In this issue:
- Talk Like a Loyalist – by Stephen Davidson UE
- The Short War of James Wilcox, 33rd Regiment of Foot
- “Pains and Penalties, to be inflicted on the town of Boston”: The Passage of the Boston Port Bill
- Onboard Whitby Ships: 1720s to 1770s
- Neil MacKinnon’s “The Changing Attitudes of the Nova Scotian Loyalists towards the United States, 1783-1791”
- Hessian Soldiers Travelling to America: Battle at Yorktown. – A Soldier‘s Life October 1781
- Podcast: Ben Franklin’s World: Tea, Boycotts, and Revolution
- Advertised on 31: December 1774: “The American Contest”
- Beaver Tales: Reflections on fifty years — and beyond — of Canada’s furry national symbol
- Events Upcoming
- Services: Book Restoration by The Bookman
- From the Social Media and Beyond
Twitter: http:// twitter.com/uelac
Facebook: https:// www.facebook.com/groups/2303178326/?ref=share
Talk Like a Loyalist
copyright Stephen Davidson UE
Back in 1986, the Bangles, an all-female American rock band, had a number one hit song with “Walk Like an Egyptian”. Two hundred and ten years earlier, Samuel Curwen of Salem, Massachusetts was far too miserable to be humming the popular tunes of his day. The businessman was among the hundreds of loyalist refugees that had sought refuge in England. Thanks to the journal that he kept for nine years, we know of his adventures in the United Kingdom, his correspondence with fellow Loyalists, and his reactions to the events of the American Revolution.
His diary also gives 21st century readers a glimpse of the vocabulary used by middle-class Loyalists. A quick perusal of the 18th century words found in Curwen’s journal provides us with the opportunity to “talk like a Loyalist”.
Try to decipher this sentence: According to the canaille, the macaroni parson – a hogan-mogan to be sure—should have been in merry andrew clothes when the limner captured his image.
Translation? According to the common people, the dandy, fashion-conscious parson – who presumed to be an important man—should have been in a clown costume when the portrait that was painted captured his image.
Try again: One isn’t a calumniator to claim that London is a real lickpenny – it’s hardly an exaggeration to saw that a pottle of strawberries costs the same as a butt of malmsey.
Translation: One is hardly a person who makes false or defamatory statements to claim that London is place that uses up a lot of money – it’s hardly an exaggeration to say that a small conical basket of strawberries costs the same as 1,060 litres of a sweet white Greek wine.
It’s no surprise that Curwen mentions franked mail. That was correspondence marked with an official sign to indicate that sender had the right to post it. In 1775, the Loyalist noted that Patriot-held Philadelphia “admits no letters to pass but those franked; the contents of which must be known to one of the committee to be entitled to that benefit“. Consequently, Curwen had to be very careful with regard to what he said in his letters to friends back in New England.
The era had some wonderful adjectives. An irrefragable argument was one that could not be refuted or disproved. A fribbling matter was one of no importance. A captious person found fault or raised petty objections. Something execrable was extremely bad or unpleasant. (An execration was a curse.) After having a nightmare, you might want to refer to oneirocritic (dream interpreting) literature. A rake or hoe that was decumbent on your front lawn was simply lying on the ground.
At one point in his journal, Curwen used an adjective to describe the 13 rebelling colonies. He wrote about the “the Amphyctionic States of America” – a title I’m sure we’re all glad didn’t catch on. The word “amphyctionic” means a league comprised of neighbours. It’s an accurate adjective, but is much more cumbersome than simply saying “united”.
Here are some 18th century nouns to drop into casual conversation. Do you feel that you should write a remonstrant (forcefully reproachful protest) to your Member of Parliament? Would you consider take-out food to be a collation (a light informal meal)? Do you buy your bacon at a shambles (butcher’s shop)? Someone known for scurrility makes scandalous claims about a person with the intention of damaging his reputation. If the boss makes a rescript, he has issued an official announcement. Do you have a disrest? That’s a pain or suffering in some part of your body.
