The Death of George Washington - December 14, 1799

George Washington

Because so many momentous historical dates of our founding period are no longer commemorated  (except the 4th of July),  for this week's posting I thought I would write a little something about our nation's 1st President,  George Washington,  a true 18th century citizen of the American colonies...and of his death,  which took place over 200 years ago on December 14,  1799.
Most of what you are about to read here,  however,  I did not write.  It was taken,  mostly word for word,  from two books I have in my collection:  "Revolutionary Medicine"  by Jeanne E. Abrams and  "George Washington - An Interactive Biography"  by Rod Gragg  (links at the end of the post),  which I feel describes our first President's last days in a  you-are-there  manner exceptionally well.
I hope you like it:

Despite hail and snow,  on December 12,  1799,  the former President conducted his regular inspection of his plantation on horseback,  returning to Mount Vernon in the mid-afternoon.  He attended dinner in his wet clothing,  then spent time with his wife,  Martha,  reading in the Mount Vernon parlor.  By the next morning he developed a severe sore throat.  Although we know today that throat infections are not necessarily caused by either cold or wet weather alone,  years of chronic illness had undoubtedly also compromised the aging Washington's immune system,  and fatigue may have made him more susceptible to contracting an infection.  In any case,  he went out in the snow again to mark some trees for future chopping,  and by nightfall he was hoarse and had difficulty speaking,  but stoically refused any medication to help alleviate his symptoms.  According to Tobias Lear,  Washington's personal secretary,  the former President said,  "You know I never take anything for a cold.  Let it go as it came."

The final night the Washington's spent together in 
Mount Vernon's parlor reading.

During the night his discomfort grew.  There is a question as to whether he woke his wife,  Martha,  during the night,  but by morning he was clearly worse,  with  (a sudden outburst of)  chills,  referred to as  "ague,"  and difficulty breathing.  When the chambermaid came in to build the morning fire,  Martha asked her to quickly summon help.  Riders were dispatched from Mount Vernon to fetch the doctor and a bleeder to treat her husband.  While Martha and Lear waited for Dr.  James Craik,  long-time physician to Washington,  to arrive,  they offered Washington what they thought was a soothing drink of molasses,  butter, and vinegar.  But in his critical state,  he was unable to swallow the treacle-like concoction,  nearly suffocating.  Like so many of his contemporaries at the time,  physicians and lay people alike,  Washington viewed bloodletting as a remedy for most ills.  Even before Dr. Craik arrived,  Washington had ordered his overseer to take about fourteen ounces of blood,  and another local physician,  Dr.  Brown,  was sent to offer his expert assistance.

A "fleam" - 
a 'medical' instrument used for bloodletting.

Once Dr. Craik arrived,  he applied a hot compress to Washington's neck for the throat infection,  drew even more blood,  administered a purge,  and tried to get the retired president to gargle sage tea and vinegar.  This all proved to no avail,  however,  as by this time the former president's throat had swelled to such a degree that his windpipe was closing up,  making breathing more and more difficult.  Faced with a dire situation,  Craik called in another eminent local physician,  Dr.  Elisa Cullen Dick,  who arrived mid-afternoon,  followed by Dr.  Brown.  Dick argued against further bleeding because of Washington's weak pulse,  but Craik and Brown prevailed and performed yet a fourth bleeding.   Martha Washington,  who had anxiously remained close to her husband's sick-bed the entire last day of his life,  also opposed further bleeding of her husband in his weakened state.  But the two doctors were desperate to save their long-time friend and beloved leader.  Craik and Washington had been especially close,  and the always-generous Washington had even paid for the education of some of Craik's children.  In addition to bleeding,  calomel and antimony tartar were administered as laxatives.  By this time Washington was so weak and resigned to his death that he dictated his final will to his overseer,  graciously thanked his doctors,  and requested them to let him die peacefully.  In considerable distress and pain,  he managed to maintain his calm and dignity.  According to Lear,  Washington declared,  "I find I am going,  my breath can not last long.  I believed from the first that the disorder would prove fatal."  To his physicians he said,  "I thank you for your attention.  You have better not take anymore trouble about me;  but let me go off quietly.  I cannot last long."
Still,  the physicians clung to the hope that they could save the former president.  Dr. Dick even suggested a tracheotomy to open the air passage,  a procedure he had only performed once previously,  but it was rejected by Dr. Craik as too dangerous.  We know that early American physicians had some experience with tracheotomies.  For example,  in a letter written in 1751,  Franklin referred to the illness of the rector of the Philadelphia Academy,  whose serious case of throat  "Quinsey"  forced the man's doctors  "to open his Windpipe,  and introduce a leaden Pipe for  him to breath thro."

