Several weeks ago someone on the list asked about observations of Gunpowder
Treason Day in colonial Virginia. The answers to the bishop of London's
queries of 1724 do not list November 5 as a day that the colonists observed.
A letter by the Reverend Alexander Forbes to Bishop Gibson in 1724 notes that
neither November 5 nor January 30 were observed as often as he thought they
ought to have been. (Forbes sent his responses to the queries in a private
letter to the bishop because he did not believe that Commissary Blair would
forward his answers to Gibson.)
The original is in the Fulham Palace Papers, and a transcript is
available in Perry's volume on the Church of England in Virginia. I think the
material is on page 324. You may also want to consult the appropriate section
of David Cressy's _Bonfires and Bells_.
Ed Bond
Assistant Professor of History
Alabama A&M University
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(256) 851-5343
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