New Hope Speaker Series To Spotlight People Who Aided American Revolution

NEW HOPE, PA — The New Hope Historical Society’s 23rd Annual Speaker Series to be presented each Monday in April at 5 p.m. at the Bill Harris & Jay Mania Playhouse Barn at 52 S. Main Street in New Hope will feature civilians, women and African Americans who aided the American Revolutionary War by lending their skills to support the military.

On April 6, Daniel Lapidow will demonstrate how blacksmiths assisted the military during the war effort. They were one of the most important of all the tradespeople, making metalwork in their shops behind the red coats backs, or on the front lines with mobile blacksmith shops. In this talk blacksmith Lapidow will show and discuss the tools of the trade and how the master smiths of 1776 helped to make sure the Revolutionary War succeeded.

Lapidow, known as The Hebrew Hammer Blacksmith, is the current blacksmith at the Blacksmith of Trenton Shop that has been running since 1823. He is the head blacksmith at several historical sites craft shows and renaissance fairs and serves on the board of directors for the New Jersey Blacksmith Association. Lapidow has completed several blacksmithing classes, but he says the best way he learned the craft was by just spending time at the anvil: hammering and hammering!

On April 13, Samantha Allison will examine the role of women who followed the Continental forces during the American Revolution and their contributions to the war effort. They accompanied military units and performed essential labor that supported the army's daily operations, including domestic duties such as laundry and mending, nursing the sick and wounded, making accoutrements, selling goods as sutlers, and caring for children in military encampments.

Allison is a historian and historical consultant specializing in early American history, particularly military life, material culture, and the often-overlooked experiences of civilians and followers of the Continental forces. She recently contributed to the 2025 Ken Burns documentary, The American Revolution, assisting with historical research, coordinating scenes, working directly with reenactors to shape movement and interpretation, and appearing in several filmed sequences. In 2025, she appeared in two episodes of the PBS series Treasures of New Jersey-the episodes "Grit and Grace- Revolutionary Heroines" and "Monmouth Battlefield State Park."

On April 20, a rarely discussed topic regarding the clothing that the Continental Army and other folks wore during the period of the Revolutionary War will be presented by Cynthia MacMillan. Cynthia assists the New Hope Historical Society and Mercer Museum/Bucks County Historical Society to maintain and research their textile collections. She completed a graduate certificate in material culture and textiles at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln and is pursuing a certificate in Historic Preservation at Bucks County Community College. Her research interests include: the silk industry in eastern Pennsylvania, Bucks County samplers, women textile artists of New Hope, Noemi Raymond of Raymond Farm, New Hope, women dressmakers and milliners of Bucks County, and Ethel and Don Davenport early weavers in New Hope. They were continually active in the New Hope artist colony and helped form the Phillips Mill Community Association.

The Speaker Series will conclude on April 27 when John U. Rees will present An Overview of African Americans in the Continental Army. “You never see a regiment in which there are not a lot of negroes.” The role of black Americans, free and enslaved, in the regiments of the Continental Army is not well-known; neither is the fact that relatively large numbers served in southern regiments and that the greatest number served alongside their white comrades in integrated units. Rees will discuss black soldiers’ acceptance, service, and experiences during and after the War for American Independence, focusing on those who served in Continental regiments. African American women with the army will also be featured, as well as a brief discussion of the U.S military’s 19th-century transformation from inclusion to segregation.

Bucks County resident John Rees has been writing about the experiences of common soldiers' and women with the army in the War of the American Revolution for 40 years, with over 200 articles on the subject. In addition to his journal articles, for 15 years John was a regular columnist for the quarterly newsletter Food History News writing on soldiers' food, 1754-1945, wrote four entries for the Oxford Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, and 13 entries for the Thomson Gale edition of Boatner’s Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. John’s first book “They Were Good Soldiers”: African American’s Serving in the Continental Army, 1775-1783 was published in 2019, was followed in 2025 by Black Soldiers in America’s Wars, 1754-1865, co-authored with artist Don Troiani.

Admission is $15 and free to New Hope Historical Society members. Reserve now at newhopehistorical.org. Seating for the series is limited.