Emma Hirsch

 The Saddest Day Of My Life

I wake up and notice that Bartholomew, my husband, is already off to work. I take a few minutes to get out of bed knowing that I soon have to wake the children. The boys are off to school in an hour, and the girls and I must start working. I get out of bed and slide on my long red skirt, and slowly botton my white blouse. I look around my dark room to see a portrait of James hanging on the wall. Although this has always been here, I have never really looked at it. Oh how I miss my dear husband. I miss sharing a room with the love of my life. I miss waking up to my lovely husband every morning. Oh, how I wish he was still here. I grow angry at the fact that I have to share this room with Bartholomew, not James. I remember the day I found out James died. It was the most challenging, difficult, and of course sad day of my life.

When James and I got married I was 21 years old. I had known him since we were children because both of our fathers were book printers. They became friends, and I often saw James. James and I fell in love when I was 19 but we decided not to get married until later. Finally for my 20th birthday we told our parents we were in love and asked for permission to get married. I could tell it was the best day of my father’s life. My father jumped with excitement and screamed, “Of course you have permission darling!” I could tell his father was happy to. It was a happy day all around. Although James was not extremely wealthy, I was happy, and that was all that mattered to me. He was the love of my life. We created a family together. And one day it was all gone.

I was 27 years old and I was teaching my daughter, Rebecca, how to embroider. James was in the army since I was 24. I was so proud of him, he was so brave.

I here a loud pound of someone’s knuckles banging on our wooden door. I open the creaky door to see a tall man who was wearing all camouflage. He wasn’t making eye contact with me. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it. I was so nervous and I didn’t know why. Right as he looked up, I noticed he had a tear in his eye.

That was it. He let it all out. He said quietly, “I’m sorry.” I felt like I could die inside. I felt my cold tears dripping down my cheek. The salty tears fell into my mouth. I could tell that I was about to start balling.

“Mrs Browne,” he says with tears dripping down his face. Before he can finish his sentence, I notice Rebecca standing behind me.

“Mother, what’s wrong?”

“Rebecca, give me a minute.” I can tell she notices that I was crying, but she decides not to say anything. I don’t know how to be a mother right now. All my years of motherhood, but I don’t know what to say to my children when they come home. As I was trying to process this information, I notice the tall man start to cry. I thank the tall man who gave me this awful news and walk into my home. I see the man vanish into the distance and I shut the door. Rebecca was standing there crying. She knew. I don’t know what to say, so I don’t say anything. I put my weak arms around her and whispered into her ear, “we will be okay. I promise you.” We stand there hugging and crying into each other’s arms for about ten minutes when I finally said, “Let’s get back to work.” I stare at her as she starts walking away. Her curly brown hair bounces up and down as she walks away. My daughter is beautiful. I had never really noticed until today. Lucky for her she looks like James. Everytime I look at my daughter, I see my husband. As Rebecca was walking, she turns around and smiles at me. Right then in that small, simple moment, I knew we would be okay. I followed her and didn’t speak for the rest of the day. I thought it would be best for us not to talk and just think. I couldn’t help but worry about what would happen when my boys came home. I wondered what I would say, how I would break the news. I knew they would be home any minute, so I start to panic. All I could think of was my precious children not having a father. The next thing I heard was my old wooden door creak open, to see my beautiful boys standing in the doorway. They enter the home and run over to me. They see that I have been crying.

One of them asks, “Mother, are you ok? What’s wrong mother?” I didn’t answer. I couldn’t make words come out of my mouth. I was standing there staring at my babies speechless.

“Come here my children, give me a hug.” All four of them run over to me and hug me. I started to ball and they started to ask questions.

“Is it father, mother? Is he okay? Mother answer us. What happened to Father?” I let it all out. I felt their cold tears fall onto my hands. It wasn’t just the boys anymore. All six of my children were standing there hugging me. Although it was the saddest day of my life, I knew we would be okay.

