In class lately we have been talking about the turn of the century. We have also had projects based on the turn of the century such as making advertising posters for people to go west, and we made songs out of the information from the chapters we have been covering, and the project that we are recently working on is making a children's book from the events from the turn of the century. The turn of the century consisted of many things such as new inventions, electricity, industrialization and big business growth.
One inventor was named Thomas Edison. He was a great inventor of his time. He invented many things on his time such as the light bulb, phonograph and central power. With Thomas Edison there also came the westing house which generated power to homes. With this electricity brought hot irons, stoves, refrigerators, and vacuums. The electricity also made it more efficiant for factories to work later and get more accomplished.
In this time there was a lot of migration. Everyone wanted to come to America for their own reasons. Some wanted better living conditions by having a clean home or jobs to make more money or even to get away from the war in their country. All immigrants had to go to Ellis Island before they could get into the United States. Later on there was to many immigrants coming into America, which made Americans mad. Americans soon started making life harder for the average immigrant. They did this by making them pay to get in the country, making them go through inspection for diseases, or not even accepting them at all.
Through the years of immigrants being aloud in the country it made it easier and also harder. It was easier because the immigrants did all the work that americans didn't want to do. Also they worked much cheaper than Americans did. Lots of immigrants were found working in textile factories and factories that were poorly constructed and very dangerous. Immigrants even let their children work in these harsh enviornments to make money for their families. Immigrants also made life harder by moving into the cities and making them overpopulated. There was also crime and much violence comitted around where these immigrants were living. Some immigrants banded together against americans, usually teenage boys, to fight the racism of being an immigrant and being rebelious.
For my childrens book, I made a book about an immigrant named Lenny. Lenny is a man in his twenties just trying to make a better life for himself by moving to America. Although Lenny doesnt move to the city, he moves west. He reads a poster that has all the perks of moving west and thinks it will be very easy. This shows a journey of Lenny moving along America to the west in such of a better life. It tells about the things he had to do to prepare for moving and it shows the hardship that he had to go through. Even when he gets to the west, it still doesn't get any easier. The moral of the story is that "the grass isn't always greener on the other side".
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
On to the Westward Migration
We are now putting an end to the Westward Migration chapter. We covered a lot of things in the chapter. We discussed things such as who went west, where they went west, what they brought with them, when they went, and how and why did they go there in the first place.
Ok, so the whole reason why the people started moving west was because of the Homestead act in the 1800's. The Homestead Act was a whole bunch of advertisement. The Homestead Act gave a chance for people to make their lives better. For $10 dollars anyone could have land in the West, which got them 160 acres of land. Everyone thought this would be an easy way to live if only they had more land, but they were wrong because there were many hard decisions and difficult land to travel.
Some groups of people that were known to travel West were Religious people, Farmers, Families, Women, Speculators and also African-Americans. Religious people moved West to get religious freedom and to help spread their religion to other people. Farmers moved West to gain more profit and move land to benefit as farm property. Families moved west to they could have more land and make a better life for themselves as well as their children. Women moved West to be more independent and prove themselves. Speculators moved to the West to set out for gold and make money off of the gold rush. Free African-Americans also moved west to get away from slavery and have a brand new life of their own.
When the migration took place most of the people settled closer to the west coast, such as California, Oregon, Arizona, and Nevada. The travel to these states was very dangerous and no one told them how hard it was going to be. The migrators had to travel long and hard distances and faced many obstacle such as mountains, lack of water and indians.
In all these hardships, they learned to overcome and they did that is what made this migration so inspirational.
Ok, so the whole reason why the people started moving west was because of the Homestead act in the 1800's. The Homestead Act was a whole bunch of advertisement. The Homestead Act gave a chance for people to make their lives better. For $10 dollars anyone could have land in the West, which got them 160 acres of land. Everyone thought this would be an easy way to live if only they had more land, but they were wrong because there were many hard decisions and difficult land to travel.
Some groups of people that were known to travel West were Religious people, Farmers, Families, Women, Speculators and also African-Americans. Religious people moved West to get religious freedom and to help spread their religion to other people. Farmers moved West to gain more profit and move land to benefit as farm property. Families moved west to they could have more land and make a better life for themselves as well as their children. Women moved West to be more independent and prove themselves. Speculators moved to the West to set out for gold and make money off of the gold rush. Free African-Americans also moved west to get away from slavery and have a brand new life of their own.
When the migration took place most of the people settled closer to the west coast, such as California, Oregon, Arizona, and Nevada. The travel to these states was very dangerous and no one told them how hard it was going to be. The migrators had to travel long and hard distances and faced many obstacle such as mountains, lack of water and indians.
