Episodes

  • February 11, 1775

    February 11, 1775
    Feb 11 2025
    There are many events in the life of William Hall that could be ascribed to just plain luck on his part, and others which could conceivably tied to some shrewd timing on his part. But in the end, we think we’re going with luck. If he hadn’t survived two Cherokee ambushes, if he hadn’t been […]
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    3 mins
  • February 10, 1775

    February 10, 1775
    Feb 10 2025
    While Massachusetts, and Boston in particular, were getting a lot of attention from the British, it’s not as though the other colonies sat back and watched everything happening from afar. To a certain extent they did do that, but they also had problems of their own to deal with. In some of the more southern […]
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    Less than 1 minute
  • February 9, 1775

    February 9, 1775
    Feb 9 2025
    The first week or two of February 1775 could best be described as a series of misunderstandings and communication breakdowns. Any attempts on both sides to reach out with some form of conciliation managed to fail for various reasons. And during all these breakdowns, the situation on the American side of the pond only got […]
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    3 mins
  • February 8, 1775

    February 8, 1775
    Feb 8 2025
    (Forgive us the jokey headline–sometimes it’s late at night when we post this stuff and we get punchy.) Over the course of a single year—and beginning with this day in 1775—John Cox experienced what any reasonable person would call a “meteoric rise” in his personal and professional fortunes. He started out adjudicating British laws in […]
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    3 mins
  • February 7, 1775

    February 7, 1775
    Feb 7 2025
    In today’s episode, guest voice Lorene Childs tells us the story of Mary Peck Butterworth. Mary was a member of the First Families of Rehoboth, Massachusetts, and a very respected member of the society there. But for a few years, and for reasons unknown to modern-day people, Mary enjoyed a rather peculiar hobby, one that […]
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    4 mins
  • February 6, 1775

    February 6, 1775
    Feb 6 2025
    John Adams and Daniel Leonard had an interesting relationship. They were great friends at first, until the British started cracking down on the Colonies. Adams chafed under the Crown’s pressure, while Leonard remained loyal. Ultimately it created a rift between the two men which never quite healed, and it broke Adams’ heart. When Leonard began […]
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    3 mins
  • February 5, 1775

    February 5, 1775
    Feb 5 2025
    As noted previously, the First Continental Congress composed a Petition to the King asking him for some relief from the Intolerable Acts. The petition arrived in London in mid-December, which turned out to be some bad timing for a number of reasons. Benjamin Franklin was in town for diplomatic purposes, and he composed a letter […]
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    3 mins
  • 250 and Counting: February 4, 1775

    250 and Counting: February 4, 1775
    Feb 4 2025
    After the Boston Tea Party, Parliament enacted what they called the Coercive Acts and the Colonies called the Intolerable Acts. The Colonists were neither coerced, nor were the acts tolerated (hence the name). And you know that because we’ve told you this already several times. In October 1774 the Continental Congress composed the “Petition to […]
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    Less than 1 minute