When we last left our young hero, he was holding off bandits at gunpoint in the Sierra Gold Country. A few years have passed, and he’s regressed from wheel guns to flintlocks… -NF
In my youth I was very much interested in the 18th Century, specifically American Colonial history, but I also found some interest in European history as well. Ok, Military History, and some Political History, but none of that philosophical stuff like Voltaire and his contemporaries. I guess I’m more of a “thinking-about action” guy than a “thinking-about-why” guy. My favorite book was “Northwest Passage” by Kenneth Roberts, which I highly recommend for any young fellow to read: lots of action, adventure, love and pretty decent history all rolled into one. This helped set me on my way to studying deeper into such things as the various colonial wars between Britain and France, and the exploration of the North American continent. Not that I wasn’t already interested, but the book helped drive it home.
I was also somewhat interested in my family history, which, with a name like ‘Gordon,’ led me to dig a bit into the history of various Highland revolts (a deep and fascinating subject). Turns out most of my heritage is Border Scots and English rather than Highland, but that’s okay, since the Borderers were even more unruly than the Highlanders, they were just expelled by the English Crown earlier — to the American Frontier for the most part — so didn’t get quite the same press as the Highlanders. Still, interesting stuff.
My dear mother was very supportive of my interestes, and even provided me with a Gordon Plaid kilt and a Scots Bonnet to run around in...which I certainly did. In fact much of my summer as a 12-year-old was spent in said kilt (though I didn’t go fully “native” if you know what I mean). By my sixteenth year I had also managed to acquire the funds to purchase a rather poor quality reproduction of a British flintlock Light Dragoon pistol, an equally poor quality reproduction of a French Charleville musket, and a kit to build an American (a.k.a. “Kentucky”) Long Rifle (which I did in fact build). I was set! Well, except for a few minor things such as a Claymore broadsword and an all-brass Highland pistol, but those came later.
While I was busy assembling this armory, my dear mother also made me a shirt on a so-called “authentic” pattern, and also brought me a cotton-polyester “colonial” shirt from a Williamsburg visit during one of her trips back East to visit family. (BTW I’m a California boy so anything east of Nevada is “Back East” to me.) I had also managed to get some leather from good old Tandy Leather and made myself a set of “buckskins” (of cowhide, of course) so I was pretty well set to go exploring or revolting, whichever was happening at the time.
I had as well managed to get involved in the actual shooting of black powder firearms, and was regularly attending the big twice-yearly “Rendezvous & Black Powder Shoot” at Mountain Ranch, California, which was only about an hour’s drive away from me, so that was definitely helping to scratch that itch of “doing history” with like minded individuals. I was pretty much always “The Kid”, but I was smart enough to not talk too much and be polite, so I was accepted by the “Old Guys” (who were mostly in their 20’s) and granted permission to hang out with them. It was a heady time indeed!
My Brother Wayne was in college at the time, being five years my senior, and had a friend who was very into photography and asked if I would be interested in posing for some photos in my various outfits. I guess I’m a bit of a ham at heart, so I happily agreed to the idea. These photos are the result of our collaboration. Obviously one is of me as a Highland Rebel, awaiting my turn to discharge my weapons in the general direction of the British Army at Culloden (never mind the pistol and musket represent models from the American Revolution some 30 years later), and the other of me ready to either go on an exploration of the Kentucky wilderness or snipe Loyalists at King’s Mountain...I would have been happy at the time to engage in any of these activities, needless to say.
So there you have it, another snippet of my journey through history, trying vainly to live it but at least getting a taste of it along the way.
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Loved reading this and certainly see that you and Nancy were made for each other! 🤩
A Boy Against The Boxers is an excellent read. I also got into black powder before smokeless, but with no costumes.