In this newsletter: Puddering around Pontchartrain Getaways with historic roots Female Spies in the Civil War Road trip on the Oatman Highway
and more! | | | | [Route 66 Mural in Baxter Springs, Kansas. Photo by Kathy Alexander.]
Appointments and schedules be damned! We couldn't wait any longer to get back on the road, so on March 9, we packed up and headed south for a tiny bit of Kansas Route 66, some enchantment in the Chickasaw Nation, and eventually southern Louisiana.
We stayed a couple of nights at the Chickasaw National Recreation Area and really enjoyed the peace and quiet. Chickasaw National Recreation Area is in the foothills of the Arbuckle Mountains in south-central Oklahoma near Sulphur, and includes the former Platt National Park and Arbuckle Recreation Area. Managed by the National Park Service, the area has deep historical ties to the Chickasaw Nation, which ceded 640 acres to the federal government in 1902 to preserve its springs.
| | Camping here in early March obscured some of its beauty, but we did get to experience the typical Oklahoma Spring weather. We didn't run into any twisters, but the sound and constant vibration from the lightning storm were a bit of a butt pucker.
Of course, we had to spend time in the Dallas area for our annual visit with Kathy's sister Deb, and just to get away from what cold was left back in Warsaw. Then, after a 'vaca' to chill and refocus, we decided to head east, into the Pelican State.
Shreveport was a ride... Exiting onto 220 to get over to I-49, we quickly realized some road maintenance was due. Have you ever been on one of those concrete highways with the roller coaster effect? Multiply that a couple of times and add on a 28-foot travel trailer, then toss in a parting pot hole at the beginning of the on-ramp to I-49, and it's time for a potty stop.
Better roads led us by Natchitoches, which is a great stop we did some years back. And we've done New Orleans, so we decided to stay a little farther north. | | We're not far north of Lake Pontchartrain, about 10 miles east of Ponchatula. It's a rainy Sunday as I write this from our Travel Trailer at Fireside RV Resort. But the past week has been absolutely gorgeous, and we took the opportunity to do some puddering around Lake Ponchartrain, looking for lighthouses. | | The Pontchartrain Conservancy's New Canal Lighthouse was a cool stop that offers an audio tour and information. It marks the spot where ships once entered New Orleans through Lake Pontchartrain, avoiding the mouth of the Mississippi. After the Louisiana Purchase, Americans built the New Basin Canal, dug by thousands of Irish immigrants. A Celtic cross nearby honors the many who died during its construction. Though this is actually the fourth lighthouse built here in 2013, it is very similar to the 1890 one that stood here and was constructed with about 50% of the original material.
| | It wasn't all lighthouses though. This little hidden gem is along the upper side of the Bayou just back from Allen Toussaint Boulevard, adjacent to what is now the "Floral Park" section of the Lake Vista neighborhood. Digging a little into the history, the fort at Bayou St. John guarded the Lake Pontchartrain entrance to this trade route long before New Orleans was founded. The French built the first small fort in 1701, and the Spanish later replaced it with a larger brick post called San Juan del Bayou. After Louisiana shifted from Spain to France and finally to the United States, the fort’s military role faded, and it was decommissioned in 1823.
| | There was even an amusement park here sometime in the late 1800s, early 1900s, called the Old Spanish Fort. A project in the late 1920s reclaimed land around Lake Ponchartrain and the shoreline moved away from the site. In 1938, it was converted into a public park.
We are heading further east on Monday, and I'll try to add more from our Lighthouse finds in a photo blog sometime soon.
Safe Travels,
Dave, "Is the trailer still attached?" Alexander. | | From Legends' General Store | | Old West postcards include new and vintage cards of western characters, scenes, historic sites, and more.
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| | | | Here are some of the recent additions since our last newsletter | | Shipwrecks of the Great Lakes - Today, over 6,000 vessels in the Great Lakes have caused an estimated loss of 30,000 mariners’ lives.
Creoles of the South - Originally, "Creole" referred to any person of European or African descent born in the West Indies or parts of French or Spanish America.
Yuman Family - The Yuman Family comprises various Native American tribes and bands that traditionally lived in the lower Colorado River and Gila River Valleys.
Buffalo Hunter's War of Texas - The Buffalo Hunters' War, or the Staked Plains War, occurred in 1877 on the High Plains of Texas between the U.S. and Native Americans.
Fort Pickens, Florida - Fort Pickens, Florida, is a historic pentagon-shaped U.S. military fort on Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola.
| | Roaring Twenties - The Roaring Twenties were the post-World War I era of prosperity and new opportunities. The economy was booming, and the middle class was enjoying a higher standard of living.
Celebrating the Semiquincentennial: Guided Journaling through 2026 Highlighting Lesser Known Explorers - (By William Pugh Duncan) Discover America’s 250th Anniv through a year‑long guided journal highlighting explorers, forgotten voices, and daily reflections on our nation’s journey.
Ada LaMont, Colorado Madam: Anatomy of a Legend - (by Daniel Seligman) Examining Ada LaMont’s rise from Denver’s underworld to one of Colorado’s most influential madams, revealing power, scandal, and survival in the early West.
