Tuesday, February 24, 2015

The Carolina Anole -- The Dixie Lizard

The beautiful green and brown Carolina anole lizards.

On Wednesday, February 18, even though it did not get above 25F for a high in South Carolina, and the windchill felt like single digits, that did not stop this little lady from crawling out from under the house this afternoon to get her some sunshine. I'd seen her crawl out from under the house before with a pair of little ones, but this is the first time she let me get close enough to get a really clear photo of her.


A native species to North America found mainly in the American Southland and the Caribbean, the Carolina anole (Anolis carolinensis) is a small, hardy little lizard that's active all year around. They are arboreal in nature but may be seen on the ground and frequently seen on shrubs and trees, but is also a common sight in urban areas on steps, porches, railing, and foliage adjacent to houses. 

Anoles are most abundant on the Atlantic Coastal Plains in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, and on the Gulf Coast in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas and have been found as far north as Southern Tennessee and southeastern Virginia. In the Carolinas they are found in the coastal plains and southern piedmont regions of North Carolina, but throughout South Carolina, while in Georgia they are widespread except in the Blue Ridge region.

Other common names for the anole are: The green anole, American anole, and red-throated anole. It is also sometimes referred to as the American chameleon due to its ability to change color from several brown hues to bright green - although it is not a true chameleon. They are from a family of lizards called Dactyloidae, and more closely related to the iguana, though they are sometimes confused with geckos. 

Its easy to see how the Carolina anole 
can be mistaken from the Gecko....and 

no thanks mate, I already have car insurance.


These little critters are truly amazing creatures. They are harmless to humans, but do not necessarily make good pets. As a kid, I would catch them and put them in an old empty aquarium - least till my folks put them back outside. They need to be outside where they can roam free. 
  
Other times when I sat on my porch drinking iced tea in the summertime, I would see the occasional anole crawl onto the porch and stare at me as I looked back at them. Sometimes I find them inside my house and carefully put them back outside.

The beautiful Carolina anole is truly one of Dixie's many wonders and a hardy Southern lizard. 


Monday, February 23, 2015

Black Confederate Presentation At The Museum Of The Waxhaws

It is almost always a pleasure for me to formally meet in person with fellow Confederate heritage supporters that I correspond with online. 

On Saturday, February 21st of this year, I got the opportunity to meet up with one very amazing Southern lady at the Museum of the Waxhaws just over the border in Waxhaw, North Carolina, one Miss Teresa E. Roane, a noted archivist and historian from Richmond, Virginia. 

Miss Roane is a member of the Richmond-Stonewall Jackson Chapter #1705 United Daughters of the Confederacy and the Captain Sally I. Tompkins Chapter 2 Order of the Confederate Rose out of Richmond, Virginia. She is also an archivist at the UDC Library in Richmond.

She is also the owner of many really unique and marvelously large hats that she displays oh so beautifully. 

Miss Roane traveled all the way from Virginia to the Carolinas border town to present a wonderfully detailed presentation on the contributions of Black Confederates and Afro-Southern loyalists during the War Between the States. 

What better place to hold such an event than the Museum of the Waxhaws, located near Andrew Jackson State Park - the birthplace of Andrew Jackson, seventh President of the United States of America. A truly amazing place that this blogger highly recommends to tourists visiting the Waxhaw, North Carolina area.  

The following are some really good photos I took of the trip. 


