco production is labor intensive; a good number of Belair's slaves most probably worked the tobacco fields and lived in close proximity to them. Slave records from Belair are inconclusive. While inventories list names and ages of the work force here, they shed little light on actual day to day occupations.
The 1816 Probate Inventory of Henrietta Margaret Ogle's slaves does give some clues:
William, about 50 years old a Carpenter... Jacob a Black Smith about 60 yrs old
While not specific occupations are listed for female slaves, several are listed in inventories at values equal to that of male slaves. The 1775 sale of Col. Benjamin Tasker's effects includes:
Negro Pompey £ 56.10.0
Kate 56.0.0
Kate's value, nearly as much as Pompey's, indicates that she was a skilled worker, possibly a cook or a laundress, probably of child-bearing age.
BELAIR_141107_572.JPG: "Tell him to clothe the Negroes..."
Clothing for slaves was sometimes made on the plantation, sometimes ordered from abroad. It was generally heavy weight fabric, often a wool-linen blend fabric called linsey-woolsey, heavy weight wool or oznabrig, a lighter, linen-like fabric. New garments, including shoes, were usually given out once a year. Slaves who worked in the house were dressed in garments more appropriate to meeting the public than slaves who worked the fields.
Ordered by Benjamin Tasker, Sr.: ...
Slave diet was generally plain; the basic ratino usually contained corn, cornmeal, fat pork, molasses, and occasionally coffee. Small "personal" gardens cultivated by slaves provided greens, sweet potatoes and other vegetables. Local game and fish rounded out diet somewhat.
Often, slaves were able to earn small sums of money selling items such as poultry, eggs or vegetables raised in their quarter, as quarantines from visitors or from doing odd jobs. as a consequence, they could, from time to time, acquire personal items. In 1787, Anne Ogle's account from John Ridout includes "7.5 cords oak... paid three Negroes for carrying & carrying into the yard." The 1815 account of the sale of Henrietta Ogle's goods included 1 small iron pot with cover sold to Negro Nanny for 37-1/2 cents. Nanny and her two children were sold in the same estate sale.
BELAIR_141107_587.JPG: "To Be Sold to the Highest Bidder..."
Like other Chesapeake plantation owners, the Taskers and Ogles and their relatives bought and sold slaves. John Ridout, husband of Mary Ogle Ridout, was a partner in the importation of slaves on the Lord Ligonier, the vessel which brought Kunte Kinte of "Roots" fame to American shores. Little evidence exists to speak about slave treatment here at Belair; perhaps the family correspondence of Daniel Dulany to Robert Carter regarding the disposition of Col. Tasker's slaves indicates some sensitivity to their condition. ...
BELAIR_141107_668.JPG: Planted on April 4, 1977
by the City of Bowie at City Hall
in honor and memory of
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
1929-1968
BELAIR_141107_701.JPG: Benjamin Ogle Family Cemetery
In this cemetery rest five members of the family of Benjamin Ogle II (1775-1844). Mr. Ogle, son and heir to Governor Benjamin Ogle (1749-1809) and grandson of Governor Samuel Ogle (1694-1752), created this burying ground for himself and his wife, Anna Maria Cooke Ogle (1777-1856). Graves identified include son Benjamin Ogle III (1796-1839), daughter-in-law Mrs. Richard Lowndes (nee Priscilla Mackall) Ogle (1825-1859), and granddaughter Anna Maria Ogle (1849-1851).
City of Bowie Museums
BELAIR_141107_727.JPG: Archaeological Research of the Belair Garden:
Archaeological investigations in 1994 suggested that the terraces might have been altered in the early twentieth century. The University of Maryland Anthropology Department's Historical Archaeology section investigation in 1998 focused on the terraces, falls and earthen ramps. The eighteenth-century garden level was located, but clearly the garden had been remade when the house was expanded around 1914 by the New York firm of Delano and Aldrich.
The decision left to be made was whether to attempt to replicate the eighteenth-century parterre, or to honor the turf parterres of the twentieth-century Georgian Revival garden. The greatest portion of the modern ornamental garden is no longer on the museum property, and is thus out of our reach.
Horticultural experts researched Belair's historic documents, photographs, and scholarly work on other early American gardens. This resulting scaled down garden plan accommodates the diverse history of the gardens at Belair.
The central terraces of falls remain in turf as the Woodward family kept them during the entire twentieth-century. However, the small garden bed echoes both the eighteenth-century flower gardens as well as the twentieth-century ornate boxwood garden that is no longer on the museum property, but now in the neighboring pool club's grounds.
