Day 130, 131, & 132 of 166 Days of RV Adventures in the Summer of 2026

On day 130, Sunday September 13th, Becky and I walked the gravel roads of the KOA. 

The fog was a bit thick, so the guys decided to delay our departure. We departed the Mt Gilead KOA around 10am. 

The village of Mount Gilead, known as Whetstone when it was established, was once ”unofficially” referred to as Youngstown in reference to its founder, Jacob Young. White settlers moved into the area in 1817. In 1824, twenty-four years before Morrow County was created, Young laid out 80 lots on a hilly spot, in an area that was once forest and hunting area for the Shawnee tribe, in the southeast portion of what was then Marion County. The platting of the village included two public squares. One square is known as the “south square” and is lesser known than the “north square” which now contains the Victory Shaft monument in the middle. Being part of Marion County at the time, and the fact that there was already a settlement called Whetstone in Marion County, there was confusion as more pioneers arrived. To solve the problem, a measure was proposed to change the name of the town. Residents were asked to vote between the names Warsaw and Mount Gilead. Mount Gilead was chosen by a significant margin and the village was incorporated by the state legislature several years later in 1839.

When you approach the intersection of Central Avenue and Lake Street, it is difficult to miss the mural!  The mural is on the side of the Las Miches Marisqueras building. Cozy Clark, 25, a Delaware native, designed and painted the mural at the request of Paul Rockwell, the owner of the building. Paul wanted to do something special for this location. The two of them went through a couple of designs. He was the main driving force behind the vision for it. They wanted ‘Greetings from Lake Street’. Every town has one, and theirs is special. The mural showcases various sights from the street, to “capture the beauty of the east side.”

The Madison County Veterans' War Memorial is located on the lawn of the Madison County Courthouse in London, OH. It shares the courthouse grounds with other historical markers, including the Madison County World War Roll of Honor and the First White Settlers of Madison County. The site serves as a gathering place for the community to honor local service members who made the ultimate sacrifice. For example, it lists local fallen heroes such as World War II MIA soldier James H. Marrah, whose return and memorialization brought regional attention to the site on Memorial Day. The grounds also feature specific tributes, including a monument dedicated to the heroes of the Vietnam War.

The corn in Ohio is much further along than in NY. This corn looks like it is ready to chop any time. Chopping corn silage is the process of harvesting the entire corn plant—stalks, leaves, and cobs—and cutting it into small pieces to ferment into high-energy livestock feed. Harvest begins when the whole plant moisture reaches roughly 58% to 63% to ensure proper fermentation. A self-propelled forage harvester (chopper) cuts the stalks and processes the material. Rollers crack the corn kernels open to improve digestibility for cattle. Trucks and tractor-drawn forage wagons haul the chopped material from the field to the farm. Heavy tractors continuously push and pack the silage into bunker silos or piles to remove trapped oxygen.  Once filled, the pile is sealed with heavy plastic and weighted down to start the anaerobic fermentation process.

The annual Heritage Days Festival in South Charleston begins with a parade. The day evolved from earlier community events like the Pumpkin and Petunia Festivals founded by George Berkhofer and the later Gingerbread Festival. The current event was organized to capture and celebrate the rich history and pride of the village, which is notably listed on the National Register of Historic Places because much of the central town was built by a single individual, Edward Edwards. Proceeds from the festival directly support the South Charleston Ohio Heritage Commission, which helps fund local landmark preservation—including the historic 1878 Town Hall and Opera House, the DT&I train depot, and the 1825 Log House. The day long-event will include food trucks, craft vendors, a silent auction, the always popular Kiddie Tractor Pull, tours of the 1825 Log House, and live music. Activities will conclude in the evening with a Buckeye Bash, televising the Ohio State - Michigan State football game on a large outdoor screen.

