The Whiskey Rebellion of 1794

In my recent release, TheCumberland Bride, I reference some unrest taking place in the Ohio Valley at the same time, related to a tax that had been levied on the sale of whiskey.

Farmers in the westernmost states had discovered that due to the high cost of shipping things back east (there were no wagon roads west of the Appalachian Mountains, yet, so they had to use pack horses or mules), they could make more money selling whiskey (distilled from grain grown west of the mountains) than from shipping the grain itself east. Alexander Hamilton, looking for ways to fund the newly formed American government and to defray the lingering cost of the war for independence from Britain, decided to levy a tax on the whiskey.

The farmers didn’t appreciate this new tax and felt they’d just fought for independence from that kind of heavyhandedness, that government was ultimately up to the people and if the people didn’t approve of the tax, well then, they shouldn’t have to pay it. Violence broke out all along the Ohio Valley, from northeastern Kentucky up into western Pennsylvania. Protesters threatened to burn Pittsburg to the ground.

President Washington felt the supremacy of the United States government, and the Constitution itself, was at stake, and so in the face of some vigorous protests, rode out to western Pennsylvania himself with a strong show of force. General Daniel Morgan, the tough, hard-bitten hero of the Battle of Cowpens almost 14 years before (during the Southern Campaign of the Revolution), was chosen to lead one wing of that army, and the Whiskey Rebellion subsided without a shot being fired. (Interestingly, one member of his force, which stayed in western Pennsylvania through 1795, was Meriwether Lewis.)

Several of those who had led the violence were arrested, but only two men were tried and sentenced to hangings. Washington eventually pardoned even those two. He was apparently satisfied that he’d upheld the Constitution, but many farmers still felt the government had looked out more for its own interests than those of its citizens.

The excise tax remained difficult to collect, and many just plain refused to pay it. Hamilton was disappointed that his plan to help fund the new government had failed. Many feel that the events surrounding the Whiskey Rebellion directly led to the formation of two political parties, the Federalists who believed more power should lie with the government to protect and serve, and the Republicans who believed more power should lie with the people. A few years later, when Jefferson was elected president, he repealed the Whiskey Tax, despite the popular view of the day that Washington’s actions against the Whiskey Rebellion were necessary and successful.

Has anything really changed since then? It’s an interesting commentary on the history of our country’s politics, to be sure.

This Month In Colonial History ~ November

Welcome to this month's edition! Just one more month to go and then I'll be on to other interesting things ...

1 - Charles II of Spain dies and is succeeded by Philip V, kicking off the War of Spanish Succession. (1700)

1 - Mission San Juan Capistrano founded in California. (1776)

2 - Peter I proclaimed Emperor of all Russia. (1721)

Daniel Boone at age 84

2 - Birth of Daniel Boone (1734-1820) in Berks County, Pennsylvania.

2 – Birth of James K. Polk (1795-1849), 11th U.S. President, in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. After serving from March 4, 1845 to March 3, 1849, he “declined to be a candidate for a second term, saying he was ‘exceedingly relieved’ at the completion of his presidency.”

3 - King Henry VIII is made Supreme Head over the Church of England. (1534)

5 - Guy Fawkes Day in Britain:  the anniversary of the failed "Gunpowder Plot" to blow up the Houses of Parliament and King James I in 1605.

5 - First issue of the New York Weekly Journal published by American printer and journalist John Peter Zenger. (1733)

8 - Cortes captures Aztec emperor Montezuma and thus conquers Mexico. (1519)

8 - Birth of astronomer and mathematician Edmund Halley (1656-1742) in London, who “sighted the Great Comet of 1682 (now named Halley's Comet) and foretold its reappearance in 1758. Halley's Comet appears once each generation with the average time between appearances being 76 years. It is expected to be visible again in 2061.”

10 - The U.S. Marine Corps is born in 1775! Established as part of the U.S. Navy, it became a separate unit on July 11, 1789.

10 – Birth of Martin Luther (1483-1546) in Eisleben, Saxony.

11 - Birth of Abigail Adams (1744-1818) in Weymouth, Massachusetts.

11 – The signing of the Mayflower Compact by 41 Pilgrims, onboard the Mayflower, just off the Massachusetts coast. (1620)

14 - The first experimental blood transfusion takes place in Britain, utilizing two dogs. (...winning the weird science of the month award!) (1666)

14 - Scottish explorer James Bruce discovers the source of the Blue Nile on Lake Tana in northwest Ethiopia. (1770)

14 – Birth of Robert Fulton (1765-1815), inventor of the steamboat, in rural Pennsylvania.

