The remnants of the home that was used by the Washington family during George Washington's boyhood have been discovered at Ferry Farm. This find is viewed as an important link in the fairly tight geographical spread of Washington's life.
Fine rides in the area are here.

As I do here occasionally, I am reviewing a product, area or service associated with motorcycle touring. In the process of traveling around New Hampshire and reading and thinking about the Revolutionary War in Indian Country, I had the opportunity to stay in the beautiful Sunapee Harbor area. This really is an area of outstanding beauty and history.

Sunapee Harbor is near the town of Sunapee, New Hampshire on the southern shore of Lake Sunapee. The area saw Loyalists, Patriots and Indians operate here in the Revolutionary War. The favoured son seems to be John Stark of Bennington fame, but many road-side historical markers mention the Loyalist Robert Rogers and his Rangers. The Indians had a particularly hard time in having to choose between Rebels and Redcoats when all most of the Indians wanted was to be left alone. There were Indians at Dartmouth College (30 miles from Sunapee) who had Patriot leanings, but also many of the Seven Nations' tribes (lower Canada) who sided with the British..... and many caught in between. Anyway, the Revolutionary War history of the area is fascinating.

The motorcycle touring is also superb in the summer months. Great backroads for twisties and forest trails for the more aggressive dualies are mixed with a good interstate system that allows you to cover big distance quickly when you need too. My favourite roads were around Kearsarge mountain. Additionally, the long run from Littleton to Hanover along highway 10 is excellent. Norwegian red barns along lush green rolling hills of western New Hampshire are an intoxicating mix for lazy riding and thinking. For you riders that like the big bike festivals, it doesn't get much bigger than nearby Laconia.

Finally, there seems to be many great many B&Bs, hotels and Guest houses in the area. Unfortunately, I got myself and friends locked into a week at one of the worst of them... for familes anyway. The Sunapee Harbor Cottages promote themselves as a family friendly establishment, but as best as I can tell that is only if your children like to sit quietly on the front porch and not make any noise. We had several run-ins with the Manager when our kids had committed the travesties of letting a screen door slam, allowing their ball to roll into the flowers and exploring the woods behind the cottages. The Manager had the really annoying habit of hanging her head out of her door and yelling at our kids (and insulting us) from 20 yards away. As the Manager felt our kids were completely out of control, because they lit a sparkler (2 July) and assembled a kite on the lawn, she decided to call the Sunapee Police over to witness her as she advised one of the couples in our group of all of our infractions. Finally, a small point for many, but a big one for some of us. Although promising wi-fi broadband, I was able to access Sunapee Harbor Cottages exactly 1 time in a week long stay. The Manager promised to get it fixed at first, but by the end, she took great glee in telling us she would get it working after we left just to spite us.

We really did have a great time in Sunapee Harbor, except for the lodging, so don't let that put you off. If you are a middle aged couple with no kids ( but don't mind lots of rules and a 15 minute haranguing session at the beginning of your stay ), then Sunapee Harbor Cottages might be for you ( the owner did not post my rather downbeat assessment of her establishment in her list of glowing reviews ). However, if you are a family with kids who like to do kid things, go to Sunapee Harbor Cottages at the peril of having the Police called for the crime of letting some burger grease drip from the grill onto the deck.

Get on the bike and enjoy rural New Hampshire in the summer. 4 Stars (the only thing that keeps the trip from getting the coveted Battlefield Biker 5 Stars is the wretched Sunapee Harbor Cottages)

UPDATE - Looks like I'm not the only one who feels this way about Sunapee Harbor Cottages. A further look finds another ...... and another ..... and another. Wow, here's a site that has multiple bad reviews. This list of bad experiences is pretty hard to ignore. By all means, go to Sunapee Harbor, but avoid the Sunapee Harbor Cottages.

The Fayetteville Observer has a good article on the swamps of Robeson County, North Carolina (County seat, Lumberton. Its reminder that "Sherman's March to the Sea" was not easy on Sherman's troops, either.

Tim Abbott at Walking the Berkshires has a good post on the history of the Iroquois Indians and the American Revolution as part of the Military History Carnival.

I rode through this area in May 2007 and the area is not only historically intriguing, but one of the best riding areas I've experienced east of the Mississippi. I wrote one detailed ride on the subject around the Fort Bull area and have an Oriskany ride in the works. I really like the Don Troiani painting of the Oriskany battle that Tim posts.

