A History Geek's Day Out

You've heard of a Golf widow, right? Well, last Sunday poor Debbie was a History Geek Widow. I joined my friend Kevin on a tour of the final resting places of many of his dead relatives. Crazy? Perhaps. But so is spending 5 hours knocking the devil's pellet around a course with a bunch sticks trying to get it to fall into a hole. Eighteen times.

It also just so happened that the annual reenactment of The Battle of Monmouth was that same weekend. It also just so happens that Kevin lives only a few miles from the site. Coincidence? It's possible.

Ok, so who's the dude in the painting you ask? Well, he was the main focus of our boneyard jaunt. He is my reconstruction (based on old photo's of other relations) of Asher Hart. Asher, who is Kevin's great great great(there's probably a couple more greats in there)-grandfather, served in the 1st Hunterdon County Militia during the Revolutionary War. He was at every major battle that took place in New Jersey during the war, including Trenton, Monmouth and Springfield. According to his detailed pension records, he was "drafted" in July of 1776 at Pennytown (now, Pennington). In all, he was called up 3 times in 1776, 4 in 1777, 4 in 1778, 2 in 1779, 2 in 1780, and 2 times in 1781. It's an impressive record and a testament to the amount of activity there was in New Jersey (or, the Jersey's as it was referred to) during that conflict.

Kevin has certainly done his homework. The pension records are full of detail because, sadly, the government gave Asher such a hard time in granting a pension. He didn't apply for one until 1832 because of, "his being in comfortable circumstances and unwilling to accept the bounty of the government until his advancing years and declining health induced him...". The government finally came through...in 1846. He was given a wooping $30 a year, but they at least backdated his claim to 1831.

Ok, so back to the cemetery shuffle. After a brief stop at the reenactment - you know, to get into that Revolutionary groove - I met Kevin at his house and he drove us out to Pennington, NJ to visit Asher. That's Kevin by the grave site . As I mentioned, Kevin does his homework. Doing the genealogy is one thing, but finding the grave is legwork too. Literally. He tramped around a few graveyards before he found it; almost by accident. It takes patience, a sharp eye and good light. Thanks to Kevin though, Asher Hart will be easier to find for future generations. He petitioned the government for a veterans headstone which you see on the ground in front of the old upright stone. Kevin even installed it himself.

We also visited ancestors in Hopewell and Ewing. Along the way we saw markers for other soldiers of Asher's regiment thanks to like minded families who obtained new markers. In Hopewell, there's a small monument to John Hart (distant relation) who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Our final stop was the Old Tennant Church just outside of Freehold. It is the home of more of Kevin's dead relatives and it served as a hospital following the Battle of Monmouth in 1778.

So, after leaving the house at 8am, and arriving home around 5-ish, I'd covered quite a bit of history. Strolling around graveyards looking at someone else's family history may not scream "fun" to most folks but I enjoyed it. It was natural that, after recreating that long gone soldier, I should see his final resting place and visit the site where he was mustered that first time in July of 1776. He was a young lad of 16 with many adventures ahead of him. Did he have any inkling that the events for which he was about to take part in would be remembered 242 years later? He certainly wouldn't have guessed some history geek artist would try to bring him back to life with brushes and paint.

I'll never know how close (or how far) I got to his true likeness. I don't suppose it matters. 242 years is a long way. Through this whole process I was able to bring it tantalizingly close. My minds eye flashes images of him trudging to Pennytown for yet another muster. I can almost hear his voice and even sense his emotions. Excitement, fear, and weariness.

For me history isn't about a fading name on an old, crumbling gravestone. It's the flesh and blood that ancient stone represents.

And, it's much more fun than golf.

They said it....or did they?

Just in case you're wondering, "what the heck is that?"...it's not a clam, or gum stuck to the side walk. It's an ear. I was brushing up on my anatomy and started sketching an ear. It got me thinking what a wonderful piece of engineering it is. Feeling very philosophical and being a history geek, I started to ponder the importance of the ear in history.

Quotes! Yes, wonderful utterings made at momentous occasions of grand historical stature! It seems like there's always someone around to hear them, and record them. Geeks love quotes like, "to err is human...". Well, an ear is human and can certainly "err". Far more interesting than what was actually said, is what we think was said, or could have been said or what is just plain old BS. Here's some classic quotes debunked. Enjoy!

"The British are coming, the British are coming"
The classic quote by Paul Revere as he warned the Massachusetts countryside about the approaching British army. Too bad the only time Revere uttered those words was in the Longfellow poem (actually, not even there) . Think about it. The Revolutionary War hadn't even started yet, and American independence from Great Britain was neither declared nor won at that point. Far from it. Paul Revere and the Minute Men he called upon that night were still British themselves. He would have referred to the British army as the "Regulars" or something of that nature. In fact, he didn't really ride through towns yelling at the top of his lungs either. But, that's another story. More information about that period is found here.

"Nice guys finish last."
A classic from that crotchety Brooklyn Dodgers manager, Leo Durocher. Yeah,.....but no. The real quote: "The nice guys are all over there, in seventh place." That quote, aimed at the rival Giants, is quite a bit different and a lot less nasty that what was eventually credited to him. Never the less, the misquote followed Durocher around and ended up as the title on his autobiography.

"Anything that can go wrong, will." (Murphy's Law)
OK, I have to admit that I had no idea that Murphy was a real guy. I just thought it was some ephemeral drunken Irishman who stammered the famous line after 14 pints of Guiness and everyone yelled, Brilliant! Nope. Edward Murphy was an US Air Force engineer and what he said was, "If there's more than one way to do a job, and one of those ways will result in disaster, then somebody will do it that way." Much more funny in my opinion. Genius in fact. Check here for more of the story.

"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind."
No, I'm not going to tell you that Neil Armstrong's famous moon walk was filmed on a Hollywood Set. Armstrong did flubb the line though. His actual words were: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Huh? Isn't that the same quote? Almost. He forgot the article "a" before the word "man". Without that single letter word, the sentence doesn't quite make sense. In the famous audio clip, you can almost hear him pause before the second part of the line as if he's thinking, "Oh, sh#t, can we do a re-take?".

"I fear that all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant and filled him with terrible resolve."
This one broke my heart. I've always loved the incredible insight Admiral Yamamoto shows in that poignant scene in "Tora, Tora, Tora". The Japs have just scored a big victory in the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and yet in this moment of triumph the wise Admiral knows the grave consequences of their actions. Great drama! It's a shame that's all it is....drama. Admiral Y never said it, except on a Hollywood sound stage.

Those are just a few misquotes, but there are many, many more. For instance, my cousin claims that Admiral Farragutt's victory at Mobile Bay was really due to a mis-heard command. His research shows that Farragutt made odd culinary decision the night before the battle that would come back to haunt him. So, when Farragutt was lashed to the rigging amid the thunder of cannon fire he called out to his helmsman:

"Damn those Tostitos, I need the head!"


I'm really, really sorry about that one. If you have a great misquote to share, leave a comment!