"...a mere matter of marching."

Well, the War of 1812 Bicentennial officially begins today. June 18, 1812, marks the decleration of war by the U.S. I heard a 10 minute spot on NPR talking about how the history of the war is taught in schoosls  in both the U.S. and Canada. The U.S. teacher referenced 2 songs in his teaching of the subject: The National Anthem (The battle of Baltimore) by Francis Scott Key, and Johnny Horton's "The Battle of new Orleans".  The Canadian teacher referenced the important personalities, especially Tecumseh and Laura Secord. Interesting, both of these important Canadian personalities were born in the U.S

Anyhow, in honor of this day, here is a video from You Tube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsRK3DNoa_Q.

Apparently the key to American success at the battle was our superior choreagraphy.

Something New!

As you can see from my previous post, I really want/need an 1812 Shako. Last weekend at the reenactment of the 199th siege of Fort Meigs I got my shako! The plate is the 1812,  "RR" (Regiment of Riflemen) plate. the plume is 6" tall of cut feathers. The cocade is 4", plain center with a brass eagle, peculiar to the rifles. The plate and cockade were made by Dave Canan of Pickaway Plains traders of Circleville, OH. The  shako was made by Marty Land of Fort Meigs, Perrysburg, OH. I do not think that the brass ferrule at the base of the plume is accurate, and I plan to remove it. I am also going to pick up my braided shako cord soon. Here are some pics: