250 Years Ago: Exploring Colonial America Through History and Story
America Is Turning 250
In 2026, America celebrates a remarkable milestone: 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
That anniversary got me thinking.
My novels To Condemn a Witch and To Rescue a Witch take place just a few decades before the American Revolution. While my characters couldn’t have imagined the nation America would become, they lived through a fascinating period that helped shape it.
Colonial Virginia was a place of opportunity and brutality, superstition and budding science, wealth, poverty and slavery. Travel was dangerous. News traveled slowly. Disease spread quickly. Cultures collided and created new customs.
In some ways, America in the 1700s was completely different from ours.
In other ways, it wasn’t so different at all.
A Year of Colonial History
To celebrate America’s 250th birthday, I’ll be sharing a series of posts across my blog, newsletter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and other social media channels exploring the people, places, customs, and events that shaped colonial America, based on the research I did for my books.
Beyond reading history books, I traveled to Colonial Williamsburg, multiple plantations, Yorktown, and Jamestown. I took ghost tours, climbed on 18th century ships, visited museums, watched documentaries, and waded into the York River (while videotaping) so I could understand what it would feel like for my characters to take the same steps over 200 years ago.
Some topics will be serious.
Some will be strange.
And some will sound like they belong in a fantasy novel, even though they’re completely true.
We’ll explore questions such as:
- What did people eat in colonial Virginia?
- Why did Britain send convicts to America?
- What was it really like to cross the Atlantic in 1739?
- How did colonial women spend their days?
- What punishments awaited criminals?
- What did soldiers wear before the Revolutionary War?
- Why did people believe in witches, ghosts, and curses?
- What were witch bottles, and did they actually work?
- What was Benjamin Franklin doing in the infamous Hellfire Caves?
- How did Scottish immigrants help shape colonial America?
- What was life like for Black people (whether free or enslaved)?
- How did colonial children spend their days?
And yes, we’ll even discuss why British Redcoats wore red uniforms—and what beetles had to do with it.
Where History Meets Fiction
One of my favorite parts of writing historical fiction is discovering the real stories behind the fiction.
Many of the locations, customs, beliefs, and historical events in To Condemn a Witch and To Rescue a Witch were inspired by actual history.
The Hellfire Caves? Real.
Convict transportation to Virginia? Real.
Scottish immigrants building new lives in the colonies? Real.
Belief in curses, spirits, and witchcraft? Very real.
As we explore colonial America together, I’ll occasionally share how these historical details found their way into my novels and the research that inspired particular scenes and characters.
My hope is that you’ll come away with a deeper appreciation not only for the stories, but for the remarkable people who lived during this era.
What Would You Like to Learn About?
That’s where you come in.
As I plan this series, I’d love to hear which topics interest you most.
Are you fascinated by:
- Colonial food and recipes?
- Ships and ocean voyages?
- Fashion and beauty?
- Military history?
- Witchcraft and folklore?
- Famous figures like Benjamin Franklin and George Washington?
- Everyday life in colonial Virginia?
- Scottish immigration and culture?
Or is there another colonial topic you’ve always wondered about?
Leave a comment below. Your suggestion might become a future post.
After all, history is far more fun when we explore it together.
Here’s to celebrating 250 years of American history—one fascinating story at a time.
Lisa 😉
P.S.- Here are my historical fiction/ historical fantasy books (available in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle Unlimited on Amazon). ***I’m working on the audiobooks now and they should be released later this year***
One thought on “250 Years Ago: Exploring Colonial America Through History and Story”