Journey Through Slavery part 4 - Judgement Day

William L. Garrison

The end of one era led to an entirely new one; it has now gone from thirteen states to twenty-four. Butler Island was as old as the nation itself; Pierce Butler was to inherit part of the richest family fortune around. His grandfather was a Major and signed the constitution himself; he also helped draft the Fugitive Slave Act. Butler's wife was an abolitionist, however, and urged him to slowly let go of slaves and grant them their freedom. Her name was Fanny Kemble, a famous actress at the time  lacks everywhere were affected by slavery, yet there were over 200,000 free slaves in both the North and South combined. William Lloyd Garrison, a white abolitionist, was blamed for the death of David Walker due to his anti-slavery newspaper; he was part of an immense trend of abolitionists that threatened the nation's way of life, it's foundation. Many whites knew that slavery was immoral, but many more thought that to get rid of slavery would cause greater entropy among all citizens and slaves of the nation. What completely rocked the world as they knew it was women and black abolitionists were brought onto and spoke fr the movement; they were given no mercy, however, and were stoned and burned to death. Racial supremacy for the whites was big in those days; employment, citizenship, etc. was valued and given to whites since they were better than everyone else. During the Jacksonian era, slavery was also increased due to the westward expansion; Native Americans were displaced and their land was taken. The more land, the more plantations, the more cotton, and the more slaves. In my opinion, slavery was a difficult issue as it tied into both the Northern industry and Southern tradition, two very vital parts of American life as they knew it.

http://www.ushistory.org/us/28a.asp

Journey Through Slavery part 3 - Brotherly Love

   The state of the situation that African Americans was inspiring due to their pushing and pushing of the promises made by white men in the Constitution, such as Thomas Jefferson's "all men are created equal", yet Jefferson himself owned slaves. There was no truth in his words, since he made excuses that blacks were naturally inferior to whites; the could not be seen as equal to the rest of the world. The saying "Practice what you preach" would not apply to him since he in fact could not turn away free labor; this free labor was also the source of he immense wealth that many southerners experienced. There was however, a small sliver of hope for the blacks when Richard Allen, a black man, gained his own freedom and started crusading for the equality of blacks.

   Allen was a Methodist preacher in 1786 and started the African Methodist Episcopal Church in the year 1794, the first denomination to be lead by blacks. At this church, there were many meetings held to discuss ways of gaining freedom for blacks; there were even spoken words by the ACS. The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney, however, slashed that sliver of hope; the South needed laborers to work the machines which highlighted the importance of slavery. The cotton gin, although important to the industrialization of our nation, was in my opinion a downfall to the abolition movement since slaves were used to it. The revenue made by the machine was a plus to the South's economy. On the first of January in 1808, the transportation, importation and trade of slaves was made illegal and no longer allowed in America; this did not loosen the hold the south had on slaves, but made it stronger and tighter. 

http://www.history.com/topics/cotton-gin-and-eli-whitney

The Battle of Antietam

    The Battle of Antietam, also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg happened on Sept. 17, 1862; it was mostly centered in the South. Attacks were made on Confederate General Robert Lee's troops by the troops of  Major General George McClellan and Major General Joseph Hooker around Antietam Creek in Maryland.  Major General Ambrose Burnside joined the fight against the confederates with Hooker and McClellan, however Confederate Major General A.P. Hill fought back Burnside, driving his forces back. Despite his small numbers, Lee sent all of his men to the line and was able to hold his own against McClellan's forces, although McClellan was able to keep Lee from invading Maryland, making this a strategic Union win. There was a total of 12,400 casualties, 2,100 being killed and 22,720 Confederate casualties, 3,650 being killed. It was a battle in the West, it being closer to the Mississippi River.
     This battle was important because the Union troops were able to push back the Confederate troops to behind the Potomac River; also, McClellan was able to keep Lee from invading Maryland. It also affected the confederacy as it kept them from gaining aid from Britain or France. General McClellan's military career was also effectively ended by President Lincoln, as he was disappointed in his lack of organization. The battle however, was considered a turning point in the war, as it ended Lee's invasion of the North.