15 - The Articles of Confederation were adopted by Continental Congress. (1777)

17 - Elizabeth I crowned Queen of England at the age of 25, “reigning until 1603 when she was 69. Under her leadership, England became a world power, defeating the Spanish Armada, and witnessed a golden age of literature featuring works by William Shakespeare, Edmund Spenser and others.” She defined the Colonial Era in ways few others have. (1558)

17 - New York Weekly Journal publisher John Peter Zenger is arrested and charged with libeling the colonial governor of New York, a year after the newspaper was established. (1734)

17 - The U.S. Congress meets for the first time in the new capital at Washington, D.C.; and President John Adams becomes the first occupant of the Executive Mansion, later renamed the White House. (1800)

17 - Birth of German mathematician August Mobius (1790-1868) in Schulpforte, Germany.

18 - First book in the English language, The Dictes and Sayengis of the Phylosophers, printed by William Caxton. (1477)

18 – Birth of German composer Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) in Eutin, Germany.

18 – Birth of Photography inventor Louis Daguerre (1789-1851) in Cormeilles, near Paris. Inventor of the daguerreotype, the first practical photographic process to produce lasting pictures.

19 - Puerto Rico discovered by Columbus during the second voyage to the New World. (1493)

19, 1703 – Death of the "Man in the Iron Mask," a prisoner of Louis XIV in the Bastille in Paris. Speculation abounds on this man’s identity:  was it Count Matthioli, who double-crossed Louis XIV, or possibly the brother of Louis XIV? (1703)

20 - New Jersey is the first state to ratify the Bill of Rights. (1789)

21 - The first free balloon flight takes place in Paris as Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Marquis Francois Laurent d'Arlandes ascended in a Montgolfier hot air balloon. The flight lasts about 25 minutes and travels nearly six miles at a height of about 300 feet over Paris. Witnessed by Benjamin Franklin, among others. (1783)

22 - Portuguese navigator Vasco Da Gama, leading a fleet of four ships, is the first to sail round the Cape of Good Hope, searching for a sea route to India. (1497)

22 - Death of Edward Teach, AKA Blackbeard the pirate, off the coast of North Carolina after a long and prosperous career. (1718)

24 – Birth of Zachary Taylor (1784-1850) 12th U.S. President, in Orange County, Virginia. Only served as President from March 4, 1849 to July 9, 1850, when he died in the White House from illness.

25 – The last British troops leave New York City at the end of the Revolutionary War. (1783)

26 – Observance of the first American holiday, proclaimed by President George Washington to be Thanksgiving Day, a day of prayer and public thanksgiving in gratitude for the successful establishment of the new American republic. (1789)

26 - The first lion exhibited in America (1716)

26 – Birth of Harvard College founder John Harvard (1607-1638) in London.

27 – Birth of Anders Celsius (1701-1744) in Sweden. Inventor of the centigrade (Celsius) temperature scale commonly used in Europe.

28 - Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan passed through the strait later named for him, located at the southern tip of South America, thus crossing from the Atlantic Ocean into the Pacific. (1520)

John Bunyan's magnum opus

28 - Panama declares independence from Spain and joins the fledgling nation of Gran Colombia. (1821)

28 – Birth of British artist and poet William Blake (1757-1827) in London.

28 - Birth of John Bunyan (1628-1688) in Elstow, Bedfordshire.

30 - The Battle of Narva takes place, where 8,000 Swedish troops under King Charles XII invade Norway, defeating a force of 50,000 Russians. (1700)

30 - Provisional peace treaty between Great Britain and the United States is signed, ending America's War of Independence. (The final treaty was signed in Paris on September 3, 1783.) It declared the U.S. "...to be free, sovereign and independent states..." and that the British Crown "...relinquishes all claims to the government, propriety and territorial rights of the same, and every part thereof." (1782)

My thanks as always to The History Place, Holiday Insights, Marine Corps University, and Wikipedia. :)

This Month in Colonial History: October

So what tidbits do we find in colonial and Federal history for this month? Every single month has held some surprises for me ... what are yours?

4 - "The Gregorian Calendar took effect in Catholic countries as Pope Gregory XIII issued a decree stating the day following Thursday, October 4, 1582, would be Friday, October 15, 1582, correcting a 10-day error accumulated by the Julian Calendar. Britain and the American colonies adopted the Gregorian Calendar in 1752."

4 - Belgium gained its independence in 1830, after having been a part of the Netherlands since 1815.

Jonathan Edwards

5 - Birth of theologian Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) in East Windsor, Connecticut.

5 - "Meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the 2d Continental Congress used the word 'Marines' on one of the earliest known occasions, when it directed General George Washington to secure two vessels on 'Continental risque and pay,' and to give orders for the 'proper encouragement to the Marines and seamen' to serve on the two armed ships." (usmcu.edu) (1775)

5 - Shawnee Indian Chief Tecumseh defeated and killed (1813).

7 - The Stamp Act Congress convenes in New York City, attended by representatives from nine colonies meeting in protest to the British Stamp Act, the first direct tax by the Crown upon the American colonies. (1765)

11 - King Henry VIII of England is given the title "Defender of the Faith" by Pope Leo X following the publication of the King's book against Martin Luther. (1521)

12 - After a 33-day voyage in 1492, Christopher Columbus makes first landfall in the New World in the Bahamas. Also, Paraguay declared its independence from Spain and Argentina in 1811. And in 1822, Brazil became independent of Portugal.

13 - The U.S. Continental Navy is created. (1775)

13 - The cornerstone of the White House is laid in 1792 by George Washington.

14 – Birth of Quaker founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn (1644-1718) in London.

15 - Napoleon Bonaparte arrived on the Island of St. Helena beginning a British-imposed exile following his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.  (1815)

16 - Yale University founded in Killingworth, Connecticut, as the Collegiate School of Connecticut. (1701) The name later changed to Yale College to honor Elihu Yale, a philanthropist.

Marie Antoinette by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun

16 - Queen Marie Antoinette beheaded during the Reign of Terror following the French Revolution. (1793)

16 - Birth of teacher and journalist Noah Webster (1758-1843) in West Hartford, Connecticut.

17 - The first major victory of the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Saratoga, where British General John Burgoyne and his entire army of 5,700 men surrendered to American General Horatio Gates. (1777)

18 – In 1685, the Edict of Nantes is revoked by King Louis XIV of France, thus depriving Protestant Huguenots of all religious and civil liberties previously granted to them by Henry IV in 1598.

19 - The Revolutionary War ended with the surrender of Cornwallis to Washington at Yorktown. (1781) The final treaty would not be signed until September 3, 1783.

20 - The U.S. and Britain agreed to set the U.S.- Canadian border at the 49th parallel. (1818)

20 - Birth of British architect Christopher Wren (1632-1723) in Wiltshire, in southwestern England. “Considered one of the greatest minds of his time, he designed St. Paul's Cathedral and 52 churches for the City of London. His secular buildings included the ‘new’ wing of Hampton Court near London and Greenwich Hospital, now the Royal Naval College.”

21 - The Battle of Trafalgar takes place between the British Royal Navy and the combined French and Spanish fleets. Britain’s victory ends the threat of Napoleon's invasion of England, but British naval hero Admiral Horatio Nelson is mortally wounded aboard his ship Victory. (1805)

26 - The Erie Canal opens, connecting Lake Erie to the Hudson River. (1825)

27 - The first of 85 Federalist Papers, written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, appeared in print in a New York City newspaper, arguing for the adoption of the new U.S. Constitution. (1787)

28 - Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher learning in America, is founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, named after John Harvard, a Puritan who donated his library and half of his estate. (1636)

29 - British explorer Sir Walter Raleigh is executed in London for treason on orders from King James I. (1618)

Luther's 1534 Bible

30 - Birth of John Adams (1735-1826) the 2nd U.S. President, in Braintree, Massachusetts.

31 - Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg's palace church, denouncing the selling of papal indulgences, questioning various ecclesiastical practices, and marking the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in Germany. (1517)

As always, my thanks to The History Place, Holiday Insights, Marine Corps University, and Wikipedia. :)

This Month in Colonial History: September

The Great Fire of London, unknown painter

1:  The death of King Louis XIV of France (the “Sun King”), who had ruled since age 5 and succeeded by his 5-year-old great-grandson, Louis XV.

