Acknowledgements
Thank you, God, for granting the desires of my heart.
Much thanks to Mary and Karen for all of your encouragement and help on this story.
To the Agents of Prayer, Agents Star, Harmony, Astute, Honor, and Foresight for all of love and covering over the last four years. Thank you for taking this journey with me.
To Elizabeth and Amanda, thank you both for being awesome and helping to inspire my main character. She would not be who she is without the two of you.
To Boss, Doc, and Spy for being the reasons that I write. You are my greatest achievements.
To my parents for always being so supportive. Thank you for choosing me.
To Jen, Kristen, Marsha, Amy, Patti, Ruth, MeriBeth, Kristi, Sherry, Dorie, Cathi, Valerie, Tricia, Tracie, and Ashley for sticking with me and cheering me on over the years that it has taken me to get here. All of you ladies are beautiful inside and out.
To John, you are the best part of my heart. Thank you for reminding me that Vantanas never give up, and always keep moving forward. In one way or another, your epicness will inspire generations to come.
To every person who takes the time to read my stories, thank you for going adventuring with me.
Author’s Historical Note
Though this is a work of fiction, some pieces of the story are true. 1816 was known by many names; the year without a summer; Eighteen hundred and froze to death; the summer that never was to name a few. The unusual and disastrous weather was linked to a succession of major volcanic eruptions. The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora claimed to be the largest known eruption in 1300 years. The weather was affected in every part of the world. In North America there was a consistent dry fog that would not disperse. Ice was indeed seen as thick as a windowpane. Many crops were destroyed and the price of many foods rose considerably. For ex. the price of oats rose from .12 a bushel in 1815 to .92 in 1816. Snow fell in June in both New York and Maine, and temperatures could go from normal to near freezing within hours. An interesting story about the year was that in 1815 when the editor of the Farmer’s Almanac was sick in bed one of his printers or copy boys decided to play a prank, and changed the almanac for July 13th of 1816 to say that it would snow. The editor discovered the trick and had almost all copies destroyed and ordered a new publishing run. Some of the original copies apparently got out, and the editor took a lot of grief about it. But when snow and cold did occur throughout the summer, including July 13th, the editor tried to take credit for the error, claiming that he knew it would happen all along.
The Peale Museum did exist, owned and operated by Charles Willson Peale and his family. For fifty cents you could go see the Mammoth known as the American incognitum, and for twenty-five cents you could see the rest of the museum.
Madam Grelaud’s French School did exist in Philadelphia and President Monroe’s daughter, Maria Hester, as well as many other young women with famous relations. As the tuition for a year was said to be $500, only affluent families could afford to send their daughters to the school. It had many advantages as the young ladies were expected to not only learn history, philosophy, geography, and natural science, but to excel. In addition to their curriculum, instructors taught art, dance, languages, and music. The girls were also taught to speak French fluently. For a fee beyond their annual tuition they could be instructed in more extensive music or language lessons, and they could purchase concert tickets. Madam Grelaud allowed the young ladies to accept invitations to balls, parties, and the theatre with proper supervision. She wanted them to observe the manners and fashions of women of high society.
The Culper spy ring was organized under the orders of General George Washington during the Revolutionary war. The tasks of the spies was to discover the activities of the British and get the information by secret channels to George Washington Invisible ink was used by the spies as a means of sending their secrets, as was the use of masks. Secret information would be written into letters. When the receiver of the letter placed their mask over the letter, it would reveal its secrets. Women were an important part of the Culper Ring. One woman would hang clothes on her clothesline, certain colors for certain meanings. The language of flowers was not used by the Culper spies that I could discover, but flowers have always been viewed as symbolic, and in the early eighteenth century the language of flowers was studied by many.
About the Author
Amalie Vantana wrote her first story at age seven. When many little girls were dreaming about being a princess, Amalie was dreaming about being a musketeer. When she’s not writing adventures, she spends her time with her family, exploring historical locations, and searching for adventures to be had. Amalie makes her home in West Virginia with her husband.
Connect with Amalie:
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Twitter:
https://twitter.com/AuthorAVantana
Website:
http://www.mommyauthor.com/
Phantoms In Philadelphia Page 33
