HISTORICAL NYC

Julianne Lillie
Aug 31, 2022
7 min read

Jule’s Journal: Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island

By: Julianne Lillie, 8/30/22

Yesterday ended up being a “down day” for us so we could dump and catch up on laundry from the busy week without full hookups! We were very pleased to know we got through 4 days without having to dump which was right at half way through our stay. So we packed everything up, hooked up the trailer, Jason pulled it around to the dump station and it took about 20 minutes to dump all of our tanks. The entire process from break down camp to set back up was about 1 hour which wasn’t bad at all! We ended up switching to a different campsite for easier access back in, thankfully!

So after yesterday’s catch up day, we were eager for more sightseeing! We took early “trains” (people here call the subway “trains”) into World Trade Center and had about a 10 minute walk to Battery Park where we were to meet our tour guide. We arrived at 8am which happened to be 30 minutes early so we walked around Battery Park. We happen to stumble upon a US Life-saving Memorial, Korean War Memorial, & Castle Clinton National Historic Site. The Park Ranger at Castle Clinton went ahead and gave me the booklet & badge/patch for Junior Ranger program for us to finish later… Score!

We hurried back to meet our guide at 8:30am and learned that we were the only 4 on our tour that morning which meant a private tour without the high price… Score again! We boarded the ferry for Statue of Liberty and got some great views of Manhattan & Little Manhattan’s skyline from the harbor. Once we landed we headed straight for the museum. The Kids did their Junior Ranger page while we explored the museum. Here they housed the original torch which was replaced in the early 1900s.

And they also had a life sized replica of her face where you could feel the thickness of the copper used (about 2 pennies in thickness).

And Lady Liberty's foot - very well manicured toe nails!

It was a very fascinating museum! They also showed video snippets and displays of how the Statue of Liberty was constructed in France. Then deconstructed piece by piece and shipped over in crates across the Atlantic. It was really neat to learn that this gift was from the people of France to the people of the US. Which means the people raised the funds on both sides. The US was responsible for raising funds for the building of the pedestal and France was responsible for raising funds for the statue. They did this by selling bonds and mini replicas of the statue.

After we explored the museum, the kids earned their Junior Ranger badge and we watched the park video. We then went up to the rooftop viewing platform (top of the museum) for great views.

Jett couldn't resist giving Lady Liberty bunny ears!

View from the rooftop viewing platform of the museum:

Then we walked around the front of Lady Liberty. She’s so majestic and powerful! You could pay extra to climb up to the top of the pedestal just below her feet, however they haven’t yet re-opened the climb to her crown. It’s still closed “due to Covid.”

After we took in her beauty, we then bought some souvenirs and took the ferry over to Ellis Island. Form there we parted ways from our tour guy, Phil, and stepped onto Ellis Island.

On the Ferry:

Ellis Island:

Turns out, they have a Junior Ranger program, too! So we picked up the booklets and headed to the café for lunch. Then we watched the 25-minute park video (very fascinating and emotional) and participated in the 1pm Ranger-led tour by Doug Treem. Now this park ranger was a character… we nicknamed him “Donald Trump’s cousin” because he sort of looked like him, definitely talked like him, had the same mannerisms, and shared the same initials! It was hilarious! Then the kids earned their 3rd Junior Ranger badge for the day and we checked the register to see if we could find one of my Grandma’s ancestors. We searched for last name “Dumous” from country “France” and found a Gaston Dumous who arrived from Roubaixe, France on the ship “Kroonland.” It could very well be one of our ancestors – pretty cool!

Here's the view from the Great Hall inside the Immigration Museum:

We then took the ferry back to Battery Park and walked towards Wall Street where we saw the New York Stock Exchange.

We continued on to Federal Hall to get a glimpse of the steps where George Washington took the oathe on the Bible to be our country’s first President. Unfortunately they were doing some renovation so we weren't able to get up close and personal with George or the steps. This is the best view we had:

We went inside to explore the Grand Room inside and the kids earned their 4th Junior Ranger badge for the day! Now that’s a record for us! Here's a peak inside:

After we explored Federal Hall and the exhibits inside, we headed to Trinity Church and in the graveyard we visited Alexander Hamilton’s burial site – right next to his beloved wife, Eliza.

