Franklin’s Secret Efforts to bring about Reconciliation
byBenjamin Franklin made two missions to London prior to the Revolution; the first from 1757 to 1762, the second from 1764 to 1775. In…
1774
4
Country Crowds in Revolutionary Massachusetts: Mobs and Militia
byPeter Oliver, the Crown-appointed Chief Justice of provincial Massachusetts, knew how to discredit popular protest. Mindless and incapable of acting on their own, crowds…
2
The Rise of Virginia’s Independent Militia
byLike thousands of colonists in British North America, Virginians were alarmed in the summer of 1774 by news of Parliament’s harsh reaction to the…
1
The First Continental Congress Responds to the Intolerable Acts
byThe summer of 1774 was eventful for the colonists of British North America. News of Parliament’s harsh measures against Massachusetts, and particularly Boston, for…
2
Revolutionary Friendship
byTwo men are sitting drinking pints of ale in a Boston tavern. One is a strapping, full-faced young merchant given to loud laughter; the…
George Washington Makes the Case for a Boycott
byThe news that many dreaded reached Virginia in May 1774. The British parliament, determined to punish the inhabitants of Boston for the destruction of…
9
Strategy to Pre-war Violence?
byDo you think there was a greater strategy behind most of the pre-war violence, or was it primarily raw emotion and vengeance? There…
9
Benjamin Franklin: America’s First Whistleblower
byEdward Snowden and the NSA documents. Julian Assange and the WikiLeaks diplomatic cables. Daniel Elsberg and the Pentagon papers. Benjamin Franklin and the Hutchinson…
29
5 Myths of Tarring and Feathering
by1. Myth: Tarring and feathering could be fatal. Busted: The notion that hot tar caused severe, sometimes fatal burns is based on the assumption…
4
Congress Bans Theatre!
byAs a near-life-long New York resident and “struggling actor,” it is always a pleasure to see the ever-present throngs of theatre-goers throughout the City….
8
12 Questions with Ray Raphael
byIf Ray Raphael had a personal mission statement, it would likely be three sentences from a recent profile story in Reed magazine: Ray wants…
6
When were they Patriots and Loyalists?
byAt what point during the American Revolution is it most acceptable to classify colonists as either Patriots or Loyalists? 1776. Before this, many…
5
Reverend Seabury’s Pamphlet War
byIn the fall of 1774, just before adjourning, the First Continental Congress outlined the Articles of Association, an aggressive plan of economic resistance to…
2
“Intolerable Acts”
byI started with an innocent question about the British Parliament’s Quartering Act of 1774: Did American Patriots list that law as one of the…
4
America’s First Declaration of Independence
byMyth: Americans did not formally resolve for independence until 1776. Busted: On October 4, 1774, the town meeting of Worcester, Massachusetts, declared that British…
1
Valentine to Miss Mercy Scollay
byWhen researching the biography of Revolutionary War hero Dr. Joseph Warren, I had the unexpected pleasure of becoming acquainted with his fiancée Miss Mercy…