Silver State in Winnemucca, Nevada

Wartime Shenandoah Valley tale and clock trivia in one column

In spring 1865 Union guards protected widow’s property near Waynesboro as Sherman Early and Mosby actions ripple through her tale. She recalls loots of hay corn ham taters flour cider and horses and a hole where a cannon ball tore through her house. A later note explains why hours are 60 minutes and seconds 60, tracing from Hipparchus and Babylonian time keeping. Also a Great Western coach uses Balmain luminous paint for daylight charging a glow at night and aiding life buoys.