Nathaniel Philbrick’s Bunker Hill: A City, a Siege, a Revolution is an extraordinarily well written narrative of Boston and the beginning of the American Revolution. Philbrick presents history in a compelling and dramatic manner that will engage even the hardest to reach non-history reader. Despite a title that suggests a narrow focus on a single […]
In 1775, almost all Americans could read. This enabled young people to follow the political argument that preceded the shooting war. They were enthusiastic independence men and women even though they were too young to vote or fight. Few young men were a better example of this enthusiasm than fourteen year old Joseph Plumb Martin […]
Myth: During the ratification debates The Federalist Papers, with their reasoned arguments, convinced people to vote in favor of the Constitution. Busted: Numbers suggest a different story. The newspaper essays we now celebrate were less widely circulated than many other Federalist and Anti-Federalist tracts, book sales were miniscule, and references to them during the extensive […]
It’s tough to bring history alive, particularly when all of the participants have been reduced to dust and bones by the inexorable flow of time. It’s even harder to make historical events interesting and vital to teenagers, as most any high school teacher of history can probably tell you. With her popular webcomic The Dreamer […]
Named as the British Indian Agent to the Cherokee after the First Cherokee War, Alexander Cameron cultivated a very close relationship with the tribe. He married a prominent Cherokee woman and purchased plantations near Long Cane just outside the Cherokee lands in South Carolina. The couple raised 3 children and furnished their home in the […]
Ben Edwards is a lot of things–a children’s book author, Boston historian, collector of historic documents, relative of Paul Revere, and the No. 1 private tour guide in Boston with 100+ five-star reviews on TripAdvisor. Given his proximity to history and insider knowledge of Revolutionary tourism, I asked Ben to participate in an interview so […]
In mid-May of 1778, startling news swept through the Continental Army at Valley Forge. There were Indians in the camp! But they were not killing or capturing Americans as they had often done in battles elsewhere. These Indians had come to fight on the American side. Soldiers who were off duty rushed to get a […]
The battles of and between English born merchant Loyalist partisan Thomas Brown and illiterate native North Carolina American guerilla Elijah Clarke lacks for nothing, including drama. These two men fought each other more than once in a clash of their very different respective cultures/politics in Georgia and Florida. They fought many other battles at the […]
On the morning of January 17, 1781, Lt. Colonel Tarleton led a British army against Daniel Morgan at a place called the Cowpens. We all know that Morgan treated the rash young officer to ‘A Devil of a Whippin’. However, even with the setback, Lord Cornwallis remained determined to make his invasion of North Carolina. […]
Myth: The framers were anti-tax, and it is no accident they failed to provide for income taxes in the Constitution. Busted: “No taxation without representation” was the rallying cry of the Revolution, but the purpose of the Constitution was to create an effective government, and for that to happen, the framers granted Congress broad powers […]
While recently watching “The Ten Commandments,” starring Charlton Heston, I pondered a few thoughts. First, they don’t make flicks like that anymore. Secondly, wouldn’t the Patriots have benefited from having a set of rules like the Ten Commandments to guide their struggle for independence? Lastly, that the editors of this Journal were waiting for me […]
They say that history is written by the victors. Thus, the story of the American Revolution is largely one of heroic figures such as George Washington and Patrick Henry and largely-than-life episodes, such as the winter at Valley Forge or victory at Yorktown. Because America won its independence from Great Britain, rather than lost the […]
Our spring break road trip concludes the same way as the major fighting of the Revolutionary War did — in the south. The first stop is New Bern, North Carolina, to stroll the garden paths and grounds of Tryon Palace, “the place where governors ruled, legislators debated, patriots gathered and George Washington danced.” Ninety minutes […]
After an early morning drive-by of multiple Maryland monuments and historical sites, we focused our attention on Virginia. Whoever said doing Mount Vernon and Colonial Williamsburg in one day was impossible never drove a Porsche Cayenne. George Washington’s estate opens at 8 am, Colonial Williamsburg closes at 5 pm, and they are separated by a […]
Today we start our spring break road trip in Newark, Delaware, with a quick stop at the historic Hale-Byrnes House, site of a council of war on September 6, 1777, five days before the Battle of Brandywine. Considering the homes relation to Brandywine, our next stop will be the Brandywine Battlefield State Park in Chadds […]
After sleeping in a bit, today’s first stop is “Ye Most Ancient Towne” in Connecticut – Wethersfield (see video below), which was founded in 1633-34 and boasts 300 historic homes (50 built before the American Revolution)! The highlight of our stop is sure to be the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum: “The 1752 Joseph Webb House served as […]
Journal of the American Revolution is closing its office this week and heading on a road trip, making stops at historic Revolution sites along our fictional drive from New Hampshire to Georgia. Our first stop will be where the first shots of the Revolution were fired – Portsmouth. In December 1774, the first armed exchange […]
What was revolutionary about the American Revolution? “We went from a bunch of rich white guys running the show all the way to a bunch of rich white guys running the show.” This Crash Course video is a great teaching tool and sure to spark great discussion.
