Musters – Events
The First Defenders meet at 6:30 PM on the second Tuesday of each month from April through December. Meetings include dinner and a speaker who may be a guest or a member. Meetings are held at Giannotti’s Country Restaurant on Pricetown Road in Alsace Manor.
A book raffle is held each month with all proceeds donated to battlefield preservation, and members who attend virtually will have the opportunity to participate even if they cannot attend a program.
Guests and new members are welcome. Space is limited in the restaurant, so please contact a board member or the First Defenders by email (see the Regimental Staff page).
MEMBERS ONLY! Sign up to attend the upcoming event!
Women at War: the Female Soldiers of the American Civil War and Those that Wished They Were
presented by D0minish Miller
Contrary to popular belief, women did, in fact, fight in the American Civil War. They also infiltrated the United States Army in earlier wars. Debora
h Sampson served for 17 months in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War as Robert Shurtliff, and Lucy Brewer served with the Marines aboard "Old Ironsides" as George Baker during the War of 1812. Once a taboo topic, modern historians are finally shedding light on the role that female soldiers played in the Civil War and the women who made a living off of lying about their military service.
Dominish Marie Miller is the Third Circuit Court of Appeals Librarian for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the founder of Preserving the 
History of Newberrytown, runs the Lewisberry Area History Lovers group and is a founding board member of the Newberrytown Special Events Committee. She serves as Librarian and VIS Chair for the Harrisburg Chapter, NSDAR. Dominish is also a living historian with the 87th Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Company C, where she portrays a private. She is the author of two cookbooks and a local history book.
David Farragut & Chester Nimitz
presented by Dr. Craig Symonds
David Farragut and Chester Nimitz served their country in the United States Navy 
nearly a century apart. The former would become the very first U.S. admiral while the latter would be one of only five who would achieve five-star rank. Farragut would win the Civil War on the water from the deck of a ship while Nimitz would direct his armada from shore to defeat Japan in World War II. Different men who approached their duties from different perspectives, both facing leadership challenges that had commonalities and disparities. Possibly no historian is better versed or positioned to provide an in-depth analysis of these two naval legends than Craig Symonds.
Dr. Craig Symonds is a professor emeritus of history at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis. Upon his retirement from the academ
y, he accepted a professorship at the Naval War College from where he has also retired. A prolific author, Dr. Symonds has specialized in both the Civil War and World War II, and has hosted The Great Courses+ video series on both the War in the Pacific and the United States Navy.
The Philadelphia Campaign of the Revolutionary War
presented by Michael Harris
