Monday, 5Jul10, REST DAY, St. Joseph, MO
Wow! It’s a rest day and I for one … definitely can use some rest … I must be getting “old”, eh?
A little history of St. Joseph, Missouri … located on the banks of the mighty Missouri River.
- A clean concise way of describing this area is in the slogan “Where the Pony Express started and Jesse James ended.”
- Previous to that time period is the time period of July 6, 1804 … when Meriwether Lewis and William Clark did their thing as part of the “mapping” of the Louisiana Purchase. (so there is a lot of very rich history here, check it out at: www.lewis-clark.org )
- Then there’s the history of the Blacksnake Hills Trading Post from the era of 1826, founded by a fur trader, Joseph Robidoux.
- Several years later we come into the era of Jesse James … who moved to town in the fall of 1881 under the assumed name of Ton Howard, after most of his gang had been killed in a bank robbery up in Northfield, Minnesota.
- Jesse James was killed by “Bob” Ford and yet he was arrested and charged with murder. The “James Home” is now a museum.
- Finally a note about the “Pony Express” which was established in 1860, many years before Jesse James, as the threat of the Civil War loomed ahead of them.
- A sad note … The Pony Express lasted just 19 months … because its founders went bankrupt, after being replaced by the 1st Transcontinental Telegraph and Railroad.
- I love the “local flavor” in which they say … “the city of St. Joseph has changed with the years, but its past has not been forgotten.”
- There are lots of attractions to be visited … so if you get a chance … stop by St. Joseph, MO., and delve into the rich history of this beautiful area.
Back to the work of the “rest day” … clean the bikes, clean the clothes, visit with my “children and grandchildren” … it doesn’t get any better than this!
To all my friends back in Santa Rosa, CA, the SRCC “Acorns” we love you and miss you friendly smiles.
To Brett G., John M., and Rand L. … thanks for your support … you are amazing!
To my family and friends at church … I say “noone said it would be easy … they just said it would be worth it!
Channel 4 News (Gary) out of Kansas City called this morning and decided they would hook up with us tomorrow morning when we start our trek to Chillicothe. (another 92 mile day!)
I’ll check in with you later. (as D.C. says “hugs and kisses”.
- Wow! What a day! At 12 noon … we will interviewed by Greg Miller, a reporter from Channel 3 News Press NOW, St. Joseph, MO.
- Greg emailed and said it should be on the 9 o’clock news show later this evening.
- Then this afternoon, our whole family (Paul, Katrina, Luc, Lani, Libby, Aaron, Kambrala, Lillie and Lani all went to visit a friend of ours, Warren Hurley, who is a fireman/driver for SJFD, St. Joseph Fire Department, at 2701 St. Joseph Avenue.
- It was a lot of fun and we took a lot of pictures at the fire station … check it out on Facebook …
- There must have been some mixup because I thought we were invited to attend a blood drive in St. Joseph however I must have missed our contact time.
What a great day of fun!