History of Settmour Swamp
Part I (1979-1982)

Written Sometime in 1982
By Baroness Ursula of North Woods
(then Territorial Baroness, Settmour Swamp)

1979

Around May of AS 14 (1979), I had aimlessly wandered away from the Middle kingdom and into the desolate area of northern New Jersey. As far as the eye could see, no SCA was to be found until through a bizarre chance, I found Magda, then Lady Magda z Stalburg. My office-mate at work had gone into the hospital for some minor surgery. As she awoke from the sedative, she heard someone talking about knights and swords and feasts. "Are you in the SCA?", my roommate asked. "How do you know about that?", asked Magda. "Well there's this crazy lady at work that talks about nothing else"...

In a dizzying whirlwind of activity, the first meeting was held on August 6. I was volunteered as Seneschale and the incipient Shire of Settmour Swamp was named. Frieden was chosen as our Knight Marshal (he was our only active qualified fighter). Lots of die-hard Swampies were at that first meeting, Sigmundr, Elysende, Aeginold, Cassandra (now Aleksondra), Gershom, Tamar (from Carillion), as well as a few who have moved or wandered away-like Tomas, Tomar (now Rory), Burton Sarnoff, Darrell (now Stephan), and Bojzena. Now this was all just a clever way for Maggy to get lots of help for the little event she was planning, namely the CORONATION of Vissevald and Embla, scheduled for a mere two months away in October...

The MUDPUPPY also got its start right away with me at the typewriter. Of course, it wasn't called the Mudpuppy until we'd named it several months later but our newsletter had been born (Such as it was, you should see some of those early editions. Hand written no less!)

Anyway, the site originally chosen for Coronation had canceled. At the second swamp meeting Hrymgnar, appeared and a large fire hall near his was suggested and eagerly accepted. We were really saved by the skin of our teeth. There wasn't even time to get an ad into the Pikestaff and a mailing had to be sent to all the East Kingdom Seneschals;

Coronation was a smashing success EXCEPT there was no entertainment (my pet peeve). But as Aidan left the throne a cry of "FREE FREE AT LAST" resounded through the hall (that fire hall had an echo). Maggy cooked one of her splendid feasts and the Swamp's reputation for good food was begun. Coronation was also the first appearance of th Carolingian traveling team. Johan had rented a bus to transport 40 Carolingians (Visevald's home turf); half crashed in my (then) small apartment and half at Frieden and Aleksondra's. Mercifully, they were able to crash at the fire-hall Saturday night. Elysende got her first taste of power as she took reservations and stood firm against Dukes and Laurels. "No money, no ticket", she cried. This event has also been noted for the exploding bottles of left over mead. Frieden still found pieces of glass when he moved nearly four years later!

We had regular monthly meetings then and started the tradition of pot-luck suppers and all-day "STOMPS" with a business meeting thrown in for looks. Maggy and I traded off hosting them (can you believe it? at one time the entire Swamp fit comfortably in my little apartment.) By the third Meeting we got a pretty full slate of officers, Magda was our Mistress of Arts, Elysende our Exchequers, Hrymgnar our Captain of Archers, and Aleksondra our Pursuivant. Gershom even tried to beat some medieval Astronomy into our heads.

1980

Two spinoff groups formed at about the same time. Sigmundr formed the ill-fated (and well-named) Blasted Heath and Gershom organized a tiny group at Princeton. Of these fledgling groups only the Swamp survived.

Also about this time, I first laid eyes on Aelfric (scrawny little thing that he was then), who could "talk your ears off worse than Rory if you can believe it".

Elysende took the plunge and volunteered to autocrat our first real all Swamp event in March, the MUDTHAW (what else?). This time we used the Manville Fire Hall which had wood walls and a great sound system. Determined to have entertainment, we planned a dance contest and a magicians' contest (a WIZ-OFF!) with cloaks as prizes for the winners. Steven Gray did up a great cartoon for our Pikestaff ad and then we waited.........would anybody come??????

Silly question, I have pictures to prove people were there (Gavin (the King) and Andreas de Vulpes to name a few, for those who remember THAT MESS). Rory won acclaim as the winning magician. Sigmundr and Ushi (now Norr) got their first taste of Swamp clean-up, aided by Gershom who was up to his ears in dish soap washing pots. Frieden ran his first Tourney, and I arranged crash space.

Outshining five other dancers, Magda (yes, Magda!) was spectacular as she excited the crowd to a shouting, clapping roar. .Strykar was positively foaming at the mouth as she swirled by. Aleksondra was acclaimed the best of the novice dancers. And the food! The spiked fruit salad and Frieden's Baklava were absolutely sinful. Only one thing was wrong...the damn MUD refused to thaw!

