Varied Skies

On our way to New York City, we stopped for a few days in Philadelphia, camping at the West Chester KOA. We had a great spot overlooking rollings hills. Unfortunately, the weather failed to cooperate for much of our stay and we managed only one evening around the fire.

Undeterred by the weather, we rolled into Delaware to checkout the Hagley Museum.

Situated along the Brandywine River, the Hagley Museum is the site of the DuPont family ancestral home and the original DuPont black powder factory.

We toured the house, the museum, and the factory grounds. The house is far more glamorous than it was back in the day, having been remodeled in the 1920’s. Just picture living on the grounds of a dirty, nasty, 19th Century factory and throw in the possibility of bodily harm from black powder explosions. One such explosion killed a DuPont and the house still has cracks and other damage from the multiple explosions that occurred over the years.

The museum entertained with working models depicting typical factories in the 19th Century.

It also had a floor devoted to DuPont discoveries and inventions over the last century, including chemicals, textiles, and paints.

Most fascinating, the grounds still have working parts of the old black powder factory. A dam diverts water from the river upstream from the factory into a raceway that parallels the river. The raceway is about 14 feet above the river. To start the factory a worker opens the chute from the raceway and allows the water to flow through a turbine and back into the river. The turbine powers a series of gears and belts to drive the machinery.

Our guide fired up the machine shop and demonstrated how a worker would use various fabrication tools to make a replacement gear.

At a separate stop, a guide demonstrated how water could power multi-ton rollers in a powder mill.

Further down, another guide demonstrated a coal-fired steam engine.

We did not expect much heading over to Delaware, but the Hagley Museum proved to be a very entertaining and educational stop.

With a short break in the weather forecasted, we drove to downtown Philly to visit Independence Hall, Congress Hall, and the Liberty Bell.

After extensive debates, our forefathers signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution in Independence Hall.

Congress Hall housed the U.S. Congress from 1790 until moving to Washington D.C. in 1800. Here is the Senate chamber.

History is most appreciated with a Philly Cheesesteak in hand.

Rain rolled back in for our last day but did not dampen our spirits or stop us from visiting Valley Forge, site of the winter encampment of the Continental Army in 1777-78.

We met the Do family at the Visitor Center and toured the grounds together. The Do’s are long-time friends from my days as an engineer and it was great to see them and catch-up. Unfortunately, I did not get a group shot of the adults.

Cabins like these housed 12 soldiers each.

General Washington’s headquarters rented from a local industrialist.

Inside the Washington Memorial Chapel.

After devouring some tasty Mexican food, we said our goodbyes and headed back home to pack-up and worry about driving to Jersey City.