Lake Needwood, aside from being the lake and forestry that crept into my neighborhood, is a rather popular park. When one enters Lake Needwood from the road and not through the woods, things are more domestic. There’s a bathroom, a pavilion, a picnic area, all along the single strip of pavement that ventures far enough into the park. Further in you’ll find the docs where there are boat rentals.
The strip of pavement, via www.mongomeryparks.orgThe docks, via www.montgomeryparks.org
With this distinction that you can see in just the modes of arrival at LakeNeedwood, there was always relative contemplation to it as a place. While on my own time, taking walks with friends and family through the woods of our neighborhood, LakeNeedwood was more a point of meditation than anything else. The same way Romantics in all those masterpiece classics would wander into nature, my english-teacher mother, bookworm sister, and I would also wander.
But with introduction to school, there were even class groups that would go to Lake Needwood as a field trip. Or friends who didn’t live in my Neighborhood but would still drive to Lake Needwood rather than wander. In this perspective, Lake Needwood was a city park, one made for entertainment and outings, where you might bring your kids to get in a paddle-boat or eat a pic-nic or even exercise.
There will always be this distinction about Lake Needwood, in that it exists as just a piece of land full of woods and accompanied by a lake, but also as park categorized by districting and bureaucratic-affiliation.
Hey everyone I am back! Today I am going to dive in to some history regarding Country Park!
Former Country Park Lakes https://www.greensboro-nc.gov/home/showdocument?id=30036
The Beginning
Country Park was an idea that began with the Revolutionary War. One of the significant battles of the Revolutionary War was at the Guilford Courthouse (approximately an 8-minute drive from Country Park). The Guilford Battle was identified as National Military Park in 1917. Following that, in 1924, Country Park was a part of a piece of land purchased along with bonds for a cemetery, having its official opening on Independence Day of 1934. The park was opened, and work began due to the initiative of Mayor Paul Lindley with funds and assistance flowing from the Civil Works Administration. That is not all, the Federal Works Administration aided in making the natural space vast and beautiful, while keeping its essence. Many families residing in the “Greensborough” area would come here with their families to feed the geese and have outdoor picnics. Furthermore, children would come here to have free and open space with their friends and even time alone exploring the outdoors. Back then, humans mainly enjoyed the bathhouses and boardwalks around the lake.
Veteran’s Memorial
The Guilford County Veteran’s Memorial
The main historical attraction in Greensboro’s Country Park is the Guilford County Veteran’s memorial. The memorial was established on September 14, 2002. It contains an open circular path, a ring of walls that describes some of the most significant wars Guilford county participated in, and an array of bricks listing the people who served in the military. The wars mentioned in the memorial are the Persian Gulf War, Panama, Lebanon and Grenada, Vietnam War, Korean War, World War 1, World War 2, and the Civil War. My personal favorite part of the memorial is the bronze plate with many of the seals of militants from the war. Many people tend to disregard the fact that Greensboro has a very significant background, which includes people sweating, bleeding, and fighting for their country near where Country Park is located and internationally. The inclusion of the Veteran’s Memorial provides appreciation to those who fought for the legacy of this city and have provided us with the freedom and joy we encompass now.
If you want more information!
In my future blog posts, I hope to research more on how Country Park is a large part of the Battleground Parks District. Country Park encompasses a large part of the district and is one of the most significant developments for human interaction and entertainment in the past. Now, it continues to live to that level providing friends and families a beautiful and natural place to enjoy some fresh air and even learn some history at the Veteran’s War Memorial. Thank you for stopping by! See you later!
Important websites: https://www.greensboro-nc.gov/home/showdocument?id=30036 and https://docsouth.unc.edu/commland/monument/572
After nearly four years of getting to know the Guilford woods, I have come to find out that it is unlike any other. Although its history is unique, I have come to believe that this place is much more than just a historic landmark and a recreational retreat, but also a mysterious sanctuary of bizarre and unorthodox experiences. Here I will share a few strange and unusual encounters…
The Ghostly Albino Fawn
The only two photos I’ve ever captured of the elusive albino fawn, both skewed by light sources, making it seem as though it were being beamed down (or up) by a UFO.
