stories of america
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Varina Davis, Mary Bowser, and a Very Revealing Letter: Life Thoughts After the Civil War
A few years ago I came across the story of Mary Bowser, a formerly enslaved woman who became a Union spy in Richmond during the Civil War. Bowser reportedly worked inside the Confederate White House, where Jefferson Davis lived with his wife, Varina, and passed information she gathered there to the Union. Naturally, that sent… Continue reading
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The Crowd at John Brown’s Hanging
John Brown remains one of the most complicated figures in American history. A fierce abolitionist who came to believe slavery would never be destroyed peacefully, Brown was willing to use violence against those who defended it. In 1856, during the bloody conflict over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a free or slave state,… Continue reading
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When Sandusky, Ohio Had Four Buildings: The Memories of Almon Hunt (1808-1896)
Some of my favorite genealogy discoveries are the documents that let me see beyond the basic facts of an ancestor’s life. The 1889 letter below from Almon Hunt is one of those treasures. Rather than simply telling me where the family lived or when they moved, Almon tells me what he actually remembered – the… Continue reading
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Before Wendy’s, There Was A Bucket of Chicken
Some of the most interesting history is hiding in the most ordinary places – including the food we eat every day. While watching the History Channel’s The Food That Built America, I learned a fascinating little piece of fast-food history involving Dave Thomas, Colonel Sanders, a bucket of chicken and eventually, a Frosty. Dave Thomas,… Continue reading
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Twenty Minutes from Home: The Battle of Fallen Timbers
Sometimes the most fascinating history isn’t found hundreds of miles away – it is practically in our own backyard. Just twenty minutes from my home lies the site of the Battle of Fallen Timbers, fought on August 20, 1794, near present-day Maumee, Ohio. I have visited the battlefield several times over the years, but today,… Continue reading
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Lewis & Clark: The Beginning of The End
Having finished the Audio book, “Lewis & Clark” by Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns, I have become completely obsessed with learning more about their expedition. One of the most sobering things to me is how quickly the American West changed. When President Thomas Jefferson sent the Corps of Discovery, lead by Meriwether Lewis and William… Continue reading
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Before the War: “12 Years a Slave” and the America That Couldn’t Last
My fascination with the Civil War has only deepened over the years, especially as my genealogy research has revealed just how many branches of my own tree were touched by the conflict. On line after line, I’ve discovered ancestors and relatives who served the Union, turning names, regiments, battles and dates in history books into… Continue reading
