Early on Sunday, October 16, 1859, the ardent abolitionist John Brown assembled his small army of 18 recruits for prayers and to deliver marching orders. That evening, Brown launched his grandiose plan to capture the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry and subsequently incite a slave insurrection in Virginia. Brown had a long history of fighting to … Read more
The history of the United States of America is filled with heroes and patriots — men and women — who helped shape the course of the nation. From exploration to Colonial America; from the American Revolution to the Civil War; from Reconstruction to the 21st Century, heroes and patriots have come from all walks of … Read more
Yes, Mercy Otis Warren should be considered a Founding Mother. As Gary M. Calles, says, after all, she has been called “The Conscience of the American Revolution,” both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams called her a genius, and Elizabeth Ellet described her as “the most remarkable woman who lived in the days of the American Revolution.” … Read more
Who was Horatio Gates? Horatio Gates was a General in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. When the war started, he was commissioned as Brigadier General in the Continental Army. He commanded Americans to victory at Saratoga but lost at Camden. His time in the army was plagued by jealousy of George Washington. Did … Read more
Seth Warner was an officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He led the legendary Green Mountain Boys in several key battles in the early years of the war, including the Battle of Hubbardton and the Battle of Bennington. Prior to the war, Warner was a leader of the Green Mountain Boys, … Read more
It’s a good question, and one I’m working on an answer to. Not just because it’s Black History Month, but also because I’m trying to present a more detailed view of American history. This isn’t a textbook with a limited number of pages. It’s a website. I can add as many pages as I want, … Read more
American History Central had a busy month in January. A significant amount of new content was added for Colonial America, the American Revolution, and the Civil War. New Content for Colonial America I’ve been working on three main things in regard to Colonial America. Unfortunately, we have gaps that we need to fill in our … Read more
I think we all know that Christmas hasn’t always been the commercialized holiday that it is today. Or even the calm, peaceful scene that you see in the picture above. But I’m not sure many people really know why that is. I came across an article by Will Sellers that talks about how Christmas was … Read more
The Sugar Act was passed by Parliament on April 5, 1764. It went into effect on September 29, 1764, and lasted until 1766 when it was repealed and replaced by the Revenue Act. The Sugar Act of 1764 was the first of the British Acts that were passed to raise revenue from the colonies. Collectively, … Read more
On March 25, 1761, King George III appointed Lord Bute, John Stuart, as Secretary of State for the Northern Department. Secretaries of State The Secretaries of State were senior members of the King’s Council and were appointed by the King. The Secretaries were responsible for managing foreign affairs. They had a significant influence on colonial … Read more
Portrait of King George III by Allan Ramsay. Image Source: Google Arts & Culture. The Proclamation of 1763 reserved the lands west of the crest of the Appalachian mountains for the Native American Indian tribes, and prohibited colonists from moving west. After the French and Indian War, the French gave up their claim to lands … Read more
It’s that time of year! AP exams are right around the corner. We’ve taken the time to collect links to some of the top study guides on Amazon.com. U.S. History AP U.S. History (Premium), Princeton Review AP U.S. History, Princeton Review AP U.S. History, Barron’s AP U.S. History, Sterling Test Prep European History AP European … Read more
One of the early threats to the republic came in March 1783, when a group of officers in the Continental Army decided to challenge the authority of the Congress. The incident was caused by the inability of Congress to pay the members of the military. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress could not tax the states … Read more
As I mentioned last time, Harry and I were sidetracked for a few years with another project. I think that it was around 2009 that we decided to jump into a new encyclopedia that focused on the role of Ohioans in the Civil War. That site, Ohio Civil War Central, contains a massive amount of well-researched … Read more
In August 2009, we (Harry Searles and Randal Rust) put on a workshop in Indianapolis at the annual meeting of the American Association of State and Local History (AASLH). The workshop provided insight into the process for developing an online digital encyclopedia. As part of the workshop, we created a working demo of a digital … Read more