Did someone walk up to you on the street and rob you? An 18th century pedestrian would call the thief a foot-pad because the latter was not on horseback. Has a friend gone on a peregrination? That’s simply a long or meandering journey. A scribbling mill was not a place where people generated poor handwriting; it was a textile mill at which wool or cotton fibres were straightened out by combing.
Curwen used some interesting verbs in his journal as well. Does your grandmother prefer to stand on her own bottom (be independent and on her own) rather than live in a seniors’ home? A city that was depopulated in that era was said to have been dispeopled.
When it came to verbs, Curwen could be quite creative. He coined his own word when he said that King George III lived in fear that General Cornwallis “will have been Burgoyned” in Yorktown, Virginia. And of course, he was. Burgoyne suffered a humiliating defeat at the Battle of Saratoga, demonstrating that Patriot forces could overwhelm superior British troops. It was an American victory that convinced the French to support the rebelling colonies, an alliance that eventually led to the Patriots winning the American Revolution.
General Cornwallis’ forces experienced the same devastating defeat at Yorktown in Virginia. It became the last great battle of the Revolution. Curwen felt that if Cornwallis was “Burgoyned” (defeated by American forces), it would be “an end to this cursed, ill-omened quarrel”. The Loyalist’s analysis of the situation was all too accurate.
Perhaps this loyalist-coined verb could still be used in the 21st century – a time period that Curwen, writing in the 18th century, would have said was the “futurity” (future time). If, for example, Russian forces were “Burgoyned” in the Ukraine, it would mean that they suffered a defeat that would have a far-reaching impact, leading to a major shift in the war.
Loyalist-generated documents are fascinating for the insights into the character of loyal Americans, the events of their times, and for the emotional aspect of becoming refugees. And they can also be fascinating simply for the unique words they used to describe their world.
To secure permission to reprint this article contact the author at stephendavids@gmail.com.
The Short War of James Wilcox, 33rd Regiment of Foot
by Don N. Hagist 2 Jan 2025 Journal of the American Revolution
The British army did a lot of recruiting in 1775 and 1776. After the government committed to using force to quell the rebellion in America, the War Office increased the authorized size of each regiment deployed overseas by 50 percent—from 360 private soldiers to 540. Part of this increase was accomplished by transferring soldiers from regiments remaining in Britain into regiments already overseas or scheduled for deployment. The balance was attained by vigorous recruiting efforts.
During the 1770s and 1780s, each British regiment did its own recruiting. Each regiment sent officers to wherever recruits might be gotten, leading some officers to favor their home towns or counties where they knew families and circumstances. Captain William Dansey of the 33rd Regiment of Foot chose the area of his newly-adopted home town of Hereford near the Welsh border.
One of Dansey’s recruits was a nineteen-year-old butcher named James Wilcox, who enlisted in February 1775. Read more…
“Pains and Penalties, to be inflicted on the town of Boston”: The Passage of the Boston Port Bill
by Bob Ruppert 31 Dec 2024 Journal of the American Revolution
On March 7, 1774 the motion to consider the Boston Port Bill was presented to the House of Commons. On March 14, the first official reading of the bill took place. It was followed by a debate that lasted all day. During the debates members of the House mainly expressed their opinions for or against the bill; a few moved to change some of the language. At the end of the day a decision was made that the bill merited further consideration. On March 22, the day began with the second reading of the now-amended bill. The debates were more heated and motions to change some of the language continued. By the end of the day, it became clear where most of the members stood on the issue. On March 25, a third reading of the further-amended bill took place. The debates did not last as long as the previous two days. At their conclusion a vote was called to pass, that is, approve, the bill, or not. If it did not pass, the bill would advance no further; if it did pass, it would be sent to the House of Lords where it would go through the same process. In the end, it passed the House of Lords. The final step in the process was for the bill to be sent to King George III for his assent. What follows here is the debate among members of the House of Commons on March 25, as recorded at the time.
[Statements for and against, such as] Mr. William Dowdeswell (MP for Worcestershire):
By the Bill, a person is to understand, that the commerce of all his Majesty’s subjects is interrupted . . . I cannot give my assent to it until I hear the complaints from the different manufacturers of iron, leather, wool, etc. . . and the merchants of this country, which complaints, I imagine, the hurry of passing this Bill totally prevents . . . Look to the consequences of this Bill; you are contending for a matter which the Bostonians will not give up quietly. I remember . . . when it was held a doctrine in this House . . . that we had no right to tax America. There is now no such opinion . . . Have there been no other towns in Amerca which have disobeyed your orders? Has not Philadelphia, New York, and several other provinces, sent back their tea? Has not the East India Company suffered nearly as much damage from the tea being sent back, as indeed where they have landed it . . . All that you have effected, is to carry your merchandize seventeen miles further from the town of Boston, so that the Bostonians shall be obliged to be at an additional expence in conveying their merchandize from the port of Salem by land. You ask why the Americans do not pay their debts? If you stop the exports, you will of course stop the payment of those debts . . . if parliament continually passes Bils, sometimes to punish the person, at other times the places, you will, by and by, have your hands fully employed; you will soon enflame all America, and stir up a contention you will not be able to pacify
Onboard Whitby Ships: 1720s to 1770s
– Textile Trade via European Countries and North America
By Viveka Hansen, 3 Jan 2025 ikfoundation.org
A substantial number of preserved 18th century documents give information about textile material in connection with the shipping trade in Whitby. All this evidence was an essential part of my research for the publication The Textile History of Whitby 1700-1914 to open up a more comprehensive geographical understanding of a small town along the Yorkshire coast. These early writings lighten anything from describing sails and clothes in diaries to importing fabric from overseas, garments salvaged from shipwrecks, muster rolls, insurance policies and freight books. Some of the earliest written sources will be presented in this essay, assisted by a selection of contemporary images to further emphasise the exchange of goods – like printed handkerchiefs, linen, velvets and figured silks – transported on ships via the local coastal trade, to London, towards the Baltic Sea and over the Atlantic Ocean.
The earliest material comes from a document named ‘Coasters into Whitby 1729-1735’, a time when all kinds of goods were brought by sea to Whitby from other British ports. Many of these items, including cloth unloaded in Whitby, had been imported from other countries. The descriptions given are so detailed that they sometimes reveal the place of origin: ‘Yorkshire linen cloth, Russian linen, German linen, Hambro. Linen, English Printed handkerchiefs & Ozenbriggs linen’. In other words, it was mainly linen cloth of various origins, but it was not only linen that these ships carried. For example, a coaster arrived on 13 September 1731 with the following textiles in its cargo:
- 8 yds cambrick [cambric]
- 250 ells Russia linen
- 18 ells printed handkerchiefs 16 yds shagg [shag]
- 35 yds druggit [drugget]
- 90 yds callamanco [calamanco]
- 38 yds cambrick [cambric]
- 20 yds buckram’
These goods represent some of the cloth qualities among the rich array of textile materials available in 18th century drapers’ shops. As far as the above list is concerned, it is also evident from the quantity of yards and ells involved (a yard being about 0.91 m and an ell about 1.14 m) that the cloth was intended for sale in a shop. Read more…
Neil MacKinnon’s “The Changing Attitudes of the Nova Scotian Loyalists towards the United States, 1783-1791”
Noted by Stephen Davidson UE while volunteering at a local food bank where he discovered (and then found online) in a collection of historical articles first published in 1998.
