L is for Little Orleans

L is for Little Orleans (click here for map).
I arrived at the town, which would be my next great adventure, after being on the road for a little more than 2 hours. It has been said too many people spend their lives choosing the solace of their comfort zone, and I can honestly say I did not do that today as the temperature in this little town was barely in the double digits (14 degrees). At times there were wind gusts, making the “real feel” a bone-chilling -2 degrees (nope….that hyphen before the number 2 is not a typo). Today’s visit was definitely going to be an adventure!  

Take the road less traveled and you will find Little Orleans. Little Orleans is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Allegany Country. With only a population of 42 (spread out within the mountainous and wooded terrain) in a town covering 0.7 square miles, this little town has one of the biggest things to offer the east coast (annually) in the summertime. No “spoiler alerts” at this time, though!  

Some history about Little Orleans. The town, which can be found on mile 141 on the C&O canal, is famous for its general store and the campground located on the canal nearby. Little Orleans was once located on the main route from Fort Frederick to Cumberland, but only is accessible now by traveling on winding back roads – about 10 miles off the interstate. 

The original road stretched 80 miles from Fort Frederick to Fort Cumberland and required two crossings of the Potomac River. During high water months, the crossing was extremely difficult. The pioneer Thomas Cresap and others set out to find a shorter route between the two forts in the late 1750s. A route that avoided crossing the Potomac was found and became the primary route west until the National Pike was opened in 1830.

Potomac River

In the 1800s, the town of Orleans Crossroads (across the river) grew rapidly after the arrival of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. On the Maryland side, the town was smaller—and thus the name “Little” Orleans. According the local legend, the name (Little Orleans) came from a French fur trader who was reminded of his hometown in Orleans, France.   


When I reached the town, it was too early for lunch, so I set out to find the other things on my list this town had to offer. 

Little Orleans Campground

I quickly found the first of two campgrounds - Little Orleans Campground. Unfortunately, I could not drive very far onto the property to see the camping areas because it was pretty much snowed in. However, as soon as you entered the property, there was a little convenience store that appeared to be open as there were cars parked out front. I assumed it was open so the residents in the town could get provisions. If you access the campground’s website, you will see there are many activities the entire family can participate it in, during the camping season, making the visit an extremely enjoyable experience.

One of the first things I do when I reach a town I am blogging about is take a picture of the “Welcome to…..” sign. I had not come across that sign, yet. So, after the visit to the first campground, I set out to find the sign. I began my hunt and unexpectedly came across the second campground – Fifteen Mile Creek Campground, which is located in the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park.  Some background on this park....




From 1831 to 1924, the C&O Canal was the lifeline for communities and businesses along its route as canal boats floated coal, lumber, grain and other products to market. The boats were towed by ropes harnessed to mules that walked the dirt path that paralleled the canal. Today, although only parts of the canal are still filled with water, the entire towpath still exists as a popular multi-use trail - in some stretches, like a double-track dirt road, in other sections leveled with fine crushed gravel -- that is the centerpiece of the C&O Canal National Historic Park. There are the establishments located on the portion of the C&O canal towpath located in Little Orleans. One of which is the Fifteen Mile Creek Campground. 

The creek flowing through Little Orleans is the Fifteen Mile Creek. Fifteen Mile Creek is one of the Potomac River’s most pristine tributaries, owing in part to the fact that 92% of its watershed is forested land, of which nearly two-thirds is protected state land. The Fifteen Mile Creek Campground lies along both waterways. It is a primitive campground, meaning there are not too many facilities (unlike the earlier Little Orleans Campground). At this primitive campground, you may get a more excellent wilderness experience than you would get at a more civilized campground. Many people select Fifteen Mile Campground so they can go to Cacapon State Park in West Virginia, which is located across the Potomac River from the site. Going camping here in Maryland is something that is a “must” do! 

I was starting to get a little hungry, realized it was lunchtime, turned around to leave the park,

Aqueduct View #1 and Tire Swing

and saw the Fifteen Mile Creek Aqueduct off in the distance, which was another item on my list of "must sees"!

So, now a little history about aqueducts. The C&O Canal used 11 navigable aqueducts to carry the canal over rivers and streams too wide for a culvert to contain. Aqueducts, like locks and other masonry structures, were called “works of art” by the canal board of directors. The aqueducts of the C&O Canal, unlike the Roman aqueducts, were built with inferior materials and cement and did not have a long life expectancy. Usually the trash from the floods did the most harm to the aqueducts. 

Construction on The Fifteen Mile Creek Aqueduct (#9 out of the 11 aqueducts) began in 1838. Contracts were abandoned; work was restarted; and finally was completed in summer of 1850 at a cost of $28,119.51.  This aqueduct is

Aqueduct View #2

located near C&O Canal mile marker 141. It is a beautiful stone, single-arch bridge with the upstream wall missing, which is typical of most of the smaller aqueducts along the C&O Canal. The creek flows through the western end of the Fifteen Mile Creek Campground and has a boat ramp near its mouth on the Potomac River. Because of the fallen snow/ice (and the fact I was by myself), I did not want to risk getting too much closer to the aqueduct even though there were a few paths leading up to it. 