Also around March, Gwenyth arrived on the scene and was thoroughly terrorized by the raging attentions of the Swamp Mashers at her first Stomp at Frieden and Aleksondra's. She must have liked it ...she's still around. Gwen wrote lots of letters so the first time I laid eyes on her, I dropped the chroniclership in her lap, and the Mudpuppy became a real work of art with poetry and recipes (and me screaming about deadlines and calendars.) Gwen started right in making the Swamp banner (the big one we still use) and lots of gold key and (of course) GWEN dresses.

The Swamp had started traveling a lot together. We caravaned to the Carolingia May Games included Hrymgnar's half-dead van which broke down at least twice in each direction, and I got my great reputation for giving directions. At the May Games, they had a maypole and a "Green Man", whose kiss insured fertility. The Swamp ladies got their revenge by tying the Green Man to the Maypole! Swampies went to Gavin's Coronation and presented a gift of liquid fire. But most often, we traveled to Bhakail events. That January we traveled to Bhakail's Twelfth Night which was huge (again no entertainnent (sigh)). Sigmundr saved Rory's neck by driving back to N.J. to retrieve some keys and then driving all the way back to Bhakail to rescue Rory's stranded car. That summer, I started carting Darrell and Aelfric (the Boggies) around to events. It was on the way back from that wonderful Peace that we wrote "Swamp Fools". Frieden received his award of arms at Bishop Geoffrey's Melee Tourney from King Gavin. Eligor, Damien and the Rutgers crew appeared about this time and twenty-two swampies absoulutely SWAMPED the Ceildhi that year. Frieden organized our first camping event at Tinicum park (where Airelle, Ellwyn, and Bronwyn first showed up, and Gershom gave a night-sky appreciation talk). We gave our first demo at Packard's flea market (and then cooled off in Airelle's marvelous swimming pool).

I absolutely must say more about Peace that year. This has got to be my all time favorite event. It was boiling hot and the fighters had been at it all day. The chiurgeons were really worried about heat stroke and had lots of ice on hand. Finally at 7 pm they opened the pool and 75 heat- crazed SCA-bums charged the Pool in shifts and bathing suits. I think it started by doing a hole-in-the-wall in the water (just try doing a hole-in-the-wall in deep water) and then the AMOEBA grew...It was incredible all these stuffy SCA-types linking arms and bouncing up and down and surrounding some hapless victim, all the while giving out a deep, resounding "AMOEBA! AMOEBA! AMOEBA!" Then we all charged out of the water and got into fancy court garb. I don't know, maybe it was the wine, but that hall resounded with good vibes. Everyone was happy and out to KILL the Middle Kingdom. Then Donald the Sea Sailor, who is tall, blond and lean, got up and started singing a WAR chant. The hall positively reverberated to the sound of "We Will, We Will KNOCK YOU! WE Will, We Will KNOCK YOU!" Absolutely incredible vibes. That event was also the first taste we had of Gershom's "Cosmic Debris Chili", of Boggy Stacking, and of playing "Kill the Boggies" with shinai swords, as well as seeing Hrymgnar (Hrymseekens) as a full-fledged merchant. This was the first event where I really felt at home in the Eastern Kingdom.

Culture started creeping in. Aeginold made his first sundial, I made our first pavilion, Frieden brewed his first batch of "Haus Von Modoc" mead, Aelfric drew gorgeous mastheads for the Mudpuppy and Elysende's article on Currency in the Middle Ages was accepted for Tournaments Illuminated. The fighters weren't dozing in a corner all this while. Hrymgnar had qualified in May and Berudta in July. Frieden had written an article on how to construct a sword and fight practice was held pretty regularly at a park near Elysende's (where Gwen first dragged a very reluctant Berudta). That summer, Swamp fighters had even won their first big victory by defeating Dragonship Haven in a two out of three melee at the Ceilidh in Bhakail.

Well, with all this splendor we had to start showing it off. So, once again Elysende (who had also become the Swamp's "temporary" Mistress of Lists) braved the trials of autocrating and the first Amber Kirn was planned. It was to be held that November, in the glorious graduate hall of Princeton U. Gershom (who had been dubbed a full-blood Swampie) begged pleaded and sold his soul to get that site, while Maggy cooked, I ran entertainment, and Frieden ran the tourney on a field one could only reach by driving. The Swamp players made their first appearance with the HOT IRON. We were all type-cast with Elysende the shrewish wife, Rory the loud-mouth husband and me the hoary old grandmother...naturally we got rave reviews. And the hall,oh the hall was glorious, stained glass windows, cathedral ceilings, block stone walls and a real fireplace with real wood and real (choke, koff, hack) smoke. Aeginold wrote this great poem that begins: "Listen my children and you shall learn, of the wondrous madness of Amber-Kirn".

