As Norah King surveys her family land in Iowa in 1880, she is acutely aware that it is all she has left, and she will do everything in her power to save it–even if that means marrying a man she hardly knows. Days before her wedding, Norah discovers an injured man on her property. Her sense of duty compels her to take him in and nurse him back to health. Little does she realize just how much this act of kindness will complicate her life and threaten the future she’s planned.
This Pinch of the Past was first share in Episode 31: You can access it here. The idea of this Pinch of the Past developed in a rather curious way yesterday when I was wrapping up the final tests of the year for my second graders. One reading passage was a nonfiction piece on the origins of Peanut Butter. Did you know the inventor and developer of this great nutty paste was also responsible for a famous cereal brand? He developed the supplement not as a snack food but as a health product?
Our Pinch of the Past today features the story of the Castillo de San Marcos. In 1513, Ponce de Leon claimed the land he named Florida for Spain. It became an important holding to protect the Spanish ships bearing gold and silver from Central and South America back to Spain. As the French started encroaching on Florida, King Phillip II sent Pedro Menéndez in 1565 who founded the town of St. Augustine. (Read the full blogpost here)
As we are recording today, KyLee isn’t feeling well, so I hope you won’t mind joining me as I try not to nerd out too much about one of the coolest places in the United States – the Castillo de San Marcos.
History and Construction
Photo by Darcy Fornier
In 1513, Ponce de Leon claimed the land he named Florida for Spain. It became an important holding to protect the Spanish ships bearing gold and silver from Central and South America back to Spain. As the French started encroaching on Florida, King Phillip II sent Pedro Menéndez in 1565 who founded the town of St. Augustine.
St. Augustine is the oldest continually occupied European settlement in North America. It was defended by nine wooden forts which either rotted away, or were burned down by attacking armies.
Coquina stone wall (photo by Darcy Fornier)
Finally, in 1672 – over 100 years after the founding of St. Augustine – construction began on a stone fort. It was built of locally quarried coquina stone and took 23 years to complete. Coquina is a sedimentary rock made of tiny shells that is actually soft and porous, but hardens when it’s exposed to air. So it’s easy to cut and shape.
Possibly the coolest thing about this stone is it maintains some of its flexibility after it hardens. When the British assaulted the fort with cannon fire, the stone didn’t crack and crumble. The cannonballs simply sank into the stone. During the night, Spanish soldiers would dig out the lodged cannonballs and patch the walls with fresh coquina. Next morning, the fort appeared to have suffered no damage at all.
Libby has been given a powerful gift: to live one life in 1774 Colonial Williamsburg and the other in 1914 Gilded Age New York City. When she falls asleep in one life, she wakes up in the other without any time passing. On her twenty-first birthday, Libby must choose one path and forfeit the other–but how can she possibly decide when she has so much to lose?
If you ever watched National Treasure 2 you probably know that Great Britain was rumored to be sympathetic to the Confederate States of America. Canada did not exist as a federated nation at the time but was under British rule. Even though Canadians largely apposed slavery–with Canada serving as a terminus for the Underground Railroad–there was talk in London that the Union might move against the Crown and invade Canada.
Join us for a chat with Award-winning author, Ann H. Gabhart. Her first historical novel was published 1978 by Warner Books. Since then, she has published over thirty novels. Find out more at AnnHGabhart.com and discover her recent June release, When the Meadow Blooms.
In this gripping portrait of war and its aftermath from bestselling author Lynn Austin, a young woman searches for the truth her childhood friend won’t discuss after returning from World War II, revealing a story of courage, friendship, and faith.
Peggy Serrano couldn’t wait for her best friend to come home from the war. But the Jimmy Barnett who returns is much different from the Jimmy who left, changed so drastically by his experience as a medic in Europe that he can barely function. When he attempts the unthinkable, his parents check him into the VA hospital. Peggy determines to help the Barnetts unravel what might have happened to send their son over the edge. She starts by contacting Jimmy’s war buddies, trying to identify the mysterious woman in the photo they find in Jimmy’s belongings.
Interview: Angela K. Couch is the winner of story contests, a semi-finalist in ACFW’s Genesis Contest, and a finalist in the International Digital Awards. As a passionate believer in Christ, her faith permeates the stories she tells. Her martial arts training, experience with horses, and appreciation for good romance sneak in there, as well. When not writing, she stays fit (and warm) by chasing after five munchkins. Join Anglea as she chats with us about her latest WW2 novelA Rose for the Resistance a part of the Heroines of WWII by Barbour.