Junius Brutus Stearns  "Washington on his Deathbed"  1851

His last recorded conversation was with Mr. Tobias Lear shortly before 10 o’clock:
"I am just going.  Have me decently buried,  and do not let my body be put into the vault in less than two days after I am dead."
Lear nodded assent and Washington asked:  “Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Sir,”  he replied,  followed by Washington’s final response:  “’Tis well.”
Washington died quietly at 10:00 p.m.  on December 14,  1799,  at the age of sixty-seven as the momentous 18th century was winding to a close.  
Increasingly frail and grief-stricken,  Martha Washington declined to attend her husband's simple funeral at Mount Vernon.

Suits of mourning clothes with appropriate buttons were purchased almost immediately for Lawrence Lewis,  Washington’s nephew,  and George Washington Parke Custis,  known in his lifetime as the adopted son of George Washington,  who were both away from home.  Thomas Law,  Eliza Parke Custis' husband,  sent his servant into Alexandria for mourning clothes two days after Washington's death  (Eliza was Washington’s step-granddaughter).

In keeping with mourning customs of the time period,  a number of the Mount Vernon slaves and hired servants were outfitted with mourning clothes after George Washington's death.  Two days after Washington passed away,  farm manager James Anderson went to Alexandria  "to get a number of things preparatory for the funeral."  At the same time,  mourning was ordered  "for the Family Domestics and Overseers."

The coffin was placed in the family crypt,  which Martha could see from her  'above stairs'  bedchamber.
"The whole United States mourned for him as a father,"  said Benjamin Rush,  a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
John Adams stated that,  "His example is now complete,  and it will teach wisdom and virtue to magistrates,  citizens,  and men,  not only in the present age, but in future generations, as long as our history shall be read."

Of the many discussions of the cause of Washington's final illness,  the explanation offered by modern-day physician Dr. Michael Cheathan appears the most complete and sensible in the light of what we know from a contemporary vantage point.  Cheathan has concluded that an initial strep or staph throat infection led to adult acute epiglottis,  which resulted in near suffocation,  and that the repeated bleedings of over half of Washington's circulating blood and the other heroic measures led to septic shock,  ultimately causing his death.  Today,  modern medicine would have probably treated the initial infection with antibiotics,  unavailable at the time,  and a tracheotomy in extreme nonresponsive cases,  a highly dangerous procedure during Washington's era,  particularly without reliable anesthesia.  However,  given Washington's age,  delay in seeking treatment,  and the limitations of medicine during the period,  there was little else his three doctors could have done to prolong his life.

Okay,  so I got to admit that upon reading this I did feel melancholy,  even now,  220 years after the fact.  Yeah...that's the way I am...

As I said,  the words herein are not mine,  for I am not as good a writer as the authors of whom you just read,  and though I attempted to re-write it in my own words,  it just was nowhere near the quality and description that I wanted.
And the story just engulfs you,  does it not?  What it enticed me to do,  after re-reading it a few times,  was to research some of the mourning practices during the time of President Washington's death.
Here's some of what I found:

A mourning ring

The death of George Washington was the first to generate widespread public mourning in the new nation.  18^th century generations of English and European settlers developed elaborate forms of mourning.  People wore black crepe badges.  They also wore black sashes and carried black gloves or fans.  Both men and women had handkerchiefs that carried Washington’s image and words.  Tokens were sometimes offered to mourners:  gloves inscribed with the names of the deceased,  scarves,  mourning ribbons,  or mourning rings,  for example.  Such rings were often gold,  sometimes combined with enamel…or the hair of the deceased,  and were always inscribed with the name and death date of the deceased.  Motifs on these rings reflect the gravestone motifs of the period such as death’s heads,  hourglasses,  skeletons,  and coffin shapes.  Abigail Adams,  wife of second President John Adams,  reported that she would be in full mourning and wearing black but that she would be in half-mourning in the spring. 

