Seaports and towns, HO/HO scale card stock buildings

• Back in the 1990s, I had purchased 2 books of New England themed buildings for a town, and a seaport.

I lovely built them and used them for my many battles. Until I moved to South Korea for my first teaching job. And I haven't been able to find them since 1997.
So I made my last hobby purchase on my card for a VERY long time and will be slowly building them.
Oh and that includes a 3d puzzle of Hogwarts castle which is currently scattered on my sons bedroom floor as he has the space for.
So my North American theater scenery will be fine.
Hmmm, New England seaport, 1770s raids or War of 1812 battles.

 starting to get them built in January 2020

Back about 1992, I had a copy of both the New England village and Seaport books, but due to university, moving and living in Asia for 19 years and a my parents divorced and selling of the family home, these models were lost.

My dad still had the original books with the models I hadn't built. However about a year ago I bought the books again and have finally got around to build them again.

Some of the bits I will leave out and use wooden bits for railings and steps

Pirates attack a Ghost Castle

The night before last, prior to my departure for work, Ian and I played a game with his castle and pirate ship

He was really happy that we could play before I went off to work.

This shot is supposed to be us in a Toys R Us with some Zombie Nerf stuff, but it didn't seem to load well.

Spring and Summer campaign kits

I arrived home to find my birthday presents arrived. Two kits for my Bolt Action on Grampies War blog, two boxes of Prussia troops and

My first order of hobby kits from amazon

Hat Spanish guerillas

Blackbeard - Terror at Sea (National Geographic TV Movie) Part1

 Another pirate documentary.

Building a Pirate, Privateering force

I got Osprey Publishing's On the Seven Seas yesterday in the mail. It's an interesting set of rules for doing Pirate and Age of Sail boarding and landing actions. It fits into my own wargamming interests. I may pass on purchasing metal pirate figures, and see if I can build groups with the figures I own now.
Added with my historical literature I have here, I can set up some interesting games.
Pictures of Privateer and Naval crews from some of my previous games

 this shot taken at the Maritime Museum of The Atlantic, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Period Piece movies: Master and Commander

This is one of my favorite Russell Crowe films, Directed by Peter Weir, based on the works of Patrick O'Brien. Set in the later part of my historical era, of 1805, it shows how naval warfare in the Age of Sail must have been. It also shows how national navies also fought against privateering.

European warfare comes to the New world 1600s

The Habitation of Port Royale 1604.
This fortified dwelling was built by Samuel de Champlain and his men in 1605. This was a replacement for an earlier structure at Saint-Croix, and was intended to take advantage of a slightly milder climate after a winter that had seen 35 of the 80 colonists die of scurvy. The building was destroyed in 1613 by English colonists from Virginia. (art work courtsey of www.cmhg.gc.ca)
This reproduction was built in 1941, now run by Parks Canada (cmhg.gc.ca)

 This is what the French colonists would have worn to defend their settlement. (cmhg.gc.ca)
(Petrand work, from cmhg.gc.ca)

French harquebusier in Canada, between 1610 and 1620

This reconstruction shows one of the rare soldiers found in New France during the first decades of the French Regime. Sent to the colony by one of the trading companies that obtained commercial monopolies, this man's costume and harquebus date him between 1610 and 1620. In 1609-1610, Champlain campaigned with a group of French soldiers who each wore a 'pikeman's corselet' for protection against the arrows of the Amerindians. This armour was normally worn only by pikemen in Europe. In Canada, between 1610 and 1630, French soldiers used harquebuses or muskets, and always wore armour for protection. Reconstruction by Michel Pétard.

1610 attack on an Iroquois fort

Champlain with his five French companions (at left) and Indian allies attacks a small Iroquois fort at the mouth of the Richelieu River in June 1610. Such Amerindian field fortifications could offer stiff resistance. In spite of the French firearms which had impressed them the previous year, the outnumbered Iroquois (probably Mohawk) warriors resisted stubbornly and Champlain was wounded at the ear and neck by an arrow. Finally, the place was carried by an assault ‘with sword in hand’. Print after Samuel de Champlain.
(www.cmhg.gc.ca)

Construction of the second habitation at Quebec started in May 1624. This model shows the stone structure featuring two corner turrets as it was circa 1625. It was abandoned in 1633 following a fire. (cmhg.gc.ca)

Champlain surrenders Quebec to English privateers, the Kirke brothers, on 19 July 1629

When Champlain surrendered it in 1629, Quebec was only a small unfortified hamlet and could not hope to resist the much stronger English privateers led by the Kirke brothers. There was no fighting.
(cmhg.gc.ca)

Ian's new toys

On our trip back to Atlantic Canada, my son was able to go to Toys R Us twice, once at Dartmouth Crossing, and once at Charlettown Mall. He was able to buy a True Heroes Knight Playset and True Heroes Pirate Playset.

Pirates

Now my wife doesn't understand the lure of such toys, but for a young boy (and his Dad's) vivid imagination, these sets can provide endless hours of fun and excitement.

He also got from CubicFun a Mayflower 3d Puzzle. As in, this is a 1/100 scale sailing ship which brought some of the first English settlers to Northeastern North America. His older brother helped him build it.

Pirate set, soldier set, knights set.

Recreating Fort William Augustus, Canso, Nova Scotia circa 1744

This summer, Ian needs to make a project for his school. Last summer we did a project about tall ships.
This time, we shall build a minature fort.

Step one, drawing the fort plan, and building the earthworks.

Step two is to then add the toothpicks as the pallisade.

Both Ian and Leena worked on his project. It was a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

After this project this little fort will take part in many 18th-19th battles.


Unfortunately, the fall and winter of 2014 was a bit damp, and the whole thing got moldy! So this fort has now been consigned to the burnable garbage. I'll have to think on how to rebuilt this with something which can resist mold a bit better.

Privateer raids in Nova Scotia in the 18th Century

This summer, Ian and I plan on fighting a few campaigns. One of them will be to do some privateer raids.

This year, July 15, 2013 is the national Japanese holiday of Marine day. To celebrate this, Ian and I decided to have a Privateer raid on Canso circa 1720

A fancifal view of Canso

On of the farmers desperately trying to tend livestock in the rough climate of Nova Scotia

Gibbons Regiment drill in the parade square

 

Some of the more substantial buildings which could have been built at Canso, however, most of the buildings would have been rough wooden shacks.

"Black Bart" Robert's ship arrives, filled with MikMaq warriors and freebooters looking for cheap plunder.

As the battle began, Ian fired his guns to blast apart the seaward defences. He then landed his pirates/privateers on the shore. The Board of Ordance gunners took post under fire and began to blast the pirates apart. Eventually, after two waves of attackers were knocked down, the pirate gunners opened up again, this time aiming at the gun battery. Their fire was affected by the surf. All the while, the British Infantry and local fishermen and militia kept up a brisk musketry.
Finally, with weight of numbers prevailing, the commander, a lowly Lieutant, surrendered the town, and witnessed it's sacking.