TRAVEL

Washington Irving: The First Acknowledged American Writer

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By Glynn Wilson – SLEEPY HOLLOW, N.Y. — Looking back on it now, with all the turmoil we face these days in the United States and American publishing, it must have been grand to be the first American writer to make a living with the pen — and to be acknowledged by critics the world…

Secret Vistas: Retreat from New York

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Secret Vistas –  By Glynn Wilson –  “If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.” – George Washington NEW YORK, N.Y. – As Commander of the Continental Army, General George Washington became known not for winning battles against the British so much,…

Lessons for Progressive Democrats on Theodore Roosevelt Island

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Secret Vistas – By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. – Lurking on a wooded little island in the Potomac River just across the water from Georgetown, there lie important lessons for progressive Democrats from the most progressive president in American history. In continuing our exploration of the U.S. capital region, not just the partisan politics,…

Rare White Fawn Spotted in Greenbelt National Park

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Secret Vistas- By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. – In late 2016, on the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service in the United States, a rare white fawn was born in the woods of Greenbelt National Park, where visitors come from all over the country and the world to see the the neo-classical architecture,…

Explore Washington, D.C. from Greenbelt National Park’s Campground

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By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. — So you’re a patriotic American or an international admirer of the United States and you’ve always wanted to visit the nation’s capital city? The Neo-classical architecture? All the buildings, memorials and other sites related to the United States federal government? All the Smithsonian museums? Maybe you’ve hesitated, thinking…

Siege at Yorktown Reveals Real Story of American Independence

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By Glynn Wilson – YORKTOWN, Virg. — I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Of all the federal holidays in the United States, Independence Day, which falls every year on the Fourth of July, is my favorite in many ways. This year thanks to a trip to Yorktown, I am thanking the French.…

Appomattox Court House: Robert E. Lee Surrenders to Grant, Ending Civil War

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By Glynn Wilson – APPOMATTOX, Virg. — We didn’t make it here in time for Memorial Day, but National Park Service rangers and volunteers say nearly 500 people showed up for the playing of “Taps” and holiday weekend programs. I don’t know for sure, but considering that Confederate sympathizers seem to generate more engagement these…

Spring Bird Migration on the Gulf Coast in Full Swing

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By Glynn Wilson – DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. — The spring bird migration is in full swing along the Gulf Coast, an annual event when thousands of species of birds make their annual trans-Gulf flight from South and Central America back to North America for the summer and hundreds of birders make it here for one…

Bird Watching Takes on a Whole New Meaning for Famous Dauphin Island Gator

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By Glynn Wilson – DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. — Thousands of bird watchers are flocking to the Alabama Gulf Coast this spring for the annual bird migration, but it’s also mating season for other species, including this fairly large American alligator [Alligator mississippiensis] that has become a tourist attraction in its own right as people come…

An Osprey Fishing in the Audubon Bird Sanctuary on Dauphin Island

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By Glynn Wilson – DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. – The annual spring bird migration is in full swing along the Alabama Gulf Coast, as well as the spring mating season for North American raptors like this osprey [Pandion haliaetus], unique for its diet of live fish and ability to dive into water to catch them. These…

Thinking About An Honest Life by the Singing River in Muscle Shoals

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By Glynn Wilson – MUSCLE SHOALS, Ala. — Sitting beside the Tennessee River in McFarland Park by the Florence Visitor’s Center after spending a few days in the quad city area often just called “the shoals,” I cannot help but think about what might have been. What if I had stuck with the music business…

Fee for All: America Feesters View Price Increases at National Parks as Panacea

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By David Underhill – MOBILE, Ala. – Advocates for a fee-based definition of all value are having spasms of ecstasy over the plans for giant increases in entrance fees at the nation’s most popular national parks. The America Feesters, as these patriots call themselves, praise interior secretary Ryan Zinke for his courageous politically incorrect decision,…

Photo Essay: A White House Tour

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By Glynn Wilson – WASHINGTON, D.C. – For the past three years I have chased a dream to visit the White House and stand on the same hallowed ground where so much American history has taken place in the nation’s capital. Finally, thanks to the helpful staff of Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, the Congressman from…

Photographer Rowland Scherman Was There

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He Shot Rock ‘n’ Roll Too EDITOR’S NOTE: We caught up with Scherman and got this story we ran on August 6, 2011 in The Locust Fork News-Journal. We re-run it here today because we are about to hook with Rowland again in New York on a trip to meet up with author and new…

Setting the Record Straight on the Lewis and Clark Expedition

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The Western pioneer and cowboy myth is huge, but not so much from the Native American perspective. By Glynn Wilson – Editor-in-Chief – EDITOR’S NOTE: There are two kinds of people in the world. Which kind are you? Do you like reading the pretty little patriotic myth? Or would you rather see a real journalist…

A Look at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West Museum in Cody Wyoming

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Watch the video – By Glynn Wilson – “Buffalo Bill” Cody is a name that conjures up romantic images of the American “Wild West” in the 19th century. It’s almost unfortunate in the 21st century when there is a renewed interest in justice for Native Americans that the name of William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody…

Republican Congress Moves to Privatize Public Land

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By Glynn Wilson – Editor-in-Chief – We hate to say we told you so. But it is what it is. Donald J. Trump has not even been inaugurated president yet and the privatization of public land has already begun. On the very day we published a video trailer talking about the commercialization and privatization of…