Opening paragraph:
All great passions are difficult to sustain, and even more so when one is removed from the object of that passion. The Loyalists came to Nova Scotia at the very flood of their anger. Although they had sometimes been generous and conciliatory towards the American people during the revolution, the year of the peace and the expulsion traumatized them, and they lashed out, like a grievously hurt child, with an intensity more fierce than during the war. It was in this state that they came to Nova Scotia bringing with them what seemed to be a strong and enduring hatred of those who had expelled them, an emotion which permeated the settlements during their first years in Nova Scotia. But there are few constants. In Nova Scotia the refugees could not reserve for the Americans that obsessive concentration upon which hatred can thrive. With time, new circumstances, and new enemies, the memory of the revolution receded, the Loyalist attitude mellowed, and the American as enemy was relegated to a far corner of the Loyalist mind. Read more…
More articles – Stephen notes:
Your keenest readers might want to explore other loyalist-related articles that have appeared in Acadiensis going back to the fall of 1971. (One of Canada’s leading scholarly journals, Acadiensis is devoted to the study of the history of the Atlantic region and remains the essential source for reading and research in this area.) Readers can browse through past editions by visiting the Acadiensis website: <https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/ acadiensis>
Hessian Soldiers Travelling to America: Yorktown – A Soldier’s Life October 1781
From a Hessian Diary of the American Revolution.
This excerpt from the diary of Johan Conrad Dohla (170 pages).
Major Moves during Johan’s deployment:
- March 1777: Depart Germany
- 3 June 1777: Arrive New York, then Amboy NJ
- November 1777: To Philadelphia
- June 1778: to Long Island
- July 1778: To Newport RI
- October 1779: to New York
- May 1781: to Chesapeake Bay (Yorktown).
Octber, 1781: Battle at Yorktown. (page 106)
Continuation of Occurences in North America During the Fifth Year, 1781
IN THE MONTH OF OCTOBER [1781]
page 106
16 October. Before daybreak, between four and five o’clock, our side launched a sortie. The English Major Anderson, with two hundred volunteers from the Light Infantry, marched in the greatest possible silence from the Horn Battery, which was in the center of our lines, and attacked the enemy in a communication trench. They killed many with bayonets and quickly spiked eleven cannon in a position in front of the middle of their camp. Thereupon, there was an alarm in their entire camp. The command, however, retreated in the greatest haste, in good order and with minimal losses.
This afternoon all sick and wounded from the hospitals were taken across the river to Gloucester.
This afternoon the enemy fired a terribly strong cannonade.
At night I went on duty in the Horn defense, to which our two regiments sent 250 men because the Light Infantry, which defended this post, were packed up and taken over the river in sloops to observe the enemy in Gloucester and in the region of Kirlentown. It is said this was done to see if it was possible to break through in this region and move inland easier, or to move toward Maryland — because everyone could easily see that we could not hold out much longer in this place if we did not receive relief.
During this night the enemy side fired no shot. We continued our firing, however. The enemy busied himself with defenses and work, which toward morning approached, with a communication trench and a strong battery of fourteen cannon, so near to our Hornwork that he could almost have thrown a stone into it.
17 October. At daybreak the enemy bombardment resumed, more terribly strong than ever before. They fired from all positions without letup. Our command, which was in the Hornwork, could hardly tolerate the enemy bombs, howitzer, and cannonballs any longer. There was nothing to be seen but bombs and cannonballs raining down on our entire line.
In the morning the English Light Infantry returned from Gloucester and reentered their post in the Horn-work. They said that it was impossible to break out there, because all the surrounding area was strongly occupied and fortified by the enemy. Also, a cordon had been drawn around the entire region by several squadrons of French Hussars, so that not the least thing could enter or leave. This morning also, just after reveille, General Cornwallis entered the Hornwork to observe the enemy and his preparations. As soon as he was again in his quarters, he sent a flag of truce with a white flag to the enemy. The Light Infantry in the Hornwork began to cut up their new tents, and in general, much was destroyed, as it was believed there would be a surrender soon.
At twelve o’clock noon another flag of truce went over. About three o’clock in the afternoon we departed from our command and marched back into our lines. The enemy cannonballs accompanied us on our march.
Toward evening everything became still, and no further shots were fired by either side. During the evening several flags of truce went back and forth, and work on the surrender accord was conducted in earnest.
At nine o’clock at night a powder magazine in the city blew up and killed thirteen people, of whom part flew into the air in pieces, but part were horribly crushed and covered with earth. Among those killed was an Ansbach grenadier who was on watch there, and also three English cannoneers who wished to take out powder and munitions and who apparently touched it off.
