Plans are being finalized for a milestone event at Wilderness Road State Park. This year mark's the 10th anniversary of the Raid at Martin's Station, the park's annual signature event that has grown leaps and bounds since its humble beginnings.
In April of 2000, the first Raid at Martin's Station was held before a moderate crowd of spectators gathered along a split-rail fence. They watched as Capt. Ebenezer Titus and Capt. Joseph Martin commanded a small band of militia as they fought to save Martin's outpost from being burned to the ground by a scanty tribe of restless natives. That event featured less than 70 re-enactors, 12 vendors and 1 lonely cabin.
This May 7-9, 2010, more than 700 re-enactors and 40-plus vendors are expected to re-create the Raid at Martin's Station before a crowd that last year was estimated at over 3,000. Also, that 1 lonely cabin has now been joined by another small cabin, a blacksmith and gunsmith shop, a hunter's cabin, pig pen, spring house and of course the fort, which contains 6 cabins inside its palisade walls.
To honor the park, the Raid at Martin’s Station’s tenth anniversary and to those patriots who sacrificed their lives for liberty, Dann Jacobus is in the process of creating a painting of Joseph Martin’s return from the Cherokee campaign. The painting will be unveiled during the opening ceremonies of the Raid at Martin's Station.
"I started working with Dann just over a year ago to develop a painting that would depict Joseph Martin and his men returning from a campaign, worn and tired," stated park interpretive program manager Billy Heck. "This painting will pay tribute to the park staff and volunteers that have gone above and beyond the call of duty to make the park and the fort such a success. I chose Dann for this project because I think his paintings are among the best I've seen and he has shown his support for the park and Martin's Station with his previous paintings of staff and volunteers."
Jacobus received his formal fine art education in New York. After his military service years, when he served as photographer and illustrator for the Army newspaper in Okinawa, Jacobus focused his artwork towards books and magazines on hunting, fishing and the outdoors.
History has always been of major interest for Jacobus, and his art moved in that direction when he began re-enacting and participating in living history events years ago. In creating his paintings, he draws from his research and outdoor experiences and blends them into his current work. He is a member of the NMLRA, the Contemporary Longrifle Association, the Honorable Company of Horners, the Lafayette Longrifles, the NRA and various other reenacting groups. He lives in Fuquay Farina, NC.
For more information on Wilderness Road State Park, the Raid at Martin's Station or Dann Jacobus, please call 275-445-3065. 
In April of 2000, the first Raid at Martin's Station was held before a moderate crowd of spectators gathered along a split-rail fence. They watched as Capt. Ebenezer Titus and Capt. Joseph Martin commanded a small band of militia as they fought to save Martin's outpost from being burned to the ground by a scanty tribe of restless natives. That event featured less than 70 re-enactors, 12 vendors and 1 lonely cabin.This May 7-9, 2010, more than 700 re-enactors and 40-plus vendors are expected to re-create the Raid at Martin's Station before a crowd that last year was estimated at over 3,000. Also, that 1 lonely cabin has now been joined by another small cabin, a blacksmith and gunsmith shop, a hunter's cabin, pig pen, spring house and of course the fort, which contains 6 cabins inside its palisade walls.
To honor the park, the Raid at Martin’s Station’s tenth anniversary and to those patriots who sacrificed their lives for liberty, Dann Jacobus is in the process of creating a painting of Joseph Martin’s return from the Cherokee campaign. The painting will be unveiled during the opening ceremonies of the Raid at Martin's Station.
"I started working with Dann just over a year ago to develop a painting that would depict Joseph Martin and his men returning from a campaign, worn and tired," stated park interpretive program manager Billy Heck. "This painting will pay tribute to the park staff and volunteers that have gone above and beyond the call of duty to make the park and the fort such a success. I chose Dann for this project because I think his paintings are among the best I've seen and he has shown his support for the park and Martin's Station with his previous paintings of staff and volunteers."
Jacobus received his formal fine art education in New York. After his military service years, when he served as photographer and illustrator for the Army newspaper in Okinawa, Jacobus focused his artwork towards books and magazines on hunting, fishing and the outdoors.
History has always been of major interest for Jacobus, and his art moved in that direction when he began re-enacting and participating in living history events years ago. In creating his paintings, he draws from his research and outdoor experiences and blends them into his current work. He is a member of the NMLRA, the Contemporary Longrifle Association, the Honorable Company of Horners, the Lafayette Longrifles, the NRA and various other reenacting groups. He lives in Fuquay Farina, NC.
For more information on Wilderness Road State Park, the Raid at Martin's Station or Dann Jacobus, please call 275-445-3065.
For those of you that grew up camping, do you remember how good food tasted cooked outside over a campfire? Wasn’t it the best? My family spent many seasons camping at Virginia State Parks. I can still taste the peanut butter toast my father made. He would toast the bread over an open flame on a long fork turning it over until it was crisp and brown. It was so good! Just time spent with family was so much fun. Waking up to the birds singing and the sun rise over the water was incredible. Memories like that last forever. I will never forget those wonder filled days spent swimming, hiking, canoeing and wildlife watching. No television (and in those days no cell phones) just magical times created by the magnificent surroundings and our imagination. 
To make your experience even more memorable, the park offers seasonal swimming and paddling. There are a variety of things to do through the year. Hiking, geocaching, orienteering, biking, fishing, birding and wildlife watching. The park also offers exceptional educational programming year round. So grab your family and get outside and play! 
This is the second of a four-part series about what we do in parks during the off-season.
If you are interested in volunteering or if your company/employer is interested in sponsoring some programming please contact the park in your area or email 
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