Abby Epplett, Historian

I recently watched Portraits of Patriots presented by Damien Cregeau and hosted by Curt DiCamillo as part of the Art & Architecture webinar series by American Ancestors. Cregeau published his book by the same name in 2025 to celebrate a family of artists and officers during the American Revolution. Rather than a biography of a single famous figure, an in-depth study of a campaign or battle, or what Cregeau calls a “huge book” about the entire Revolution, he collected stories about six “second-tier” Patriots with a special focus on Colonel John Trumbull .

I recently attended a webinar featuring author Alex Wright talking about his book Empire of Ink: The Printers, Rogues, and Radicals who Invented the American Newspaper published by Basic Books, an imprint of Hachette Book Group , on June 16, 2026. The talk was hosted by History Camp with Lee Wright, no relation, serving as the moderator. The last History Camp talk I attended was on The Mythmakers by John Hendrix back in June 2025 , so I was overdue for another fast-paced, history-packed talk.

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. On Day 1, I spent the morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum , and the interior of the fort , followed by an early afternoon boat tour , and a visit to Avery-Copp House ( first part , second part ). After making several quick history stops around Groton , I finished the day at UCONN Avery Point . The second day began at Fort Trumbull in New London. In the first part of this four-part mini series , I learned the architectural history of the fort and explore its interior. In the second part, I explore the views around the fort and informational signage about the wars in which the fort served. Spectacular views about from the top of the fort after climbing the very cool, comparatively not too long winding stairs. To the far left is Gold Star Memorial Bridge , twi...

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. On Day 1, I spent the morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum , and the interior of the fort , followed by an early afternoon boat tour , and a visit to Avery-Copp House ( first part , second part ). After making several quick history stops around Groton , I finished the day at UCONN Avery Point . The second day began at Fort Trumbull in New London. In the first part of this four-part mini series, I learned the architectural history of the fort and explore its interior, including rooms decorated in specific historical periods and statues preparing to shoot a cannon. Fort Trumbull is now a state park, but it began in 1777 during the American Revolutionary War as a stone fort meant to shield the nearby harbor from enemy forces, especially the British Navy. Unfort...

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. I spent the morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum , and the interior of the fort , followed by an early afternoon boat tour , and a visit to Avery-Copp House ( first part , second part ). Throughout the day, I had quick history stops around Groton, CT, including the Independence Day Parade and nearby artwork, monuments, buildings, and other infrastructure.

Yesterday, as part of research for a historical fiction novel, I attended an hour-long talk hosted by the American Antiquarian Society and presented by writer-historian Adam Jortner on his book A Promised Land: Jewish Patriots, the American Revolution, and the Birth of Religious Freedom published by Oxford University Press in 2024.

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. After a morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum , and the interior of the fort , followed by an early afternoon boat tour , I was able to explore the beautiful yellow Victorian that I had spotted at several points during the trip so far. Avery-Copp House is an independently managed museum from a very different historical period than my other stops in Groton. Due to the high number of lovingly preserved artifacts in the house, I will be describing my tour in two parts. The first will describe the history of the house, and the second will describe its artifacts and decor.

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. After a morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum , and the interior of the fort , I took the Road to Revolution Boat Tour , a narrated cruise along the Thames River. On this tightly scripted tour, I learned more about the Fort Griswold, life in colonial Connecticut, and other places to visit in the area. I even got to see an Acela train flying past, the same transportation I took during my trip to Washington, D.C. last year.

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. For the next few weeks, I will cover the historical sites in that area, starting with two parts on Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park . In the first part , I covered the Groton Monument, the Monument House Museum, and other historical sites around the park. In the second part, I will cover the inside of Fort Griswold and Ebenezer Avery House, along with a more detailed story about the battle for which it is known.

For the 250 th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. For the next few weeks, I will cover the historical sites in that area, starting with two parts on Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park . In the first part, I will cover the Groton Monument, the Monument House Museum, and other historical sites around the park. In the second part, I will cover the inside of Fort Griswold and Ebenezer Avery House, along with a more detailed story about the battle for which it is known.

