Clues

Click here to view the clues and answers The small Panther sticker on the end of a set of bleachers by Field One at Fairgrounds Park was the toughest clue to find for the winner of The Herald-Mail's 11th annual Landmarks Contest. But the green railing was responsible for most of the contestant entries knocked out of the running. We ran a hint, but apparently several people missed it as they still thought the green railing belonged to a trash can. The railing actually was part of a bridge on the bike path that goes from Fairgrounds Park to Pangborn Park.

A 19-foot pleasure boat was untied from its dock in West Virginia early Saturday, taken to the Big Slack Water area of the Potomac River near Downsville and set on fire, according to Maryland Natural Resources Police. The boat, a 1995 model inboard-outboard 180 horsepower Ebbtide, was white with a blue racing stripe. It was completely destroyed and it sank. Divers from Maryland Natural Resources Police recovered the charred remains of the boat Monday afternoon, said DNR spokeswoman Patty Manown Mash.

gregs@herald-mail.com Like she does each night, Faye Rodgers picked up the photograph of her brother and placed it gently against her right cheek. Talking to the photo, she told her brother she loves him and hopes he's all right. "I guess whatever makes you feel better," Rodgers said. Rodgers, 59, said that is one of the few things she can do to ease the pain caused by her brother's slaying in November 2002. Jeffrey Rowland's body was found by a jogger on the C&O Canal towpath near Sandy Hook in southern Washington County in the early hours of Nov. 15. Since then, detectives from Maryland and West Virginia have turned up some clues.

A body was pulled from a stream in the Borough of Chambersburg on Wednesday night nearly 12 hours after a business owner found it partially submerged and ensnared in branches. Lightning flashed in the distance as men hoisted the body, covered by a body bag lying on a tarp, from the stream off Commerce Street at 8:15 p.m. Franklin County (Pa.) Coroner Jeffrey R. Conner said crews were racing to secure the body before a predicted storm hit. Conner said he hoped items removed from the scene and an autopsy scheduled for Friday would provide clues to the person's identity.

Millie Keith and her family have been trying to win The Herald-Mail's annual landmarks contest for three years. In their first two tries, they couldn't find all the architectural features highlighted in the photos. "Each year the one we missed has been on a church. So we were bound and determined to check out all the churches this year because we thought maybe the Man Upstairs was trying to tell us something," says Keith, 62, who lives on North Cannon Avenue in Hagerstown.

by Kevin G. Gilbert / staff photographer 'Medicial detective' searches for clues By BRENDAN KIRBY Staff Writer On his way home several months ago, Dr. Arthur H. Horn happened upon a traffic accident on Interstate 70. Horn, a deputy medical examiner in Washington County, was not on duty at the time, but he stopped to help anyway. The accident had involved a mother and her son. The woman was already dead and there was nothing he could do for the boy. "I actually saw the boy die. That was pretty disheartening," Horn said.

Last summer as my husband was driving our family to Louisiana, I turned the passenger seat into an office of sorts. The console between us served as a desk for my almanac, a spiral notebook rested on my lap, my hand held a child's 50 states coloring book, and other books about our country were scattered on the floor at my feet. I was determined to make history and geography a little more exciting for my fifth-graders this year, so I was looking for clues that would help them learn.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Pennsylvania State Police say they still have no clues to the whereabouts of a Hamilton Township man who disappeared last week on his way to work. "Unfortunately, there is no update," Trooper David Rush said Monday of the search for 33-year-old Steven Baird, who was last seen leaving for work at about 7:40 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2. Baird, the human resources director at Menno Haven, was driving a black 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee with Pennsylvania license plate FDY-1398.

HAGERSTOWN - Hagerstown Police Department detectives continued their search Tuesday for the person or people who shot and killed one New York man and critically wounded another at a Hagerstown apartment Sunday night. Jackson Agustin Rodriguez, 22, of Walton Avenue in Bronx, N.Y., was dead when officers arrived at about 11:15 p.m. Sunday at Washington Gardens Apartments in response to a report that shots were fired at the 1022 Security Road building. Officers also found Tony Perry, 22, of East Burn Avenue in the Bronx, shot.

"Gentlemen, start your engines!" We heard that phrase used repeatedly in Daytona Beach, Fla., last month. My family had gone south for a few days over Presidents Day weekend, which also happened to be the Daytona 500 weekend. We didn't attend the race. We left the condo to take in the movie "Eight Below," so my dad could watch the race in peace. He likes to watch a race up close and with instant replay. Diehard race fans will understand his relief when my brother suggested that we go to the movies.