(to be continued)
Podcast: Ben Franklin’s World: Tea, Boycotts, and Revolution
James Fichter is a historian and associate professor at the University of Hong Kong. He’s also the author of Tea: Consumption, Politics, and Revolution, 1773-1776. He joins us to explore the Tea Crisis of 1773 and the resulting non-importation/non-exportation movement the colonists organized after Parliament passed the Coercive Acts.
During our exploration, James reveals information about early Americans’ taste for tea and the origin of the early American “tea craze”; The stories we learned about the Tea Crisis and Boston Tea Party and what historical sources have to say about the reality of those events; And, details about the Continental Association and the non-importation/non-exportation program it outlined for 1775 and 1776. Listen in…
Advertised on 31 December 1774: “The American Contest”
What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago this week?
Note: January 1, 1775, fell on a Sunday. Colonial printers distributed newspapers every day except Sunday. The Adverts 250 Project will commence examining advertisements from 1775 tomorrow.
January 1, 1775
In the final issue of Rivington’s New-York Gazetteer for 1774, James Rivington continued advertising pamphlets “written on the Whig and Tory Side of the Question.” He inserted an advertisement similar to the “POLITICAL PUBLICATIONS” catalog that he ran on December 15. Both listed nine tracts that Rivington sold to readers or to “Gentlemen living at a Distance … to distribute amongst their Friends.” Some of the titles appeared a second time. Rivington eliminated some, added others, and reorganized the order accordingly.
For instance, a pamphlet documenting the Continental Association, a nonimportation agreement adopted by the First Continental Congress had been first in the previous iteration, but Rivington listed it fourth in the new one. A new entry led the catalog: “The Congress Canvassed, OR, An Examination into the Conduct of the Delegates, At the Grand Continental Congress, Addressed to the Merchants of New-York, By the FARMER, A.W.” Rivington had previously advertised that he would soon publish that piece, having included “Free Thoughts on the Proceedings of the Continental Congress” among the “POLITICAL PUBLICATIONS” in his earlier catalog. That item appeared once again, paired this time with “A full Vindication of the Measures of the Continental Congress IN ANSWER TO Free Thoughts on the Proceedings of the said Congress.” Again, Rivington had previously advertised “A full Vindication” separately, but collated together “Free Thoughts” and the pamphlet that responded to it in the new catalog. The enterprising printer aimed to help prospective customers craft a narrative when selecting among his offerings.
Read more…
Beaver Tales: Reflections on fifty years — and beyond — of Canada’s furry national symbol
by Nicholas Hamilton — 30 Oct 2024 at Canada’s History
Before poutine, maple syrup, or even hockey became synonymous with Canada, there was the beaver. Those tree-felling, dam-building rodents have helped to shape the environment, culture, and history of modern Canada, but their importance stretches much further back, to the country’s Indigenous peoples and European settlers.
For centuries, people have admired beavers for their construction skills. The dams and lodges that they build make it easy to see why the animal became a symbol of wisdom and industriousness. But it was the beaver’s waterproof pelt that caught the eye of early European explorers who, having depleted their own beaver populations to meet the demand for top hats, realized that they’d found a fresh supply. The resulting profits became a driving force for the European colonization of the land that would become Canada. The fur trade nearly drove the beaver to extinction, but, thanks to conservation efforts and the decline in the popularity of beaver-felt hats, the animal has since made a comeback.
And so, after a long relationship with the beaver, Canada decided to make things official in March 1975 with the National Symbol of Canada Act. To mark the act’s fiftieth anniversary in 2025, we’re showcasing the ever-evolving approaches artists have taken to representing the beaver, and what they tell us about the diverse ways of being Canadian. Read more…
The American Revolution Institute: “The American Cause…is the Cause of Liberty” Mon 6 Jan 7:00
Various topics highlighting the marquis de Lafayette and the American Revolution in South Carolina. Lafayette’s farewell tour in 1824 and 1825; exciting stories of several of the Revolution’s southern heroines, including Grace and Rachel Martin, daring sisters-in-law from Ninety-Six, South Carolina; the saga of Revolutionary War veteran Andrew Wallace and his claimed service in every major campaign from 1776 to the war’s end—from Canada to South Carolina. More and registration…
Gov. Simcoe Branch: “My 8th-Great-Grandfather” by Carl Stymiest UE Wed 8 Jan 7:30
Carl will delve into the intriguing life of his ancestor, Anthony van Salee, known as “The Turk.” Van Salee was an early settler of New Amsterdam (modern-day Manhattan) and is believed to be the first Muslim in New York. His story is a cornerstone of Stymiest’s broader family narrative, detailed in the 2001 publication, Down by the Old Mill Stream: A Stymiest Chronicle.
