A Southern Girl's View

This Day in History | July 20, 1969. At 10:56 p.m. EDT, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon and into the history books:

“That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”

This image shows two T-38 Talon jets outside Johnson Space Center in Houston—used for astronaut training and still standing as symbols of American grit and exploration.

📍Nasa Johnson Space Center. Houston, Texas
© Sandy Adams | A Southern Girl’s View

This Day in History: July 19, 1848
The Seneca Falls Convention kicked off the women’s rights movement with bold voices and brave hearts.

62 years later, in Boston, women still marched—with banners like this one in hand—demanding what should’ve already been theirs: the right to vote.

This hand-painted banner from 1910 reminds us that progress takes time… and persistence.

📍 The Susan B Anthony Birthplace Museum

✊🏼 Here’s to the women who never backed down.

📸 Photo by Sandy Adams | asoutherngirlsview.com

📍This Day in History | July 13, 1960...

John F. Kennedy was officially nominated as the Democratic candidate for President at the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles

I photographed Kennedy's gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery, where the eternal flame marks the final resting place of one of America’s most iconic presidents.

In the background up on hill (at top of photo) stands Arlington House, once the home of Confederate General Robert E. Lee—a powerful reminder of how American history often overlaps in the same space.

📸 by me June 2016.
Arlington National Cemetery. Washington D.C.

📍This Day in History | July 12, 1861

Wild Bill Hickok faced off in his first gunfight—marking the start of a legend in the American West.

I captured this image at his final resting place, where stories of grit, gunslingers, and folklore still linger in the air. Because the road tells more than just landscapes—it tells history.

📸 Photographed on location | Wild Bill Hickok’s grave.
Deadwood, South Dakota. Circa July 2010

Finally met someone with the same weekend plans as me…

Lay in the sun.
Do nothing.
Intimidate people without trying. 🐊

Brazos Bend State Park. Needville, TX

I shot this image circa May 2015.

📍 Quincy, MA & Charlottesville, VA
🇺🇸 John Adams’ & Thomas Jefferson’s Final Resting Places

On July 4, 1826, fifty years after declaring America’s independence, two giants of our nation died on the same day: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson.

I shot both these images:
Braintree circa Aug 2002; Monticello circa June 2016.

Photo 1: Thomas Jefferson gravesite. Monticello.
Photo 2: John Adams gravesite. Braintree, MA

They were rivals, visionaries, and friends — united by their belief in freedom and a better future.

Their deaths on July 4th remind us that independence wasn’t just a moment — it was a lifelong commitment. A legacy we all inherit and must protect.

On July 3, 1776, John Adams wrote to Abigail that future generations would celebrate Independence Day with “pomp and parade… bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other.”

He believed the birth of this nation deserved fireworks —
but he also believed in education, virtue, and responsibility to future generations.

Freedom is never simple.
And democracy is never finished.

We celebrate today because of men like him — flawed, bold, and relentless in pursuit of something better.

So today, as fireworks light the sky, pause and remember the real cost of freedom — and the men who helped build it.

From my archives: Canterbury Cathedral. Canterbury, England.

I visited the site circa Dec. 1998.

Photo: Original - 35mm film; this version - scanned photo

Founded by St Augustine in 597 AD, Canterbury Cathedral is a unique place of worship, a major pilgrimage destination, a masterpiece of art and architecture, and one of the UK's most-visited historic sites.

I was five years old the first time I stepped into a military cemetery.

We were in the Philippine Islands, Dec 1973—me, my mom, my aunt, and my cousin—on a two-week trip with the Christian Children’s Fund. My mom and aunt were sponsoring two teenage girls, and we were there to spend some time with them.

The missionaries were taking us all over the islands and the American Cemetery in Manila was one of the places we wanted to visit.

I still remember how it felt walking into the cemetery.

Standing there—this little girl—surrounded by thousands of white crosses...

Every direction I looked, they lined up perfectly.�Row after row.�It was beautiful. And honestly, overwhelming.

We had a relative buried there whose name we found on the wall. One name among over 17,000.�Most died during the Battle of the Philippines or in the fight to take back the islands during WWII.

I didn’t know the history yet—but I knew it was sacred ground.

That moment never left me or the memory of what I saw that day.

The weight of sacrifice I didn’t understand then—but I felt something.

Grateful doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Today, that moment feels even louder.

Memorial Day isn’t about sales or long weekends.�It’s about remembering.�

The kind of remembering that slows you down. That reminds you sacrifice isn’t just a word—it’s someone’s son, daughter, dad, sister, brother, uncle, best friend.

To those who gave everything: we see you.
We remember you. We honor you.�
And to their families: thank you will never be enough.

---------------

The cemetery, 152 acres or 620,000 square meters in area, is located on a prominent plateau, visible at a distance from the east, south and west.

With a total of 17,206 graves, it has the largest number of graves of any cemetery for U.S. personnel killed during World War II and holds war dead from the Philippines and other allied nations.

Many of the personnel whose remains are interred or represented were killed in New Guinea, or during the 1941–42 Battle of the Philippines or the Allied recapture of the islands.

Traveling the world shows us the beauty of diversity—a lesson Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. championed.

His dream of unity and justice reminds us that no matter where we go, we’re all connected by humanity.

Let’s honor his legacy by seeing the world with open eyes and hearts.

I pulled my camera out this morning...

.
From my archives.

Walk of Fame
Lousiville, Kentucky. August 2010.

Featured