For years after Washington’s death,  artifacts commercially produced to commemorate  (our 1^st President)  included lithographs,  handkerchiefs,  and transferware ceramic patterns showing images of mourners at Washington’s grave site.

Among the earliest and most decorative of the artifacts associated with the new,  sentimentalized expression of mourning were mourning pictures made by young American school girls.  

So,  I hope you don't mind my sort of Reader's Digest collection of Washington's death information...and I hope you will remember this date in the future.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Now, if you are a living historian/reenactor or just like to collect history,  I think you might enjoy what I have here.  You see,  I do not accepted outside advertising on Passion for the Past for a number of reasons.  However,  every-so-often I will come across items made by historians that I feel are worth sharing with others.
This is one of those times.
As mentioned,  there were numerous ways that people during the colonial times,  as well as in the 19th century,  mourned when a head of state passed away.  The wearing of cockades was another way,  and on the left we see some originals from Washington's death,  while on the right are replicas made by Ms.  Heather Sheen:

Originals

Replicas

As Heather told me,  "Black and white cockades were the earliest patriotic statements in America.  The color black came from our British heritage  (they had black cockades)  and French assistance during the Revolutionary War  (their cockade was white).  George Washington himself ordered that black and white cockades be worn by the Continental Army.  By the early 1800s,  sympathy with the French Revolution led many Americans to wear tricolored cockades instead.  Eventually the black and white cockades disappeared and red,  white and blue became the colors of American patriotism.  Both color schemes were often used to honor George Washington with cockades."

Heather offer reproductions of both styles in her shop.  They are appropriate for living historians and history lovers alike.
And here is the link to her site: Creative Cockades

Please check out her site.  I have found that since most originals are priced way out of ranges,  replicas are just as nice.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~To purchase  "Revolutionary Medicine"  by Jeanne E. Abrams,  please click HERE
If you enjoyed what you read here,  then you will most certainly enjoy this book,  for inside you will learn of a sort of biographical illnesses of not only George & Martha Washington,  but of John and Abigail Adams,  Benjamin Franklin,  and Thomas Jefferson, as well as an nice overview of health and medicine during the era of America's founders.

To purchase  "George Washington - An Interactive Biography"  by Rod Gragg,  please click HERE

With this interactive biography you get wonderful replicas of a couple pages from Washington's diary as well as letters - both in his own handwriting,  the title page from the 1783 Treaty of Paris,  a broadside copy of his farewell address,  and numerous other articles.

The information written here about mourning came from these sources:

“TheWorld of the American Revolution” by Merril D. Smith

“MaterialCulture in America” by Shirley Wajda

And THIS web site

 
For a general overview of life in Colonial times,  click HERE
To read about a wonderful docudrama of colonial medicine,  please click HERE

Until next time, see you in time.....

~   ~   ~

Christmas Past is No Longer in the Past: Christmas at the Fort 2016

I heard the bells on Christmas Day,
their old familiar carols play...

Going home for Christmas...

Elizabeth and I in our dining room.

I used to dream of having an old-fashioned Christmas, kind of like the ones I used to know. Well, okay, not quite like the ones I used to know. Most of the Christmas's I dreamed of came from books or TV shows. Oh, but I did dream of having one, and, lucky for me, this dream eventually became a reality. It took many attempts over the years, lots of research, and then hooking up with the right people, but it did come true, for it seems I was not the only one who had this longing for celebrating Christmas past.
And, for the past eight years, I've been experiencing first-hand the kind of old-fashioned Christmas I used to dream about - Christmas in the mid-19th century.