2:  The Great Fire of London is started. More than 13,000 houses destroyed over 3 days, but supposedly only 6 lives lost. (1666)

2:  “The British ended their use of the Julian calendar, switching instead to the Gregorian calendar, resulting in a major adjustment as Wednesday, September 2, was followed by Thursday, September 14. The correction resulted in rioting by people who felt cheated and demanded the missing eleven days back.” (1752)

2:  The U.S. Treasury is established. (1789)

3:  The Treaty of Paris is signed, formally ending the American Revolution, by John Adams, Ben Franklin, and John Jay. (1783)

4:  Navigator Henry Hudson discovers the island of Manhattan. (1609)

4:  El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles, or the Town of the Queen of the Angels, is founded by the Spanish governor of California, later to be known simply as Los Angeles. (1781)

5:  Russian Czar Peter the Great imposes a tax on beards. (1698)

5:  The First Continental Congress assembled in Philadelphia. Every colony represented except for Georgia. (1774)

6:  The Mayflower sets sail from Plymouth, England, after many trials and a few false starts, and still more unthinkable trials to come. Still, as leader William Bradford wrote, they “commited them selves to the will of God, and resolved to proseede” to the New World. (1620)

Marquis de Lafayette

6:  The birth of Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834) in Chavaniac, France.

7:  The birth of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) in Greenwich Palace, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

8:  First Catholic settlement in America founded at St. Augustine, Florida, by Spaniard Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles. (1565)

9:  The United Colonies becomes the United States. (1776)

13:  New York City becomes the capitol of the United States. (1788)

14:  Composer George Frederick Handel finishes Messiah after 23 straight days of work. (1741)

14:  Napoleon enters a burning Moscow at the beginning of his disastrous Russian campaign. Fewer than 20,000 men of his original 500,000 survive. (1812)

14:  Francis Scott-Key composes the lyrics to “The Star Spangled Banner.” (1814)

15:  The birth of James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) in Burlington, New Jersey.

16:  “Mexico's break from Spain began in the town of Dolores Hidalgo as Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla rang his church's bells and exhorted local Indians to ‘recover from the hated Spaniards the land stolen from your forefathers...’” (1810)

16:  “A detachment of Marines under Major Daniel Carmick from the Naval Station at New Orleans, together with an Army detachment, destroyed a pirate stronghold at Barataria, on the Island of Grande Terre, near New Orleans.” (1814)

17:  The U.S. Constitution is unanimously approved by delegates from 12 states. (1787)

18:  Chile declared its independence from Spain after 269 years as a colony. (1810)

22:  Nathan Hale executed for spying. “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” (1776)

22:  Birth of Michael Faraday (1791-1867), discoverer of electromagnetic induction (moving a magnet through a coil of wire produces a current). Thus electric generators are developed.

25:  Sighting of the Pacific Ocean by Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa, after crossing the Isthmus of Panama. (1513)

25:  Publication of the first American newspaper. “A single edition of Publick Occurrences Both Foreign and Domestick appeared in Boston, Massachusetts. However, British authorities considered the newspaper offensive and ordered its immediate suppression.” (1690)

25:  Ratification of the Bill of Rights. (1789)

26:  Birth of Johnny Appleseed, as John Chapman (1774-1845) in Leominster, Massachusetts.

26:  The U.S. Postal Service was founded. (1789)

Sam Adams, 1772, by Copley

27:  Birth of Samuel Adams (1722-1803) in Boston, Massachusetts.

28:  Duke William of Normandy begins the conquest of England at Pevensey, Sussex. (1066) Relevant to the colonial era because, well, Britain. :-)

28: Discovery of California by Portuguese navigator Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo upon his arrival at San Diego Bay. (1542)

29:  U.S. Army created by Congress, with just 1,000 enlisted men and officers. (1789)

  My thanks to The History Place, Holiday Insights, Marine Corps University, Smithsonian Magazine, and Wikipedia. :)

This Month in Colonial History: August

May I present the August edition of interesting and notable happenings during the colonial and early Federal eras ...

1:  Francis Scott Key (1779-1843), composer of “The Star Spangled Banner,” is born.

1:  The first U.S. Census is completed. There are four million people in the U.S. in 1790.

