250 and Counting

Author: Claude Call

  • Lyman Beecher–October 12, 1775

    Cover art for October 12, 1775: Portrait of Lyman Beecher by James Henry Beard, ca. 1842.

    Although Lyman Beecher could be considered famous just for being the father of several prominent writers and ministers, he also had some achievements in his own right.

    Beecher first became known for a sermon which was published shortly afterward on the evils of duelling. Because it was in the wake of Alexander Hamilton’s death, it proved quite popular.

    Beecher next turned his eyes to intemperance, which is what intoxication was called at the time. It was a concern throughout America in the mid 1820s, so he delivered and published a half-dozen sermons which sold very well in America and in Europe. Those sales continued well into the 1870s.

    By the time Beecher arrived at Lane Seminary in the early 1830s, slavery was coming to the fore as an important social topic. While he was an abolitionist at heart, his public stance was with colonization: the freeing of slaves and then moving them to start a colony in West Africa. (This is where Liberia got its start, incidentally.) Unfortunately, a multi-day public debate about colonization morphed into a discussion of abolitionism, and many students left the school altogether in protest.

    Shortly after that, his views on changes in the church led to accusations of heresy, which he successfully defended. However, the seminary was left gutted and he moved back to New York to live with his son Henry in Brooklyn, where he remained until his death.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • The Great Carrying Place–October 11, 1775

    Cover art for October 11, 1775: "Carrying the bateaux at Skowhegan Falls", drawn by Sydney Adamson; halftone plate engraved by CW Chadwick, 1903.

    Benedict Arnold and Company are still on the move toward Quebec. Over a three-week period they’ve moved fewer than 90 miles, with only…300 to go. Today they’ve reached The Great Carrying Place, a 13-mile walk alternating between woods and knee-deep mud, all while carrying everything they’ll need to get to Canada.

    Back in the Colonies proper, General Gage is being replaced by General Howe. Gage was largely responsible for the Siege of Boston, especially since they weren’t able to break that siege. And then Bunker Hill came along. Sure, the British won but at great cost—a Pyrrhic victory. Once word got back to Britain about that, Lord Dartmouth appointed Howe within a couple of days. Of course, it took several weeks for the news to get back to America, and on September 26 he learned he was being replaced. By this days’ end, Gage was on his way back to Britain.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • Congress Takes A Day Off–October 10, ,1775

    Cover art for October 10, 1775: Statue of Philip Schuyler in Albany. The statue was installed in 1925, but it was removed in 2023 because of his unfortunate association with slavery.

    That’s an interesting goof I made with today’s cover art, with the tiny black stripe down the right. It’s a mistake, but it looks like the picture has a shadow, so I’m keepin’ it.

    The Second Continental Congress was a very serious, thoughtful body of men who did not shirk their duties. They often worked very long hours, six days a week, and might have gone for seven had it not been for, y’know, God stepping in and commanding, “Hey, none of that. That’s My day.”

    So the fact that Congress chose to knock off early one day—and a Tuesday, besides—suggests that maybe they really needed this one.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • The British Have War Plans (October 9, 1775)

    Cover art for October 9, 1775: portrait of George Germain by George Romney, 1766.

    By now the British appear to accepted the fact that the war was going to go on for much longer than they thought. They thought that fighting the colonies would be a cake walk.

    They discovered that it was quickly becoming a quagmire.

    Fortunately they recognized it and began to make plans. Lord Dartmouth and General Howe started drawing something up that involved isolating Washington’s army from the rest of the Colonies, but George Germain, who was about to replace Lord Dartmouth, thought more aggressively. He didn’t want to defeat the Colonies; he wanted to punish them, besides.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • October 8, 1775: The War Gets Whiter

    Cover art for October 8, 1775: Portrait of James Fayette in 1784 by John Blennerhasset Martin. Fayette joined the Continental forces as a spy under Lafayette.

    When the war first started, the Continental Army took on all comers, largely because they didn’t have a lot of choice. Frankly, they needed whatever bodies they could get.

    But it was around this time in 1775 that George Washington and his advisers decided that they could afford to get choosier about their recruits, So they decided not to take on any more Black soldiers. What’s more, soldiers who were already there would not be permitted to re-enlist.

    Eventually—in a couple of years—they’d reverse their stance, for the same reason they took on the Black soldiers in the first place. They were getting low on manpower,

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • October 7, 1775: The Bombardment of Bristol

    Cover art for October 7, 1775: A commemorative plaque in Bristol, RI, marking several events in the War for Independence, including the Bristol Bombing. via Wikimedia Commons.