Battle of Antietam

Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan

Lucretia Mott

http://gos.sbc.edu/m/mott.html

APPARTS
Author:
The primary source was written by Lucretia Mott.
Place: 
The primary source was written in the United States in 1849 as a speech and distributed as pamphlets.
Prior Knowledge:
Mott was a Quaker minister, but also a pacifist; she was against the Mexican War and Civil War.
Audience: 
The primary source was written for men and women of her congregation, as well as the general public.
Reason: 
The primary source was written to express the women's rights in different situations of daily life.
Main Idea:
The point of the primary source was to have her audience, specifically men, listen to what she believes about women as well as provide examples.
Significance: 
The source was a prime example of the growing desire among women to be given their natural rights.

     The biggest issue facing America was slavery and women's rights; both were my main focus as an activist. I am a Quaker, and naturally I believe slavery was a depiction of evil; no matter the color of our skin, we are human and therefore should be treated as such. Women should also be treated as humans; we are deprived of rights that are said to be naturally born with humans. What moral difference is there really between man and woman? Both attend church, both are needed to create families; why should both not be regarded as equal? Under the present system of government, social justice for women cannot and will not be achieved. 

     Human nature is good; our actions as human can be bad. We are only as good as our actions, and by condoning issues such as slavery and the oppression of women we condone evil as well. A law can change human behavior or worsen it; it is up to ourselves to look into our hearts and find the will to change our attitude and state of mind. Immediate change can happen and i hope they do, but by gradually gaining followers and empowering our movement, we will see a more permanent impact. 

     I believe that active involvement will create improvements in our society; if one wants something done, they must do it themselves. A good society is one that follows the will of God; this can only happen if we stop discrimination and accept the equality of women and different races. 

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Declaration_of_Sentiments.ht of Sentiments
Author:
The primary source was written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Place:
The primary source was written in Seneca Falls, New York and given as a speech at the Seneca Falls Convention.
Prior Knowledge:
Elizabeth Stanton was a writer, suffragist, woman's rights activist and abolitionist.
Audience:
The primary source was created fro the attendees of the Seneca Falls Convention.
Reason:
The primary source was created in order to put in published form the rights that women should and will be given.
Main Idea: 
The point of the source was to adequately covey the sentiments or views that women face from men on a daily basis.
Significance: 
The source was a first hand account against the wrongdoings men constantly did to women in the nineteenth century.

   Elizabeth Cady Stanton was born November 12, 1815 in Johnston, New York. She was agnostic and married in 1840. She had four children and died October 26, 1902.

 

     The biggest issue facing America is women's suffrage and the movement to obtain rights for woman; I fought for women's liberties for parental and custody, property, employment and income, divorce from husbands, and so forth to name a few. Women are undervalued and seen as insignificant by both African American and Anglo American standards; the only thing we are good for is producing children. This needs to change; women are not only vital, they are the caretakers of American values and are responsible for creating the next generation to carry on these morals. Under the present system of government the United States of America,  social justice for women cannot ever be obtained; our system is overrun by men who preserve the very idea that women belong in a kitchen and not a career.
     Individual human nature, i believe is interchangeable. As a young girl, i did all i could to make my father as proud as he was my brother, yet all he wished was for me to be a boy; an exact opposite, my neighbor Rev. Simon Hosack was a believer in my abilities, and saw past the fact that i was a female. Human nature is both good and bad; the bad weighs out the good and the good weighs out the bad. Legislation can change human behavior; i explain so in my speech, the Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions. Immediate changes will be the answer to  our problems.
     Society is improved by active involvement. African Americans did not achieve the 14th and 15th Amendments by merely waiting; they went out and fought for their rights. Now women of all races must take notice and realize that if they want rights like a man, they must go out and fight for them like a man. A good society consists of equality between the genders, not one undermining the other.

Colonel Ethan Allen Hitchcock/U.S. Naval Officer

I am a professional soldier, graduate if the U.S. Military Academy, commander of the 3rd Infantry Regiment. I am an aide to General Zachary Taylor. Like President Polk, Taylor wanted wanted a war with Mexico, so he moved troops to the Rio Grande-- territory claimed by both Mexico and Texas-- to provoke the Mexicans. Eventually, the Mexicans did attack, as Taylor and Polk knew they would l. And now U.S. leaders have their war. The United States doesn't have any right whatsoever to move into Mexico. The government is looking for war so that it can take over as much of Mexico as it wants. The United States is the aggressor. My heart is not in this war. But I am an officer in the U.S. Army and I must carry out my orders.

http://www.historyisaweapon.com/defcon1/hitchcockdiary.html

From the diary of Hitchcock, recounts on the days of June 30, 1845 to March 26, 1846 speaks of Hitchcock's view from the invasion of Mexico. He describes the event with as much detail as possible, yet from his point of view, this invasion has no grounds to happen and itself describes the repulsion Hitchcock has towards these efforts. He also talks mentions the two main forces behind the war with Mexico: Polk and Taylor. They are the main ones who push for the invasion.

