Chapter One—The Preparation
—The St. Francis Inn, with the corner room on the second floor, still exists. It’s my favorite place to stay in St. Augustine. (visit: www.stfrancisinn.com
—Wake’s mission in 1886 in Havana is described in The Darkest Shade of Honor. For more about Wake and Rork’s time in 1883 French Indo-China, read The Honored Dead.
—ONI also used George Eastman’s new Kodak camera in its assessment of potential naval stations along the California coast in the late 1880s.
—There were periodic war scares with Spain over Cuba from the early 1870s onward. Until the late 1880s, the Spanish Navy was considered more powerful than the U.S. Navy.
Chapter Three—God’s Will
—Wake’s perilous exploits inside the Alcázar of Sevilla, Spain, in 1874 are described in An Affair of Honor.
—The Methodist church is still at that location, is now named Grace United Methodist Episcopal Church, and is very much worth a visit for the unique architecture and friendly members.
—The magnificent Ponce de Leon Hotel building still exists and is now Flagler College.
Chapter Four—Dèjá Vu
—For more about Cynda Denaud Saunders’ relationship with Wake in the Civil War, read Honorable Mention. They met again at the beginning of An Affair of Honor, shortly after Cynda married Jonathan Saunders at Puerto Rico in 1873. For the story of Saunders’ years as a foe of Wake during the Civil War, read At the Edge of Honor and Point of Honor.
Chapter Five—The Entourage
—For a while in the 1890s, the St. Augustine Transfer Company was the largest cab and short haul company in the nation. The Colee family owned and operated it until 1996.
—The Smithsonian Institution was the U.S.’s national museum at this time. I’ve found Clay MacCauley’s 1884 ethnological report to be a fascinating look at Seminole life. Powell was famous for his work in documenting Native American culture in the U.S. Goode was equally famous in his field. His study of the fisheries in SW Florida illuminated the islanders’ way of life. Cushing became well-known in Florida for his work in 1895–96 on the pre-Columbian Calusa civilization along the SW Florida coast.
—Wake’s train trip in 1888 generally followed the same route as US Hwy 17 does today.
Chapter Six--Insomnia
—Albert Gilchrist was an interesting man. Born in 1858, he attended West Point but did not graduate, became a civil engineer, served in the Florida Legislature for many years, was a brigadier general of the state militia, fought in the Spanish-American War, and became governor of Florida from 1909 to 1913. He died in 1926.
Chapter Seven—Lightning Strikes
—Patricio Island is part of the Pine Island National Wildlife Refuge, which was established by Peter Wake’s friend President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908. The wildlife refuge covers 17 islands and their adjacent waters in Pine Island Sound and Charlotte Harbor. The island is officially closed to the public.
Chapter Eight—In Flagrante Delicto
—Pinder’s Store was located just south of the present-day Schooner’s Wharf, which is on land reclaimed from the harbor in the 1900s.
—Charles DuPont won the election and became sheriff of Monroe County from 1888 to 1893. He was a most remarkable man and by all accounts a good sheriff. DuPont Lane is named after him.
—The Frederick Douglass School stood for many years on the southeast corner of Thomas and Fleming streets.
Chapter Nine—A Motley Crew, Indeed
—“Key West Billy” was documented in MacCauley’s report on the Seminoles and appears to be quite an interesting person. He and Wake will meet again.
Chapter Eleven—Brown’s Cut
—Brown’s Cut is between Brown’s and Beach cays, about a mile south of Ocean Cay, an abandoned mining islet. In the 1880s the cut had nine feet of water, but it has shoaled in today.
Chapter Thirteen—A Most Interesting Time
—The course taken by the Delilah in 1888 could be duplicated today, but use caution. Only try it in good light when you can use your eyeball navigation skills to read the bottom. I have sailed the Banks and it can be dangerous in bad weather, especially close to Andros Island.
—The village of Red Bays still exists, as do the descendants of those brave Seminoles who crossed the ocean to reach freedom. It was only reached by road twenty years ago. I suggest reading Dr. Rosalyn Howard’s Black Seminoles in the Bahamas and Reverend Bertram A. Newton…Preacher, Teacher and Friend for excellent accounts of these very interesting people.
Chapter Fourteen—Of Buccaneers and Monsters
—Morgan’s Bluff still exists, but the legendary treasure has never been found.
—Stories are told to this day on Andros Island of the Chickchannies (sometimes called Chickcharnies) and the Bosee-Amasee. Obeah is still practiced in some of the islands of the Bahamas.
Chapter Sixteen—Nassau
—The Royal Victoria Hotel was an icon of Nassau in the 1800s. Grover Cleveland’s family were investors in the hotel, and his brother Fredrick was the manager until his death by shipwreck in 1872.
Chapter Seventeen—Emancipation Day
—This celebration is still observed. The Vendue building is now a museum. The cathedral exists generally as it did in 1888, as does the Government House.
—I urge my readers to lodge while in Nassau at my favorite place, the 260-year-old Graycliff Hotel (www.graycliff.com). And yes, that is the American way to spell “gray,” a sign of the times. Stay in the beautiful Woodes Rogers Room. Ask to see the wine cellar, which the U.S. Navy used as a brig when occupying Nassau during the Revolutionary War.
Chapter Eighteen—Quid Pro Quo
—“Perfidious Albion” is the English translation of the old derogatory French term from 1793 “Perfide Albion” about the British betrayal of the French Revolution. It was used into the turn of the twentieth century, most notably by Mussolini in 1935. Albion was the Greek name for Britain.
Chapter Twenty—Great Inagua
—Records show that Mr. McGregor had a distinguished career as a colonial administrator. His descendants are well regarded in the Bahamas.
