Bon Voyage Britain!

On this day in 1783, the final remnants of British troops withdrew from New York, a city and harbor they had controlled for over seven years. The withdrawal came three months after the finalization of the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the war between Britain and her former American colonies.

After the final British soldiers left the harbor, General George Washington made his triumphant entry back into the city that he had failed to defend seven years earlier. The loss of New York was arguably the toughest pill to swallow for the General. Washington had always taken the loss of New York personally and had suggested leading an attack on the city numerous times over the next seven years -- a prospect that his aids and associates back in the Continental Congress did not share.

The History Channel website has the following comments on the importance of New York and what the withdrawal of British troops meant to the new infant nation:

Four months after New York was returned to the victorious Patriots, the city was declared to be the capital of the United States. In 1789, it was the site of Washington's inauguration as the first U.S. president and remained the nation's capital until 1790, when Philadelphia became the second capital of the United States under the U.S. Constitution.

New Yorkers shaped the history of two new nations. The British evacuated their New York Loyalists to remaining British territories, mainly in Canada. These families had been dispossessed of their land and belongings by the victorious Patriots because of their continued support of the British king and were able to regain some financial independence through lands granted to them by the British in western Quebec (now Ontario) and Nova Scotia. Their arrival in Canada permanently shifted the demographics of what had been French-speaking New France until 1763 into an English-speaking colony, and later nation, with the exception of a French-speaking and culturally French area in eastern Canada that is now Quebec.

In 1784, one year after their arrival, the new Loyalist population spurred the creation of New Brunswick in the previously unpopulated (by Europeans, at least) lands west of the Bay of Fundy in what had been Nova Scotia. In 1785, the Loyalists yet again made their mark on Canadian history when their combined settlements at Parrtown and Carleton of approximately 14,000 people became British North America’s first incorporated city under the name City of Saint John. The division between the Anglophile and Francophile sections was ultimately recognized by creating the English-dominant province of Ontario, west of Quebec, in 1867.

Yes, New York has always been the "City that never sleeps."

Alexander Hamilton's House

Alexander Hamilton is moving. Or better put, his home is moving. After roughly 200 years of residing in downtown New York city, Hamilton's beloved home -- known as the Grange -- will be relocated a block away in St. Nicholas Park. The home will also be receiving a much needed renovation -- $8.4 million dollars worth to be exact -- that should ensure the home's survival for decades to come.

David Dunlap of the The New York Times has written an excellent article regarding the home's history over the past 200 years. As the article states:

Now, in the house he left behind, Hamilton is again coming to life. To their joy, National Park Service officials have discovered that the front stairway, though much modified over time, is essentially the one built for Hamilton, complete with original risers, treads, balusters, ornamental scrollwork and support structure. It will be rebuilt in its original form.

Alexander Hamilton ran up those very treads!” said Steve Laise, chief of cultural resources of Manhattan sites for the National Park Service, which owns and runs the Grange. “It just puts you in such close proximity with the past. For those of us who really wish we were living back then anyway, it’s probably more of a stimulus to our imagination than we really ought to have.”

“Lovely exterior details are also evident for the first time in more than a century, including a triple-hung sash window. Smaller windows on either side have an alternating star-and-circle tracery. “That kind of pattern is well rooted in 18th-century Anglo-American design practice,” said Seth Joseph Weine, a fellow of the Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America.

Though the project is expected to cost another couple of million dollars to complete -- worth every penny if you ask me -- Hamilton's home is expected to be completely restored to its original state. So the next time you are in New York, make sure to pay Mr. Hamilton a visit at his new abode in St. Nicholas Park!

Happy Colonial St. Patrick's Day

The holiday known throughout the western world as St. Patrick's Day is most commonly associated with Catholicism and Irish pride. After all, the holiday was created to commemorate the death of the Catholic Saint, Patrick, in 493.

So why is this such a popular holiday in the United States?

The origins of St. Patrick's Day in the United States date back to colonial times. Protestant Irish immigrants brought the festival over to the American colonies during the initial years of colonization. These early Irish Protestants were seeking refuge from the traditional Catholic rituals of Ireland, and therefore found refuge in the New World.

The first St. Patrick's Day celebration in America was held in 1737, in Boston. Most English colonists embraced the holiday as a Protestant day of worship (not to mention as an excuse to get drunk). In 1775, Irish-Americans celebrated St. Patrick's Day with a large number of British soldiers that had arrived to suppress the rebellion in the colonies. In New York, British soldiers celebrated St. Patrick's Day after their siege of the city was complete. In fact, many loyal colonists commemorated St. Patrick's Day as a day to celebrate Britain's "liberation" of the colonies.

As a gesture of appreciation to the many Irish soldiers of the Continental Army, General George Washington proclaimed March 17 as a holiday for the entire Army during their stay at Morristown. It was reported that this was the first holiday granted the troops in over two years.

Though the holiday is celebrated with much more gusto and extravagance today, the origins of America's St. Patrick's Day festivities are very much rooted in our colonial history. One can only wonder if a leprechaun or two helped in America's quest for independence!

Are you all wearing green today?