Christina, our daughter, poses for her 
annual Christmas Eve tin type.

Understand, please, that the living historians who partake in this excursion to the past just don't sit in the parlor and reenact. That would be too simple. We, instead, become a real family, with a husband, wife, daughter, sister/sister-in-law/aunt, mother/mother-in-law/grandmother, and house servant, and we play out our roles quite well, especially since we've been working in this capacity for nearly a half-dozen years. For the most part, our little family remains in a 1st person/immersion state and do our best to speak only of subjects in which we, as folks from 1861, would have been aware, whether of the War that we had hoped would have ended by harvest time, or of our homelife, including the raising of our daughter.
We keep it real.
Are we perfect?
No, not by any means.
But, we do our very best to continue improving ourselves on this time-travel journey and attempt to become more 'natural' each time.
What has really gives us satisfacrion is when we're told that we do a very realistic job in re-creating a Victorian household.
Yeah...that makes us smile. Ha! After all, in our minds it is 1861 - - - - 
I am very honored and humbled to have found living historians - people I consider to also be my close friends - who are so willing to immerse themselves in the past and bring it to life in such a manner as we do, as well as have an actual historic setting at Historic Fort Wayne in Detroit, and I thank God for bringing us all together for this amazing adventure through time.

My 1860s family

In days of old, the Christmas season, for most who lived here in the States, did not begin in late November and continue through the end of December as it does in our modern times. It, for the most part, lasted only a day or two: usually Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, with maybe a little food preparation a few days before. And the celebration of this merry holiday was much more subdued in comparison to today unless one lived in a grand house with money to spend. But even the folks with less means observed Christmas with all the fervor they could muster. Yes, they most certainly did, but the celebrations were just more compressed. Families & friends gathered, ate large meals, drank ale, sang carols, danced, read stories - ghost stories! - exchanged gifts, and went to church. And by the middle of the 1800s, decorating Christmas trees became very popular.
All of this in a one or two day period.
This is what we replicate at Christmas at the Fort.

The conversations, for most of our time, centered on the themes of any home and family of the 1860s.

Our moment in time was documented, as were other historic "Fort" Christmas experiences, and I'd like to present here what occurred that day at Historic Fort Wayne.
So, are you ready for an 1861 Christmas celebration?
Well, then, away we go - - - !

Today is the day before Christmas and Elizabeth and I are preparing to entertain family and friends, so the house must shine for our guests. Candace, our domestic servant, does such a fine job in her duties!

Typical of the houses with domestics, off the kitchen was a
 "hidden" staircase leading to and from the servant's quarters

Candace, was pleased with the room we provided for her, though she missed her beloved husband.

The servant staircase looking down.

Daughter Christina has had a difficult time relating to her 
status in life. Our former servant girl, Agnes, had 
run off with a copperhead after we forbid her to 
go courting while under our employment. 
Agnes and Christina are very close in age 
and became fast friends and, thus, our daughter was 
upset that we treated the young girl in the strict manner
that we did. Christina must understand that we 
have our rules in the running of our home, and that 
young Agnes, who was of a much lower class, 
was lucky to have such a job that we had provided.

My "sister" and "mother-in-law" look over a memory
book of tin types taken of family no longer with us.

Even with heating stoves, there was still a chill in the air.

The history of Feather Trees being used at Christmas is really just one ornament in the continuing Christmas celebration at large. Feather trees became a matter of necessity in 19th century Germany. Christmas trees had been a tradition in Germany for hundreds of years, but de-forestation was becoming a problem and a new type of tree was needed and the feather tree was the solution to the problem.

Decorating the feather tree is always a highlight of the day.

The ladies certainly did a fine job decorating
our feather tree!

Tops of trees were cut off for the annual event which left the trees unable to grow and of no use for the timber industry.

The need for another form of tree was necessary. From this necessity, the feather tree was fashioned.

