I don’t know why this week’s Sepia Saturday photo prompted me to think of this one:
Velma Davis October 1926
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| Velma seated others unknown but in another photo the woman looks like her friend Olive Williams |
I do not know the occasion, but she was not alone.
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| Woody and Velma Oct 1926 |
Today one of the main entrances to the Skyline Drive is at Swift Run Gap. Anyone entering the park will see the little pyramid that features so prominently in many of Velma’s photos from that day.
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| Velma on the right Oct 1926 |
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| Woody Oct 1926 |
It had been along the road at Swift Run Gap only since 1921. It was erected by the Colonial Dames of Virginia to commemorate the 205th anniversary of Governor Alexander Spotswood’s expedition into the valley.
As the royal governor in the early 1700s, Spotswood received a lot of pressure from “back home” in jolly ol’ England to expand westward. In September 1716, he gathered some prominent citizens and embarked on a journey across the interior of Virginia and on across the Blue Ridge Mountains. In celebration of their amazing expedition, Spotswood gave each officer a stickpin made of gold in the shape of a horseshoe. The pin was inscribed in Latin: “Sic jurat transcendere montes” which means “Thus he swears to cross the mountains.” In time, they became known as “the Knights of the Golden Horseshoe.” There is no such organization, so the name must have been a little joke.
At one time, the pyramid enjoyed prominence along Route 33. Even when the park was under construction, the pyramid sat in a triangle plot complete with rustic posts and small plants.
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| From National Park Service - in public domain 1936 |
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| 1946 from CardCow.com |
In 1969, the pyramid and other markers were moved across the road. Grass and gravel.
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| Markers across from Swift Run Gap entrance to Skyline Drive |
Nevertheless, this little pyramid is near and dear to my heart because the Shenandoah Valley is the center of my genealogical world. As a kid, I went with my grandparents to visit my cousins in Shenandoah every summer. I always looked for that marker, although I didn’t know its significance. To me it merely signaled that we had finished climbing UP the mountain, and we’d be going DOWN the other side. (I bet Governor Spotswood thought the same thing!) Almost there!
Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and enjoy more stories and old photos at Sepia Saturday.
Wendy
© 2020, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.
Fun to see the pictures of them all dressed up in front of the pyramid. Beautiful part of the country!
ReplyDeletebetty
Yes. It captures an era.
DeleteWe all have those certain sites and sights that are meaningful to us for whatever reason. They mark a place, time, or event in our lives and make us feel good when we see them - like meeting old friends again.
ReplyDeleteFascinating to read about your family story intertwined with history. Thank goodness they preserved the marker through all of that construction. I have a similar relationship with a historic cemetery in my hometown. We kids used used to ride bikes over there to lounge on the grass and read the inscriptions. Perhaps a prelude to my love of family history? Always visit when I am in town.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed hearing about the original finding of the area, as well as your family history...showing them standing by the pyramid puts it into perspective. I love the joke of golden horseshoes.
ReplyDeleteThis vintage photos always get us to wondering what was going on in our ancestor's lives.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your linking of family memories with local history.
ReplyDeleteMy family were mostly coastal Chesapeake folk, and the Shenandoah mountains always seemed as faraway as the Rockies. But two years ago we took my mom on a long drive from NC to MD along I-81 and on the return stopped at Shrinemount, a summer church camp in the Shenandoahs where she had spent several summer holidays. It was a Sunday and there was a large church group finishing the weekend. Next thing we know my mom wrangled us an invitation for lunch. The food, the lively kids, and the rustic cabins were just as she remembered from 75 years before. Listening to her talking about the beautiful mountains and her first adventure away from home was a special gift for her to share. That memory has made the Shenandoahs a lot closer to me now.
ReplyDeleteWhat wonderful photos!
ReplyDelete