    While Boston was under siege, the British were having a hard time getting food and other supplies. But they still controlled the water, so British naval vessels went in search.

    Captain James Wallace was especially good at procuring supplies, largely because he harassed people until they gave in, or he would threaten to shoot up the place.

    This second tactic was the one he chose for Bristol, Rhode Island, and it’s unclear how much actual damage he did to the town (reports vary wildly). But what is known is that he came in search of 200 sheep and 30 cattle, and came away with 40 sheep after he cut a deal with the town.

    We’re calling this one a draw.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • October 6, 1775: A Strongly-Worded Letter

    Cover art for October 6, 1775: Seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Basic design adopted by Governor John Hancock and the Council on December 13, 1780 [1], present design adopted in 1901, rendered by E.H. Garrett

    We actually touched on this once before, but George Washington was known for being quite the gentleman, but he did have a temper, especially when things weren’t handled in a gentlemanly way. Cross the lines of civility and he was hoisting the Jolly Roger, my friend.

    In a previous episode we noted that Washington wrote to General Gage about the treatment that captured American soldiers were receiving. In it was a thinly-veiled hint that he had prisoners too. And he’d be more than happy to treat them the way the British were apparently treating American soldiers. It’s not clear whether this had the desired effect. What is clear is that when something didn’t meet his expectations, he was going to make himself heard.

    And by this date, Washington had a few things that needed to be addressed by the Massachusetts General Court. That sounds like a legal body but it was, in fact, the provincial government at that time. There were some things that the Continental Congress handled for the army, but the General Court took care of much more at that time. Unfortunately for Washington, the General Court was—in his opinion—dragging its feet and needed a nudge in the right direction.

    And Washington was only too happy to provide that nudge.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • October 5, 1775: An Arrest In Canada

    Cover art for October 5, 1775: Oil-on-wood portrait of Thomas Walker

    Thomas Walker was born in England and emigrated to Boston in 1752. In 1763 he moved to Montreal and became a merchant.

    When the war broke out in the Colonies, both Walker and his wife’s sympathies remained with the Americans. So it was that he agreed to assist with the invasion of Montreal. The plan never got to the point where his task came in, but since he was known to be part of it, the word went out for his arrest.

    Walker didn’t give up quickly but he was caught by the British for his crime. A month later he was put on a ship bound for Quebec, but it was captured by the Americans and he was released. He returned to Montreal(!) but when an American delegation showed up in May 1776, he decided to return to America with them, and he re-established himself in Boston. Unfortunately we don’t know a lot about what happened to him after that except that in 1785 he petitioned Congress for reimbursement for lost income because of the war.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • October 4, 1775: A Spy In The Ointment

    Cover art for October 4, 1775: Portrait of Benjamin Church, created posthumously based on people's descriptions of him. A life portrait was never made of him.

    It’s actually kind of curious that Benedict Arnold gets all the “traitor” press when there were other spies and turncoats doing their thing during the Revolution. Of course there were! There were Loyalists among the Patriots! It was practically a civil war.

    Dr. Benjamin Church, essentially our first Surgeon General (but that wasn’t a thing yet, so), was a Loyalist in Patriot clothing. Arnold was swayed by his young, pretty, Loyalist wife Peggy Shippen. But we’ll get to that eventually. (There was probably more to it than that, but Peggy was at the heart of it.)

    Incidentally, we ran out of time to tell you this part, but it’s only presumed that Church died on the way to Martinique because the entire boat simply vanished; it was never heard from again. I guess you could argue that it was claimed by the Bermuda Triangle.

    Do people still talk about the Bermuda Triangle? That was a big honkin’ deal fifty years ago.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

  • October 3, 1775: Rhode Island Suggests a Navy

    It’s often tough to remember that when the fighting first broke out, it wasn’t a bid for independence from Britain. It was an attempt to protect and defend rights that the Colonists thought they had as part of their relationship with Britain. Reconciliation was (amazingly) still on the table, even six months after Lexington.

    So while many colonies had created their own small navies (with Congress’ encouragement), there were several in Congress who felt that creation of a navy was a step too far. They were okay with an army, but not a navy? I don’t really get it either.

    When Rhode Island finally put forth a formal proposal for a Continental Navy, it met with almost universal resistance. Why? Tune in and find out.

    Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed