#76 Say Neigh. Our Neighbors go Away
In our suburban neighborhood, folks come and go with transfers and retirements. People seek out the tree-lined streets and the dearth of traffic. Around the corner from my house, in the area of Virginia called Mount Vernon, there is a back entrance to Fort Hunt Park. As part of the National Park Service, that place has quite a unique history in a location along the George Washington Memorial Parkway. From the National Park service website:
“Originally part of George Washington's Mount Vernon estate, the land that is Fort Hunt Park has undergone several transformations. Batteries at Fort Hunt defended the Potomac River during the Spanish American War; the Civilian Conservation Corps operated a camp there during the Great Depression; and soldiers at Fort Hunt interrogated prisoners, trained pilots in escape and evasion, and combed German documents for intelligence during World War II.”
Today, nearby residents use the park for walking, bike-riding, picnicking and outdoor concerts. I regularly loaded the stroller up with my infant twins to circle on the park’s 1.25 mile paved road. We used the playground facilities and I taught my kids to ride their bikes there. Later, I used the large parking lots to give my kids their first driving lessons. We used the park as a refuge from home-isolation during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020. Since the park was officially “closed” no car traffic was allowed inside. The local residents could enjoy their visits on foot.
Fort Hunt Park by Joan Naidorf
A favorite memory was walking the toddler twins over to the stable on the back side of the park, where several horses from the park police service were stabled. From the National Park service website, “The United States Park Police Horse Mounted Patrol is one of the oldest established police equestrian units in the United States. It was established in 1934 with one horse that was rented from a local stable.” Since I moved to the neighborhood in 1990, two or more horses were stabled right at Fort Hunt Park.
Photo by Joan Naidorf
A favorite outing for our family and hundreds of others in the area, were to go have a visit with the horses. I would park the kids’ stroller just below the open window of the stable and announce, “Leah and Benny are here!” Like clockwork, that big beautiful chest nut head would poke out of the window to the kids’ delight. At some times of the day, the horses would be out in the stable to get some exercise and to have a munch on the sparse grass.
Photo by Joan Naidorf
Although my kids are grown now, I enjoy seeing other families bring their kids up to visit with the horses. Some even snuck them some treats. While I had occasion recently to babysit my three-year-old niece, I walked her over to visit with the stately beasts. There was a brown one and a white one who seemed to enjoy each other’s company. This generation of kids was just as delighted as the last. Sadly, there has come the end of an era.
The Neighbors at Fort Hunt Park photo by Joan Naidorf
On a recent walk I spied this sign and no sightings of our beautiful neighbors. “The horses have been moved to Washington where a new barn is being built for the whole herd of law enforcement horses.”
Photo by Joan Naidorf
Maybe it was consolidation or efficiency or lack of need in our area. I suppose making the local children happy is not a good enough justification for the expense to care for the horses and to maintain a separate stable. What a pity. We now have an empty and overgrown stable and yard. A lot of folks are going to miss those quiet and stately neighbors. I am very sad to see them go.
