The sun-drenched July landscape between Seneca and Cayuga lakes rolled endlessly onward. Boasting knee-high grasses, the area overflowed with a kaleidoscope of wildflowers, all wisping on sweet summer breezes. Haudenosaunee longhouses dappled the hillsides as patches of corn, squash and beans made their seasonal appearance. Whitetail deer forged trodden pathways that turned into consistently used trails, many of which serve as major roadways today. The year was 1776. America’s 13 original colonies had just declared their independence from British political rule, this month marking the country’s 250th birthday.

Soon after independence was claimed, the Revolutionary War ravaged these same Finger Lakes lands. Thereafter, a large portion became acreage for settlers and numerous agricultural families. That is, until 1941, when war once again threatened to knock upon America’s proverbial front door. Thus, another milestone birth date this July is that of the 85th year since the then Seneca Ordnance........

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