Gene Procknow
@geneprocknow.bsky.social
Author and historian of the American Revolution. www.researchingtheamericanrevolution.com
Pinned
Gene Procknow
@geneprocknow.bsky.social
· Nov 12
Discover the highly relevant story of a British soldiers son who, as an American immigrant, defied the 1798 Alien & Sedition Acts.
A first glance at a controversial history debate. Why looking at the author’s footnotes first helps with assessing their arguments. researchingtheamericanrevolution.com/2025/10/29/h...
Helping Readers Assess Revolutionary Controversies
Ellis, Joseph J. The Great Contradiction: The Tragic Side of the American Founding. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2025. First Glance On the publication date of Revolutionary Era historian Joseph Ellis…
researchingtheamericanrevolution.com
October 29, 2025 at 6:26 PM
A first glance at a controversial history debate. Why looking at the author’s footnotes first helps with assessing their arguments. researchingtheamericanrevolution.com/2025/10/29/h...
Thought provoking presentation at the Society of the Cincinnati last evening.
October 2, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Thought provoking presentation at the Society of the Cincinnati last evening.
Horrific beyond words | www.thetimes.com/world/russia...
Unmasked: 13 Russian officers who led ‘war crime’ troops in Bucha
It was the bloodiest civilian massacre of the Ukraine war. Pictured for the first time, these officers commanded soldiers accused of rape, torture and execution
www.thetimes.com
September 27, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Horrific beyond words | www.thetimes.com/world/russia...
The UK fires its ambassador over the Epstein birthday book, while the US continues to support a similar participant as president. Power is more important to Americans than accountability.
www.npr.org/2025/09/11/n...
www.npr.org/2025/09/11/n...
U.K. fires its ambassador to Washington over emails to Jeffrey Epstein
In one email, Peter Mandelson wrote to Jeffrey Epstein, "I think the world of you and I feel hopeless and furious about what has happened." In another note, he called Epstein his "best pal."
www.npr.org
September 11, 2025 at 4:18 PM
The UK fires its ambassador over the Epstein birthday book, while the US continues to support a similar participant as president. Power is more important to Americans than accountability.
www.npr.org/2025/09/11/n...
www.npr.org/2025/09/11/n...
British politicians Edmund Burke and Charles James Fox were not perfect. Still, in the face of powerful adversaries, they demonstrated courage in their convictions—an admirable trait that offers timeless lessons. open.substack.com/pub/geneproc...
A Revolutionary End to a Partnership of Liberal Goals, Conservative Means
Book Review
open.substack.com
September 10, 2025 at 3:06 PM
British politicians Edmund Burke and Charles James Fox were not perfect. Still, in the face of powerful adversaries, they demonstrated courage in their convictions—an admirable trait that offers timeless lessons. open.substack.com/pub/geneproc...
Learn the difference between lessons of history and misusing history.
Clue to help spot the difference between serious historical writing and historical propaganda: Is the author a specialist historian or a non-specialist connected with think tanks & lobbying companies?
alanlester.co.uk/blog/accusat...
alanlester.co.uk/blog/accusat...
Accusation in the Mirror? Distinguishing Scholarship From Propaganda
Alan Lester The Truth About Empire, a collection of essays for a public readership by fourteen leading historians of British colonialism that I edited and introduced, was the subject of Alexander M…
alanlester.co.uk
September 10, 2025 at 9:46 AM
Learn the difference between lessons of history and misusing history.
In a speech to Parliament, Burke issued a timeless political rights warning, stating, “If you take away the Civil Execution of justice, you maim and mangle the whole constitutional Polity of England.” Read more about Burke's lessons of history: www.realclearhistory.com/articles/202...
Keep Troops Off the Beat: A Conservative’s Warning
As President Donald J. Trump sends National Guard troops to help reduce crime in the nation’s cities, lessons from Edmund Burke, a prominent conservative politician in Britain during the 18th-ce
www.realclearhistory.com
September 8, 2025 at 1:47 PM
In a speech to Parliament, Burke issued a timeless political rights warning, stating, “If you take away the Civil Execution of justice, you maim and mangle the whole constitutional Polity of England.” Read more about Burke's lessons of history: www.realclearhistory.com/articles/202...
Great advice. It’s hard to think of anything more helpful as the new year begins than reading history, spying out the moments of dignity and grace, seizing them and trying to pull them into the future. | We Need to Know History, Especially Now by @Peggynoonannyc
September 7, 2025 at 7:36 AM
Great advice. It’s hard to think of anything more helpful as the new year begins than reading history, spying out the moments of dignity and grace, seizing them and trying to pull them into the future. | We Need to Know History, Especially Now by @Peggynoonannyc
Historians should use AI as an assistant, but with extreme care. My recent experience with ChatGPT confused Samuel with John Adams. As Todd Frankel states in this article, AI can help with recalling dates but not interpret context, connections, or motivations. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Will historians really be replaced by AI? They remain skeptical.
A recent Microsoft study sent shockwaves with its rankings of threatened jobs. But some historians dismiss the idea, offering lessons for others.
www.washingtonpost.com
August 26, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Historians should use AI as an assistant, but with extreme care. My recent experience with ChatGPT confused Samuel with John Adams. As Todd Frankel states in this article, AI can help with recalling dates but not interpret context, connections, or motivations. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Well rounded leadership assessments, novel interpretations and myth busting make excellent histories. Here’s an example. allthingsliberty.com/2025/08/figh...
