Category: Articles and Stories

By Joe Craig, Park Ranger American historians have proven to be harsh judges of the British during the War for Independence. Certainly such animosity can be understood by writers in the first generation of an independent United States. The wounds of that long conflict were quite fresh in mind, and the US was rather insecure

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By Joe Craig, Park Ranger It has been noted that starting wars is relatively easy, but getting the ensuing mayhem to cease can be extremely difficult. This is especially so if the party who is trying to get the shooting halted is considered the aggressor, like General John Burgoyne. Of course, the British hadn’t come

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By Joe Craig, Park Ranger On January 29, 2003, World War II veteran and cartoonist Bill Mauldin was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Mauldin’s cartoons championed the men with eyes that were “just too old for those young bodies” who were called upon to fight a savage war amid appalling squalor and (too often) neglect.

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By Joe Craig, Park Ranger Check any news outlet, and you’ll be assaulted by the ongoing tragedies of the Middle East.  Cruel civil wars, sectarian genocide, and ethnic cleansing have forced millions to flee.  Many have sought refuge in Europe, and some seek entrance to the United States.  The admission of even a small number

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By Joe Craig If an historian (no matter how serious an historian) tells you that he is immune to the siren call of “What If?” aspect of history, don’t you believe him.  “What if?” is something that seems ingrained into the human mind, whether it’s about missed opportunities, relationships gone sour, or why didn’t he

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By Joe Craig, Park Ranger People compress the past. To some of our visitors, the French and Indian War (1754-1763) blurs with the War for Independence and vice versa. Maybe it’s the idea that the participants of both conflicts used muskets and wore tricorns and breeches. Perhaps it’s the use and re-use of some of the

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By Joe Craig, Park Ranger ‘Shooting became just like drinking a glass of water’ Ishmael Beah, In his book A Long Way Gone, former child soldier, Ishmael Beah unblinkingly told of the horrors of the civil war Sierra Leone (1991-2002).  Kidnapped and forced into becoming a soldier by one of the splinter groups, Beah participated in

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It is regrettable, but probably understandable that the battles of Saratoga are always under the shadow of Gettysburg.  Besides comparisons of their historic importance, even our exhibits come up for comparison to the “Budweiser of American History”.  Many visitors comment how the fibre optic map at Saratoga’s visitor center is “just like the one at

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