John F. Mercer of Maryland was the author of this essay, taken from his testimony to members of the ratifying conventions of New York and Virginia, 1788, (From the Etting Collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.) We have not that permanent and fixed distinction of ranks or orders of men among us, which unalterably …
Monthly Archives: November 2021
FEDERALIST No. 60: Concerning the Power of Congress to Regulate the Election of Members
We are on the eve of a very important election. Much has been said about the Constitution and what is Constitutional so let’s take a few weeks and look at the foundational letters written by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay arguing for the creation of the US Constitution. The comment tab is open. Please share your …
Did Jews Participate in the American Revolution? Well here are a few stories. (Isaac Franks)
Isaac Franks, became a lieutenant colonel in the Pennsylvania militia, but that was after the war. In 1776, at the age of seventeen, he enlisted in a regiment of volunteers, arming and equipping himself at his own expense. After the Battle of Long Island, when his company retreated to New York City, he was captured …
Antifederalist No. 59 — The Danger of Congressional Control of Elections
Alexander Hamilton, in Federalist #59, addresses this same topic from an opposing viewpoint. This essay was written anonymously by “Vox Populi,” and appeared in The Massachusetts Gazette on October 30, 1787. . . I beg leave to Jay before the candid public the first clause in the fourth section of the first article of the …
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FEDERALIST No. 59: Concerning the Power of Congress to Regulate the Election of Members
We are on the eve of a very important election. Much has been said about the Constitution and what is Constitutional so let’s take a few weeks and look at the foundational letters written by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay arguing for the creation of the US Constitution. The comment tab is open. Please share your …
Did Jews Participate in the American Revolution? Well here are a few stories. (Mordecai Sheftall)
In Georgia it was a Jew who took the lead in establishing the first “American” government in that colony. Mordecai Sheftall was a second-generation Jewish resident of Savannah and in the late summer of 1774, he became the head of the Parochial Committee of Christ Church Parish. He worked hard to fully implement the Non-Importation …
Antifederalist No. 58 — Will the House of Representatives Be Genuinely Representative? (Part 4)
It is said that our people have a high sense of freedom, possess power, property, and the strong arm; meaning, I presume, that the body of the people can take care of themselves, and awe their rulers; and, therefore, particular provision in the constitution for their security may not be essential. When I come to …
Von Stueben Altbier
During the early American Revolutionary War, Continental Army lacked strong central command and was made up of state-run militias operating independently of each other. Each militia operated by its own rules and regulations and there was very little standardization or guidance for the duties and responsibilities of soldiers and officers. In 1777, Friedrich von Steuben …
FEDERALIST No. 58: Objection That The Number of Members Will Not Be Augmented as the Progress of Population Demands.Federalist #1
We are on the eve of a very important election. Much has been said about the Constitution and what is Constitutional so let’s take a few weeks and look at the foundational letters written by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay arguing for the creation of the US Constitution. The comment tab is open. Please share your …
Did Jews Participate in the American Revolution? Well here are a few stories. (David Salisbury Franks and Solomon Bush)
Yesterday we discussed Mordecai Sheftall’s career during the Revolution. There were two other Jewish soldiers that became staff officers in the Continental Army – David Salisbury Franks and Solomon Bush. When General Richard Montgomery took Montreal from the English, David Salisbury Franks (then a Canadian civilian) lent the American Army money and sold them supplies, …
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 