EARLY AMERICA

JEAN LAFITTE

                Jean Lafitte was born around 1780.  Little is known of his childhood.  When he was in his twenties, he began a life of crime, specifically piracy.  He established a warehouse in New Orleans where he would sell goods taken by his older brother Pierre.  Pierre was a pirate in the Caribbean.  After the Jefferson administration passed the Embargo Act to stop goods from England and France from coming into the nation, the brothers had to get out of New Orleans.  They established a pirate port on an island in Barataria Bay south of Louisiana.  There their smuggling and pirate operations made them very rich.  But they were cheating the U.S. of customs duties.  In 1814, a Navy ship with a group of gunboats attacked Barataria Bay and captured most of the Lafitte ships.  They escaped and took to the seas again during the War of 1812 as both pirates and privateers.  Lafitte became famous.  He had a reputation for being charming and handsome.  He liked to drink, gamble, and he loved the ladies.  He treated captured crews well and sometimes returned their ships to them after he stole all their cargo. 

                Before the Battle of New Orleans, both sides wanted Jean Lafitte on their side. This was the reason the British sent three officers to convince him to back them.  When they showed up at his lair, he treated them to a banquet on silver plates with fine wines.  The Brits offered him $30,000, land, and a captaincy in the British army.  He told the British thanks and he would think about it, and then he ratted them out to Gen. Andrew Jackson.   He offered his pirates to Gen. Andrew Jackson to help defend New Orleans from an invading British army.  A pardon was dangled.  He provided Jackson with 7,500 flints for his muskets and rifles.  More importantly, he provided expert cannoneers for his artillery.  Lafitte’s men manned one of Jackson’s ships on the Mississippi and others formed three artillery companies.  This artillery tore into the British as they tried to reach the American line on Jan. 8, 1815.  Jackson might not have won the battle and moved on the presidency without Lafitte’s help.    After the battle, Pres. Monroe pardoned Lafitte for all his pirate crimes. 

                After the war, Jean had trouble going straight.  He established a colony called Campeche at Galveston.  It was similar to the one at Barateria.  He lived in a mansion with a moat around it. His pirates sometimes captured slave ships.  They would get half the proceeds from the government auction in New Orleans.  After one of his pirates capture an American merchant ship, an American warship was sent to crack down.  Lafitte and his men fled without a fight.  He continued his piracy in a series of bases in the Caribbean.  For a while he was a privateer for Simon Bolivar of Great Colombia.  In Feb., 1823, he went after two merchant ships, but they turned out to be armed and turned on his ship and pummeled him with cannon fire.  Lafitte was mortally wounded.  Thus died one of the most famous pirates in American History.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Lafitte

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/biographies/jean-lafitte

THE SLOWEST CHASE

                The USS Constitution was once surprised by a British fleet of seven ships.  Realizing that discretion was the better part of valor, Capt. Isaac Hull decided to escape to fight again another day.  Unfortunately, there was no wind to fill his sails.  In a situation like this, he decided on the tactic called “kedging”.  Long ropes were tied to two anchors.  One of the anchors was rowed forward in a boat and at its end was dropped to the bottom of the sea.  The crew of the Constitution would then grab the rope and walk from the bow to the stern with it, thus pulling the ship forward.  This action was repeated until the ship reached the site of the anchor.  Meanwhile the other anchor was rowed forward and dropped so the process could be immediately repeated.  Since the Constitution was more efficient at this than its pursuers, the gap widened.  Finally, the wind “freshened” and the Constitution was able to flee and go on to become the “Old Ironsides” of legend.

–  Whitcomb 66

STINKPOTS

                One tactic in naval warfare at the time of the War of 1812 was coming alongside an enemy and bashing it out.  It was no holds barred and any weapon might be used.  Grenades would be tossed from the rigging.  Similarly, stinkpots were also used.  A stinkpot was an earthen jug filled with rotten fish, saltpeter, and brimstone.  The smell was incredible when it burst.  If you could throw one down a hatch, it would force the enemy crew to come out on deck to get fresh air.  There they could be shot or blown up by grenades.

–  Whitcomb 66

LUCY BREWER

                It was not impossible for women to serve in the military, back before physicals were given to recruits.  Lucy Brewer fled her home as a teenager when a neighbor tried to seduce her.  She ended up in a city where she was tricked into working in a brothel.  A sympathetic sailor helped her escape that life by giving a set of sailor’s clothes.  She signed up on the USS Constitution and managed to keep her gender secret.  It turned out she was a crack shot so she was assigned as a sharpshooter if battle occurred.  In the famous duel with the HMS Guerriere, she was stationed high above the deck to shoot down onto the British ship.  She and other snipers shot several British sailors, including the captain.  On a later cruise, in a battle with the HMS Java, she fell into the ocean.  She was rescued and still managed to keep her identity from her mates.  After three years serving her country, she was given an honorable discharge, went home, put on a dress, and got married.  She wrote three books about her adventures.  Or were the books novels written by Nathaniel Hill Wright.  Probably.

–  maroon 108

UNCLE SAM

                In 1780,  Samuel Wilson was fourteen years old.  He ran away from his home in Massachusetts to follow in his father and brothers’ footsteps by joining the Continental Army.  He served until the end of the war and in 1790 he and his brother Ebenezer opened a meat-packing business in Troy, NY.  They managed to get a contract with the government to provide barrels of pork and beef for the Army during the War of 1812. He was popular, hard-working, fair, and honest. He was well-known for his gray hair and top hat.  Good American attributes.  During the War of 1812, he got government contracts for meat.  Once, when a group was touring the plant, someone asked about the “ES-US” stamps on the meat.  The EA stood for Elbert Anderson, Jr., who was the government contractor and the US stood for the United States.  But the worker who was asked about the initials decided to have some fun.  He explained that the US stood for his boss, who was called “Uncle Sam” by his friends and workers.  Since Wilson was a well-known figure and had the characteristics one would want in a national symbol, the nickname caught on.  By the 1830’s, cartoonists had settled on a white-haired gent.  They added a beard.  Later, the suit was changed to red, white, and blue.  In 1961, Congress confirmed that Samuel Wilson was the model for Uncle Sam.

–  maroon 116

SCANNON 

                On their expedition, Lewis and Clark brought Lewis’ dog Scannon.  Scannon was a 160 pound Newfoundland.  He went through all the hardships with the men and was a valuable member of the crew.  He would guard the camp at night and once chased off a buffalo that was charging his master.  When he was stolen by Indians, the men chased until they got him back.

–  Whitcomb 159

THE FIRED ARCHITECT

                At age 23, Frenchman Pierre Charles L’Enfant came to America to fight for freedom.  He became an architect and designed Federal Hall in New York City.  It became our first capitol and Washington was sworn in there.  Washington liked his work and hired him to design Washington, D.C.  He had a vision of a extravagant city of wide radiating streets, circles, malls, and parks.  Unfortunately, his vision outstripped his budget, plus he was a prickly sort who made an enemy of Congress and eventually Washington himself, who fired him.  Washington was expecting a fee of around $3,000, but L’Enfant felt he deserved $95,000.  Congress ended up paying him $1,394.20, which was immediately seized by his creditors.  He died a poor man and was buried in an unmarked grave.  In 1909, he was interred in Arlington National Cemetery.