—It is known that Admiral Popham was an acquaintance of Christophe and met with the king near the end of his reign, just before the admiral returned to England, where he died. Did Popham hide the king’s treasure? Very unlikely, but the legends of King Henri Christophe’s treasure still surface in the southern Bahamas. It has never been found, but the place is still known as Christophe’s Lagoon.
Chapter Twenty-Two—Navigating the Haitian Sea
—This body of water is no longer known as the Haitian Sea, but I possess an 1860 chart on which it is thus named.
—The smoke from the charcoal fires can still be seen when sailing by Haiti. Much of the forest in certain areas has been cut down to make the charcoal—a huge environmental and erosion problem for the country.
Chapter Twenty-Three—Mother of the Twins
—While researching this project, I made my way along the path below the cliffs of Pointe Picolet and saw the cave known as Gròt Manman Jimos yo. It is an eerie spot, full of voudou paraphernalia even today.
—Salomon’s lighthouse is still there. And frequently still dark.
—Loa, like Agwé and Kalfu, are still revered and feared, and very much a part of life for many in Haiti.
Chapter Twenty-Four—Chanm Mouri Nan
—I have seen the Chanm Mouri Nan. One brave man from my expeditionary party descended partly into the cavern, and quickly came back out. No dead body was there that day, but it’s a very ominous place.
Chapter Twenty-Five—Sólda Rouge
—Forts Picolet, St. Joseph, and Maydi still exist, and the cannon and mortars are still there. Evening voudou ceremonies are still performed at Fort Picolet each week in the ruins of the former commander’s quarters.
—Oswald Durand is regarded as one of Haiti’s best poets. Hotel Colon no longer exists.
—Wake’s description of the Polish Haitians is borne out by the historical records. Approximately 25,000 modern Haitians have Polish blood. It is an intriguing story.
Chapter Twenty-Six—Hyppolite’s Decision
—Lysius Salomon is regarded as one of Haiti’s best presidents. General Florvil Hyppolite comes down through history as one of Haiti’s more effective leaders. He subsequently became president and stayed in office longer than most. He and Wake will continue their acquaintance for many years.
—The cathedral in Cap Haitian you see today was built in 1942 on the location of the old one, most of which was destroyed by fire. The central plaza (Place d’Armes) still exists, run-down and overgrown. For those who know what happened to the slaves there during the French days, it is a sad place.
Chapter Twenty-Seven—The Citadelle
—I strongly urge any visitors to Cap Haitien to make the effort to go inland and see the palace at Sans Souci and the great fortress of the Citadelle. They are nothing short of magnificent. However, I warn against leaving the road and going on the original path up the cliffs of Montagne Laferrière to the fortress—it is a dangerously steep and long climb, and I damned near died doing it trying to duplicate Wake’s journey.
—Night Societies, based on African tribal cultures, still operate in Haiti. They are generally not violent—that is in the past—but they are an important part of life in rural Haiti.
—Creole is a remarkable phonetic mix of French and African, and quite easy to learn.
—Voudou is considered a religion in Haiti. The old saying, which is no longer true, was that 80 per cent of Haitians are Christian, but 100 per cent believe in voudou. It is a complicated and interesting subject, but a detailed look requires far more space than is available within this novel.
Chapter Twenty-Eight—Revanj avék Pwazon
—Poisons are very rarely used in voudou, but the ingredients are widely available in the tropics. I had intimate knowledge of a voudou death in Florida in 1985 that is still scientifically unexplained.
—Bush medicine is widely used to this day in the Out Islands of the Bahamas and in Haiti. In most cases, it works, as it is based on natural remedies known for centuries.
Chapter Thirty—Suh Ghul Wasa!
—For more about Woodgerd and his friendship with Wake, read An Affair of Honor and A Different Kind of Honor
—My research shows there was a cable ship, the CS Westmeath, at Cap Haitien when Wake was there and that a joint British-French concern had the contract with the Haitian government to run a telegraph cable to Cuba. It was completed in 1888.
—Wake’s description of the Europeans’ military experiments with lighter-than-air craft is correct. The French were the leaders in the field, amazingly far along in the use of powered aircraft. La France’s original base, Hangar Y, still exists today at Chalais Meudon, near Paris, one of the few remaining airship hangars in Europe.
Chapter Thirty-One—The Monster Revealed
—There is no record of Sokolov or the Forteresse des Njajs in Haiti.
—All of Sokolov’s apparatus portrayed here was available or feasible then, according to what we know today.
Chapter Thirty-Two—Plan of Attack
—The Alexander Ul’yanov to which Roche referred, was executed in 1887 for the assassination attempt on Tsar Alexander III. His younger brother Vladimir, greatly affected by Alexander’s execution, joined the revolutionaries himself and later changed his last name. We know him as the infamous Vladimir Lenin.
Chapter Thirty-Six—Dead Reckoning
—The Okhrana did exist and was quite efficient, probably the best at running agents provocateurs in European history. The Okhrana’s foreign section operated out of modest offices in the Russian consulate in Paris at 97 Rue de Grenelle. The name Kovinski is an alias Wake used to protect the Russian’s identity. I have decided to continue that practice. Kovinski went on to a distinguished career, right up to the Russian Revolution. Wake will work with him again in 1905.
—The Russians did employ agents in New York and Washington, mainly to gain contacts with the Fenian supporters in America who might be of use against the British, should Russia and Britain go to war over Afghanistan. In the 1880s, the Fenians were exploding bombs in London.
—The Narodnaya Volya, or People’s Will, was a long-time anti-tsarist revolutionary group. By the 1890s, most of its leaders were in prison or executed, the surviving members joining other groups. Many, like Lenin, joined the Communists.