Goose, turkey, and swan feathers were a plentiful commodity on the farms and easily transformed into Christmas trees. Feathers were dyed green and wired to wooden sticks and then drilled into a dowel into the shape of a typical white pine German tree. Artificial red berries were attached onto the ends of some branches and wire candle holders adorned others. The branches were placed some distance apart so ornaments were easily hung and admired and lit candles would not burn other branches. Both round and square bases were used to secure the trees and early trees were all table-top size. Not until Americans really start to decorate was it common for trees to be placed on the floor.

The American market was first introduced to feather trees by German immigrants in Pennsylvania and Texas. These immigrants brought their trees and traditions across the oceans and opened up a much larger scale of Christmas celebrations here in America. In the later 1800’s the Woolworth Company started to import decorations and feather trees to the US market.

Today original feather trees are again popular to collect as their unique and historic value is appreciated.

(The above information about feather trees came from THIS site)

While the ladies put the baubles upon the tree, Violet
played "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear" on the organ.

She played the organ as the tour groups came into the house. One young boy, about the age of ten (who begged his parents to bring him to this event), was very interested in history. As the music was heard, I asked him to watch...and listen...

I said to him, "Do you know what you are hearing?"
He looked at me but gave no response.
"You are hearing history. You are hearing something that would have been heard in many of the more well-to-do houses of the era - maybe even this very house we are in right now - and this is what you would have heard. Can you just imagine if these walls could talk the stories they could tell?"
He listened, and then he and his parents all gave me a big smile.
I continued, "History is more than what you read in books; to bring the past to life you must use all of your senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste. And right now you are using sight and sound."
They loved it!

We also read Christmas stories aloud to each other. Of course, for us it was Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol." This was the most popular Christmas tale of the time and was read in many a home on Christmas Eve, just like you see here.

Being that this was "Christmas at the Fort," it wasn't just about those of us in the '1860s house.'
Please allow me to give you a brief overview of some of the other stops and scenarios on the visitors tour of Christmas Past at this historic location, for Elizabeth and I took a few minutes to try and catch a glimpse of the others who were participating here.

Elizabeth freshens up upon returning from a visit.

One thing we discovered is that Christmas at the Fort is morphing into a sort of timeline event, and the tour begins with heroes of the American Revolution.

 A few members of George Washington's Continental Army set up camp. They spoke of the misery they felt at Valley Forge.
Washington tried to stem desertion by resorting to lashings as punishment and then threatening to shoot deserters on sight. For those soldiers who remained with him, Washington expressed deep gratitude and awe. He described men marching without clothes, blankets or shoes–leaving bloody trails in the snow–who displayed “patience and obedience which in my opinion can scarce be paralel’d.”

The winter at Valley Forge might have signaled the end of the American Revolution. Fortunately for the Continentals though, Washington did not give up.

Another stop on the tour was to see the Michigan boys who fought in the Civil War.
Here we see a few of the men of '61 spend their Christmas playing cards, catching up on the latest news from Harper's Weekly, and writing letters to their loved ones at home:
"My Dearest Wife and Babies, A healthy Christmas to you all. I can't say a happy one (though I wish it), for happiness is not ours until we all meet after the war..."

The thing I like best about Historic Fort Wayne is that the local Detroit area military units during the Civil War (and all wars following up through Viet Nam) all came through here before being shipped off to far away lands to fight.

It is a true Civil War & military gem right here in Detroit, and my hat is off to the Fort Wayne Coalition for all they do to keep it alive and vibrant.

One of the houses on the tour was set as a 'house-turned-hospital' and included a doctor, nurses, and a couple of wounded Civil War soldiers. The ladies who portrayed the nurses are in the medical field in their 21st century lives, and all have studied period medicine of the 19th century.
"Mercy Street" come to life.

A former plantation owner awaits his fate as the War begins to takes its toll on the south.
I am disappointed that I did not take any photos inside this house, but we saw tour groups a-comin' and we had to skeedaddle back to our own house.

