Year: 2015

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The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on

A Shocking Havoc: The Plundering of Westfield, New Jersey, June 26, 1777

Before a single British soldier set foot on New Jersey soil, Deputy Adjutant-General of the British Army in North America Stephen Kemble was concerned for his native colony. “Shudder for Jersey,” he confided in his journal on November 7, 1776, “the Army being thought to move there Shortly.”[1] Once the invasion and occupation of the […]

by Jason R. Wickersty
Food & Lifestyle Posted on

A Gift for General Washington

In a letter to Patrick Henry recounting the events of the Battle of Monmouth, George Washington included information about losses on both sides and the death of a young Virginia officer: “…Capt. Fauntleroy of the 5th was unfortunately killed by a random Cannon Ball.”[1] What was the connection between the commander in chief and the […]

by Jeff Dacus
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Reviews Posted on

Stark: The Life and Wars of John Stark, French and Indian War Ranger, Revolutionary War General

Book Review:  Stark: The Life and Wars of John Stark, French and Indian War Ranger, Revolutionary War General by Richard Polhemus and John Polhemus (Black Dome Press, 2014). 2015 marks the 240th anniversary of the beginning of American Revolution.   With the passage of time, many of the seminal figures that fought in those epic battles […]

by T. J. Johnson
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Interviews Posted on

Contributor Close-up: Thomas Fleming

About Thomas Fleming: Thomas Fleming is one of the most distinguished and productive historians and novelists of our time. He has written twenty nonfiction books that have won prizes and praise from critics and fellow historians, many with a special focus on the American Revolution. His twenty-three novels, many of them bestsellers, explore the lives […]

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

Murder Along the Creek: Taking a Closer Look at the Sugarloaf Massacre

On September 11, 1780, a detachment of forty-one Northampton County, Pennsylvania, militiamen was surprised by a force consisting of thirty Seneca warriors and Tories. When the fighting was over, fifteen American patriots lay dead on the ground.”[1] “As the summer of 1780 began to wane, a detachment of forty-one of the veteran Van Etten’s Company […]

by Thomas Verenna
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Primary Sources Posted on

5 Political Characters of Americans

The March 18, 1777 Pennsylvania Packet (Philadelphia) published an essay by “S.” that classified five political characters of Americans. The article was republished in the April 23 Connecticut Journal (New Haven) and is transcribed below: THE people of America with respect to their political characters may be divided into the five following classes. – 1. […]

by Editors
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Primary Sources Posted on

The Discharge

When a soldier’s term of service was complete, he was discharged. Besides having arrears of pay and other obligations resolved, he was given a document called, aptly enough, a discharge. This piece of paper was vitally important for the soldier, for it proved that he had departed the army legally and was not a deserter. […]

by Editors
Primary Sources Posted on

To the Sound of the Fife

So you’ve been elected Captain of the militia company of your small Massachusetts town in 1774, and now you’ve got to train your men. Where do you begin? Probably by sending to a Boston bookseller (maybe Henry Knox) for a copy of a militia training manual. Several were published in England during the French & […]

by Editors
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News Posted on

Top 10 Articles of June 2015

Journal of the American Revolution kicked off summer 2015 with a fun group interview and several short features about important primary sources. This source series will continue another couple days and then we will resume our traditional editorial publishing after Independence Day. We have an exciting pipeline of articles planned for July. Verenna, Ruppert, Smith, […]

by Editors
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Primary Sources Posted on

Building and Attacking Redoubts

From Bunker Hill to Yorktown, a feature of military actions during the American Revolution was the redoubt. Of course, redoubts were a fixture in world-wide military operations long before, and long after, that war, but those fortifications built of earth, sod and timber were usually more complex than their simple materials suggest. At a glance, […]

by Editors
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Primary Sources Posted on

Ebenezer Parkman’s Diary

From mid-August to early October, 1774, huge crowds gathered in the “shiretowns” of every county in contiguous, mainland Massachusetts (except Suffolk, where Boston is located) to shut down the courts. These courts, which served executive as well as judicial functions, were the farthest outreach of Crown authority. People at the time offered estimates of the […]

by Editors
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Primary Sources Posted on

A View in America in 1778

Cartoons were a vital part of England’s print media in the 1770s, and were almost exclusively of the sort that today we call editorial cartoons. Artists drew images packed with symbolism expressing opinions concerning current events. Sometimes they included word balloons and captions in prose or verse, but many were simple images that left the […]

by Editors
Interviews Posted on

Most influential second city?

