History’s Story

17th – 19th Century History Articles

Intelligence Methods Used by the Culper Ring – Part 1: Invisible Inks
America’s first spy organization, the Culper Ring, couldn’t have been as successful as they were during the American Revolution without some cutting-edge (for the time) tricks of the trade. They used ciphers and codes, invisible inks, signals, and drop locations for...
What Is the Culper Ring?
Ever wonder about the origins of organized intelligence operations? In America, until the Revolutionary War, there simply was no organized intelligence. There were military scouts and there were occasionally spies, but not under a central system. Then came the Culper...
John Mucknell, Pirate Admiral
Once there lived, and once there was a man born and raised a Cockney who, like so many others, took to the sea. John Mucknell was in many ways what we think of as a stereotypical sailor—he drank too much, cursed too much, and when he was in his cups, he was mean. But...
Remember When . . . Tea Was a Brick
This is actually a re-post of a fun blog I did in 2011, near when Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland released. Given that I'm still celebrating the re-release of the story as A Heart's Revolution, I thought it would be fun to share this again! Back in 2011, a...

In the course of her novel writing, Roseanna M. White has done a lot of research on history in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Some articles are pure history, and others are a charming look at how a historical novelist uses history for the purpose of story, viewed through the lens of her books.

What Is the Culper Ring?

What Is the Culper Ring?

Ever wonder about the origins of organized intelligence operations? In America, until the Revolutionary War, there simply was no organized intelligence. There were military scouts and there were occasionally spies, but not under a central system. Then came the Culper...

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John Mucknell, Pirate Admiral

John Mucknell, Pirate Admiral

Once there lived, and once there was a man born and raised a Cockney who, like so many others, took to the sea. John Mucknell was in many ways what we think of as a stereotypical sailor—he drank too much, cursed too much, and when he was in his cups, he was mean. But...

read more
Remember When . . . Tea Was a Brick

Remember When . . . Tea Was a Brick

This is actually a re-post of a fun blog I did in 2011, near when Love Finds You in Annapolis, Maryland released. Given that I'm still celebrating the re-release of the story as A Heart's Revolution, I thought it would be fun to share this again! Back in 2011, a...

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Remember When . . . She Played the Violin?

Remember When . . . She Played the Violin?

I thought it would be fun to take a quick look today at Willa's violin...or, rather, violins in general, and some info that appears in A Song Unheard about this beautiful stringed instrument. Violins and other stringed instruments like them began appearing in the...

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Remember When . . . We Made Corn Husk Dolls

Remember When . . . We Made Corn Husk Dolls

So after spending much of my birthday on Monday studying and getting the swing of making corn husk dolls, I figured I'd share my research and methods. =) I watched several tutorials on YouTube after first just looking at drawings on websites (so didn't help me, LOL),...

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Remember When . . . We Chose Coffee Over Tea?

Remember When . . . We Chose Coffee Over Tea?

I'm a coffee drinker. Oh, I love tea too, but when the day is new and I make my way out to the kitchen to start my morning, tea doesn't cut it. It's coffee who has my affections just then.When traveling in England last autumn, I quickly learned that where the American...

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Remember When . . . Tea Came in Bricks

Remember When . . . Tea Came in Bricks

It was nearly five years ago that Carrie Pagels made mention of "brick tea." I don't even remember now how it came up, but I believe she'd purchased some from a local plantation home and was offering it to one of us here at CQ as thanks for helping with a project....

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Remember When . . . A Quick Lesson in Coinage

Remember When . . . A Quick Lesson in Coinage

Sometimes the questions a novelist asks leads to answers a novelist didn't anticipate. Today, I had the thought that a character should be flipping a coin into the air. So I headed to Google to determine with British coin my character should be flip in 1914. And ended...

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Remember When . . . History Came Alive

Remember When . . . History Came Alive

I'm a historical fiction writer--and a historical fiction reader. I have always loved to learn history (or reinforce it) through a fictional story. For me, for my mind, that makes facts stick in ways that an article or non-fiction book seldom make it do. It makes it...