There were numerous other stops but we needed to return "home" to continue our own Christmas celebrations.
And what would a Christmas celebration be without food? Food has been a staple of this holiday since time immemorial, and naturally we continued this tradition.
Have you ever had a fine meal inside a historic home dining room while in period-correct clothing?
If so, then you know it is quite an experience, especially at Christmas time.

We had a very nice spread for our Christmas Eve dinner, including slices of turkey, cranberries, fruits and vegetables, crackers, and pickles.
Candace served us very well. I believe we shall raise her salary next year!

Grace before mealtime. Always give thanks to God for His generous bounty.

Having our Christmas Eve dinner in the way we do is one of those "you are there" moments. While the 'chosen one' in our group spoke to the guests on the tours, the rest of us acted as if the modern folk were not there and continued our conversation as if we were in the 1860s, which gave them a "taste" of a period dinnertime conversation.

For dessert we had pumpkin pie and freshly made whipped cream.

To some it may seem offensive to have Candace eating alone in the kitchen, but as our servant this was her place to dine.

After our meal, Elizabeth surprised us all with small tokens for Christmas. How very thoughtful and kind...

It is a rarity to be able to see what a bedroom was like after the sun went down while the darkness of evening covered the land in the pre-electric days, for most historic homes are either closed up by nightfall or they do not allow visitors on the 2nd floor without some sort of modern lighting to guide their way. Kristen/Christina wanted that opportunity, so she and I went upstairs and took numerous photographs of her in room lit by a candle.

It is a bit eerie to be in a room only lit by a single flame 
from a candle. I sometimes wonder if those from the era felt 
that same eeriness or were they simply used to it, 
seeing as this was all they knew.
The picture here is one of the more haunting photos I took

The image here makes me think of a melancholy young lady, spending some quiet time in her room, maybe thinking about her betrothed off fighting in the War

For those of us used to electric lighting, we don't really consider how truly dark it was in the world of our ancestors.

Being that we were representing a northern family of the Civil War era, it was only fitting that we were lucky enough to spend some time with the nation's President, Abraham Lincoln.

Yes, President Lincoln was also there and I asked what he had 
planned to tell the visitors when they came to see him. 
His reply? 
"I told the people that after Willie died I was encouraged to read 
the Bible more and to pray more. I did and learned, especially from 
reading the book of Job, that God is really in charge of things, not us. 
Christmas is another reminder of that because we cannot save 
ourselves so God sent a Savior for us. Go forth and have a 
happy Christmas and remember who the boss really is."

I think that is a fine way to end this week's posting, don't you? 
Because of the many Christmas's I have celebrated in this way, I suppose now I can honestly say "just like the ones I used to know" - - - in a strange sort of way.
You know what would be fun to do sometime?
A colonial Christmas.
Yeah...that would be interesting to try...
In the meantime - - - - - - believe me when I say if you can find a group of living historians that have the same passions in bringing the past to life in such a way as virtually experiencing another time and place, grab the opportunity with both hands! Create a journey to the past like no one else can.
And not just during the holiday season.

Have a very Merry Christmas, no matter what era in which you celebrate. And if you are in the Detroit area during the first Saturday in December, you should make an effort to come on out ti Historic Fort Wayne. It's an amazing event.
Until next time, see you in time.

As always, here are a few links for you to peruse if you have further interest in this subject:
A Journey Through a Victorian Christmas in Pictures: HERE
A Colonial Christmas: HERE
To learn more about events at Historic Fort Wayne, click HERE

















.

Black Friday? Bah! Time-Travel Friday!

Over the past decade or so I've spent the day after Thanksgiving~Black Friday~wearing period clothing while visiting historic Greenfield Village. It's my place of solace; a place in time where I can go to get my historic fix. And since I am a member, it doesn't cost me a dime.
Plus there's nothing better in our area where I can wear colonial-period clothing.
But for some people, Black Friday is like a holiday. They wait all year for the opportunity to spend the night in line so they can get the best deals on Christmas gifts.
Other folks actually begin their shopping on Thanksgiving Day itself.
If this is what you like to do, great. I mean, who am I to knock someone's shopping preferences, right?
But it's definitely not for me.
In fact, I'm anti-Black Friday, especially when it begins on Thursday - Thanksgiving Day!
So, needless to say, you won't find me in any major retail outlet on either of those two days.
Instead, I'll be time-traveling... 

