Travel Guides

Announcing: The Windy City Saga Tour!

Join me for a weekend in Chicago like none other. We’ll explore the city’s rich history through the sites found in Veiled in Smoke, Shadows of the White City, and Drawn by the Current (releasing Feb. 1, 2022). Our time together will include a visit to the Chicago History Museum, which has a new major exhibit called “City on Fire: Chicago 1871”, as well as other exhibits which include the 1893 World’s Fair and the 1915 Eastland Disaster. Our visit here will provide the context for all three novels in The Windy City Saga and show how they fit in within the overarching story of Chicago. We’ll also walk in the characters footsteps as we visit Lincoln Park, have lunch in The Walnut Room at Macy’s (formerly Marshall Field’s), experience the Chicago Cultural Center (the city’s first dedicated public library), tour the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, and hear from the granddaughters of an Eastland Disaster survivor at the site where the event happened along the Chicago River. Those who arrive by late Thursday afternoon may opt to come on a walking tour of Prairie Avenue Historic District, which is the neighborhood where Sylvie and Meg Townsend (in Veiled in Smoke) live after the Great Fire displaces them from Courthouse Square. The tour will conclude with a tour and dinner at Second Presbyterian Church, the only church in Chicago to be on the National Historic Landmark Registry. But that’s not all. Other optional excursions include: Attending a performance at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Enjoying an architectural cruise on the Chicago River Watching a live radio production of “Unshackled” at the historic Pacific Garden Mission Touring The Art Institute, one of the best art museums in the nation and one of only two buildings still standing that were built for the World’s Fair of 1893 Visiting the Museum of Science & Industry, originally built as the Palace of Fine Arts for the 1893 World’s Fair. Explore the Wooded Island next to MSI, also constructed for the World’s Fair. And more! Plenty of free time will allow you to customize your weekend and visit the attractions, shops, and/or restaurants that are important to you. Our home in Chicago will be the iconic and unparalleled Palmer House hotel, as seen in both Veiled in Smoke and Shadows of the White City. It’s the longest continuously-running hotel in the country and truly a work of art. See a YouTube video tour of the hotel here, and a brief taste of its history in a YouTube video here. Its downtown location puts us within an easy walk of several attractions and many restaurants. I’ve highlighted a few on the snapshot below, but you can get a better sense of our location by looking up our location on Google Maps and exploring the area that way. More details, including detailed itinerary, pricing, excursions list and FAQs will be added soon. If you’d like to be notified via email when more information is available, please fill in this Google form.