–  Whitcomb 42-43

“OLD IRONSIDES”

                In August, 1812, the HMS Guerriere cruised along the east coast capturing American merchant ships and hoping to battle any American warships.  Captain James Dacres issued a challenge to “any American frigate who dares to do battle.”  Capt. Isaac Hull accepted the challenge in the USS Constitution.  The American frigate was a good match for the Guerriere, each had 44 cannons.  The big difference was the Guerriere was part of the greatest navy in history and the Constitution was from a fledgling navy that consisted of only a few frigates.  But it was built in America and it had a feisty, fighting captain.  The Constitution sailed out of Boston harbor and headed straight for the British warship.  As it neared the British, the American tars noted that the Brits had put a barrel of molasses in its rigging to taunt the Americans with a reference to a popular sailor drink called “switchel” which combined molasses and water.  Oh, snap!  When the Constitution came within range, the Guerriere opened fire, but the cannon balls bounced off its sides of 20 inch thick oak.  This is what gave the ship its famous name “Old Ironsides”.  Hull held fire until the ships were 25 feet apart and then he rained hell on the British ship by way of a series of broadsides that devastated the enemy.  Dacres surrendered his ship later that day.  Hull and the Constitution returned to great acclaim, having won the first significant victory in the history of the United States Navy.

                By 1830, “Old Ironsides” had become unseaworthy.  Newspapers took up its cause and informed the public of its shameful condition.  A Harvard student named Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote a famous poem where he sarcastically proclaimed:  “Aye, tear her tattered ensign down”.  The attention got the ship repaired and converted into a training ship.  In 1927, the ship was in need of major reconditioning.  Thousands of school children donated money to repair the ship.  It is now in Boston Navy Yard as a memorial and still is listed as an American warship.

https://www.historynet.com/constitution-vs-guerriere-americas-coming-out-party.htm

–  Whitcomb 93

THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER

                When Maj. George Armistead was given command of Fort McHenry outside Baltimore, he wanted a flag that could be seen for miles.  He commissioned local flag-maker Mary Pickersgill to sew the flag.  He wanted big, he got big.  The finished flag was 42 feet by 30 feet.  It took more than 400 yards of cloth.  It weighed over 200 pounds.  It cost $405.90.  Not only was it massive, it was unusual.  It had fifteen stars and fifteen stripes.  Congress had passed a Flag Act that called for adding stripes as well as stars when states were admitted into the Union.  The two extra stripes were for Vermont and Kentucky.  (The Flag Act of 1818 reverted back to 13 stripes permanently.)  After the War of 1812, the flag became the possession of the Armistead family. Over the years he cut off pieces to be used for burials of veterans. In 1907, Major Armstead’s descendants loaned the flag to the Smithsonian and in 1912 they made it a gift.  In 1964 it was put on display in the National Museum of American History, where it remains today.

–  Whitcomb  99  

YORK, ONE POPULAR SLAVE

                The most popular member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition was Clark’s black slave York.  He was not considered particularly valuable until they began encountering Indians.  The Native Americans were fascinated with his skin color since they had never seen a black man.  Daring braves would approach him, wet their thumbs and try to wipe the black off his skin.  Others really wanted to touch his curly hair.  They would offer their wives for the opportunity.  When they were at Indian villages, York did not spend any lonely nights.

–  Whitcomb 141

LEWIS IS BUTT-SHOT

                During the expedition, Lewis and Clark and their men did a lot of hunting to supplement their food supply.  It could be risky.  Once, Lewis was stalking an elk when he was shot in the butt by a poorly-sighted Peter Cruzatte. Fortunately, the wound was not serious.

–  Whitcomb 141-142

ERIE CANAL WAGES

                Most of the diggers of the Erie Canal were Irish immigrants.  They were paid 37 to 50 cents a day for 12-14 hours of work per day.  One perk was the daily “grog ration” of whiskey.  A boy called the “jigger boss” would come by up to a dozen times a day.  It’s estimated the workers got around a quart of whiskey per day.

–  Whitcomb 147

BOONE ESCAPES

                Daniel Boone liked to go hunting by himself.  One time he got in big trouble.  He ran into a Shawnee war party.  Boone made a run for it, but he ended up having to surrender.  The Indians were thrilled that they had captured the famous frontiersman.  They brought him back to their village.  Chief Blackfish treated him like a son and the Indians let him hunt with them.  He participated in their activities and was well-liked.  Boone secretly gathered food and powder for his escape.  When Boone learned that his hosts were planning an attack on Boonesboro, he knew it was time to return with a warning.  When most of the braves went off on a hunt, he snuck out of camp.  He managed to cover the 160 miles back in just four days.

–  Whitcomb 226-227

MARSHALL’S DRINKING RULE

                When John Marshall was in his early days as Supreme Court Chief Justice, Washington was in its infancy and housing was lacking.  The Supreme Court justices stayed in the same boarding house.  It was convenient for their meetings.  Saturday was the designated day for “consultations”.  During these sessions they would drink rum.  Word got around and it became the talk of the town.  Marshall, concerned about the reputation of his court, decided to squash the rumors.  But he didn’t want to go cold turkey, so the new rule was that they would not drink unless it was raining.  The very first meeting under the new rule was one with a lot of tension after just a short time.  Marshall asked one of his colleagues to go to the window and check the weather.  He returned shaking his head.  Soon after, Marshall sent him again.  This time he returned to announce there was not a cloud in the sky.  Marshall thought for a moment and then said:  “Gentlemen, as the Supreme Court, we have jurisdiction over the whole country.  Somewhere it must be raining.  Waiter, bring us some rum.”

–  Botkin 141

DANIEL WEBSTER’S DIRTY HANDS

                Back when Daniel Webster was going to elementary school, personal hygiene was an important attribute for children to be trained in.  Each day, the teacher would check their students’ hands for cleanliness.  Failure to have clean hands usually resulted in a rap with a ruler.  Daniel was notorious for his dirty hands.  One day, the teacher called Daniel up to his desk hoping to make him an example for the other boys.  Daniel, sensing trouble, spit on his right hand and rubbed it on his pants on the way up.  The teacher demanded to see his hands so Daniel reached out his right hand.  The partially cleaned hand was still dirty.  The teacher shook his head and said:  “Daniel, if you can find another hand in this room that is dirtier than this, you won’t get punished.”  Daniel put out his dirtier left hand and avoided the punishment.

–  Botkin  144

THE MAD KING

                Charles VI ruled France from 1380 – 1422.  He started off well and was known as “Charles the Beloved”, but before his reign was over he was known as “Charles the Mad”.  His insanity was evidenced in several ways.   He once murdered some of his knights in a fit.  He sometimes thought he was Saint George.   He had periods of amnesia when he could not recognize his wife and family.  (And yet he knew members of his court.)  Most bizarrely, he felt he was made of glass and feared he would be shattered if someone bumped him or he fell down.  At other times he would sprint down city streets or through the halls of the palace.  It got so bad that the entrances to his residence were bricked up so he couldn’t leave. 

 https://historycollection.co/20-historical-events-seldom-taught-in-school/19/

ALEXANDER HAMILTON, JR.’s REVENGE

                Alexander Hamilton, Jr was studying law when his father was shot in the most famous duel in American History.  The duel took place at the same place where his older brother Phillip had been killed by a Burr supporter.  He was at his father’s side when he died.  He dropped out of school and went to Spain to join Arthur Wellesley’s (the future Duke of Wellington) army.  He returned to be a captain in the War of 1812.  After this he became a lawyer and a politician.  He moved to New York City and became wealthy on Wall Street and in real estate.  He was one of the most well-known lawyers.  Meanwhile, Aaron Burr’s life had gone downhill since the duel.  Many considered him a murderer and then he was accused of treason because of a crazy scheme to create an empire in the west.  Although acquitted, he was broke and broken.  He tried to regain his status by marrying a very wealthy divorcee named Eliza Jumel.  It was not for love.  He cheated on her a lot and mismanaged her fortune to the point that she filed for divorce.  Guess who took the case?  Alexander, Jr. was only too happy to offer his services as her divorce lawyer.  It was a nasty divorce as Hamilton dredged up all of Burr’s misdeeds and there were a lot of them.  Burr suffered a stroke during the proceedings and died a few hours after the divorce was finalized.  Hamilton did not go to the funeral.

https://www.wearethemighty.com/history/alexander-hamilton-jr-revenge

JONATHAN CHAPMAN

                Johnny Appleseed was born Jonathan Chapman.  His father was a Continental Army soldier who fought in the Battle of Bunker Hill.  When his mother died when he was young, he was raised by relatives.  In 1792, at age 17, he left home.  He became a nurseryman.  He would take the seeds from apples, plant them, and sell the saplings.  He then decided to roam.  He wore old clothes and walked barefoot.  He traveled alone and was not molested by the Indians. They respected him.  He did not just toss seeds along his path.  Instead, he would get seeds free from cider mills (cider was a very popular beverage), plant orchards, fence them, and turn them over to settlers.  If any saplings were sold, Johnny would get some money when he passed back through.  He was not in it for the money and gave most of it away.  He also sowed various medicinal herbs like Fennel, which became known as “Johnny Weed”.

