Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — March 26, 2025

On March 26, 1790, the US Congress passed the first Naturalization Act, requiring a two-year residency for arriving immigrant “free white persons” before granting them citizenship. (The residency requirement was raised to five years in 1795, and 14 years in 1798. This first Nationality Act produced the new legal category of “aliens ineligible for citizenship.”  The 1913 painting above, “Wall Street, 1790” was by Jennie Augusta Brownscombe (1850-1936.)

—

On March 26th, 1812 an earthquake now estimated at 7.7 on the Richter scale destroyed 90% of Caracas, Venezuela. It killed an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 people.

—

We are continuing our big one-week sale at Elk Creek Company. We’ve put all of our pre-1899 Mausers and Carcano sporters as well as all of our Pietta percussion revolvers on sale. This sale will end on Monday, March 31st. Also, take note that I’ve boosted our pre-1965 silver divisor to 24.9 times face value, if you’d like to pay in pre-1965 junk silver.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 117 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
3. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
4. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
5. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $250 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
3. A Laptop EMP Shield and a Smartphone Faraday Bag (a combined value of $200), courtesy of MobileSecSolutions.com.
4. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
2. 3Vgear.com is providing an ultimate bug-out bag bundle that includes their 3-day Paratus Bag, a Posse EDC Sling Pack, and a Velox II Tactical Backpack. This prize package has a $289 retail value.
3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $950,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 117 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.