The Red Lion News-Letter

March came and went in a whirlwind of activity. From events, and product launches, to photoshoots and catalog designs, we crammed it all in. If early spring has been as wild for you as it has for us, then we tip our tricornered hats and raise to you a hot toddy.  At the end of this month we leave our home in the Midwest to spend time in Maryland and northern and southwestern Virginia. 

March has come and is nearly gone. And in that time, we accomplished so many things. After a fun Saint Patrick's Day celebration, the Kalamazoo Living History Show, recording videos, three separate photoshoots, and a full web rollout for Sign of the Red Lion, we are tired puppies. Speaking of which, on a personal note, the Samson family welcomed our own puppy, Georgia Bess, to the family this month.

February is blazing by! We ended January meeting up with old friends and colleagues at the Linton Trade Fair in southern Indiana. The company and hospitality did not disappoint. This month came in with a quickness bringing both change and opportunity in its wake. Changes in our physical buildings, collections, offerings and more have all been par for the course. 

We were blessed to have a December full of time with loved ones and we hope you had the same. As a company we were blessed to have a wonderful Cyber Monday, and appreciate each of you who made us part of your holiday season. Our staff did an amazing job keeping up with customer service, shipping products quickly and accurately.

As the fall season wraps up, we find ourselves with mixed emotions. Our event schedule kicked off early this year, starting in July, and while it’s nice to wind down before the colder weather sets in, we do miss those crisp, cool evenings of camping. A heartfelt thank you to our customers for their patience when orders took an extra day or two to ship while we were on the road. 

While the first official day of fall is immanent, we are already in the “fall spirit” here at Samson Historical.  Many of our favorite family memories involve waking up under canvas on a cool crisp morning with the smell of woodsmoke in the air. We attended the NWTA grand encampment at Fort Meigs last month. They had a wonderful schedule of events for the youngest of reenactors that our family very much enjoyed.

August has flown by in a whirlwind of events and activity. We successfully completed the goal of being two places at once, in two different periods! The Samson family set up the store at Fort Niagara in New York for the Revolutionary War Weekend. We are happy to report the weather was warm but lovely and history was felt by all. At the same time, two of the Samson seamstress team, Kris and Molly, set up another store in the year 1812 at Old Fort Wayne in Indiana.

Happy Independence Day to all of you ungrateful colonials! Celebrating the 4th is a full day of food, family, and fun in our household. Did I mention food? Homemade peach ice cream is a tradition everyone looks forward to. With every bite we are grateful that it is not as difficult to make as it was in the 18th century. If you haven’t read our blog detailing iced treats in a period before convenient refrigeration, I suggest you grab a couple of scoops and check that out.