–  Amazing 278-281

JOSEPH BONAPARTE, NEW JERSEYIAN

                Joseph Bonaparte was the older brother of Napoleon.  Due to Napoleon’s nepotism, he became King of Naples (where he was popular) and later King of Spain (where he was not).  He was dethroned and when his brother was defeated an shipped off to exile on the island of St. Helena, Joseph had a back-up plan.  He chartered an American ship and sailed to refuge in America.  He lived for several years in New York City and Philadelphia.  It was a comfortable life, what with all those riches he had looted from the Spanish treasury.  He purchased a large estate in New Jersey which he called “Point Breeze”.  He was a celebrity and was visited by Daniel Webster, John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay, and Lafayette.

https://historycollection.co/20-historic-events-even-the-movies-wont-touch/15/

WHITE HOUSE FACTS

1. Construction began in 1792. Washington had a lot of input in the plans, but never lived in it.  It was ready in 1800 so John Adams was the first to reside in it.  African-Americans, freed and slave, helped in the construction.
2. It was set afire in 1814 by British soldiers in the War of 1812 in retaliation for the burning of the Parliament buildings in Ontario. The fire destroyed the interior and the exterior had a lot of smoke damage.  Originally, the building was grey in color.  When it was rebuilt, it was painted white.
3. An electrical fire in the West Wing in 1929 did a lot of damage to that wing.
4. It was the biggest house in America until the Gilded Age.
5. It was made wheelchair accessible by FDR. He put in a heated swimming pool which JFK used for co-ed nude swimming parties when Jackie was away.  Nixon had the pool replaced by the current press briefing room.
6. After a piano leg broke through the floor, Truman had the entire interior redone with steel beams for support. Truman lived in the Vice President’s residence, Blair House, while the work was done.
7. It’s been called the “President’s Castle”, the “President’s Palace”, the “President’s House”, and most commonly, the “Executive Mansion”. In 1901, Teddy Roosevelt officially named it the White House.

https://www.thoughtco.com/surprising-facts-about-the-washington-dc-white-house-178508?utm_source=emailshare&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mobilesharebutton2

HAMILTON-BURR DUEL

1. The bad blood began in 1790 when Burr defeated Hamilton’s father-in-law for the Senate. Hamilton considered Burr to be a dangerous opportunist and opposed him when he ran for Vice President in 1796.  In 1800, Burr leaked a Hamilton letter criticizing John Adams.  In the Election of 1800, Jefferson ended up tied with his running mate Burr in the electoral vote.  The election was thrown to the House of Representatives where it should have been a formality in choosing Jefferson, but the Federalists decided to back Burr to mess with the Democratic-Republicans.  After 35 ballots, Hamilton and other influential Federalist leaders intervened on behalf of Jefferson as the lesser of two evils.  After Jefferson dumped Burr for reelection, Burr ran for Governor of New York and Hamilton strongly opposed him.  Burr lost badly.
2. The last straw was when a letter written by a friend of Hamilton was published in a New York newspaper. It described Hamilton making “despicable” comments about Burr at a party.  Hamilton called Burr “a dangerous man”.  Burr took umbrage and wrote a letter to Hamilton demanding a retraction.  Hamilton answered officiously, arguing the meaning of “despicable”.  Further letters added fuel to the fire.  In previous situations like this, Hamilton had managed to negotiate his way out of duels.  Not his time.
3. The duel was held at a popular dueling spot in New Jersey. Although both New York and New Jersey had made dueling illegal, New Jersey was notoriously lax in enforcement.  Burr’s nineteen-year old son had been killed in the same spot three years earlier. 
4. The dueling pistols were the same ones used in his son’s death. They were flintlock pistols that were a hefty .56 caliber.  The same pistols had been used in one of Burr’s previous duels.  A duel where a bullet had clipped off a suit button.
5. Hamilton had probably not fired a pistol since his Revolutionary War service. Burr apparently practiced for the duel.
6. Awkwardly, after the challenge had been accepted, the two sat at the same table for a banquet celebrating Independence Day.
7. The duel was at 7 A.M. The ten-pace distance had already been marked off so the men took their places without doing that back-to-back thing.  There was a pause as Hamilton asked to put on his glasses.  Hamilton fired first and missed.  Burr’s shot hit his foe in the stomach and the bullet lodged near the spine.  Burr took a step toward Hamilton, but his second whisked him away.  Hamilton told the doctor that had come along that he felt he was mortally wounded.  He died 31 hours later in the company of family and friends.  Burr fled to Georgia.
8. There is still controversy about the duel. Hamilton’s second insisted he purposely “threw his shot away” (as he had said he would), but Burr’s second insisted Hamilton simply missed.  Hamilton’s shot did miss high, clipping a branch of a tree.  One thing is for sure, Burr would have known Hamilton had missed before he fired his shot seconds later. 
9. There is a theory that Hamilton did plan to kill Burr, taking advantage of the hair trigger feature of the pistols, but he accidentally set off the pistol before he could aim properly. This is probably not the explanation of the misfire as Hamilton had stated earlier that he had not engaged this feature.
10. Burr’s already shady reputation was ruined by the incident, as the newspapers made a martyr of Hamilton. Burr sealed his historical fate by getting involved in a ridiculous scheme with another disreputable figure, James Wilkinson.  They had a plan to seize the Louisiana Territory and create an empire ruled by Burr.  In 1806, Burr prepared to lead an armed band to New Orleans. Wilkinson ratted out his partner, but the Supreme Court could not convict Burr due to only one witness – Wilkinson.

https://www.britannica.com/list/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-hamilton-burr-duel-according-to-hamiltons-burr

https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/aaron-burr-alexander-hamilton-duel-real-history/

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/burr-slays-hamilton-in-duel

JOHN FITCH

                Everyone knows Robert Fulton invented the steamboat, right?  Wrong.  The actual inventor was a sad sack named John Fitch.  In the 1780’s, Fitch began to dream of a vehicle propelled by a steam engine.  Land travel over the terrible roads of that time was unfeasible, but perhaps on water it would work.  In 1786, he and a clockmaker friend named Henry Voight built a skiff with three blades on each side.  The blades were connected by a chain that was attached to a cranking mechanism.  When this worked, they replaced the hand crank with a small steam engine.  Unfortunately, the boat just spun around when it made its maiden voyage before a mocking crowd.  In 1787, he built a bigger boat with six oars on each side.  He called it the Perserverance and showed it off for delegates to the Constitutional Convention.  It was impressive, but it was hard to steer and ended up stuck on a mudbank.  Financers were not interested.  He built a longer, slimmer boat with paddles in the rear which he sailed up the Delaware River at a clip of 4 MPH.  Feeling the adrenaline, Fitch fed in more and more wood, resulting in the boiler exploding.  Still, it was a success and he started a transit service in 1791 carrying passengers between Philadelphia and Trenton.  It ran three times a week.  It cost 5 shillings, but you got free beer and sausages.  The boat made 31 trips, but it proved to be unprofitable.  A trip to France to sell his invention was fruitless and he returned in debt and poor health.  In 1798, he deliberately overdosed on opium pills.  A sad end for an inventor who deserved better from history.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Fitch

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Fitch_(inventor)

https://biography.yourdictionary.com/john-fitch

–  Lawrence 57-58

DANIEL BOONE –  TRAITOR?

