The Monarch Butterfly

It's been a hot last few days in Saratoga Springs, NY. A monarch butterfly was enjoying this warm weather yesterday as I was walking into my house. It fluttered around these flowers but there was a slight wind swiftly moving the creature's vast wings and tiny body around in circles. I saw it fight through the strong breeze until it eventually came to rest on this flower and obtained its reward of the sweet nectar inside the violet petals. It stayed on the plant for a minute or two, then seemed to throw itself back into the air and traveled with the breeze until it landed briskly on the next set of flowers in front of the house next door. Moments like this remind me to experience the magic in all occurrences: big, small, common, and uncommon. In the end, life turns out more enchanting.

The Old Ballston Spa Tannery

Broken windows and tangled vines make up this old building in Ballston Spa, NY. Although this building has had a multitude of different uses, the most notable one was it being a tannery. A tannery is where they tan animal hides and make leather. The original land of this site was made up of various smaller buildings that were involved in tannery services. However, 1945 started a five year construction of the immense, 80,000 square foot building we see today. This main building replaced all the other smaller buildings on the site. The tannery was in function, by different company ownership throughout, from 1887 to 1960. Rumor has it that it was the largest tannery in the U.S. at one time. From 1970 to 2011, the building was used by a company called "Angelica's," where they cleaned hospital linens. For the last seven years though the building has sat empty. It's extremely prevalent that nature is beginning to take back this historic building. Lush, green ivy leaves are growing on the spreading vines around the building. You can see in the following pictures how extensive it's spread throughout. Without the ivy leaves, the prevailing, brown vines are hugging almost every corner of this building. 

The front of the building held the largest portion of ivy on it, although there were still great spots of green surfaces in the back, more than half of the front was covered by the immense amount of foliage.

 

More windows appeared as I starting walking around the vast property. The picture above this text showed the side of the building that was getting hit with the most sun. Shattered windows and fading, red brick were showcased here. The picture below shows the shaded back of the building before it curved around to where I could see the tower on the left side of it.

We're now at the very back of the building. You can see stairs perched on the back of the tower. The sun doesn't hit the back here so frequently so the brick is a bit more bright maroon compared to the suntanned side bricks. The ivy leaves and vines are also not as ubiquitous back here. On almost every door leading to the inside, there's a sign that says "no trespassing." Based on the derelict look of the building, I can tell those signs have been ignored and the building has been extensively bullied. I wonder how long the dark interior of this building has been sitting with no visitors to brighten it up again.

This was the only spot where you could walk inside of the building. Doesn't it look inviting with the thick surrounding vines and dark interior? The rooms didn't lead to any other hallway of the inside of the rest of the building which is probably why no one has boarded it up. As you can see in the pictures right below, there wasn't anything too interesting in here. The windows are smashed open so the plants outside are starting to poke their way in. I can see two carts in the back of the bottom, left photo which looks like remnants of Angelica's linen cleaning business.

This was a small creek that ran equal to the sun-kissed side of the building. This creek, as well as some vegetation, divided this property from a mechanic shop next door.

Right behind me when I was facing the back of the building laid these ruins. Crumbling piles of brick and decaying, stone edges were here. My best guess is these are the remains of the various small buildings on the site that got replaced by the 80,000 square foot building. It was truly an outstanding site to see.

In the picture above, this graffiti riddled spot was above the large piles of bricks. It must have been a more intact part of the old structures, but from down below it looked like a man-made cave.

As you can see, this building, although run down and neglected, is beautiful and strong. At the front of the building, there's a sizable sign out front advertising the time and place for when this land will be auctioned off. That's probably why no one questioned why I was going around the perimeter of the building taking pictures, they most likely thought I was interested in buying the site. Even though I'm not, I sincerely hope that the next owner of this land will clean it up and restore the building. The tannery was not this site's first use, there's an ample list of businesses that have owned the land here. I hope Angelica's will not be the last functioning company to take use of this building. It has a rich history and so much potential for new use, let's hope the new owner sees that. If they don't, I'm thankful I had the opportunity to document its memory here.

Saratoga National Historical Park

Exploring somewhere with so much history, along with it holding a few rumors of "being haunted," was the perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon of mine. Saratoga National Historical Park was where the turning point of the revolutionary war took place. On the lands I walked through, battles were fought between the patriots of the newly founded United States of America, and the British forces, back in 1777.