Two years later I met Bartholomew. He wasn’t the love of my life like James was, but he was wealthy. He fell in love with me, but it is hard to say I fell in love with him. I knew that if I married him we would live on a big Plantation, and my children and I would have a better and healthier life. I made the decision to marry him because I knew it was best for me and my children. A year later we moved onto his Plantation. His house was fairly nice, and it was fairly large. There were chefs working for him in the home. I found that a bit strange, but if it meant less work for me and my girls than I was happy. Bartholomew Is a Burgess, so he wouldn’t be home much. My children learned to like him, although they missed their father. We had a fairly good life filled with wealth and joy. I learned to like Bartholomew more and more each day, and it turns out he is a sweet man. I learned to enjoy my life because I never know when it’s going to end. Although I miss my dear husband, I decided not to let that bring down my life. I have great children, an okay husband, and a large Plantation.

 

 

Zoe Karp

 

A Day in the Life of Rebecca Browne

My head slips down off of the too fat pillow, forcing me to wake up. I roll out of bed, slipping my feet into my warm slippers. My name is Rebecca Browne and I am 14 years old. I live on the Browne plantation with my brothers, sisters, mother and stepfather. I am the oldest child and one of 2 girls. My sister, Mercy is only 3. She cries at night, waking up the whole household. My brothers, Amos, Christopher, Eli and John all sleep in one room together. I expect that when Mercy gets older, I will have to share with her, but I’m alone for now. My mother is named Lydia. She is a widow, my father died when I was young. He was in the war, but he was shot by an Englishman. My younger brothers don’t remember him at all, I am lucky. I have few memories, but the ones I do have are very clear. I remember him taking me on a walk down the river bank. He held my small hand in his. This was the day that I learned he would be going to war. I think about this day all the time, but for now, I have to push it away and get on with my life.

My mother remarried after my father died. She married a man named Bartholomew and had my sister Mercy. Bartholomew is a very rich man and when we moved onto his plantation, we were all happily surprised. My father was well off, we are the gentry class, but Bartholomew is much more so. I hate to admit it, but I am accustomed to these luxuries. My slippered feet made the floorboards creak. I open the door and slip out, passing my snoring brothers and then my parent’s room. I creep down the stairs. This is a normal morning for me, I am a morning person. My family is not, they all like to sleep. I like to be the only one awake in the mornings, just to hear the quiet. When my brothers are awake, there is constant chaos and noise. My youngest brother, Amos, is the troublemaker of my family. He is always running and laughing and playing pranks. Even though he is only 5, he still makes more trouble than a normal 15 year old might. So, I take all the time that I can get alone.

As usual, I prepare a small breakfast tray for me and my mother. I always take breakfast in her room, so we can have a bit of time to talk and catch up. I prepare bread and cheese and a glass of water for each of us. This is my mother’s favorite breakfast. She likes simple breakfasts, then a huge feast for dinner at 2:00. Then, she’ll eat again at 8:00 for supper. I hear some conversation upstairs and I realize that my parents are awake, and then I hear my brothers. My mother must have woken them up. They have school soon and I have to start with my daily lessons. John, who is the oldest, and also the peacekeeper, is telling Eli and Christopher to stop hurting each other and I hear Amos cheering them on. I tramp upstairs and pull my brothers off each other. My mother calls me into her room for breakfast.

“Rebecca, come quickly. We must eat fast, I have work to attend to,” my mother calls. I saw her standing in the doorway. My mother is beautiful. She has long blond hair and dark brown eyes. She works hard managing the house, so her beauty is hidden sometimes. I don’t look like her at all. I take after my father, with dark, curly hair.

“Coming, Mother. Are you ready for breakfast?”

“Yes, thank you. Come in, come in. How did you sleep?”

“Well, thank you.” I set down the tray on the table in front of her. She seemed to be working in her accounting. My stepfather was at work already and my brothers were getting ready for their days, so we were alone, except for my sister. Mercy was sitting on my mother’s lap, playing with her necklace.

The normal conversation went on between me and my mother. Our plans for the day, our hopes for the future, things like that. Finally, when we were all done with breakfast and our servant had cleared the tray, my mother took out my lessons. Since I am 14, I know how to read and write and sew, but my mother is still teaching me recipes and how to sew and all of what I’ll need to know once I get married. My mother enjoys teaching me these things, because she loves to do them. I am an average seamstress, but I’ve come to know the rules of being a lady very well. I can’t wait to be married. She looked up at me, then sort of looked away. I had never seen her like this, so I worried something was wrong. My mother was normally a confident, strong woman who always spoke her mind.

