The Battle of Gettysburg

As the name suggests it the Battle of Gettysburg took place in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during July 1, 1863 till July 3,1863. The battle took place during the American Civil War, General Robert E. Lee let the Confederate forces while General George G. Meade led Union forces. It was on July 1 when both forces made contact and Confederates took the lead with Union defenders backed from Gettysburg to Cemetery Hill. The second day, Lee attacked the sides of the Union military formation which resulted in severe fighting. The area included Devil's Den, East Cemetery Hill, Little Round Top, Culp's Hill, the Wheatfield, and Peach Orchard. The Southerners were able to gain land but were unable to remove the Union army. On the third day the Union regained lost ground at Culp's Hill. After Lee's failed attempt he commanded a massive artillery bombardment then fired cannons in which the Union did not respond to the attack until several minutes later.  Lee attacked Cemetery Ridge, the Union center, but was left with only losses known as Pickett's Charge. After failed attempts to attack the flanks Meade predicted he would attack the center. Lee failed in his second attempt to invade the North. This resulted in a Union victory. Union casualties were 23,000 while Confederate casualties where 28,000. The battle can be described to be in the East because it was near the Atlantic Ocean.

The Union reacted to the victory enthusiastically; however, that soon disappeared as they realized Lee's army escaped destruction and the war would continue. In the South, the Confederates had lost both politically and militarily. With the Gettysburg Address, President Abraham Lincoln honored the fallen and refined the purpose of the war. The Battle of Gettysburg became known as one of the bloodies battles of the Civil War because of its number of casualties. This battle became known as the turning point because the North had gained advantage over the Confederate States.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTcaRk0ZRJ4

 

 

Journey through Slavery prt 4 - Judgement Day

 

From the first revolution 13 states now expanded to 24; with slaves dragged around to new states.
Pierce Butler came from a family who gained wealth from slaves owned. His grandfather helped write fugitive slave act. The reality was 75% of southern whites did not own slaves. Jackson a slave owner and 6 president before him were also slave owners. The supreme court was dominated by people who were pro-slavery. Most of the world's cotton was grown in South which gave them power. They were financed by the north, exported by north, and insured by the north. Northerners also depended on slavery. African enslavement is part of white America and to America progress meant westward expansion causing Indian removal.
INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF A SLAVE GIRL, SEVEN YEARS CONCEALED.
Slave masters had power and law on their side, slaves were investment if gone they go bankrupt.
Slaves were captured by professionals and police. Harriet Jacobs was 21 years old when she decided to runaway. She was concealed in a small room for 7 years. Her 2 children were a result after being assaulted by her master. Black population: 182 thousands in south and 132 thousands in north are free blacks. Free blacks had a personal connection to slavery enslaved or not. David Walker launched a private war against slave holders in 1829. Walker stated black people Americans are citizens. He utilized the rhetoric of the nation of liberty and threw it into the face of whites. In the South prohibited teaching slaves to read or write. It also limited the rights of freedom of press and speech due to the abolitionist movement.Walker died mysterious. Nat Turner bloody rebellion was blamed on William Lloyd Garrison newspaper, The Liberator. Garrison believed through persuasion Southerners would see the immorality of slavery. He became the voice of the abolitionist crusade and preached in open fields. Abolitionist did not know how deeply rooted slavery was in a socioeconomic and political structure, it was a slavocracy. White Americans knew slavery was wrong but abolishing it would bring more trouble, it would lead to civil war. Women and black abolitionist were sent to the platform and it was a threat what many white northerners knew. The Jacksonian era is known as the era of the common man as long as he is a white man. New legislations inserts word white in order to vote. Racial supremacy-right to gain job blacks were excluded from. In 1838, Pierce Butler inherited slaves and land his wife Fanny Kemble was an international acclaim and famed actress; she was an abolitionist. In 1838, Kemble saw the source of their wealth and  hoped to persuade Pierce to emancipate slaves gradually. Charles Ball witnessed a women lashed and the Planter's daughters also watch. The impact children raised by blacks surrogate mother become property. Kemble kept asking for petitions to Pierce. Jacobs was smuggled by her family to Philadelphia by river in 1842. She escaped from slavery and was suppose to be safe but she needed practical things in north. Blacks in the North founded mutual relief association in the segregated community. In 1840 antislavery society petitions to congress against slavery and boycotted goods. Slave narratives were an agreement against America and to challenge their owner.
 http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1863/04/sojourner-truth-the-libyan-sibyl/308775/
Slavery was a part of rape and murder but blacks provided a different reading of the constitution and to America, an asylum of liberty. The Founding Fathers did not believe in liberty for slaves just white entitlement. In 1848, gold was discovered in California and later on became a free state in exchange for the fugitive slave act. It was the first time the issue of slavery comes to the North territory. Anthony Burns was convicted for being a fugitive slave after newspaper acclaimed it was Virginia kidnappers. Henry David Thoreau on July 4  a covenant with death he burned the constitution and fugitive slave act. In 1854 Kansas Nebraska act voted for popular sovereignty and then the west was open to slavery. The free soil movement was free soil for white men; for a white men country consisting of purely whites in west. During 1857 the presidency of James Buchanan the Dred Scott case decided no black person can be a citizen. During the Panic of 1857,  Butler was in debt and already divorced Kemble.
 http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/walker/walker.html

