Exploring Historical Stuff - Like I Do

I often find myself in complete awe of other blogs - especially Studies in Starrett by Ray Betzner. It focuses exclusively on one person - Charles Vincent Emerson Starrett - and his incredible body of work. (Check it out here.) What amazes me is that, even with such a limited focus, Ray never seems to run out of fresh topics to talk about, and he posts several times a month! I struggle with one post a month (though I am working on changing that number). The passion for his subject is evident, and his knowledge of it is probably unsurpassed on this planet or any other. On a selfish note, I am thrilled to share the same "first" name of Vincent with Mr. Starrett, and wonder how many times I pop into Ray's head whenever he reads it. Anyway, on with the show.

Ray has always been one of my biggest cheerleaders in this fringe part of the Sherlockian hobby, and he continues to inspire me with each new blog post. He told me once when I was discussing giving up my blog here and leaving the Sherlockian life that I shouldn't quit, and that (I'm paraphrasing here), "You still have work to do." I use this as my rallying cry, my Knute Rockne speech, my carnival barker's call. It reminds me that I need to hang in there until I can't anymore. And then to keep going anyway. But, I didn't come here to talk only about Ray. He's just the opening act this month. I needed a sex symbol to get the crowd primed, and Ray unknowingly stepped into that spotlight. No, I'm here to talk about historical mysteries.

That's my buddy Jimmanee and me at a recent lecture at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis about The Underground Railroad. (That's the speaker's lower 3/4 in the background.) Jimmanee is fascinated by local history, and I am held spellbound by anything with a historical mystery attached to it. We've been hitting the road a lot here lately, and there's even more trips a-coming. It's amazing what can be found from a historical standpoint right in your own proverbial backyard, and we will likely try and look at all of it. We've driven a bunch of miles, talked a lot about Quakers, and eaten some good (and some terrible) food along the way. We've visited some pretty cool sites, though she's a bit more daring in the exploration realm once out of the car. The great thing is there's still so much more to find.

I wouldn't necessarily call the chronology work we outliers do a historical mystery, but it does qualify as a mystery in the sense that it can't be figured out. I know dozens and dozens of folks believe they have nailed it down, but we all get reminded that they may be wrong somewhere every time another timeline is studied. There's always room for improvement or adjustment, and the study of the past will always be here to help. You know I am a big advocate for tying Holmes and Watson and The Canon together using historical references and events, but some chronologists simply use the cases and their dates against each other to establish a working order for them. I like stepping outside of that. Yes, it can be done the other way, but it can't be done completely the other way. Sometimes you still have look elsewhere. The result of this thinking is me finally going through all of those books about the Victorian era that I have and seeing what I can see. (I almost never crack open any of my Holmes books, and go directly for firsthand knowledge material on the time period.)

Once again, I am aware that I'm not fulfilling my chronological post promise to you. I am working on it, though. I will start doing good, solid chronology posts very soon - just like the old days. I swear. The books and materials I have to help me in this endeavor will be a large part of my treasure finding, but I'm hoping that something Jimmanee and I come across in our travels will be able to be tied to Our Heroes in some way, too. I just need a little more time to get myself in that vein. I need time to find some good stuff to report. I need to heed Ray's words about still having work to do. And that's what I'm going to attempt. I know it's been a bumpy ride, but so far not many of you have fallen off the cart. You're still with me, and that means so very much. I look forward to our time together again next month, and as always...thanks for reading.