Tickets to the Gun Show!

Greetings once again from Morristown!

So as I go through and update my blogs, I noticed that there were quite a few missing. So as I continue to wonder where my blogs are going, here is a recap of my past weeks at Morristown National Historical Park.

During my fourth week, I moved around the different divisions within Morristown. I started my week working with the Curatorial Staff at the Washington’s Headquarters. I assisted in documenting the historical books for their database. The most interesting part about that is that I came across a book from the year 1634! Many of the books within their collection date back from the 1600’s, and some books date from even earlier.  Throughout the day I was able to read primary documents, from many different historical figures. Along with books that contain these primary sources, there is also a catalog of microfilms. On these films there are more documents that people can view. Scholars use microfilms as a resource in their research. Tuesday, I worked with the Maintenance Staff. One aspect that I admire about the maintenance staff in general, and thinking about my experience with the staff at Sandy Hook, no matter how their day is going, they never stop smiling. I had a good time working with them; I assisted with weed whacking the Visitor Center, the Ranger Station and the entrance to the Maintenance area. Wednesday, I worked with the Natural Resource Staff; we pulled invasive plants, such as Japanese Barberry, from the native plans enclosure. I learned that the effects of having little to none Native Plants in our forests leads to limited source of food for the Deer population. One invasive plant that has been a big issue is the Japanese Barberry. I asked what the history of the Japanese Barberry is and everyone has told me that they are not sure of what its purpose is but they do know that many people plant them in their yards because of the look. People also plant them because it “keeps the Deer away”. Reason for the quotations is that, because these Barberries have spread all over, it brings Deer into people’s backyards because they are searching for food. So the plan to keep them out actually brings them in. Go figure!

After working with Natural Resource, the following day I was given the opportunity to go with the Law Enforcement Rangers to get Qualified. One of our own Rangers, Ranger Socha, is a certified Firearms Instructor. I had never stepped foot in a Range before so it was really neat to be there. Before training, Ranger Socha went over the safety procedures and precautions, made sure that everyone had all of their protective gear and were wearing their protective gear while others were shooting and made sure that everyone could hear when he had to give directions. So I watched the while the Rangers went, and then I was taught how to hold, use and load the Rifle and Shot Gun. I’m not sure if this really matters but I prefer the Rifle, the Shot Gun almost knocked me over. After leaving the Range, I learned the importance of checking the Firearms thoroughly and to spend time doing so each day. It is very important to make sure the equipment is not rusty because it can cause harm in a life or death situation. Just the little things that I would have not thought of before, makes me think twice about what I do every day.

My shots could use some cleaning up

Ranger Socha teaching me the proper technique

So with that being said, I hope everyone is checking their equipment every day. More importantly being safe. Enjoy your evening everyone!

With love from Morristown,
Fallon

Hello all!

Ranger Gingrich and me

Last week was my week back from Baltimore. All of the Rangers within Law Enforcement went as well so, it was good to sit down and talk to everyone about our experiences at Fort McHenry. The best part of this was that since we all did not go down on the same days we were able to put everything together so that it felt that we were all there for the entire Sailabration. So on Monday, it was somewhat of a relaxed day. We did not have too many visitors in the park but I continued to ride around patrolling with Ranger Gingrich and assisted with closing the park. Tuesday, we went on foot patrol, which is my favorite thing to do. I enjoy hiking on the trails. My goal is to see a Bear by the time I leave Morristown. Wednesday, I started my day by hiking one of the trails. When I go on the trails, I take notes on the current condition the trail is in. On this particular morning, I noted whether there were any trees on the trails, the condition of the bridges, and if the trail markers were still visible. When I was first asked to go out on the trails and look for these things, I asked why Law Enforcement had to go out and check the conditions of the trail; I wondered why the staff in Natural Resources did not go out and check them. The response that was given to me was that it is Law Enforcement’s job to make sure that the trails are safe for the visitors and protect them from harming themselves. The staff from Natural Resources does contribute to maintaining the trails because they have volunteers that mark the trails, they also help clean up the trails and remove trees. In the end it is a joint effort between the two to make sure that the trails are safe for our visitors.