The Ohio Sauerkraut Festival in historic downtown Waynesville, Ohio began in October 1970, when local retail merchants added a humble sauerkraut dinner to a planned sidewalk sale. The first year the organizers served 528 pounds of sauerkraut to roughly 1,500 visitors. Activities included an antique car parade, folk dancers, and contests for the best homemade sauerkraut and largest head of cabbage. Word of the crafts and food spread fast. Attendance climbed to 4,000 by 1971 and 10,000 by 1972, prompting the Waynesville Area Chamber of Commerce to take over management. The festival now draws between 300,000 and 400,000 visitors every year during the second full weekend of October. It features over 450 craft artisans from dozens of states. Vendors go through roughly 22,000 pounds of sauerkraut during the weekend event. While classic pork sausage and kraut remain popular, adventurous options include sauerkraut pizza, egg rolls, fudge, doughnuts, and "German sundaes" (mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and bacon bits topped with an olive)... yuck!

Lebanon, Ohio was settled by early pioneers after the American Revolution, Lebanon saw its first cabins in the 1790s. In 1802, a surveyor laid out the community with Broadway and Main Streets intersecting at the center of town. Broadway was to be six-poles wide to ensure that a six-horse stage could turn completely around in front of the tavern. The town was then divided into 100 lots of 50 rods each, with the four center lots to remain reserved for public lands. Lebanon flourished as stagecoaches rumbled through the streets bearing travelers and settlers from the East. In 1805, the first courthouse and jail were built by public subscription, and in 1807, John McLean began publishing Ohio's oldest weekly newspaper, The Western Star. 

The history of Lebanon is rich in the philanthropy and foresight of its founders and their followers. In 1855, with the arrival in Lebanon of Alfred Holbrook, came the Southwestern Normal School. Its maverick methods and texts were nationally-admired and copied. By 1917, the university that grew out of the school boasted 80,000 graduates. Upon her death in 1867, Mary Ann Klingling left $40,000 to establish a home for orphaned children. The bequest required a community match, and it was not until 1886 that the county commissioners built the Mary Haven Home for Children. In the 1900s, Lebanon received its strongest private benefactors - William Harmon and a mysterious Jedediah Tingle. William Harmon and Jedediah Tingle were later discovered by The New York Times to be one and the same person. Apparently, William Harmon used the name of his maternal great-grandfather for much of his charity correspondence. He provided much-needed funding and encouragement to a variety of community projects. In 1915, Harmon organized and endowed the Harmon Civic Trust for ongoing community-improvement projects. This trust still exists today.

Public art in Mason, Ohio includes downtown community projects like the collaborative mural on the side of the Subway building on Main Street. The Mason Mile Mural, "Building Goodwill & Better Friendships." It was designed by local elementary art teacher Jenna Hudson and painted by artist David Uy. This beautiful work of art is more than just a mural—it's a symbol of collaboration, creativity, and the incredible power of our community. A huge congratulations to talented high school interns, Ka’iulani D’Eredita from Mason High School and Bridget Ries from Kings High School, for their dedication and artistry in helping to bring the mural to life. 

We crossed into Indiana. This picture captures the welcome to Indiana sign, even though the phone focused on the RV mirror instead of the sign. Indiana is the 19th U.S. state, admitted on December 11, 1816, and is known as the Hoosier State. The State motto is "The Crossroads of America". The cardinal is the state bird, the peony is the flower, and the tulip tree is the state tree.

We arrived at Versailles State Park, our overnight stop. Versailles State Park in southeastern Indiana is Indiana's second-largest state park, with a history rooted in the Civil War and the Civilian Conservation Corps. The land that makes up the park was originally made up of various private farms. 

In 1934, the US government bought these plots of farmland to create the 1,700-acre Versailles Federal Park. In 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) arrived to build roads, barracks, paths, retaining walls, and the large Oak Grove Shelter. In 1937, Military veterans took over administering the federal area after the CCC units were reassigned. In 1943, the National Park Service transferred ownership to the State of Indiana, establishing it officially as a state park. In 1954, the 230-acre Versailles Lake was formed by building a dam across Laughery Creek.

Stay tuned for more Two Lane Adventures!