Sunday at the Van Campen Inn

Join us Sunday as we take part in Walpack’s Van Campen Day along Old Mine Road.  

Just a Bit More Beadwork.....

An occasional hobby - this time trying a few chokers....

Roasting Ears of Corn

While we were dealing with record flooding in upstate Pennsylvania, Capt. Pitchell was dealing with the rain at the Roasting Ears of Corn festival at the Museum of Indian Culture near Allentown, PA.  

While he may not have had quite the overwhelming flooding we experienced, the weather certainly put a bit of a damper over the crowds, and made some of the demonstrations a bit more difficult.  Nonetheless, Capt. Pitchell put out a great display and had a good experience meeting people and talking about the conflict of the late 1750s.  It is interesting to be placed in the adversarial role, as public sympathies at this event honor those against whom the original Frontier Guard campaigned.  Only recently have historians begun to give the complexities of the struggle for North American empire their proper due, and the role of Indian cultures has become much more prominent as a more nuanced look at the conflict has emerged.  

 

Water, Water Everywhere....

For years now, my family has been traveling to upstate Pennsylvania for the rendezvous at Whispering Pines, near Wellsboro, PA.  It is a great gathering, with friendly people, a beautiful setting, and a great atmosphere.  For the past two years, however, bad weather has cut our participation short.  I have two choices for accommodations: a 20’ x 20’ marquee tent, or a small 6’x6’ wedge.  Last year, heavy rains meant that my daughter and I took the wedge and stayed one night.  This year, unfortunately, the weather was even worse - over 20” of rain in three weeks.  Towns were flooded out, roads were closed, and the rains kept coming.  Once again, getting a heavy trailer in and setting up a large tent for several days of deluge did not seem appealing, especially as I do not have four-wheel drive, so getting stuck seemed likely.

This year, my son and I took the wedge tent and stayed over Saturday to Sunday.  It was unfortunate, but it was the right decision for us.  I did not even chance the parking lot; had I done so, the car might still be there.   

 

         

    

Saturday afternoon was rainy, more heavy downpours, but luckily, the rain stopped, and Sunday was overcast, but dry.  Everything, however, was a sea of mud, with streams flowing through the fields. 

          

 

 

 

 

      

      

 

Some of the hardier campers had improvised “corduroy” pathways to escape a bit of the mud - a bit of historic authenticity I’m sure they would rather have passed up.

 

I did get to see a number of friends, and we had a good time talking about history, singing a bit, and doing a bit of shooting, although I found numerous ways to just miss the elusive rendezvous rabbit.

 

  

 

Our camp found one of the last “dry” spots, meaning that the mud was firm and our shoes didn’t fill with water standing in the immediate vicinity of the tent, although no one was so lucky elsewhere, and all our shoes took several days to dry out.  

Next year, and yes, we plan to be back, we’ll hope for more cooperative weather. I had a good time despite the muck, but it would certainly have been better with a bit more sunshine.

Newest member of the Frontier Guard family...

Some of the references to the Frontier Guard mention the use of dogs in the forts and on patrols.  There are no specifics that I’ve read, but presumably they were used as trackers or to give alarms.

Recently, our family Labrador passed away suddenly at age 10, and as we are definitely a dog family, I wanted briefly to introduce the newest member of our family....

 

I rarely post pictures of this type, as they aren’t specifically history-related, but in this case, I’ll make an exception.

Easton Heritage Day 2018

Once again the Frontier Guard took part in Easton’s Heritage Day festival.  This celebration commemorates the reading of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, but it features reenactors from all eras of Easton’s history, with a military timeline that spans the gamut from the French and Indian War to the Vietnam War, if not beyond.

We had our customary spot at the corner of the central square, and throughout the course of the day, we talked to hundreds of people and posed for dozens of photographs.  In fact, we hadn’t even gotten our gear unloaded before a photographer was asking my daughter to pose for a photo.

Of course, my son was in demand as well, as were we all....

There were a host of other craftsmen, military reenactors, singers, and vendors, as well as personalities like Abraham Lincoln and General Pershing (this year complete with horse), and a great attendance by the public. The weather cooperated, everyone had a great time, and it was another great event.

It’s been too long....

It has been far too long since I’ve updated this site - far too long.  Work and family responsibilities have played a big role in this lapse, but that’s not sufficient.  Rather, however, than detail reasons, I’ll just give a brief update on one or two events and try to keep up a bit better going forward.

In March, my son and I presented to the fourth grade at Green Hills school.  Students got to see a small slice of life from over 250 years ago.  They were rapt with attention, keeping the presentation going for nearly an hour, and they asked a lot of good questions...

 While a cold, wet rain prevented an outdoor setup, within the limitations of a gym we were able to show the students a good deal, with my son showing off 18th century childrens’ toys and helping out. As this was a school setting, two members of the State Police gave friendly, professional oversight.

Im working on the next post now; please check back soon...