Outside of the big four (Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Charleston), which city was most critical to the success of the Revolution? Why?   Newport. British land and naval forces garrisoned in the rebellious nation’s fifth largest city for four years. Although the Continental Army failed to dislodge them in 1778, Newport served no great […]

by Editors
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Interviews Posted on

Global distraction?

What impact did British involvement elsewhere in the world have on operations in North America? Explain.   As brilliantly told in Andrew Jackson O’Shaughnessy’s Men Who Lost America, in February 1781 Rodney sacked St. Eustatius, a Dutch-held Caribbean island that served as a major trading port for the shipment of arms and munitions to the […]

by Editors
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Interviews Posted on

Best listener?

A lot has been written about the greatest writers and orators of the Revolution, but effective communication also requires good listening. Who was the best listener during the Revolution and what demonstrates or supports your selection?   I’d give Henry Knox the prize for best listener. He seldom took the lead in discussions when he […]

by Editors
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Interviews Posted on

Greatest lesson learned?

During the protracted conflict, nations, colonies, committees and individuals had several opportunities to learn from their mistakes. In your opinion, what is the best example of a person or people learning from a mistake early in the Revolution, and applying the lesson learned later on?   Gen. George Washington spent over two years of the […]

by Editors
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Interviews Posted on

Favorite artifact?

Which Revolutionary artifact do you wish was mistakenly delivered to your doorstep rather than the curator of a museum?   Washington’s draft of The Farewell Address. As I tell the story in my new book, The Great Divide, the newspaper editor who printed said he liked it so much, he felt regret at returning it. […]

by Editors
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News Posted on

Coming Soon!

The next several weeks will be a short break from the usual content featured at Journal of the American Revolution, so we wanted to take this opportunity to give you a preview of what’s planned. Next week (June 8-12) will be our sixth group interview. Five days of Q&A with multiple historians. Spoiler alert: The […]

by Editors
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News Posted on

JAR Annual Volume 2015 Update

We are having a blast working with our contributors and Westholme Publishing to produce collectible hardbacks in 2015 and beyond, and we can’t wait to share the finished product, the inaugural fruits of the JAR-Westholme collaboration, with everyone. Yesterday, we received a box of our new books from our distributor, University of Chicago Press, and […]

by Editors
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Reviews Posted on

Thomas Simes, Military Writer

When researching the Revolutionary War one is constantly keeping an eye out for primary source materials. Some of those sources are the very same books read by the people we study, including the wide range of books on military science published during the seventeen hundreds. Thomas Simes was one of the most prolific military writers […]

by Don N. Hagist
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Postwar Politics (>1783) Posted on

A Spy Wins a Purple Heart: The Amazing Tale of Daniel Bissell and the Military Order of Merit

On June 8th, 1783, Gen. George Washington issued the following orders to the Continental army from his headquarters in Newburgh, New York: Serjeant Bissel of the 2d Connecticut regt. having per­formed some important services, within the immediate knowledge of the Commander in chief, in which the fidelity, perseverence, and good sense of the said serjeant […]

by Todd W. Braisted
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Interviews Posted on

Contributor Close-up: Michael Schellhammer

About Michael Schellhammer: Michael Schellhammer is a former U.S. Army infantry, intelligence, and civil affairs officer. He served in the Persian Gulf War, Haiti, Bosnia, and Iraq. His work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Washington Times and The Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin. He is the author of The 83rd Pennsylvania Volunteers in the […]

by Editors
News Posted on

Top 10 Articles of May 2015

For those who don’t know, Journal of the American Revolution‘s three publishing pillars include the free online magazine at allthingsliberty.com, an annual hardback collector’s edition and a recently-announced book series of original monographs.  Journal of the American Revolution, Annual Volume 2015 presents the journal’s best historical research and writing of the previous year. Designed for […]

by Editors
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Interviews Posted on

Contributor Close-up: Bob Ruppert

About Bob Ruppert: Bob Ruppert is a retired high school administrator from the greater Chicago-land area. He received his undergraduate degree from Loyola University and his graduate degree from the University of Illinois. He has been researching the American Revolution, the War for Independence and the Federal Period for more than ten years. His interest […]

by Editors