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AmRev360

AmRev360: A Family's Revolutionary Legacy with Denise Dennis

February 26, 2021

How does knowing your family's history – particularly one with roots dating back to the Revolutionary era – shape your sense of self? How does a generations-long lineage including Black Revolutionary War veterans like Gershom Prince and Prince Perkins, and the surviving artifacts from their lives, remind all Americans of our shared heritage?

Denise Dennis, President & CEO of the Dennis Farm Charitable Land Trust, joined the latest episode of the Museum's AmRev360 series, hosted by Museum President & CEO Dr. R. Scott Stephenson, for a conversation about her rich, personal Revolutionary history; her work to preserve the historic, 153-acre Dennis Farm in the Endless Mountains of Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania; and what it means to her to have her family’s powder horn – which belonged to Gershom Prince, a Black soldier who served and died in the Revolutionary War – on loan from the Luzerne County Historical Society to display at the Museum.

Denise Dennis is the President & CEO of the Dennis Farm Charitable Land Trust, which works to preserve a rare – and beautiful – historic and cultural resource in the Endless Mountains of Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. Learn more about the Dennis Farm Charitable Land Trust and its mission, history, and work at thedennisfarm.org.

AmRev360 features lively conversations on the American Revolution from all angles between Stephenson and a broad slate of dynamic guests, including authors, actors, community leaders, and more. 

Take a Closer Look: Gershom Prince's Powder Horn

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Gershom Prince was born in Connecticut in 1733 and settled in the Wyoming Valley in what is now northeastern Pennsylvania. He carried the powder horn in two wars: the French and Indian War and, 17 years later, the Revolutionary War.
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During both wars, he served as a (likely free) aide to Captain Durkee of the 4th Connecticut Regiment. During the Revolutionary War, Prince survived the battles of Germantown and Brandywine, as well as the winter encampment at Valley Forge.
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On July 3, 1778, a combined force of Iroquois and Loyalists attacked the Wyoming Valley, killing most of the outnumbered American soldiers there. Prince was among those killed. The powder horn was taken from his body after the attack and preserved.
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The horn is carved with Prince’s name as well as exquisite artwork including detailed images of trees, forts, and scenes from everyday life. It is believed to be the only surviving powder horn of a Black Revolutionary War solider who was killed in action.

Read more about Gershom Prince's powder horn, believed to be the only surviving powder horn of a Black solider killed in action during the Revolutionary War, from the Philadelphia Inquirer.

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AmRev360

Watch lively conversations on the American Revolution from all angles, hosted by Museum President & CEO Dr. R. Scott Stephenson and featuring a broad slate of dynamic guests, on our AmRev360 web series.
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Powder horn belonging to Gershom Prince
 

Discovering History: Memorialization at the Museum

Associate Curator Matthew Skic takes you through the stories of Revolutionary soldiers and officers such as Polish cavalryman Casimir Pulaski, Colonel Jonathan Pettibone, and Gershom Prince.
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Rhonda Brace (left), a descendent of Jeffrey Brace, who was enslaved during the Revolutionary era, found freedom, and wrote a memoir in 1810, which was republished in 2004 by Kari Winter (right).
 

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