America's First Electric Cities: How Urban Lighting Changed Nightlife and Culture - (by Jesse Galanis) From arc lamps to power grids, explore how electric light changed work hours, nightlife, and culture in America’s first electrified cities.
Best Fall Getaways With Historical Roots: Leaves, Legends, and Small Town America - (by Jesse Galanis) Discover the best fall getaways with rich historical roots—explore charming towns, scenic landscapes, and heritage destinations perfect for an autumn escape.
From Legends of Kansas | | Burlington, Kansas - Coffey County Seat - (Legends of Kansas) Burlington, Kansas, is a city in and the county seat of Coffey County on the Neosho River. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,634.
Waverly, Kansas - (Legends of Kansas) Waverly, Kansas, is a small town in Rock Creek Township in the northeast corner of Coffey County. As of the 2020 census, its population was 574.
Centerville, Kansas - (Legends of Kansas) Centerville, Kansas, is an unincorporated community located about 12 miles northwest of Mound City in Linn County.
Denver, Memphis & Atlantic Railroad - (Legends of Kansas) The Denver, Memphis & Atlantic Railroad was the last of the railroad companies chartered in Winfield, Kansas, from 1873 to 1887.
Ness City, Kansas - (Legends of Kansas) Founded in 1878, Ness City, Kansas, the county seat of Ness County, is located on Walnut Creek, a short distance south of the county's geographic center.
We've added 39 articles since our last newsletter...
| | | From Legends' Photo Print Shop | | Ghost Town photo prints from various States in the American West, including Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. Also includes historic buildings.
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| | | | | The Civil War wasn’t just fought on battlefields; it was waged in parlors, prison yards, and behind carefully drawn curtains. While Victorian society insisted a woman’s place was in the home, many defied expectations and stepped into the shadows of espionage.
From the fearless Confederate spy Belle Boyd, who dodged bullets to deliver intelligence to Stonewall Jackson, to Union operative Elizabeth Van Lew, who masked her brilliance behind an eccentric façade to smuggle secrets from Richmond’s Libby Prison—these women risked everything to shape the course of the war.
| | | | | From Cool Springs and Ed’s Camp to Sitgreaves Pass, the road out of Kingman to the Old West town of Oatman is a twist-and-turn of 100 years on the Mother Road. | | | From Legend's Photo Print Shop | | Happy 100th to America's Mother Road!! From Chicago, Illinois, to the Santa Monica Pier in California, and everything in between, you'll find dozens of Route 66 photographs from all eight states!
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| | | | | Born on March 19, 1848, Wyatt Earp is the best-known frontier lawman of the American West. Soft-spoken with nerves of steel, he survived countless gunfights due to his extraordinary patience and resolute manner. But Earp wasn’t just the famous lawman of Dodge City and Tombstone fame; he was also a buffalo hunter, miner, card dealer, stagecoach driver, saloon owner, and much more throughout the years.
In 1907, W.R. (Bat) Masterson, an old West legend himself, wrote about Wyatt.
| | | Paul Revere and His Midnight Ride | | Paul Revere is an American folk hero of the American Revolution, whose dramatic horseback ride on the night of April 18, 1775, warned Boston-area residents that the British were approaching. | | | Popular Stories on Facebook | | In case you missed it, here are some of the articles that have been popular on our Facebook Fan Pages recently. | | | Silver Reef, Utah, wasn’t supposed to exist, at least according to the geologists of the 1800s. Silver simply didn’t occur in sandstone… until it did.
What followed was a mining rush that built a thriving town of nearly 2,000 people, complete with a mile‑long Main Street, a Wells Fargo office, and a reputation for proving the skeptics wrong.
Today, Silver Reef stands as a fascinating ghost town with remnants of its bold past still visible.
Take a closer look at the rise, fall, and legacy of this one‑of‑a‑kind mining camp:
| | | The Comanche are a Native American nation of the Great Plains whose historic territory ranged from present-day north-central Texas, eastern New Mexico, southeastern Colorado, southwestern Kansas, western Oklahoma, and northern Chihuahua, Mexico.
Dating back to the early 1500s, the Comanche were originally part of the Eastern Shoshone, who lived near the upper reaches of the Platte River in eastern Wyoming. However, when Europeans entered the scene and the tribe obtained horses, they broke away from the Shoshone, forming an estimated 10,000-member group.
Continue reading about the Comanche – Horsemen of the Plains
| | | On March 16, 1903, Judge Roy Bean, the infamous “Law West of the Pecos”, died in his Langtry saloon after a lifetime of bold decisions, bizarre rulings, and frontier theatrics. From holding court in a bar to fining a corpse, Bean’s story is one of the Old West’s most unforgettable rides.
| | | Gaining a post office in early February 1878, WaKeeney, Kansas, has one of those dramatic origin stories...born from railroad speculation, flooded with eager settlers, and nearly undone by crop failures and catastrophic fires.
Yet the town rebuilt, adding grand hotels, a beautiful courthouse, and even an opera house before becoming known for its beloved Christmas lighting tradition that still draws visitors today.
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