Fighting for Philadelphia - Journal of the American Revolution
BOOK REVIEW: Fighting for Philadelphia: Forts Mercer and Mifflin, the Battle of Whitemarsh, and the Road to Valley Forge, October 5-December 19, 1777 by Michael C. Harris (El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas B...
allthingsliberty.com
August 25, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Well rounded leadership assessments, novel interpretations and myth busting make excellent histories. Here’s an example. allthingsliberty.com/2025/08/figh...
Did you know that Washington chose a Blue and buff uniform, as it was the colors of the British Whig opposition to King George III? That, and more, in an insightful article on George Washington.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
Opinion | When America found its first great leader
George Washington’s first major test of the Revolutionary War came in August 1775.
www.washingtonpost.com
August 24, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Did you know that Washington chose a Blue and buff uniform, as it was the colors of the British Whig opposition to King George III? That, and more, in an insightful article on George Washington.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
“All men are created equal” except in DC where we are a
Second class citizens. Does the Declaration of Independence apply to all or do you prostitute your principles for politics. We demand equal rights!
Second class citizens. Does the Declaration of Independence apply to all or do you prostitute your principles for politics. We demand equal rights!
August 16, 2025 at 8:49 PM
“All men are created equal” except in DC where we are a
Second class citizens. Does the Declaration of Independence apply to all or do you prostitute your principles for politics. We demand equal rights!
Second class citizens. Does the Declaration of Independence apply to all or do you prostitute your principles for politics. We demand equal rights!
Another politician misreading their constituents!
2 AUGUST 1775, PERTH AMBOY, NEW JERSEY: Governor William Franklin writes to Lord Dartmouth that though there are no Americans “who would draw their Swords in Support of Taxation,” “Thousands” will fight for the Crown when they realize the Patriots want to “establish a Republic.”
August 2, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Another politician misreading their constituents!
Interested in loyalty and the Revolutionary War? A Trenton merchant's treason trial is riveting courtroom drama. Check out my book review! researchingtheamericanrevolution.com/2025/08/02/c...
Cards, Oaths, and Consequences: Unraveling Allegiances in the American Revolution
Book Review Davis, Michael A. Treason: The Trial of Abraham Hunt. Denver, CO: Independently Published, 2025. Typically, history books describe people of the Revolutionary Era as either Patriots or …
researchingtheamericanrevolution.com
August 2, 2025 at 7:48 PM
Interested in loyalty and the Revolutionary War? A Trenton merchant's treason trial is riveting courtroom drama. Check out my book review! researchingtheamericanrevolution.com/2025/08/02/c...
An essential component of a healthy democracy
July 31, 2025 at 12:09 AM
An essential component of a healthy democracy
I guess that is why it is so hard!
July 22, 2025 at 1:34 AM
I guess that is why it is so hard!
I'm still unsure what Williard Sterne Randall's new book adds to our understanding of John Hancock. In any event, readers will learn that there is more to Hancock than his famous signature!
www.wsj.com/arts-culture...
www.wsj.com/arts-culture...
‘John Hancock’ Review: A Signature Founding Father
A wealthy merchant with a penchant for luxury, the Founder with a famous signature contributed more to the revolution than his critics allowed.
www.wsj.com
July 20, 2025 at 5:28 PM
I'm still unsure what Williard Sterne Randall's new book adds to our understanding of John Hancock. In any event, readers will learn that there is more to Hancock than his famous signature!
www.wsj.com/arts-culture...
www.wsj.com/arts-culture...
July 19, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Courage comes in many forms! Found: A Lost George Washington Battlefield www.nytimes.com/2025/07/15/a...
Found: A Lost George Washington Battlefield
www.nytimes.com
July 15, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Courage comes in many forms! Found: A Lost George Washington Battlefield www.nytimes.com/2025/07/15/a...
The History Stacks: Eugene Procknow, the American Revolution, and the Founding of Our Nation
www.buzzsprout.com/2424694/epis...
www.buzzsprout.com/2424694/epis...
The History Stacks: Eugene Procknow, the American Revolution, and the Founding of Our Nation - BookSpeak Network
A foremost authority on the American Revolution, Eugene Procknow is the author of a series of scholarly articles for the peer-reviewed Journal of the American Revolution. Speaking with Sunbury Pr...
www.buzzsprout.com
July 15, 2025 at 12:45 PM
The History Stacks: Eugene Procknow, the American Revolution, and the Founding of Our Nation
www.buzzsprout.com/2424694/epis...
www.buzzsprout.com/2424694/epis...
Kurt Russell's amazing story of his 8th grandfather, who gave his life to defend his house and family during the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775.
www.militarytimes.com/veterans/mil...
www.militarytimes.com/veterans/mil...
Veteran Kurt Russell discovers his surprising Revolutionary War ties
On July Fourth, actor Kurt Russell visited a small museum in Massachusetts dedicated to his ancestor, who was killed by British soldiers 250 years ago.
www.militarytimes.com
July 8, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Kurt Russell's amazing story of his 8th grandfather, who gave his life to defend his house and family during the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775.
www.militarytimes.com/veterans/mil...
www.militarytimes.com/veterans/mil...
I recommend approaching George Selgin's False Dawn with an open, inquisitive mind.
open.substack.com/pub/geneproc...
open.substack.com/pub/geneproc...
Startling New Insights into Ending the Great Depression
Book Review
open.substack.com
July 2, 2025 at 5:16 PM
I recommend approaching George Selgin's False Dawn with an open, inquisitive mind.
open.substack.com/pub/geneproc...
open.substack.com/pub/geneproc...
From John Maynard Keynes to FDR in 1938 , “It is a mistake to think they (business leaders) are more immoral than politicians.”
June 29, 2025 at 8:18 PM
From John Maynard Keynes to FDR in 1938 , “It is a mistake to think they (business leaders) are more immoral than politicians.”