On January 30 1712, a force under South Carolinian Colonel John Barnwell, attacked the Tuscorora Indian village cum fort of Narhantes, near New Bern, North Carolina. Barnwell had been sent by the South Carolina authorities in response to a call for help from North Carolinian settlers after they had been attacked by the southern part of the Tuscarora Indians, under the leadership of Chief Hancock.

Background

The Tuscarora War is one of the saddest of the Indian wars, both because there were truly good relations between Indians and whites for a long time before the fighting started and because it was one the first such problems in the southern colonies. The Tuscarora, along with smaller tribes of Coree, Matchapunga, Pamlico, Bear River and Neusioc had lived and hunted in the area since before the settlers arrived. Some of the smaller tribes had even moved inland already due to the earlier expansion of the European settlers. The settlers, mainly English, Swiss and German, had been spreading out from their Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds landing areas for 50 years. They were becoming more prosperous, but also more greedy for land. Their sprawl was tolerated at first, but eventually it began to encroach on Tuscarora hunting grounds along the Neuse, Pamlico, Trent and Roanoke Riviers. What was to become the all too familiar complaints in later Indian wars caused the Tuscarora to attack. They felt that they had been taken by duplicitous European traders, had their people enslaved by the same and were increasingly being encroached upon by the European settlers. The northern part of the Tuscaroras, led by Chief Tom Blunt, had felt better treated, so had sided, albeit incompletely, with the settlers. The southern tribes, led by Chief Hancock had decided that terrorising the Europeans by force was the only way to regain their way of life.

On September 22, 1711, the Tuscarora struck the European settlers ferociously in multiple places in between the Neuses and Pamlico Rivers. The settlers were in a bad way already due to a armed dispute between rival leaders of the settlers. They had not prepared defenses and took heavy losses in lives and livelihoods. The Tuscarorans killed, tortured, burned and pillaged their way through the area. The settlers had no forts, but began to gather in some of the bigger plantations homes to fight off the Tuscarora. The North Carolina settler Deputy Governor, Edward Hyde, sent out pleas for help to Virginia and South Carolina. Colonel Barnwell, with a force of a few whites and several hundred Indians (mainly Yamasee, but also Cape Fear, Catawba, Muskhogean, Saraw, Wateree and Wynyaw) was South Carolina's answer.

The Battle of Narhantes Fort 30 January 1712

Barnwell made his way north from South Carolina and arrived in the Neuses River area in late January 1712. Barnwell did not find the promised North Carolina help, but decided to attack the nearby Narhantes anyway. He struck to find the village largely open, but with several small, non-supporting fortifications. There was some fierce opposition including from the women of the village, but Barnwell had taken the village within a few hours. Those not killed were taken prisoner. Barnwell had recruited plenty of his Indian allies with the promise of scalps and plunder, so it was unsurprising to see some of those captured were taken by Barnwell's Indians and they had quietly slipped away with their booty. Barnwell stayed in the area for several days, eventually destroying Narhantes totally.

Barnwell would spend the remainder of the winter stomping through other Tuscaroran villages as he worked the area. However, Barnwell met his match in ferociousness with Chief Hancock, who eventually convinced Barnwell to treat by threatening to kill all of the previously captured settlers, if Barnwell continued his attacks. In the Spring, a comprehensive, but short-lived peace was agreed, but as with so many of these, the terms were not to the long term liking of either party, so they collapsed. This was not the first, nor the last of these battles or treaties, but it was defintely the most savage in this area and it was to poison relations thereafter.

The Tuscaroras moved north a few year later to join their Iroquoian cousins in the New York area. Ironically, but not unpredictably, the Yamasee got the same treatment soon thereefter and had to move south into Florida to avoid being wiped out.

Motorcycle Ride

Try this run from Windsor through eastern North Carolina's multiple National Wildlife Refuges (Roanoke, East Dismal Swamp, Pocosin Lakes, Alligator River, Mattamuskeet and Swanquarter) to Roanoke Island and down to New Bern to get a good feel for this area that was developing quickly in the early 1700s. The area is great for wildlife, but be careful on a bike, I've had various critters run out in front of me on these roads, including black bears.

Book Recommendation: Indian Wars from AbeBooks.com or Amazon.com

Map Recommendation: North Carolina Atlas and Gazetteer 2006 from AbeBooks.com or Amazon.com