Starting at the beginning, as a freshman, I went through my first semester without a cellphone, and consequently spent my time in the woods. My first encounter with the white fawn happened when I was alone, sitting at the back entrance to the woods, and it suddenly ran right in front of me, towards the parking lot. I could have reached out and touched it, but I was too in shock to move. Since then, I had seen it a few more times, but when summer came and went, reports stated that the fawn had been killed by a trophy hunter, with photos to back up its mortality. However, just weeks after the claim, a friend and I sat on a grassy hill facing the lake one afternoon to watch the bats come out. Suddenly, my friend says to look, but don’t move too quickly, and as I sat up, clear-as-day, stood the white baby deer, less than 15 feet away, refusing to break eye-contact with the both of us. As it started walking again, we followed, and the 2nd photo above was taken. For months afterwards, the ghostly little deer made its rounds everyday at the same time, coming through the North Apartments, through the parking lot, and into the woods…
The Missing Dinosaur
A reference of an Alligator Snapping Turtle, since no photos of the experience were taken, sadly. Found at: https://www.britannica.com/animal/snapping-turtle/images-videos/media/550381/95641
My sophomore year, a friend and I took an evening walk around the lake. To our surprise, some acquaintances were making a ruckus from the other side, so we made our way towards their hollering. Their excitement had been over the discovery of a giant dead alligator snapping turtle that had been hooked, strung up, and left to rot. My friend and I agreed on coming back to bury the prehistoric animal that night after hiding the nearly 50 lb monster. We met with a third friend and set out at midnight with only a shovel head-that’s right, no full-shovel, just a shovel head. After digging for hours, we finally felt confident that the hole was large enough, and placed the body inside and buried it. We disguised the grave and placed a large quartz rock on top so that we could come back a year later to obtain the shell, skull, and claws. For an entire year, we told no one and repeatedly checked to see if it had been disturbed without a problem. However, when the day came to unearth the creature, ready with actual shovels this time, there was nothing to be found. We dug for hours..days..in every direction..with absolutely no trace of the giant turtle. Sometimes the thought of it still haunts me when I look at the hole- now big enough for several human bodies- and I wonder if the woods either fully absorbed one of its inhabitants or resurrected it…
Now, I can continue explaining the permanent mark the Guilford woods has left on me, but for those not too familiar with this place, I suppose I should catch you up to speed!
One of Guilford’s historical landmarks, claiming the Woods to a part of Greensboro’s history for hundreds of years. Found at: https://www.greensborodailyphoto.com/2012/09/guilford-college-woods.html
Making up most of Guilford College’s borders, this old-growth forest (that was previously known as the New Garden Woods) has been relatively undisturbed for hundreds of years, but has served so much purpose in its plentiful history. The nearly 200 acres (and beyond) once served as hunting grounds for the Saura and Keyauwee peoples, but the mid-1700s brought European settlements (and slavery) to Guilford county. Since its first meeting in 1752, The New Garden Friends were against slavery and secretively (and publicly) fought for their cause for nearly a hundred years, purchasing rights to slaves to help support and assist with relocation to freedom in Indiana. In 1819, John Dimery was the earliest documented example of Underground Railroad activity, finding his refuge within the protective woods after escaping his captor. Levi and his brother Vestal Coffin were among the few that sought freedom for African Americans and in his dedication, Levi reportedly walked to Richmond, Indiana three separate times (500 miles each way) to mark the path of deliverance. He (and other Quakers) would use nails driven into trees and rocks to signify the correct routes that slaves could readily follow in the dark forest and terrain. Few can still be seen, jutting from the sides of trees, but the actual route was kept secret, so no one truly knows. Accompanied by wagons with false bottoms, a magnificent 300 year old Tulip Poplar, and determination, possibly hundreds of slaves found security under this forest canopy. For a more detailed timeline of the Guilford woods, go to:
If you aren’t the outdoorsy type or can’t make it to the tree yourself, here is a virtual tour to the Underground Railroad tree headed by James Shields including songs and stories!
