RV/MH HALL OF FAME MUSEUM

Wednesday, July 18 – We spent the day with Angie and Rick sightseeing in Indiana Amish Country. We stopped at the Amish Acres in Nappanee, IN, to see the displays and have a country style lunch. Amish Acres is a 138 year old Amish homestead

We visited several of the historic buildings.

It was a family style Amish home cooked meal and was delicious.

We played an old-time game called the Ring Game. The object was to toss the ring onto the hook. Here is a picture of the losers.

Rick, Paul, Angie

Now for the All-Time Winner…Marsha

Angie did finally succeed in putting the ring on the hook but only after a coaching lesson from Marsha…hehe.

After lunch we drove over to the RV/MH Hall of Fame.

The entry fee is $7 for seniors. We spent about two hours walking through the antique RVs and enjoyed climbing in many of the trailers and old motor homes. It's a pretty nice museum and we felt it was worth our time and entry fee.

The have an Exhibit Hall showing the newest items for the RV lifestyle.

The RV Founders Hall displays trailers, photos, and memorabilia reaching back to the very early 1900's.

Starting in the mid 1910s, Gilkie was probably the first successful manufacturer in Indiana and one of the first in the country.
1932 Gilkie Kamp King Tent Trailer

1913 "Earl" Travel Trailer…oldest travel trailer in the world. It has a dining table that seats four, then converts into a double bed.

1931 Model AA Ford Housecar

Great heating system

The unique low design, with a rear entry door and drop down area in the floor where standing was possible, provided the advantage of being able to store these trailers in a conventional residential garage.

Look how easy it is to get into…not!
1957 Serro Scotty 12' Travel Trailer

Rick can't stand up or he hits his head.

One of the first trailers of the "bunkhouse" design with a second story bed function. It also had a tiny bathroom with shower, sink and stool. Bathing and toilet facilities were rarely included in a camper trailer.
1966 Mustang Travel Trailer

Built for Paramount Studios to present to Miss West when she left vaudeville to make movies for the studio in 1931.
Mae West's 1931 Chevrolet Housecar

The Spartan Aircraft Company was recognized as the finest mobile homes available in the late 40s and early 50s.
1954 Spartan Imperial Mansion…8 x 42' Mobile Home

There are so many more great opportunities to explore RV/MH from the past. We highly recommend stopping at the Museum. The Hall of Fame honors the inaugural class of inductees into the RV/MH Hall of Fame. We just happened to know a few.

Bob Tiffin – founder of Tiffin Motor Homes

Joe and Kay Peterson founders of the Escapee Club that we belong to.

We then returned to our campsite on the hill overlooking the Lake of the Woods, where we enjoyed watching some deer graze in the field and talked with Angie and Rick. We sure had a great two days with our friends and will be sure to see them someday “down-the-road.”

Angie and Rick in front of their newly-painted Alfa See Ya.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

GATEWAY TO AMISH COUNTRY…NAPPANEE

Saturday, September 17 – We went over to Nappanee today for the Apple Festival.

Our first hint that we were going to have an enjoyable day was the four WWII fighter planes buzzing over head in formation. We first saw them when we were about half way to town and enjoyed their antics for the remainder of our drive.

We arrived in town to take in much of the parade. An official “Small Town USA” parade. There were fire trucks, tractors, bands, politicians, queens, and tons of candy being thrown to the kids. We even enjoyed a few Tootsie Rolls tossed our way.

They even had a float honoring the Elk.

We couldn't attend an Apple Festival without sampling some Apple Fritters, Apple Turnovers, and of course an Apple Pie to take home.

There were numerous food venders selling everything from fries, hotdogs, sausage sandwiches, elephant ears, and just about any festival/carnival food you could imagine.

This place was PACKED!

This was a very interesting sign…Music and Fencing?

Of course there were tents full of crafters selling adorable things for the ladies to purchase. Marsha loves strolling through these areas searching for unique gifts. Dare I say she found a few things for the upcoming holidays.

She wanted to share how cute these candle tops are. This gal had 100s of them.

How's this for small town honesty? The “self-serve” apple vender. Take your pick and leave a quarter!

It was fun to see the Amish/Mennonite families enjoying the parade, candy, junk food, and the rides. A pretty festive occasion for these conservative families.

This is one ride Paul said he would NEVER go on!

We had a wonderful time. If your in the area around this time next year, don't miss this festival. You'll have a great time!

Driving home we saw this sign…

We looked at each other and had to turn around and go back for a picture. We had no idea what this meant so we consulted our trusty friend Google. Here is what we found…The Eastern Continental Divide runs along the high ridges and peaks of the Appalachian Mountains, and it separates land draining east to the Atlantic Ocean from that draining west and southwest to the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico.

It begins in Key West FL, goes up through the center of FL into GA through Atlanta, on up into NC and into VA creating much of the border of VA and WV, through western MD, into western PA, into western NY, then looping west close to Lake Erie, through Portage County OH and Akron OH in "Summit" county, into Indiana and on into Chicago [less than a mile form Lake Michigan], on up into Wisconsin, and into Minnesota where it eventually becomes the Northern Continental Divide.

Now you know the rest of the story!

With sadden hearts we must change our plans again. We are leaving on Sunday and heading back to Canton. On Thursday, a cousin and aunt of Marsha's passed away. Jim, 74, had a stoke and her Aunt Johanne, 72, passed from kidney failure. We will arrive in Canton early to attend calling hours on Sunday, a funeral on Monday and calling hours and a funeral on Tuesday. We are so happy that we are only five hours down the road. We hope to fit a quick visit in with our daughter, Kelly. Please keep our families in your prayers.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see ya'll back real soon. Have a great day!