Journey through Slavery prt 3 - Brotherly Love

 Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia, Query 14, 1781-1782 (excerpt)
        In Virginia and Maryland  slavery became what nurtured these states to wealth. In 1808 the Constitution brought slave trade to an end with the prohibition of it. The Blacks used the Declaration of Independence to claim their place in America and to justify their revolution. They used Jefferson's quote "all men are created equal" and "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness" to gain freedom. Jefferson though it was profoundly wrong to hold others as property but he as most Virginians were unable to refuse free labor. The  idea was also black inferiority- blacks and whites could not live as equals. Jefferson found excuses to why he said one thing but practiced another. One excuse was blacks were biological inferior and similar to children, needed to be cared for because they could not care for themselves.

                                       

Benjamin Rush Yellow Fever


Richard Allen joined the patriot forces in 1786 in Philadelphia, he was a Methodist preacher. He bought himself out of slavery and was part of evangelical revolution, believed in a sense of equality for all in the eyes of God. Allen, with the help of enlisted members of white men helped build an African church. He extremely supported the ideas of working, learning, and studying to get rid of slavery. Allen with other blacks attended church until they were evicted for mistakenly sitting in a reserved area they helped build. In 1793 the deaths during summer skyrocketed: children and people were left to die in the streets. The people in charge of law and order run away because of the deaths.
Benjamin Rush signer of declaration of independence was a friend of black community and helped Allen when soliciting funds for black church. The myth blacks were unable to contract yellow fever helped to serve as healers. In the end both races continued to die until November. Blacks tried to earn a place in American society but were villianized. Allen raised enough funds to found the Bethal House of God.

 Letter from Harriet Jacobs to Ednah Dow Cheney
Slave marriages varied from elaborated weddings to something as simple to jumping a broom stick. When married by a white pastor phrases were omitted because weddings were not secure. With Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin and  75% of cotton derived from the South, slavery was more important than ever. With Westward expansion no family was safe from separation. With childbirth came love and pain because mothers knew they would always be slaves. Slavery was a dreadful oppressive relationship where men, women, and children lived their lives with human frailty.

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Charles Ball 
Laws passed to keep slaves under tighter watch. Gabriel led a revolt after being accused of pig stealing and biting a white man in 1799. He was a blacksmith and created weapons and devised a meticulous plan. He massacred whites except Methodist and led to black freedom born out of white fear. His plot was betrayed by two slaves and he faced trial in October 6, 1800. Jessie Torry knew a man who would sleep afraid of death by a black man. Haiti empowered slave rebellion, in 1791 freed slave overturned plantation economy. In 1801 slave condition went back then outlawed slavery. Napoleon sought Jefferson's help to reinforce slavery in Haiti, Jefferson agreed. Napoleon then sold territory because wasn't able to use Haiti for North American interest. Maryland and Virginia faced a slave decline which equaled not enough work.

