Mom had a day off to spend with us and we made the most of it! I had heard of a letterbox that sounded intriguing in Petersburg, VA - just about a half hour south of Richmond. Mom brought along her new buddy (the Pioneer handheld navigational system) and led us "straight" to a McDonald's for breakfast - you'll have to ask her about that! After a "slight" detour for McMuffins - we got headed south and discovered a treasure.
We found the quaint town of Petersburg and headed to the Blandford Church and Cemetery. Now this letterbox is called Woodmen of the World Unite! and it involved a cemetery hunt! These unique headstones are fascinating and looked like stumps scattered throughout the cemetery. Once again - we all pitched in to solve the puzzle and found our box. The skies were misting and it was overcast, but the trees were blazing! It was magical...and the magic continued.
After letterbox success - we wanted to tour the chapel on the
cemetery grounds. The grounds of the church date back to 1702 and there is so much history scattered everywhere. One thing I found interesting was the the lady behind the idea of a National Memorial Day is buried here. (after more research I guess this is much disputed - seems the official 1st Memorial Day place was Waterloo, NY)This cemetery took on monumental significance following the Civil War. Major battles were fought here just prior to the war's end at Appomattox. (our tour guide referred to this as the "Seige of Petersburg") Union soldiers were removed from the fields and given burials at Arlington National Cemetery...but the Confederate Soldiers did not have a nation behind them to insure their proper burials. The Ladies Auxilliary of Petersburg set about trying to identify 30,000 Confederate soldiers. Only 2,700 were identified. The remaining soldiers were identified according to their regiments and units and the states they were from. These soldiers were then buried in mass graves at the cemetery with state markers.
There is a great stone arch that majestically leads to this area and we explored that. But the tour of the church revealed another great tribute to these Confederate soldiers. There
are 15 stained glass windows in this church - each dedicated to a state and its soldiers. The real surprise here is that these breathtaking windows were desinged by Tiffany! The apostles are represented in the windows and the colors and layers of glass are nothing short of spectacular. It was one of those moments when you know you are in the presence of greatness. We spent quite a bit of time marveling at these creations - and all decided that we like Louisiana's window the best - with the Apostle Paul and a gleaming sword. I hope someday you have a chance to visit this remarkable place. 
Caitlin and I have to be in DC tomorrow for "Count Day" - and we needed to head home. We dropped Mom off (gosh, we really miss you Mom!) at the hotel and pointed the car northward. Tony called us and we met him at the movie theater and enjoyed watching the movie "Flicka" with Caitlin. A good ending to a good week.
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