Serving yet another purpose, a great portion of the woods was used as farmland up until about 1943, when Horsepen Creek was damned to make the Guilford Lake. Along the creek are remains of an 18th century wagon road that was used by troops in the American Revolution, but that same creek created small crevasses and caverns that helped hide African American slaves and Confederate Army deserters in the Civil War. The forest also saw minor scuffles in the 1781 Battle of Guilford Courthouse. Needless to say, this area holds many ghosts- even if you don’t believe in ghosts, one must admit there must be residual energy that has built up over the centuries, making its presence very powerful and humbling. Years ago, a 0.3 mile trail was built and dedicated to the Underground Railroad tree and the history in which it contains. Below is a link to a helpful website called Hiking Project that gives a virtual hike tour on the main loop trail, along with the area’s conditions, policies, and rated difficulty.
When I was just a wee lad I would traipse into the forestry that bled into my neighborhood, listen to birds tweet, watch a doe frolic surreptitiously. They were good times, they were the best times.
But sardonic introduction aside, I really like Lake Needwood. That’s the the woods that bordered my neighborhood. When I was kid I would walk from my house to the pathways along the lake almost everyday with my mother and sister. I’ve seen in it in every season and every time of day.
Leaving suburban blocking of houses and cul de sac’s, you reach what is referred to as a “common area” which means field by a bunch of houses. From there you follow this field into more and more trees. Take right once your left is consumed by a golf course, and go deeper into the trees. Then you begin to reach very slope-like unleveled forestry, rising and falling between paths and creeks, until it opens up to a lake. When you get there you’re at the highest point that surrounds the lake, because it’s clearly a man-made dam of some kind. There’s a large concrete chunk rising out of the water. The lake proceeds on for some miles surrounded by trees and paths. On one side there’s a picnic area where you can rent paddleboat in the summer but no one does that because it’s stupid, you should just take a walk. That’s what my mother, sister, and I all agree upon anyways.
I’ve done this walk hundreds of times before. I still do it every time I’m home because it meets that very minimal requirement of what can be called a group activity, and my family absolutely needs excuses like that. When we’re inside we all hide in separate rooms and read. When I was kid there was a lot of masterpiece classic on, and I can only assume that was informative in this “take a walk” mentality. Read, walk, read, walk. Damn Romantics.
That is of course, the concrete chunk. Where one emerges is in the top right corner of the image. This is the view from around where one would emerge. The concrete chunk is somewhere to the right. That dock is the place for those stupid paddle boats. This is the usual color palette I’ve observed there. It’s when fall bleeds into winter. Google Maps, Lake Needwood, Redland, MD
firstl, the factor that contributes to this decline in species at Camp Dark Waters is caused by ecological succession. According to George Spencer Morris, who was the architect of the “Catoxen Cabin” that Stone collected his specimens in on the campsite of Camp Dark Waters. Morris describes the location of the Catoxen Cabin” as being “a grove of taller pine crowning a little knoll which rose somewhat steeply from the bottoms bordering the stream. At the foot of the knoll bubbled a clear strong spring.” Today, the knoll is still standing, but there are no pine trees on the knoll, but instead in their place are oak and beeches. Oak and beeches seedlings thrive in the shade as oppose to pines seedlings because there are no fires to remove competition or cause the pine cones to open. Fast after older trees die causing an opening in the canopy is filled with excited tulip poplars. One of Stone’s findings was the gray birches and John Braxton who was the son of the director at the time, remembers when these trees were common at camp in the 1950s and ’60s. Unfortunately, there are no gray birches at camp, but the lands still have a great collection of species. One more substantial shift in the succession is the alteration of the canopy and subcanopy trees. As a result, it changes the layers of herb and shrubs that grow, which could be another reason the number of species has reduced. But at Camp Dark Waters, the spring is still blooming strong with various species that are beautiful in full blossom.
Gray Birches Trees, which no longer grows on Camp Dark Waters’ land (Photo Credit: Google)
Secondly, the factor that plays a role in this change is species composition as a result of human inhabitants bordering the edge of Camp Dark Waters. Witmer Stone documents old fields just to the east, which were old cornfields and then later became a housing development bordering the Camp land. In the days when Stone was collecting specimens, the vicinity of land was larger because these fields were part of his research which is gone now. As a result of these absent fields, a decrease in species have vanished in this area. There has been a number of killdeers, meadowlarks, and indigo birds that are gone who used to inhabit these fields, along with plants that protected and fed them. These species probably will never call Camp Dark Waters their home anymore because it’s not suitable for them to live in these new conditions.
