250 and Counting

Tag: Second Continental Congress

  • Washington Has Some Intel–December 18, 1775

    Cover art for December 18, 1775: A hand-colored printed halftone of a 19th-century illustration of George Washington writing at his desk.
    A hand-colored printed halftone of a 19th-century illustration of George Washington writing at his desk.

    Military Intelligence is a peculiar thing, if only because you never know where it’s going to come from, and/or what it’s going to affect.

    And that’s where today’s episode comes in, because Congress received a letter written today which detailed some plans for British military activity in Virginia. What’s surprising is that the intelligence came from…George Washington, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

    Washington was the lucky recipient of food that had been intercepted on its way to the British folks under siege in Boston. He also received several documents outlining plans that were afoot in Virginia, and he dutifully passed them along.

    Most of it was related to Great Bridge, which had already seen some action, but it still put Congress wise to the fact that the war wasn’t only taking place in the northeast, and that military intelligence can come from anywhere.

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  • The Fate of War and Some Refugees–November 25, 1775

    Cover art for November 25, 1775: a manuscript map of Boston showing Point Shirley to the far right, away from the city. (It's under the "fu" in "refugees")

    It’s hard to emphasize just how remote Point Shirley is compared to the Boston. Let me try anyway. On most maps of Boston, Point Shirley isn’t even on the map. It’s so far to the east that it’s nearly in the ocean. I’m not sure it’s even possible to see Boston from Point Shirley.

    And given Point Shirley’s location at a place between the bay and the ocean, and the fact that it’s November, and you’ve got a cold, windy place where you’ve just dumped 300 sick, destitute people without provisions or a means of getting warm.

    Here’s a weird coincidence: if you look closely at this “manuscript” map from 1775, Point Shirley is at the center right. Need another hint? It’s just under the “fu” in the word “Refugees.” And if anyone got a big FU from the British, it was this group.

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  • The Prize Court Committee–November 17, 1775

    Cover art for November 17, 1775: a British prize court from World War I. From The Times History of The War (1914). Artist unknown.

    A Prize Court is a formal organization dedicated to the disposition of items captured from an enemy.

    Because the Colonies were more or less building it all from the ground up, much of what they adopted came directly from the British. As a result the Prize Court and its structure is a British institution that made its way over here. This doesn’t happen anywhere else in the world, though in the early 20th Century an International Prize Court was proposed and established, but it was never ratified or implemented.

    So it’s still just the British, which maintains a formal court, and the United States, which largely followed the original committee recommendation by largely leaving it up to the individual states.

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  • Birth of a Privilege–November 8, 1775

    Cover art for November 8, 1775: a wood engraving cartoon from Harper's Weekly, March 10, 1860, depicting a member of Congress franking his laundry. From the US Senate collection, accession number 38.00536.001

    When we talk about Franking, we typically use it in the context of the Franking Privilege, something that members of Congress, ex-presidents, and a few others get to use. In short, if they put their name on the envelope, they can mail stuff without cost to themselves. (The Congressional budget reimburses the US Postal Service.)

    But Franking isn’t limited to the franking privilege. “Franking” refers to any kind of device, mark, or combination of the two that makes something eligible for mailing. Put a postage stamp on a letter, that’s franking. Run it through a meter, that’s franking. Business Reply Mail is franking, too. And many of the rules are international in nature; any disputes are handled by an agency that answers to the United Nations.

    For what it’s worth, the franking privilege is intended solely for typical communication with constituents: newsletters or “what’s going on” letters. It can also be used for official business. However: the use of the privilege for political purposes is a big no-no. In addition, there are blackout periods, such as 60 days before an election, or 90 days if the congress member is on the ballot.

    See that? You’ve learned from me, now go learn from Mike.

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  • It’s Finally Official–October 27, 1775

    Cover art for October 27, 1775: Detail of a broadside containing the text of King George III's speech to Parliament on this day.

    We’re 300 days into 1775 and therefore 300 days into this show, and we’ve finally gotten to the point where British troops will be shooting at Americans because the two parties are officially at war.

    Up until now, all the fighting was about control, because what better way to control people than by shooting at them?

    But King George III’s declaration of rebellion in August was informal in nature. It wasn’t until he declared the Colonies to be in rebellion before Parliament that genuine attention was paid to it. It was still theoretically possible that the Colonists could back off and let things go to the way they were, but the odds were vanishingly small.

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  • RIP Peyton Randolph–October 23, 1775

    Cover art for October 23, 1775: Peyton Randolph, by John Wollaston the Younger, 1775.

    Peyton Randolph is another one of those Founding Fathers who goes largely unknown to most people, probably because he died relatively young (age 54) and early in the whole Independence movement.

    But Randolph was a true Patriot and while he wasn’t around to sign the Declaration of Independence, it’s said that his spirit was at the heart of the document.

    It’s worth noting that, as the Royal Governors were kicked out one by one, the Continental Congress began to assume governmental duties for the Colonies. This is why some would argue that, as the first President of the Continental Congress, Peyton Randolph should also be considered our first US President, and never mind the fact that he died before the nation was established. It’s not a terrible idea, we guess…

    Fort Randolph in present-day West Virginia was named after him, as are the Randolph Counties in North Carolina and Indiana, not to mention the town of Randolph, Massachusetts.

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  • Washington Gets Some Relief–October 18, 1775

    Cover art for October 18, 1775: the Battle at Lexington, Amos Doolittle (engraver) and Ralph Earl (artist). via the New York Public Library and the Library of Congress.

    George Washington was a pretty smart guy. He knew exactly what his army needed, in all aspects. He had a handle on discipline, on supplies, on tactics and any number of other things. Washington surrounded himself with people who were smart, too. This went a long way toward ensuring his success.

    So when his army started to fall apart because some basic needs weren’t getting met, Washington took action. He knew that sending another letter to Congress wasn’t going to help. So instead he met with them directly. And like a dog savaging a toy, Washington grabbed Congress in his (not wooden!) teeth and shook them in a figure-eight.

    Metaphorically, of course. And while he didn’t get everything he sought, he managed to get the important stuff done and the rest of it…well. The rest of it, at least he knew he’d been heard. And he’d live to fight another day.

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  • 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.

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  • 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.

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  • September 18, 1775: A Secret Committee

    Cover art for September 18, 1775: Theplaque in Carpenter's Hall (Philadelphia) designating the location where the Committee of Secret Correspondence met with Julien Alexandre Achard de Bonvouloir.

    The Committee of Secret Correspondence is one of those names that sounds like they should be on Double Secret Probation or something. However, when you look at their purpose, the name makes sense.

    The Committee of Secret Correspondence was formed to seek out support from other nations. They reached out to France, Spain, and a few others to get supplies, food, munitions…pretty much anything they could get. Oftentimes they had to use a third party to give everyone plausible deniability.

    And fortunately, their tactics were mostly successful.

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