During the Revolutionary War, the American submersible craft Turtle attempted to attach a time bomb to the hull of British Admiral Richard Howe’s flagship Eagle in New York Harbor. It was the first use of a submarine in warfare. The Continental Army out armed, outmanned, and outmatched by the British at almost every angle. This …
Continue reading “The Beginning of Submarine Warfare — September 7, 1776”
Closing on a real estate deal is a lot of paperwork and promissory notes. Even if you pay “cash,” no one (except perhaps a mafia boss) will accept a suitcase filled with several hundred thousand dollars in cash. It’s just too easy to counterfeit. So, how did James Monroe and Robert Livingston, who concluded a …
Continue reading “How Did Americans Actually Transfer Money To France For The Louisiana Purchase?”
Having witnessed plague in London in 1665 and the famously calamitous fire of 1666, Penn wanted his Philadelphia to be ‘a greene countrie towne, which will never be burnt, and allways be wholsome.’ The way he proposed to achieve this was by planning the city so that it was ordered and regulated. Orderly space, Penn …
Samuel Wilson, a meat packer in Troy, New York, supplied barrels of beef to the United States Army during the War of 1812. To segregate barrels that were shipped to the Army from those he shipped to his other customers, he stamped the barrels with “U.S.” for United States. Soldiers receiving the shipments began referring …
Continue reading ““Uncle Sam” and “G.I.” were Appropriated Terms for Ordinary Things.”
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. September 6, 1780 New London Burnt and Fort Griswold taken In September 1781, one of the British Army’s newest generals — Benedict Arnold — was eager to prove himself …
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. September 5, 1778 Grey’s Raid — British incursion into New Bedford and Fair Haven As part of British operations in the American Revolutionary War, Major General Charles Grey raided …
Surveying the Twelve Mile CircleHistoric Rittenhouse Town208 Lincoln Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19144 Saturday, September 9, 202310 am – 4 pm As the Colonial Surveyor, I will be portraying David Rittenhouse as a surveyor. This will be an opportunity for volunteer survey crews (who I hope to recruit from the crowds) to learn the art and science …
Hire the Regimental Brewmeister It’s reached that time of the year where I start planning for 2024 and I am hoping to include you in the mix of organizations I support next year. I am emailing you today in the hopes that you will consider inviting either the Regimental Brewmeister or the Colonial Surveyor to …
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. September 5, 1781 DeGrasse enters the Chesapeake with the French Fleet When Adm. François-Joseph-Paul, comte de Grasse, arrived in the West Indies from France in April 1781, he had …
Continue reading “Historical Tidbits — DeGrasse enters the Chesapeake”
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. September 4, 1774 1st Continental Congress The First Continental Congress, which was comprised of delegates from the colonies, met at Carpenters Hall in Philadelphia in 1774 to devise an …
Continue reading “Historical Tidbits — 1st Continental Congress”
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 