In the drink world, a shrub is a concentrated syrup that combines fruit, sugar, and vinegar. Apple cider vinegar is the most common base for shrubs, and herbs and spices are often added to create interesting flavor combinations. By the 18th Century, making shrub with no vinegar was considered passé but vinegar shrubs will make …
Monthly Archives: November 2025
In 1996, the City of Philadelphia did what the Whole British Navy could not do, they demolished the “Cannonball House” in a failed attempt to save it.
In the 1680’s Peter Cook build a small farmhouse on a plot of land nobody wanted. Laying claim to a small swampy parcel on Mud Island several miles form William Penn’s utopian “green country town” this Swedish settler thought he and his family would never be challenged for their little farm. The site proved good …
How the British Perceived the American Revolution
The American revolution was a matter of great interest for the people in Britain. The British press weighed in on economics, military success and failures, the morality of the revolution, and more, through the press and private correspondence. As the British enjoyed one of the freest press systems in the world, not everyone felt obliged …
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Lemonade
The earliest record of the precursor to lemonade hails from the Mediterranean coast of medieval Egypt. Kashkab was made from fermented barley (like beer) combined with mint, rue, black pepper and citron. Thanks to Jewish books like the Cairo Genizah, we know that Egypt traded and exported bottles of the sugary lemon juice concoction throughout …
Historical Tidbits — Coup of 18 Brumaire
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. November 9, 1799 – Napoleon Bonaparte become First Consul of France On November 9, 1799 (18 Brumaire in the French Revolutionary calendar) Napoleon Bonaparte executed a coup d’état and …
Historical Tidbits — Edmund Halley
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. Edmund Halley, England’s most significant astronomer, was born November 8, 1656 Edmond Halley was born on November 8, 1656, in Haggerston, England to a well-to-do merchant family. His father was …
Is it really appropriate to require individuals portraying masculine roles to shave their faces in keeping with late 18th century custom and norms?
Men have facial hair and removing it can be either a pleasure of a torture depending upon your equipment, the geometry of your face, and your social, political, and religious proclivities. This has always been and will likely always be true, and yet there are many in the reenacting community who want to ridicule men …
The Scourge of Slavery (#6) — Charles V Makes Slavery an International Industry
In 1518, King Charles authorized Spanish ships (especially privateers) to engage in the trade of African slaves. Direct slave traffic from Africa was not initially permitted because the Spanish Crown worried that captives from sub-Saharan Africa might introduce non-Christian religious practices to the native American Indian populations. But in 1518, Emperor Charles V, abolished the …
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Adam Smith — Wealth of Nations
Adam Smith was a Scottish economist who in 1776 wrote book, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations). This book profoundly influenced economic thought, and until the current disintegration of conservative politics in the United States, was the bedrock of economic and political theory with regard to the merits of …
The Doan Brothers — Tory Horse Thieves
The word Tory is borrowed from Gaelic: It literally means Horse Thief. So, it should come as no surprise that five brothers from Bucks County in Pennsylvania, all notorious horse thieves, would be loyal to the King during the Revolutionary War. These were the Doan Brothers — Moses, Joseph, Levi, Mahlon, and Aaron; and they …
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 