In the North an antislavery movement arose. An act prohibiting importation of slaves of 1807 did not allow importation of slaves across the Atlantic. This strengthened slavery scarcity of slavery which lead to trade of North and South. Slavery vanished in the North caused a market for surplus of slaves. Jefferson wanted women sold with children. Charles Ball wanted to see his family told to get another wife in Georgia after being sold.
Charles Ball 

In 1793, 10,000 blacks in Philadelphia. Churches served to unit blacks. In April 11, 1816 the  episcopal church served political and economic organization focal point for free black communities. From 1805-1814 bills to ban slavery in Pennsylvania were being spread. American colonization society, James Monroe and Andrew Jackson supported the relocation of blacks to Africa, specifically Sierra Léon.
THE DEMERARA SLAVE UPRISING 
Negro Plot: An Account of the Late Intended Insurrection among a Portion of the Blacks of the City of Charleston, South Carolina

Antebellum Period: Sarah Bagley

Sarah Bagley

Sarah George Bagley was born on April 19, 18025 and till this day her death is unknown. She was born in New Hampshire to a farm family who sold land and owned a mill at one point of their lives. She became an important figure in the women's right movement and labor rights; while later on being involved in abolitionism, peace, health reforms, and prison reforms. At the age of twenty-eight in 1835 she began working as a textile worker. During this time she also was involved in the Lowell Offering. The Lowell offering was a magazine published by working women demonstrating to the public, women who work can also write and be passionate about writing. 

As a Labor Activist, in 1844 she formed the Lowell Reform Association, which advocates to improve health conditions and lobby for the Ten-Hour Day. In the company she was working in women worked 13.5 hours a day. She, passionate about the cause published her own labor newspaper, The Voice of Industry. In 1845, she  gathered a group of signatures to petitions to the Masachussetts Legislature. The after petitioning several times little by little the company cut bach untill 1853, 11 hours of work.

The author of The Ten Hour System and Its Advocates is Sarah Bagley. The paper was published in Lowell Massachusetts in January 16,1846. Bagley is a fierce advocate for women rights especially women labor rights. The audience of the paper re the readers of the Voice of Industry and is a messahe to textile companies. The reason this document is to make textile companies aware women are not content in working for long hours. Bagley makes a valid point when addressing the hypocrisy of being only valued in words of image while being deprived of perks.

Document F Sarah Bagley, “The Ten Hour System and Its Advocates,” Voice of Industry, January 16, 1846

Antebellum Period: John Greenleaf Whittier

John Greenleaf Whittier

John Greenleaf Whittier was alive during the years December 17,1807 till September 7,1892. He was born into a Quaker family who owmed a farm in Massachussetts, but barely had enough money to survive. From a young age Whittier had become incompetent in laborous work due to his bad health and physical frailty.  It is suprising Whittier became a reknown American Quaker poet even one who is usually classified as a Fireside poet. Through hardwork he was able to pay off his tuition in Haverhill Academy in which he finished a high school education in just two terms. 

In the 1830 Whittier became inerested in politics and ran for the Congressional election of 1832; however, he lost the election which caused a breakdown forcing him to return back home. In 1833, Garrison persuaded Whittier to join his feverent cause towards the abolition of slavery; in which Whittier agreed to. There on for the next twenty years of his life he has ardently become an advocate for the abolition of slavery. Also in 1833, Whittier's chance in politics died with the publication of Justice and Expediency; lost support from merchants and farmers. Although his commitment ended his political life it ensuredhim to fight for what he thoight was morally correct and socially necessary. Whittier was a founding member of the American Anti-Slavery Society and signed the Anti-Slavery Declaration of 1883. As a poet ring this time period his poems dealt with the probems of slavery. During 1839 he went back into politics by founding the Liberty Party. In 1845, he wrote Blackman an anectdote  from John Fountain, a back man who helped free slaves.  This piece caused him to recieve  stress and insults from the public in which ended with a breakdown and his retirement of active participation in abolition. In 1865, his cause ended with the Thirteenth Amendment which ended slavery.

The primary source is called Justice and Expediency and it is written by John Greenleaf Whittier. The document was written in the United States in 1833. This pamphlet is Whittier's first work for the abolition of slavery. The audience is the public, who he is persuading to join his cause in the abolition of slavery. This document is writtien to show why slavery is unjust and why it should be abolished. The main idea is to abolish slaver in the U.S. The significance of the document is that a group of people is uniting a changing the normalcy of slavery. 

