The Mountaintop Memorial You’ve Never Heard Of—And the Shocking Story It Tells
The remote monument honors the most decorated soldier in American history
Past Lane Pursuits is a newsletter of Past Lane Travel, a leading history and travel blog.
Happy September! Are you wondering where the summer went too? I love Autumn in Gettysburg, with less humidity and crisp cool nights, but I don’t look forward to the winter months!
Last Week’s Quiz Answer: Congratulations to those who correctly answered that the Battle of Cowpens took place in South Carolina. It is a great battlefield to visit and learn about the commander Daniel Morgan, who is an American hero that does not get much attention.
Thanks for taking part in the history quiz and keep reading to take part in this week’s poll!
What I’m Working On
I visited Roanoke, VA last week and stayed at the beautiful Hotel Roanoke, so I’m writing a review on this historic hotel in the mountains for a future edition of Past Lane Pursuits.
Audie Murphy Monument
Since I was traveling to Roanoke for a conference, I decided to take a little detour and visit the mountaintop monument that honors World War II hero Audie Murphy.
Audie Murphy was the most highly decorated soldier in American history, receiving every military combat award for valor from the U.S. Army.
Some may know Audie as an actor, but his real legacy is his heroism in battle.
Murphy received the Medal of Honor for valor that he demonstrated at age 19 for single-handedly holding off a company of German soldiers for an hour, before leading a successful counterattack while wounded.
His life was not an easy one. Born into a large family of sharecroppers in Hunt County, Texas, Audie left school in fifth grade to pick cotton and find other work to help support his family after being abandoned by his father. His mother died when he was 16.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Murphy's older sister helped him to falsify documentation about his birthdate in order to meet the minimum age for enlisting in the military.
(Read more about Audie Murphy’s military record)
After the war, Murphy embarked on a 21-year acting career, playing himself in the 1955 autobiographical film To Hell and Back, but most of his roles were in Westerns.
Because Murphy had what would today be described as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), then known as "battle fatigue,” he slept with a loaded handgun under his pillow.
In his last few years, Audie was plagued by money problems but he refused offers to appear in alcohol and cigarette commercials because he did not want to set a bad example.
Audie Murphy died in a plane crash in Virginia in 1971, shortly before his 46th birthday. The weather was rainy and foggy and the private pilot he was with had no instrument rating.
He was interred with military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
Making The Trek To The Monument
The monument is less than 30 minutes off I-81 in Roanoke. There are a number of twisty two-lane roads, and then about 3 miles of dirt roads to reach the parking area. After that, there is a hike of a little more than half a mile.
It is about .5 miles off the Appalachian Trail as well. As you can see, people leave dog tags, flags, letters, flowers, coins, shells and other items to memorialize this American hero.
Historical and Travel News
👉 Did you see this? A historic town in Western Maryland is paying people $20,000 to move there!
👉 Read about the most endangered historical sites in the United States.
This Week’s Old-Fashioned Cleaning Tip
Did you know you can revive splotchy stainless steel, like those patches of burned oil on your once-shiny pans?
Here’s how! Add two tablespoons of baking soda and a few drops of water to the pan, making a paste. Then ball up a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil and rub it over the surface. The baking soda absorbs the yuck and triggers a chemical reaction that transfers the markings from the pan to the foil.
This Week’s Trivia Quiz
Good Luck!
Answer in next week’s newsletter.