Friday afternoon came the work. Friday evening came the fun. It was a perfect summer evening weather-wise, the heat has finally broke. George & I, along with Kevin and family friend Katie decided to take a ride, and we drove the back roads to our destination - Rosby's Rock.
This rock is huge! I've included an article at the end of this post that tells the official story of the rock. What it doesn't tell is why Rosby's is spelled wrong. It should only have one B, instead of two. As the story goes - the worker's celebrated a little too much when they joined the track of the B&O railroad together. In their drunken state, they spelled Rosby's wrong, adding an extra B. On Saturday, we picked up Jessica at her mother-in-law's house. She & Brian came home to help his mom get her house ready to sell, since she is in the process of buying a new home. Jessica, Katie & I went to a baby shower for our niece, then in the evening we, along with George & Kevin decided it was time to play on the bikes again. Unfortunately, my camera batteries died, but suffice it to say, it's hard to beat a cool summer evening in the country!
After church today, and a quick picnic, we attended a somewhat surprise 25th wedding anniversary party for George's sister and her husband. All in all, a very enjoyable weekend!
More about Rosby's Rock - taken from http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/127
Rosbys Rock is located in Marshall County about seven miles southeast of Moundsville on Big Grave Creek Road. It marks the spot near where on Christmas Eve, 1852, the last spike was driven to complete the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad from Baltimore to the Ohio River, the first rail line linking the Atlantic coast to the Ohio Valley.
Although there was no golden spike, there was a great celebration a few weeks later in Wheeling to commemorate the completion of the railroad and the arrival of the first train. To mark the spot where the final spike was driven the following words were carved upon the rock: Rosbbys [sic] Rock Track Closed Christmas Eve 1852. The stone itself is a huge sandstone rock of 900 cubic yards, about 64 feet long and 20 feet thick.
The nearby village, also called Rosbys Rock, greatly expanded with the advent of the railroad. Eight passenger and eight to 12 freight trains passed through every day at the height of service. The last passenger train made its final run through Rosbys Rock on October 26, 1957. After the final freight runs in 1972–73, the line was abandoned and removal of the tracks and bridges began in 1974.
With the railroad gone, Rosbys Rock returned to being a small town with only one general store and a few homes. Now even the store is gone. But the village and its great rock remain, reminders of a busier time.
Although there was no golden spike, there was a great celebration a few weeks later in Wheeling to commemorate the completion of the railroad and the arrival of the first train. To mark the spot where the final spike was driven the following words were carved upon the rock: Rosbbys [sic] Rock Track Closed Christmas Eve 1852. The stone itself is a huge sandstone rock of 900 cubic yards, about 64 feet long and 20 feet thick.
The nearby village, also called Rosbys Rock, greatly expanded with the advent of the railroad. Eight passenger and eight to 12 freight trains passed through every day at the height of service. The last passenger train made its final run through Rosbys Rock on October 26, 1957. After the final freight runs in 1972–73, the line was abandoned and removal of the tracks and bridges began in 1974.
With the railroad gone, Rosbys Rock returned to being a small town with only one general store and a few homes. Now even the store is gone. But the village and its great rock remain, reminders of a busier time.
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