Everyone knows Louis and Clark but Thomas Jefferson sent many explores and surveyors into the new Louisiana Purchase. One was Zebulon Montgomery Pike who was one of the first white men to explore the vast wilderness that is now Colorado. Born in New Jersey in 1779, Pike joined the U.S. Army at the age of …
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Add excitement and authentic color to your special event, or create one for your site, with Philadelphia’s best Colonial Brewer and tradesman. Whether it is a reenactment, motion picture, a tavern night for a private event, or other endeavor, I can bring can bring a real sense of authenticity and fun to your event and …
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I won’t burden my readers with the atrocities committed at the Philadelphia Renaissance Faire (one of which was a substantial loss to Fort Mifflin) but before anyone asks, the before anyone asks, I am not running nor attending the recently announced Colonial Cocktails or Cast-Iron Chef events at Fort Mifflin. Jefferson once wrote in a …
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The first day of summer arrives with the solstice this year on Wednesday, June 21, 2023 at 10:58 a.m. EDT. The summer solstice is the time at which the sun reaches its maximum declination. More practically for most of us, the summer solstice is the longest period of daylight in the year. The term “solstice” …
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. June 20, 1790 – During a dinner meeting with Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and James Madison drafted a bill to move the Federal Capital to a …
Continue reading “Historical Tidbits — District of Columbia”
The Pinckney treaty of 1795 had resolved friction between Spain and the United States over the right to navigate the Mississippi and the right for Americans to transfer their goods to ocean-going vessels at New Orleans. This détente was threatened by Napoleon Bonaparte’s plans to revive the French empire in the New World. Bonaparte planned to recapture the …
Benjamin Banneker was an African-American farmer, self-educated mathematician, astronomer, and surveyor but most importantly, Benjamin Banneker was a FREE MAN not a slave, despite living in a slave state during the early years of the republic. Although he received little schooling, Banneker demonstrated exceptional scientific ability and taught himself advanced mathematics and astronomy. In 1789 …
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If we tried to have a revolution today, would we succeed? Do we have what it takes? I hear boasts at reenactments all the time and everyone thinks they have what it takes to rebel but are we willing to “dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another,”[1] or are we more likely …
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“THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman….” Thomas Paine, The Crisis (19 December 1776) So, I just had a stupid argument …
Surveying was a family business for Thomas Jefferson. Both he and his father Peter Jefferson were land surveyors for the King of England. Although Thomas Jefferson didn’t continue to survey as a profession, the skills he acquired as a surveyor were a solid foundation for his subsequent success. In the early 18th century, much of …
