Southern Holiday Part Two

We reached Opryland where we picked up our tickets for that night's performance of the Grand Ole Opry. We got a preview of what to expect at the show that night as we visited the Opryland Museum, part of the complex that includes the theater, theme park and other exhibits. The museum features interactive computer monitors where one can test his knowledge of country music and make requests to hear songs of favorite singers. On exhibit are items like Marty Robbins' formula race car, Lefty Frizzel's "Nudie" cowboy boots, Porter Wagoner's stage costumes and Hank Snow's shaving kit! We saw everything from baby Martin guitars and old studio microphones to Patsy Cline's bedroom suite. Leather vests, rhinestone jumpsuits, embroidered western hats, and platinum records are showcased in a nostalgic, early days of country music atmosphere.

Everything one could hope to see concerning country entertainment is here at Opryland. Among my favorites were the George Jones, Emmylou Harris and Jim Reeves exhibits. I could have spent lots of time here just watching the films and listening to all the music. While viewing the George Jones videos, we struck up a conversation with a friendly pair that just couldn't believe that they were talking to a couple from "Hollywood", California! They asked, "What movie stars have you all seen?", and of course, "Are you all close to the Simpson trial?" I knew they would be thrilled if I offered to take their address and send them movie star maps and trial updates.

At Music Valley Wax Museum there are figures of Buck Owens, Dolly Parton, Little Jimmy Dickens, Willie Nelson and Loretta Lynn. Some of the wax figures actually resemble those country singers they portray. Outside, the autographs and handprints in cement are worth taking notice. Skeeter Davis' and Crystal Gayle's are among the ones most conspicuous. After lunch at Music Valley's newest restaurant- we were their first customers, we hurried back to the hotel to shower and get dressed for the Opry performance (off with the thermals and into a tie).

With some time to spare before the concert, we explored the Minnie Pearl Museum at Opryland and learned more about this great lady of country entertainment than we had known previously, which wasn't much. Once inside the Opry House, we stopped at the snack bar for a quick dinner of sandwiches, popcorn and drinks. We needed nourishment enough to get us through the twenty seven acts that were scheduled to perform that evening!

Each of the seven segments was a live radio broadcast with a different sponsor. Some of the sponsors for the shows were: Sheplers Western Wear, Dollar General Store, True Value Hardware Store, Georgia Boot, and Goody's Headache Powder. Among the noteworthy performers were: Porter Wagoner, Jeanne Pruitt, Stonewall Jackson, Grandpa Jones, Hank Locklin, Bill Monroe & the Bluegrass Boys, Jim Ed Brown, Justin Tubb, Hank Snow, Connie Smith, Little Jimmy Dickens, Jean Shepard, Skeeter Davis, The Whites, Johnny Russell, Jeannie Seely, and the Four Guys. Our seats were in the mezzanine, but we were allowed to walk up to the stage to take pictures. I was able to get some close up photos of Grandpa Jones, Bill Monroe, and Hank Snow among others.

One picture I failed to get was that of Skeeter Davis, who told the audience that she was celebrating her 62nd birthday. Her song, "The End of the World" came out in 1962, and her age today commemorated that year. From where we were sitting, she did not appear her age. In fact, she looked and sounded much younger. Later we wished I had taken a picture of her, just for a closer look at what seemed to be a pretty young lady.

Following the Grand Ole Opry Show, the Grand Ole Gospel Time with Hank Snow's son, Reverend Jimmy Snow, was to have its last broadcast after at least forty years on the radio. We stayed on to listen for a while, but when the preaching became a little too intense, we left the Opry House and went to nearby Shoneys Restaurant for coffee. We saw many of the same people who had been at the Opry show, including some of the performers.

Although she had been quite a distance away while on stage during the show, I recognized Skeeter Davis, sitting by us with a group of young women who obviously enjoyed her company. When I got a chance to speak to her, I told her that once I sang her song, "The End of the World", at a karaoke lounge, even though I had never heard it sung by a man. She told me when the song first came to her, she learned that it had been written by a man. Karen complimented her on her continued youthful appearance. Then Skeeter gave us each a handshake and said that it was the nicest compliment ever. One more time, we took in the Christmas lights at the Opryland Hotel, taking some pictures of ourselves in front of the enormous, decorated tree in the lobby.

There was a light rain the next morning with two more stops to make before leaving Nashville. After yet another Waffle House breakfast, we drove to Evergreen Place, where Mary Reeves, widow of Jim Reeves, has created the Jim Reeves Museum. We entered the residence grounds when an older woman welcomed and directed us to park along the fence at the rear of the house. There were no other cars on the premises, except for a custom built, early model Cadillac with a continental kit. As Karen held the umbrella, we managed to take pictures of the pretty Southern style mansion and the log cabin and rustic fences around the property.