                In 1778, Boonesborough was being threatened by the Shawnee.  Daniel Boone led an expedition of 30 men to replenish the forts salt supply.  While the men were digging the salt, Boone went off hunting.  He ran into Indians led by Chief Blackfish.  Blackfish knew and respected Boone and Boone convinced him to let him talk to his men before the Indians attacked them.  Boone convinced the men to lay down their weapons without a fight.  They were taken back to the Indian village where the men were forced to run the gauntlet.  A gauntlet was a double line of Indian warriors who would beat the men with clubs as they ran through.  Boone was exempted from this torture.  In fact, Boone was quite friendly with his captors.  He was adopted into the tribe and given the name “Big Turtle”.  He was seen talking to Indian leaders and British officers.  One of the men managed to escape and returned to Boonesborough with the tale of Boone’s treachery.  Later, Boone himself returned with the warning that the Indians were coming to attack.  In the subsequent ten-day siege, Boone led the settlers in successfully defending the fort.  However, after the Indians retreated, Boone was put on trial for treason.  He was accused of conspiring with the British and Shawnee to give up the fort.  Boone argued that he had talked the men into surrendering without a fight because otherwise they would have been massacred.  He pointed out that he had convinced the Indians to wait until spring to attack the fort.  In other words, he was a double agent.  Although, some felt all that was bull crap, Boone was acquitted.  But the bad blood and resentful looks caused him to move away from Boonesborough not long after.

https://www.revolutionary-war-and-beyond.com/daniel-boone-captured-by-british-shawnee-war-party.html

–  The Greatest War Stories Never Told  pp. 54-55

MOSQUITOES DOUBLED THE SIZE OF THE UNITED STATES

                Napoleon sold Louisiana because of mosquitoes.  In 1802, he sent an army led by his brother-in-law General Charles Leclerc to take control of New Orleans and open up a wave of French settlement.  Oh, and by the way, how about stopping off in Haiti to put down that pesky slave rebellion?  Easy, peasy.  Crack French troops quickly defeated the rebels and their leader Toussaint L’Ouverture signed an armistice.  And then the French kidnapped him and put him in a prison where he died.  Be careful about karma.  A guerrilla war broke out and it started raining.  The rains brought swarms of mosquitoes and with them yellow fever.  The natives were immune at this point, but the French soldiers were not.  They died in droves, including Leclerc.  In a couple of years, the French lost about 50,000 men from the war and the disease.  Napoleon decided to abandon the island and his plans for a New France in Louisiana.  He sold it to the U.S., thus doubling the size of the new country.

 –  The Greatest War Stories Never Told  pp. 64-65

THE FIFE AND DRUM SISTERS

                This incident occurred in the War of 1812.  In June, 1814 the port town of Scituate, Massachusetts was raided by the HMS Bulwark (a 74-gun man-of-war).  The citizens were so enraged by this that they raised a militia unit and began training, determined to not let it happen again.  After a few months, the militia relaxed a bit.  In September, the Bulwark returned.  It was spotted from the lighthouse by the lighthouse keeper’s eighteen-year-old daughter Rebecca.  She saw British marines in a longboat rowing towards the town with evil intent.  She had no time to warn the militia, but she noted a fife and drum in the lighthouse.  She summoned her sister Abigail and they ran to a nearby dune.  They had been taught some tunes by the militiamen so they proceeded to belt out marching songs like “Yankee Doodle Dandy”.  Upon hearing this, the British assumed the militia had been alerted and was prepared to dispute the landing.  The British captain recalled the longboat and sailed on to easier pickings.

–  The Greatest War Stories Never Told  pp. 72-73

FACTS ABOUT TECUMSEH

1. Tecumseh was born in what is today Ohio in 1768. He was the son of a chief in the Shawnee tribe.  His name meant “shooting star” or “blazing comet”.
2. During his childhood, villages he lived in were attacked several times by whites, forcing his family to move. Despite seeing the results of white atrocities, he insisted when he was leader that his men avoid torturing their prisoners.
3. His father was killed fighting in Lord Dunmore’s War. Before dying, he supposedly told Tecumseh’s oldest brother to never make peace with whites and to train Tecumseh to be a warrior.  The brother was later killed in an attack on a fort and another brother was killed in the Battle of Fallen Timbers.  Tecumseh fought in that battle, as did a young William Henry Harrison.
4. The battle resulted in the Treaty of Greenville which gave up Indian lands. Tecumseh refused to abide by the treaty and began to unite the tribes of the Ohio River valley against white encroachment. A skilled orator, he traveled to speak to many tribes, including:  Seneca, Wyandot, Sac, Fox, Winnebago, Potawatomi, Kickapoo, Chippewa, Ottawa, Delaware, and Miami.
5. His brother Tenskwatawa had been an alcoholic until he had a vision that called him to a life of mysticism. With Tecumseh’s oratory and The Prophet’s mystical powers (he predicted an eclipse), Indians came to join the coalition.  Prophetstown was created as the base of the army.
6. When Tecumseh traveled south to Georgia and Alabama to recruit, Gen. William Henry Harrison took the opportunity to march on Prophetstown. Although Tecumseh had insisted that The Prophet avoid combat while he was away, his brother decided to launch a surprise attack on Harrison’s camp.  The Prophet convinced his warriors that bullets would not hit them because of his incantations.  That proved to be false as Harrison’s soldiers defeated the attack and captured Prophetstown.  This Battle of Tippecanoe put Harrison in the White House (“Tippecanoe and Tyler Too”).  Tecumseh returned to find his town in ashes, as well as his dream of an Indian confederacy.
7. In the War of 1812, Tecumseh sided with the British. He played a major role in defeating an invasion of Canada by intercepting a supply train going to the invading army.  The threat of his Indian warriors caused the surrender of Fort Detroit.
8. On October 5, 1813 Tecumseh was killed fighting with the British at the Battle of the Thames River. Richard Johnson claimed credit for killing him in a cavalry charge.  Johnson rode his fame to the Vice Presidency as Martin Van Buren’s running mate.

https://www.history.com/news/6-things-you-may-not-know-about-tecumseh

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/tecumseh?li_source=LI&li_medium=m2m-rcw-history