1:  Slavery is abolished in Jamaica, where it had been introduced by the Spanish in 1509. (1838)

2:  Most of the 55 members of the Continental Congress sign the Declaration of Independence, in Philadelphia. (1776)

1490 map by Bartolomeo and Christopher Columbus

3:  “Christopher Columbus sets sail from Palos, Spain, with three ships, Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria. Seeking a westerly route to the Far East, he instead landed on October 12th in the Bahamas, thinking it was an outlying Japanese island.” (1492)

4:  Dom Perignon invents champagne. (1693)

5:  First British colony in North America claimed by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, in the St. John’s harbor area of Newfoundland.

5:  Birth of John Eliot (1604-1690), "Apostle to the Indians." The first Bible printed in America was his translation of the Bible into a native language.

6-10:  The Constitutional Convention’s Great Debate. Outcomes included the establishment of a four-year term of office for the President, granting Congress the right to regulate foreign trade and interstate commerce, and the appointment of a committee to prepare a final draft of the Constitution. (1787)

7:  President Washington creates the Order of the Purple Heart. (1782)

7:  Through an Act of Congress, the Federal Government takes over the creation and maintenance of the nations' lighthouses. (1789)

8:  The Daughters of the American Revolution organization is created. (1890)

10:  The village of Chicago is incorporated. (1833)

12:  Metacom, leader of the Pokanokets, a tribe within the Wampanoag Indian Federation, is assassinated, resulting in the end of a two-year uprising known now as “King Philip's War.” (1676)

16:  The Battle of Bennington in Vermont ... local militiamen and Massachusetts troops wipe out a detachment of 800 German-Hessians sent by British General Burgoyne to seize horses. (1777)

16:  The Battle of Camden in South Carolina ... major defeat for Continentals under General Gates by troops of British General Charles Cornwallis, resulting in 900 Americans killed and 1,000 captured. (1780)

17:  Birth of American frontiersman Davy Crockett (1786-1836) in Hawkins County, Tennessee. Died at the Alamo.

18:  Birth of Meriwether Lewis (1774-1809) near Charlottesville, Virginia.

24:  St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in Paris and throughout France. Thousands of Protestant Huguenots died at the hands of Catholics. (1572)

24-25:  The Battle of Bladensburg, in defense of Washington, D.C. The Capitol, White House, and many other buildings, public and private, are burned by the British in retaliation for the American burning of York (Toronto). Participants in the defense of D.C. include a 100-man detachment from the Marines. (1814)

28:  Birth of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, author of the dramatic poem Faust, completed in 1831.

28:  Birth of the first American-born Roman Catholic saint, Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821; born as Elizabeth Ann Bayley) in New York. Founder of the first American Catholic religious order, the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph, and the an elementary school in Baltimore, marking the beginning of the parochial school system in the U.S in 1809.

29:  Birth of John Locke (1632-1704) in Wrington, England. Son of Puritans, this physician, philosopher, and essayist would deeply influence the Whig cause of England and all of Western thought.

29:  Sinking of the British battleship Royal George, resulting in the drowning of 900 men. (1792)

29:  Birth of physician and author Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894) in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

30:  Birth of author Mary Shelley (1797-1851) in London.

31:  Beginning of Shays' Rebellion in Massachusetts, by ex-Revolutionary War Captain Daniel Shays leading an armed mob, to prevent the Northampton Court from holding a session to try and imprison debtors, mostly poor ex-soldier farmers. (1786)

As always, my thanks to The History Place, Holiday Insights, and Marine Corps University. And Wikipedia. :)

This Month in Colonial History: July

Facsimile of the original Declaration of Independence

July was a busy month during the Colonial and Federal eras!

2: "Resolved, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved. That it is expedient forthwith to take the most effectual measures for forming foreign Alliances. That a plan of confederation be prepared and transmitted to the respective Colonies for their consideration and approbation." In 1776, this resolution is adopted by the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, thus closing the Colonial era (roughly). In 1788, Congress announces that the Constitution has been ratified, by 9 of the 13 states, thus ushering in the Federal era.

3: George Washington steps up to command the Continental army. (1775)

4: In 1776, the Declaration of Independence is approved by the Continental Congress. In 1801, to commemorate the nation’s 25^th anniversary, the U.S. Marines parade in review for President Jefferson.

A last effort to avoid full-out war with Britain

5: “The Continental Congress adopted the Olive Branch Petition expressing hope for a reconciliation with Britain. However, King George III refused even to look at the petition and instead issued a proclamation declaring the colonists to be in a state of open rebellion.” (The History Place) Now there’s a tidbit I’d never heard before! (1775)

6: Birth of John Paul Jones (1747-1792) in Kirkbean, Scotland.