I still needed to find that sign AND I needed lunch. I thought I would take a quick drive down the few main roads that were not snow/ice covered and see if I could come across one. It took about 20 more minutes of driving before I realized there just was not a sign in existence. So, hoping I would come across SOMETHING…..ANYTHING with “Little Orleans” painted on it, I arrived at “Bill’s Place” – my lunch spot. 

Bill's Place

There in all its glory, was “Little Orleans” in huge wooden letters across the face of the store!! Phone out....point, click, and save!!!!

Bill’s Place was charming.  If you have the time, please click on this to read more about Bill and everything he did in his life for his family, friends, the town, and its visitors.  Now, a little bit about the store…….    

Jack

The store, in one form or another, had operated in Little Orleans since 1832. A fire destroyed the store in November 2000. It was rebuilt in 2001 (93 days after the destruction) and renamed "Bill's Place" in honor of its owner, Bill Schoenadel, a printer at the Cumberland Times, who operated the store since his purchase in 1969. Bill passed away in 2013. As luck would have it, his son, Jack, took over the business and I had the fortunate opportunity to meet him and a few members of his family and friends today. Jack is the owner/operator of the place that houses a general store, bar, restaurant, sporting goods outlet, gaming room and just-about-everything-else in one, HUGE room. Jack told me he does not want anyone visiting the town to be inconvenienced during their stay.  

Although the store was rebuilt, it was evident Bill wanted to keep a nostalgic/traditional feel to it.  For instance, there are

Dollars on the Ceiling

more than 4,500 dollar bills attached to the ceiling. The display started many years ago when one customer left a dollar bill on the ceiling "in case he was ever broke and needed a dollar to spend”. Now people sign the dollars and write notes on them and they are attached to the ceiling. I was also told sometimes a group of people will just buy a ceiling panel and write on that.  

When I walked into Bill’s Place, there were a couple of men in camouflage jackets and hats sitting at the bar. I took a look at the menu on the wall and decided to order a fishtail sandwich. I took a seat at one of the tables and a few minutes later one of the men asked if I was cold and that there was a little space heater he could direct at me if I wanted. How sweet was that?!!! And then he asked me something that made me want to laugh. He asked me if I was a real estate agent. I smiled and replied, “No, do I look like a real estate agent?” He politely responded by saying normally he didn’t find many ladies roaming around the area in the bitter cold. I smiled, walked up to the bar, sat down, and explained why I was there.

Pat and Norm

 
The men (Pat and Norm - brothers) and I started to talk about the blog and this-and-that. While we were talking, Jack (owner) came over and I learned about the history of the store and the annual summer event (oops! I almost told you about it!). Melissa (Norm’s wife) and I spoke about the people who hike/bike the length of the C&O Canal’s towpath (184.5 miles) as part of their bucket list. I also met Betty (who works there), Jack’s wife (Annie), and their two sons (Brian and Dee). 

My sandwich arrived and it was truly the best fish sandwich I can ever remember having. As I ate, Jack proceeded to show me one of the store’s Standard Day Books (logbook) that survived the fire. The entries dated back to 1915. And the pages!!! Wow! So brittle with the edges charred and no longer bound together – just laying neatly stacked within the binding. Jack had it wrapped in a newspaper tucked neatly away in a cupboard as a reminder of what was and how far they have come. I felt it a privilege to be shown that book. Overall, it was a wonderful experience at the store. I was only there a few hours talking with everyone, but they quickly made me feel at home and like part of their family. I have been asked to come back and I most certainly will.  

By now, you are probably wondering when I am going to tell you what the annual summertime event is, right? Well, here it is. The event is East Coast Sturgis (otherwise known as, Apple's East Coast Motorcycle Rally).  

East Coast Sturgis (ECS) was started in 2003 by Ken Apple. Ken's goal was to give motorcyclists, on the east coast, a place to go and party for a few days in the “old school Sturgis” way. ECS is located at the Apple Mountain Campground and although it’s not Sturgis, South Dakota, there are some great roads in the area and it has not become commercialized.
Of course, there are the usual vendors you will find at any motorcycle rally, but the main focus is on having fun and enjoying a few days with old friends and making some new ones. It is believed this event is a lot how Big Sturgis used to be back in the day. Entertainment includes: motorcycle demolition derby, motorcycle demonstrations, the crowd itself, and a few other surprises (yes, some things happen at ECS that definitely makes this not a family oriented event). The beer is very affordable and is provided by the local volunteer fire department. And talk about good music! Past performances include: The Outlaws, Citizens Band Radio, The Nighthawks, Kashmir, The Kentucky Headhunters, Ghost Riders, and Grand Funk Railroad will be making an appearance this year (August 2016). So, if you cannot make the trip to South Dakota, this place is definitely worth consideration to visit in the month of August.  

Additionally, if you like history and are able to travel to Little Orleans via Old Route 40 (The National Road), it is an easy ride and it provides numerous historical stops along the way.

It was getting late and I needed to get back on the road. The day was awesome – I cannot say that enough. The only people I saw all day were in the restaurant, and before going there I felt as if I had the beauty of the town and the area all to myself to admire – a very rare occurrence. I wish I had been able to spend a little more time there. However, I am already planning a return trip in the very near future!

C&O Canal Towpath