Good morning from Porte Crayon’s hometown of Martinsburg, where highs will be in the 70s beneath blue skies today.
Pretty nice, right?
Unfortunately, I won’t be enjoying the weather. I’m in Washington, DC - keeping an eye on Capitol Hill and likely leading newscasts this morning with the prospect of a government shutdown. Barring a last minute funding deal by tonight’s midnight deadline, the federal government seems likely to start closing shop tomorrow. Here’s a link from my NPR colleagues as to how a shutdown is likely to play out.
Did you remember Porte Crayon’s birthday earlier this week?
Porte was born David Hunter Strother on September 26th, 1816 here in Martinsburg to Colonel John Strother and his wife Elizabeth Pendleton Hunter. He went on to become the famous writer, illustrator, soldier and diplomat that we all admire here at the PCAS.
I intended to mark Porte’s birthday with a longer post but I don’t have the energy - worn down because I stood in line at Walgreens this week to get my Covid-19 booster and the annual flu shot.
Have you done that yet?
Also, have you signed up for a set of four, free at-home test kits? You can do that through this USPS website.
Anyway, since those shots brought on a bout of lethargy, I’ll leave you this week with my favorite Porte Crayon illustration. It’s included in “The Mountains,” Porte’s last significant work to appear in the pages of Harper’s New Monthly Magazine.
Porte was known for his drawings of iconic places such as Seneca Rocks and Blackwater Falls. This sketch, though? I have no idea where it might be. I suspect it was simply inspired by the story he was writing.
In any case, I think the state should use it to entice tourists to visit West Virginia. I also think it’d make a great tattoo, if you’re into body art. In fact, I’m threatening to get it permanently inked to my forearm.
Can you see it?
With the hiker near the crook of the elbow?
Eh .. my wife can’t either.
Stay healthy and stay hydrated.
The illustration looks to me like Chimney Rocks in Grant County. I don't think that Porte invented any of his illustrations; they seem to be always based on actual observation. What does the caption say? (I can't read it due to low resolution)