Still holding that umbrella, we made our way to the entrance of the house to be given a private tour of the rooms and displays. I have been a fan of Jim Reevesfor almost twenty years and was moved by this opportunity to see up close, the many personal effects of this late singer, who had possessed such a great voice. The woman giving the tour was also a big fan of his and enjoyed being able to tell of her remembrances of Jim. As we went from room to room looking at the pictures, awards, gold records, and wardrobes, I decided to demonstrate to our guide that I could sing a Jim Reeves song. I sang some of "You're The Only Good Thing" for her and Karen, while we stood near the Jim and Mary Reeves bedroom suite.

The record console where J. Reeves had worked as a disk jockey was within sight of where were standing. We left that room for another part of the house where we had seen the guitar with the initials J.R., and I snapped a photo. It's the guitar seen in an album picture of Jim Reeves singing during a live performance. There are many pictures throughout the house showing the travels of Jim and Mary Reeves. He was an international celebrity and recording star. How sad that he died at such an early age. In the hallway there is a small showcase containing all that was found at the scene of the plane crash that took his life: his wedding ring and a wallet holding three ten dollar bills.

While viewing this very poignant display, Karen got a little creeped out and I was ready to move on as well. While Karen was in the ladies room, I was talking with our tour guide who must have thought that we were deeply affected by all the keepsakes and memories of Jim throughout the home. She wanted to reassure me that there were other singers to carry on and asked if I had any favorites among the current artists. I mentioned Vince Gill; she agreed and added Garth Brooks as her current favorite. After she posed for a picture in front of a large trophy, Karen and I went outside to see Jim's old touring bus and his 1960 white Cadillac El Dorado, both of which are parked side by side under a carport.

Behind the J. R. Museum is a gift shop where rare records, tapes and other items are available. The same older lady who welcomed us on arriving worked the gift shop as well. She turned on some Jim Reeves music just for us, her only customers, while we wandered around the store. Our tour guide also came into the shop and I wondered which one of them drove that silver colored, custom Cadillac with the continental kit, parked outside the house? I bought a cassette tape called Jim Reeves, Nashville '78 to add to my collection, and played the tape as we left Evergreen and drove back to the Opryland Hotel.

As we walked through the cascades area of the hotel, looking at the tropical plants and flowers, I realized that the film speed on my camera had been incorrectly set while taking pictures of the exterior of Evergreen Place. The rain had stopped, so we returned to the Jim Reeves Museum to retrace our steps through the grounds and take the pictures over again. While we were in the front yard of Evergreen, we saw a lady leaving the house. She got into the silver colored Cadillac and waved to Karen as she was slowly driving away. It was Mary Reeves, and she had been inside the house while we were on our tour. She heard me singing the Jim Reeves song, You're the Only Good Thing (That's Happened to Me).

Leaving Nashville and heading north on Highway 65, we crossed into Kentucky for a lunch stop in Franklin, at Loretta Lynn's Kitchen. It was home cooking served buffet style, so we tried the meat loaf, cornbread and peach cobbler. We even got a club sandwich and salad to go, not knowing where we would be later that day. (We wanted to avoid another holiday dinner at a convenience store.) After our late lunch, we looked around the mini museum at the Loretta Lynn artifacts and browsed through the cassette tapes at the gift shop. I found George Jones' Bartender's Blues and Tanya Tucker's Greatest Hits. While getting gasoline across the street, I found Crystal Gayle's Hollywood, Tennessee on sale inside the service station. Our country music souvenir collection was growing rapidly, and while driving from Bowling Green to Elizabethtown in a light but steady snow, we enjoyed listening to some good music.

We arrived in Elizabethtown and reset our watches, having re-entered the Eastern time zone, and started the New Year's Eve countdown. We spent the evening in our room at the Days Inn having a club sandwich and watching Madonna's Australian "Girlie Show" concert on HBO. Breakfast the next morning got us started on our "Abe Lincoln Day". In close proximity to Elizabethtown are three Lincoln attractions. The Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site was a logical place to start, so in our plastic rain ponchos, we walked on the Trail of Remembrance and up the fifty six steps to the large granite and marble memorial. The fifty six steps are for each year of Lincoln's life. Inside the memorial building is the log cabin once thought to be the original Lincoln birthplace, but further research determined otherwise. Known as the Sinking Spring Farm, the property still has the oak tree that once marked the boundary of the Thomas Lincoln Farm. Abe lived here from 1809 until 1811. Further on at Hodgenville in the public square, is the bronze Lincoln statue, dedicated in 1909. For lack of time, we didn't see Lincoln's boyhood home that is also in Hodgenville.

On the spur of the moment, we decided to visit Mammoth Cave which is open year round. The outside temperature when we arrived was below freezing and there was a light snow falling. We purchased our tour tickets and soon were on the trail to the natural, or Historic entrance to the cave. Park rangers led our small group down into the darkness where we stood beyond the gaping entrance and felt the cold wind blowing. A small amount of light was provided by a sole Christmas tree, looking stark and lonely in the giant room known as the Rotunda. Once farther into the cave, the temperature rose noticeably, and though a relief from the extreme cold, our camera lenses fogged up immediately.

