What seems like a normal souvenir place in the front, hides an antique car museum in the back.  I'm not a big car guy, but there was some really cool stuff here.  And, any donations made to the museum go to a local veterans association, so it's totally worth the trip. 

While in the area, we took a quick side trip to the former home of poet Robert Frost.  A portion of the house is open to the public as a small museum, and it's run by a foundation dedicated to the advancement of poetry.  The Frost Place has awarded a fellowship each summer to an emerging American poet, including a cash stipend and the opportunity to live and write in the house for several months. 

A nice little walk through the woods, with samples of Frost's poetry along the way. 

With a view like this from the front porch, how cold Frost not have been inspired to write?

Alexa and I have always loved checking out old graveyards.  They are great places to be surrounded by history, and you can learn a lot from the silent stones.  We've passed the Maple Street Cemetery in Patterson more times than we can count, but we've never stopped in until today.  There are many old graves here, dating back to the Revolutionary War.  In particular there is the grave of Sybil Ludington.  When Sybil was 16 years old, she was Putnam County's very own Paul Revere, making a 40 mile ride alone at night to warn people in the surrounding towns about an invasion by British troops.  You can read more about her story here.  

On of the countless Historical Site Markers you can find in Putnam.

Notice the variation in the spelling of Sybil's name.
Both are correct, and you have to remember that spelling
wasn't very standardized back then. 

The grave of Henry Ludington, Sybil's father, who was a decorated Revolutionary War veteran in his own right.

Beautiful day....for a cemetery????

I've seen a ton of old stones with carvings of angels on them, but I don't remember ever seeing so many Weeping Willows as I did here.  It seems the willow is a symbol of resurrection and eternal life.  You can read more about it here.

Weeping Willow