The presentation highlights van Salee’s complex legacy as a prominent yet controversial figure in the fledgling Dutch colony.
Carl is currently President, UELAC
Read more and register…
Chester County History Center, PA: Doans and the Revolution Tues, 14 Jan. 7:00
The Doan Gang was a group of British loyalists, the most notorious members being five brothers and one cousin from the Doan family of Plumstead, PA. The gang was composed of around 50 members who were accused murderers, attainted traitors who ferried British prisoners of war to British lines, and horse thieves. They were also guilty of robbing tax collectors; their most famous crime being the theft of the Bucks County treasury in 1781.
This 45-minute lecture focuses on the Doan Gang and their activities in Bucks County during the American Revolution. This lecture is based entirely on contemporary research using historic court documents, eyewitness accounts, and newspaper appearances.
Pay As You Wish!
Reserve Your Spot
Services: Book Restoration by The Bookman
A bookbinding company working mainly in the restoration of books, bibles, journals, and albums. Books are restored with care and attention to detail. See https:// bookman-jim.biz/ or reach out to Jim Andrews <jim@bookman-jim.biz> who is in Texas. Serving USA and Canada
Notes:
- This is not an endorsement
- We are willing to briefly note products and services that would be relevant to family historians and others in our Loyalist era community.
From the Social Media and Beyond
- While on vacation in Sydney,
- Townsends, and “anything food”
- Favorite Videos Of 2024! – Marathon (4+ hours)
- This week in History
- 31 Dec 1720 Prince Charles Edward Stuart, aka Bonnie Prince Charlie, the Young Chevalier, or the Young Pretender, was born in Rome. The penultimate main Stuart claimant to the British throne, he is best known for leading the ill-fated 45 Rebellion.
- 1 Jan 1735 – Paul Revere, American silversmith & engraver, is born in Boston’s North End. He would go on to be a major figure in the run-up to #RevWar Leader of the Mechanics, an anti-British network in Boston, and, of course, the famed rider of 1775. image
- 1 Jan 1752 – Betsy Ross, an American seamstress credited with designing the Flag of the United States, was born. Born Elizabeth Griscom in Phila, PA, she was a legendary female figure of the #RevWar image
- 29 Dec 1774 Mercy Warren told Catharine Macaulay that the Boston port Bill had produced “A stagnation of commerce,” and “The Bill for altering the Constitution has Reduced the province to a state of Nature.”
- 30 Dec 1774, Thomas Cushing wrote to Josiah Quincy Jr in London: “prohibiting the Exportation of Powder or any sort of arms and ammunition from Great Britain…forebodes the most vigorous exertions of Martial Force.”
- 2 Jan 1775 “Last week the Marines, which lately arrived in the Men of War from England, commanded by Maj. Pitcairn, were landed, and are now in Barracks at the North Part of the Town.” John Pitcairn boarded at Francis Shaw’s. —Boston Evening-Post
- 3 Jan 1775. a crowd in Concord “unloaded Capt. [Duncan] Ingraham’s Bords that were to go to Boston,” Dr. Joseph Lee wrote in his diary. The army might have used that timber to build barracks, and locals didn’t want to see that happen.a crowd in Concord unloaded Capt.”
