At 58 years of age, Brigadier General Samuel Waldo was a wealthy man. Not only was he a decorated soldier, he was also a merchant and land speculator. The small settlement he had started on his land a few years earlier was doing well. So well, in fact, that he decided the time was ripe for him to help it grow.
Settling in near the fire, Mr. Waldo began to plan. He knew he wanted to bring new settlers to his land, but from where? There were plenty of people in the southern parts of the colonies, but they were likely to be attached to whatever land they already called their own. No, he needed people who had little or nothing to hold them back. There were always people willing to emigrate from Europe, eager to improve their hardscrabble lives. The choice was clear; he would leave for England at once to spread the word about his land.
After successfully crossing the Atlantic, Mr. Waldo realized that not all of those who were eager to make the journey were of the sort that would contribute to the growth of his settlement. He would have to be choosy about who he brought back with him. Taking out an advertisement seemed like the best way to let everyone know exactly what kind of people he was hoping would join him in the colonies. Pen to paper, Mr. Waldo began to write.
First, he’d need to pique their interest. He’d mention the area was already settled so no one would fear leaving civilization behind. People traveling to his lands would also be guaranteed the right to practice any form of Christianity they desired, excluding Catholicism. He noted that the climate was similar to South Britain’s and that the winter snows were short-lived. Once he’d covered the basics, he started his pitch. Extolling the richness of the land, detailing t...
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.... William Grinlay (Greenlaw) and his sons: Jonathan and William Jr., were among the passengers pledging to pay Mr. Waldo back for passage at the end of three years. Not all of his conditions had worked as planned, but Mr. Waldo was still pleased with the outcome.
Captain Coulter breathed a sigh of relief as the Joanna left port on August 11, 1753. It was late in the year to start sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, but with fair winds he thought they would make it before the autumn storms arrived. Exactly 41 days after leaving Greenock, the Joanna arrived in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Captain Coulter was quick to assure the papers that the journey had been smooth and all 60 of his passengers had arrived safely. Captain Coulter’s words reassured the friends and family his passengers had left behind and they too began to dream of improving their lives in the colonies.
“Promises that you make to yourself are often like the Japanese plum tree- they bear no fruit,” said Francis Marion. The youngest son of six children from Gabriel and Esther Marion was born in 1732 at the family plantation in Berkeley County, South Carolina, whose name was soon to be Francis Marion. The Marion family moved to a plantation in St. George when Francis was only a toddler so that the children could receive an education in Georgetown, SC. When Francis turned fifteen, he decided to take a job as a sailor and register as the sixth crewman on a schooner, which is a type of sailing vessel with several masts. After a voyage to the West Indies, on the trip back the ship was reported to be hit by whale and sunken. After a week in a small boat under the blazing sun, two men have died due to exposure and dehydration, while the Marion and the rest have survived and made it back to shore. Soon to come throughout Francis Marion’s life more adventurous scenarios will been seen and greatly affect America’s history which will show how Francis Marion receives the nickname the ,”Swap Fox.”
Another reason they bought land was to give their children a better future so that he/she could do the same. The sons looked upon their father to inherit them with land, but how much can an average colonist afford if he had more than just one son. An example that Gross provides in his book is of a young man who looked upon his father to give him some land. That young man was Purchase Brown a seventeen year old boy, whose father Captain David brown “lived in a household crammed with thirteen people.”(Gross 83). Purchase had four younger brothers and Purchase could not “take over the family farm… before the youngest child came to age…” (Gross 84). This was a problem to all of Concords residents and as land became scarcer, men of Concord started looking west to the frontiers for more land. Another example that Gross describes in of the struggle of some residents of Concord, is a story of two couples named Lucy and Joseph Hosmer. They got married at a young age and Lucy lived her husband on “her in-laws land that was still owned by Joseph’s father.”(Gross 101). The couples worked hard to sustain a good family living. When the war approached in Concord Lucy Hosmer was scared that what if she loses her husband and he dies without “writing a will, then Lucy would struggle to make a living…”(Gross 103). Then Gross state how the
In the times of colonies when land was untouched there was a distinct hatred between the native Indians and the new colonists. As one reads the essay: A True History of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, written by Mary Rowlandson in 1682, one will understand this hatred. Although the Indians captured Mary Rowlandson, with the faith of God she was safely returned. The reader learns of her religious messages and how she turns to God for safety and strong will. One sees how her Puritan beliefs are of the strong New England Puritans way of life. The reader also understands through her words how she views the Indians and their way of life.