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Remember When . . . The Snows Came?

Remember When . . . The Snows Came?

It was 1783. The Treaty of Paris had been written, peace was a tenuous string between England and America. There was a deadline for getting the document signed, ratified, and returned to France, where Benjamin Franklin was waiting to present it to the English...

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Remember When . . . Harvest Traditions Clashed?

Remember When . . . Harvest Traditions Clashed?

It's that time of year again--the time when most of America gets ready for Halloween, and those who oppose it often take the time to explain about why. I'm not going there, LOL. Instead, I'm looking at how some of America's Halloween traditions got here to begin with,...

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Remember When . . . The Island Was Isolated?

Remember When . . . The Island Was Isolated?

Gracious, my blogging has been sporadic! Sorry about that, all. I came home from vacation and was completely swamped by work. A good thing, but I kept totally spacing what day of the week it was and what that meant concerning blogs. 😉 But this being me, you can rest...

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Remember When . . . Pirates Roamed New York?

Remember When . . . Pirates Roamed New York?

It's the 4th Wednesday of the month, which means my turn on Colonial Quills! Today I'm talking about pirates (arrrr!)--but not the in Caribbean, like we're used to thinking. These pirates roamed New York City! Hop on over to read about it! Pirates! in New York? Who...

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Remember When . . . Georgia Was Chartered?

Remember When . . . Georgia Was Chartered?

It's my day on Colonial Quills, and today I'm talking about the founding of the Georgia colony. Did you know it was meant to be a charity colony? Hop on over to read about it! Colonial Quills : Georgy - A Charity Case I learned a lot this year, teaching my kids early...

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Remember When . . . We Made Paper?

Remember When . . . We Made Paper?

It's my day at Colonial Quills! So you know what that means. =) For a bit of fun history, hop over there, where I'm talking a bit about the paper-making process in Colonial America. Paper in Colonial Times These days there's a lot of talk of going "paperless." Why?...

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Remember When . . . The Serfs Were Artists?

Remember When . . . The Serfs Were Artists?

Oh. My. Gracious. So. As I was debating what servant POV I was going to use in the third installment of my Ladies of the Manor Series, I decided it would be fun to have it be the lady's maid of the villain rather than the heroine. Though of course, she couldn't just...

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Remember When . . . George Washington Was Bullet-Proof?

Remember When . . . George Washington Was Bullet-Proof?

It's the fourth Wednesday of the month...which means my turn on Colonial Quills! Today, I'm sharing a really cool and inspiring story about a close call George Washington had during the French and Indian War...and how the hand of God was acknowledged by all to have...

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Remember When . . . We Sailed by Ash Breeze?

Remember When . . . We Sailed by Ash Breeze?

We just finished up in our home school reading a truly amazing book. Though for young readers, I can attest to the fact that it's entertaining--and inspiring--for any age. Carry On, Mr. Bowditch is the Newbery Award-winning novel based on the life of Nathaniel...

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Remember When . . . Rifles Saved the Day?

Remember When . . . Rifles Saved the Day?

It's my day on Colonial Quills, and today I'm telling you a fun story about General Washington used farmers' hunting gear--and their newfangled hunting rifles--to strike fear into the British militia. It's a fun story! Hop on over to the CQ to read it!  Read the...

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Remember When . . . A Screw Saved Us?

Remember When . . . A Screw Saved Us?

I'm up on Colonial Quills today, and I'm talking about . . . what? A giant screw? A printing press? Huh? Yep. Our homeschool year has been full to bursting with oh-so-interesting fun facts about early America, but this one won the right to appear on the CQ. 😉 Hop...

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Remember When . . . the Colonials Were Artistic?

Remember When . . . the Colonials Were Artistic?