Today we’d like to thank our loyal readers with a book giveaway. We will randomly select a winner to receive a free copy of acclaimed historian Ray Raphael’s newest volume Constitutional Myths: What We got Wrong and How to Get It Right. To enter, simply leave a comment below before noon EST on Friday, March […]
Everyone has heard about General George Washington. Most people recognize the names of Generals Nathanael Greene, Charles Lee, Anthony Wayne, Sir William Howe, and Sir Henry Clinton. But how many have heard about General George Monck? He came very close to winning the American Revolution for George III. What makes this especially amazing is General […]
Every historical researcher, and readers of history books and magazines, must constantly keep in mind the power of the written word. Whether reading for pleasure or serious study one constantly weighs the evidence to determine whether it is accurate and credible or not. Regrettably, the written word itself attaches credibility to a statement by the […]
It’s a little bit dangerous to write with disdain about the medical practices of bygone times, as one has to be aware that the passage of time may make some of our contemporary practices look barbaric and primitive in turn. For example, our descendents may shake their heads in disbelief at our approaches to cancer, […]
I read with interest Thomas Fleming’s article, “The Fate of Regulars.” Readers may be interested to know that British soldiers had much better prospects when the conflict ended than their American counterparts. With a professional standing army that had been in existence for nearly 100 years, Great Britain had long since grappled with and resolved […]
Myth: Within months of its publication, 120,000 copies (or 100,000 or 150,000 or 500,000) of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense were sold in the rebellious colonies. Busted: Although the pamphlet circulated widely and certainly made its mark, only scant print records and no sales records survive, so we simply do not know how many copies were […]
Dear Mr. History: What’s the story on Nathan Hale? Like countless American schoolchildren, I was taught that he was executed for spying and said “I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.” A spy who gets caught seems like a dubious distinction to me. Was Hale an effective spy? […]
One of the genuine pleasures of research is the discovery of someone whose contributions are barely noticed in classroom histories, but without whom, events would have turned out dramatically differently. The Spanish Governor-General of Louisiana, Bernardo de Gálvez, is one such figure. His energetic and often brilliant contributions to the American Revolution ensured that the […]
For the enhanced e-version of Reporting the Revolutionary War, I filmed interviews with several of the book’s historian contributors. My questions covered a lot of ground, including military strategy, print culture, politics, health, logistics, etc. We finished with 100+ video segments totaling more than five hours of Q&A. Frequently, our conversations went off on tangents […]
There are countless reasons why and how people do things for amusement. But, in Colonial America there were at least three reasons that influenced what people did for fun: social standing, location and gender. Social class had a significant affect as wealthy planters were able to amuse themselves with more expensive forms of entertainment than […]
In late May 1775, the Scots-Irish settlers of remote Mecklenburg County, in the Carolina backcountry, received news by express messenger of the Battles of Lexington and Concord that had occurred a month earlier. As one local militia leader named John McKnitt Alexander recalled, “We smelt and felt the Blood & carnage of Lexington, which raised […]
Cannon boomed 13 rounds and the stylishly dressed citizens of Annapolis, Maryland, swarmed into the streets. General George Washington was arriving, accompanied by only two aides. The next day, Washington wrote to Thomas Mifflin, the president of Congress, informing him of his desire to resign his commission as commander in chief. The president read Washington’s […]
Dear Mr. History: What is the true impact and legacy of the “Green Mountain Boys” and their commander, Colonel Ethan Allen? Some say they were an important colonial militia; others have called them a pack of wild, hard-drinking mountain men. While still others say that Allen was really a half-crazy, obnoxious, blowhard who should share […]
In all times and places, people have engaged in trade, and the American Colonies during the time of the Revolution are no exception. Although some trade was conducted as barter, particularly for commodities such as tobacco or beaver pelts, it was common for people to use coins (of nearly any country – Spanish dollars were […]
Instead of working out plans for a peacetime army, in 1783 Congress ordered General George Washington to discharge the remaining regiments in the service, retaining only token garrisons at Fort Pitt to guard the western frontier and West Point, where the army’s artillery and ammunition were stored. This was an extremely unwise decision; the British […]
Myth: Thomas Jefferson found the ideas for the Declaration of Independence “from deep within himself.” (Joseph Ellis, American Sphinx.) Busted: Not according to Jefferson. The “the object of the Declaration of Independence,” he wrote, was “not to find out new principles, or new arguments, never before thought of, not merely to say things which had […]
Because the heat was oppressive, and perhaps because the dinner and drink sat heavy in his gut, John Jouett Jr. curled up beneath the great elm in the yard at Cuckoo Tavern to catch a few winks.[1] Despite the revelry droning on in the background, “Jack,” as his friends called him, was soon fast asleep. […]
Nearly everyone loves a dog. This is especially true of soldiers to whom a dog is a friendly reminder of home, a companion and distraction from the day to day life. Regrettably, these furry friends have been lost in the mists of time. A few however can still be glimpsed, although dimly, doing what dogs […]
During my recent book tour, the Stamp Act riot part of my talk generated the loudest audience reactions so I thought I’d re-purpose what I call the “Stamp Act riot to-do list” for readers of the Journal of the American Revolution. In late 1765 and early 1766, protests against the stamp duty took place throughout […]
Colonial Americans loved their rum – and their port, and their Madeira, and their beer. Many of them were confident that alcohol could cure the sick and make life ever more cheerful, being used as both a beverage and, in moderation, a medicine. Even the father of our country, George Washington, owned a distillery at […]
In the center of the Botetourt Gallery at the Swem Library of William & Mary stands a curious statue, one that time and torment has rendered barely recognizable as the figure of Norborne Berkeley, Baron de Botetourt, one of the last royal governors of Colonial Virginia. The inscriptions on its sides capture the laudatory views […]
