A LIVING HISTORY BLOG.

18TH CENTURY LIVING HISTORY IN AUSTRALIA.

Friday 30 June 2017

Wednesday 28 June 2017

17C American Women: Food Eaten by Early Virginia Colonists

17C American Women: Food Eaten by Early Virginia Colonists: The animal bones from food supplies found in a pit dating prior to 1610 reveal that the 104 men and boys who landed at Jamestown survived pr...




Tuesday 27 June 2017

18th Century Period Fire Lighting Methods. Ebook.

Authors, historical, living history, authenticity, flint and steel, burning glass, reading glass, fire-bow, Mountain men, woodsmen, woodsrunners, books, reading, experimental archaeology, plant tinder, fungi tinder, tinderbox, fire lighting, 18th century, 17th century, 19th century, survival, Indians, primitive, fur trade, French and Indian War, Revolution, historical trekking, long term wilderness living, colonial, Australia, North America, cooking, heating, Reenacting, Reenactment, 

Primitive Fire Lighting-Flint & Steel & Fire Bow.

Title: Primitive Fire Lighting
ID: 9784776
Category: History
Description: “Primitive Fire Lighting”, is a hands on guide to how to make fire with flint and steel and fire bow. This includes some history, a variety of methods, tinder plants identification, and tinder production, tips on fire place construction and use, how to prepare and lay a fire, wet weather fire lighting and magnifying glass fire lighting. The skills and methods in this book will be of interest to a wider range of readers including survivalists, historical re-enactors, bush-walkers and campers, historical–trekkers and even historical novel writers. Although the plant identifications list is mainly Australian it also has some information for England, Europe and America.
Publisher: Keith H. Burgess
Copyright Year: © 2010
Language: English
Country: Australia

Table of Contents
Illustrations. 4
FOREWORD. 6
FLINT AND STEEL FIRE LIGHTING. 8
PLANT FIBRE TINDERS: 11
TINDER PREPARATION. 15
Tinder preparation-charring: 15
OTHER FLINT and STEEL FIRE LIGHTING METHODS: 16
Emergency methods: 17
A WORD ABOUT BLACK POWDER: 17
THE CAMPFIRE FIREPLACE: 18
READING GLASS/MAGNIFYING GLASS FIRE LIGHTING 20
WET WEATHER FIRE LIGHTING. 21
A FINAL WORD OF CAUTION. 23
FIRE-BOW FIRE LIGHTING. 24
Introduction 24
FIRE-BOW FIRE LIGHTING. 25
A Brief Overview. 25
The Parts of the Fire-bow. 26
The Bow. 26
The Drill Piece. 27
The Fireboard. 29
The Tinder-board. 30
The Bearing Block. 31
The Bowstring. 32
Tinder. 32
Making Fire. 32
Making Cordage. 37
The Step for making Cordage. 38
AFTERWORD. 40
Fire steel suppliers. 45
About the author. 45

5.83" x 8.26", saddle-stitch binding, white interior paper (60# weight), black and white interior ink, white exterior paper (100# weight), full-colour exterior ink.
Cost: Book $11.00 US. Plus P&P. Download $7.00 US








Monday 26 June 2017

Monday 19 June 2017

Man finds 17th century grenade from Schiedam shipwreck at Dollar Cove Gunwalloe Cornwall


18th Century Jacobite Objects.

Backsword (detail) presented to Prince Charles Edward Stuart by James, 3rd Duke of Perth c. 1740. — Pictures courtesy of National Museums Scotland.
Movement of a pocket watch dug up in a field near Prestonpans, made by I Moncrief of London, late 17th-early 18th century.
Tabard or herald’s coat, Scottish, early 18th century.
Targe possibly used by Macdonald of Keppoch at Culloden.

Jacobite sites.

Thursday 15 June 2017

17C American Women: 17C British Woman by Wenceslaus Hollar (European-b...

17C American Women: 17C British Woman by Wenceslaus Hollar (European-b...: We have few depictions of women in the 17C British American colonies, but the prints by Wenceslaus Hollar (1607-1677) allow us to see the...

Museum of Appalachia Independence Day Celebration & Anvil Shoot


While most Americans celebrate Independence Day with fireworks, we mark the occasion by using gunpowder to launch a 200-pound anvil sky-high! Join us as we carry on this pioneer tradition. 
Anvil shoots are scheduled for:
10:00 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. 

Monday 12 June 2017

17C American Women: Sir Walter Raleigh & Roanoke Island, North Carolin...

17C American Women: Sir Walter Raleigh & Roanoke Island, North Carolin...: In 1618, Sir Walter Raleigh (1552-1618), English adventurer to the new world, writer, & favorite courtier of Queen Elizabeth I, is behea...

17C American Women: Sir Walter Raleigh & Roanoke Island, North Carolin...

17C American Women: Sir Walter Raleigh & Roanoke Island, North Carolin...: In 1618, Sir Walter Raleigh (1552-1618), English adventurer to the new world, writer, & favorite courtier of Queen Elizabeth I, is behea...

18th Century Brass Tinderbox with Burn Marks Inside.


This is claimed to be an original 18th century brass tinderbox. Note the burn marks on the inside of the lid, suggesting that this tinderbox was indeed used for snuffing out smouldering tinder. This indicates that this item was used for preparing tinder & for making fire from the tinder whilst it was still in the tinderbox.

Saturday 10 June 2017

Thursday 8 June 2017

Tuesday 6 June 2017

17C American Women: The Chesapeake Headright System Increases Numbers ...



17C American Women: The Chesapeake Headright System Increases Numbers ...: Both Virginia and Maryland employed the “headright” system to encourage the importation of the servant workers, that they so desperately nee...

Colonial Williamsburg plans tomahawk throwing range in Historic Area

Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has submitted a proposal to the city’s zoning board to construct a “tomahawk/axe throwing range” in the Historic Area at the old military encampment site at 311 East Nicholson Street.. (Courtesy Google Maps)

Australian Survival and Preppers..: Testing For Edible Plants.

Australian Survival and Preppers..: Testing For Edible Plants.: I will eat berries that are known to me, other flora I will test first before eating. Personally I would not bother testing for edibili...

Monday 5 June 2017

Friday 2 June 2017