“Mother, is something wrong? Please, tell me. ”

“Yes, darling. Everything is fine.” Something in her eyes told me that wasn’t true. I decided not to pry any more.

“Oh. Okay. What lessons are we going to have today?”

“Well, I was thinking some more sewing.”

“All right. Are you finished with your breakfast?” She nodded.

“What are we having for dinner?” I asked, trying to clear the silence. She looked around nervously and fiddled with my little sister’s hair, but Mercy wriggled away.

“Mother, what’s wrong? Please, you have to tell me.”

“Fine, Rebecca.” She paused.

“I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, and I feel that I can tell you now.” She paused again. “Mother, please, just tell me.”

“All right. Here it is. When you’re married, Rebecca, you must promise me one thing. If your husband dies, do not remarry.”

“Why, Mother? Don’t you love Bartholomew? Look at all of the lovely things we have now that we didn’t have when my father was alive.”

“I do love Bartholomew, but I will always love your father. If I hadn’t remarried, I would have all of the rights that a man would have. Don’t you think that would be nice? Not to have to worry about all of these rules? Being in charge of yourself?” Now that I was thinking about it, it did sound nice.

“Does this mean I shouldn’t get married at all?”

“No, no. You must get married, Rebecca. To tell you to never get married would be taking away the chance to love someone very, very much. I loved your father so much and I wouldn’t trade my time with him for anything.”

“So, I’ll get married, then. Just as I was planning to. But what if my husband dies and if I remarry, I will have a better life?”

“Then make that decision when you come to it. ” I nodded and she looked away. I took my little sister onto my lap, thinking about how she didn’t have to worry about any of these things yet. As I looked into her small face, I wondered, do I really want this life for myself?

Emma Hirsch

After marriage, power is something that changed for all cultures. Some in better ways, and some in worse. For the Europeans, women seemed to lose a lot of power, and the men seemed to gain power. When people began to start getting married, the roles in their homes started to shift. For each culture there was an assigned gender who would hold the power. For Europeans, the men were in charge of the home. They held the power, they handled the problems, and they would protect their family and their home. The men decided that the women weren’t responsible enough, even though they were the ones staying home taking care of the children. This shows that after marriage you can lose a lot of your rights and power as a woman. This was unfair to all the European women, and they often found themselves jealous of the Native American women. While the European women were treated poorly, the Native American women were the leaders.

 

 

Zoe Karp

Native American divorce was much more common than European divorce and was much more important for their culture. For Native Americans, divorce was one of the ways that the women showed their power over the men. Native American women were always the ones who initiated the divorce. In this culture, adultery was not the only cause of divorce. Most of the causes that happen today happened then as well. When a woman divorced a man, she would throw his clothes out of the house. This would also be a sign to the neighbors and others in the community that they were getting a divorce. When the men got home from hunting, fishing or protecting the village and found their clothes outside of the house, the women would shut the doors and not let them back in. Just like in European culture, the women would take care of the children. This was one of the many ways that women could show their power over men. They would be completely in charge of the situation and if the men argued, the women just ignored them. Throwing the clothes out of the house was a symbol. This meant that the man couldn’t come back in the house, but it also told the others in the community that there was a divorce happening, so no one addressed them as a married couple anymore. Just like in the European culture, the women had to take the children after the divorce. Also like in the European culture, the women were the only ones taking care of the children, even before the divorce. The men were always so busy that they didn’t really have time to spend time with their children, so the women were the ones to take the children. Native American culture was the only culture where the women had so much power over the men, unlike the African culture, where the men had much more power over the women. African marriage and married life were much different than the other two cultures.

Zoe Karp

• The first children in Virginia arrived in 1618.
• European families had 5-10 children.
• They had so many children because of the high infant mortality rate.
• European boys went to school or had a tutor.
• European girls were taught at home.
• Girls learned sewing and cooking and cleaning and all of the things that they would need to know when they were married.
• Girls might learn to read and write.
• Boys definitely learned to read and write, and they also learned math and science.
• In European families, the mother would be the one taking care of all of the children.
• In African families, children, especially girls were highly valued.
• When children reached puberty in African cultures, they went through and initiation ceremony.
•  African families had around 6 children.
• In native American cultures, the children would start helping the parents at a very young age.
• In the Powhatan village, the children would learn what they needed to know from their elders, though stories.