Going through the visitor center, I learned the history of this historical land. I watched a movie that explained to me the conflict that took place, the actions of the two armies and the significance of this battlefield for the cause of the Americans. The battle consisted of two major skirmishes, one on the 19th of September and the second engagement on the 17th of October of the same year, eventually ending with British troops surrendering.

The British army under Burgoyne came down south from Canada towards British held New York City to choke New England off from the rest of the colonies. The Americans stopped the advance here at Saratoga by pinning the British against the Hudson River and forcing them to fight on the American's terms. After the Battles that took place, the British retreated back north to a fortified position and eventually surrendered when no reinforcements came and their numbers were dwindling. This was the first major battle that was won by the Americans and it got France and Spain to become invested in the war on the American side.

Here I saw weapons used during this battle. On the right I was shown weapons that officers used. There was a British Spontoon, which is the steel and brass spear looking one, an English Short Saber, the iron-to-steel sword, and a Holster's Pistol. The left case shows different muskets of the time, as well as a bayonet. The different sized cannon balls were showcased along with the muskets and bayonet. 

This was a fiber optic display showing the region where the fighting took place. The interactive map lit up where the red or blue armies were and showcased their movements, while also playing a narration. It gave a lot of insight into the course of the battle and how it was fought and won.

 The memorial of Thaddeus Kosciuszko was on the drive-through tour of all the major spots during these battles. He was the military engineer that came up with the plans for the defenses of the American positions. 

 

At the same stop as Thaddeus Kosciuszko's memorial was the last remaining building that was on the Neilson Farm. The Neilson Farm was the headquarters for the American General Gates and his army. The inside showed recreated scenes of what the inside would have looked like back in 1777. Most of the wood inside was original, and what wasn't was made in the same way from the original the time period.

This grave was marked for all the unknown American soldiers who died on September 19th and October 17th, 1777 in the Battles of Saratoga. It was sad to see so many had died and were buried in unmarked graves, that they had to make a memorial for all them together. In such a bloody war that lead to their death, I hope their souls are now at peace.

An amazing overlook of the thriving farmland was down below. It was neat to see the land in its current state, 241 years after the battles took place. The battle on Fraser's farm took place near the left hand side of this picture. 

This contraption here didn't have a description of what it was. The best guess my husband and I could come up with is that it placed cannons on carriages, but we're not certain. It was too interesting of a mechanism not to put on this blog though.

 

A horse drawn cannon. This was probably my favorite cannon to look at. The fading painted grey and black sun-kissed wood matched the dark iron cannon and intertwined with the enormous shape in a way that showed the amount of power the artillery had back then. This, in turn, showed the seriousness of the Revolutionary War itself. 

This beautiful memorial is in honor of Captain Zebulon Bidwell. He was an American captain that lost his leg from a cannonball and died the next day from his injury during the Battle of Stillwater.

This "boot" grave was there to represent the controversial figure, General Benedict Arnold. He severely wounded his leg but still continued on to lead troops in the Battles of Saratoga.

This was the site of the British army's general, Burgoyne's, headquarters and also the British's main camp for the battles.

A look over the Hudson River. The location of this river is what gave Americans the advantage to winning these battles. It was a beautiful place to experience. The vast water was in a valley of greenery surrounded by mountains. I hope this place brought even an ounce of serenity to a soldier who could sit listening to the rushing water and the grass dancing together in the breeze, temporarily forgetting about what was going on around him.

At this spot a bit upward the Hudson River, an extremely significant thing happened for the Revolutionary War. The British were surrounded by the Americans for about a week's time until they officially surrendered on October 17th, 1777.

The last stop on our tour was the burial site for General Simon Fraser. He was a British General who got wounded and died during the Battle of Bremis Heights on October 17th, 1777 then placed to rest around here. 

Being from the other side of the country that doesn't have this kind of history, it was astonishing to see the land that held the battles which caused the turning point of the Revolutionary War. Many deaths occurred so the people of  the United States of America could have the their freedom assured. Seeing the graves of so many keen figures of these battles was eye opening to say the least. So many sacrificed something as important as their lives to grant our newly founded country a chance to officially break away from Britain's rule. As much as I was excited to see something eerie and haunted on my trip, I was grateful by the end that I didn't. I'd rather they be resting in peace. I thank the American soldiers who died here for their ultimate sacrifice for America's future, and I hope any life taken here from either side is at peace now.