Primary Source (APPARTS+Q
Voices of Freedom

Justice and Expediency

Mexican American War Character: President James K. Polk

     I won the presidency by a close vote in 1844 and now I am president of the United States of America. I am president of the United States of America. I am a Democrat, and a believer in "Manifest Destiny." It is God's plan that the United States should spread from the Atlantic to the Pacific. In 1846, I ordered U.S. troops into an area that was claimed by both Texas and Mexico, historically occupied by Mexicans. I knew that it was a provocation. As I confided to my Secretary of the Navy: I want California to be part of the United Stares. It's part of Mexico and the only way to get it away from them is war. As I'd expected, the Mexicans attacked and I convinced Congress to declare war against Mexico. Some of my opponents say that I want this war only because I own slaves and this is a war to extend slavery to Mexico. Nonsense. There is much more at stake than slavery. This is about defending America's honor and our national interest.
     James Knox Polk rose to presidency by being a dark horse candidate ans promising the annexation of Texas. Through the guidance of Polk the U.S. won the Mexican American war and gained most of the Southwest territory. After the Texas annexation, Polk sought the San Francisco Bay area which would allow access to trade with Asia. He sent a diplomat to Mexico in order to purchase the land but they were rather enraged becauae of the Texas annexation. Polk sent soldiers to rivers which enabled them to habe control of their trade inorder to put pressure; eleven soldiers died. Polk called it a reason to go to war and Congress agreed. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo legalized land aquisition and the it was half of Mexico.
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/polk.asp#texas
     What led to the election of Polk's pesidency was his envisionary mind with the thought of expansion. Polk was unlike other candidates who believed America would crumble if it had control over a vast territory. Unlike his pedeccesdors he encouraged the idea of Manifest destiny and helped the country grow substantially. Supporting the annexation of Texas led to his win by stating Texas is already part of American only paperwork has to be signed. He also gave hints of having the Oregon territory, California, and New Mexico.

Mexican American War Character: General Stephen Kearny

     I command the United States Army in the West. I had the honor of winning New Mexico for the United States during the war in Mexico. The high point for me was taking the city of Santa Fe. I wanted to conquer but not to kill. I sent word that if the people didn't fight us we wouldn't fight them. We marched into Santa Fe with our bayonets and knives out, hoping that we would frighten the residents, so they wouldn't fight us. And they didn't. We raised the American flag and fired our cannon in glorious salute to the Unites Stated of America. Apparently this has a strong effect on the town's women because many of them let loose a "wail of grief," as one of my officers described it. The sound of their crying rose above the noise of our horses as we rode along.
     Stephen Watts Kearny was an antebellum frontier officer renown for his participation in the Mexican American War. Kearny attended Columbia University for two years and then joined the New York Militia to participate in the War of 1812, which set course to his military career. After the War of 1812, Kearny was assigned to the western frontier where he went on copious expeditions keeping detailed journals which included interactions with Native Americans. Kearny organized a regiment of dragoons which eventually became known as the U.S. Calvary; he was also appointed commander of the Army's Third Military department, responsible for protection and maintaining peace with Native tribes. In the 1840s, Kearny left a legacy behind, escorting travelers involved with the Oregon Trail, which became an official government policy. In Santa Fe, New Mexico Kearny's Army of the West took control of the area without a single drop of blood. On his way towards California the Battle of San Pasqual took place in which his troop retreated; he was later assisted by Stockton; the Treaty of Cahuenga ended the Mexican American War in Alta California.
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/kearney.asp
     The Kearny Code, named after Stephens Kearny, was essential to the newly acquired territory, New Mexico, because it established law and government. The code was promulgated on September 22, 1846 and submitted to Congress attached with the Organic Act to creating the Territory of New Mexico The provisions remain mostly unchanged in contemporary times and the promulgation consist of three parts. The Bill of Rights granted rights to all people; however, it did not distinguish from citizens and noncitizens. Laws were usually verbatim derived from Missouri statutes.