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 25, 1789 Bill of Rights On September 25, 1789, the first Congress of the United States adopted 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution–the Bill of Rights–and sent them …
Category Archives: Ideas
Early Meteorology — Predicting the Weather 18th Century Style: scientific beginnings in England
The shift from superstition to scientific study of meteorology began when proper measuring instruments became available in the mid-17th century. By the early 18th century, Daniel Fahrenheit produced accurate mercury thermometers calibrated to a standard scale that ranged from 32 to 96 degrees (i.e., from the melting point of ice to body temperature). Early work …
Historical Tidbits — ANTIFEDERALIST papers
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 25, 1787 – a first of a series of fifteen essays arguing AGAINST the formation of a new US Constitution were published. The authors of these ANTIFEDERALIST papers …
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Colonial Spymaster (#2) — Caesar Cypher
The Caesar cypher is one of the earliest known and simplest cyphers. It is a type of substitution cipher in which each letter in the plaintext is ‘shifted’ a certain number of places down the alphabet. For example, with a shift of 1, A would be replaced by B, B would become C, and so …
A little Heresy can be Entertaining — the Smoking Bishop Punch
Well, it’s finally Fall and my wife has been binging Little Dorrit on PBS. Since I haven’t posted any new recipes lately, I thought it time I put out a Fall classic – the SMOKING BISHOP. Fine oranges well roasted with sugar and wine in a cup, they’ll make a sweet Bishop when gentlefolk sup. …
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Historical Tidbits — HMS Serapis captured by John Paul Jones
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 23, 1779 HMS Serapis captured by John Paul Jones On September 23, the Bonhomme Richard engaged the Serapis and the smaller Countess of Scarborough, which were escorting the …
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Colonial Spymaster (#1) — Codes and Cyphers in the Continental Army
Going into the Revolution, Americans were at a huge disadvantage to the European powers when it came to cryptography, many of which had been using secret offices where sensitive letters were opened and deciphered by public officials for centuries. It was not uncommon for the messages of Revolutionary leaders and American diplomats to be intercepted …
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Project 2025 seeks to create an American King. We rebelled against the last King to rule our Country then set about creating a new one. STOP THIS!
Okay, this is a rant. If that offends you, delete this email or skip this blog article. It is unfortunately, election season and I have some tags left. <<< === Good Hunting! America Should NEVER have a King! The current mudslinging escapades of our presidential candidates makes for interesting headlines, but the reality is BOTH …
Historical Tidbits — Nathanial Hale is executed as a spy
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 22, 1776 – Nathanial Hale is executed as a spy on Long Island without trial. “My only regret is that I have but one life to give to …
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Joseph Priestley Invented Timeline Charts in 1765
Joseph Priestley, as you will no doubt remember, was a theologian, and a chemist best known for his pioneering work isolating elements such as oxygen. Chemist are accustomed to working with things you cannot readily see (atoms and molecules, energy, electron states, etc.). It was only natural that when Priestly was teaching history at the …
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Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 