Where's Waldo? Where's McBarron?

 

Most readers are familiar with the works of H. Charles McBarron through his illustrations of United State military uniforms and battles.  These works are often found in the better books and in many museums.  

H. Charles McBarron

What few individuals know about McBarron is he had a keen sense of humour.   He often placed himself in his works.  The illustrator Martin Handford cited McBarron as a primary influence in the creation of his works, "Where's Waldo?". 

So, where is he in his illustrations?  Here are a few that I found.

From The Battle of Guilford Courthouse.

From The Battle of Bunker Hill:

From The Battle of Montreal:

For more information and details check out;

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bgfjXdC5__w

Evacuation day Boston 17 March 1776

Anniversary of the British leaving Boston.  The placement of artillery on Dorchester Heights made the harbour untenable for the Royal Navy.   In the illustration above Washington is standing by Artemis Ward who commander the New England army before the Virginian arrived.

Generations of Bostonians were thankful it was done on 17 March so that business and school will be closed for the local holiday;  which just happens to be St Patrick's day!

Outstanding illustration by H. Charles McBarron of the British evacuation.

Watercolor by Lt. Richard Williams 23rd RWF of a sentry in Boston with Dorchester Heights in the background.

 A 1830 View of near where Henry Knox's artillery were placed on the heights.  Same view today.

Battle of Guilford Courthouse 15 March 1781

  " As at Camden, the British went forward as soon as they were in line. Captain Peter led the 23rd on as acting commanding officer, with the regiment effectively in two wings under captains Saumarez and Champagne. As they went forward, one of them noticed the ‘field lately ploughed, which was wet and muddy from the rains which had recently fallen’.  On  they trudged towards the fence that marked the end of Hoskins’ cornfield and the beginning of the woods to the fore, observing as they grew closer that the rails were lined with men. MacLeod’s cannon opened fire, sending their ballwhooshing into the American lines. Colonel Webster, on horseback, trotted to the front of his brigade and called out so that all could hear, ‘Charge!’ The men began jogging forward, bayonets fixed and muskets levelled towards the enemy. A crackling fire from their left, Kirkwood’s riflemen, began knocking down a redcoat here or there, but did nothing to check their impetus. When the British line was little more than 50 yards from the North Carolina militia everything seemed to stop for Serjeant Lamb: … it was perceived the whole of their force had their arms presented, and resting on a rail fence … they were taking aim with the nicest precision. At this awful period a general pause took place; both parties surveyed each other for the moment with the most anxious suspense … Colonel Webster spurred his horse to the head of the 23rd and bellowed out, ‘Come on my brave Fusiliers!’ Some of the Americans started to run, but most held on for a moment; there was a rippling crash of American musketry when the redcoats were at optimum range, 40 to 50 yards away. Dozens of Webster’s men went down as the musket balls cut legs from under them or smashed into their chests. Lieutenant Calvert worried for an instant how his men might react to such a heavy fire: ‘They instantly returned it and did not give the enemy time to repeat their fire but rushed on them with bayonets.’ Captain Saumarez noted with pride, ‘No troops could behave better than the regiment … they never returned the enemy’s fire but by word of command and marched on with the most undaunted courage.’..."

Quote from;

Fusiliers:  The saga of a British Redcoat Regiment in the American Revolution  by Mark Urban

Hessian Colors Captured at Trenton. Where Are They?

 

 Rereading Richardson's Standards and Colors of the American Revolution this morning.  What happened to the Hessian colors captured at Trenton?  They were displayed in the halls of Congress for a short time. On 31 December 1776 William Ellery writes the Governor of Rhode Island a description of the flags which are on display in the room where Congress meets in Baltimore.The six colors captured at Trenton are depicted in good detail in Charles Wilson Peale's painting of Washington victorious after Trenton and Princeton. Other colors captured have survived.  There are four Anspach-Beyreuth colors captured at Yorktown still in existence and in good condition. Two are at West Point, one at the Smithsonian and the fourth one at Yorktown. Davis (Regimental colors in the War of the Revolution) said there were no know (to him) Colors in Germany when he did his research during the 1900's.  The colors of the 7th (Royal Fusiliers) Regiment are at West Point.