In all these hardships, they learned to overcome and they did that is what made this migration so inspirational.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
1st There was Construction and Then there was Reconstruction
We have been talking about reconstruction in the South, and how it has effected the people from the Union and the Confederacy. Key components we have been talking about are Lincoln's assissination and his plan for reconstruction, President Johnson's plan for reconstruction, also about how he abused his powers while in office and the Freedmen's Bureau.
Before Lincoln's assassination his plan for reconstruction was quite moderate. Lincoln was prepared to give pardons to any confederate who would swear allegiance to the Union and take an oath. But he was not going to give pardons to any confederate military, government officials and/or any one who killed an African American. Any confederate states that wanted to have statehood would have to take an oath and obey the Thirteenth Amendment. Lincoln would also fight with the Radicals such as pocket-vetoing a bill.
On the other hand, President Johnson went with his own way of reconstruction. President Johnson granted pardons to 13,000 people which they had to take an oath to the U.S. and there was no exclusions. In President Johnson's plan for reconstruction, to gain statehood, the states had to write a new constitution, void secession, abolish slavery, ratify the 13th amendment and stop payments on war debts. President Johnson did not fight with the Radicals.
President Johnson was known to abuse his powers in office. He was also known to go his own way and not listen to other people. For instance he fired his own Secretary of war without the approval of Congress. He also was not for the Freedmen's Bureau. President Johnson also ignored Lincoln's Plan for reconstruction and made his own plan for reconstruction. Because of Johnson's foolish acts while he was in power, he was impeached by the house.
The Freedmen's Bureau was created to help the former free African American slaves. This was to help educate the Blacks and poor whites in the South. Back then there was no public school, the only way they were educated were through white women and/or private organizations. It was also to provide Healthcare and to help Blacks get economic assistance such a job and money. The freedmen's bureau started before the war. The Freedmen's Bureau was to help the blacks and help the reconstruction of the south.
So these were the points in Reconstruction in the South of the United States. Even though this was a hard movement on the U.S. we still managed to get through these rough times and still do.
Before Lincoln's assassination his plan for reconstruction was quite moderate. Lincoln was prepared to give pardons to any confederate who would swear allegiance to the Union and take an oath. But he was not going to give pardons to any confederate military, government officials and/or any one who killed an African American. Any confederate states that wanted to have statehood would have to take an oath and obey the Thirteenth Amendment. Lincoln would also fight with the Radicals such as pocket-vetoing a bill.
On the other hand, President Johnson went with his own way of reconstruction. President Johnson granted pardons to 13,000 people which they had to take an oath to the U.S. and there was no exclusions. In President Johnson's plan for reconstruction, to gain statehood, the states had to write a new constitution, void secession, abolish slavery, ratify the 13th amendment and stop payments on war debts. President Johnson did not fight with the Radicals.
President Johnson was known to abuse his powers in office. He was also known to go his own way and not listen to other people. For instance he fired his own Secretary of war without the approval of Congress. He also was not for the Freedmen's Bureau. President Johnson also ignored Lincoln's Plan for reconstruction and made his own plan for reconstruction. Because of Johnson's foolish acts while he was in power, he was impeached by the house.
The Freedmen's Bureau was created to help the former free African American slaves. This was to help educate the Blacks and poor whites in the South. Back then there was no public school, the only way they were educated were through white women and/or private organizations. It was also to provide Healthcare and to help Blacks get economic assistance such a job and money. The freedmen's bureau started before the war. The Freedmen's Bureau was to help the blacks and help the reconstruction of the south.
So these were the points in Reconstruction in the South of the United States. Even though this was a hard movement on the U.S. we still managed to get through these rough times and still do.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
US Women Abolitionists in part with the Reconstuction of the South
In my opion, I think the women in the 1830's played a big part in the Anti-Slavery movement which led helping the Reconstruction of the South. The women also felt a connection with themselves to the African Americans. They both saw each other as being oppressed. The women of this movement wanted to help African Americans get an education and also for poor white people. At the same time, the women wanted to get the same equal rights for African Americans as well as theirselves. In the end the helped the African Americans and saw a connection to themselves for being property of their husbands in the American society, which led to the Women's rights movement.
Back then, slaves could be punished for even attempting to learn or read. The slave owner thought that African Americans were inferior. Later on the whites didn't want the African Americans to have an education because they knew education means power, and they didn't want the African Americans to fight back. Knowing this the Women of the North were at controversy with the slave owners and people that segragated the African Americans. The Abolitionists were persistant and wouldn't give up on getting rights for African Americans and being able to be treated the same. They made this movement hard to ignore which was brought to the nations attention and was a rude awakening for the US.
