Clubbing in Annapolis
Who knew that going clubbing was all the rage in colonial Annapolis? Of course, the city’s elite gentlemen’s clubs of 250 years ago were nothing like today’s nightlife hotspots. Some […]
A Vast Loss Of Time
I’ve written before (see especially “A Predictable Pattern”, November 26, 2020) about colonial Maryland’s last proprietary governor, Robert Eden, and his habitual mishandling of disagreements with the General Assembly’s Lower […]
Common Complaints
These days, when public complaints about politics, the media, and rising prices abound, turning back our attention 250 years ago reveals a time…when public complaints about politics, the media, and […]
The Meanest House In Town
A year after actress Nancy Hallam captivated an anonymous Annapolis gentleman (most likely Rev. Jonathan Boucher—see “In Praise of Artistic Genius”) with her dramatic skills and attractive appearance, she and […]
Down A Rabbit Hole
Sometimes a 250-year-old clipping from the Maryland Gazette sends me down a research rabbit hole. The welcome mat into this week’s warren was laid out by an advertisement placed in […]
Five Pounds Reward
A little more than a year ago, I mentioned two projects that told the stories of nine freedom seekers who tried to escape from bound servitude between 1728 and 1864. […]
Where’s My Package?
“I will leave no stone unturn’d to find out who keeps them from me…” Online shipment tracking has really spoiled us. Through the magic of the interwebs, we can order […]
Five Years Before Independence
250 years ago, on July 4, 1771, the American colonies were only five years away from declaring their independence from England. Annapolitans of the time had no way of knowing […]
Good Times And Bad
The Maryland Gazette provides an invaluable window into what Annapolis was like 250 years ago. News articles and public letters tell us what people learned, thought, worried, and argued about […]
A Place In Our Paper
My last blog included a piece by John Clapham printed in the May 2, 1771 Maryland Gazette. In it, the son-in-law of Annapolis printer Anne Catharine Green explained his understanding […]
Turning Tables
Two hundred fifty years ago, Joshua Johnson was about to embark on a bold commercial venture. The Annapolis merchant placed an ad in the Maryland Gazette to inform his customers […]
Rumors Of War
England and France engaged in military conflict with one another for 73 of the 126 years between 1689 and 1815, or almost 60% of the period. If they weren’t actively […]