Me in front of the Wick House

Thursday, due to the second day heat wave, we again did not have many visitors in the park. However, towards later in the afternoon, Ranger Socha and I, mainly Ranger Socha as I observed, assisted with an older family. At first the call that came in said that there was a car driving the wrong direction in the park. Once we located the car, we saw that the older gentleman had damage to his taillight and bumper. Luckily, this visitor did not get into an accident within the Park, but the downside to his visit was that his car died. As a result of this day being so hot, we gave them water, called a taxi company and AAA so that he could get further assistance. A great thing to say about Thursday is that I learned the importance of checking you patrol before getting on the road and having a patrol card that is filled with the proper equipment. While assisting this visitor, his car was pulled off to the side but we still needed to put cones around the car so that those coming down the hill would know to slow down. Before getting the cones out of the trunk, we thought that we needed to go back to the Ranger Station to get cones. Luckily, we realized that there were some in the trunk so it saved us a trip. Friday, was a rainy day for us. I rode along with Ranger Leon as we patrolled throughout the park. Despite the rain, I learned what to look for and pick out “what does not fit” within the environment of the park. He showed me leaves that were turned upside down and said that the leaves could have been turned this way because of an animal, visitors or a car. He told me that these were factors that I needed to think about when I saw out of place things. Some advice that he gave me that was really important was to pay attention to the visitors; since I have been at Morristown, I have met and spent time with the “Regulars” that come into the parks. This is good to remember because if something or someone is out of place within the park, they would be the one to tell us about it.

I hope everyone is having a great time at their parks and more importantly, learning all that they can!

Talk to you all soon!

Fallon

And the fun just does not stop at Morristown: Week 2

This week was a very interesting week for me. I attended the Law Enforcement Refresher with my Chief, Rich Aldridge, at Gateway National Recreation Area in Sandy Hook, New Jersey. I was great to spend time with ProRangers Christina Cintron and Vincent Lemba, while assisting the instructors with the Control Tactics Classes. The best way for me to learn and understand new concepts is by being visual and hands on. Last year I was stationed at Sandy Hook and I was not able to really see all of the scenarios that the instructors had for the Law Enforcement Rangers, but this year not only was I able to watch the scenarios, I was also able to participate as a role player! Christina, Vinny and I, acted as suspects when the Rangers were going over the procedures in handcuffing. The instructors also went over how to react in stressful circumstances, for example, if you were to find yourself in a ground fight they showed the different techniques to get yourself out of there and take control of the situation.  Although, we did not participate in ground fighting, we were able to watch the techniques that were used, that way once we are out in field we will remember that we should never stop fighting because there is always a way out.

One thing I that I found was important in the lessons from this day was to pay attention small details that many overlook when they are carrying out an arrest. For example, making sure that you are always one step ahead of the suspect; one way to do this is when you are giving commands to the suspect, walking back and forth behind them shows that the Officer has more control over the situation and it prevents the suspect from attacking you unexpectedly. If you are directly behind them, they can tell where you are, figure out how close they may be to you and it would be a greater chance of them planning their attack. The next day the Rangers went through a day of scenarios, where they needed to take everything they learned the day before and use it perform in the field. One scenario that I enjoyed the most was when the Rangers were “blindfolded” and told to lay on the ground. When the shirt was lifted from their faces they were immediately involved in a ground fight by the suspect (role player). I enjoyed that scenario the most because it really made me think of what I would do in that situation. One must expect the unexpected, so I felt that this was a great way to get everyone to think quickly in a short duration of time.

Once I returned to Morristown, I rode along with one of the LE Rangers. I was given the chance to do radar along the main roads. I learned the different approaches that may be used in a traffic stop. For instance, instead of walking up on the driver side, approaching from the passenger side can be used especially if on a busy road. I went for a hike Thursday, to see different areas of the park and explore the wildlife. On Friday, I was sent out on a more work related hike, which I still enjoyed doing. As I hiked, the task given to me was to take note of all the signposts to make sure that they were clear, the signs were not dirty and more importantly confirm that the right signs were there. I noted if there was a post that should have signs and posts that may not need a sign, based off of the trial maps.  I took that time to explore the soldier huts where the troops of the Continental Army stayed. One hut housed about 12-13 soldiers for the winter! Week two has been a great week for me. It went by quickly and I’m sad to say that my summer is beginning to go by too quickly. Every day I am learning more and more; as a result of that I make sure to keep my pen and pocket notebook handy.

I hope all is well with everyone. I look forward to hearing more about everyone’s Park as the summer continues.

With love,

 Fallon

Morristown: Home of the Continental Army in 1779-1780 and now home of Fallon Roberson-Roby Summer 2012!