The abolitionists had to make their mark, so they started many anti-slavery societies. They made numerous attempts to end anti-slavery and segregation and their attempts were successful. The women of this movement did such things as signing petitions, holding meetings, writing literature, boycotting products and giving speeches. Even some abolitionist resulted to violence when trying to bring this movement to a satifying end, but this number was very few.
"They say that the negroes are very well contented in ... slavery.... [S]uppose it were the fact the black man was contented...to see his wife sold on the auction-block or his daughter violated.... I say that is the heaviest condemnation of the institution, that slavery should blot out a man's manhood so as to make him contented to accept this degradation, and such an institution ought to be swept from the face of the earth." - J. Sella Martin, ex-slave
By the words of the slaves, these women knew they had to do something and sought help until they accomplished what they were seeking. Even though it was their idea to work together to get through this, it is said that the African Americans and whites did not always see eye to eye. African Americans saw this movement more personal then the other abolitionists did. Even the African Americans saw this opportunity to stand up for themselves. Such was a black women that was inspired by this movement and her name was Maria Stewart. The first African American women to really stand up for what she believed in and this woman wrote literature about the movement and even gave public speeches, this was a great step for helping the abolitionists and her people. There was also others such as Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Tubman and more. These women helped by "boycotting slave-produced goods and organizing fairs and food sales to raise money for the cause".
A big point of this movement was when the had Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women in 1838 at the Pennsylvania Hall. This convention sparked attention because 3,000 black and white women showed for this convention but his covention, I think wasn't a success because there were mobs that formed outside and tried to sabotage the meeting. After the meeting the mob would verbally assult the women and stoned them. The following day, the same mob burned down the hall when the women had their first convention. Violence also occured in this movement towards the people involved.
The abolitionist and African American had it tough during and after this movement. But their hard work and persistance payed off and left a huge footprints in the US society today. They had to go through alot to overcome this obsticle and they achieved what they sought for. This was a big win for the women and African Americans. This even sparked the Women's Rights movement which also was a large part of US history, but if it wasn't for most of the women and African Americans our society would not be what it is, today.
Back then, slaves could be punished for even attempting to learn or read. The slave owner thought that African Americans were inferior. Later on the whites didn't want the African Americans to have an education because they knew education means power, and they didn't want the African Americans to fight back. Knowing this the Women of the North were at controversy with the slave owners and people that segragated the African Americans. The Abolitionists were persistant and wouldn't give up on getting rights for African Americans and being able to be treated the same. They made this movement hard to ignore which was brought to the nations attention and was a rude awakening for the US.
The abolitionists had to make their mark, so they started many anti-slavery societies. They made numerous attempts to end anti-slavery and segregation and their attempts were successful. The women of this movement did such things as signing petitions, holding meetings, writing literature, boycotting products and giving speeches. Even some abolitionist resulted to violence when trying to bring this movement to a satifying end, but this number was very few.
"They say that the negroes are very well contented in ... slavery.... [S]uppose it were the fact the black man was contented...to see his wife sold on the auction-block or his daughter violated.... I say that is the heaviest condemnation of the institution, that slavery should blot out a man's manhood so as to make him contented to accept this degradation, and such an institution ought to be swept from the face of the earth." - J. Sella Martin, ex-slave
By the words of the slaves, these women knew they had to do something and sought help until they accomplished what they were seeking. Even though it was their idea to work together to get through this, it is said that the African Americans and whites did not always see eye to eye. African Americans saw this movement more personal then the other abolitionists did. Even the African Americans saw this opportunity to stand up for themselves. Such was a black women that was inspired by this movement and her name was Maria Stewart. The first African American women to really stand up for what she believed in and this woman wrote literature about the movement and even gave public speeches, this was a great step for helping the abolitionists and her people. There was also others such as Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Tubman and more. These women helped by "boycotting slave-produced goods and organizing fairs and food sales to raise money for the cause".
A big point of this movement was when the had Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women in 1838 at the Pennsylvania Hall. This convention sparked attention because 3,000 black and white women showed for this convention but his covention, I think wasn't a success because there were mobs that formed outside and tried to sabotage the meeting. After the meeting the mob would verbally assult the women and stoned them. The following day, the same mob burned down the hall when the women had their first convention. Violence also occured in this movement towards the people involved.
The abolitionist and African American had it tough during and after this movement. But their hard work and persistance payed off and left a huge footprints in the US society today. They had to go through alot to overcome this obsticle and they achieved what they sought for. This was a big win for the women and African Americans. This even sparked the Women's Rights movement which also was a large part of US history, but if it wasn't for most of the women and African Americans our society would not be what it is, today.
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