The Ackley Covered Bridge - my portal to the past...

It seems every time I cross it, I find myself transported to another time...
photo by Mary Marshall

...and the clothing I wear, whether colonial or Civil War era, chooses the time in which I find myself.
As you can (hopefully) tell, I have been transported back to the 1770s.

Horse and carriage - - 
Part of the time-travel experience is not only seeing the past, but hearing the past; the hooves of the horse's clip-clop and the rumbling of the carriage wheels across the wooden bridge is a very special way of hearing what our ancestors heard 150+ years ago.

The thing about time travel is one never knows in what situation they may find themselves. Here I am sitting in the "driver's seat" of the carriage! How did I get there?? 
Now, I know I can handle one horse...while I'm in a saddle, but two horses pulling a carriage? I think I had better take a few lessons first!
(Okay, before anyone from the Village gets their dander up about this picture, remember: in time travel, everything is not always as it seems. Paint Shop Pro and Photoshop are wonderful computer programs!)

I was the only visitor who ventured out in period clothing on this Black Friday, which, many times, is the usual case for me. Now "flying solo" as a reenactor does not bother me one bit. I do it frequently - a "frequent flyer" eh?---ha! - and I rather enjoy it, though having a friend or two join me makes it that much better.

But being that I was the lone wolf, you are going to be seeing lots of pictures...of me...doing period things...and one of the places I spent some extra time in was the Daggett Saltbox (or breakback) house, located at the far end of the Village. 

This wonderful example of popular 18th century architecture was built around 1750. The folks at Greenfield Village present the house as it may have been lived in during the 1760s. 
Me, with my 1770s clothing, fit in very comfortably.
Is that the welcoming Mrs. Anna Daggett I see in the doorway?

There is something to be said about wearing period clothing and stepping into a home of the era in which your clothing depicts; I get a feeling that cannot be explained. It's not just the clothing, mind you---it's also having the knowledge and understanding of the time in which the structure is being interpreted. In this case, the 18th century. And it's in this way I am able, in a sense, to become a part of history.

Am I nuts?
Probably, but let me explain - - -                    

What I believe may seem pretty odd to most, but I am of the opinion that spirits of the past remain in the walls - in the rooms - of old houses.  
Ghosts?
Maybe...but not necessarily. Certainly some sort of entity.

There's ghosts in the parlor...

In the ghostly photo to the left we see "spirits" in the parlor of the home once belonging to John and Mehetabel Giddings, which was built around 1760. Of course, what you see here are not actual apparitions from the past. It's just me with a presenter friend (or is it? Hmmm...).
Now imagine the Giddings family and friends – especially the menfolk or even John and Mehetabel – gathered in this very same parlor around 240 years ago as they discussed and probably even debated the news of the day...
Wouldn't it be awesome to be able to hear their conversations and opinions about the Revolutionary War, their thoughts on the Declaration of Independence, the forming of the new nation with its own Constitution, and the news of George Washington becoming our first president?
Just imagine hearing these conversations at the time when the actual events occurred!
Oh! If walls could only talk…
But, maybe they can.
Here is a tale from a former Greenfield Village security guard, in his own words, about a strange encounter he had inside the Giddings Home:

"The village takes on a whole new dimension at night. Doing driving patrols I stopped at Giddings to use the bathroom, which is located in the back. I walked inside and heard people talking but couldn’t make out the conversation; I thought it was the voice recorder that tells the history of the home.

It wasn’t.

I looked around and saw no one but felt a chill, and then I heard someone talking again. As I was leaving I then heard a voice clearly say, “He's leaving now,” and the full conversation started up once again. 
It was weird and spooky. No doubt the place is haunted."