Thirdly, the last factor is the best and worst reason for a decrease in species at Camp Dark Waters is the heavy use by the campers and counselors on the 15 acres of land. “Camp Catoxen” was transformed into “Camp Dark Waters” in 1927. In the summer, the camp is flooded with young people participating in all kinds of activities. This wide outdoors camp has been a great second home for city residents, who have experienced hiking and bonfires. But these activities have not supported the diversity of the flora of the camp. It’s been studied that the trees in the most heavily populated areas of the camp were not able to reseed and the mature trees are slowly dying. The result of, “early-succession species such as Juniperus virginiana are now rare” (82) according to Braxton and Ferren. Some native trees are now being planted to try to replace the mature trees that were lost. The trees that are out of the way of human paths are growing new seedlings and healthy. Though the tree species is the same the number as in 1992, instead the amount of mature trees has remarkably diminished. Until next time, when I share my experience of returning back home to Camp Dark Waters after being absent for eight years. It will be good to be home!
Eastern Red Ceder Juniperus virginiana are rare to grow at Camp Dark Waters (Photo Credit: Google)
Triad Park during the month of August. (Photo by Ben Clark)
As much as I would like for the leaves to be constantly green, the sun constantly shining, and the air constantly warm, that is simply an unrealistic request. The air cannot be constantly warm, or the sun constantly shinning, and the forest reflects this reliable evolution throughout the year. In spring, Triad Park is speckled with flashes of pink, light green, and blue. The air smells naturally sweet (not artificially designed to be sweet), and the sound of Cooper (Triad Park’s local Cooper’s Hawk) calling for someone to have adult-hawk interactions with rings in the air. While Cooper calls, Spring Peepers backup his sound up in a contradictory yet beautiful chorus. These peepers, or Pseudacris crucifer as Science likes to call them, are small frogs that are native to the eastern United States and Canada. Spring Peepers get their name, as one can guess, because of their iconic sound that usually occurs at the beginning of spring. When I am walking on the trail and hear Spring Peepers, I make a note that spring is coming–fast.
During the summer months, Triad Park is lush with green. It’s usually warm and a bit muggy, especially in August, but the sights of the forest are worth being drenched in sweat for. Nothing is better than a walk in the forest during the summer; the leaves are fully grown, green, and there for the enjoyment of all critters. A bird that seems to be particularly fond of summer is the Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus). During the warmer months, these little Wrens flitter and hop between branches and on the ground, whether it be to gather materials for a nest, grab a bite to eat, or just explore. There are a number of Carolina Wrens around my house, and one of them likes to nest in a coffee mug that my family decided to hang sideways from a hook under the eave of our house. We put a sock in the mug, too, so the little Wren is undoubtedly cozy in there. The fact that these small birds enjoy resting in little places such as a coffee mug is a big reason why the Carolina Wren is one of my favorite birds.
Triad Park during the month of November. (Photo by Ben Clark)
During the months of fall, Triad Park explodes with color in a way that is similar to spring. It differs, though, in that it is not representative of the beginning of new growth, but the end of the year’s cycle. However, new growth cannot begin until the current growth reaches its end, so it does not depress me when the leaves begin to fall. The fall colors are always so rich on the trail; I try to hike there every day, especially when the leaves are colored with autumn. The season also serves as a way to identify the different species of trees that make up the forest. For example, if I were to look at the ground during autumn, I would see maple leaves accompanied by oak and beech. Fall serves as a way to memorize leaf patterns in order to understand the forest on a deeper visual level. I hope to one day be able to see a specific leaf and instantly match it to a tree. I’m getting there. Maples and oaks are the easiest. A good rule for oak identifications; red oak (Quercus rubra) leaves have sharp edges, while the leaves of white oaks (Quercus alba) are rounded at the edges. My mom taught me this, and I thought that I should pass it on.