A body was pulled from a stream in the Borough of Chambersburg on Wednesday night nearly 12 hours after a business owner found it partially submerged and ensnared in branches. Lightning flashed in the distance as men hoisted the body, covered by a body bag lying on a tarp, from the stream off Commerce Street at 8:15 p.m. Franklin County (Pa.) Coroner Jeffrey R. Conner said crews were racing to secure the body before a predicted storm hit. Conner said he hoped items removed from the scene and an autopsy scheduled for Friday would provide clues to the person's identity.

Call it beginners' luck. Call it a sympatico between children and flowers. Call it poetic justice. But this year's winners of The Herald-Mail's plant-themed, 15th annual Landmarks Contest is a grandmother and three young relatives. The winners are three cousins, Madison Whittington, 5, Chloe Whittington, 7, and Paige Whittington, 7, all of Hagerstown, and Tammy Chaney, of Hagerstown, grandmother of Madison and Chloe. They will share the contest prize of $300. Chaney said she watches the three girls during summer.

“When 30 of our young men serving our country are killed, it should be reported on the front page in bold letters. Instead, your editor buries it in Section B, after the sports. This makes one question your priorities.” - Waynesboro, Pa. “Debt ceiling debates: Did you ever hear even a whisper from the House, Senate or White House that they should contribute and sacrifice some of their expensive benefits and pay? No, and you won't, either. It was an eye-opener to learn how much money is actually taken in by our government each month.

This year's Landmarks contest might not be a walk in the park. But it might be like a stroll in the garden. A garden of clues, that is. The Herald-Mail's 15th annual Landmarks contest is set in Funkstown this year, and all clues are plant related. Identify the answers to our 10 clues and you might win $300. As in years past, this year's clues are closeup photos of buildings or structures. All clues are visible from public sidewalks or streets in the city of Funkstown (for boundaires, see map)

Each fall, 10th-graders across the country take the PLAN test, which is basically a precursor to the American College Test (ACT). The PLAN test measures skills and abilities related to high school course work in English, mathematics, reading and science. As I was recently reviewing my son's test scores, I was intrigued by a section on the score report titled "Your Career Possibilities. " A World-of-Work Map presented 26 career areas for students to consider. The "map" is set up as a wheel with four compass points:  Working with data  Working with things  Working with ideas  Working with people The areas between each point blend a mix of two skill areas.

It's a safari adventure. There are "animals" hidden in downtown Hagerstown, and we're asking our readers to track them down for The Herald-Mail's 14th annual Landmarks Contest. All of the "animals" in question are not real but, instead, hidden in everyday signage, buildings and other stationary objects in downtown Hagerstown. The most successful tracker to correctly identify all 10 clues will win $300 along with bragging rights. How to enter All of the clues are located within three blocks from the Public Square in downtown Hagerstown.

In an essay about "Russians," the renowned physicist Freeman Dyson discloses some insights into Russia's participation in wars. In doing so, he takes note of Leo Tolstoy's monumental book, "War and Peace," and his account of Napoleon's decision to invade Russia in 1812. Perhaps this great writer has some wisdom that might be useful as we reflect on our own "wars of choice" and the consequences of such folly. Just before the Battle of Borodino, a Russian, Prince Andrei, is engaged in a conversation with a friend.

This is the 180th in a series of articles about the historical and architectural treasures of Washington County. In the 18th century, Keep Tryst Road was the main route connecting Harpers Ferry, W.Va., with Frederick, Md., a part of the longer road from Baltimore to Winchester, Va. It ran along the very southern edge of Washington County near the Potomac River. Enterprises sprang up along the road, taking advantage of the river. Settled just north of a river's bend with views of South Mountain to the east, the Blue Ridge to the south and Elk Ridge to the west, stands Keep Tryst.

o Clues and answers from the 13th annual Herald-Mail Landmarks contest SHARPSBURG -- Nine-year-old Ben Mongan enjoyed looking for the clues at Antietam National Battlefield so much, he asked his mother Kristie Mongan to take him back. "We got the CD and did the driving tour again the next day," said his mother, Kristie. In our eyes, all 117 entrants were winners of this year's Landmarks contest, but that would cost the paper $35,100. So there can only be one. This year's winner is Sharpsburg resident Janet Williams, who won the first prize, $300.