Slopmaker Cripps

Heat? Dress appropriately for the weather....linen garments, unlined, drawers for beeches and jackets/weskits cut a bit loose... This method was used all throughout the Southern colonies and the caribbean. A slave with an umbrella and/or fan helps a lot as well.... -Adam C.

Bo, Those are absolutely wonderful! Thank you very VERY much! I can't wait to try them out (though we're on a firewatch at the moment here in Florida * grumble grumble *). -Adam C.

250,000 artifacts includes individuals nails, pieces of wood, individual pieces of small shot, etc.....it's actually not that big of a number for most wrecks that have been excavated for multiple seasons. -Adam C.

Bo, Sounds great! I have examples of Spanish strikers for the period, but I am waiting to hear back from some of my colleagues to see if any were found here in Florida (the objective of the project is to get as close to the Florida material culture as possible...if that's generic period Spanish and a mention in some documents, that's fine...I just want to make sure there isn't a Florida example sitting in a museum somewhere that I somehow missed/forgot about). Will let you know what I find out, should be a couple days....dig season just kicked back in full-swing and communications slow down drastically as everyone is out in the middle of nowhere for days at a time. Cheers, Adam

William, No need to apologize! This is just how the game/fates work. Honestly I shouldn't be spending money, but like you I found the style appealing to the eye. Bo, If you're going to have to make a new one from scratch, I really ought to do some more research first and get you to make me one that is perfect for the interp program I am putting together ( Spanish Franciscan in La Florida). Let me see what I can find, talk to some of my fellow archaeologists, and then I'll get back to you. How much do the fire-steels run? Also, since you have your own forge, do you happen to do knife blades as well? Still exploring various options and what not, but there's a possibility I might have to go the custom route for this knife I'm looking to add to the above mentioned kit as well. If I have to go custom, then I'd like to go with someone on FF or here on the Pub just to "keep it in the family" as it were...but like I mentioned, I am still just exploring options regarding it at the moment. Cheers, Adam

* deleted * William Red Wake beat me to the punch while I was typing... ;-) -Adam C.

Dang it, Foxe! You beat me to the punch....I've got a fiddle in the works myself! You did a grand job with it....is she a conversion or did you start from scratch? What did you use for the finish? It's pretty.... -Adam C.

Most likely the slop contract weskits were solid stripes, not variegated like the now "traditional" ticking pattern, as most sailors shown in striped weskits are wearing solid stripes. Having said that, so far the earliest pics I have seen of that stripe pattern was 1680 in an English painting (a banyan) and 1712 in a Spanish painting (as a mattress). Then there's a 1740s painting that shows the same style stripe being used on yet another mattress, but the central wide-stripe is even wider than what is traditionally used. Cheers, Adam C.

A- Habit.... B-Because they're not just cute, but tasty...just wish there was more meat on them... -Adam

See, the real problem is that you're classifying Oklahoma as the deep south....you've got about another 12 hours of driving eastward until you start getting into good moonshine country. I'll let others debate over which region produces the best shine (though these days Virginia gets the most publicity). As for making the stuff, well I won't go into any details, but if you're just looking for good general info then PBS did an awesome documentary on the process. They filmed an old shiner making the last batch in his lifetime and talking about the process....including comparing what he was doing with how his grand-daddy used to do it back in the day. I can't remember the name of it, but if you contacted PBS they could probably hook you up with a VHS. It's an enjoyable documentary whether you are into making shine or not. -Adam C.

Check out Valentine & Sons seed company....Dave Valentine who runs the shop has recreated appropriate 18thC Dunghill fowls through re-breeding and just had his 2nd generation hatch a couple weeks ago. Cheers, Adam C.

Umm...wouldn't the depth of water vary depending what tide it was/in between? It would be really hard figuring it out that way. Add to that that modern coastlines have changed drastically, sandbars have shifted, etc. etc. -Adam C.

One thing to keep in mind with the runaway ads is that terms like "long" and "short" are relative....and changed throughout the 18th century. So even if it says he wore his own hair long, what that length would be in say 1736 compared to 1770 may be two different animals. Will have to dig them up again, but there have been a number of good articles adressing this whole long versus short hair topic for the RevWar era crowd...and while they post-date the GAOP, they do raise some interesting points that should be considered when looking at hair during the earlier part of the century. -Adam C.

Korisios, I have never seen a reference to the Burgundian cross being used on cartridge boxes or even cast into plates....only used on the Flag. If you have found reference to the emblem being used in another context, I would be very interested in what you have come across. Cheers, Adam C.

Doesn't seem to be any evidence for it until the later decades of the 18th century among seamen. I'm with Fox, we'd be really interested if someone could provide a primary source of queues that early, but he hasn't found anything, nor have I. -Adam C.