Free Republic

Eager to be aboard one of the very first cruises when cruising resumes in North America? You’ll be lucky if you get a cabin. When cruise lines initially restart operations out of U.S. ports, presumably later this year, they are likely to only restart with a few ships, each operating at only partial capacity, executives at all the major cruise lines have said. That’ll create a squeeze on the number of available cabins that could make it hard for would-be cruisers to find space. Indeed, the squeeze could be so sharp that some people who currently have bookings on ships...

For those who are looking to get away from the cares of the World, you will find these cabins and houses very alluring. They all give you the feeling they would be a great place to get away from the crazy cities, and even from some small towns where too many people know too much about everyones business. Some just homes nestled a perfect out of the way place, some are elaborate cabins, and some are no bigger than a one room cabin. There is one or two old run down shacks no one lives in any more. But who...

A whole two-level home in Arkansas is on the market for less than the cost of many brand new cars, but there’s a reason. It’s only 128 square feet settled on 43,124 square feet of property. The Dover home, which is described on the listing as like a “doll house,” has its living room, full kitchen and bathroom in the first level. A bedroom is in a lofted upper level. The house is on the market for $22,900....

Andrew Jackson would not be "politically correct" in today's world. A Backcountry warrior, made famous by the Battle of New Orleans, and a rough-hewn politician who became America's first Scotch-Irish President, Jackson was also a farmer and a slave-holder. His estate, The Hermitage, in Davidson County, Tennessee, has been preserved -- including some of the log cabins where Jackson's slaves lived. [Vintage photographs]

The State of Tennessee was pure Backcountry, untainted by Cavaliers or Puritans in colonial and early American times, and so a large proportion of its settlers lived in log cabins. . . . Tennesseans are proud of their log-cabin heritage and there are accordingly many surviving examples of this Backcountry architecture in the state. [Contemporary photographs of 20 log cabins]

The mountains of western North Carolina are rugged and their settlements were relatively isolated from the rest of the state for many decades. With the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the mountaineers' settlements and their cabins and other buildings were largely destroyed. The vintage monochrome photographs in this article depict the Oconaluftee Mountain Farm Museum buildings and other vintage log cabins of the North Carolina Smokies.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon has begun drawing up plans to send troops and equipment to the U.S. border with Mexico, where hundreds of thousands of migrants enter the country illegally each year, a defense official said on Friday. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld discussed border issues at the Pentagon with his Mexican counterpart, Defense Minister Gen. Gerardo Clemente Ricardo Vega. Mexico and the United States share a 2,000-mile border. "The U.S. and Mexican governments continue to work together to control the border and collaborate on these important efforts," said U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. J.D. Gordon, a Pentagon spokesman. "This cooperation...

KELSO, Calif. - A 65,200-acre wildfire in a southeastern California wilderness preserve destroyed five homes and two cabins built in the late 1800s, but firefighters had most of the blaze surrounded, officials said Saturday. Six trailers or other structures also were destroyed in the Mojave National Preserve blaze, which was 65 percent contained late Saturday night, Ranger Linda Slater said. Firefighters made good progress Saturday after a cold front moved in with winds that were not as strong as expected, Slater said. The large fire formed after lightning sparked five separate blazes Wednesday afternoon near the Nevada state line. Those...