 

The first European children arrived in Virginia in 1618, 10 years after the first women. European families had 5-10 children because of the high infant mortality rate. This means that so many children died when they were babies, the family needed to be able to have other children to help out if another child died. European boys either went to school or their parents hired a tutor for them. The boy’s education was very important because they needed to learn the trade that they would pursue when they were older. Girls would have had a tutor to learn sewing and cooking and cleaning. The girls were also learning this because of what they would pursue when they got older, being wives and mothers. In European families, the mother would be the one taking care of all of the children, not the father or a nanny. In African families, the mother would also take care of the children. Children, especially girls, were highly valued. I think that this was because so many of them died at a young age it was rarer to have children. I don’t really know why girls were valued more. African families had around 6 children. They had this many because that way the work on plantations could be split up evenly. In Native American cultures, the parents wouldn’t see each other very often, so the children wouldn’t see their fathers and the mothers would take care of the children. The kids would start helping out at a young age, around 3 or 4, starting with small tasks like bringing the water from the streams. The children would learn things crucial to their survival through stories that their elders told them.

 

 

 

 

Native American Marriage

Emma Hirsch

Source:

Williamsburg, VA, Historical Impersonator Blacksmith. Interview. By Olivia Cueto. 6 Jan. 2016.

Quote:

“Colonial marriage perspectives were pretty much all the same. The women would get married at the age of 12 or 13 and the men would be a few years older. Women changed a lot when they got married. Before native women got married they were bald, naked and usually covered in grease. But when a native women got married they finally grew out their hair, got clothing, and could start caring more about their bodies. Weddings were held in cold months Blacksmiths could marry a couple. If a divorce happened, the mother would usually take the children unless she was the one that cheated.”

Paraphrase:

– Native American women would get married at 12 or 13

– The men would would be older than the women

– Women became new people once they got married

– Natives before they got married were bald, naked, and covered in grease

– When they got married they got a makeover

– Weddings happened in cold months

-Blacksmiths could marry a couple

-If the couple got divorced, the mother would get the children, unless she was the one who did something bad

My Ideas:

This shows that marriage was important for the women more so than men. Marriage for Native Americans really impacted your life. The women would start to care more about their looks and appearance. This is surprising to me because this seems like the women are losing power. It seems like the men have the power to change their appearance. Native American women seem to be more powerful than men. In my first notecard I mentioned certain policies that have to do with divorce. I learned Native American women have the power to divorce their husbands. To show that they want to get divorced is by putting her husband’s clothing outside the home. This signifies that she wants him to leave. There was nothing the men could do about it because the women held most the power.  I find it surprising how the women have the power and ability to divorce their husbands but then the men have the power to make the women want to change her appearance. I can infer that the women change their look once they get married because they are happy. What I mean is before they get married she isn’t as happy and maybe doesn’t care so much about what she looks like. Now that she is married she probably feels pressured to look nice and pretty for her husband. I can infer she cares a lot about what he thinks of her and she wants him to think she looks good. The way a woman looked played a big role in the colonial era. It determined your spot on the social hierarchy. If you had the newest shoes, hats, or bags, then the community knows you are wealthy. I can infer women want to look nice so that they fit in well, and people think they are wealthy. This is one reason why a woman changes so much after marriage. I find it interesting how when a couple splits up, the children go to the mother. I know that happens a lot now a days, but I didn’t know it happened back then. I wonder about the three cultures and what their traditions are for divorce. Custody, would there be fighting, court? These are some topics I want to learn about. Because my parents are divorced, I want to see the differences and similarities from now and the colonial era. I wonder what happens once you get divorced land wise. Is it possible for women to keep their ex husbands land? Would men and women go to court for a formal divorce if they were formally married? This shows that there are many marriage and divorce differences among the three cultures. 

