The Weber Grill – Buoy Oh Buoy

The Weber Grill – Buoy Oh Buoy
As I have mentioned before in this space, one of the books I am currently researching and writing is a camping hand book. This book will include a history of camping and camping equipment as well as a guide to the equipment campers use to pursue their hobby. I am currently working on the section that will include grilling, barbecuing and the charcoal grill. Continue reading The Weber Grill – Buoy Oh Buoy

Indiana Photo Gallery – Fort Vallonia

Local lore states that the earliest settlement was by the French in the late 1700’s. There has been no evidence to support, or refute, this tradition. By 1810 there were around ninety settlers in the area of Vallonia. The name derives from the site being located in a valley. John McAfee, Thomas Ewing, and J. B. Durham laid the town of Vallonia out in 1810. Continue reading Indiana Photo Gallery – Fort Vallonia

Podcast – Visiting the Shiojiri Niwa Garden

Greetings, in this episode we visit the Shiojiri Niwa Garden in Mishawaka, Indiana which is in St. Joseph County in north central Indiana.

My wife and I strolled through the Shiojiri Niwa Garden in Mishawaka, Indiana during a camping trip to Potato Creek State Park. This 1 1/3 acre garden includes over 20 varieties of shrubs and trees and many more smaller flowering plants. Over 200 boulders are scattered over the garden. Continue reading Podcast – Visiting the Shiojiri Niwa Garden

Sample Chapter – Native Amerindian Tribes in Indiana in 1812

The Algonquin, or Eastern Woodlands Indian, tribes inhabited Indiana as the Europeans began penetrating the region in the 17th Century. The tribes in Indiana included the Shawnee, Lenape (Delaware), Miami, Potawatomie, Kickapoo, and others.
The Algonquin Tribes of Indiana relates the general culture, lifestyle, and agriculture of this vast family of Amerindian tribes. Continue reading Sample Chapter – Native Amerindian Tribes in Indiana in 1812

Podcast – The Age of Discovery – Exploring the New World

Prince Henry the Navigator, Christopher Columbus and the Age of Discovery
The Age of Discovery took place from the 15th through the 17th Century and featured a vast expansion of the European’s knowledge of the world. Two men played a crucial role in that era, Prince Henry the Navigator and Christopher Columbus. This episode discusses those two men, which form the opening chapters of the author’s book, The New World Discoverers. Learn about the explorers that led the exodus of settlers that flooded into the New World. Continue reading Podcast – The Age of Discovery – Exploring the New World

Podcast – Tulip Trestle Bridge

First, the raw statistics. The bridge is 2,307 feet long and 157 feet off the ground, at its highest point. It has 17 – 75-foot deck plate girder spans. These alternate with 18 – 40-foot deck plate girder spans. The west end of the bridge has 2 – 50-foot spans and 2 60-foot spans on the east end. The bridge, if placed on a gigantic bathroom scale, would weigh 2,895 tons. The cost to build the bridge was $246,504, which would be $212,000,000.00 in 2024 dollars. Continue reading Podcast – Tulip Trestle Bridge

Indiana Photo Gallery – Jackson-Washington State Forest

Jackson is a multi-use property. Hunting, fishing and trapping is permitted. The State of Indiana conducts periodic timber sales in the State Forests. The monies obtained by the sale of licenses, fees and timber go into the Heritage Trust fund that the State uses to procure more property. The State began acquiring the land that now encompasses Jackson-Washington in the 1930’s. The other activities offered at Jackson-Washington are camping, hiking, boating, fishing and horse trails. Continue reading Indiana Photo Gallery – Jackson-Washington State Forest

Corydon – First Indiana Capitol Building

The Indiana Territory Legislature contracted with Dennis Pennington to build the new Territorial capitol at Corydon. Pennington was a builder and prominent citizen of Corydon and served as Speaker of the House. He began construction of the building in either 1811 or 1812. The building would serve as the Harrison County Court House at first, then as the territorial capitol when it moved to Corydon. When the legislature did move in 1813, they met in the building. Continue reading Corydon – First Indiana Capitol Building