They visited Fort Roberdeau in Altoona, PA, on September 30, 2009. This historic site depicts a fort that was built during the American Revolution, a place to mine lead to manufacture ammunition. The fort also helped stabilize Pennsylvania's frontier.
Here are some of the things that Nelson and Metoo saw and learned:
Shhh! It's time to listen and learn...
So this is the story behind the colors
and design of the American flag!
White for purity, Red for valor ~
Yup! That's us!
Wow! Pottery and glass
from the late 1700's...
This was a really cool model.
Did you know that they had dogs back then, too?
This is how all of the buildings were
built ~ with dovetailed logs, making
them strong and sturdy ~
and perfect seats for sock monkeys!
Nelson: I may be made in China,
but my heart is true American...
People used to sleep on beds made with straw.
They covered it with cotton to keep it from
being so itchy, but you can imagine that
the straw always found a way to poke through...
Dinner time!
Using plates and mugs made from pewter,
a soldier at Roberdeau often enjoyed
oven baked bread and stews and soups.
The meat often came from the game in the woods
and the vegetables from their gardens.
All this, right outside their back door.
Besides writing letters to family
and sending reports to the front lines,
the soldiers of Roberdeau also mapped out
the local area, providing valuable information
for future generations to explore Pennsylvania...
There were no grocery stores in
the wilderness of Penns Woods.
Instead, shipments of meat, packed in salt
and stored in a barrel were delivered
to the fort, their purchases expected to last for months...
What's in here?
The entire fort area was surrounded by a tall fence
to protect the soldiers. Small holes were cut into
the walls for visibility and to be able to
shoot at unwelcome visitors.
We have to go where to get our water?
Why not just turn on the faucet?
No faucets?!?!
Keeping the daily essentials stocked
was a full time job all by itself...
Work, work, work.
Keeping our noses to the grindstone...
Of course the day would not be complete
without Nelson getting into some kind of mischief.
Today he decided that he would try on
some of the clothes that people of
Fort Roberdeau wore. At least he did not
try on the hoop skirts and tight corsets
that were worn by the ladies!
Field trip all done!
Nelson and Metoo really got an education
while having a lot of fun! Not only did they get to see, touch
and hear about many things of the past, but they also
learned how and where the American dream of freedom began...