Sights inside the cave include a mining operation that once produced saltpeter, used in the making of gunpowder during the 1812 War. Eventually, we were led into a cavernous room to view historic tallow writing on the ceiling, created with the smoke from burning oil lamps. Nineteenth century visitors on slave led expeditions into the cave had left their mark. Finishing the tour, the rangers brought us back out through the natural entrance to the cave. Soon we were in the car heading out of Mammoth Cave National Park.

A long drive still ahead of us, we wondered what time we would arrive back in Louisville. On Highway 65 that day, there had been a bad accident and some serious backup was lingering. We got off the highway, had an early dinner at a Subway shop, and waited for the traffic to lighten before continuing. When we did arrive in Louisville, it had stopped snowing and seemed to clear. Maybe our last day in Kentucky would bring good weather for one more chance at sightseeing.

Louisville's Days Inn provided a nice breakfast for us that morning including cereal and toast. Outside, the sky was clear and the air very cold. We used the Hertz "Number One" plastic emblem in the glove compartment to scrape the ice from the windows. We spent the last day of our trip visiting Locust Grove, the home of George Rogers Clark, frontiersman, Revolutionary War general, and founder of Louisville. The home is a restored 1790 Georgian mansion complete with period furnishings and antiques. At the visitor center, we saw a 15 minute video about the restoration, then ventured out into the cold to walk around the 18th century border garden and other outbuildings.

Although the sun was shining, the air was freezing cold and we kept the gloves on our hands while we took pictures. When Ace, our official tour guide arrived, we went inside the red brick mansion to learn about each of the rooms and how G. R. Clark lived out the last days of his life. Clark had burned his leg slipping into the fireplace, and subsequently, had his leg amputated. He had lost his hearing too. A portrait hanging on the bedroom wall reflected the melancholy he must have felt in his old age. He was the brother of explorer William Clark and had fought the Shawnee Indians. Later in 1778 while in the Virginia militia, he battled the British during the Revolution. Locust Grove was his Kentucky retirement home and is now filled with interesting antiques.

Ace, our tour guide, is a fourth generation tobacco farmer who did a great job pointing out all the little details to be found within the house such as smoking paraphernalia and "twists of tobacco". Outside, he talked about the round cut brick work that is common back east in New England, but noted that to see it featured on a house so far west into the frontier is very rare. This house had that fine detail on the exterior, despite the fact that frontier houses were usually built in haste; Indian attacks were a common occurrence.

Completely separate and apart from the main house is the kitchen and living quarters for the cook(s). A large fireplace for cooking was kept burning around the clock, all year long, because of the difficulty then in lighting a fire. We went inside the brick smokehouse where hams, covered with mold, had been hanging from the ceiling for several years. The aroma of smoked meat was strong. Before eating, smoked hams have to be soaked for several days, then simmered for six hours. On the subject of smoking meat, Ace told us that in his opinion, Virginia's method of smoking and curing meat beat them all.

While in the smokehouse, we three had been standing on the accumulation of hundreds of years of meat drippings; meat that may have served Presidents James Monroe, Zachary Taylor and Andrew Jackson. You can just imagine the history. If those drippings could only talk. Knowledgeable and patient, Ace waited while we took our pictures. He had provided for us a very good house tour.

Karen chatted with two of the docents at Locust Grove who stressed to her how honored they were to have us visiting the historic home at this time of year. They were impressed that we had come from California to spend the holidays in these parts, especially when Karen told them how extensively we had traveled and photographed in past years. If the architect who did the restoration work at Williamsburg was thrilled to take on the 1961 project at Locust Grove, then I was just as happy to photograph it. I found more subject material for pictures here than at better known historic homes we've visited.

Watching the time very closely now, we had to make sure we wouldn't be late for our return flight home. We hopped on I-65 north, crossed the Ohio River into Indiana and got off at the first offramp for a lunch stop. I had been curious to see the Falls of the Ohio from the Indiana side. Once getting that out of the way, we made time for a lunch stop at a McDonald's. We were winding down and had put away the cameras to enjoy some time to reflect, when I saw videos for sale with purchase of McDonald's food. I bought a copy of Back To The Future, its title symbolic of our leaving historic Kentucky and Tennessee and returning to a present day Los Angeles.

After lunch, we drove back to Standiford Field to return the new Toyota Camry, to which we had added 1,218 miles, and to Delta Air for the flight home. As we thought about all we did and the places we saw and photographed, certainly foremost on our minds was hoping our prints and slides would turn out well. I was also looking forward to coming home and watching Back To The Future again. I remember that as being a really neat movie.