   Here is some information about what happened to them. Davis describes the existing colors when he examined them in 1907 in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and photographed the two flags and the remains of a third which had a black field. These were in the Clymer papers. These two colors and the fragments disappeared sometime between when Davis saw them in 1900-1907 and the mid 1970's when they were found to be missing. It is possible, based on a " cryptic" entry on a accession card that they were loaned out and never returned; possibly during the Sesquicentennial of 1926.

   William Buehler wrote Admiral Preble on 18 November 1881 "two flags out of six captured ...At Trenton are in the department on the hill at Harrisburg." This appears to have been the William Penn museum at Harrisburg Pennsylvania. Richardson is quoted as saying staff members " have no knowledge as to the whereabouts of any surviving remnants there. "

   Lastly there are fragments of another Hessian flag captured at Trenton in the First City Troop Museum in Philadelphia. The fragments are about " twenty by seven inches and are black brocade will seamed to a narrow strip of White are are decorated with a small elements of brown and yellow painted designs. "

Richardson, Edward W. Standards and Colors of the American Revolution.

1982.

Davis, Gherardi.  Regimental Colors in the War of The Revolution.

1907.

For a copy of the book online see:

https://archive.org/details/regimentalcolors00davi/page/n12

The great snowball fight at Harvard Yard 1775: or Virginians vs. Yankees

 

  Following the outbreak of fighting on 19 April 1775 the local New England Army of Observation placed Boston under siege.   Among the various regiments taking part was a militia regiment from Essex county, the Essex County militia regiment. Lieutenant Trask, decided that son  Israel, age ten should come along with him to the war. The young boys duties were as he wrote later , “the care of the baggage and the property of the mess. When the officers were called on duty, which was daily the case, either to mount guard, or fatigue duties in fortifying the camp,...my duty alternately was to take the edibles prepared at the mess to the officers on duty, which in some instance [were] miles distant.”  In December the Essex regiment was moved into one of the buildings of Harvard University

. And then some new soldiers arrived from outside New England. Strange and unusual they caught the eye of Trask who watched with great attention;

"A day or two preceding the incident I am about to relate, a rifle corps had come into camp from Virginia, made up of recruits from the backwoods and mountains of that state, in a uniform dress totally different from that of the regiments raised on the seaboard and interior of New England. Their white linen frocks, ruffled and fringed, excited the curiosity of the whole army, particularly to the Marblehead regiment, who were always full of fun and mischief."

 Col. John Glover 's  Marblehead regiment must have been an unusual sight to the men from Virginia.  Made up of sailors the clothing of the regiment was short coats, round hats and sea trousers.   In additionthe men of the regiment were a mixture of white, black and native Indians serving together. "[The Marblehead men] looked with scorn on such an rustic uniform when compared to their own round jackets and fishers’ trousers, [and they] directly confronted from fifty to an hundred of the riflemen who were viewing the college buildings."

To the amusement of young Trask things quickly escalated:

"Their first manifestations were ridicule and derision, which the riflemen bore with more patience than their wont, but resort being made to snow, which then covered the ground, these soft missives were interchanged but a few minutes before both parties closed, and a fierce struggle commenced with biting and gouging on the one part, and knockdown on the other part with as much apparent fury as the most deadly enmity could create. Reinforced by their friends, in less than five minutes more than a thousand combatants were on the field, struggling for the mastery."

"At this juncture General Washington made his appearance, whether by accident or design I never knew. I only saw him and his colored servant  both mounted. With the spring of a deer, he leaped from his saddle, threw the reins of his bridle into the hands of his servant, and rushed into the thickest of the melee, with an iron grip seized two tall, brawny, athletic, savage-looking riflemen by the throat, keeping them at arm’s length, alternately shaking and talking to them."

"In this position the eye of the belligerents caught sight of the general. Its effect on them was instantaneous flight at the top of their speed in all directions from the scene of the conflict. Less than fifteen minutes time had elapsed from the commencement of the row before the general and his two criminals were the only occupants of the field of action."