Chris Carosa %

A Royal Mess Of Competing Colonial Charters

By Chris Carosa on April 7, 2026

By the eve of the Revolutionary War, with the French out of the way, Great Britain held dominant power in eastern North America—especially our region.

Or so it would appear.

Greater Western New York had been claimed many times before it was ever governed. European powers declared it theirs, and when Britain removed its rivals, the claims didn’t disappear—they multiplied. Now they came from within, as competing colonial charters layered atop one another. At one point, no fewer than five colonies claimed the region.

Yet, not one ever truly governed it.

Authority did not collapse at the forest’s edge. It contradicted itself at the source.

Long before a single settler felled a tree in Western New York, the kings of England were Continue Reading “A Royal Mess Of Competing Colonial Charters”

Posted in History, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged 42nd parallel, 43rd parallel, Atlantic Ocean, Batavia, British, Buffalo, Canandaigua, Charter for the Province of Pennsylvania, Charter of Connecticut, Charter of Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, Connecticut Charter, Connecticut River, Duke of York, Dutch, French, Great Britain, Green Mountains, King Charles II, King James I, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Bay Colony, New England, New Hampshire, New York, New York Patent, Pacific Ocean, Pennsylvania, Rochester, Sea to Sea, Second Charter of Virginia, South Sea, Treaty of Paris, Virginia, Virginia Company of London, Western New York, William Penn

European Rivals and the Seneca Frontier

By Chris Carosa on March 31, 2026

The stagnant heat draped over the weary marchers like a heavy blanket. The still air muffled any sound. The eerie silence only gnawed at their nerves.

Suddenly, the quiet forest erupted with sharp cries.

The startled Frenchmen stopped in their tracks. Before they could think, puffs of smoke popped from the thicket before them. Instantly, speeding musket balls whizzed through the ranks.

In an instant, two soldiers lay dead. Stunned by the ambush, the remaining staggered. But Continue Reading “European Rivals and the Seneca Frontier”

Posted in History, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries, Western New York State of Mind Tagged Bloomfield, Champlain, Denonville, France, Irondequoit Bay, Lima, Mendon, Seneca, Victor

Only Heels Can Be Heroes Redux

By Chris Carosa on March 24, 2026

What separates a hero from a heel?

Sometimes, nothing more than timing.

On our thirty-seventh anniversary, it’s fitting to revisit the very first Carosa Commentary that appeared in the inaugural issue of The Sentinel.

This is in the same vein as “No Guts, No Glory.”

Essentially, Heels and Heroes are made of the same stuff. Only the outcome of their deeds is different (or at least viewed differently). Ultimately, the critical factor leading to the labeling of a man (or woman) may be nothing more than luck.Continue Reading “Only Heels Can Be Heroes Redux”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, Memoir of a Real Life Tagged baseball, business, Carosa Commentary, Character, confidence, courage, entrepreneurship, failure, fear of failure, heels, heroes, human nature, judgment, leadership, life lessons, man in the arena, moral philosophy, perception, personal growth, resilience, risk, Sentinel, success, taking chances, Theodore Roosevelt

Settling Old Scores: The Beaver Wars

By Chris Carosa on March 10, 2026

The journey east had taken days.

The ambassadors followed the ancient trail that cut through the forests of Western New York. Trail was almost the wrong word for it. Generations of footsteps had worn it into the earth until it resembled a narrow trench, barely wide enough for a traveler moving single file, sunk deeper than the ankle in places. But it was still easier than fighting through the tangled underbrush of the virgin forest.

Even the flats along the treeless banks of the Genesee River—now behind them—had offered little relief. The grass there grew straight and thick, taller than a man.

Still, the air smelled fresh. And hope traveled with the delegation.

Thirty ambassadors of the Cat Nation—the people the French called the Erie—had come to the Seneca capital district seeking peace. They came from the lands west of the Genesee River, where Seneca expansion had begun to press against the hunting grounds of the Erie people.

It was just a mistake. An accident. Something meant to be settled with words, not weapons.

They left the trail and gathered at the council near Sonnontouan.

But hope faded quickly.

The tension in the council house was unmistakable. Words sharpened. Voices rose.

For a moment the room fell silent.

Then it happened.

A Seneca chief lay dead.