I'm a luck man. I got to sail into California to seize that territory for the United States of America. Its our a now, not the Mexicans'. Here's what I wrote in my diary when I sailed up from South America and landed in Monterey, California: "Asia will be brought to our very doors. Population will flow into the fertile regions of California. The resources of the entire country will be developed. The public lands lying along the route if railroads will be changed from deserts into gardens, and a large population will be settled." This is where I'm going to settle after we defeat the Mexicans once and for all.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=llsl&fileName=009/llsl009.db&recNum=975

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was a treaty that designated the Rio Grande as the borderline between the two countries of Mexico and the United States. It was signed by the countries on February 2, 1848 and officially ended the Mexican War. Mexico was paid 15 millions dollars in exchange for new territory that included California, Texas and Nevada.

The Chesapeake Leopard Incident

The Chesapeake was correct in their decision to refuse the British captain's request; there was no evidence that what the British were saying was true. To give up four sailors just because the British said to would betray the idea of American independence from Britain. The idea of this situation being closer to shore would not have helped; that would have merely meant that more innocent civilians by the shore would have been injured by the scuffle. Although it was a serious incident, it should not have caused America to declare war, though it should have implicated that the Americans should prepare for anything possible.
Had the Chesapeake been more militarily prepared, they would have not been so easily defeated; however, it was itself a warship, meaning shouldn't it have been prepared enough? Would this have been applied to all American warships, or only this incident? Economically, we should not have to spend an excess amount on the military, but in those days, with the revolution having been only 20 years prior, being stable would have helped. The British kidnapping american sailors is not exactly cause for an entire war, though they should be retrieved; the  un-abandonment of British forts would be even more reason to be prepared, not attack.
The British do have a right to demand their sailors back, but only if the sailors are on the actual boat. There was no certain way of knowing whether or not the fugitive sailors were on a boat, and taking four random sailors is unethical. The American captains and the Navy cannot be held responsible for these fugitives; they are fugitives after all, meaning they sneaked onto the ships without consent. If anything, the fugitives are the ones to be blamed for their unwillingness to stay with their ship. It is not worth a war. The justice is the actual fugitives being  returned, not just random sailors picked at hand to replace them.

The Effectiveness of President Washington

    Public support is defined as voluntary assistance or reinforcement of all or most of the people of a country, state, etc. It ranges from fundraising efforts to financially support or vocally agreeing with a political candidate or ideology. Public support can be the difference between the election or rejection of a President simply because the public is needed to get the ball rolling to make decisions regarding the country and its citizens. If the citizens do not agree with, for example a new legislation, they will not follow it; moreover, the public will denounce the decision and the President, and rebellions will inevitably ensue.
    In George Washington's case, he had the support of the people of the thirteen states due to the fact that he knew how to lead. He had been commander of the Continental Army and a delegate in Congress; he was also one of the individuals who signed the Constitution. He was familiar with the needs and wants of the people. Throughout his seven years and three hundred and eight days as president, he managed to work alongside people from different political parties successfully and made necessary adjustments to benefit the citizens of America.
   President Washington's ability to make decisions regarding the country made for an effective society. With most of the country behind him, Washington was able to produce a thriving, flourishing economy which helped unify and strengthen the country. The effectiveness of Washington's presidency was evident in his decisions and how he met the needs of the country; his leadership skills were only strengthened by the confidence the people had in him and this reflected upon the new nation.

John Hancock

   John Hancock was born on January 23 in 1737 in Braintree, Massachusetts; Hancock lived with his father who was a reverend until the older gentleman died in 1744. He was sent to live with his aunt and uncle, later becoming officially adopted by the couple as they had no children. He higher education consisted of attending Harvard University, and then became a successful merchant with his own shipping business. He journeyed to London for a time, later returning to the New World to take over his deceased uncles businesses and land.
     In the 1760s he became immersed in politics as he commanded large protests against the highly unfair British taxes implemented in the American colonies. He went to court for the illegal imports of British goods, and later became a grand force in the mob against British forces. In 1775, he became the leader of the Continental Congress while fellow ally George Washington was commander of the Continental Army. He was the first to sign Declaration of Independence, his signature over exaggerated; afterward, the notion of signing one's name was known as leaving one's "John Hancock".
     Hancock became the Massachusetts governor in the early 1780's; he resigned from his post just as he did from his presidency of the Congress due to ill health. He was reelected in 1787 after Shay's Rebellion had wracked the state. Hancock died in October of 1793 and was laid to rest in Boston.