8: First public reading of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia (1776). In 1796, the first passport is issued by the U.S. State Department.

10: Birth of John Calvin (1509-1564) in Noyon, France. (Cited here because of the deep influence Calvinism had on the American Revolution.)

11:  Birth of John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) in Braintree, Massachusetts. In 1798, his father President John Adams approves an act officially creating the U.S. Marine Corps. And in 1804, the death of Alexander Hamilton in a duel with Aaron Burr.

Kutani Crane by Wedgwood

12:  Birth of British pottery designer Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) in Burslem, Staffordshire, England.

13: Congress enacts the Northwest Ordinance: "Considered one of the most important legislative acts of the Confederation Congress, it established the precedent by which the Federal government would be sovereign and expand westward with the admission of new states, rather than with the expansion of existing states and their established sovereignty under the Articles of Confederation." (Wikipedia) (1787)

14: In 1789, the fall of the Bastille in France. In 1791, on the second anniversary, the Birmingham riot takes place, resulting in mob rule for three days.

15: Birth of Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) in Leiden, Holland.

16: Birth of British portrait painter Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) in Plympton, Devon, England. In 1769, the founding of San Diego as the mission San Diego de Alcala by Father Junipero Serra.

19: Samuel Colt invented the revolver. (1814)

20: Britain enacts the Riot Act, to be read in case of rowdy gatherings. “Our sovereign Lord the King chargeth and commandeth all persons, being assembled, immediately to disperse themselves, and peaceably to depart to their habitations, or to their lawful business, upon the pains contained in the act made in the first year of King George, for preventing tumults and riotous assemblies. God save the king.” Thus the term "being read the Riot Act" is born. (1715)

25: American forces defeat the British at the Battle of Niagara Falls. (1814)

26: Benjamin Franklin becomes the first Postmaster General. (1775)

31: The opening of the U.S. Patent Office. (1790)

Which of these did you not know, before?

 As always, my thanks to The History Place, Holiday Insights, and Marine Corps University. And Wikipedia. :)

Shipbuilding Superstition

Colonial seafarers were known for their superstitions. Early American shipbuilders, as well, had to contend with popular superstition and folklore when constructing a vessel. Here are a some of the more well known superstitions of the day:

•Black walnut was believed to be a tree of ill omen. It was said to draw lightning and be associated with the devil. Its bark and nuts could stain the hands and skin permanently. The reputation of black walnut so bad that it was believed if any part of the boat, no matter how small, was made of this wood, trouble would follow. Even a single walnut brought abroad by a squirrel could bring disaster.

•Laying the keel in a north-south direction - Custom demanded the keel be laid in a north-south direction, whenever possible. In this instance, folklore served a useful purpose. In doing so, the sun would affect both sides of the ship more evenly than if the vessel were laid in an east-west direction.

•Figureheads were believed to be possessed of protective qualities that could shield the vessel, those aboard and its cargo from harm. Each vessel was known to have its own personality and peculiarities, a uniqueness in the way she handled and moved and the internal noises she made while at sea. Captain and crew came to look upon her as almost human, and a figurehead gave her "eyes," allowing the vessel to look out trouble. 

•Paint - Painting a vessel the color or the sea (green or blue) was thought to bring bad luck.

•Name - Great pains were taken in the naming of vessel, with care given not choose one that could be considered impressive. A humble name was more likely to pass unnoticed by the elements, whereas a haughty one could land the vessel in trouble, lest as the Bible says, the mighty be brought low.

•The Launch – The most crucial moment in a vessel's development was the launch. It was in the launch that owners would discover whether they had purchased a lucky or an unlucky vessel. They watched for the way she performed and floated once released into the water. Great effort was made to ensure a successful launch. Mornings were considered a fortunate time of day, while Fridays and the first day of the month were to be avoided. Sightings of gulls, fish and porpoises on the appointed day were all positive signs. Launchings were a community affair with music, food and drink, and a Christian blessing. Special attention was given to selecting a person to christen the vessel with her name.

Lisa Norato is the author of the federal era novels, The Promise Keeper and Prize of My Heart, based in the shipbuilding center of Duxbury, Massachusetts.