- 4 Jan 1775 “The Discontent of the Soldiers has become so general that they have doubled all the guards and…fix’d a field piece in the Centre of the town to be fir’d in case of a mutiny.” —merchant John Andrews #OTD January 4, 1775
- 30 Dec 1775 Gen Richard Montgomery & Benedict Arnold developed a plan for a 2-pronged attack on Gov Guy Carleton’s 1.8K garrison at Quebec with half the British strength. The objective was a quick capture of the lower town based on stealth & speed. image
- 31 Dec 1775 Quebec Outnumbered Gen Richard Montgomery & Col Benedict Arnold launch attack on the 1.5K garrison under Gov Guy Carleton. Montgomery cut down, leading 1st assault. Arnold’s force overruns enemy positions but falters when he is wounded. image
- 31 Dec 1775 Quebec With Arnold & Montgomery down, Dan Morgan takes charge but is surrounded & surrenders. Failed assault yields 70+ American killed & wounded & 400+ prisoners. Arnold takes command of all forces, now greatly weakened & besieges the city. image
- 4 Jan 1776 Quebec Canada British burial detail digs up remains of American Gen Richard Montgomery. Gov Guy Carleton orders him buried with full military honors. image
- 28 Dec 1776, American troops began a 3rd crossing of the Delaware River, a few miles south of McConkey’s ferry, planning to move back into Trenton. image
- 30 Dec 1776 Gen Washington recrosses Delaware R. with just 2K men & reoccupies Trenton NJ, where he learns Gen Charles Cornwallis is advancing from Princeton with 8K men. He calls for more militia & urges them not to depart as their enlistments expire. image
- 30 Dec 1776 Col Joseph Reed, leading a patrol of dragoons. skirmishes with a British patrol along the Delaware R. near Trenton, NJ & drives them off. image
- 1 Jan 1776 Gen David Wooster assumes temporary command of beleaguered US troops in Canada. image
- 1 Jan 1776 Cambridge, MA. Gen. Washington declares the beginning of a “new” army in his general orders as a new flag with alternating white and red stripes on a blue field is unfurled. This “Grand Union Flag” was not sanctioned by Congress & unofficial. image
- 2 Jan 1776 Norfolk, VA Fires caused by British bombs and torches spread through the town, consuming 54 houses. Local Committee of Safety ordered the remaining houses burned to deny Lord Dunmore their use, destroying over800 buildings. image
- 3 Jan 1776 Lord North gives NC Royal Gov Josiah Martin authority to recruit 20K Loyalists from the Scots Highland populace and march to Brunswick to join forces with an expedition expected off the coast in early spring. image
- 4 Jan 1776 Cambridge MA Gen George Washington writes Continental Congress, assuring them he will attack Boston when the opportunity arises. image
- 1 Jan 1777 Gen Charles Cornwallis, about to leave for England to see his ailing wife, Jemima, rode from NYC to command the 8K British troops in Princeton, NJ. He would lead them in a hunt for Washington’s 5 K-strong army. image
- 1 Jan 1777 Trenton NJ Gen Washington entrenches 5K men and 40 guns along the south bank of Assunpink Creek to await the British onslaught. He sends a brigade under Gen Fermoy north to delay the enemy. Fermoy abandons the field & Col Edward Hand takes over. image
- 2 Jan 1777 Trenton NJ Gen Charles Cornwallis’s column pushed south through Trenton and faced Washington’s army across the Assunpink Creek. Artillery, muskets & rifle exchanges found the Americans holding the line at dusk when the British attack paused. image
- 3 January 1777 New Jersey Under the guns of General Cornwallis’s army, General Washington’s forces leave their positions at Assunpink Creek and make a cold night march toward Princeton. The next day is bright but cold. As they advance, they encounter a British brigade under Colonel Charles Mawhood. Bitter back-and-forth fighting ensues. But the Americans drive off the outnumbered British & seize Princeton. Gen Cornwallis is duped and flanked, but unfortunately, one of Washington’s best commanders (and friend), General Hugh Mercer, is mortally wounded. With Cornwallis force-marching to catch him and inflict retribution, Washington ponders his next move: the British base at Brunswick or the safety of the Watchung Hills? image
