You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.

Hey there, my name is Jody Avergan.

Have you noticed the present day it feels pretty rocky?

Well, I think history can help.

What's more?

This little country of ours, the United States, it's turning 250 soon.

So how did we get here?

On this day, historians Nicole Hammer and Kelly Carter Jackson and I

sit down to look at stories from the past, silly, surprising, deeply relevant, that feel like they

have something to teach us about today. This day, three times a week, you can find it wherever you're

listening right now. Hello, and thanks for joining Revolution 250, where we look at events that took place 250 years

ago this week. This is from the American Revolution podcast, a short bonus episode to remind

you about these important anniversaries from the Revolutionary War. This week, we remember the Continental Congress's

resolution on the capture of British shipping. Throughout 1775, while the Americans were pretty

effective on land, the British continued to dominate the seas. America had no Navy. While Congress had authorized one,

it would take some time before the ships were ready to sail. Only a few converted merchant ships

were available to intercept other merchant ships trying to bring supplies to the enemy. The Patriots

had no effective force to deploy against the British Navy itself.

There were, however, some lucky instances to capture supplies. On November 8th, General Washington

wrote to President John Hancock about the need for a legal authorization for seizing enemy property.

The reason for the letter was that the Continentals had managed to capture two ships

that had been run aground by the weather, allowing them to seize a large amount of wine

...