Year: 2014

News Posted on

Year in Review: Top 30 Articles of 2014

 Milestones Westholme Publishing Partnership Announced (Volume 2015 publishing in May) Book of the Year Award Unveiled (winner being announced in January 2015) Volume 1 Earns 17 Five-Star Reviews on Amazon “What an adventure to enjoy the articles in this fabulous treasure trove…” (C. Weatherhead) “This book is a no brainer for anyone with even the […]

by Editors
9
Interviews Posted on

Strangest Founding Father?

Who was the biggest oddball of the founders? Why?   Every Founder had his “foibles,” as Washington acknowledged about himself, but Charles Lee was hands down the most eccentric of the bunch. But his eccentricity did not diminish his military talents. He made mistakes (what general didn’t), but at times his presence and leadership were […]

by Editors
3
Interviews Posted on

Greatest Controversy?

Of all the disputed topics, events, reputations or battles of the Revolution, which is the greatest? Explain.   Militarily, Howe’s failure to pursue Washington’s beleaguered force trapped on the tip of Long Island remains something of a puzzle, despite attempts to reconstruct an answer. On a different note, this question intrigues me. I think we […]

by Editors
1
Interviews Posted on

Most Mistaken Identity?

Revolutionary person known for one thing who should be known for something else?   And the winner is Benedict Arnold, almost universally known as one of the greatest traitors of them all while Horatio Gates keeps getting credit as the “hero of Saratoga.” In reality, Arnold was the true hero of Saratoga, if field leadership […]

by Editors
13
Interviews Posted on

Most Misunderstood Event?

Which one event of the Revolution is incorrectly interpreted most often? Explain.   The battle of Saratoga. There is a group who are determined to prove Horatio Gates deserves most of the credit. I don’t agree. I have a low opinion of “Granny” Gates. His flight to the rear at Camden (after demonstrating his total […]

by Editors
15
Interviews Posted on

Most Referenced Book?

Which American Revolution book do you refer to most often (not to be confused with “favorite book”)? Why?   The single volume that I access most often is Mark M. Boatner’s Encyclopedia of the American Revolution.  In it, I can generally find something about almost any topic pertaining to the American Revolution that either answers […]

by Editors
3
The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on

The Culper Spy Ring Was not the First to Warn the French at Newport

On July 10, 1780, a French fleet of seven ships of the line and four frigates under Admiral Chevalier de Ternay, along with thirty-six transport vessels carrying about 6,000 French soldiers commanded by Lieutenant General Comte de Rochambeau and their supplies, arrived off of Newport, Rhode Island. The plan was to use the port town […]

by Christian McBurney
5
People Posted on

John McClure Rallies the South

Had he made it through the war, John McClure’s name would likely draw equal fame and respect as the nation’s most celebrated southern patriots. Indeed, not only can John be considered the first officer in the field against British occupation after the disaster at Charleston in June 1780 but, without his courage and leadership, the […]

by Wayne Lynch
2
Reviews Posted on

For Fear of an Elective King: George Washington and the Presidential Title Controversy of 1789

Book Review: For Fear of an Elective King: George Washington and the Presidential Title Controversy of 1789 by Kathleen Bartoloni-Tuazon (Cornell University Press, 2014) The debate that erupted in the Congress in the spring of 1789 as to whether the delegates should address the president as “His Majesty the President” or “His Highness the President […]

by Benjamin Huggins
News Posted on

Top 10 Articles of November 2014

As we begin to slow down for the holiday season, we wish all our writers and readers cheerful memories and happy celebrations. This November, we welcomed Carol Sue Humphrey to our roster of contributors and saw John L. Smith, Jr.’s article about Washington’s wooden teeth featured by Smithsonian.com. We also welcomed our latest advertiser, America’s […]

by Editors
Advertising Posted on

The Must-attend American Revolution Conference of 2015

The must-attend American Revolution conference of 2015 is being hosted by America’s History, LLC, one of the nation’s leading history tour and conference companies. The conference will take place the weekend of March 20-22, 2015, at the Colonial Williamsburg Woodlands Hotel in Williamsburg, Virginia. Friday, March 20 (7 pm) – Sunday, March 22 (Noon) Colonial […]

by Advertising
1
Reviews Posted on

The Military Library

An essential part of a gentleman’s possessions was a good library, containing books on a variety of subjects to reinforce a well-rounded classical education. Besides books on agriculture, literature, history, geography and arts, a selection of military books were a likely part of this library. In an era of militias officered by the gentleman class, […]

by Don N. Hagist
31
People Posted on

The Spartans of Long Island

According to some local sources, “Long island was the Thermopylae of the Revolution and the Pennsylvania Germans were its Spartans.”[1] While laden with hyperbole and bias, this is the claim made about the Northampton County Flying Camp battalion under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kichline.[2] Kichline’s battalion, made up of four companies—two of which […]

by Thomas Verenna
7
People Posted on

Top 10 Printers

For Americans in the Revolutionary era, newspapers provided a major source of information about events related to the conflict with Great Britain. The people who produced these publications played a key role in getting the news out because they believed it was important for people to know what was happening. They also strongly supported their […]

by Carol Sue Humphrey
9
People Posted on

Top 5 Foreign Continental Army Officers (Other Than Lafayette)

At the war’s outset, there was a dearth of proven military leadership within the thirteen colonies severely limiting the Continental Army’s ability to engage the British on equal terms. This paucity of military leadership was especially pronounced in the technical aspects of war including engineering, artillery and cavalry. To fill the void, the Continental Congress […]

by Gene Procknow
News Posted on

Top 10 Articles of October 2014

First and foremost, thank you for making October 2014 our best traffic month ever. More than 94,000 visits by 54,000 unique visitors! Another major milestone was reached in October: Our one-millionth pageview since launch in January 2013. ONE MILLION PAGEVIEWS! Second, a hearty welcome to our newest authors: Steven M. Richman, Kim Burdick, and Will […]

by Editors
6
The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on

Richard Pearis and the Mobilization of South Carolina’s Backcountry Loyalists

When British Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton began operations against Charleston in March 1780, he decided not to call upon the Loyalists in the South Carolina backcountry to assist him. Although employing Loyalists to aid the regular army was a key element of British strategy in the South, Clinton believed that they would be endangered […]

by Jim Piecuch
12
Arts & Literature Posted on

10 Remarkable Runaway Ads

A frequent discovery when reading 18th Century newspapers is the runaway ads. In an era when people could be owned by or contractually bound to others, individuals who absconded were often advertised by their masters. These ads give us amazing descriptions of individuals and show the society’s remarkable diversity of physical attributes, demographics, personalities, situations […]

by Don N. Hagist
3
Reviews Posted on

The New Nation: The Creation of the United States in Paintings and Eyewitness Accounts

Book Review: The New Nation: The Creation of the United States in Paintings and Eyewitness Accounts The art of Mort Künstler, text by Edward G. Lengel. Sterling Publishing, 2014, ISBN: 1-4549-0773-8, ISBN13: 9781454907732, 9×10 hardcover, 208 color pages. We learn history through documents, but pictures make it come alive. It is unfortunate that relatively few […]

by Don N. Hagist