1777 - DANBURY ON FIRE! - The Occasional Blog

At last! The Teacher's Key Arrives!

7/4/2022

Two posts in one week: unheard of!

I do want to announce that the teacher's key has arrived! It gives the home-schooling mom a fair chance, even if she only glanced through the book last year when she bought it!

Precis of chapters and hints for "essay question" answers, it has it all! Enjoy!

A Summer Special

7/3/2022

I look forward to fall, but I'm never sure what will happen because I do work in emergency management when our call center is open. Last year, all my plans were blitzed on Labor Day, however I must make plans for events whether they come to fruition or not! Check out my events page, 'cause first event is this week ... time just sneaks up on us.

The Battle of Ridgefield

5/3/2022

So mind-blowing to be in CT for the interment of the four persons discovered under a house built in the 1790s! I saw the uniform buttons from the unfortunate gentleman that someone cared enough about to give a decent burial. (The others were thrown down unclothed as far as can be determined.)
I also visited the graves of sundry members of the Hamilton family, at last discovering Uncle John's wife's stone, either placed or replaced near Norman and Eli Hamilton in the Pembroke Cemetery. I also visited the Knapps, Benjamin and Noah, father and son, in Old North Main in Danbury.
A memorable trip for sure. A culmination of my hope and attempt to bring the Revolution to the foreground of both imagination and reality.

Catching Up on Ft. Frederick

5/3/2022

The net result counted over 6K came to the 4-day event. With a site out of the main travel pattern, I still lucked into a spot next to the Maple Syrup Man, Casey.
Nice to catch up with the lady semptress from J. Rook. Each night featured a walk to the Potomac River, a joy forever....

My New Jersey Invasion

4/11/2022

I wasn't kidding about north being colder than south. The first day at the Abraham Staat House (1740) was warm and lovely, giving me a false sense of security. Did I freeze the entire rest of the time? Yes. Did I receive compliments on new vestments? Yes! I made some new friends, too!

Heavy Investment in Vestments

4/5/2022

Guess we already know that north is colder than south. I'm learning.
New woolen cape was ordered and came amazingly fast from my friend Lauren at Samson's. Also ordered a top and think I will get another made from fabric I have. Decided to use a tablecloth of my grandmothers for an apron. All I can say is nothing had better get on it! So off I go to South Bound Brook NJ, now with tent stakes that would hold the Spinnaker on a 50-foot sailboat!

2022 Events Report

3/15/2022

The Battle at Guilford Courthouse March 11-12

Cold and rain predominated, approx 3" of rain. The food truck left at 10AM Saturday, so this old lady did what she has never done before: I packed up and left before the event completed. 34 degrees in the morning and 34 when I left, along with my compadre, The Old Goat pedlar, as well as the nice folks with the fire. No fire= no stay. Snapping the pin out of a 2x2 tentpole says it all. Orders went out to several companies to prevent this in the future. Our country was saved in the 18th century by the same strength of purpose that showed the militia tents all still occupied while we sutlers abandoned ship!

GUESS WHAT?

9/16/2018

On Writing Seminars

4/18/2018

Editors' comments resemble instructions from a boss. The suggestions are meaningful to them, but maybe not to you. I took a chapter book for critique several years ago and was told to "heighten the stakes, put in more tension and anxiety." I could hardly believe it -- for eight year olds? I enquired just how I should accomplish that in a kids book. Parental discord was suggested, dumbfounding this amateur. Eventually I figured out how to spread fear and loathing among three children and two adults.
When my editor for 1777, Val Muller, asked for more emotion, my scene involved one child and one unconscious adult. I could only express the child's anxiety to leave the scene, because that would have been my own 12 year old reaction!
When I went to Writers' Project Runway two weeks ago, I wasn't sure what take-aways I would find.
What I learned counted as the full answer to the question above. The lessons on layering emotion let me feel that I'd hit the jackpot!
Bravo Pennwriters for bringing Annette Dashofy and Hillary Hauck to us for a day and
thanks to Bobbi Carducci, for everything!

Two Trowbridges - Adrift Together in the Civil War

3/21/2018

My last addition to Spot Writers told of a Trowbridge victim of the LaFourche Crossing battle in the Civil War. The attending surgeon was another Trowbridge, originally from Danbury, but practicing medicine in Stamford CT at the time of enlistment in the 23rd Ct. Volunteers.
If they did not know each other before, this could not have been the most pleasant meeting. Dr. William Trowbridge was left the only doctor on the field to care for almost two hundred wounded Confederates. How did it happen that the Union troops went off and left him with the opposing forces for six weeks? At that time their period of enlistment was up and they came back to fetch him and such Union wounded as had been taken. The Confederates appear content to have him to continue practicing as their doctor.
Stay tuned!