Day 38: Cut Down and Cut Through

We've surpassed 5,000 miles on our trip! We're still pinching ourselves, trying to appreciate every moment and encounter. This morning we enjoyed a refresher on our old friends Lewis and Clark, listening to another A&E biography audiocast. We were amused to hear a diary entry made by Lewis upon viewing the snow-capped Rockies for the first time: "I felt a secret pleasure, but when I reflected on the difficulties which this snowy barrier would throw in my way, it counterbalanced my joy." We believe those stiff words are a paraphrase of his initial reaction, which was probably "Holy @#*!" Okay, on to the more mature parts of our day!

We missed Ohio so much, we decided to head back today. Actually, we didn't want to bypass a couple national park sites in the northeastern corner of the state; and we're so glad we collected them. The first was the home of James Garfield, our 20th president, in the lakeside town of Mentor. He'd been inaugurated less than four months when he was fatally shot on July 2, 1881, by a political fanatic. He lingered for 10 weeks, enduring dirty fingers and instruments probing his wound for the bullet, before finally dying September 19. Had he lived, his presidency had the potential to be one of the greatest, as he was an incredibly gifted man in many aspects of leadership. In his 49 years, he had put himself through college (his family was poor; he was the last president to be born in a log cabin), taught himself the fundamentals of law and passed the Ohio bar, served as an inspiring minister and later a college president, attained the rank of Brigadier General during the Civil War, and was elected to the House of Representatives, US Senate and finally the Presidency. Additionally, he was an adored family man. Along with his wife and five children, he shared the family home with his doting mother (she outlived him by seven years and was the first mother ever to witness a son's inauguration) and his father-in-law. Whew!

Stan and I believe John Stevens would have loved this man; Garfield was a true scholar who packed a lot of reading into his very busy work days, which often lasted over 18 hours. His love of books resulted in a library of more than 5,000. And his family and faith were very important to him. He also was incredibly tough on himself, demanding absolute perfection in whatever he set out to accomplish. He was fluent in German and French and often read in them, as well as in Latin and Greek. And when he did have time to relax, there was no place he'd rather be than with his family in their home in Mentor, Ohio. As with the other presidential sites we've visited, our learning curve here was quite steep. We'd known so little about this man and now have a better understanding of the country's loss when his term was cut short.

The next site was about a thing--water--rather than a person. Cuyahoga Valley National Park was formed by glaciers and, later, the Cuyahoga River. The name is the Anglicized pronunciation of the American Indian word for "crooked." The river valley was a major trade route that required only a brief portage of goods between Lake Erie and the Ohio River. In 1827, the Ohio & Erie Canal opened, creating the final water link. (The teenaged James Garfield worked for a few months as a tow-path boy, guiding mules who pulled the canal boats laden with goods). The tow path is now a fantastic hiking and biking trail; unfortunately, it was closed today due to severe flash floods that hit overnight, washing out a few sections of the path. We had a great time anyway, visiting a couple of the park's visitor centers and learning more about the complex canal system that drove the economic boom in this part of the country in the 1800s. Our favorite stop was at the Brandywine Falls, an incredible stack of cliffs over which water tumbles into basins below. The park has a walkway system that takes you from a top-side overlook of the falls to the very bottom of the cascade. It is so beautiful. We look forward to a future visit to this amazing place; we now know to set aside a lot of time for bike rides and exploration.

On the drive home, we made a quick swing through the campus of Grove City College, just north of where we're camped. Quite a few friends and acquaintances have attended there, and we now can understand their love of its campus. Kelsey thought it was beautiful. Who knows...we may become very familiar with this area in another 10 years!

Garfield's study, as it was when he died, with the exception of the inscribed mantle. He was tall, 6'2", and loved to drape his legs over the side of the upholstered chair--his favorite--while reading.

This elaborate windmill supplied the house's indoor plumbing system, a wonderful improvement made to the home in the late 1870s.

side view, showing the house with its many additions (back wing and 3rd floor added after his death)

Brandywine Falls

Stan's obsession with wood cutting was fed by this Cuyahoga Valley Visitor Center display, showing how one log of hardwood can be cut with little-to-nothing wasted. :-)