For most of 2011, I’ve been doing fieldwork to document the public history of Havre de Grace around the time the British burned the town in May 1813.
To aid in understanding this era, I just completed a study of the population and demographic characteristics of the community in the first third of the 19th century. This work is part of the development of the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail.
The other public historian on this initiative, Chris George, is researching the military history while I design and direct the research that focuses on the community’s past.
It’s an exciting project, as I work with a great group of volunteers, local historians, and community subject matter experts to piece together the forgotten parts of the town’s past. This study has involved lots of archival research on life in Havre de Grace just before, during, and after the British attack of 1813.