Bacon's Rebellion

      Bacon's Rebellion took place in 1676, and was led by Nathaniel Bacon. He was motivated to gather those who were displaced by the governor William Berkeley and rise against the voted leader. Due to the recent Indian attacks on the colony and the non-active stance Berkeley had posed, Bacon decided to lead his unruly group to attack as many Indians as the could seek out.  

      The idea behind Bacon's Rebellion was not only a group of stubborn individuals who were looking to obtain revenge against the Indians; they wanted to send a message to Berkeley from Bacon, as a showcase of his own form of power. The farmers who followed him also utilized this event as an opportunity to show the growing independence in the minds of the oppressed. They began to steer away from the clutches of a paternalistic society when threatened by the Indians and embrace a new ideology: autonomy. 

      In July of the same year, Bacon delivered a speech dubbed "Declaration of the People", where he made people swear their allegiance to him. Unfortunately for Bacon, it all rolled downhill afterwards; he died later in October of the same year. It was then that Berkeley returned to not only save face, but to gather his own revenge; twenty threes individuals who had been part of the rebellion were lynched as an example of his power. Consequently, the governor was then released of his job and died in 1677.  

historymatters.gmu..edu/d/5800

The New Hampshire Colony

       The New Hampshire colony was settled in 1623 by Captain John Mason and Sir Ferdinando Gorges.They were the first proprietaries. It was then later bequeathed to Mason by the King and made into a royal colony. A royal charter was given in the late 1670's as it was merged with Massachusetts then later taken apart. The Indian population included the Abenaki, which were involved in a lot of wars. They also raised tobacco, and different types of vegetables. The colony itself was involved with shipbuilding and fish; this was their economy. The colony was not strictly any one religion either. 

       Important people from the colony were Sir Ferdinando Gorges, David Thomson, Edward and Thomas Hilton, John Wheelwright, and John Cutt.  Sir Gorges was one of the original owners along with Mason. Thomson and the Hilton brothers were sent to scout the land before any real colonization began. John Wheelwright arrived at the colony after banishment from the Bay Colony. He was also Anne Hutchison's brother in law. John Cutt was the first appointed president. 

        The rulers in England during the time the colony was made were King William and Queen Mary. Other rulers were King Charles II and King George III. The colony was involved in three wars, usually the one being hit first. 

;

Juan Ponce de Leon was born in Tierra de Campos de Palacia, Spain in 1840 to a family known for its noble status; he later enlisted as a soldier and fought in the war in Granada. He then left his military life to become an explorer like Columbus; years later, Ponce was named the governor a part of Spain after the notable feat of subduing an Indian rebellion. He was officially sent on an exploration in 1508 by the King and Queen of Spain, on orders to retrieve the gold found in Puerto Rico. When he arrived back, Ponce was named governor of Puerto Rico where he settled with his wife and daughter. 

        He then voyaged onto another exploration for the crown where he looked for more gold while also investigating the fountain of youth. In 1512, the explorer received  a contract from the crown that stated any land he discovered would be his for the next three years, but expected to pay for it all himself. The next year, Ponce led three ships to the island of Bimini. On Easter Sunday the explorer arrived to an island that no sailor had ever seen before, now believed to be the coastline of Florida. They sailed down the coastline until they landed on the Florida mainland on May 23. They encountered Native Americans and all were involved with several skirmishes with both sides were hit with casualties The Spanish took eight Native hostages but nevertheless, were attacked again by the Native Americans, with the Spanish taking down four of their canoes.

        The initial interest of the voyage to Florida was to search for more gold for the Spanish crown.  He was said to have searched for The Fountain of Youth when he landed on the coast of Florida, but never officially found it. The ultimate goal was to look for more gold. The explorer made went to Florida again with others to take over the land. . They were met with attacks after they landed by Indians and Ponce was injured by an arrow with a poison-soaked tip. He sailed to Havana, Cuba for hel, but died. Leon's remains were rest in Puerto Rico, then moved to the Cathedral of San Juan Bautista.