Washington Irving, Voyages and Discoveries of the Companions of Columbus (New York: Frederick Unger Publishing Company,) 323.
explained that, by being forced to sell their lands, they could not survive. They would be thrust upon a land where they did not know the terrain, the people that had already occupied it, or even where to find shelter and food. He explained that they could not be expected to just give up their land and way of life for the advancing of the white people.
The small community of Hallowell, Maine was no different than any other community in any part of the new nation – the goals were the same – to survive and prosper. Life in the frontier was hard, and the settlement near the Kennebec Valley was no different than what the pioneers in the west faced. We hear many stories about the forefathers of our country and the roles they played in the early days but we don’t hear much about the accomplishments of the women behind those men and how they contributed to the success of the communities they settled in. Thanks to Martha Ballard and the diary that she kept for 27 years from 1785-1812, we get a glimpse into...
N.A. “What Happened to the Lost Colony of Roanoke?” N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Oct. 2011
"Williamsburg, June 8." Extract of a letter from London, March 17, 1769. Williamsburg: The Pennsylvania Gazette, June 1769.
The first ship, Richard, was lead by Henry Challons, and carried Mannedo and Assacomiot. This ship took a southern route across the Atlantic and was captured by Spaniards off of Florida. They never made it to Weymouth's designated sight. The second ship, lead by Thomas Hanham and Martin Pring, brought Dehananda. They took the designated root and made it to Maine. When they arrived, they could not find the Richard. Dehananda showed crew to the mouth of Sagadahoc River. They thought that location to be superior to Weymouth’s pre decided location and decided to change the colonies location. In December, the second ship left without setting up the beginnings of the colony, as the Plymouth Company had requested (Higgins
The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson is a personal account, written by Mary Rowlandson in 1682, of what life in captivity was like. Her narrative of her captivity by Indians became popular in both American and English literature. Mary Rowlandson basically lost everything by an Indian attack on her town Lancaster, Massachusetts in 1675; where she is then held prisoner and spends eleven weeks with the Wampanoag Indians as they travel to safety. What made this piece so popular in both England and America was not only because of the great narrative skill used be Mary Rowlandson, but also the intriguing personality shown by the complicated character who has a struggle in recognizing her identity. The reoccurring idea of food and the word remove, used as metaphors throughout the narrative, could be observed to lead to Mary Rowlandson’s repression of anger, depression, and realization of change throughout her journey and more so at the end of it.
| 1775 | Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.
In “ A Description of New England ”, Smith starts by describing the pleasure and content that risking your life for getting your own piece of land brings to men. On the other hand, Bradford reminds us how harsh and difficult the trip to the New World was for the p...
...y uses anecdotes and stories of women in the 17th and 18th centuries to provide evidence to the reader and demonstrate the roles women filled and how they filled those roles. Furthermore, she illustrates the individuality in each woman’s story. Although in several of the stories the women may be filling the same roles, the uniqueness of the situation varies from woman to woman. Ulrich’s use of period stories helps add to the credibility of the arguments she makes. She makes the reader feel the weight of responsibility on the shoulders of colonial New England women. A sense of appreciation is gained by the reader for the sheer number of roles fulfilled by the women of New England. In addition, Ulrich’s real life accounts also give valuable insight to life as it was during this time period in American history and the silent heroes behind it – the wives of New England.
Franklin believes to succeed, America needs young men who are able to work and apply themselves to the land to make a name for themselves. According to Franklin, only those who are willing to work and strive for a better life should come to America. Robin is an innocent young man, barely eighteen years old, who has left the stability of his country life, and is now, “as it should seem, upon his first visit into town” (Hawthorne 374). However, Robin arrives to town, believing he will be able to establish himself, not through his own hard work, but through his name via his kinsman, Major Molineux. Major Molineux is a British official who “inherited riches, and acquired civil and military rank,” through his service to the British crown (Hawthorne 382). Hawthorne’s depiction of Robin quickly departs from Franklin’s ideal at this point. Robin plans on seeking out Major Molineux and using his success to further his own goals in this new town. Robin believes through “his kinsman’s generous intentions, especially as he had seemed to be rather the favorite, and was thought to possess the necessary endowments” he will prosper without much effort on his own part (Hawthorne 382-383). He trusts because his kinsman is successful, he will be successful as well.
A Description of New England: or The Observations, and Discoveries, of Captain John Smith (Admiral of that Country), in the North of America, in the year of our Lord, 1614; London, 1616. Reprinted in: Dow, George Francis (1921). Two Centuries of Travel in Essex County Massachusetts: A Collection of Narratives and Observations Made by Travelers 1605-1799. The Perkins Press, Topsfield.