A Case of Mistaken Identity
Short Story Collection
Tales from five authors now available on Amazon
Historical Fiction / Cozy Mystery
The Affair of the Pig
A Historical Fiction / Cozy Mystery that takes place during the Pig War of 1859 on San Juan Island in the Pacific Northwest. This little-known war was America’s second longest (1859 to 1871) and, by far, its most bizarre, fought as it was over a dead pig.
American Camp - San Juan Island
New Book Release - The Affair of the Pig
The Pig War in history
A Historical Fiction / Cozy Mystery that takes place during the Pig War of 1859 on San Juan Island in the Pacific Northwest. This little-known war was America’s second longest (1859 to 1871) and, by far, its most bizarre. The United States and Great Britain disputed ownership of the San Juan Islands after the June 1846 Treaty of Oregon was signed in London. It set the boundary on the 49th parallel, from the Rocky Mountains "to the middle of the channel which separates the continent from Vancouver's Island” then south through the channel to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and west to the Pacific Ocean. The "channel" described in the treaty was actually two channels: the Haro Strait, nearest Vancouver Island, and the Rosario Strait, nearer the mainland. The San Juan Islands lay between, and both sides claimed the entire island group.
The issue came to a head when a British pig came to root in an American farmer’s garden on San Juan Island and the farmer shot it. British authorities threatened to arrest the farmer and evict all his countrymen from the island as trespassers. The farmers sought military protection. Both sides sent troops and warships to the island with ever-increasing boisterousness. Eventually, both sides agreed to temporary joint occupation. With joint occupation, the British and Americans held Friday night dances and parties together. The only casualty of the war was the pig. They eventually resolved the dispute through binding arbitration when Kaisar Willhelm I of Germany decided on the side of the Americans.
Historical Characters
The cast of historical characters is equally fascinating, including:
Captain George Pickett (later General Pickett of Pickett’s charge at Gettysburg),
Lieutenant Henry Robert (later Brigadier General Robert of Robert’s Rules of Order), British Major and Magistrate for the district of San Juan, John De Courcy (later Colonel De Courcy, a commander for General Sherman in the American Civil War),
Lieutenant James Forsyth (later commanded the 7th Cavalry at the Wounded Knee Massacre).
General Winfield Scott.
National Parks Service
The site of the Pig War, American Camp and English Camp are now a national park on San Juan Island, Washington.
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David Aucsmith
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