Richland County’s connection to America’s
space program began in the early 1800s
The death of U.S. astronaut
John Young, who
passed away on January 5
at the age of 87, brought
back memories of the early
days of the space race,
which officially began
with President Kennedy’s
commitment to put Americans
on the moon before
the end of the 1960s.
The former Soviet
Union shocked us all
when they won the first
leg of the race on Oct. 4,
1957, by being the first
country to place an artificial
satellite in orbit
around the Earth – a
beach ball-sized, beeping
sphere they named “Sputnik.”
The Russian feat ignited
the interests and
concerns of many Americans,
including myself, an
eighth-grade student at
Claremont Grade School
at the time. Teaming up
with fellow student, Sam
Resor, we began building
rockets, using copper tubing,
wooden nose cones,
aluminum fins made from
an Erector set, and anything
flammable for fuel.
I don’t recall ever having a
successful launch, but at
least we escaped the experience
with all our fingers
and our eyesight.
But back to John Young,
the only U.S. astronaut to
go into space six times
and the ninth man to walk
on the moon. Young’s storied
career spanned three
generations of spaceflight,
becoming one of a group
of early space pioneers
whose bravery and commitment
sparked our nation’s
first great achievements
in space. He flew
twice during the two-man
Gemini missions of the
mid-1960s, twice to the
moon during NASA’s
Apollo program, and twice
more aboard the new
space shuttle Columbia in
the early 1980s – a career
that spanned 42 years,
longer than any other astronaut’s.
Outspoken in his drive
for procedures to keep
crews safe in flight, Young
could also be a bit of a
rebel, according to ABC
News. “He and Mercury
astronaut Gus Grissom
made the first manned
Gemini flight in 1965.
Unknown to NASA,
Young smuggled a corned
beef sandwich on board,
given to him by Mercury
astronaut Wally Schirra.
When it came time to test
NASA’s official space food,
Young handed Grissom
the sandwich as a joke.
“The ensuing scandal
over that corned beef on
rye – two silly minutes on
an otherwise triumphant
five-hour flight – always
amazed Young. NASA
brass and Congress considered
it a multi-million
dollar embarrassment and
outlawed corned beef
sandwiches in space forever.”
But now, on to the Richland
County connection.
While thumbing
through the “Olney/Richland
County Sesquicentennial
1841-1991” book
on another matter, I inadvertently
came across the
interesting back story that
prompted me to write this
column about John
Young.
Born in 1780 in Virginia,
pioneer Ben Bogart
(later changed to Bogard)
came to our area from
Tennessee between 1815
and 1818, becoming one of
the earliest and most
prominent settlers in what
would later become Richland
County. He built
west of the Morehouse
Tavern, the first home
built in what is today the
east part of Olney. A veteran
of the War of 1812, he
was the father of 17 children
by two marriages
and step-father of four
children. His last child
was born when he was a
little over 70 years old.
He died in 1866 in Richland
County.
In 1835, Nancy Gouch
Clark (born in 1810),
along with her husband,
Keelin Clark, and their
three small children, came
to this area from Orange
County, North Carolina.
She later married Benjamin
Bogard in 1839, the
second marriage for both.
She died in Richland
County in 1896 at the ripe
old age of 85 years.
So, what’s the connection,
you ask? According
to the sesquicentennial
book, Benjamin and Nancy
Bogard are the greatgreat-
grandparents of astronaut
John Young. An
unlikely connection.
Two hundred years ago,
pioneer Ben Bogard (and
later his wife, Nancy) began
exploring the sprawling
prairies and forests in
what would become Richland
County. They are
both buried in Mt. Pleasant
cemetery. Some 150
years later, their greatgreat-
grandson, John
Young, another pioneer,
would begin exploring the
vastness of space. He will
likely be buried in Arlington
National Cemetery.
Apparently, the desire to
explore ran deep in their
veins. And Richland
County can thank both for
their contributions to
making our home and
country a better place.
**********
Richland County is
proud to have three museums:
the Heritage House
mansion, which shows
how we lived in the early
days; the Carnegie Museum,
which shows how we
worked; and the McsBurg
one-room schoolhouse,
which shows how we
learned. During the offseason
for our facilities,
the museums are officially
closed for the winter.
However, special tours
may be arranged by visiting
our website at
www.richlandcountymuseums.
org.