Oldest Courthouse and George Washington's Boyhood Home

To find old courthouses, look for broken liquor bottles.

George Washington's Boyhood Home has been found. I didn't know it was lost. I associate him with Mount Vernon and never gave it another thought. Being a Midwesterner, I don't know as much about events on the East Coast; sure, I've taken history classes and know a few things about George, but he's a bit remote from my life. I find history interesting, but the Colonial Era isn't my area of interest or expertise.



I have met people who have an inordinate interest in the Colonial Era; they're Midwesterners by birth and current geographic location but for some reason feel the need to make an annual pilgrimage to Historic Williamsburg with friends and family. Perhaps I'm jaded due to the proximity of a historic reenactment site, Fort Snelling. While the fort itself is from a later era and was built after the war of 1812 as part of a chain of forts to guard against Canadian encroachment, it's the same concept, albeit not on so grand a scale. Since then, in part due to a proposal to demolish it in the '50's to make way for a freeway, the fort has been declared a historic site, parts of it have been restored, and it is the home of reenactments. I think everyone who grew up here since it has begun reenactments, has attended with a school group, scout group or family. I believe I've visited for all those reasons, most recently a few years ago with cousins from out of state who joined the Minnesota Historical Society when they planned to be here with their kids for part of the summer. It's a great deal because admission to many sites is included.



As a result, while history is interesting, visiting the same type of reenactment annually wouldn't be very high on my to do list. Especially if travel to an expensive part of the country was involved. Even if I could afford it.



At the same time, because George Washington is so important to the history of our country, I'm glad people cared enough to look for his birthplace and am pleased at their success. But don't expect me to buy a rubber hatchet with a cherry decal on it from the gift shop.