Richard George

It was a beautiful fall day and we got to walk along the river to the fort. It starts in the tourist center where there is a multimedia presentation that tells how the fort was the inspiration for the Star Spangled Banner. But there is much more to this fort than that. You will see artifacts, learn about the War of 1812 and how that was a pivotal moment in the history of the US (hint: we weren't always a super power). Layer on top of that the recruiting center for two world wars, an 1100 bed hospital that pioneered plastic surgery for the returning soldiers, statues, and expert guides and you are in for a wonderful experience. There are some really big cannons there too, and examples of different types of shells designed to be effective against people, rigging, or infrastructure.
Now if all you are interested in is people you have a great variety of those too. I could identify at least 12 different languages being spoken from all different parts of the world. The curators are very knowledgeable and it runs deep. Don't hesitate to ask lots of questions to gain some great insights into how things truly were (not exactly like I was taught in third grade).

The bus ride from the Henry Ford Museum was interesting to see how the people live. Entering the 1100 acre complex you get an idea of the massive capital investment to make a Ford F150 every 53 seconds when the line is running. You pull up to a visitor complex that cost over $4 million to build. You will see a laser show, technical marvels, cut away preproduction models, ecological facts, history and lots of good hardworking people. We were told to allow an hour and a half. 4 hours later we left. Plenty to see, take your time and learn, realize the viewpoints. Some of the truths are not pretty but they are talked about (the incident on the bridge) but they do a good job. Very clean, polite and informative people, and an interesting place to visit.

Lots of artifacts from Early Bloomington. We attended a concert in there and it was cozy with excellent sound. You can get close to the displays. It didn't have a funky smell either!