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 …
Category Archives: Ideas
The German Society of Pennsylvania was Founded in 1764 in Philadelphia
Last night I spent the evening brewing with the president of the German Society of Pennsylvania, Mark McGuigan, at Congregation Rodeph Shalom in Philadelphia. The synagogue and the German Society of Pennsylvania are working together to promote German Jewish (i.e. Ashkenazi) heritage in Philadelphia. One of the cool projects is traditional brewing. The German Society …
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Historical Tidbits — Tariff Act
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. On August 4, 1790, President Washington signed the “Tariff Act,” a bill that had been written and sponsored by Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton. The bill authorized the …
Phlogiston and Fire — The Isolation of Oxygen
In the mid-18th century, the most pressing issue in chemistry and physics was to determine what exactly happens when something burns. The prevailing theory was that flammable materials contained a substance called “phlogiston” (from the Greek word for burn) that was released during combustion. The theory held that when a candle burned, for example, phlogiston …
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Historical Tidbits — The * Symbol
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. Notes on the Origin of the * Symbol Aristarchus of Samothrace (220-143 BCE) first used an asterisk symbol when editing Homer in the second century BCE. Aristarchus’ asterisks have …
You Talk Funny
So, I was in Center City the other day as a pre-revolutionary “loyal subject of the crown” when a group of school kids, who being teenagers know everything…, when one of them starts snarking in a cockney accent that I don’t talk like a Britton. Let’s set the record straight. People from Philadelphia, DON’T speak …
Gunpowder TREASON and plot
Okay, this is political but what the hell. This sign is Want to have the Regimental Brewmeister at your site or event? You can hire me. https://colonialbrewer.com/yes-you-can-hire-me-for-your-event-or-site/
Historical Tidbits — Robbing the First Bank of the United States
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. Robbing the First Bank of the United States In 1789, Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton hammered out a great compromise that would create our nations first federal bank. Under …
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Basic Colonial Brewing #14 — Period Correct ways to get Yeast
I know Reinheitsgebot permits only water, hops, and malt as ingredients in beer but if you want to make beer, mead, cider or any other alcoholic brew, you need to add yeast. In the 21st Century, many homebrewers just rip open an envelope of dried yeast from the local homebrew shop and add it to …
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Historical Tidbits — Francis Salvador
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. July 31, 1776 – Francis Salvador became the first Jew to die in combat during the American Revolution in the Ninety-Six district of North Carolina. “Here, Mr. Salvador received …
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 