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Tecumseh-Shawnee-chief

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tecumseh

FACTS ABOUT DANIEL BOONE

1. His father immigrated to Pennsylvania. He was a Quaker.  Daniel was the sixth of eleven children.  His family was forced to move to North Carolina when his father refused to apologize for two of his boys marrying “worldlings” (non-Quakers).  He was kicked out of the church.
2. Daniel was given a rifle at age 12 and became a professional hunter in his teens. After his first hunting expedition, he sold the furs and spent all the money on “a general jamboree and frolick”.
3. During the French and Indian War, he served as a teamster in Braddock’s army. His cousin Daniel Morgan was also employed.  (Later Boone would join Morgan’s famous campaign in the Ohio River Valley in the Revolutionary War.)  When Braddock’s army was ambushed in the Battle of the Wilderness, Boone ran away to live to fight another day.
4. In 1775, he was part of a group of 30 frontiersmen who blazed the Wilderness Trail over the Appalachians into Kentucky. They wanted to establish a colony called Transylvania.  Boone helped found the settlement of Boonesborough and brought his family to settle there.  The fort had 15-foot walls and 26 log cabins.
5. He had ten kids with his wife Rebecca. Or possibly nine.  According to some sources, he was once away on a “long hunt” that lasted two years.  Rebecca thought he was dead and took up with his brother Ned.  She gave birth to child during this period.  When Daniel returned, he treated the boy as his own.
6. In 1776, his daughter Jemima and two other teenage girls were captured by Shawnee Indians while canoeing. Boone led a group that tracked the Indians for three days.  They were aided by Jemima dropping broken twigs to mark their path.  They rescued the girls, while killing two of the abductors.
7. In 1778, he was captured while hunting ahead of a party of men who had gone to a salt deposit. He convinced the men to surrender to the outnumbering Shawnees.  They were taken to the village and forced to run the gauntlet.  Boone was treated very well by the Indians and adopted into the tribe and given the name Big Turtle.  He convinced the chief to postpone an attack on Boonesborough until the spring and promised to facilitate its surrender.  He later escaped, traveling 160 miles in four days to warned the settlement. He then led the defense when the Indians laid siege to the fort.  Unfortunately, Boone’s acting friendly with the Indians was so convincing many of the captured party felt he had betrayed them.  He was acquitted in a court martial, but bad blood remained.
8. In 1781, he and his brother Ned were out hunting. When Daniel went off on his own to hunt a bear, Indians encountered Ned and killed him.  Thinking he was the famous Indian-fighter Daniel Boone, they beheaded Ned and brought the trophy back to their village.
9. In 1784, a book entitled “The Discovery, Settlement, and Present State of Kentucke” by John Filson made Boone famous. It was a typical 18^th Century biography that was loose with the facts, but it was based on interviews with Boone.
10. He failed as a land speculator and real estate investor, mostly because he was bad at it. He was accused of shady dealing and ended up owing a lot of people a lot of money.  He tried various businesses, like supplier of ginseng root, but failed at all of them.  He once owned a tavern where his seven slaves worked.
11. Partly to escape his creditors, he moved to Missouri in 1799. The Spanish government gave him 850 acres, hoping his name would entice other settlers.  Boone ended up having to sell the property to pay debts.  He died at age 85 in Missouri.
12. He never wore a coon skin cap. He and other frontiersmen preferred beaver hats.

https://www.history.com/news/8-things-you-might-not-know-about-daniel-boone

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/548112/facts-about-daniel-boone

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Boone

FACTS ABOUT BENJAMIN BANNEKER

1. Benjamin was born on Nov. 9, 1731 to free parents in Maryland. His grandmother was white and had come to America as an indentured servant.  She taught him to read.
2. As a teenager, a Quaker friend gave him access to his personal library and Benjamin occasionally attended his school. He concentrated on teaching himself astronomy and advanced math.  Much of his astronomical knowledge came from observing the stars.
3. He borrowed a pocket watch and made detailed drawings of the insides. He then built a wooden clock that worked accurately for forty years.  He may have built the first wooden clock in America.
4. He accurately predicted a solar eclipse in 1789, contradicting many experts.
5. From 1792-97, he published a series of almanacs. They contained astronomical observations, opinion pieces, literature, and tidal and medical information.  He wrote a letter to Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson which contained a hand-written copy of the first almanac.  He also dared to criticize Jefferson for owning slaves.  Jefferson wrote back complimenting Banneker for his achievements.
6. He wrote dissertations on bees and the life cycle of locusts.
7. In 1791, he helped survey and map the new capital of Washington.
8. During his funeral in 1806, a fire broke out that destroyed most of his personal property and his papers.
9. He was honored with a postage stamp in 1980.

https://learnodo-newtonic.com/benjamin-banneker-facts

https://kids.kiddle.co/Benjamin_Banneker

https://www.ducksters.com/biography/scientists/benjaminbanneker.php

WHALE 1  ESSEX  0

                On August 12, 1819 the whaling ship Essex set sail from Nantucket, the whaling capital of America.  The voyage was supposed to last more than two years.  On board were 21 men and a rookie captain named George Pollard, Jr.  Two days into the voyage, a squall wrecked one of the masts and nearly sank the ship.  First mate Chase convinced Pollard to proceed and they eventually rounded Cape Horn to enter the Pacific.  The whales were scarce so the decision was made to proceed deep into the ocean, away from South America.  They stopped at Charles Island in the Galapagos Islands.  A prankster set a fire that ravaged the island and caused the men to sprint to the boats.  It is believed the incident caused the extinction of the Floreana Tortoise and Floreana Mockingbird.  On Nov. 20, 1819, Pollard was off hunting whales when Chase noticed a huge whale near the ship.  Suddenly the 85-foot sperm whale attacked and rammed the ship (87 feet long) leaving a hole.  The whale disappeared but soon after returned even more enraged and rammed the bow of the ship causing it to begin to sink.  It is theorized that the ship repairs that had been going on caused banging noises similar to the clicking noises sperm whales communicated with.  Perhaps the whale thought the ship was another male encroaching on his territory.  When Pollard returned, the ship’s crew was loaded into three whaleboats commanded by Pollard, Chase, and a mate named Joy.  They had about two months supplies.  Pollard wanted to sail to some islands that were far, but with the wind.  Chase, in a case of extreme irony, argued that those islands were inhabited by cannibals.  He convinced everyone they should sail a much longer distance, against the wind, to Peru.  It was a difficult trip as the bread got soaked by seawater, there was a lack of water, and the sun was brutal.  And the boats were sometimes attacked by killer whales!  They reached a deserted island, but there was little food.  Three of the men decided to stay, but the rest moved on.  The boats became separated and Joy’s boat was never seen again.  On Pollard’s boat, the first man died from delirium.  His organs were roasted on a flat rock and eaten.  Later, it was decided to draw lots for who would be killed and eaten.  Pollard’s young cousin was chosen and although Pollard offered to take his place, he insisted a deal was a deal.  He was shot in the head and eaten.  On Feb. 18, 1820, after 89 days, Chase’s boat was rescued by a British ship.  About a week later, Pollard and Charles Ramsdell were discovered by an American ship.  It was the two of them and a boat bottom covered with human bones.  The three men on Henderson Island were discovered four months into their stay.  They had survived on shellfish and bird’s eggs.  The cannibalism was forgiven (except for Pollard, who had eaten his cousin) because it was fairly common for shipwrecked sailors. Although usually the human flesh was used to catch fish.  Herman Melville was obsessed with the story and in 1851 published “Moby Dick”.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-true-life-horror-that-inspired-moby-dick-17576/

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Essex-whaling-ship

FORGOTTEN WAR:  The Quasi-War with France (1798-1800)

                As every American knows, the 13 Colonies could not have gotten their independence without aid from France.  That aid came with a prize as the newly created United States owed a substantial debt to the French king.  One reason Louis XVI was overthrown was because of the damage his huge debt had done to the viability of his government.  Naturally, the new French government wanted America to help out by paying its debt to France.  The Americans argued that they owed the money to the king and since he was deposed, the debt did not exist anymore.  You can imagine what the French thought of that argument.  Plus, the French were aggravated by the ingrate Americans continuing to trade with their enemy Britain.  They began to seize American merchant ships.  In 1796, over 100 American ships were taken, mostly by French privateers.  Pres. Adams responded by reauthorizing the U.S. Navy (which had been allowed to wither after independence) and sending our frigates out to counter the French.  Our first victory was the USS Constellation defeating the French frigate L’Insurgente.  Our frigates turned out to be stellar and included the very first Enterprise.  Several captains, including Stephen Decatur, made names for themselves.  Because of the pain caused by the U.S. Navy and general exhaustion, the French agreed to negotiate an end to the war.  You could call it a tie, but the French did take nearly 2,000 merchant ships during the “war”.