9 Must-See Sites of Gettysburg

Gettysburg is one of my favorite spots on earth. I've visited to research for my novel Widow of Gettysburg, and then my husband and I went in 2013 for the 150th anniversary of the battle (and to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary!). For those of you considering a Gettysburg vacation (do it! do it!), check out this list of must-see sites I put together with the help of my readers and fellow history lovers. (If you have read Widow of Gettysburg, you'll be interested to know that almost all of the following were mentioned in the book.) Explore 1. The Seminary Ridge Museum, housed in the original Lutheran Theological Seminary building. I had the privilege of seeing this museum the night before its grand opening, and I cannot say enough about it. If you only have time to see one "in-town" site, let it be this one. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1255", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3172", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"381", "alt":"The seminary building in 1863."}}]] The seminary building in 1863. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1256", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3173", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"601", "alt":"Seminary Ridge Museum today."}}]] Seminary Ridge Museum today. 2. The Shriver House Museum. I adored the Shriver House Museum! To get a full picture of Gettysburg in 1863, don't limit yourself to the battlefield. Or rather, realize the town itself was part of the battlefield. Confederate snipers fired from the attic of the Shriver House. The docents here are wonderful, and really bring the personal story of a Gettysburg family to life. The home of Hettie Shriver's neighbor, Tillie Pierce, is now an inn: The Tillie Pierce Inn. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1258", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3174", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"601", "alt":"Shriver House Museum"}}]] Shriver House Museum docent 3. Christ Lutheran Church. The church, used as a hospital during the battle, is usually open during the day. If at all possible, attend one their Saturday evening Songs and Stories of a Civil War Hospital performances. This was one of my most meaningful experiences at Gettysburg! Bring the kleenex. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1260", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3175", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"601", "alt":"Christ Lutheran Church. The red flag signifies its use as a hospital during and after the battle. (Most buildings in town had a red flag out front!)"}}]] Christ Lutheran Church. The red flag signifies its use as a hospital during and after the battle. (Most buildings in town had a red flag out front!) 4. The historic Gettysburg Train Station. This is the station Lincoln rode into to deliver his famous Gettysburg Address. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1261", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3177", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"326", "alt":"Photo courtesy Peggy Detweiler"}}]] Photo courtesy Peggy Detweiler 5. The Jennie Wade House. Jennie Wade was the only civilian killed during the battle. (Many more were killed in its aftermath, from contaminated water, exploding shells, etc.) [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1262", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3178", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"338", "alt":"The Jennie Wade House"}}]] The Jennie Wade House 6. The David Wills House is a National Park Service museum which tells the story of David Wills (a Gettysburg lawyer), Lincoln, and the Gettysburg Address. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1263", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3180", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"337", "alt":"davidwills"}}]] The David Wills House 7. Evergreen Cemetery, which is adjacent to the National Cemetery. The monument to the Gettysburg Address is in the National Cemetery, but the location of the speech was actually in Evergreen Cemetery. Evergreen Cemetery is the burial place for Elizabeth Thorn, Rev. Schmucker, Jennie Wade, and others. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1264", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3179", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"338", "alt":"Monument to Elizabeth Thorn, the pregnant gravedigger, in Evergreen Cemetery."}}]] Monument to Elizabeth Thorn, the pregnant gravedigger, in Evergreen Cemetery. 8. Experience the Gettysburg National Cemetery with a free walking tour courtesy of licensed battlefield guides. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1265", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3181", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"300", "alt":"Sunrise at Soldiers National Cemetery, by Bill Dowling."}}]] Sunrise at Gettysburg National Cemetery, by Bill Dowling. 9. National Military Park and Battlefield Start with the National Park Service Museum & Visitor Center. It's new since 2012, and features the restored, and famous, Gettysburg Cyclorama. Ranger Programs range from battle history to medical practices of the Civil War, "Visit to the Past" living history presentations, and battlefield hikes. Programs are offered at the Museum and Visitor Center, on the battlefield, and in the Soldiers' National Cemetery, with lengths between twenty minutes and two hours depending on the subject matter and location. Special programs and activities are also available for kids. Living History events are so much fun. Check this schedule of events page to find out what's happening when. My family (and many others!) really enjoyed the audio auto tour, but there are several ways to tour. "We actually LOVED the driving tour (CD that plays in the car) that is offered through the museum! I think it was our favorite activity because it was educational, not hard on the little ones and we felt like we got an amazing overview of the town and war simultaneously!"~April Lakata [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1266", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3183", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"501", "height":"501", "alt":"Pics from our auto tour! So much fun."}}]] Pics from our auto tour! So much fun. "I love wandering around Gettysburg and trying to get off the beaten path. I like the equestrian statue of General James Longstreet in Pitzer Woods [below], notice the trail ride in the background. If you look close you can see where people have left coins on Hero's raised hoof." ~Peggy Detweiler (Check out the horseback riding trails.) [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1267", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3184", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"447", "alt":"Photo courtesy of Peggy Detweiler"}}]] Photo courtesy of Peggy Detweiler Favorites sites of the battlefields include Little Round Top, the Wheat Field, the High Water Mark, Devil's Den, and a multitude of monuments. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1268", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3185", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"600", "alt":"Meghan Gorecki perched atop Little Round Top."}}]] Meghan Gorecki perched atop Little Round Top. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1269", "attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-3186", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"450", "height":"338", "alt":"My husband Rob at Devil"}}]] My husband Rob at Devil's Den. Before you go, be sure to check out Gettysburg's Events Calendar to see what's happening! Enjoy your visit, and please send me a photo or post one to my Facebook page! I LOVE seeing my reader friends in Gettysburg! If you've already been to Gettysburg, what were some of your trip highlights?

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must-see sites of Gettysburg