Alexander Hamilton's burial site:

The Astor Cross in the graveyard:

We then went inside the church. Jett lit a candle in honor of Uncle David and then we all sat down on the pews to pray and take in all of the beauty and history that surrounded us! Gorgeous tall ceilings with stained glass windows and rich, ornate wood carvings and carpentry.

After that, I snapped a pic of the “Broadway/Wall St.” intersection as that was one of the clues in the National Treasure Movie.

It was filmed right there in the street, graveyard, and inside the church where we just explored. Pretty neat! Then we headed back to the World Trade Center Oculous station. Once inside, Jett traded one of his Uncle Sam’s Tulsa Police Dept. patches with one of the Port Authority NY & NJ officer’s patches. He was pumped!

And here's Jett with all his "loot" after the day! (4 Junior Ranger Badges, 1 Junior Ranger patch, & 1 Police Patch)

Such a great day exploring all of the rich history that NYC offers! It was only fitting that we watched the movie, National Treasure, that night before bed!

Jett’s Wild Flight: Night DAY at the Museum

By: Jett Lillie, 8/30/22

The first thing we did at the Museum of Natural History was the planetarium. It wasn’t as cool as I thought it would be, but I still liked it because it showed us what the planets looked like 1,000 years ago! After that my mom and I looked at the reptile exhibits. We saw a Rattlesnake and a Viper! Then we explored the Shark Exhibits. We took a picture with a statue of a Megaladon (Extinct giant shark) and watched a cool video which was very informative.

I played a virtual shark hunting game and then we took pictures with shark heads!

We met back up with Jaycie and Daddy and ate lunch in the food court. Then we split up again. My Dad and I watched a 45-minute film on birds and their migration. Last, but not least, we took a picture with “Dum Dum!”

Yes, this is the museum from the movie Night at the Museum! I wonder if everything comes to life at night… Dun Dun Dun!!!!

Jaycie’s Bunny Hoppin’ News: American Museum of Natural History

By: Jaycie Lillie, 8/30/22

We walked to the subway which took us directly into the American Museum of Natural History. From there we went through security! [Ugh!]We then scanned our tickets and we were in! First, we went to the space section and participated in the planetarium show. Mommy and Jett went to the shark exhibit while Daddy and I stayed a bit longer at space before heading to bugs! [Eew!] These bugs were all either endangered or extinct [or something like that.]

This is a monarch butterfly. Scientific name is Danaus Plexippus. They were first discovered in Connecticut and New York in 1902 – 1936. Their ecological role is a herbivore as a caterpillar, and a pollinator as an adult. The species range is North, Central, & South America; also Western Europe, Australia, and some Pacific Islands. The status is endangered/threatened. One reason is listed: The monarch caterpillars eat only milkweed plants. These unfortunately are being plowed or killed with herbicide. People all over America are planting native milkweed and nectar plants, and government agencies in Canada, U.S. and Mexico are working to protect over wintering sites and to restore breeding habitats. I read this in the endangered insects section. This is a picture I snapped in Battery Park, NYC:

bellow is a picture from the museum

These were some of the others in the exhibit:

Cousin Tiger Moth, Lopbocampa sorbrina

California, U.S.A.

Vulnerable

Blue-calamintha Bee, osmia calamitbae

Florida, U.S.A.

Critically imperiled

Seven-Year Cicada, magicicada septendecim

Northern U.S.A. east of the Great Plains

Near threatened

Luzon Peacock Swallowtail, papilio chikea

Luzon mountains, Philippines

Endangered

I finished up my notes in the food court where we met up with mommy and Jett. We ate and then walked around the animal section. These Alaskan Elk were HUGE!! [they looked bigger up close]

We split up again. Jett went with daddy this time and I went with Momma. We looked at plants, fungi and related things. We moved onto Ocean Life with a ginormous whale hanging from the ceiling. Soon after that we found the shell section! There were lands snails, land snails and slugs, marine bivalves, marine snails, and other. The best part was it was warm! [The rest of the museum was freezing!] In the space section the security guard was wearing a jacket and long pants. That explains Jett’s face in the elk photo.

We met up again and toured the rocks and minerals area. I found this awesome chart! It is all of the birth stones.