Measuring how high a hill rises or whether a field is level involves the following equipment: A Jacobs Staff — a stick or pole with length markings. A set of chaining pins – markers that can be placed in the ground A Gunter’s Chain – a steel chain of 100 links exactly 66 feet long …
Continue reading “How to Survey Land with 18th Century Tools – Measuring Elevations”
While several of our military branches can be justifiably proud of over 246 years of service to our nation, one component of the military goes back much further! The National Guard is the direct descendent of America’s first militias. The oldest regiments drilled for the first time on the village green in Salem, Massachusetts, on …
Continue reading “On December 13, 1636 our First “Citizen Soldiers” were Mustered.”
Every year millions of people come to Philadelphia to see the “Liberty Bell.” This large bell was commissioned in 1751 by the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly to hang in the new State House in Philadelphia. At the time it was commissioned, there was no thought about Independence. Philadelphia was the third most important city in the …
Continue reading “The Scourge of Slavery (#12) — How the Liberty Bell got its name”
The Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC), better known as the Dutch East India Company was set up in 1602 and head-quartered in the Oost-Indisch Huis (East-India House) in downtown Amsterdam, which still stands today. The company was first company to officially issue stocks, which peaked during the Dutch “Tulip Mania”, a craze for tulip bulbs that …
The Dutch tulip mania of the 1600s is often cited as an example of greed, excess, and financial mania, with the prices driven by the fear of missing out and crowd psychology. Tulips were imported into Europe in the 16th century by the Dutch East India Company, arriving via the spice trading routes that lent …
Founded in 1600 by royal charter, the East India Company was established as a joint-stock trading company to exploit opportunities east of the Cape of Good Hope where it was granted a trade monopoly. Crucially, to conduct this trade, the EIC was permitted to ‘wage war’. Although the EIC did not hold sovereignty in its …
Applejack is a uniquely American type of apple brandy which was widely produced during the 1700’s in North America. It was made by placing hard cider in wooden barrels and exposing them to freezing temperatures during winter. The water in the hard cider froze in the top of the barrel and could easily be removed. …
Perhaps in no other state did the ideals espoused during the American Revolution take hold as much as they did in Pennsylvania. The gradual emancipation act was just one example of Pennsylvanians attempting to follow through on Revolutionary promises but trying to abolish slavery outright was very difficult. The Pennsylvania legislature, however, suggested a gradual …
Continue reading “The Scourge of Slavery (#11) — Gradual Manumission, a small step toward Abolition”
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 8, 1776 Washington crosses Delaware (retreat) On 8 December 1776, after a long retreat through New Jersey under pressure from the British Army, American General George Washington …
Continue reading “Historical Tidbits — Retreats across the Delaware”
In 1499 the Spanish sent an expedition to the Caribbean island of Curaçao in an attempt to cultivate Seville oranges. Oranges were vital to naval operations in the region as they were used to fight scurvy. The Seville oranges, however, struggled under the island’s harsh equatorial sun, arid climate, and infertile soil eventually evolving into a small, bitter, …
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 