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The Battle of Crysler’s Farm
We have talked about the strange career of General James Wilkinson. He has been mixed up with a Spanish conspiracy to control the “west” after the revolution (Please see this post: http://www.historynaked.com/the-spanish-conspiracy/ ), as well as his involvement the machinations of Aaron Burr after his duel with Alexander Hamilton (Please see this post: http://www.historynaked.com/aaron-burr-part-ii-king-america/). He has even been implicated in the death of Meriweather Lewis (Please see this post: http://www.historynaked.com/murder-mystery-frontier-death-meriwether-lewis/ ) The final chapter of this enigmatic figure, features prominently in the saga of the failed American invasion of Canada during the War of 1812. No one is really sure how after all his escapades, Wilkinson kept the confidence…
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Star Spangled Banner
On September 3, 1814, following the Burning of Washington and the Raid on Alexandria, lawyers Francis Scott Key and John Stuart Skinner set sail from Baltimore aboard the ship HMS Minden, They had been sent by President James Madison on a mission to negotiate for the release of Dr. William Beanes, a surgeon who had been captured at the Battle of Bladensburg. On September 7 the pair boarded the British ship, Tonnant, where they dined and secured the prisoner’s release with one condition, they could not go ashore until after the British attacked Baltimore. The men were required to stay because they had heard details of the plans for the…
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The White House- Why the White House is White
The symbol of the presidency has been the White House. Originally, called the President’s House or President’s mansion, the site was picked out by George Washington himself and has been the residence of every president since John Adams. The building was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, who won a design competition for the honor. His plans were chosen from nine other proposals submitted, including one submitted anonymously by Thomas Jefferson. The cornerstone was laid October 13, 1792 and legend says is covered with Masonic symbols. There is a persistent myth as to how it acquired its iconic white coat of paint. Legend says the white paint was added to disguise…
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Laura Secord
Like most people in the Northeast, Laura Secord had family and friends on both sides of the war. Her father had fought with the colonists against the British in the American Revolution, but after the war moved to the Upper Canada. Once there, she met James Secord and they married in 1797 and settled in St. Davids then later Queenston. When war broke out in 1812, James Secord joined the British in the 1st Lincoln militia under Isaac Brock. He was seriously wounded at the Battle of Queenston Heights after helping to carry his commander’s body away from the field after his death. Laura brought him home to nurse him.…
