Over the last couple of years I have visited Fort Donelson National Battlefield three times. It is my closest Civil War National Park Service site, and if I drive straight through I can be at the park in about four and a half hours. Frustratingly close, yet frustratingly too far. Close as I can do a weekend there and spend a decent amount of time in the area and not in the car. Far due to the fact that I cannot do more "for" the park. More in this case could mean volunteering to help with trail maintenance, or greet guests at the visitor center, or even lead tours.
After my first trip to the area I did a bit more digging and had come across both a round table and a friends group. Again, being so far away would keep me from being active in either organization, but I thought I could at least join both groups and be supportive financially. However, since neither group offered online memberships, and I never got around to mailing in my membership. After my second trip to the area I was once again stoked to get involved, only to find that the friends group seems to have disappeared, and the round table was in demise. I reached out to some contacts I came across who were listed as being involved but had little success in terms of response. After my third trip to the area last year, doing research for my War Department tablets book, I was able to reach a person who had been involved with the friends group, but she had stated that there simply wasn't time for her to be involved in such an organization any longer and that the group was kaput. I find the discontinuance of either of these groups to be a shame, as I find the Fort Henry and Donelson Campaign to be a fascinating story. I certainly understand that as folks do not have time or the inclination to drive such organizations that the result would be less than positive as their heart or the amount of time they can invest is not sufficient enough to drive a favorable experience for members. But c'mon, it is Fort Donelson! It is a national battlefield! Certainly there has to be enough interest within an hour or two to get some sort of support group going to help the park, yes? Clarksville isn't that far, and has a decent population. Throw in Murray, Paris, and other small cities and you gotta have something, right?
Okay, let's use Facebook to find these people. There are, within a fifty mile radius of Fort Donelson, 110,000 Facebook users who have taken the time to list American Civil War as an interest on their profile. Fifty miles is within an hour or so. Okay, let's narrow that focus a bit. Within 25 miles there are 33,000 Facebook users with American Civil War as an interest, within a half hour or so of the park. What? 33K people (at least) within a thirty minute drive and we can't get a sustained friends group at Fort Donelson?
Okay, I am simply too far away to jumpstart either of these now defunct organizations. Leadership has to have some local representation, and living over four hours away precludes me from being involved in any sort of leadership capacity. However, I do have another idea that might help increase awareness, study, and visitation to the area, which in turn might start driving interest in a friends group or Civil War round table. Stay tuned for Part II about this far fetched idea.
After my first trip to the area I did a bit more digging and had come across both a round table and a friends group. Again, being so far away would keep me from being active in either organization, but I thought I could at least join both groups and be supportive financially. However, since neither group offered online memberships, and I never got around to mailing in my membership. After my second trip to the area I was once again stoked to get involved, only to find that the friends group seems to have disappeared, and the round table was in demise. I reached out to some contacts I came across who were listed as being involved but had little success in terms of response. After my third trip to the area last year, doing research for my War Department tablets book, I was able to reach a person who had been involved with the friends group, but she had stated that there simply wasn't time for her to be involved in such an organization any longer and that the group was kaput. I find the discontinuance of either of these groups to be a shame, as I find the Fort Henry and Donelson Campaign to be a fascinating story. I certainly understand that as folks do not have time or the inclination to drive such organizations that the result would be less than positive as their heart or the amount of time they can invest is not sufficient enough to drive a favorable experience for members. But c'mon, it is Fort Donelson! It is a national battlefield! Certainly there has to be enough interest within an hour or two to get some sort of support group going to help the park, yes? Clarksville isn't that far, and has a decent population. Throw in Murray, Paris, and other small cities and you gotta have something, right?
Okay, let's use Facebook to find these people. There are, within a fifty mile radius of Fort Donelson, 110,000 Facebook users who have taken the time to list American Civil War as an interest on their profile. Fifty miles is within an hour or so. Okay, let's narrow that focus a bit. Within 25 miles there are 33,000 Facebook users with American Civil War as an interest, within a half hour or so of the park. What? 33K people (at least) within a thirty minute drive and we can't get a sustained friends group at Fort Donelson?
Okay, I am simply too far away to jumpstart either of these now defunct organizations. Leadership has to have some local representation, and living over four hours away precludes me from being involved in any sort of leadership capacity. However, I do have another idea that might help increase awareness, study, and visitation to the area, which in turn might start driving interest in a friends group or Civil War round table. Stay tuned for Part II about this far fetched idea.
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