Media Wants to Know! Where in the World Is Sarah Palin Going? Clues Abound in Historical New England

The Springfield, MA Armory, commissioned by George Washington, image: NPS.gov


Politicoappears to be confused as to where Sarah Palin is going – headline: “Sarah Palin's Bus Tour Prompts Confusion on Day 2”, speaks to the fact that the media and local GOP leaders from the Mid-Atlantic to New England have no clue as to where she might be stopping. It is seen as a political tour, and it just may be, however, it also may be exactly what is posted on Sarahpac.com/bus_tour:

This Sunday, May 29th, Governor Palin and the SarahPAC team will begin a trip through our nation's rich historical sites, starting from Washington, DC and going up through New England. The "One Nation Tour" is part of our new campaign to educate and energize Americans about our nation's founding principles, in order to promote the Fundamental Restoration of America.

Apparently the media is trying to play catch-up as they are “not invited” (not surprising), and local GOP officials are in a tizzy, as they are also not being told when and/or if Palin intends to stop by (also, not surprisingly) – If one takes this at face value, this is an “educational tour” – allowing those following Palin to possibly learn a bit more about the historical value of the east coast and how it
played into the founding of our nation. In addition, if one wanted to “speculate”, the obvious political gain would be to meet actual people who may be independents, Democrats or Republican, Libertarian or Green Party and get their take on what’s happening in the U.S. today, without the push of press and or the local GOP pushing for photo-ops – the added bonus is shutting down the media that is so fond of her – even those that really are: see Politico’s article and reference to Fox News.


Therefore, a history primer of New England just may be in order: Where to start? There is so much of historical significance to the founding of our nation that the Palin Tour may bypass the obvious, for those off-the-beaten track places that played such a significant part in the nation’s foundations. As Palin is inclined to visit certain places that are tied to military history, there are several significant standing landmarks in New England where she may appear in the following days – a list of significant Forts is listed here Coast Defense Forts of New England, a good percentage of these forts can be found in Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine.

If one is looking to go back a bit further, there are the Indian Wars, fought with the French, and the basis for the famous tax on tea, which was placed on the colonies in order to pay for English assistance in defense of the colonies. Roadside plaques dot the highways and roads of New England, noting which battle was fought, from the wars pre-Revolutionary to those during the Revolution.

There is the beginning of the industrial revolution, the Connecticut River Valley home to so many industries that one would not associate with the area, but which are “firsts” in the nation. Springfield was home to many firsts in the Automobile industry visit: Springfield museums.org for more information. The Springfield, MA Armory the first such in the nation and the last. There is of course, much to see in Boston, as well as every town and hamlet that dots the landscape between the Connecticut Border and the Canadian Border which spans the three states of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. (Obvious Plug By this Blog for Western Massachusetts – while here, there is the National Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, the home of one Dr. Seuss (Theodore Geisel) and of course, the usual road signs that dot the byways between Springfield and Greenfield up through the Mohawk Trail into Vermont.)

What would be priceless, would be for Palin to announce her intent to run, at an obscure Fort in the State of Maine or the State of New Hampshire (both of which have taken a decided turn to the right in 2010), to a crowd of locals and the local news organizations, completely ignoring the grandiose for the people. The likelihood of Palin doing something that the media would view as “out of character” (given their consistent harping on her need for “attention” – read between the lines of each and every blog post and article), is fairly high. Additionally, there are some historical sites in a New Hamsphire village called Wolfeboro, perhaps she plans on ending her tour there!

However, again, it may just be that she is doing exactly what she says she is doing – promoting the historical value of our nation and at the same time promotes the fundamental restoration of the same. As a bonus to the local economies, those who follow Sarah Palin may just stop in and visit these sites and cities, bringing much needed economic boosts to the local economy in the coming months.