DrivingBackRoads.com

Sometimes great shots aren’t planned. Many of you know that I like shots with clouds. When I left the house there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, but I had a couple of cameras with me anyway, as is usual. I had some errands to run, and the dogs were almost out of their favorite dog food, so I knew I would have to pick up a few cans before returning home. I made it to Union (WV) and stopped at the grocery and picked up a few items. By the time I was out of the store, clouds were filling the sky and I decided to drive by some of the town’s historic homes and structures. As I neared the northern edge of town, I noticed Confederate flags flying at the Confederate War Memorial, and I decided to check it out.

A few men and a woman in uniforms and Civil War period dress were milling around the monument that honors Monroe County’s Confederate soldiers. I found out that Beirne Chapman Camp 148 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans was having a social. People were coming and going, as reenactors answered questions about local history, and their activities to honor and remember the young men of Monroe County that fought for the Southern cause. The group was there to celebrate their second anniversary.

The location of the Confederate monument, is directly across US 219 from Elmwood Estate. In 1864, some 10,000 Union troops, under the command of Gen. George Crook occupied Union for five days and looted the elegant Southern mansion, which has been restored, and is now a venue for weddings and other events. The Union soldiers camped in the fields around Elmwood, where the Confederate monument now stands, and the events of today were going on.

A member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans group, Commander Steve Dransfield, asked if I was going to stay for the cannon to be fired. They were going to be firing a Civil War era cannon as part of their historical display. That was something I didn’t want to miss. I walked around and snapped a few shots while they readied the gun. I was hoping to catch the muzzle blast. I knew that it had to be perfectly timed, as there wouldn’t be a second chance.

I shot a few images of their rountine. The men covered their ears and I prepared to shoot. I heard the command, “Fire.” My shutter clicked and I heard the boom. I shot a couple more images, as they finished up.

As the men came near, one asked if I had caught the muzzle blast. I hit the button on the back of camera to review the images, and went back a couple of frames. I showed him the viewfinder. Yes, I had got the muzzle blast. It was better than I had expected. I knew that I had the shot that I wanted. I shot a few more frames and then headed home to process the images, feed the dogs and work on this article.

Fall has arrived in Monroe County, WV and the colors are approaching peak.It’s a great time for photography, and other outdoor activities. It’s perfect for Driving Back Roads. I can’t think of a better place to be this time of year.

Chris Wszolek let me know that the autumn colors were bright and vivid at his place in Union, and kindly offered to let me walk around and shoot some photos. He and his wife, Anita, call Elmwood Estate home. It’s easily one of the most recognizable historic homes in Monroe County, if not the state. They bought the farm in 2001 and saved the magnificent Greek Revival home and associated structures from years of neglect. Today, the buildings have been restored, and the property serves as a wedding and events venue. Another home on the estate serves as an Airbnb. The Wszoleks are very much into historic preservation, and are doing their part for Union and the surrounding area. They have also purchased other historic homes and revived and refitted them for modern needs, while letting them retain their historic integrity.

My wife and I pulled into the long lane leading up to the historic home. It was early afternoon, and the sun lit the trees, which were in rich autumn shades. I opened the back door of the truck and pulled out a couple of cameras and a monopod and we started to walk around.

One can only image scenes from the past that have played out here. The Greathouse at Elmwood was built in the 1830s by Thomas Jefferson’s best mason, William B. Phillips for Hugh Caperton. The original Elmwood was a brick structure located behind the main house,built around 1808-1810 for the Caperton family. It was later converted to a barn to house work horses. The brick barn is on the National Register of Historic Places.

An old restored Oliver tractor sat under a side shed of the brick barn. It remined me of one we had back on the farm in Kentucky, whenI was a kid. My wife snapped my picture with it. A 1952 Chevy pickup sat in the garage. Chris brings it to Kittles Hardware store in downtown Union on Saturdays, which they own and operate.

Fall colors at Elmwood are awesome, but also all around Monroe County and the surrounding area.One would do good to pick any back road and drive. Monroe County will not disappoint.

More information about Elmwood and Monroe County, WV can be found below in the following links:

Elmwood Estate

Monroe County Historical Society

Travel Monroe

Driving Backroads June 2020 Article about Union

The clouds were giving way to sunshine as my wife and I made our way to Second Creek, WV, a community in northern Monroe County, WV. It was early afternoon, and I was hoping that the diffused light would hold long enough take a few images. As we turned down Second Creek Road, I noticed a barn that would have to wait for another time, as the lighting was not quite to my liking. A little further down, and across the road, was a two story farmhouse that had been deserted long ago. The light was a little more agreeable so I stopped and snapped a quick shot. Just a short distance farther, a large building was situated between the creek and road, A sign read, “Reed’s Mill” and another above it, “Home of the Everette Hogsett Broom Factory.”

The only grist mill that survives along Second Creek, Reed’s Mill has been there since 1791, and has been in continuous operation. At one time, there were some 22 mills along a 20 mile stretch of the creek. Formerly known as McDowell’s Mill, it was purchased by the Reed family in 1914, and continued to serve the community. Larry Mustain acquired the mill in 1994, and along with his son, operates it to make a couple of varieties of buckwheat flour. They are also well known for their Bloody Butcher cornmeal.

Bloody Butcher corn, a colorful heirloom variety from the area, is stone ground here as it has been for generations, giving a complex, gritty cornmeal that is flavorful and different. White and speckled with dark red flecks, like a butcher’s apron, it has a nutty flavor and is considered a southern delicacy. Tradition has it that the corn was given to the settlers by the Indians.

Second Creek has several churches, a surviving one room schoolhouse, and the remains of an old storefront. A rusted Coca-Cola sign remains above a smaller old Royal Crown Cola sign. A quilt block has been added to the side of the shuttered building more recently. The town’s post office closed a decade ago.

We had been in Second Creek only for a few minutes when the clouds gave way to sunshine, putting an end to the diffused light, which I so much like for back road photography. We’ll be back in the near future to continue where we left off, when the lighting is right. Maybe then, the mill and broom factory will be open, we’ll do more exploring, and I’ll get more photos of this area that is so rich in history.