June 22nd -
In 1807, the U.S. frigate Chesapeake was fired upon and then boarded by the crew of the British battleship Leopold about 40 miles east of Chesapeake Bay.
This is pretty much where I am in reading my biography of Decatur. I know, I know, I've been reading this forever! No, I'm not a slow reader. I'm just distracted and busy. I don't get to pick it up very often. I am always tempted by the new stuff.....the new issues of "The Atlantic" and "Foreign Policy" both came in recently. Anyhow, Captain (later Commodore) James Barron just gave up the ship and it's not your usual Navy story.
HMS Leopard (right) fires upon the USS Chesapeake
Not one of my more illustrious ancestors...
ReplyDeleteWe had one that designed the penny tho...from the Russian side of the family.
http://www.dispatch.com/coincomment/lincolncent/1cent31fea.html
The rest of them were potato farmers in Ireland until they got wise. Altho I had a 16 year old great uncle shot by the black and tan for insurrection.
Counterfeiters and terrorists, farmers and consumptives. Love ‘em all.
My father's maternal grandfather was killed by the black and tan. All of my ancestors were bogtrotters and bootleggers.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the old countries could never take a joke....we all got shuffled off to Tir na n'Og.
ReplyDeleteDamn, the independent minded, vaguely criminal, wildly entrepreneurial energies that landed in this country a hundred and fifty years ago.... it literally has lit up the world.
The jokes on them. Legal immigrants to the USA are the most energetic and forward looking people on the planet.