Hey look at me, actually remembering that I should blog on Wednesdays. 😉 In fact, I'm blogging twice. I have a post up on Colonial Quills today too. It's short and sweet and visual, so I thought I'd direct you that way, for a glimpse at some Colonial American art....

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Remember When . . . We Invented?

Remember When . . . We Invented?

This post (written by me) first appeared on Colonial Quills One thing I really love about the early American era is that so many gentlemen with time on their hands went about interesting pursuits--like invention. I've previously talked about some of the inventions of...

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Remember When . . . The Schoolhouse Had One Room?

Remember When . . . The Schoolhouse Had One Room?

On Monday, I took my kids on a field trip to the local one-room schoolhouse. (And didn't realize until evening that I'd forgotten to blog my Word of the Week before I left--oops!) I hadn't even realized we had a local one-room schoolhouse, but there we go. 😉 It's...

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Remember When . . . TURN Gets Creative?

Remember When . . . TURN Gets Creative?

Well, I was a week behind, but I did finally watch Turn on Sunday, both the pilot and the second episode. And thus far I'm enjoying it! I think I have an immunity to on-screen violence, at least when it's Hollywood style (Which is to say, home videos that involve...

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Remember When . . . She Forgot Nothing?

Remember When . . . She Forgot Nothing?

Well, here we are. March 12. That means 19 days until the official, in-stores-everywhere release of Circle of Spies. My copies arrived on Monday. And when I looked it up, I saw it was in stock already at ChristianBook.com (woot!!!!). EXCITING!!!!!!! A book release is...

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7 Wise Sayings from Benjamin Franklin

I've posted some quotes from Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac before, but one post cannot contain his wealth of advice. 😉 So I thought today, on this chilly January morn when my thermometer has dipped into the negatives, I'd warm everyone up with some of Ben's...

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How Colonial Quakers Helped the Poor

How Colonial Quakers Helped the Poor

Who should be responsible for the poor? For the needy? Whose job is it to feed the hungry and clothe the naked? And if one takes that responsibility...how should one go about it? To the Quakers of Colonial Philadelphia, the answer to both was simple: this was a task...

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Remember When . . . Independence Was Radical?

Remember When . . . Independence Was Radical?

English Cannon by the Hudson River, Revolutionary WarPhoto by Michael Francis Studios (Michael Cook) In what spare moments I've had the last week, I've been reading a book I've had set aside for research for over a year now. One that, when I saw it pop up in my Amazon...

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How to Make Your Own Quill Pens

How to Make Your Own Quill Pens

In preparation for my "Spies in Early America" class I'm teaching my home school group, I decided to get some quills. After all, if one is pretending to be a Revolutionary-era spy and will be writing secret messages in homemade invisible ink, obviously one ought to...

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Remember When . . . Napoleon Surrendered?

Remember When . . . Napoleon Surrendered?

Since I'm still in the first week of Whispers from the Shadows officially being out, I thought I'd share today a repost of something I wrote for www.RegencyReflections.com--about the War of 1812, but from the British perspective. -- And stay tuned!! Tomorrow I'm...

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Treasure Hunts and Civil War Gold in Circle of Spies

Treasure Hunts and Civil War Gold in Circle of Spies

Who Shall be Captain by Howard Pyle Is there anything more fun (especially when we're kids) than a treasure hunt? Is there anything more fun, as we grow up and (some of us) turn to books for our adventure, than a story that includes a lost treasure? Allow me to answer...

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Remember When . . . Revolution Loomed?

Remember When . . . Revolution Loomed?

Versailles, the setting of Fairchild's Lady Tired of seeing this cover yet? 😉 (How could you be, right? So lovely, LOL.) And have you seen my Pinterest board for the book? Check it out here:...

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The Forgotten War of 1812

The Forgotten War of 1812

Have I mentioned yet that I metaphorically typed The End last week? =) I did! Finished up Circle of Spies on Friday, so join me in a victorious "Woot!" LOL I'm sure I have something fun I learned in the final research for that, but yesterday I hurriedly prepared a...