https://historycollection.co/nation-war-9-forgotten-american-wars/

THE FIRST STEAMBOAT

                Robert Fulton was an indifferent student, but he did show some ability in art and an interest in inventing.  At age 12, his family visited England where he saw a steam engine made by James Watt.  He started thinking about using one to propel a boat.  Years later he was living in Paris, studying art.  He painted mostly portraits and landscapes. But he also dabbled in inventing.  He was commissioned by Napoleon to build a submarine.  He invented the first practical sub and named it Nautilus.  He also built a steamboat that went up the Seine, but later sank.  Returning to America, he was determined to revolutionize transport and commerce on rivers by building a practical steamboat.  He called his creation the North River Steamboat (the Hudson River was called the North River at the time).  But it became better known as the Clermont.  It was 142 feet long and 18 feet wide.  It had two paddle wheels.  On August 17, 1807 it was ready for its maiden voyage.  A crowd gathered and many were skeptical.  Some yelled:  “You’ll never get it to run!”  They seemed to be right when the boat’s engine started and then stopped.  As Fulton worked on the engine, the catcalls increased.  After thirty minutes, he was able to start the engine and the boat pulled out into the Hudson and headed slowly up stream.  (At this point some of the skeptics started yelling “You’ll never be able to stop it!”)  The invited guests enjoyed the 32-hour trip to Albany (which was 150 miles away).  Some spectators along the route thought the boat was a sea monster.  But what they actually saw was the first successful steamboat.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_River_Steamboat#First_voyage

https://d2y1pz2y630308.cloudfront.net/15942/documents/2020/3/1RobertFulton.pdf

https://www.heritage-history.com/index.php?c=read&author=perry&book=inventors&story=fulton

IS THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER RACIST?

                With the recent controversy over Confederate statues, the National Anthem has come under some scrutiny.  The scrutiny is over some of the lyrics and also the background of the composer.  Francis Scott Key was born to a plantation owner who owned slaves.  He grew up to become a prominent lawyer in Frederick, Maryland.  He married a woman from a slave-holding family and he himself owned six slaves.  As a lawyer, he defended slaves seeking freedom and stated that all men should be free.  But as a lawyer, he also helped slave owners recover runaway slaves.  This must have been easier on his conscience because he believed Africans were an “inferior race”.  He opposed abolition and favored the settlement of freed slaves in Africa.  He helped found the American Colonization Society.  He was against the War of 1812, but he did serve his country as a quartermaster in the Georgetown Artillery.  He was an aide to Gen. Walter Smith at the Battle of Bladensburg.  That disastrous defeat allowed the British to march into Washington.  They then moved on to Baltimore.  Key was there to negotiate the release of a doctor friend.  He was on board a British warship when the bombardment of Fort McHenry occurred.  He was inspired to write “The Defense of Fort M’Henry”.  Most Americans would be surprised to learn it has four stanzas.  You think the first stanza is hard to sing?  Try the last three.  But that’s not the controversy.  The controversy is one line.  Key wrote “No refuge could save the hireling and slave”.  Most historians feel he was referring to mercenaries and slaves who had fled to join the British army.  The British encouraged this and promised them their freedom (which they delivered).  About 4,000 slaves took them at their offer.  Some joined the British Colonial Marines and fought against the U.S.  Apparently, Key was upset about this.  And maybe we should be upset about what this slaveowner put into his song.

https://www.nps.gov/fomc/learn/historyculture/francis-scott-key.htm

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/10/18/star-spangled-banner-racist-national-anthem/

BENJAMIN BANNEKER

                Benjamin Banneker was one of the first African-American intellectuals in America.  He was born on November 9, 1731.  His father was a freed black and his mother was the daughter of a white indentured servant.  He was self-educated.  He created an irrigation system for the family farm and built a wooden clock that kept accurate time for the next forty years.  It was destroyed in a fire.  It may have been the first clock built in America.  He taught himself astronomy and was able to predict eclipses.  He helped survey the area that was to become the District of Columbia.  (His role has been exaggerated in some textbooks.)  He published his own almanac from 1792-1797.  He wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson which included a copy of the almanac manuscript.  In the letter he chastised Jefferson for fighting for independence when blacks were enslaved.  He insisted that blacks were not inferior.  Jefferson responded by commending him on his accomplishments and agreeing that some blacks had talents that should be developed.  He sent a copy of the manuscript to the French Academy of Science. 

https://www.biography.com/scientist/benjamin-banneker

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Banneker

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/three-things-know-about-astronomer-benjamin-bannekers-pioneering-career-180967136/

THE DEATH OF MERIWETHER LEWIS

                Three years after becoming a hero when he returned with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Meriwether Lewis committed suicide on Oct. 11, 1809.  He was only 35 years old.  Lewis was on his way back to Washington, D.C. to answer questions about purchases he had made as Governor to the Louisiana Territory.  He was traveling on the Natchez Trace and stopped for the night at an inn called Grinder’s Stand.  He took lodging in a log cabin.  During the night, Mrs. Grinder heard Lewis talking to himself.  Later she heard two gun shots.  In the morning, Mrs. Grinder saw Lewis crawling on the ground, begging for water.  She was too scared to assist him.  His servants found him slashing at himself with a razor.  He died soon after of gun shot wounds to this head and abdomen.  It was considered a suicide and Pres. Jefferson and William Clark were not surprised.  They knew Lewis suffered from depression.  Historians attributed the depression to his financial woes and his inability to cope with the boredom of a desk job after the thrills and stress of the expedition.  He was having trouble motivating himself to finish his report on the expedition.  Others have pointed out his possible alcoholism.  He may have had syphilis or malaria.  Malaria can lead to dementia.  Before he left on the trip, he appointed friends to distribute his possessions if anything happened to him.  He composed his will on the trip.   This all points to a man who was depressed and felt he was drowning financially, so he shot himself.  Although the evidence for his suicide seems strong, some have suggested it was murder.  Bandits, Mr. Grinder because he caught Lewis with his wife, or even an assassination plot by the nefarious James Wilkinson have been posited.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/meriwether-lewis-mysterious-death-144006713/

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/meriwether-lewis-dies-along-the-natchez-trace-tennessee

OLD HICKORY GETS LUCKY

            Andrew Jackson had his enemies, like the entire Whig Party, but it was a lunatic who tried to take him out.  Richard Lawrence came to America from England at age 12. He grew up to become a house painter, but as an adult he began to evidence bizarre behavior, including violence toward his siblings.  In 1835, he began to stalk the President.  Richard believed he was actually King Richard II of England and held estates in England.  He felt he was owed money from those estates, but Jackson’s opposition to the Second Bank of the United States was preventing him from getting the money.  On Jan. 30, Lawrence knew Jackson would be attending the funeral of a Congressman in the House.  He waited behind a column and when Jackson was walking out, Lawrence fired a derringer at his back.  It misfired.  As Jackson reacted by turning around and advancing with his walking cane held high, the assassin pulled another pistol.  Incredibly, it misfired also.  At this point, the 67-year-old “Old Hickory” was beating Lawrence with his cane when others (including Davy Crockett) intervened to arrest him.  In his case, the prosecuting attorney was Francis Scott Key.  Lawrence was clearly insane and was sent to an asylum.  He died in 1861.  A century  after the attack, the Smithsonian Institute tested the derringers.  Both fired perfectly.  It has been estimated that the chance of both misfiring was 125,000 to one.  The theory is that the humidity that day caused the powder to dampen.  Whether it was Mother Nature or Lady Luck, Jackson should have been the first President assassinated.  Of course, being Old Hickory, the bullets probably would have just bounced off him.

