John Lawson Special Event at Washington and Bath. | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Scott Huler is replicating John Lawson's journey to map Eastern NC. He says, "I reach little Washington, where Lawson stopped and so shall I, sort of. I expect to hit Washington September 17." This "slight uncertainty" is because of weather issues with any outdoor hike.

    He has written on everything from the death penalty to bikini waxing, from NASCAR racing to the stealth bomber, for such newspapers as the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Los Angeles Times and such magazines as Backpacker, Fortune, and ESPN. His award-winning radio work has been heard on "All Things Considered" and "Day to Day" on National Public Radio and on "Marketplace" and "Splendid Table" on American Public Media. He has been a staff writer for the Philadelphia Daily News and the Raleigh News & Observer and a staff reporter and producer for Nashville Public Radio.

    Because of the fabulous interest shown all the way through this project by the people at Historic Bath, the Lawson Trek is going to make a small extra step. Lawson ended his journey at Washington, and so shall I, though of course in Lawson's day it was not called Washington. The town's namesake, George Washington, was himself not born until 1732, so if the "town" was called anything in those days it was called "the place on the tip of the Pamlico Sound where that British dude lives." Washington was actually founded in 1776 -- rather precocious town-naming, if you want my opinion; it was the first town named for General Washington. Bath, meanwhile, had been around since 1705, when it was founded, surveyed, and laid out by -- well, you guessed: by John Lawson. Bath was North Carolina's first incorporated town. It has several colonial houses, three of which you can tour; the state's oldest church, begun in 1734; and gardens and a visitors center.

    So on September 26, Bath is participating in Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day Live, a sort of gift from Smithsonian Magazine, encouraging museums and historic sites to waive admission fees for a day. You can get tickets to the Bath Site houses free here. As part of that daylong celebration -- there'll be living history, rope making, corn husk doll making, colonial games, all kinds of cool stuff -- the Lawson Trek will make its final advance, canoeing up Bath Creek into town at 2 pm. After that I'll talk a bit, answer questions, and take a deep breath before beginning to write the book about Lawson's journey, and my own.