No one knows exactly how it happened. Even the French Jesuits who recorded the event could only describe it as “some unexpected accident.”¹

But the consequences were immediate.Continue Reading “Settling Old Scores: The Beaver Wars”

Posted in History, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries, Western New York State of Mind Tagged Algonquin, Allegheny River, Beaver Wars, Boughton Hill, British, Canada, Cat Nation, Central Trail, Dutch, England, Erie, Five Nations, French, Genesee River, Gonandagon, Gondagaro, Great Lakes, Huron, Iroquois Confederacy, jesuit, Mendon, Nation du Cat, Neutral Nation, New Netherlands, Niagara Peninsula, Niagara River, Seneca, Sonnontouan, St. Lawrence River, St. Lawrence Valley, Susquehanna River, Tobacco Nation, Totiakton, Victor, Wenro, Western New York

A European Tug Of War

By Chris Carosa on March 3, 2026

Long before a single settler felled a tree in Western New York, kings in Europe were dividing it with ink. There were claims or assertions. They could be real or imagined. They were put on parchment, whether it be maps, treaties, or edicts. Rarely, however, were they enforced. After all, you can’t police a territory where you have no police.

Why, then, would the powers of the day go through all the trouble of pretense?

Well, first, it was all pretend. Europeans did come to this New World. Some explored. Some conquered. Many settled. Still, their activities covered only a small fraction of their claims.

But it was the claim itself that rendered prestige. It was a symbol of potency, a symbol of Continue Reading “A European Tug Of War”

Posted in The Compleat Carosa Commentaries, Western New York State of Mind Tagged 1493, 1523, Acadia, African Coast, Age of Discovery, Age of Exploration, Albany, Algonquin, and Gold, Atlantic, Azores, British, Canada, Canary Islands, Canceau, Cape Fear, Cape Verde Islands, Castle Island, Christopher Columbus, Connecticut, Dutch, Dutch East India Company, English, Europe, Fort Detroit, Fort Duquesne, Fort Frontenac, Fort Nassau, Fort Niagara, Fort Orange, France, French Line, fur trade, Gaspe Peninsula, Giovanni da Verrazzano, Glory, God, Great Britain, Great Lakes, Henry Hudson, Huron, Iroquois, Jacques Cartier, Jesuit Relations, King Francis I, Kingston, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi River, New Brunswick, New England, New France, New World, Newfoundland, North America, North Carolina, Nova Gallia, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Pacific Ocean, papal bull, Pilgrims, Pittsburgh, Pope Alexander VI, Portugal, pre-Columbian, Quebec, Reuben Gold Thwaites, Samuel de Champlain, San Salvador, Spain, St. Lawrence River, Treaty of Tordesillas, Treay of Alcacovas, Virginia, Western New York

Why Competition Is Good (And What Mrs. Fish Knew)

By Chris Carosa on February 24, 2026

Competition is good. It’s the bread and butter of every successful team, organization, and nation. Not because it crushes the weak, but because it reveals who we are. It pushes the best to heights never before imagined. It weeds out those who are better suited for critical supporting roles.

Think of the purpose of competition not as a cruel arbiter of the human condition, but as a vast casting call. Every great story needs a Continue Reading “Why Competition Is Good (And What Mrs. Fish Knew)”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, Memoir of a Real Life Tagged antagonist, Big Tree, calculation, capitalism, Chili, Chuck Knoll, competition, dopamine, drama, dramatic arc, Florence Brasser, gamification, Hero, leader, leaderboard, loser, losing, math, Miss Powell, Miss Wilson, Mrs. Duly, Mrs. Fish, Mrs. Fitzer, Mrs. Jackson, Persuasion, protagonist, rhetoric, rule, speed test, story, supporting character, villain, winner, winning, Woodlawn

We Just Wanted To Play Hockey… Before The Miracle

By Chris Carosa on February 17, 2026

It’s that time again. The quadrennial event. The Winter Olympics. And you know what that means.

Men’s ice hockey.

That and curling. My most favorite things to watch. But that’s not all we watch.

Before going out with friends, Peter decided to start playing the movie Miracle. Again.

He had no intention of watching the entire film. When I asked him why, he said, “You and Mom will watch it to the end.”

He was right.

He likes the beginning. It’s a montage of news stories from the 1970s. If you were to choose Continue Reading “We Just Wanted To Play Hockey… Before The Miracle”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, Memoir of a Real Life Tagged 1970s, 1980 Olympics, Al Michaels, Baby Boomer, Betsy, Forgotten Boomers, Generation Jones, Herb Brooks, Iran, Jimmy Carter, Lake Placid, mailaise, Miracle, NHL, Peter, second wave, Soviet, U.S. Hockey, Yae Hockey

Jasper Parrish And The Terror At Civilization’s Edge

By Chris Carosa on February 10, 2026

Massacre of Wyoming (Pennsylvania), 1858, by Alonzo Chappel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Captain Zebulon Parish saw the man hurry out of the dense woods into the field. The smell of burning wood wafted through the air around him. In the distance, black smoke rose above the treetops. He thought he heard muffled screams, but it might have been the wind whipping through the forest.

His eyebrow furled as the curious settlers assembled. He was the captain. They looked to him for guidance.

Zebulon recognized the man. It was Lebbeus Hammond.¹ He didn’t look too good. Out of breath, he huffed and puffed, “We’ve been attacked!”