Continuing with Witmer Stone’s findings of different specimens of plants between 1899 to 1910 on Camp Dark Waters’ land, John Braxton and Wayne R. Ferren Jr. studied and compared the plants found in 2015 on the same lands to Witmer Stones discoveries in the past. Stone found 327 herbarium specimens of plants during is time collecting and studying on Camp Dark Waters’ land. To start off Braxton and Ferren, examined 72 herbarium specimens that Stone collected in Medford. It appeared that 70 of these species are currently growing at Camp Dark Waters. When Stone collected specimens, he started to label the locations where he found these planets, so 69 out of the 72 specimens were labeled designating either “Flora of Catocksin” or “Vicinity of Catoxen Cabin”. The “Medford” label was found with three of the specimen which indicated that they were collected from a different location very near to “Medford.” But, when carefully inspecting again, it turned out that two of the specimen had the label “Medford.” These two specimen were matching because their labels were either “Catocksin” or “Catoxen”, which meant that 99% of the 72 specimens are growing in Medford currently and near or at Camp Dark Waters.
One sample of a specimen that Witmer Stone collected in Medford, New Jersey (photo in The Vascular Plants of Camp Dark Waters, Medford, New Jersey, 1912 to 2015)
Compared to Stone’s 327 specimens of plants he collected, there are only 141 identified vascular planets found at Camp Dark Waters in 2015. There has been a real decrease in plant life since 1910, which can be studied more closely to understand this decline. It was wondered if the specimen that Stone found labeled “Medford”, were found in another location, not at Camp Dark Waters. By randomly selecting 61 herbarium specimen collected by Stone that is not currently growing at Camp Dark Waters, Braxton and Ferren analyzed these species. Out of the 61, 58 of these specimen or 95 % were collected from the location of “Catocksin” or “Catoxen”. The rest of the three specimens were labeled “Medford”, and since we know some of Stones labels of “Medford” were matching specimens collect at “Camp Catoxen”. It’s likely that all the specimens labeled “Medford” were gathered in the vicinity of Camp Catoxen. It’s probable that the 261 specimen that Stone found in Medford long ago was in the vicinity of what currently is Camp Dark Waters.
Another Specimen that Witmer Stone collected in Medford, New Jersey (Photo in The Vascular Plants of Camp Dark Waters, Medford, New Jersey, 1912 to 2015)
Now, I know you’re wondering, “Why are there only 141 specimens currently in the vicinity of Camp Dark Waters instead of 261 when Stone studied the land in 1911? Well, there are multiple factors that contribute to this change which includes: ecological succession, the shift in human inhabitants bordering in the camp affects species composition and lastly the heavy use of the land by campers. All of these elements have affected the changes in natural life throughout the years because nothing stays constant. I will dive deeper into the details of each element in the next blog. But for right not, everything in nature is constantly adjusting and adapting to new conditions, but this is the beauty of the natural world. Everything has to keep moving forward, so all species can thrive and survive on this earth.
Fun addition:
In the appendix one of the article The Vascular Plants of Camp Dark Waters, Medford, New Jersey, 1912 to 2015 by John Braxton and Wayne R. Ferren Jr. list all the species that are grown at Camp Dark Waters. This image is only the first page of the list, but there are four more continuous pages of listed species.
Photo credit: The Vascular Plants of Camp Dark Waters, Medford, New Jersey, 1912 to 2015
As Winter fades and Spring arrives once again, it felt great getting back to campus after a peaceful spring break. And with my compulsive nature to get stuff done in advance it meant this week was gonna be rather chill, making it the perfect time to visit Price Park once again. While I was still finding my footing and getting reacclimatized to my environment, I knew I should take an hour out of the time I spent running errands just to see how the place had adjusted to this new season. Thankfully, it was a welcome shift with a lot more to talk about this time around, starting with the main reason I went today: to help my buddy test out some roller-skates.
Ryan and his “Light Steps”
While I wanted to get some good photos and just unwind with some peace and quiet, my buddy Ryan bought these weird skates nailed to wooden plaques called Light Steps after watching a woman perform some downright fantastic stunts with the model via Youtube. With the park’s flat trails and not too many people around, I saw it as the perfect opportunity to get some fresh air and watch Ryan continually lose his balance on these rolling deathtraps. Needless to say, things didn’t go too well but it sure was fun to watch. Just getting up onto the things was downright impossible, to the point where I literally had to act as a balancing pillar for him to grab onto as he tried to gain some balance and momentum. After a good five minutes he decided to turn to Youtube for help, while I told him I was gonna head down the trail to grab some photos. Now it was time to really immerse myself in the warm, spring air and see how the place had changed, or at the very least shifted with the seasons.