- 4 January 1777 Princeton NJ. With General Cornwallis approaching, General Washington wanted to push on to seize the British base at New Brunswick. Still, Henry Knox & Nathanael Greene convinced him to move his army to Somerset Court House & in the following days, to Morristown, NJ. The Continental Army would enter winter quarters with two victories and a bold counterstroke after an autumn of defeat and retreat. British General Howe would again send his army into winter quarters and enjoy the delights of New York City and Mrs. Elizabeth Loring. At the same time, he planned the strategy for the following year. image
- 29 Dec 1778 Savannah, GA. 3.1K British regulars, Loyalists & Cherokee & Creek Braves under Col Archibald Campbell defeat 850 patriots & capture the city. Americans lost 17 KIA & 483 were taken prisoner. British lost 3-7 men killed & another 10-17 wounded. image
- 29 Dec 1779 NYC Gen Sir Henry Clinton departs for SC at the head of 8K men to capture Charleston. Learns of French expedition heading to America and returns to NYC. Leaves General Charles, Earl Cornwallis, in command. image
- 2 Jan 1780 Morristown, NJ During the harshest winter of the decade, the Continental Army endures extreme suffering at its winter cantonment. Frigid temperatures, lack of blankets, warm clothing, adequate shelter & food made this worse than Valley Forge. image
- 28 Dec 1780 Hammond’s Store, SC. American cavalry & infantry under Col Wm Washington route Loyalist detachment of equal size under Col Thomas Waters, inflicting 150 killed & 40 captured. Gen Cornwallis sends Col. Banastre Tarleton to seek revenge. image
- 28- 29 Dec 1781 Johns Island SC. Col Henry (Lt Horse Harry) Lee’s night attack on the British garrison under Maj James Craig fails when the rising tide halts one of 2 attacking columns, exposing Col John Laurens’s column. image
- 31 Dec 1781 Wartime losses at sea for the year-end at 625 British ships vs. 317 American. The capture or sinking of a large chunk of British merchant shipping would be a key factor in Parliament seeking peace in 1782. image
- 28 Dec 1795: The Queen’s York Rangers begin construction of Yonge Street, at York, Upper Canada (present-day Toronto). John Graves Simcoe names the street for his friend Sir George Yonge, an expert on ancient Roman roads. image
- Clothing and Related:
- Detail, court mantua by Madam Leconte, 1740-45 (embroidery); 1740 – 1745 (sewing) & 1920s (altered). A woman’s court mantua w/ petticoat, English; dark pink ribbed silk embroidered w/silver @V_and_A
- Bodice, 18th century. At the court of France, ladies were expected to be in full court dress for all formal occasions. A dame du palais or femme de chambre who waited on the queen was required to wear full court dress at all times. ,,,The bodice, stiffened with whalebone, was completely different from those worn with other dresses. The Marquise de la Tour du Pin described one of her bodices in her memoire:. …. I wore a grand corps, a specially made bodice, without shoulders, laced in the back, but so narrow that the lacing, about four inches wide at the bottom, showed a chemise of the finest batiste through which one could easily have noticed an insufficiently white skin. Read more…
- Embroidered cream coloured silk with coloured silk & metal threads, England, 1740-45. Originally a court mantua, composed of gown & petticoat, the ensemble was altered for fancy dress in the late C19th.
- Miscellaneous
- Today while in the Rocks, suburb in Sydney, viewed the Statue to Captain William Bligh, best known perhaps for the mutiny which occurred during his command of HMS Bounty in 1789 who 15 years later became Governor of this colony. …Brian McConnell UE
- Old Westminster Bridge in the reign of King George III London 1799. And in 1805.
- A George II metal toddy ladle with an inserted sterling silver shilling ‘Lima’ mint coin of King George II. The coin is dated 1745, the same year as the attempted restoration of Charles Edward Stuart.
- Hand- sewn quilt created by the Brontë sisters, including Anne, Charlotte & Emily who later created classic literature. The silks, taffetas & velvets may have been taken from their old dresses
Published by the UELAC
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