NJ State History Fair 2015

The Frontier Guard will be at the Spirit of the Jerseys State History Fair on Saturday at Monmouth Battlefield State Park.  The event runs 11:00am - 5:00pm.  Hope to see you there!

Highland Park

Last weekend the Frontier Guard took part in a military timeline at the Senior Center in Highland Park.

 

It was a small event, but as Captain Pitchell noted, there were great people and dedicated reenactors from a wide variety of eras.

 

 

 

Ron's Cabin

Our newest  member, Ron, sent me these pictures of his cabin.  It's a Swedish-influenced
structure, built of rough-hewn 6x6 squared logs.

 Even the chinking is a lime/sand mix in order to keep the cabin as authentic as possible.

Like originals, Ron used no nails in the construction of the walls. The end result looks cozy and a step back in time.  This is a small cabin - 8' x 10' - so it would be a bit small for a family, even with the different standards of privacy and space in the eighteenth century, but for a lone hunter or settler, it would make a beginning until something larger could be built.  The Daniel Boone birthplace near Reading, PA, has an original cabin that is, I believe, 14' x 19', so even family cabins tended to be far smaller than what we regard as minimum requirements today.  

Kidding Around at Hoff Vannatta

Our younger members were at Hoff Vannatta on Sunday, showing off kids' toys and games to a large number of younger visitors.

The toys and games were a hit, even with some of our adult members...

 

...who took part in the games, acquitting themselves with the best of graces.

Firing Demonstrations at the Hoff Vannatta House

One of the most popular demonstrations that the Frontier Guard does is firing volleys, or in this case rolling volleys.  Many visitors are unfamiliar with flintlocks, and the noise, flame, and smoke are always a crowd-pleaser.

A Busy Week

The members of the Frontier Guard had a busy week, with presentations on both Friday and Saturday.  On Friday, Capt. Doug Pitchell gave a presentation to elementary school children at the Oak Street School in Basking Ridge.

   

 The Frontier Guard has been doing presentations at the Oak Street School for several years now, as part of the school's Colonial Day activities, and it has been a hit with students and faculty alike.

Saturday was the Spring Open House at the Hoff Vannatta Farmstead in Harmony.  The Guard set up an extensive display, and members were busy with large numbers of visitors all day.

Our newest member, Ron, joined us with his kit and gear already assembled. He looks great.

 

Eric, Bobby, and Doug kept a steady stream of visitors both entertained and informed, while I gave long-winded discourses on topics that I found interesting; I hope one or two visitors did as well.

 

Hoff Vannatta Farmstead this Saturday

We will be at the Hoff Vannatta Farmstead in Harmony, NJ this Saturday, 10AM - 4PM for their spring Open House.

This historic farmstead is located on Route 519 in Harmony, NJ, near Belvedere.  For directions see here: Google Map

For the Hoff Vannatta website and for more information, click here!

Hope to see you there!

Pictures from the Lehigh Valley Museum

The New Campaign Season Starts!

Join the New Jersey Frontier Guard Saturday, March 28, 2015 at the Lehigh Valley Museum in Allentown.  

Voyageur's cap

Liz has also been busy over the winter.  Here's an example of the Voyageur's cap she just finished.

These caps are often associated with French Canadian voyageurs, but various knit caps, such as the Monmouth cap, were popular in the British colonies as well.  By the time of the American Revolution (about 20 years after the NJ Frontier Guard), these caps were known as Liberty Caps, after the Greek or Roman Phrygian caps worn by freed slaves.  

Of course, it looks better on Liz than it does on me.  If anyone has more information about these caps and their use - or lack of it - in the F&I War, please comment and let me know.

By the way, we have some of these caps on our "for sale" page, if you're interested.  At $20, they're pretty reasonable for handmade wool hats.