Back in late June 2026, I visited the Sutton Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places , part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor (BHC) in Massachusetts. So many historic buildings, monuments, and stories were packed into this highly walkable area that I am dividing my adventure into three parts. The first part focused on a church, town common, municipal building, and several houses. The second part focused on the little school house, cemetery, town pound, and a house. The third part includes a church, historic houses, a memorial, a blacksmith shop, and a nature area. Aiding in my trip were easy-to-follow walking tours created by BHC over a decade ago and by Sutton Historical Society as part of America250.

Back in late June 2026, I visited the Sutton Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places , part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor (BHC) in Massachusetts. So many historic buildings, monuments, and stories were packed into this highly walkable area that I am dividing my adventure into three parts. The first part focused on a church, town common, municipal building, and several houses. The second part will focus on the little school house, cemetery, town pound, and a house. Aiding in my trip were easy-to-follow walking tours created by BHC over a decade ago and by Sutton Historical Society as part of America250.

Back in late June 2026, I visited the Sutton Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places , part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor (BHC) in Massachusetts. So many historic buildings, monuments, and stories were packed into this highly walkable area that I am dividing my adventure into three parts. The first part will focus on a church, town common, municipal building, and several houses. Aiding in my trip were easy-to-follow walking tours created by BHC over a decade ago and by Sutton Historical Society as part of America250.

Last Saturday, July 25, I spent the day at Historic Deerfield (details coming in a few weeks!) and watched the play A Stake in the Ground: 1774 . Part of Plays in Place , a New England-based organization founded in 2018, the play was set on site in Deerfield, MA, allowing the audience to see events where they “really happened” over 250 years ago and remember the events leading up to the American Revolution.

Yesterday, as part of celebrating American250, I watched the historical fiction movie A Great Awakening produced by Sight & Sound Theatres  during a visit to Elm Draught House Cinema in Millbury, MA. Featuring talented actors, its signature musical style, and beautiful cinematography, the movie introduced the story of renowned traveling minister George Whitefield through his somewhat embellished relationship with Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. At two hours and nine minutes, the film captivates a receptive audience with a carefully constructed storyline, and yet it does not cover some key points in the lives of its subjects.

On Thursday, April 2 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., I watched the Parked at Home webinar hosted by Ranger Mark Mello of Blackstone River Valley National Historic Park and featuring Ranger Justin Holzer of Cowpens National Battlefield . This installment marked the very exciting first time the series explored a National Battlefield, as previous episodes featuring battles, like Saratoga in 2025, were classified as National Historical Parks. Ranger Mark jokingly referred to the most excited audience members as “park nerds” who follow the series religiously.

While I am far from a dummy when it comes to the history of the United States, I did inherit the third edition of U.S. History for Dummies written by Steve Wiegand. My book was up-to-date in 2014, while the latest version, the fifth edition, was published in March 2025 . The large softcover book has uncoated paper, allowing readers to take notes easily if desired, along with using intuitive design and plain language to make the topic approachable to a broad audience.

In a short scene of artistic license, I turn the Frodo & Sam Theme into an original song called, “The Sun Is Up”. This is the third time viewers will hear the song: first as a melody on the serinette , next as the tune whistled by Sam while returning home from the Green Dragon , and now as Sam opens up the curtains at Bag End in the morning. The scene also shows a bit more of what Sam does for work and what Frodo wears to bed.

In early September 2025, I visited Brimfield, MA for the annual Brimfield Flea Market, a tradition that began back in 1959. Before a day of walking among vendors to find vintage bargains, I made a few quick history stops around the center of town, called Brimfield Center Historic District and on the National Register of Historic Places since 2006 . Like many other small New England towns, its center included a picturesque white church, town hall, war memorials, and a historic school.

I had a history-packed, three-day trip to the Windsor, CT area back in August 2025, when I visited the Connecticut Trolley Museum , East Windsor Historical Society , Northwest Park , Vintage Radio & Communications Museum , and Windsor Historical Society . Between stops at amazing venues that exceeded expectation, I took a few quick history stops around Windsor, CT to see the usual small town New England sites, including historic buildings, memorials, a cemetery, and a classic New England church. This area, called Palisado Avenue Historic District , has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1987 .