Absolon Kent

WASHINGTON — It’s nice when you don’t have to travel far to discover a world of history, culture, and stories. Today, we started at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library for the District Vibes: American Pride exhibition, which offered a powerful look at how the people of D.C. have helped shape American culture—from neighborhoods and creativity to music, sports, food, and social change.

Then, we stopped at a true D.C. institution, Ben’s Chili Bowl for lunch. The final stops of the day were a visit to the African American Civil War Memorial and a sneak preview of the recently renovated African American Civil War Museum. The museum’s From Slavery to the White House: Tracing Michelle Obama’s Ancestry exhibition and The Glorious March to Victory: Civil War to Civil Rights were both informative and inspiring.

#TodaysAdventure #MyDMV #GetOutside #TeamKent #KENTCANDO #FamilyTime #AmericasNationalParks #WashingtonDC #BlackHistory #AmericanHistory

CABIN JOHN, Md. — There is nothing better than being outside with people that your love. It was a wonderful day visiting the Great Falls Tavern and Great Falls (Chesapeake & Ohio National Historical Park), the Clara Barton National Historic Site, and Glen Echo Park. It was a good day of mild hiking and lunch outside. #MothersDay #FamilyTime #TeamKent #KENTCANDO #GetOutside #MyDMV #AmericasNationalParks

WASHINGTON — Views of the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial at Night along the National Mall.

#MyDMV #TodaysAdventure #AmericasNationalParks #GetOutside #OutdoorAdventures #FamilyTime #TeamKent #KENTCANDO

MANASSAS, Va. — The Manassas National Battlefield Park features several sites that chronicle the events and actions of the Civil War in and around the Manassas area.

Portici was the plantation house of Francis Lewis and served as the Confederate headquarters during the First Battle of Manassas. The surrounding grounds were the site of the 1861-1862 winter encampment for a brigade of Confederate troops. On Aug. 30, 1862, during the Second Battle of Manassas, Union cavalry stopped the Confederate cavalry as they sought to cut off the Union army's line of retreat.

Located on "Hazel Plain," the two-and-a-half-story frame farmhouse of Benjamin Chinn and his family overlooked the Warrenton Turnpike and Young's Branch. During both battles of Manassas, the plantation was engulfed by war and witnessed some of the heaviest fighting.

In 1860, the crossroads hamlet of Sudley Springs consisted of fewer than a dozen households but featured a prosperous mill, a prominent church, and a hotel for visitors attracted to the mineral waters of a nearby spring. During the Second Battle of Manassas, on Aug. 29, 1862, Federal troops repeatedly attacked Stonewall Jackson's left flank in this area, and only darkness prevented a fatal collapse of the Confederates. Today, only the Sudley Church remains as a testament to times past.

: absolonkent.net/photogallery/index.php?/category/17