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/andrew-jackson-narrowly-escapes-assassination

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Lawrence_(failed_assassin)

THE RAID ON THE USS PHILADELPHIA

            One of the most daring exploits in the history of the U.S. Navy occurred on Feb. 16, 1804.  In 1801, the U.S. began the First Barbary War against the pirate (called “corsairs”) states of the Barbary coast of the Mediterranean.  The new nation had been paying tribute (bribes) to the Barbary states of Tripoli, Algiers, Morocco, and Tunis.  When Pres. Jefferson refused the demand for an increase in the payment, an undeclared war broke out.  Jefferson sent a fleet under Commodore Edward Preble which blockade the port of Tripoli.  On Oct. 31, 1803, the USS Philadelphia, a 32-gun frigate, ran aground near the harbor and was taken captive.  The ship was brought into the harbor where it served as a symbol of humiliation and was a potential threat.  Preble decided to destroy what was now an enemy ship.  A recently captured merchant kvetch was rechristened the USS Intrepid.  24-year-old Stephen Decatur was given command of 80 volunteers, mostly Marines.  Intrepid was disguised as a merchantman flying British colors.  An Arabic speaker assured the harbor guards that the ship was seeking refuge in the harbor.  On the night of Feb. 16, the Americans sailed into a harbor ringed with cannons, plus the guns on the various ships, including the Philadelphia.  There were no hitches as the Intrepid pulled alongside the Philadelphia.  With the cry “board her, boys!”, Decatur and his men swarmed aboard with swords and boarding pikes.  In ten minutes, they had killed or scattered the Tripolitans.  The ship was rigged for destruction and set afire.  Decatur was the last man overboard and the Intrepid raced for the harbor exit as the Philadelphia lit up the night and provided a fireworks display as its guns went off.  The intrepid crew of the Intrepid had suffered only one wounded and Decatur became a national hero.  Horatio Nelson declared his deed “the most bold and daring of the age”.  Decatur went on to become the youngest captain in the history of the US Navy at age 25.  He added to his fame in the War of 1812, but was the second most famous duel victim in American History when he died in 1820.  That’s a story for another post.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Decatur

https://www.historynet.com/board-her-boys.htm

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT ANDREW JACKSON

1. His parents were Irish immigrants. Andrew was born on the border between the Carolinas.  Both states claim his birthplace.
2. During the American Revolution, he was a courier for the Continental Army. At age 13, he and his brother were taken captive.  When he refused to shine the boots of a British officer, he was slashed with a sword leaving a permanent scar on his head.  His brother died from small pox contracted in the British camp.  His mother died from cholera contracted while nursing American prisoners.  He was now an orphan.
3. He became a frontier lawyer and then a politician. He was the first Congressman from the new state of Tennessee.
4. He had a cotton plantation called The Hermitage. He ended up owning over 150 slaves.  As President, he opposed abolitionism, but also opposed secession.  His firm leadership kept South Carolina from seceding and postponed the Civil War for 30 years.
5. He was a noted Indian fighter. He fought the Seminole and Creek Indians.  He invaded Spanish Florida to defeat the Seminoles and fugitive slaves that had taken refuge with them.  In the process, he executed two British agents working with the Indians, causing an international incident.
6. He adopted three Indian children (He had no children of his own.) One of them was a baby taken from his dead mother’s arms after his soldiers had attacked her village. 
7. He married a bigamist. He fell in love with Rachel Robards, who was in an unhappy marriage.  Andrew consoled her.  When they learned that her rotten husband had divorced her, they got married. Unfortunately, there had been no divorce, so technically Rachel was married to two men at the same time.  The Jackson’s quickly got the divorce and remarried, but the scandal was used by his political opponents.  Rachel, who smoked a pipe, died soon after he was elected President.  Jackson blamed his opponents for his death.
8. Old Hickory fought at least a dozen duels. Many of them were with men who insulted his wife.  The most famous was with Charles Dickinson, the best duelist in Tennessee.  Dickinson fired first and hit Jackson one inch below the heart.  Jackson remained standing long enough to kill Dickinson.  The bullet stayed in Jackson’s body for the rest of his life.
9. Jackson was the first President to have an attempt on his life. He was approached by an insane house painter who aimed two pistols at him.  Both pistols misfired.  The odds of that have been estimated at 125,000 to 1.  Jackson was beating the man with his cane when he was arrested.
10. Jackson loved to gamble – cards, dice, horse-racing, cockfights.
11. He was put on the $20 bill in 1869. This is ironic because he distrusted paper money.  It was one reason why he destroyed the Second Bank of the United States.  Thrifty with the government’s money, he paid off the national debt.
12. He won the popular vote three times. In 1824, he did not win a majority of the electoral vote, so the House of Representatives chose John Quincy Adams to be President.

https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/10-birthday-facts-about-president-andrew-jackson-2

https://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-andrew-jackson

https://blueandgrayeducation.org/2019/03/11-interesting-things-you-might-not-know-about-andrew-jackson/

https://facts.net/andrew-jackson-facts/

FORGOTTEN HERO:  Jacob Brown

            Jacob Brown was born on May 9, 1775.  Raised a Quaker, he would later overlook their pacifist beliefs.  He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1790.  After teaching for a few years, he settled in upstate New York and became prosperous and a leading member of his community.  He became known as “Potash Brown” for his smuggling of potash to Canada. He became a captain in the militia and rose to brigadier general by the time the War of 1812 broke out.  Although he opposed the war, he fought in it.  He organized the defenses of the Great Lakes.  In 1813, he won the Second Battle of Sackets Harbor.  In 1814, he invaded Canada in the Niagara Campaign.  He had an eventful July.  He captured Fort Erie.  Then he won the Battle of Chippawa.  In the Battle of Lundy’s Lane, he fought a larger British army to a draw.  He was wounded twice in the battle.  His well-trained and well-disciplined army proved Americans could stand up to the British army.  After withdrawing to Fort Erie, the British laid siege to it.  Brown’s fortifications kept the British at bay.  He led a sortie that destroyed the British artillery and helped lift the siege.  His actions in 1814 made him a national hero.  He was given the Congressional Gold Medal.  After the war, in the greatly reduced Army, he was the only major general.  In 1821, Pres. Monroe appointed him Commanding General.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_Brown

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jacob-Jennings-Brown

https://www.mywarof1812.com/leaders/brown-jacob-j.html

THE BATTLE OF FALLEN TIMBERS

                The Treaty of Paris not only gave the 13 Colonies independence, but also the Northwest Territory (the area between the Ohio River and the Great Lakes).  However, the British refused to give up their forts in the area and continued to encourage the Indians to fight against white expansion.  Two expeditions to end the Indian threat had been ambushed and wiped out.  Congress decided to get serious.  Although one of the founding principles of the new nation was fear of a standing army, in 1792 the Legion of the U.S. was created and Anthony Wayne (known as “Mad Anthony”) was given command.  Before taking on the Indians, he trained his army and made his soldiers disciplined and good shots.  In 1794, he marched north.  The Indians were allied to fight white expansion.  Chiefs Little Turtle (Miamis) and Buckongalelas (Delawares) were there, but overall command was in the hands of Blue Jacket of the Shawnees.  He decided to lay an ambush with the Indians hiding in Fallen Timbers.  This was a natural fortress created when a tornado knocked down a bunch of trees.  It was near the current day Toledo, Ohio.  Wayne’s army had been reinforced by Kentucky militiamen, some on horseback.  He had 3,000 men and there were about 1,300 Indians.  Wayne’s scouts (Choctaw and Chickasaw) informed him of the Indian position, so there would be no ambush.  (This was an early example of using Indians to fight other Indians.)  On August 20, 1794, Wayne divided his army into two columns and approached Fallen Timbers.  The Indians fired a volley and charged with hatchets.  This caused part of Wayne’s army to retreat with panic building.  However, their discipline kicked in and Wayne’s charismatic leadership restored the situation.  He ordered:  “Charge the damned rascals with the bayonet!”  This countercharge caused the Indians to flee in a rout.  Dragoons chased, cutting some down with their swords.  The battle lasted around an hour.  Wayne lost 23 killed and the Indians from 25-40.  Wayne’s forces then burned Indian villages and crops.  The result was the power of the Indians in the Northwest Territory was broken for a while.  The British were forced to abandon their forts and their support for the Indians.  And Mad Anthony added Fallen Timbers to Stony Point on his resume.  Not bad for the man who became known as the “Father of the Regular Army”.

