What A Surprise:: Taltree Arboretum and Railway Garden in Valparaiso, IN.

MODEL RAILWAY GARDEN A MY QUALITY TIME POST

While traveling the back roads of Indiana Linda and I came upon one of those, out-of-the-way destinations Taltree Arboretum. (Actually, we had a little help from Linda’s brother John)

The G (Garden)-scale railway garden opened in June of 2011.

This is really an impressive display 850 tons of limestone was imported from Missouri and used in the construction of the railway garden.

Miniature shrubs,trees,and vegetation came from the state of Oregon. (more than 3000 plants)

This train display is just plain fun. The intricate detail shows a real love of railroading.

 

At the railway garden you will see prairies, canyons, mountains,waterfalls, cities, and a civil war encampment.

Everyone loves a circus.

I would suggest you bring a pair of binoculars if you really want to take the time to study each display.

“Hartland Locomotive Works specializes in high-quality, affordable G-Scale Locomotives and Rolling Stock: coaches, freight cars and cabooses. We also manufacture brass and aluminum track and other accessories for the Garden Railroader. HLW equipment is designed to run on #1 gauge track and is compatible with other G-Scale trains and track accessories.” Read More  Proudly Made In The U.S.A.

Railroad Tracks
Two drunks were walking upgrade between the railroad tracks.
One of them said, "This is is longest stairway I have ever been on."
To this, the other replied, "It's not the stairs that bother me, it's the low banister."

Ghost on the Tracks.. “The train rumbled around him as he adjusted the throttle. The night shift was always the toughest, in the engineer's mind. He had rumbled through Timpas a few minutes ago and was on his way to Thatcher. Not a bad stretch of road, and there was no better train in the entire Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad.” Read More

John Henry: The Steel Driving Man.. Now John Henry was a mighty man, yes sir. He was born a slave in the 1840's but was freed after the war. He went to work as a steel-driver for the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad, don't ya know. And John Henry was the strongest, the most powerful man working the rails. Read More

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed your visit. Take a look at the photos again and see if you can pick out the “real” train photo… Hint “Durango & Silverton narrow gauge line. CLICK & CLICK again

Visit Taltree website CLICK

MODEL RAILWAY GARDEN A MY QUALITY TIME POST

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Helpful Hint: Bring a picnic lunch and plan to spend some time.The only food on the premises is vending & hotdogs

The Chickamauga Battlefield Today…&..Yesterday

Linking to FRIDAY’S FENCES

On the way to Florida (READ POST) we stopped for the night in Ringgold,Georgia. There was just enough daylight for a quick tour of The Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Park.

In 1890, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park was the first such site created by Congress.

The Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19–20, 1863,involved the second highest number of casualties in the war following the Battle of Gettysburg. (click on link to read Gettysburg post)

The purpose of this post is to be a quick visual “walkabout” of the area with a few facts (that I wasn’t aware of) thrown in.

In Chickamauga's torn and smoky woodlands, nothing was simple.If you are interested in the details of this very complicated battle CLICK…

The battlefield is covered with monuments and informational plaques explaining the battle:: EXAMPLE::

Many years before the Civil War battle, the Cherokee Indians, after many battles, had named the stream that runs thru the battlefield  "The River of Death" or Chickamauga.

 

During the Spanish American War, more American soldiers died during training on the Chickamauga Battlefield than during all the fighting in Cuba and the Caribbean during that four month war in 1898.

With his brigades deployed in column, Brig. Gen. Henry Clayton's was the first to hit three Federal brigades around the Brotherton Farm. They fired until their ammunition was gone.

Today the   Battlefield is home to some wild turkeys. They even have a Wild Turkey 5 Mile Run.

A great place for some jogging. As a matter of fact the The Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon, in its 33rd year, is run through the nation's oldest military park. Known as the "most family-friendly" marathon, the runner-up for "most scenic" marathon, and third for best overall marathon.

After the fighting, a Confederate soldier ominously wrote, "This...is the death-knell of the Confederacy." Sometimes you win the battle but loose the war… READ MORE

The “Soldier” below spent about eight hours in the car driving from Lancaster,Ohio (Home town of General Sherman) and then a few hours walking/driving around the battlefield.

It was time to take this “Trooper” for some chow and a good nights rest at the Ringgold Hampton Inn on Battlefield Parkway(thumbs up)……We appreciated the hospitality..

CLICK to read a little more about General Sherman and Lancaster,Ohio

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ANTIETAM BATTLEFIELD and the BURNSIDE BRIDGE POST

One more suggestion: Make sure to see the movie “LINCOLN”..Maybe one Congress isn’t all that different from another…LOL

Click on photo to watch Official Trailer…..Linking to FRIDAY’S FENCES