This is bad, was Zebulon’s immediate conclusion.

His mind raced. They’re probably coming for us next. How long do we have? And should we prepare for defense or run? Continue Reading “Jasper Parrish And The Terror At Civilization’s Edge”

Posted in History, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries, Western New York State of Mind Tagged Algonquin, Aurora, British, Captain Blanchard, Colonel John Butler, common sense, Connecticut, Connecticut Yankee, Continental Army, Delaware, England, Forty fort, Iroquois, Ishmeal Benn, Jasper Parrish, John Trumbull, Joseph Elliot, Lebbeus Hammond, Lenni-Lenape, Massacre, Old King, Pennamite-Yankee Wars, Pennsylvania, Queen Esther's Rock, Reubon Jones, Roswell Franklin, Sakayenguaraghton, Second Pennamite War, Seneca, Squire Whitaker, Stephen Kimble, Stephen Parrish, Susquehannah Company, The Shades of Death, Thomas Paine, Wallenpaupack, Westmoreland, Wilkesbarre, Windham, Wintermoot, Wyoming County, Wyoming fort, Wyoming Massacre, Wyoming Valley, Zebulon Parish

Thomas Boyd And The Brutality Of The Western Frontier

By Chris Carosa on February 3, 2026

The monument at the site of the Boyd and Parker ambush. The monument reads: “Sacred To The Memory of Lieut. Thomas Boyd and Sergt. Michael Parker Who were captured and afterward tortured and killed. Afar their bones may lie/but here their patriot blood/baptized the land for aye/and wideened freedom’s flood”
Photo credit: Ed Dehm, CC BY-SA 3.0 httpcreativecommons.orglicensesby-sa3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In the darkness of September 1779, Thomas Boyd heard the muffled squeal of death.

Murphy, he thought. Can’t that man follow orders?

Boyd—an officer barely into his twenties—missed the fatal irony of his question.

But he did sense his mission was compromised. Boyd had orders to scout the British forces, not to engage them. Timothy Murphy’s shot must have echoed through the woods, alerting the Seneca. Worse, the others got away. No doubt the Indian would quickly warn his brothers. The encounter yielded one scalp, a horse saddle, and a bridle.¹ It seemed hardly worth the risk Sullivan’s men now faced.

The scouts needed to get out. And they needed to get out quickly. More importantly, Boyd needed to get word back to the General sooner. He dispatched two runners to ride ahead. They returned to report discovering a handful of Seneca on horseback up ahead.²

The young lieutenant remained confident that he would meet up with the main army soon enough. He rode on with his troops. They had not gotten far before they came upon Continue Reading “Thomas Boyd And The Brutality Of The Western Frontier”

Posted in History, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries, Western New York State of Mind Tagged 1779, Adam Hubley, Ambuscade, Benjamin Lodge, British, Corporal Calhoun, Edward Hand, General Hand, General Sullivan, Genesee Flats, Groveland, Henry Dearborn, John Sullivan, Little Beard, Little Beard's Town, Major General John Sullivan, Mary Jemison, Michael Parker, Mt. Hope Cemetery, Rochester, Seneca, Sullivan, Sullivan Campaign, Sullivan Expedition, Thomas Boyd, Timothy Murphy, Tory

William French and the Westminster Massacre

By Chris Carosa on January 27, 2026

On a late Winter morning in 1775, William French woke up for the last time. The lively 22-year-old lived in the Town of Bennington—itself scarcely older than he was.

Self-named by Benning Wentworth, Governor of New Hampshire, Bennington became—in 1741—the first township granted west of the Connecticut River. It was a fact that would soon matter far more than anyone expected.

French headed to Westminster, a small hamlet on the west side of the Connecticut River, nestled in the broad curve of the oxbowing waterway, in the fertile eastern valley beneath the Green Mountains.

That afternoon, French walked along King’s Highway to the farmhouse of Capt. Axariah Wright, an eccentric old patriot. There he met Daniel Houghton and nearly 100 other men. They were there to confront a problem they believed could no longer be avoided.Continue Reading “William French and the Westminster Massacre”

Posted in History, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries, Western New York State of Mind Tagged Act of Outlawry, Albany County, Axariah Wright, Benning Wentworth, Bennington, British, Cadwallader Colden, Charles II, Connecticut River, Daniel Houghton, Duke of York, Dutch, Ethan Allen, French, French and Indian War, General Council of Safety, George Clinton, Green Mountain Boys, Green Mountains, Henry Bridge, Irish Corners, James II, King's Highway, Liberty Men, Mahican, Mohawk, New Connecticut, New Hampshire, New Netherland, New York, Vermont, West Bennington, Westminster, Westminster Massacre, William French, William Patterson

Chris Carosa