BELAIR_141107_733.JPG: Conjectural bird's eye view of Belair, circa 1775-1800, based on archaeology, manuscripts, and the 1798 Federal Direct Tax description. Dependencies included a privy, pump house, slave quarter, stable, and chicken house.
BELAIR_141107_739.JPG: Airplane view of Belair and gardens, 1924
1. Mansion House
2. Tennis Court
3. Green House
4. Formal Garden
5. Gardener's Cottage
6. Pump House
7. Stallion Paddocks
8. Terraces
BELAIR_141107_746.JPG: Belair icehouse, now destroyed, recorded in Historic American Buildings Survey, 1936
BELAIR_141107_748.JPG: Developing a Garden Plan:
Very little is known about the history of the Belair gardens. In the early 1750s Col. Benjamin Tasker Jr. (1720-1760) "inclosed a large garden at very large expense" probably in the formal French-style of planned beds. His nephew and heir Gov. Benjamin Ogle (1749-1809) made a drawing of a house sitting in a park-like setting that emphasized the more informal English garden fesign tastes of the later eighteenth-century.
The Ogle family left Belair in 1871, and a descendant reminisced that "at the rear was a long sweep of velvety green, terraced and broken here and there by lovely beds of roses and plants." That vague wording is not aided by the earliest known images from an 1886 illustration and an 1892 photograph, both of which show the house and property in great disrepair and neglect.
The Woodward family era began here after 1898, and by 1914 the house renovation and enlargement by the New York firm of Delano and Aldrich included the terraces and falls seen today. The garden to the east of the terraced lawns encompassed a maze of boxwood, rusticated ironstone walls and outbuildings such as a smoke house and greenhouse, and a tennis court.
The small garden here relies on historic types popular in the Georgia period when Belair was built, as well as the Georgian Revival popular at the time of the restoration in 1914. Whereas it does not specifically reproduce any known Belair garden, it serves to remind us of the formal beds now lost.
BELAIR_141107_755.JPG: Belair, photographed in 1892
BELAIR_141107_759.JPG: Belair, from Frank Leslie's Illustrated News, April 1886
Wikipedia Description: Belair Mansion (Bowie, Maryland)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Belair Mansion, located in Collington, Maryland, United States, was built in c. 1745 as the Georgian plantation home of the Provincial Governor of Maryland, Samuel Ogle. Later home to another Maryland governor, the mansion is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Belair is recognized as the only great colonial estate where breeding of race horses was conducted during three centuries. The estate significantly influenced the development of thoroughbred horse racing in the new world, having one of only two stables to raise two Triple Crown champions. The mansion and its nearby stables both serve as museums, operated by the City of Bowie.
History
Early History
The original estate was 500 acres (2.0 km2) called Catton and was patented from the first proprietors of the Maryland Colony, the Calvert family, on August 26, 1681 by Robert Carvile of St. Mary's City, Maryland. Carvile sold the land in 1698 for £100 to Henry Ridgely. In 1700, Ridgely purchased an additional 100 acres (0.40 km2) adjacent to Catton called Enfield Chase. Upon Ridgely's death in 1699, his third wife, now twice widowed, Mary Ridgely (née Duvall, née Stanton) was executrix of the will and inherited the properties. Mary had previously inherited Middle Plantation in Davidsonville, Maryland when her first husband, Mareen Duvall died in 1699.
Reverend Jacob Henderson, became rector of Queen Anne's Parish in 1712 and married Mary Duvall that same year.
In 1718, Henderson believed that Benjamin Cheney and Joseph Cheney had "committed some tresspass" so on January 20, 1718, Henderson petitioned the Maryland Land office to resurvey the boundaries of his properties. As a result, in 1721, a new deed was issued to a much larger 1,410 acres (5.7 km2) and the property was renamed Belair (sometimes written as Bel Air).
Ogle Era
Samuel Ogle, son of Samuel Ogle of Northumberland was appointed by Charle ...More...
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[History 1800s (excl wars)]
2014 photos: Equipment this year: I mostly used my Fuji XS-1 camera but, depending on the event, I also used a Nikon D7000.
Trips this year:
three Civil War Trust conferences (Winchester, VA, Nashville, TN, and Atlanta, GA),
Michigan to visit mom in the hospice before she died and then a return trip after she died, and
my 9th consecutive San Diego Comic-Con trip (including Las Vegas, Reno, Carson City, Sacramento, Oakland, and Los Angeles).
Ego strokes: Paul Dickson used one of my photos as the author photo in his book "Aphorisms: Words Wrought by Writers".
Number of photos taken this year: just over 470,000.
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