PHOEBUS, VIRGINIA (Cheri)

We didn't get to spend much time in Phoebus, which is now a part of Hampton, and will definitely be going back to see more.

The commercial portion of Phoebus seems to be primarily a hipster hangout now, but the location has a substantial and important history.  Just a little bit from Wikipedia:

"During the American Civil War, numerous slaves escaped to Fort Monroe and Norfolk, which was occupied by Union forces from 1861. The US Army defined them as contraband, to prevent their being returned to slaveholders. They established facilities for the newly free slaves at the Fort Monroe Contraband Camp, located outside the fort. Officials contacted a respected local teacher, Mary S. Peake, and asked her to teach the freedmen and their children. She began by gathering people outside in Phoebus, under a large oak tree. This is where the Emancipation Proclamation was read to numerous citizens in 1863, and it became called the Emancipation Oak. The American Missionary Association (AMA), whose leaders included both black and white ministers, hired her to teach and arranged for her to use the Brown Cottage. This is considered the historic start of Hampton University, a historically black college (HBCU) which the AMA founded during the war."

Our favorite visit in Phoebus was the Way We Were Bookshop.  I have never seen so many books supporting the ceiling of a store . . . OMG!  Fascinating subject matter, great prices, drama provided by the moment-to-moment question of whether the piles would crash to the floor.

We texted this picture to Mark's dad - the aircraft mechanic - knowing that he would have liked to peruse this series.

And finally, one of the cooler drain covers that I have seen: