The infamous Salem witch trials began during the spring of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused several local women of witchcraft. As a wave of hysteria spread throughout colonial Massachusetts, a special court convened in Salem to hear the cases; the …
Author Archives: Michael Carver
What the Hell is a Haversack?
Hang around any group of reenactors and you will always see them with a haversack. Even though most of us throw our car keys and wallet in there, it’s not a purse. It’s an essential piece of military kit that dates back to the Middle Ages. The haversack gets its name from the Dutch word …
Colonial Spymaster (#10) — Invisible Inks
One form of secret writing used by both the British and American armies was invisible ink. The secret writing was placed between the lines of an innocent letter and could be discerned by treating the letter with heat or a chemical substance. The recipient placed the paper over the flame of a candle or treated …
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All Political Posturing Aside, Adminstratium is Real
Okay, we have reached the point in the political cycle where all we have is name calling and insults. So, it’s time for a little comic relief. NEW ELEMENT DISCOVERED BY DARPA. Investigators at a major research institution funded by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have recently discovered the heaviest element known to science. …
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Hire the Regimental Brewmeister for your Event or Site
Well, it’s finally winter and I have begun planning for 2025. If your organization wants tp book the Regimental Brewmeister in 2025, please contact me soon so we can block the calendar. I already have dates reserved for certain sites and my schedule fills quickly. If there is a date that you want to secure …
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Colonial Spymaster (#9) — Disinformation
If you employ spies, it is very likely that your enemy also has spies. One very effective means of concealing the true conditions or plans in a sea of false options and making those false options more likely and more true. Today, we call this “fake news” but “fake news” isn’t something recently developed. It …
Early Italian Divorce
In 1791, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was working on his requiem mass when he fell seriously ill. From his deathbed, Mozart declared, “I feel definitely that I will not last much longer; I am sure that I have been poisoned.” He went on to claim, “Someone has given me acqua tofana and calculated the precise time of my death.” Mozart …
Colonial Spymaster (#8) — Steganography
Steganography is the practice of concealing a message within another message. The advantage of steganography over cryptography alone is that the intended secret message does not attract attention to itself as an object of scrutiny. Plainly visible encrypted messages, no matter how unbreakable they are, arouse interest whereas, steganography both conceals the message and hides …
Historical Tidbits — Congress creates the United States Army
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 29, 1789 – Congress created the United States Army. Following the Revolution, the Continental Army was disbanded. This act of Congress under the US Constitution created a permanent …
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Colonial Spymaster (#7) — How the Culper Ring Relayed Information from New York to Washington
The Culper Ring developed a complex method of gathering and relaying information to General George Washington. Below is the sequence of steps the Ring would take to gather and relay the valuable information. (The process of replaying information has many different variations due to its complexity and secrecy.) Abraham Woodhull (Samuel Culper) would visit his …
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 