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June 6, 2024 Editor, The News-Gazette: History. It’s not about the past. It’s about the present and how we got to where we are today. History contains the clues for a better tomorrow. There’s no need to try to draw a line between yesterday and today. Life is a continuum. That’s history.
There is our nation’s history. That’s mainly how we teach the subject in our schools, where we learn names and dates. But did we learn anything else? I believe we did. We learned how a wilderness became a great land.
And what about local history? We happily live in the Rockbridge area because of the progress made by those who came before us. Eighteen-wheelers no longer clog U.S. 11 and Lexington’s Main Street. So we built an interstate highway. Sure, I-81 is a mess at times. But would you like to go back before the interstates? Progress does not come smoothly.
We built a canal along the North River. Some say the railroads made all that hard work wasted. Not true. Nothing is ever wasted in the pursuit of progress. As for electricity, check out all our rural homes which where in the dark not that long ago. What’s next? None of us knows.
However, there is something we do know: History is made by dreamers. There were the Scots who bought property in another Glasgow, sight unseen. Their dreams were enough. And up the river, a grand hotel was built on a hilltop overlooking another town laid out in squares for an orderly life. The place never opened up to any guests, unless you wish to count the horses. Now it houses students learning and practicing their faith.
And what do local historians, like Reed Belden, like to do? Or what David Hopkins did. He found a place that was lost. Pick a spot on the map and find out what once happened there. And ask those soon to move from this paradise to a more permanent one. Ask about their roots. Dig and you will find happiness. Maybe that’s why we are here. Those who came before thought so. DAVID REYNOLDS Rockbridge County
