Honey bees are not native to North America. They were originally imported from Europe in the 17th century. In a letter written December 5, 1621 by the Council of the Virginia Company in London and addressed to the Governor and Council in Virginia, “Wee haue by this Shipp and the Discouerie sent you diurs [divers] …
Continue reading “Mead was not Mainstream in Colonial America”
At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, it is important to remember that none of the delegates called for an actual the end of slavery. While some of them expressed their discomfort with it — George Mason of Virginia called for anti-slave trade laws and Gouverneur Morris of New York called slavery “a nefarious institution – …
While writing the blog on Chanukah in Colonial America, I came across some lectures and articles by Andrew Porwancher, a professor at the University of Oklahoma, who has an interesting hypothesis. It seems that while researching the early life of Alexander Hamilton, Porwancher uncovered some interesting facts. Alexander Hamilton is the son of Rachel Faucette …
Continue reading “Could one of our Founding Fathers have been a Jew?”
Hot spiced wine has been offered to messengers and postmen in Norway who travelled on horseback or skis in cold weather since at least the 16th century. Glögg is a common winter drink consisting of sweet wine or grape juice mixed with syrup and some harder spirits like rum, brandy or cognac. Glögg begins by …
Land surveys consist of six basic tasks: Determinizing your position on Earth using celestial navigation methods Measuring distances with a Gunter’s Chain. Measuring changes in elevation with a Range Pole Measurement of directions and angles using a Compass. Drawing the map on a Plane Table, and Computing areas with basic plane geometry In this series …
Continue reading “How to Survey Land with 18th Century Tools – Measuring Lines”
Most people in the United States associate Julips drinks with The Kentucky Derby and certainly mint juleps have a storied history in that event but julep drinks have been around a lot longer and there are more julep drinks than the mint julep. This cocktail has origins back to the late 1700s, and ‘Julep’ is based …
I am sure you’ve heard “Beer before liquor, never been sicker; liquor before beer, you’re in the clear.” This is an adage of unknown origin claiming that low alcohol-by-volume (ABV) beverages (like beer) are best imbibed at the end of a night of drinking rather than early on. There are, however, NO scientific studies supporting …
Continue reading “The “beer before liquor” rule has no scientific basis.”
Despite what you may think today, Philadelphia was America’s first planned city. William Penn had a broad vision for the new settlement and started a revolution in city planning: the open grid plan that became Philadelphia. Having witnessed plague in London in 1665 and the famously calamitous fire of 1666, Penn wanted his Philadelphia 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. December 1, 1779 2nd Encampment at Morristown While much in made of the harsh conditions at Valley Forge, the winter of 1779 was the harshest in the war. “A …
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 