Notes: Trip To Darwin
Friday, September 21, 2007 thru Sunday, September 23, 2007


Grandma Barb and I spent some time surfing the web this morning. I was on the web. Mom was on the phone. Our destination in two weeks (today is Sunday, September 09, 2007) is Darwin, Illinois. Mom was there when she was 6 years old. She remembers the cemetery. She believes that Great (Great-great?) Grandpa Schofield got his start there.

This is amazing. Click Darwin Cemetery. Notice the trees on the eastern border? Mom does not remember a river. One might think that a river the size of the Wabash would be hard to miss. Except coming into the cemetery from the west as a six-year-old kid what would you see? Not a river. A tree line. Nothing more common than a line of trees bordering an open midwestern field. Right? She remembers an open field. No fencing. From MapQuest’s satellite view it would seem that the Darwin Cemetery is the right destination for us.

Darwin’s population is only about 350 (378 by the 2000 census). The Wabash River creates a watershed. This link states that the Wabash is Indiana’s largest watershed including Fort Worth to the far northeast running southwest through Indianapolis and down to Terre Haute, just a few miles to Darwin’s east.

This could be an interesting excursion. Valleys, hills and hopefully some winding back roads. There is a lot of history to this area. It is not a familiar history. At least not to me. My awareness of this area’s development and contribution to US history and culture is thin. At best. Could be fun.