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/battle-of-fallen-timbers

https://armyhistory.org/the-battle-of-fallen-timbers-20-august-1794/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Fallen_Timbers

https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Fallen-Timbers

THE RULE OF “KING MOB” BEGINS

                The most raucous inauguration in American History was that of Andrew Jackson on March 4, 1829.  “Old Hickory” was the first common person to be elected President.  By common, I am referring to his birth, not his personality.  His election in 1828 was symbolic of the expansion of democracy to include the lower class.  Although wealthy, Jackson was considered to be one of them and that class was determined to celebrate the ascension of one of their own.  Jackson had reached Washington after a three-week journey that was marked by large crowds of well-wishers.  Hordes descended on Washington, D.C. for the inauguration.  It was estimated that 21,000 attended the inauguration, despite the fact that few could hear the Inaugural Address.  Afterwards, the new president rode a white horse down Pennsylvania Avenue to his new residence.  Everyone was invited.  This was a tradition begun by Thomas Jefferson.

             Even before Jackson arrived, the Executive Mansion (as it was called back then) was swamped with “guests”.  Well-dressed high society gentlemen and ladies were shoulder-to-shoulder with country bumpkins.  Many of the guests were drunk from the whiskey punch.  Muddy-booted farmers stood on the furniture to get a view of their president.  Broken china littered the floor.  Jackson was pressed into a corner and eventually rescued by White House staff who forced their way through the crowd to get Jackson either to a window or a side entrance to escape.  What to do with the guests who were in no hurry to leave?  The staff placed wash tubs full of whiskey and punch on the lawn and encouraged the visitors to partake.  They took the offer and after the last one stumbled out, the White House doors were locked.  The gentry sniffed at this incident and proclaimed the beginning of the rule of “King Mob”.  Sounds kind of like MAGA, doesn’t it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_inauguration_of_Andrew_Jackson

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/jackson-holds-open-house-at-the-white-house

THE SECOND MOST FAMOUS DUEL IN AMERICAN HISTORY

                Stephen Decatur was the most lauded American sailor since John Paul Jones.  In 1798, he entered the US Navy as a midshipman on the USS Constitution.  In a year, the had risen to Lieutenant.  In 1804, he was in the Mediterranean as part of a fleet that was at war with the Barbary Pirates.  The Americans suffered an embarrassing loss when the USS Philadelphia ran aground, was abandoned, and taken by the pirates into Tripoli harbor.  Decatur led a daring raid into the harbor after dark.  He and his men boarded the ship, set it afire, and got away.  Decatur was suddenly a great hero.  He later participated with distinction in the Battle of the Gunboats in Tripoli harbor.  One of his comrades was James Barron, who was ten years older than Decatur, but they became friends.  That changed in 1807. 

                 Trouble was brewing with England.  The Royal Navy was impressing (kidnapping) American sailors and forcing them to be British sailors.  Barron was the commander of one of the first six American frigates.  Five of the six became famous in the War of 1812.  Not the Chesapeake.  Barron sailed the Chesapeake out of Hampton Roads in 1807, knowing there was a British fleet blockading two French warships.  Barron had not prepared the ship for any confrontation.  Crates of provisions covered the deck and many of the cannons were not in place.  When the HMS Leopard pulled alongside, Barron allowed a boat to bring British officers over for a parley.  They claimed Barron had British deserters on board.  Barron lied and said he didn’t and sent the Brits back. Not taking no for an answer, the Leopard persisted and fired a shot across the Chesapeake’s bow.  In spite of everything, Barron had still not called his men to battle stations.  The 50-gun Leopard fired into the 38-gun American ship, doing a lot of damage and killing some Americans.  Barron did not fight back and lowered his flag.  The British impressed four British deserters and the Chesapeake limped back into port.  Decatur was the first officer aboard and was appalled by the ill-preparedness of the frigate.  Barron became a hero to the public, but his peers in the Navy knew the real story. 

                     A court-martial was held and his ex-friend Decatur was one of the judges.  Decatur was incensed by Barron’s cowardice and voted to suspend him for five years.  Meanwhile, the War of 1812 had broken out and Decatur increased his fame by captaining the USS United States in a victory over the HMS Macedonian.  Barron’s suspension was up, but he did not return to the U.S. to participate in defending his country.  Another strike against him with his peers.  In 1815, Decatur led a fleet that won the Algerian War against the pirates.  By the time Commodore William Bainbridge returned to his fleet, the treaty had been signed.  He felt Decatur had stolen his glory and bore a grudge.  In a banquet in America feting Decatur, he made his immortal toast:  “Our country!  In her intercourse with foreign nations, may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong!”  This made him a superhero.  He was given a cushy job with the Naval Board of Commissioners and became a fixture in Washington, D.C. society.  In 1818, he opposed reinstatement of Barron.  (Word had it that Barron had insulted the U.S. to some British seamen during his exile.  That was treason!)  Decatur was provocative when he proclaimed that he could “insult Barron with impunity”.  Barron began to write him letters complaining of his mistreatment.  This culminated in a challenge to a duel in 1820.  Decatur accepted and they met on March 22, 1820.  Barron asked for a shorter distance because he was near-sighted.  They were armed with smoothbore flintlock pistols at only 8 paces.  Kind of hard to miss even with a smoothbore.  The men fired simultaneously and both hit.  Decatur’s wound was mortal and he died later that day.

                People love conspiracy theories today, so here is another.  Decatur originally refused to duel because he could not find a second.  Suddenly, out of the blue, Bainbridge offered to serve as his second.  The same Bainbridge who resented Decatur’s fame.  The naïve Decatur gratefully accepted his “friends” aid.  Speaking of seconds, Barron’s was Jesse Elliott.  Elliott was the Captain who had let Oliver Perry fight the British without coming to his aid in the Battle of Lake Erie.  Perry became the next great American naval hero, in spite of the back-stabbing by Elliott.  Perry, before he died, left papers incriminating Elliott with Decatur.  A court-martial and disgrace awaited the perfidious Elliott.  Elliott did not want those papers to find the light of day.  Decatur’s death would save his career.  There is reason to believe that Elliott convinced the cowardly Barron to challenge Decatur.  Bainbridge’s role?  Still chafing over his stolen valor, he suddenly shows up smilingly offering to be Decatur’s second.  Suspicious, but not to the naïve Decatur.  And there’s this.  Before firing their pistols, Decatur and Barron expressed regrets it had come to this.  Normally, this would have been the moment for seconds to step in and convince the duelists to patch things up.  Neither Elliott nor Bainbridge stepped in.  I don’t believe most conspiracy theories, but this one seems true.

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/naval-hero-killed-in-duel

https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/intelligence-stephen-decatur/