Ford Mansion

Between Monday and Tuesday, I have learned that Morristown was the first to be established as a National Historical Park, signed by President Herbert Hoover in 1933, in all of the National Park Service. Jockey Hollow was the home to the Continental Army under General George Washington in 1780, where they all had to survive one the harshest winters ever within their soldier huts. The soldiers built their soldier huts and the huts for the officers. Learning that there were about 12-13 soldiers in one hut, while there were about 3-4 Officers in their huts was not a surprise; the surprise to me was that no one received any severe illness like some did in Valley Forge during that time. With all those men living together, the structure of the huts that they built were really advanced in keeping out a good amount of the coldness and allowed for better sleeping conditions. As a result of that, the soldiers’ major issue to deal with was starvation and better clothing. An important concept that I took from watching the movie Morristown: Where America Survived, was that despite the harsh circumstances that they faced, what kept some of the soldiers in Jockey Hollow was the support that they gave each other and supporting of the cause. With that idea I think about the National Park Service and how supportive everyone is, especially here in Morristown. As soon as I arrived, the staff gave me their contact information and told me if there was anything that I needed that I could call on them. This really made me feel comfortable and relieved me from any anxieties that I had prior to coming in; which I am really thankful for.




Wednesday, I was able to close the park and learn the procedures when it comes to closing. While closing I took that time to explore the Visitor Center, the Wick House and the Ford Mansion. The Ford Mansion is located at Washington’s Headquarters; it was the home to Jacob Ford, his wife and their four children. The Ford Mansion has 11 rooms and is the largest mansion in Morristown. Once George Washington came, he used the Ford Mansion to set up his office, with the permission of Mrs. Ford, where he would write letters, and many important documents which are archived within the National Archives. The Visitor Center and the Wick House are both located in the Jockey Hollow Section of Morristown. In the Visitor Center, there is a replica of the soldier huts that the men of the Continental Army stayed in. While at the Wick House, I explored the Wick Garden for a little. The Garden is maintained by Park Volunteers. 



Fallon at Fort Nonsense



Mosrristion in 1779 Fort Nonsense

                 Thursday morning as Chief Ranger Richard Aldridge and I were opening the park, we came across a Snapping Turtle in the middle of the road. I have never seen a Snapping Turtle right in front of me before, so I was really excited to get out and pick it up! Now in the photo, I am not wearing my Flathat, shame on me; because I was so eager to get out of the car I left it inside.  After moving the Turtle off the road, we proceeded to continue to Fort Nonsense, where I was able to see New York City in the distance and see the outline of the Fort.  The significance about the location of Fort Nonsense is that it sees New York, so if the British were to make their way towards Morristown, then another encampment would signal that the British are here. The signal could be seen from Fort Nonsense, so this gave George Washington enough time to assemble his men and prepare for battle. Once leaving Fort Nonsense, I took a tour of the Ford Mansion. As I mentioned earlier, the mansion has 11 rooms, it is very spacious and was the largest mansion in Morristown during that time. The mansion has Dutch doors so that animals would not run in and out of the house during the summer time. This allowed for air to get through the mansion because it would get extremely hot during those summer days. In his conference room George Washington and the officers would continue to document the days that went by, explaining what they had completed for the day. He would also invite about 30-40 people to have dinner with him each night in the room. They would toast to the Army, George Washington, then to Mrs. Ford and some of the Officers' wives. Later that day I was able to attend my first All Employees Meeting at the Ranger Station, which gave me the opportunity to talk with all the employees within the park. After the Employee Meeting, I went down to Thomas Edison National Historic Site with Chief Aldridge and Ranger Leon.  Although my time there was spent short, I learned so much and I am excited to go back for another visit and help out if they need me



Fallon moving the Snappin Turtle off the road

Snapping Turtle

George Washington Conference Room Ford Mansion

I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in. ~George Washington Carver

What kind of snake is this? My last day with the maintenance division was really interesting. after a long day of labor, one of the six snakes I saw that day decided to make friends and wrap around my boots. luckily, I was fast enough to grab it before her teeth got any closer to my skin.

While I was working on some paper work, I observed a fox hunt for Squirrels and Chipmunks to keep her young ones healthy. The fox had built a fox whole behind the ranger station where our law enforcements officers are stationed.

My first week with the maintanance crew was busy, these are the men that keep our park clean and pretty.

"The Irish at Jockey Hollow"
The pictures above display the soldiers' huts at Jockey Hallow where the revolutionary war soldiers spent most of the time during the coldest winter ever recorded in Morristown. 1000 huts were built to house 10,000 soldiers and their commanders. Each hut would house 12 to 13 soldiers and was built on a hill to help drain the waste and to prevent disease from spreading. The huts design improved and was more reliable then those built in Valley Forge.

Hello everyone, I finally have access to the Interenet. It's been an exciting experience here at Morristown Historical Park. I recenetly finished my first two weeks with the maintinice staff. It consisted of cutting grass, trees, cleaning bathrooms, visitor centers, and various jobs that focused on the park's appearance.
I hope all of you are doing well and are enjoying your summer.