So...were the "walls" talking?
And, I wonder, what was the conversation about...?
Ahhh...the peculiar mind of Ken...thinking about the past in such ways that is out of the norm.

Oh! to become a part of times long gone, and to do so without actually leaving the present...

Entering the Daggett House on this damp and dreary late fall day, I stood near the hearth in the great hall (the main room) where a warming fire roared.

Pulling up a chair, Mr. Daggett kindly offered for us to sit at the hearth of the fireplace.

It was here that a fine conversation ensued about, of all things, chocolate.

In the early 18th century, chocolate was initially a treat for the wealthy, but soon was available to the every man. For instance, Benjamin Franklin sold locally produced chocolate in his Philadelphia print shop. In 1739, he was selling bibles and other books, pencils, ink, writing paper, and "very good chocolate."

By 1773, the demand for chocolate in the colonies resulted in the importation of over 320 tons of cocoa beans. Drinking chocolate was affordable to all classes of people and was available in most coffee houses, where colonists would gather to talk about politics and the news of the day, as well as in the more wealthier of homes.

So being that we spoke of chocolate as it was during colonial times, you might say the conversation was period correct.
It was very enjoyable indeed!

I enjoyed my time in the Daggett home immensely,
but there were more places to visit before I was to
be swooped back to the future.

For my journey to town, I must head west on a road that winds snake-like over hill and dale, through thick woods and meadow land…

…where I will pass by the farm belonging to the Firestones. I stopped for only a moment to see the fine breed of horses, and then I was on my way once again.

The rest of the way to town was by carriage, where I was dropped off at the local ordinary known as the Eagle Tavern.
(photo by Gary Thomas)

This 'publick house' served up a fine menu of poultry, rabbit, and other delights.

But after all the talk about chocolate, that's what I ordered.

One of my stops was at the home of Noah Webster, festively decorated for the upcoming Christmas Season.

I felt very regal as I stood between the pillars of this great home of one of our nation's Founding Fathers.

But the regal-ness soon left me as I was put to work inside the local printing office. I had to pay for my stay somehow!

Soon it was time for me to leave this wonderful place and head back to the future. 
I took one last gander at the serene beauty of the 18th century before crossing 
the bridge - the portal - that would take me back to the future.

But, mark me, I'll be back soon...

While I was walking around the Village on this Black Friday, one of the Model T drivers was giving a tour to a few passengers, and as they spotted me dressed in my colonial clothing, they asked the driver who I was and what was I doing. He replied, "(Ken) just appears around here from time to time. Another magical aspect of the Village."   
What a fine answer indeed!
As a living historian, I believe it is my duty to recreate scenes from the past, through spoken words and through action, as well as through appearance. It's my hope that when someone sees me while in period attire, they see a ghost of long ago - spirits of the past, so to speak.
And that's what I spent Black Friday doing - immersing myself into an era...becoming a part of the "walls that talk."

By the way, returning back to the future isn't all that bad for me:

This is our back parlor, or gathering room, prepared to greet guests for our Thanksgiving feast.
This addition to our house was built in 1999 specifically because of the depression my wife and I would get whenever we returned from Greenfield Village.
It's our Greenfield Village home away from Greenfield Village home.

All of our candles were either hand-dipped or made
from a tin mold from pure beeswax. 
And, yes, that is a period 1880s oil lamp there
on the drop-leaf table.

As you can see, we are prepared for an emergency should we have a power outage. Plenty of candles were made this fall.

This is my attempt at setting up an Americana scenario, utilizing my 19th century antiques with my 18th century replicas.

I hope you enjoyed taking this journey to the past with me. I certainly am glad you came along. There are more period-Christmas adventures on the horizon, so stay tuned... 
Until next time, see you in time - - - 

Here's a post I wrote about "flying solo" - reenacting alone: HERE   

Here is a post I wrote giving a general overview of life in Colonial times: HERE

Click HERE to check out a very pure and authentic sounding collection of colonial-era Christmas music.

Highly recommended.

.