An Actual Privateer
When I decided on the title for this blog, I was shooting for alliteration, of course, but also for a representation of my family’s past. Pioneers and preachers we have in abundance, but there really were some privateers as well. Here’s what I have learned about one of them.
Flying Camps, Prison Ships, and the Battle of Long Island
I've come to realize that I really know very little about the American Revolution. I remember learning about the Minutemen at Lexington and Concord in April 1775, of course, but my knowledge of what happened during the subsequent eight years is quite limited. Happily, as I've spent time researching my family's past, I've learned a good deal more about what went on during the Revolution.
11,670 Miles
11,670 miles—that’s how far my three times great-grandfather Christopher Erisman is said to have traveled with his regiment—by rail, by river, on horseback, and on foot—over the course of the Civil War.
Why Reindeer?
A few years ago while going through a scrapbook put together by my great-grandmother, I found an odd photo. It showed people dressed in fur, some sleds, and what appeared to be a large herd of reindeer.