Rittenhouse Farm

Rittenhouse Farm Marker

Germantown Pike (former US 422) 6 miles SE of Collegeville, PA

 

David Rittenhouse was a famous American astronomer, patriot, inventor, clockmaker, mathematician, surveyor, scientific instrument craftsman and public official. Rittenhouse served as the first director of the United States Mint. He lived in and around Philadelphia from 1732-1796. From his farm, Rittenhouse computed and observed the rotations of the planet Venus in 1769.

 

There are numerous places and things named after David Rittenhouse including the lunar Rittenhouse Crater, Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia and the David Rittenhouse Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

Below is a link to the Explore PA History website with more information on the David Rittenhouse Farm marker, as well as some photos I took during a recent visit:

 

http://explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=1-A-27D

 

MW



  

Upcoming Event - Darren Maciunski Interview

The Matt Ward History Experience will interview Darren "Checkmate" Maciunski on Saturday, November 21, 2015. This interview will be part of the third episode of the blog's monthly podcast. Darren is a former professional boxer, who now trains fighters at his gym, Checkmates Boxing Center, in Toms River, NJ. If you have any questions that you would like answered by Darren, please post them in the comments of this blog entry, send them to me via Twitter @RevWarBuff23 or via Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/mwhistoryexperience

For more information on Darren Maciunski, please visit the following websites:

Darren Maciunski's BoxRec Page - http://boxrec.com/boxer/7051

Checkmates Boxing Center Official Website - http://www.personalboxingtraining.com/

Checkmates Boxing and MMA Striking Skills Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/checkmatesboxingcenter/

MW

Recap - 2015 New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame 46th Annual Dinner and Induction Ceremony

The 46th Annual New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame Dinner and Induction Ceremony was an outstanding event! The energy in the crowd was great, and it was exciting to see so many familiar faces from New Jersey boxing history on the stage and in the audience. Henry Hascup, the president and historian of the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame, served as the MC/announcer for the event. Henry was also the main man behind the scenes who made this event possible. Thank you Henry!

For more information on the 2015 New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame awardees and inductees, please visit:

http://www.njboxinghof.org/

https://www.facebook.com/New-Jersey-Boxing-Hall-of-Fame-101629663238690/?fref=ts&ref=br_tf

http://www.mwhistoryexperience.com/2015/11/the-matt-ward-history-experience.html

http://www.mwhistoryexperience.com/2015/09/2015-new-jersey-boxing-hall-of-fame.html

Below are a few of my favorite photos from the event. As you can see, Oscar De La Hoya and Micky Ward were both engaging with guests and actively involved in the ceremony:

MW

Happy Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day to my brothers and sisters in arms, both past and present!

MW

The Matt Ward History Experience Podcast - Episode #2

Check out the second edition of The Matt Ward History Experience Podcast!

SoundCloud:  https://soundcloud.com/matt-ward-427598454/the-matt-ward-history-experience-podcast-episode-2

iTunes:  https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/matt-ward-history-experience/id1178237076

The following segments and topics are covered in Episode #2:

1. Let's Talk History - Interview with New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame president and historian Henry Hascup
2. Upcoming Events  

The New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Lodi, New Jersey. Below is a link the official New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame Official website:

http://www.njboxinghof.org/

First and foremost I would like to thank Henry Hascup for sitting down at the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame to talk history with me. On Thursday evening, November 12, 2015, the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame will hold its 46th Annual Dinner and Induction Ceremonies at the beautiful Venetian, located at 546 River Drive, Garfield, New Jersey starting at 7:00p.m. Tickets are priced at ONLY $85.00 per person. This year's induction class consists of fourteen of Boxing’s finest to include Micky Ward, Donald Trump, Curtis Parker, John Brown and George Hill.

This episode would not have been possible if it had not been for the technical support of my good friend Peter Lloyd of One Stone Recording. Pete mixed and cleaned up the original recordings into the great episode that you can stream above.

Last but certainly not least, I would like to thank all of my readers and listeners - Especially those who submitted questions for this month's segment of Let's Talk History.

This episode is brought to you by my friends in the band Dystrophy. Check out Dystrophy's new album "Wretched Host". "Wretched Host" is available for purchase at the following link:

http://dystrophyband.com/

Episode Notes:  In our interview, Henry stated that Adrian Bailey founded the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame with the assistance of Scoop Gallello. Henry emailed me after our interview to let me know that Babe Orlando was the individual who helped Adrian Bailey in starting up the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame.

MW



Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from your friends at the Matt Ward History Experience!

Below are two links with more information on the history of Halloween:

http://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-Halloween

http://www.livescience.com/40596-history-of-halloween.html

MW

Fort McDowell

Fort McDowell Ruins

Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation (Behind the Recreation Center)

17661 E Yavapai Rd

Fort McDowell, AZ 85264

Fort McDowell Exhibit at the River of Time Museum

12901 N La Montana Dr

Fountain Hills, AZ 85268

Fort McDowell Exhibit at the Arizona Historical Society Museum at Papago Park 

1300 N College Ave

Tempe, AZ 85281 

Camp Verde was established on the Verde River in Arizona in 1865 by California Volunteer Soldiers. The camp was later designated as a fort in 1879. In 1879, the post was also renamed Fort McDowell, after the American Civil War General Irvin McDowell. The fort was established to protect settlers and travelers from Apaches who lived in the nearby Gila and Salt River Valleys. The fort was an embarkation point for many of the expeditions against the Apache, including General George Crook's Tonto Basin campaign in the early 1870's. The fort was abandoned in 1890. In 1891, the land was transferred to the Department of the Interior and became the Yavapai Indian Agency.

The history of the U.S. Army installation Fort McDowell can be seen in three locations in the Phoenix metropolitan area in Arizona. Ruins of the frontier post still exist on the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, while two museums in the area have outstanding exhibits on the fort. If you plan on going to see the ruins I suggest you do sooner than later. I lived in Arizona from 2003-2014, and can safely state that these ruins have been steadily deteriorating over the years. The River of Time Museum in Fountain Hills has some outstanding artifacts on display, as well as photos and a model of the fort. The Arizona Historical Society provides visitors with firsthand accounts of Soldiers and civilians who lived on the fort.

Below are two links to sites that provide more information on the history of the fort. I also included several photos I took of the fort ruins and from the two museum exhibits on Fort McDowell:

http://www.fortwiki.com/Fort_McDowell_(2)

http://www.legendsofamerica.com/az-fortmcdowell.html

MW

Fort McDowell Ruins

 River of Time Museum

Arizona Historical Society Museum