Erie Canal and the "Burned-over District"

One of the largest achievements of the early 19th century is the completion of the Erie Canal. Though ignored by the federal government, Governor Henry Clinton of New York was able to gain the funding necessary to complete the project. The canal turned out to be such a huge success that the debt for the project was paid off within the first year of the canal's operation.

The Erie Canal brought a tremendous amount of wealth and commerce to the state of New York. In fact, it is because of the Erie Canal that New York earned the nickname "The Empire State."

What a lot of people don't know when it comes to the Erie Canal is that its construction helped to spark the fires of religious revival throughout the state. The area of western New York, which evangelist Charles Finney dubbed "the burned-over district," was a particular hot bet for religious fanaticism, scarcely seen in any other part of the American republic. Though the construction of the Erie Canal cannot be given full credit for this surge of religious enthusiasm, it can be credited for being one of the major factors that led to this phenomenon.

In his work The Market Revolution, historian Charles Sellers suggests that the construction of the Erie Canal brought an infusion of market capitalism that forced religions to adapt. While many of these religions embraced the Market Revolution in western New York, others fought against it. A sudden surge in the number of religious communal societies, each embracing a communistic economy and the hope of a rapidly approaching millennium, became the antithesis to the capitalist changes enveloping New York. These societies saw capitalism as an evil to be avoided. The various religious leaders that emerged from western New York at this time (Ann Lee, Charles Finney, Joseph Smith, Jonathan Edwards to name just a few) labored to protect their "flocks" from the clutches of capitalist enthusiasm, each gaining different degrees of success.

Many of the established religions (Methodists, Quakers, Baptists, Catholics to name just a few) also flooded the region with missionaries, as the expansion westward marked a change in how religions addressed the need for new converts. Other religious ideologies, such as Universalism, Unitarianism and Deism affected the way citizens understood religion.

What interests me about these movements is how they were so closely related with capitalism and the Market Revolution. As the market's influence grew, so too did the religious zeal of the various dogmas. Capitalism was seen as an evil to be combated, instead of a practice to be embraced. It is amazing how different things are today!

"Here We Go A-Caucussing"

"Super Tuesday" is upon us! Today literally millions of Americans will go to the polls to cast their ballots for their Democratic or Republican choice for President. Many of these states (including my beloved "Centennial State"), will hold a caucus to determine who the Democratic or Republican candidate is.

This caucus, which is essentially nothing more than a group meeting of political supporters, may seem very confusing to its participants. Isn't it a much easier process to simply cast an electronic vote?

What most Americans don't know when it comes to the caucus is the fact that it is a very old tradition, which dates back to a time before the United States ever existed. Though the origins of the word are greatly debated, the term caucus is believed to have originated from the Algonquin Indians, who resided in what is today New York and Vermont. It is believed that the Algonquin word 'cau´-cau-as´u', meaning "counsel" was adopted by early American Democratic-republicans in the latter part of the 18th century. Historian J.L. Bell mentions that the first known usage of the word caucus comes from the diary of America's second president, John Adams, who wrote:

"This day learned that the Caucas Clubb meets at certain Times in the Garret of Tom Daws, the Adjutant of the Boston Regiment. He has a large House, and he has a moveable Partition in his Garrett, which he takes down and the whole Clubb meets in one Room. There they smoke tobacco till you cannot see from one End of the Garrett to the other. There they drink Phlip I suppose, and there they choose a Moderator, who puts Questions to the Vote regularly, and select Men, Assessors, Collectors, Wardens, Fire Wards, and Representatives are Regularly chosen before they are chosen in the Town. Uncle Fairfield, Story, Ruddock, Adams, Cooper, and a most rudis indigestaque Moles of others are Members. They send Committees to wait on the Merchants Clubb and to propose, and join, in the Choice of Men and Measures. Captn. Cunningham says they have often solicited him to go to these Caucas, they have assured him Benefit in his Business, &c."

(Click here for the link to the electronic archive of the Diary of John Adams)

So as you make your way to the polls today, remember that you are participating in a tradition that is older than America itself. To go "a-caucussing" is an activity as American as apple pie, which, by the way, Native Americans enjoyed as well.

New Connecticut (Vemont) Declares Independence

In 1777, the great state of Vermont decided to declare its independence not only from Great Britain, but from the neighboring state of New York. For years, the settlers in the Vermont area had been asserting their right to break from New York, but were unable to do so. Thanks to the efforts of Ethan Allen and his "Green Mountain Boys," Vermont was perfectly positioned to declare its independence.

Origionally named New Connecticut, the state adopted the name Vermont, which is an inaccurate translation of the French phrase "green mountain."

Vermont was also the first state to draft a constitution. Its constitution was one of the most radical to say the least. It guaranteed every male (reguardless of property status) the right to vote, it abolished slavery (making Vermont the first state to do so), and it gave some rights to women. Despite their incredible efforts to gain independence, Vermont was not recognized by the United States, and remained its own nation until 1792.

The origional flag of Vermont was the same flag that was used by Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys (a picture of the flag is posted at the beginning of this article). The flag has 13 stars in a scattared pattern, which was to represent the scattered and unsettled nature of the early United States. The green color is, of course, representative of the Green Mountains of Vermont.