Virginia History

(1895 map of Virginia - click to enlarge)

VIRGINIA HISTORY CARAVAN

Caravan Leaders: Ed & Connie Tilman

Dates: April 18 - May 3, 2006

Plans are coming along nicely for the April 18- May 3, 2006 Virginia History Caravan. Reservations are made for all the campgrounds. The group will meet in our home area, Powhatan, Virginia, at Cozy Acres Campground. This nice facility is owned by fellow Monaco owners and is centrally located for sightseeing in Richmond, Appomattox, and Charlottesville. Two bus tours are being arranged to Richmond for the group to take in such sights as the Virginia Historical Society, a canal cruise along the James River-Kanawaha Canal, Hollywood Cemetery where U.S. Presidents James Monroe and John Tyler are buried, the Tredegar Iron Works Civil War Visitors Center, Church Hill and St. John's Church where Patrick Henry said "give me liberty for give me death", Capitol Square and the Governor's Mansion, and the Museum and White House of the Confederacy. We'll carpool to Appomattox Courthouse National Historic Park. A third bus tour from Cozy Acres will take us to Charlottesville to visit Thomas Jefferson's home Monticello, to lunch at Michie Tavern, to tour the University of Virginia grounds, and to tour and taste at a winery. There will be a free day to rest before the caravan travels to Fredericksburg KOA.

From here, we'll take a great narrated trolley tour of historic Fredericksburg, visit the wenches at Rising Sun Tavern, visit the home of George Washington's mother, and visit the Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville Civil War battlefields. We've just "discovered" another great Virginia attraction for our stop in Fredericksburg -- George Washington Birthplace National Monument.

This beautiful park features a lovely site and farm on the shores of Pope's Creek along with a nice picnic pavilion. From Fredericksburg, the caravan travels to American Heritage RV Park in Williamsburg. We love the clubhouse and large fireplace at this campground! We'll have fun one evening at the Music Theatre of Williamsburg and enjoy the sites of Colonial Williamsburg.

We'll also visit Jamestown in its 399th year since the first English settlers landed in Virginia. There's lots happening there in anticipation of the 400th birthday in 2007. We'll also visit Yorktown, surrender site of the Revolutionary War and a nicely preserved colonial town. Do you collect stamps in a Passport to National Parks book? This caravan will give you the opportunity to collect 7 stamps!

What about food? Our favorite Turner's BBQ in Powhatan will be called on the cater a dinner. We'll have lunches out in Richmond as we tour by bus--one at a new restaurant in a historic area and once in a restaurant of your choice in an eclectic shopping area. We'll take a tailgate picnic to Appomattox. Michie Tavern in Charlottesville was mentioned above--the tasty chicken deserves mentioning again! Cozy Acres Campground has a good clubhouse for several other meals together. We'll have lunch in Fredericksburg after the trolley tour, a picnic lunch at the George Washington Birthplace, and a pizza party the day we tour the battlefields. We'll have a big breakfast before we travel to Williamsburg. There, we won't want to miss the delicious Sunday brunch at the Williamsburg Lodge. We'll also visit a nice buffet for dinner. We'll also use the clubhouse at American Heritage RV Park to host a dinner, big covered dish breakfast, and the farewell steak dinner.

There are a few details still to be worked out, but the price of the caravan will tentatively be $1700. This fee will include campgrounds for all nights, the bus tours listed, admissions to all attractions listed above, and most of your food for the 15 day duration. You'll be asked to bring only one heavy hors d'oeuvre and one covered dish breakfast item. There will also be one time where we'll choose the area but you'll choose the restaurant on your own for lunch.

All these plans call for high energy and lots of walking. There will be several long days away from the coaches. Start your exercising now to build up your endurance! We're sending lots of pictures from our 2004 Virginia History Caravan to the Monacos in Motion luncheon in Bismark. Be sure to look at the beautiful spring weather in Virginia, the historic places we'll visit, and the food, fun, and fellowship we'll have. Watch an upcoming newsletter and this website for the application. We're planning on Nov. 30 being our drawing date. Join us in Virginia next spring!

Ed and Connie Tilman, Caravan Leaders