By Samuel Strait – November 16, 2022 It has been several days of seeing the sights then a long stint behind the wheel to our next stop. Tippeecanoe this morning is an important colonial battle in Indiana, that resulted in the eventual path to statehood for the Hoosiers. Not only do we tour the site of the battle, but a historical story in the site's museum paints a vivid picture of life in early Indiana, and a description of the circumstances leading up to the battle and its aftermath. Following the confrontation at Tippeecanoe, Native Indian Tribes were pushed west of the Wabash River and North into French Canada. In the years that followed Native Americans played havoc along this border, forcing the British ruled colonies to fortify the area and make several expeditions to pacify it. It has gotten cold over the past few days as we have decided to drive further South before crossing into Illinois. Back over to Indiana 41 and Terre Haute is our stop for lunch, before heading West to Saint Louis. Another car museum catches our eye in Effingham and we elect to stop and check it out. An hour and a half later, we have maxed out on old cars and we are on the road again. We had stopped at the visitor's center when crossing into Illinois an have a full schedule of sights in and around the Saint Louis in the morning. Gas has stayed near $3.55 since leaving Michigan and things have warmed up considerably. A beautiful sunset and the arch at Saint Louis comes into view as we head into the bright lights of the city. Another major US city plagued by homelessness and rising crime. Something Crescent City and urban City's seem to have in common, such a shame, as we haven't seen much of those kinds of problems in the rest of rural America. I can't explain it, but maybe its a California thing. Gas and taxes sky rocket and the roads and infrastructure deteriorate noticeably. On to the Next day, number twenty six. It had warmed up during the day yesterday as we moved south to nearly 80 degrees, but this morning it is thirty one degrees outside and six inches of the white stuff is on the ground. The snow plows have been out early, and it has stopped snowing, so we head further south to more colonial sites along the river, the Mississippi, dating from the French occupation of what eventually became the Louisiana Purchase. Fort Chartres, an early example of a Vauban fortress is first up. An impressive three hundred year old fortress made from stone looms over the bluffs above the Mississippi. Some recent refurbishment has restored the fort to what it looked like in the 1730's well before it became part of the United States. Back through some picturesque rural villages, then up on another ridge above the river is Fort Keskeskia an early example of wooden forts built when Americans pushed west into Illinois in the 1830's. Not much left except a couple of stone monuments, but the dog got it's first taste of snow. Was not particularly thrilled. Further north we go back up to Saint Louis where we have lunch then tour the World War One museum at Jefferson Barracks. A rather intense series of displays of life in the trenches plus the historical lesson surrounding the conflict. As I have said all along, people in this age haven't got much to complain about compared to those who lived in the past. No more snow, cold, so we elect to push on to Kansas City. Day twenty six ends outside of Kansas City for another full list of activities in the morning. The Kansas City Chiefs are playing in the morning so we are dreading the traffic. I seem to recall a comment in these pages claiming that living in an urban setting was no different than a rural setting, but I beg to differ. Living in the city is very different and traffic is but one of the differences. Kansas city finds us up bright and early to catch yet another military museum, this one also takes up Missouri's experiences during the Great War 1914-1918. The collections are housed in an enormous new building , and has a very comprehensive collection of artifacts with a focus on Missouri's part in the conflict. What captured our attention beyond the artifacts from WWI was a series of displays about POW's and internee's during the war. Most people who are historically literate, likely think that internment was a product of Theodore Roosevelt's Democrats in the Second World War,; however, that was not the case. Many countries elected to intern enemy aliens during the course of WWI, the United States included. While in the Western theater POW's were treated fairly well, but that wasn't always the case the further east one went. Internees had no status and did not fare as well. Many lost everything during their confinement if they survived and had to start all over following the war. Next stop, downtown KC and a family of treasure seekers. The side wheeler, Arabia, was a187 foot log Missouri river boat loaded with 200 tons of cargo and over one hundred passengers. This was a stop well worth the time spent viewing not only the story of her recovery from 45 feet of Missouri River silt in the 1980's in a farmer's corn field, but the story of the wreck itself. In the 1850's as Americans began to move West, the Missouri River was an artery of travel to the MidWest. Thousands of passengers and cargo were transported on riverboats as far as possible up river. It was a very hazardous way of travel, as the Missouri is littered with wrecks of steamboats from its mouth for hundreds of miles up stream. The life of a riverboat was about three years at the time. The Arabia's was about six moths. A local team of treasure hunters attempted to salvage the wreck and many later attempts were made to relocate it without success, that is until a local family and fiends did just that. Rather than sell the tons of artifacts uncovered in the wreck site, the family elected to display the artifacts in Kansas City. It is a veritable Wallmart of pioneer life, all the way from Jewelry to perfume, food to building materials,and everything in between. A very complete inventory of what was needed to live life on the prairies of the upper Midwest during the 1800's. Afterwards, over to Pigwich for some Kansas City Barbecue, then down to the Museum of Jazz, housed in an old rebuilt theater alongside the Blue Room, home to many Jazz greats. Running short on time we leave Kansas City late in the day for Omaha. A zig and zag, more time changes, into and out of Iowa, then on to Nebraska for the night. The bright lights of Omaha and another full day scheduled for the morning. End of day twenty seven. Day twenty eight begins with a cold sojourn north of Omaha to another nineteenth century outpost, Fort Atkinson, home to Federal troops responsible for protecting the new frontier, It was also the location of many meetings between Native American tribes and the Federal Government. Not much of the original structure remain, yet the state has reconstructed some of the log structures that were on the site in the 1850's. Unique about the post was its construction out of logs laid horizontally rather the typical vertical orientation of most of forts previously constructed. Back to Omaha to visit the Joslyn Castle, a truly magnificent stone castle like structure set in formal gardens similar to Scottish Castles found in the United Kingdom. It was supposed to be an hour long guided tour that turned into two, but well worth the time spent. The Joslyne's arrived from Canada with nine dollars and a satchel of clothing, to go on to become the wealthiest family in the Midwest at the time. Worth over $20,000,000.00 by 1903., the couple lived a truly fairy tale life. Who said capitalism and hard work doesn't pay off? A quick lunch then back to the previous night's lodging to retrieve my wallet and on to the Strategic Air Command display south west of Omaha. Heading to Wyoming, following an hour and a half at the Command's artifact collection, mostly airplanes, then back on the road towards Cheyenne. Stopped in Ogallala for a home cooked meal at the Front Street Steak house and Crystal Palace. The meal was a diet breaker, and the pie was terrific. Don't tell anyone or Doc Caldwell will have me on the carpet when I get back. The Crystal Palace, ehm, was a dance hall from the 1880's, les femmes included. They have quite the show during the summer, including cold sarsaparilla. Unfortunately it wasn't summer, and the outside temperature was 19 degrees. Sigh. We grudgingly give up looking for dance hall girls and make the final sprint to Sidney, Nebraska, our stop for the day. Salt Lake City tomorrow, or maybe not. Sidney has a wild west museum and carriage display to check out before we hit the road, then a few more days to get back home and process all we have seen. It has been an education, something more people would be wise to under take, a pilgrimage in the United States.