On Thursday, February 25, 2016, the Historical Society of Plainfield hosted an open discussion with Ohio author, Ernie Wallace about the Early Scotch Plains and Plainfield Wagon Train Journey to settle the western frontier.
In May 1788, piloted by Captain Benjamin Stites Jr. of Scotch Plains, a wagon train of adventurous pioneers bid adieu to the West Fields of New Jersey and set out on a leap of faith for the unknown lands of the western frontier. The Stites, Drakes, Symmes, Denmans, Shotwells, Millses, and other men, women, and children who were bound together by religion and family, were swept west on the wave of patriotism and constitutional fervor that broke upon America with the end of the Revolution and the Great Debate over the new Constitution.
Among those pioneers were the three sons of Nathaniel Drake: Cornelius, Abraham, and Isaac. Isaac Drake’s two-and-half year old son, Daniel Drake, traveled with the party for the sixty-four days of the journey. Daniel Drake later became a pioneering physician and prolific writer in Cincinnati.
Many years ago on the west side of Cincinnati, Ernie Wallace, BA, MBA (Xavier University), caught his school bus every day on Boudinot Ave. It meant nothing to him then. While stationed near Colonial Williamsburg during a tour in the Navy, he gained a love of Revolutionary-era history. He minored in it in college, and has cultivated it as a hobby ever since. Ernie Wallace says: “Today, learning the stories behind the names on the roadsides and the towns is endlessly fascinating. The story of the settlement of Cincinnati is a story that deserves to be told in a way that is both enjoyable and edifying to the reader, in historical fiction. It is the format in which these unsung heroes, the tough, resourceful salt of the earth families seeking deliverance unto their own Garden of Eden, can really shine and helping history come alive.”
Ernie Wallace came east to learn more about our history for his upcoming novel chronicling settlement of Cincinnati, Ohio, and share new perspectives on this little party that has contributed so much to the American story. The Historical Society of Plainfield and Ernie Wallace are exchanging information about the people from the Plainfield area who settled the western frontier. The Historical Society looks forward to the completion of the story and the publication of Ernie’s book, and welcoming Ernie back for a book signing in the future.
In May 1788, piloted by Captain Benjamin Stites Jr. of Scotch Plains, a wagon train of adventurous pioneers bid adieu to the West Fields of New Jersey and set out on a leap of faith for the unknown lands of the western frontier. The Stites, Drakes, Symmes, Denmans, Shotwells, Millses, and other men, women, and children who were bound together by religion and family, were swept west on the wave of patriotism and constitutional fervor that broke upon America with the end of the Revolution and the Great Debate over the new Constitution.
Among those pioneers were the three sons of Nathaniel Drake: Cornelius, Abraham, and Isaac. Isaac Drake’s two-and-half year old son, Daniel Drake, traveled with the party for the sixty-four days of the journey. Daniel Drake later became a pioneering physician and prolific writer in Cincinnati.
Many years ago on the west side of Cincinnati, Ernie Wallace, BA, MBA (Xavier University), caught his school bus every day on Boudinot Ave. It meant nothing to him then. While stationed near Colonial Williamsburg during a tour in the Navy, he gained a love of Revolutionary-era history. He minored in it in college, and has cultivated it as a hobby ever since. Ernie Wallace says: “Today, learning the stories behind the names on the roadsides and the towns is endlessly fascinating. The story of the settlement of Cincinnati is a story that deserves to be told in a way that is both enjoyable and edifying to the reader, in historical fiction. It is the format in which these unsung heroes, the tough, resourceful salt of the earth families seeking deliverance unto their own Garden of Eden, can really shine and helping history come alive.”
Ernie Wallace came east to learn more about our history for his upcoming novel chronicling settlement of Cincinnati, Ohio, and share new perspectives on this little party that has contributed so much to the American story. The Historical Society of Plainfield and Ernie Wallace are exchanging information about the people from the Plainfield area who settled the western frontier. The Historical Society looks forward to the completion of the story and the publication of Ernie’s book, and welcoming Ernie back for a book signing in the future.
RSS Feed