Category: War of 1812

Speaking About The Stories of Everyday People in the War of 1812 at the College of Southern Maryland

I have been asked to talk about “the Stories of Everyday People in the War of 1812,” as part of the College of Southern Maryland’s 2012-13 professional speakers series. The free program takes place at the La Plata campus,  8730 Mitchell Road, BI-113, La Plata on Oct. 22, 2012 at 7:00 p.m.

During the lecture I will largely draw on unpublished stories of underrepresented people, such as slaves, African-Americans and other people who aren’t talked about in the history books.  Along the way, we’ll consider what it was like when war came to the shores of the Chesapeake for the farmer, workingman, hired-hand, slave, freedman, and woman, the people who don’t usually make the accounts found in our published works.

The program is part of the Maryland Humanities Council’s speakers bureau series.  It brings historians, writers, poets, and living history scholar-actors to the community to present programs to audiences across Maryland.

Sold Out Walking Tour Shares War of 1812 Living history interpretations

As the region celebrates the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, I worked with the Cecil County Office of Tourism to design a living history walking tour that explored the Upper Chesapeake’s stories during that dangerous time.  Working with a group of costumed performers, we strolled around an old colonial river town, Charlestown, exploring thrilling tales.  The living history interpreters dramatically presented first-hand accounts  we drew from primary sources while I provided the details connecting the dramatic narratives.

As the sky began to darken on that August evening, we used lanterns to light our way through the old historic district as we encountered those characters from the past.  The sold out tour, which had a crowd of over 100-people, continues to receive lots of positive feedback from patrons on the popular stroll.  Some were introduced to a new chapter in past, while for others the theatrical approach captivated them. And a good number have talked about how pleased they were to be introduced to a beautiful town and historic district and it’s tourism destination spots.

An Old Man Recalled the British Attack on Fredericktown and Georgetown During War of 1812

In constructing the annals of a time when harrowing warfare came to communities all along the Chesapeake Bay I’ve  spent lots of time searching for long forgotten manuscripts and newspapers that were penned long ago.  These aging letters, newspaper accounts, diaries and other sources from everyday people open a window on history, providing glimpses of those terrifying times.  I’ve found these items stashed deeply away in archives and stored in trunks in someone’s attics.  Here is one from the Chestertown Transcriptin 1887.

Stephen Kennard, an African-American living in Still Pond (Kent County), passed away in 1887 at the age of 94.  Born well before the Civil War tore the nation apart, he had been a slave, the property of Christopher Fields.  When the British sailed into the Chesapeake in 1813, attacking and plundering villages, the man in his early 20s resided on a farm near Galena.

The night before the redcoats assaulted Fredericktown and Georgetown, Stephen and a group of slaves were sent across the river with shovels and “several old fowling pieces” to work on the breastworks on the north side of the Sassafras.  Laboring as fast as they could, for time was growing short, they hastily strengthened the low earthen wall.

The next day unimaginable horror came to the beautifully situated villages on the Sassafras as a detachment of enemy barges and boats ascended the river.  While citizens prepared for a “baptism of fire,” the militia at the breastworks at Pearce’s Point made a defense as the English rowed toward the hastily put up fort, according to the History of Kent County.  With a general discharge of grape, canister, slugs, rockets and musketry creating quite a noise, fear was rampant as people prepared to meet their fate at the hands of the invaders.  In the confusion, the local militia in danger of being captured, retreated from the field.

Stephen attempted to fire his old piece without success, and as the British marched on the defenders he decided to make his way back across the river in his old boat, in order to return home.   While rowing across the water, one of the British barges captured him, the victorious party carrying the young man with them to Georgetown.

There he witnessed the firing of the village by the invaders.  “He saw a beautiful woman . . . promenading arm and arm, with the commanding officer.”  The lady was Miss Kitty Knight and by her request the house at the top of the hill and the one adjoining it was spared the torch.   When the order was given to re-embark, Stephen leveraged that confusion to his advantage, slipping away from the troops and making his way home through Georgetown Crossroads.

Such was one old man’s account about a May in 1813, recalled around the time of his death by a Kent County newspaper.  Of course, the source must be evaluated for validity and context, but the first challenge is to locate the material.

Searching for the First Draft of History: Overseeing the Process of Finding Lessons About the War of 1812 in Stacks of Old Newspapers

Local papers have brought up-to-date information to residents of Havre de Grace since the early 1800s. But on that day in May 1813 when the British stormed into the fishing village, almost completely destroying it, there wasn’t a local weekly to tell people about one of the biggest stories in the annals of the town’s history.

As buildings smoldered and shocked residents started cleaning up the devastated place, readers around the nation turned to city papers out of Baltimore, Philadelphia, and elsewhere to see the headline grabbing intelligence.  Those urban broadsheets, snatching all the reporting they could from letter writers, stage-coach drivers, militia officers, and other eyewitnesses, told subscribers about the outrageous warfare that came to the one small community on the Chesapeake Bay.  Those journals, often called the first draft of history, captured the alarming story as word spread slowly throughout an apprehensive region.

But in the town another five years passed quickly by before citizens had a local source printing news.  Beginning in 1818, editor William Coale kicked off a long tradition of local broadsheets with the Bond of Union, recording the goings on, the adventures and events, and the details of life on ink and paper.  In 1820 the publisher moved the operation to Bel Air, according to the Library of Congress.

As papers concentrating on the attractively situated village started publishing it was a point in time when people still recalled those frightful memories.  It was just as if it was yesterday that they’d lived through the harrowing assault by redcoats.  So the adventures, events, actions, and dangers of that unforgettable Sunday came up periodically in remembrances, on anniversary dates, and when aging defenders passed away.  Plus those old papers are full of advertisements for business, real estate and much more offering insights into that era from long ago.

Two decades later old-timers still eagerly shared first-hand accounts when the Susquehanna Advocate started publishing in 1839.  As the 19th century moved along, the municipality had papers such as the Madisonian and Harford County Weekly Advertiser, Harford County Times, , Democratic Ledger, Havre de Grace Republican, Independent Press, Electric Light, and more, according to the Library of Congress.

In constructing the annals of these times, the War of 1812: Havre de Grace Under Fire committee I’ve been overseeing the process of delving into these and other old newspapers, conducting research and culling insights from fascinating sources.  Project volunteers have spent untold hours at microfilm readers staring at the aging old film as well as rummaging through issues filed deeply away in special repositories.

The researchers also used the products of city publishers to glean the happenings that dangerous spring nearly 200 years ago.  While much of that undertaking called for using microfilm, there is a revolution going on with newspaper research, involving the digitization of newspapers.  Lots of data are now just keystrokes away and valuable information describing the attack and the damage was found.  In this area, many of the major papers from populated centers are now available online.

Those old newspapers help tell the story of the time when warfare came to the Havre de Grace’s shore as the committee chronicles and presents those days.  Buried deeply inside the untold number of pages published through the 19th century are stories of the attack, defense, and damage; enemy relics of war uncovered a generation later; anniversary observances of the attack and bombardment;  and the passage of old defenders.

Newspapers, as journalists often say, are the first draft of history.   The preliminary accounts are rarely the final ones as editors and reporters face the challenge of gathering information during difficult wartime conditions while rushing to meet the printer’s deadline.  Nonetheless, these colorful and engaging sources provide a glimpse into another time as we triangulate new gleanings with other manuscripts.

Nearly two hundred years later, the project has pulled out those dusty, untouched issues while also squinting to read microfilm and online digital content.  Thank goodness those broadsheets were worth hanging onto and weren’t crumpled up and tossed away the away like we generally do with our daily papers.