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The Army Heritage Center in Carlisle PA

The Army Heritage Center in Carlisle PA

Last week I had the opportunity to take my kids with our home school group to Carlisle, Pennsylvania for a day's tour of the Army Heritage Center. With displays on everything military from the French and Indian Wars through the War on Terror, I knew they would have...

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The Manners of George Washington

The Manners of George Washington

One of the most interesting things I learned about the Colonial era in my research was the manners and rules of civility gentlefolk were to know. The Colonial Williamsburg site has a page on the Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation, as...

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Ford’s Theater and Circle of Spies

Ford’s Theater and Circle of Spies

Okay, I'm too excited not to mention it, though I'm not sure if I can share the image yet--I was surprised by my cover for Circle of Spies yesterday afternoon! I wasn't expecting this for another few months, so it was pretty cool to get it early, while I'm still...

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Remember When . . . People Moved Fast?

Remember When . . . People Moved Fast?

Between Ring of Secrets and Whispers from the Shadows there's a gap of 34 years or so. Substantial when you consider how characters age, but in terms of changes in the world itself between 1780 and 1814, it's fairly simple. Fashions changed quite a bit (bye-bye...

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Remember When . . . Men’s Fashion Got Diverse?

Remember When . . . Men’s Fashion Got Diverse?

My totally awesome fashion book sadly doesn't have much on men for the 1860s, so I've been trolling the internet while writing Circle of Spies. And you know what I've found? That the variety of fashions for men in 1865 gives me some awesome freedom. =) My first choice...

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Remember When . . . Horses Drove the Trains?

Remember When . . . Horses Drove the Trains?

Camden Station in 1865 One of the interesting tidbits I've learned as I'm researching Circle of Spies (the official name of Culper Ring Series, Book 3!!!!) has to do with Baltimore and the trains. Now, Baltimore was a fairly important railroading town, as one might be...

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Remember When . . . The Culpers Were Here?

Remember When . . . The Culpers Were Here?

You know what I love most about the Culper Ring? That I set about to learn about them a year and a half ago expecting high adventure, cloak and dagger, James Bond meets Jason Bourne kind of action. But what I found weren't specially trained super-spies. They were...

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Remember When . . . Spies Abounded?

Remember When . . . Spies Abounded?

This past week, I've been reading everything I can get my hands on about the Knights of the Golden Circle and Baltimore during the Civil War. It is, you see, time to dive into the third book in the Culper Ring Series. Yay! I'd read some overviews before, so I knew...

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Remember When . . . The New Setting Began?

Remember When . . . The New Setting Began?

Okay, is it seriously Wednesday? We're having some holiday-induced confusion around here, don't know about you. Totally feels like Monday... Emma Stone is my pick forcasting Marietta Gaines But since it's not, it's time to get back to my Remember Whens. =) And since I...

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The Waltz – The Forbidden Dance

The Waltz – The Forbidden Dance

Today a good friend of mine, Dina Sleiman, is celebrating the release of her latest novel, the debut title for Zondervan's new Zondervan First digital line. She wrote this fabulous guest post for us over at the Colonial Quill, and I thought it would be a treat for you...

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Remember When . . . They Went to Bermuda?

Remember When . . . They Went to Bermuda?

As the weather gets cool and wet and oh-so-autumnal around here, it's always fun to escape to the tropics--even if only for a few minutes, and even if only for research. 😉 Last week I realized with some surprise that my hero had to sail to Bermuda to get a count of...

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Remember When . . . We Mixed the Paints?

Remember When . . . We Mixed the Paints?

Self-portrait of Vincent van Gogh My heroine in Whispers from the Shadows (The Culper Ring Series, book 2) is an artist. In 1814. Now, I've written about artists before in other, unpublished manuscripts--but they were always modern ones. So all I had to do for...

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