August rolled around and we were one year old. We'd incorporated Hunterdon county (in addition to Morris and Somerset) and GEEZ we'd grown. Aeginold had been named our Master of Sciences and Phil had won first place in Instrument construction and performance at the Ice Dragon Pentathalon. Elysende had become the Central Region Mistress of Lists and Magda was the Central Region Seneschal.

The first Anniversary was at Magda's. We played Princum Prankum and Clench-a-wench (haven't done THAT in a while. Gwen produced her first gingerbread subtlety, a sinking Dragonship to commemorate our fighter's victory. Heinrich made his first appearance (as Thonqor) and Algernon demonstrated his skill in kissing (yum!). We celebrated surviving our first year by starting to talk about "going Barony". It still seemed a joke at that time, we were so young and goofy.

At the war that year we camped with Magda's household (I don't think they were quite ready for a loose and unstuffy group like the Swamp). In the battles, Freiden, Berudta, Hrymgnar and Gershom downed a host of Middlers and I got three-out-of-three kills in archery. Siegfried was knighted at that war and stood vigil during the night. Aeginold and Aleksondra won red ribbons in the Arts competition. In court, Magda was honored with the Silver Crescent, the Eastern Kingdom service award.With 2,000 people at that war many Swampies got their first exposure to the incredible diversity within the SCA as well as the sheer magic. The term, "Gliss-out" was coined to describe the incredible job of seeing a field covered with banner topped pavilions.

That year (1980) was the first Oriental Feast in Bhakail. We ate at low tables 'and everyone wore Kimonos. One Lady wore 17 kimonos to exhibit her wealth, and Frieden wore this great red satin thing. Ushi and Strykar sumo wrestled in the courtyard, in these little loin cloths (really a sight to behold). At the feast, Elysende and Bojzena were presented with their awards of arms from King Gavin and Queen Tamera. I won best costume, at least partly due to this black Geisha wig I borrowed, nobody recognized me with black hair...

GriffonWald was organized at the start of that school year and joined the Swamp as our first canton. Eligor was Seneschale and the group included Kenneth (Exchequer), Beatrice, Emrys, Brighit, and Larry Bruskin (remember all the great stomps we used to have at Larry's? You couldn't believe this house, it was like a mansion. It had to have twenty rooms, all gorgeous. Andrea (who had just come from the Western Kingdom) organized regular fighting practices at Rutgers and they got a budget for Armour (wow a budget! those were the days)...

The Amber Kirn was November of that year (1980), we helped Carillion with a demo in Atlantic City at the "Camelot" ground-breaking ceremony (and were paid $100 for our efforts!). Aeginold made his carved marble sundial (which later took 1st place at the Arts Pentathalon in Rhydderich Hail) and Aleksondra published an article in Pikestaff on calligraphy. In December, Ellwyn hosted an impromptu Stomp and she and Arielle and Bronwyn prepared hot cider and sausages over an open fire. There were workshops on needlework, sundials, and leatherworking.

1981

Gwen got her award of arms...TWICE, once from Gavin and once from Siegfried! Gershom received his award of arms from Siegfried. Then, Siegfried called forward the Shire of Settmour Swamp, Magda and I walked forward side-by-side and Swampies literally poured into the aisles behind us and filled all the space behind. The speech I'd written that afternoon asking for the boon of becoming a Barony was read (William Widefarer said a relay team of heralds should have read that speech). We left that Court a Barony and Magda was crowned our first Baroness. Poor Heinrich had tried his best to make a coronet for her but the stone fell out and it was about 5 inches in diameter (nice try, it was still better than NO coronet!).The whole event was so wonderful because all the Swampies worked so hard. Kenneth, Arielle (who had flown hack from Georgia to attend), Bronwyn, Heinrich, Sigmundr, Rory, Frieden (not to mention Elysende) worked all day and well into the night. To acknowledge this great event, Magda, Elysende and I later received the order of the Burdened Tiger from Siegfried.

It was a rowdy crowd and got very boisterous after Aleksondra's dancing. The Tuchux, who had come at the special invitation of Siegfried, literally camped on furs in a corner of the hall and ate their own food. They were a strange sight amongst the court finery. Jubal came forward to lead the best entertainment of the night. To the pounding beat of the dance music, the Tuchux introduced dagger fighting and everyone loved it. It was really bizarre to see all these people in elaborate court garb, screaming and cheering on the fur clad barbarians. Elysende and I muscled our way in and fought each other. I won, then she won, then I won and then nearly fainted when a Tuchux wench challenged me, dagger in hand...

At the June Stomp at Lydia's, Elysende was named assistant Seneschale and Lydia took on the responsibility of Exchequer. Now, Exchequer is a totally invisible job if its done right and Lydia made it absolutely disappear. Berudta began organizing fighting practices which were moved around a lot but were often at Lydia and Asdrubal's.

