It's Almost Time to Go Back to School

Now I know this is usually the last thing that you child would want to hear, but it is almost time to go back to school. However, this does not mean that there is no longer any time for fun. By taking a trip to visit Government Island, your child can have fun, and perhaps not even realizing that they are learning.

Government Island has a wealth of various animals and plants, making it an excellent place to demonstrate how the ecological cycle works, what a habitat is, and plant and animal life cycles. And that's only to name just a few topics that are often covered on in both the classroom material and the SOLs. The island is also a wonderful place to connect to topics in history, such as the birth of the nation, slavery, changes in technology over time, and Virginia history.

I'm hoping that eventually we will have various lesson plans and materials in subjects such as science and history for at least the K-5 levels, which we will make available on the blog so that parents and teachers can use it.

Come and visit Government Island before the school year begins (don't worry it will still be open after that) and help your child to learn and explore...without ever having to mention that you're preparing them for their classes!

If you want, come join Maria C. on Saturday, August 18 at 4:00 for a free guided nature hike.

Rock Rimmon: Another sandstone quarrry

Recently, in the Chesapeake Bay Journal, Dr. Kent Mountford wrote an article for its July/ 
August edition entitled “Aquia Freestone: the backbone of our capital’s majestic architecture.”

He talked about another Stafford quarry called Rock Rimmon.  Located south of Government Island on Aquia Creek’s eastern shore, it produced sandstone when more stone was needed for the U.S. Capitol in 1804. The quarry closed, but years later reopened in 1925 and was renamed the George Washington Stone Corporation. 

The picture shown here is of workers in 1929.  It was given to me by Wilbur Segar whose father was the foreman, the tall gentleman in the back row.  Notice the quarrying machinery in the background.  This method was much different from the hand quarrying method used on Government Island.    

Jane C., historian

Introduction from the Historian

I first stepped on Government Island in 1978 when my family moved to Stafford from California.  At that time I had to wear boots and place down logs over water just to reach its shoreline.  A year later, I wrote a paper about the island’s history which ultimately led to it being preserved twenty years later…..for it was in 1998 when the Board of Supervisors finally purchased it.  You just can’t imagine my joy when I discovered that the island has its own blog!  I would like to thank Michelle who created the blog and Maria who has already contributed so beautifully.  Since I wrote the book mentioned before, it will be my pleasure to contribute to this blog. 

Jane C., historian

THE book for those interested in Govt. Island

For those who wish to gain more information about Government Island, both its science, but especially its history, then the book Birthstone of the White House and Capitol by Jane Hollenbeck Conner, is an excellent resource. Conner is local historian who was a key component in saving the island from development. She has done vast amounts of research on the topic, even including lists of other buildings that are composed of Aquia sandstone that could even have been quarried from Government Island.

Cover picture on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Birthstone-White-Capitol-Hollenbeck-Conner/dp/1578643368/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343140750&sr=8-1&keywords=Birthstone+of+the+White+House+and+the+Capitol