Music was a military necessity in the 1700s. That’s how commanders relayed orders over the din of battle.
Randy Walker
Randy Walker is a musician and freelance writer in Roanoke. He received a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was formerly a staff writer on (as it was then called) the Roanoke Times & World-News. He can be reached at randywalker7983@gmail.com.
Posted inCardinal News 250
16-year-old Susanna Bolling, Revolutionary heroine: fact or myth?
Did a 16-year-old Hopewell girl save Lafayette in 1781? If so, her trail has gone cold.
Posted inCardinal News 250
250 years ago, this forgotten founder won the ‘first battle of the American Revolution’
Andrew Lewis helped lead Virginians to victory over the Shawnee in 1774 and later chased the royal governor out of Virginia but felt he wasn’t given his proper due.
Posted inCardinal News 250
From villain to hero? Norfolk-born writer reassesses Lord Dunmore, Virginia’s last Colonial governor
Long reviled, Dunmore is now getting a second look by historians for his role in freeing some Virginia slaves.
Posted inCardinal News 250
‘The effect of the day thro’ the whole colony was like a shock of electricity’
This month marks the 250th anniversary of when the House of Burgesses, in defiance of the royal governor, declared a “Day of Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer.”
Posted inCulture
Saving ‘iconic’ farm buildings in Craig County
The Frists have restored what Tracy Frist says is “a great piece of American history.”
Posted inCardinal News 250
At Chiswell’s mines, a mixed crew of unwilling hands dug lead ore for patriot victory
Enslaved men and white criminals worked side by side at the lead mines in Wythe County to produce ammunition.
Posted inCardinal News 250
One enslaved naval officer won his freedom after fighting in the ‘War for Independence’
Enslaved Virginians served in the state’s tiny navy. Many won their freedom.
Posted inCardinal News 250
‘A time to pray and a time to fight’
One of the most stirring speeches of the revolution was given in Woodstock, and might have been delivered in German. That is, if it happened at all.
Posted inCardinal News 250
Proclamation Line of 1763 became a focus of anti-British resentment in Virginia
After the French and Indian War, King George III drew a line along the Appalachians and forbade settlement west of that. This became one of the sparks that lit the fuse for American independence.