It was a little cloudy at first, but as time went on the sunshine became radiant as I headed into that big heaping patch of grass. The light was illuminating the trees, bringing out their detailed bark lines and almost blending them together at times into some strange art sculpture. Overall it was nice and quiet, just sitting down on the grass, taking in that scent of air as any stress I had, which wasn’t much, just blew away with the light breeze. I didn’t even have to wear a jacket this time around, the temperature was just perfect. It really gave me the chance to just think about and sort out all these ideas I had going on in my head, like some possible script ideas and location settings.
Later on I ventured into the hiking trail for a good ten minutes, nothing major but I knew I wanted to at least see if it had changed since last time. To my surprise, it had a nice balance of familiarity and unknown, as these beautiful flowers had grown near the rocks. It was only one small patch (as shown below) but it was a welcome shakeup to all the piles of leaves and branches that filled the grounds. Beside it were these rocks. While I know that may not seem very cool, I was amazed by their formations once the sunlight brought all the detail to the surface. It looked like something out of an alien planet up close and that made me super impressed the more I stared.
After that, I felt like it was time to head home. I didn’t plan on doing anything too big this time around, just getting back in the swing of things and get a good understanding of how the seasons change. But as I walked back to my car something happened that I never expected. I saw a bird nest on the ground, with one egg completely hatched while another was about an inch out of the nest. So naturally I picked the egg up and put it back in it’s nest, hoping to god that there was some chance it was still alive. While that probably isn’t the case, if that egg does end up hatching thanks to me, then I’ll know I’ve done a small part in helping give back to nature.
Shortly After the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, residents fled the surrounding area, due to the death, decay, and damaged land. In 1785, the North Carolina assembly chartered a new town, Martinsville, which laid where the old courthouse stood. The new residents cleared the forests surrounding the battlefield, nearly 1,000 acres, for subsistence farming and it seemed that the battle had been forgotten. As the decades slowly turned, Martinsville declined, leaving the farmland where the battle occurred in ragged disrepair. As the nearby city of Greensboro grew into the old borders of Martinsville, the battlefield seemingly sifted into the patchwork of farms and homesteads.
To some residents of Greensboro and the surrounding area, the Battle of Guilford Courthouse had not been forgotten. In 1857, a committee of private citizens known as the Greene Monument Association sought to erect a bronze monument of American General Nathaniel Greene on battlefield land owned by the city; however, the committee’s efforts were interrupted by the outbreak of the American Civil War.
Over the course of the American Civil War, much of the American South was left in ruin including the upper Piedmont and Guilford County. As a result of the Confederacy’s defeat, land was redistributed, including much of the land in Greensboro, where the Battle of Guilford Courthouse occurred, leaving the land where the battleground took place in disparate hands. In 1876, the centennial of the Declaration of Independence, the period after the Civil War, known as Reconstruction, came to a close. The celebration of the centennial morphed into an opportunity to ideologically bond North and South under the rhetoric of American victory in the American Revolution citing it as a “common heritage.”
The American Congress appropriated a quarter-million dollars toward the establishment of Revolutionary War monuments across the East-Coast in commemoration of the Revolution. The resurgence in American nationalism did not stop with the celebration of the Centennial, the monuments took time and required the monetary support of not just Congress but also the support of the American public, which was readily available.
Above is a plaque posted at the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park explaining the founding of the military park and the Guilford Battleground Company.
When the Southern states seceded from the American Union, men of prominence within their community rose to either military or governmental status within the Confederacy. After the war, many of the men within the Confederacy retained their status and their wealth. David Schenck served as a Confederate fundraiser and solicitor during the war and is the primary founder of the Guilford Courthouse Military Park, the other founder being former Confederate Officer Joseph M. Morehead.
“Out of a population of 3000 people in Greensboro I could not find a half dozen persons who could point out to me the scene of the battle.”
David Schenck
Both Schenck and Morehead, founded the Guilford Battleground Company, in the 1880s, in order to buy back the land where the battle took place. Throughout the latter half of the 19th century, the company gained traction and constructed a massive monument in commemerrance of General Nathanael Greene at the center of the Battlefield. Eventually, the company turned over the land to the federal government, who turned the battleground into a national military park, which is open to the public to this day.