History:

Created: 11/02/2016 12:46 PM

 

Emma Hirsch

– Boys go to school or have a tutor

-Girls will stay home with the mothers

-The girls will learn how to clean and cook

– Boys would learn math and science

– Girls would maybe learn how to read or write

-The children would have a school tutor, dance tutor, and music teacher

-The boys and girls were separated most of the day

 

 

Zoe Karp

 

• In lower classes, the women and men would have the same day.
• In the upper classes, the women are taking care of the children and making sure the slaves were doing what they were supposed to.
• In upper classes, the men were out doing business or possibly at the House of Burgesses.
• European boys usually got to go to school or have a tutor.
• European girls were taught inside their home.
• Girls would be cooking and cleaning and learning all of the skills that they would need once they got married. They might learn to read and write in addition to all of that.
• Boys definitely learned how to read and write, but they were also learning math and science.

-Geddy House Historic Interpreter, October 20, 2016

 

 

Harvey Van Blerkom, 2016

Harvey Van Blerkom                         Humanities A

11/15/16

 

A Day In the Life of Charles “C.S.” Smith

 

I am Charles “C.S.” Smith. I am a General. I am fighting for America’s freedom. As I said, I am a General, but I am very new at my job. After General Chase got shot, they needed a new General, and I was the one asked to take over his role. I had been exceeding expectations, and I got promoted. Even though I had been working hard, I was surprised because there was one African man who was working really well. He had stole forty-five cannons from the British army. Forty-five cannons! That is almost not human. Some of the things that Africans can do are just amazing. Maybe I got the promotion because I am English, and only English.

I remember the exact time that I got my promotion. I was very worried because George Washington himself requested for me to meet with him. From my experience with other troop companions, getting called to meet with Mr. George, as we secretly call him, rarely turns out well. I was very nervous because this was not my first meeting with someone near his power. I had some meetings before, but I wasn’t listening because I didn’t want to hear when they kicked me out of the army. I knew that I had been getting lucky, as I was still in the army, but I figured that I should finally listen to him. I knew that this was probably the final straw before I was gone, so I said goodbye to my fellow troop members, and headed over, head down.

I got in, and I wanted to end the conversation quickly so I just told him, “Please, just kick me out now.”

He responded immediately, “Kick you out? I was just about to ask you if you wanted to

become a General with your own battalion, are you okay with that?”

“Oh, yes, I would love that,” I responded.

“I don’t know why you would’ve thought that you would’ve been demoted, or kicked out of the army. You have been doing very well, and we have noticed that. That is why you were called in. You have had many meetings with some of my advisors, and I don’t know exactly what they said, but they told me that they were going to talk to you about how well you are doing and to keep up the good work,” he said.
This was a day that I know I will remember forever. This isn’t a normal day, as I don’t get promoted every day. Nowadays, my usual day is very boring. I yell at the men in my troop, and they listen. I tell them to fire their muskets, and they fire their muskets. I tell them to fire the cannon, and they fire the cannon. Now I don’t even pick up a musket because Generals don’t actually fight. They just tell the people that they are commanding commands. Before I became a general, my life was a lot more fun. Before I became a general, my day consisted of actual fighting. I picked up a musket, and would fire the heavy, metal weapon. I wasn’t always the best shot, but I would always think to myself, and try to convince myself that I was going to get better. I guess that is one of the many good things that came out of my promotion. I have been very happy with my promotion because of all of the great benefits, including much better food. Overall, I have a very eventful day, especially now that the war is in full swing.

Hudson

 

George Washington was already a burgess, when the second continental congress unanimously decided he should be the leader of the Continental Army. The fact that he was a burgess showed that he would be a good and fair leader of the army. He was also in the British army during the french and indian war which gave him a chance to prove himself as a good soldier and a strong tactical thinker. Although George Washington never actually had any experience leading, the Congress needed nothing more, he was their man. Because he had no experience he was not sure he wanted to accept the post. He said in a letter to his wife Martha Washington “It is utterly out of my power to refuse this appointment without exposing my character to such censures as would have reflected dishonor upon myself and given pain to my friends.”

 

Harvey Van Blerkom, 2016

The Revolutionary War was very important to the United States of America. It made the country that 318.9 million people call home today. The Revolutionary War is the reason that the United States of America exists today. Without the war, the world would be different. The war changed the Americans, the Native Americans, and the African Americans. It changed people not only in the Colonial Era, but also affects us today. The Revolutionary War was a true show of rebelliousness. From that war, the colonists learned to fight injustice, question authority, and stand up for what they believed in. These are the values that define our nation and continue to shape who we are today.