At the Peace that year, it RAINED AND RAINED. Poor Gwen had set Up camp beside our cabin and she was flooded time and again. At Bishop Geoffrey's Melee Tourney we spent time at Sparrow Hawk's (a Tuchuk) encampment drinking bottle after bottle of wine and pouncing on stray males 2 and 3 ladies at a time. Corwin was amazed and frustrated as XXXX...Somehow, a late night QUEST was begun to find Berudta (who no doubt preferred to be lost). This was also the first time dagger fighting really caught on and there was semi-organized melee for non-fighters with bamboo shinai swords.

This was also the summer of the first camping events at Cheesequake Park which Eligor organized for us by reserving camping space for fake groups. Also Ellwyn had hosted the first Baronial Championship Tourney that Spring and Berudta won glory for himself and the right to defend and protect our Baroness. Merlynia had become our Mistress of Arts and she and Eric designed and built a brightly colored Viking A-frame tent. Also at Ellwyn's, Berudta offered himself as an object d' art for Merlynia to demonstrate the application of bright blue woad (it must have been interesting going to work that Monday). I think it was also this Stomp that we decided the Swamp cheer should be "Let them eat MUD" and that our Baroness should be addressed as "Her Mudship".

Siegfried was WAR King that year (1981) and Magda was a lady in waiting to Queen Wanda so she camped "on the hill" and the Swamp made its first really independent and impressive showing that year. Lydia and Merlynia had come to Siegfried's Coronation and right away they started bustling about the Swamp. Lydia had organized our clothier's Guild with meetings at her house every other week. The Guild's first project was tabards for the Swamp fighters. (I still have one tabard anybody know where the others are?). So, the Swamp fighters, Berudta, Connieoch, Gershom, Frieden, Thalien all wore our colors and made a grand showing. We had a large encampment with some twenty Swamp tents. Aeginold and Gershom had organized the Astronomy Guild which entered a 16th century brass sextant in the War Arts Pentathalon. Gwen acted as camp mommy and Gershom and Arielle washed enough dishes to fill the Swamp (which is why we now try to use non-period paper plates). Speaking of Arielle, now there'sdedication. How many people come home from college to go to a Swamp event? Berudta was in Siegfried's household and had to stand guard in the royal encampment (bummer). The Tuchux remembered us and a few came by to visit see what we'd learned of dagger fighting. Tsnao attached himself to our camp (we have a reputation for good food and company and every war we pick up a few strays). Many Swampies delighted in the cool water of a late night swim. Siegfried led the East to its first victory and Bishop Geoffrey singlehandedly stopped the rain by offering to remain celibate for an entire month (a most difficult task for a 14th century Bishop). Phil won a blue ribbon with a performance on his dulcimer and Gwenyth received the Queen's Cypher, via a messenger from Andrea, who had become Queen of the West (and was soon to be Knighted).

Our first event at Schooley's Mountain was also the first Peasant feast, in September. Gwen got her first taste of autocrating and cooking at the same time. Frieden set up his forge and demonstrated blacksmithing all day. Merlynia and Lydia ran entertainment. Merlynia was totally incredible in her crown of oak leaves as she ran the King of Fools contest which was admirably won by Ian of Clan Mitchel. Lydia, Eric and she ran games all day for the non-fighters. Kestral, Eligor, Magnus, Katrine and I performed Andrea's play, "After the Dragon". Berudta (who had become our assistant Knight Marshal) ran the tournament assisted by Bronwyn (who had become Mistress of Lists). I mostly remember how crowded it was. Our events had become too popular...

I have to Mention the Oriental Feast at which Merlynia wore her "big bird" suit. It was this incredible bright yellow cape of feathers which she broadly declared was Medieval. Polynesian, but Medieval.

Amber Kirn, that November, rates number two on my top ten list of favorite events. The Tuchux, Deathshadow had come to visit and added a touch of mystery to the event and had apparently challenged Berudta for the right to carry Elysende off in chains. Oberon had become our master of music and set the mood with his sound system. At court, Baroness Magda presided over the marriage of Emrys and Brighid and Deathshadow presented our Baroness with a gift from Wolf, the leader of the Tuchux. We danced for the Tuchux' pleasure and then got everyone up on the floor dancing the Maltese variation that we'd learned earlier that year from Knut when he visited from California. I remember Aidan exclaiming how wonderful she felt. Mood, vibes, for me, its everything...

Well that about brings us up to 1982, gee and this was going to be a short introduction to the main body of the story. I've left lots of stuff but then I can't be expected to remember everything. As soon as I get around to it, I'll continue with the on-going saga.