Wedded to War Historic Sites of New York City

Monday, April 22, 1861 New York City When Charlotte and Alice told their mother they were taking the omnibus down Broadway, they weren't lying. They just didn't tell her where they would be getting off. There was simply no time for an argument today. So begins Wedded to War--on one of the most famous and historic avenues in the world. In fact, many scenes in Wedded to War are set in locations you can still visit today. If you love history, this blog post highlighting some of them is for you. (Future blog posts will feature historic sites in Washington and Virginia, the other two "stages" for the dramas in Wedded to War.) 1) Broadway Since the book begins on Broadway, let's start there on our virtual tour, too. Broadway 1860 Today, Broadway looks nothing like the above photo, but it did have a few things in common: dirt, noise and crowds. The avenue throbbed with life, like an artery coursing down the island of Manhattan. Ten days into the war, recruiting offices for the Union army had already cropped up along the avenue, their entrances clogged with eager young men. Between Canal Street and Houston, the street teemed with gentlemen in spats and ladies in silks, their musk colognes and lavender perfumes cloying on the warm breeze. The white marble facade of St. Nicholas Hotel between Broome and Spring Streets dominated the west side of Broadway. In front of The Marble Palace facing Canal Street, porters in their brass-buttoned, blue uniforms opened carriage doors and escorted their elite customers inside, where they would no doubt spend staggering sums on the latest Parisian fashions. ~Wedded to War Five Points A few blocks south and east of all this opulence was the world's most notorious slum--Five Points. (See a map of the area here.) The street names have changed in the last 150 years, and there is no discernible sign of the former poverty that marked this area. I don't really recommend making a special trip to see it. The illustration at right was made in the 1850s, and the one below, which was in Frank Leslie's Illustrate Newspaper, was published after the Civil War. Both are very similar to what the characters in Wedded to War saw and experienced. If Broadway was Manhattan's artery, Five Points was its abscess: swollen with people, infected with pestilence, inflamed with vice and crime. Groggeries, brothels, and dance halls put private sin on public display. Although the neighborhood seemed fairly self-contained, more fortunate New Yorkers were terrified of Five Points erupting, spreading its contagion to the rest of them. This was where the Waverly sisters got off. ~Wedded to War 2) St. Patrick's Old Cathedral When we first meet the character Ruby O'Flannery, she is outside St. Patrick's Cathedral on Mott Street, searching the Irish 69th Regiment for a glimpse of her husband Matthew. Here is what that scene may have looked like, below. We also see Ruby revisit the cathedral later in the novel, but stay outside the fence for reasons I will not divulge here. :) Visitors to New York City can still visit this cathedral, which is now referred to as Old St. Patrick's, since there is a more recently constructed cathedral by the same name. This is what it looks like today (below). St. Patrick's Old Cathedral After Ruby's visit to the cathedral, she returns to her tenement in the 14th Ward. If you're interested in tenement living, do check out the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. It chronicles the lives of residents over several generations, beginning in 1863, and looks fascinating! If I get back to the city, I will definitely go there myself! Directions to the Tenement Museum. Tenement Museum 3) Bellevue Hospital He offered her a cup of lemonade as if seeing each other again were the most natural thing in the world. As if a decade of silence between them made no difference whatsoever. "I'm just in town for some lectures on anesthesia at Bellevue Hospital this week. Two of the other doctors at Bellevue were invited to attend the ball this evening but one of them had to bow out when a patient began bleeding after surgery. . ." ~Wedded to War Bellevue Hospital was a mere mention in the early part of Wedded to War, but without that lecture Dr. Caleb Lansing attended there, he and Charlotte would never have met at that ball just after the start of the Civil War. The hospital itself is America's oldest public hospital, and a magnificent piece of architecture. Take a look at what Dr. Lansing would have seen: In order to serve more patients, the building was expanded in 2005, but the original facade of the old Administration Building wasn't torn down. Instead, it is preserved in a glass atrium. For better photos, including some which showcase the hospital's impressive Christmas decorating, I highly recommend that you visit this blog post, from a New York movie location scout. He also tells us that inside the main entrance there is a neat exhibit on the hospital, which dates back to the 1700s, and a pamphlet you can take with you. (If you go, will you grab an extra one and mail it to me? Please?) Find maps, parking info and directions here. 4) Cooper Union Charlotte sat on the edge of her chair at the association's Cooper Union headquarters, spine straight and feet flat on the floor, as if perfect posture even now might have a favorable bearing on her fate. ~Wedded to War Cooper Union was the headquarters of the Women's Central Association of Relief, which grew into the U.S. Sanitary Commission, so this is where we find Charlotte Waverly in the excerpt above, waiting her turn to be examined by the medical committee about her suitability to become a nurse. Cooper Union, the tall building on the left in the illustration below, is an extremely historic building. To read more about its significance, visit this Web page. The illustration below depicts the first meeting of the Women's Central Association of Relief inside Cooper Union. More than 4000 of New York City's women gathered here to organize volunteer efforts to aid the Union army. Out of this meeting, Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell gained support for her idea to train women nurses--a revolutionary idea at the time. What an incredible moment in history! I would have loved to have been there. By the way, Dr. Blackwell's New York Infirmary for Indigent Women and Children is now New York Downtown Hospital. Not really worth a sightseeing visit, but if you're interested in the history, check out this bio on Dr. Blackwell, who plays a major role in my novel. But back to Cooper Union. Below you'll see it as it stands today. Find a map to this building here. 5) Central Park Central Park, the first public landscaped park in America, is important in Wedded to War. Completed in the 1850s, it's Charlotte Waverly's favorite spot in New York City. Irish immigrant Ruby O'Flannery has a different attitude toward the park since she and her family were evicted from their neighborhood (Seneca Village), a community of African American and immigrant citizens, so the land could be appropriated for Central Park. Landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted became the executive secretary of the U.S. Sanitary Commission for the first two years of the Civil War, proving his administrative genius and saving thousands of lives. The historical figure Olmsted plays a major role in Wedded to War. Click the image below to see Olmsted's map of Central Park much larger. (Then click that image again to zoom in even further, if you like.) Present Day Central Park The image at left shows Central Park today. Visit the Web site of Central Park, which has maps, events, and other information. They also have a page to show you the Site of Seneca Village. This concludes the Wedded to War Historic Sites of New York City tour! If I find more, I'll add them. But my next project will be the Wedded to War Historic Sites of Washington! Wondering what Wedded to War is all about? Click here for an overview and book trailer.

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