John P. Kaminski's 3 in 1 biography of Washington, Jefferson, and Madison makes for interesting reading and provides a good overview of these three founders.   Read the rest of this entry »

Readers who enjoyed the saga of Marshal Pierce will find this correspondence culled from the National Archives facility in College Park of interest. Pierce was not without friends in high places.   Read the rest of this entry »

A visit to Gunston Hall, home of forgotten Founder George Mason, one of the architects of the Constitution, and one of three Convention attendees who didn't sign the document.   Read the rest of this entry »

A brief interview with the "cook" at Ash Lawn - Highland.   Read the rest of this entry »

A trip to Monticello yields a bountiful harvest of information about Jefferson and his horticultural hobby. Pat, the "vegetable gardener" (really more of a historian) skips lunch to talk to Martin about the Monticello garden, past and present.   Read the rest of this entry »

A trip to the national portrait gallery made me fall in love with Rosalba Peale. This picture made the visit to the museum all by itself.   Read the rest of this entry »

It was 1812 and America was on the brink of war with her erstwhile parent, Great Britain. Reading through the Niles Register of that year gives one a real sense of the mood of the American people. Although some of the patriotic fervor was short-lived, and some began to dub it "Mr. Madison's War", in early 1812, Americans were plenty ticked. This letter from English pamphleteer William Cobbett to the Prince Regent, illustrates one of the reasons for America's pugnacious attitude, the continued impressment of its citizens by the British Royal Navy.   Read the rest of this entry »

Blogger/Historian Anna The Imp, from across the pond, has a great article on the complexities of the British position on America's Civil War.   Read the rest of this entry »

Americans owe a debt of gratitude to many great men, including some unknown to us. Nicholas Dungan introduces Albert Gallatin, who served the nation in Congress, as Secretary of State, as diplomat par excellence, linguist, and ethnologist; a man more than qualified to be called "great.'   Read the rest of this entry »

Senate Bill 679 is another really bad idea at best. At worst it's another intentional power grab to subvert the power of the Senate and place still more in the hands of the worst president in our lifetimes. Either way it's a dangerous usurpation of the power of the Senate to check the power of the Executive.   Read the rest of this entry »