The Secrest Log House.
Built in the first quarter of the 1800s and was
originally located four miles west of Monroe, NC
and later moved to the Museum of the Waxhaws
in 1997 to become a part of the walking tour.
Wooden crosses with Confederate Banner
flying overhead.
The flag flying above the wooden crosses is a
replica of the Confederate 1st National Flag
"Stars & Bars" pattern used as the headquarters flag
of General Robert E. Lee,
Army of Northern Virginia, CSA.
Marker commemorating the Scots-Irish
Settlers of the Waxhaws region.
Andrew Jackson's parents were among those
early European settlers who traveled down the
Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania
to the Carolinas.
The Museum of the Waxhaws.
Elizabeth Hutchinson Jackson,
mother of Andrew Jackson.
During the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
Miss Jackson lost both her older sons in the war,
and later in 1781 died of smallpox while helping to
tend wounded prisoners held at Charleston, SC.
22 Star US Flag of a pattern used during the start of
Andrew Jackson's presidency.
Another Confederate 1st National "Stars & Bars"
flag (7 Star Pattern).
Artifacts from the War Between the States (1861-1865)
are also included.
Reunion flag of the Monroe, NC
United Confederate Veterans (UCV).
About the United Confederate
Veterans and the flag.
Historic photograph of the dedication ceremony of
the Confederate Soldiers' Monument in front of the
Old Courthouse, Monroe, NC in 1910.
Catawba Indian pottery.
Native American arrowheads collected
from the area on display.
A temporary exhibit was set up for the occasion with
Civil War artifacts -- including information on Black Confederates
and their service. Courtesy of the NC Museum of History.
An exhibit honoring the services of local "Colored Confederates"
including images of past local services honoring Black
Confederate Veterans and a recently departed Real Daughter.
A small copy of the marker dedicated to Black Pensioners of Color
placed at the base of the Confederate Monument in nearby Monroe,
NC on Saturday, December 8, 2012.
A memorial ribbon from the memorial service is included.
This blogger also attended that service as seen HERE.
Bullets fired during the Battle of New Bern, NC
in 1865 still embedded into tree trunks.
Former Confederate President Jefferson Davis' cane.
A present given to him by a Black Confederate
Veteran after the War.
Model of the submarine HL Hunley -- first man-made submarine
in history to sink an enemy warship.
Included in the display is a replica of the gold dollar piece
found in the submarine during excavation and the HL Hunley Award
medal and ribbon annually given by the Sons of Confederate Veterans
to high school JROTC candidates.
Confederate Naval Officer re-enactor and wife in
mid-1800s period attire.
Local SCV member and museum volunteer Mr. Tony Way
with Professor Earl L. Ijames, Curator of the
North Carolina Museum of History.
One of the guest speakers for the event talking about
Black Confederates and their service in the Confederate military.
 Miss Patricia Poland, librarian, genealogist and local
historian in Monroe shared her extensive research on a
local Confederate Pensioner of Color Aaron Perry.
He was a slave and former Confederate Veteran who
became a man of recognition, honor and influence.
It was truly fascinating to hear what she found out
about this one life who was a slave and how
Mr. Perry went on to influence so many thru his life.
SCV member Mr. Gregory Perry, the great, great, great grandson
of Aaron Perry, whose life was researched as a local slave and how
he served in the Confederate military and came out and
influenced so many lives in so many ways.
As the keynote speaker, Miss Teresa Roane, spoke eloquently
and passionately on minorities (slaves and free men of color)
in combatant support roles in the Confederate Army and their
significance to the Confederate military.
It was truly an honor to listen to her speak.
Those in attendance learned much from her research.


All in all a good afternoon learning about some of those men who fought to defend Southern independence and the land of their birth. Not to mention meeting Miss Teresa in person. It was a great honor for me.

For more information on the Museum of the Waxhaws or the subject of Black Confederates and their descendants please check out the links to the right of this blog, as well as the links provided in the post.

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Night Sky Photography -- 02-20-2015 -- Planetary Conjunction

Photographs I took of the conjunction of the planets Mars and Venus with the crescent moon after sunset on Friday, February 20, 2015. It was cloudy and I had to wait for a break in the cloud cover to get these photos but I think they turned out pretty well.


Night Sky Photography -- 02-19-2015 -- Venus & Mars With The Crescent Moon

Photographs taken by me of the planet Mars and Venus with the crescent Moon just after sunset. These came out pretty good, if I do say so myself.