250 and Counting

Anyone who’s been to Boston in the modern day has a hard time recognizing that the city of Boston was just the segment in the top center of the map. The area called Boston Neck is clearly marked at the bottom left, and wasn’t part of the city. The Continental Army’s line ran about where […]

The post September 3, 1775: The British Move To Break the Siege appeared first on 250 and Counting.

Sometimes when we research these shows we learn stuff that doesn’t have a lot to do with history—not directly—but is interesting nonetheless, and does have some historical impact. Hurricanes would be one of those things. On the east coast of the US, we pretty much take them for granted as a weather phenomenon. They’re definitely […]

The post September 2, 1775: Independence Hurricane appeared first on 250 and Counting.

Nothing beats the speed of gossip, and apparently the Virginia Gazette on this day had plenty of it to share. A few of the stories were quite serious, relating to events in both Virginia and Massachusetts. They closed out with a local story that had a more humorous edge to it…though it’s likely that the […]

The post September 1, 1775: Virginia Gazette Headlines appeared first on 250 and Counting.

The cover art for today’s episode may be one of the most famous art pieces depicting an event of the American Revolution, and it happened under the Liberty Tree, which is clearly marked here. This event, the tarring and feathering of Loyalist John Malcolm, took place about 18 months earlier and shows Malcolm already tarred […]

The post August 31, 1775: The Liberty Tree Dies appeared first on 250 and Counting.

The HMS Rose was a 20-gun ship of the Royal Navy, built in 1757. When hostilities broke out between the Colonies and the Crown, the Rose was tasked with preventing smuggling off the coast of Connecticut and (especially) Rhode Island. She spent the first few years of the Revolution in Narragansett Bay, in the Long […]

The post August 30, 1775: Your Cows or Your Life appeared first on 250 and Counting.

George Washington was a very good general and a disciplined soldier, but the fact that his men weren’t…well, that worried him a lot. He had a huge number of soldiers with him at Cambridge for the Siege of Boston. But since the British were so bottled up in the city, there weren’t many things for […]

The post August 29, 1775: From One Virginian To Another appeared first on 250 and Counting.

As farfetched as it sounds today, considering the need to invade and occupy Canadian territory was considered important early in the war effort, largely because the colonies in the Great White North had been treated a little more favorably by Parliament. Therefore they were more likely to lean on the Loyalist side of things. In […]

The post August 28, 1775: Preparing to Invade…Canada? appeared first on 250 and Counting.

Frederick Graff feels like one of those guys who gets so little credit for what he did, you wind up feeling pretty badly for him. But the fact is, if not for him, over three dozen cities in the US wouldn’t have adequate water systems. So good on Frederick! Hoist your favorite beverage in his […]

The post August 27, 1775: Frederick Graff appeared first on 250 and Counting.

Rhode Island has been proactive about the war effort ever since the events at Lexington and Concord. And one thing you’re going to learn today is just how much coastline there is to Rhode Island, and why having a navy was important to them. But it’s important to get an outsider’s view of things, and […]

The post August 26, 1775: Rhode Island Wants Some Naval Action appeared first on 250 and Counting.

Today we take a look at two letters composed today: The first was an account of the activities around the Battle of Bunker Hill, from the time they were assigned to protect the hill, to the time they were finally defeated by the British—because they were out of ammunition. In the other letter, Thomas Jefferson […]

The post August 25, 1775: Eyewitness To The News appeared first on 250 and Counting.