Theodore Parker

 

Theodore Parker's Speech at the Faneuil Hall Meeting (May 26, 1854)

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

 

As an abolitionist, Theodore Parker beleived that the issue of slavery in the US was a great problem. He beleived that the law that was passed, the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 (following the Compromise of 1850), was controversial to the Compromise. He did not beleive it was fair that slaves that reached the Northern states had to be returned to their slave owners in the South. He was against slavery and he openly advocated for the people to the violate this law. An example of him sharing his ideas against slavery is in May 26, 1854 at Faneuil Hall. There, Parker gave his speech that the Fugitive Slave Law was unfair and they should stand against it. He planned to not allow a slave, that had been recently recaptured, be taken back to the South with his owner.

According to Parker, the great issue in the US was the issue of slavery. Parker beleived that the current government had issues and that over time it would be fixed so that justice would be met and slavery would end. Legislation can control human behavior but not change it because humans will still act as they wish but legislation puts a borderline to what extent the people could act as they wish. Parker beleived in immediate changes because he planned to take action at the Faneuil Hall Meeting when he planned to not let the slave leave.

Parker showed that society can be improved by involvement because he took action against what he did not agree with. He spoke against the capture of the slave in his speech at Faneuil Hall. He also hid slaves from the Fugitive Slave Law. Parker was directly involved in getting rid of slavery so he obviously beleived in the active involvement to make a better society. He beleives a society with no slavery would be a good society. He followed what he beleived was a good society and fought to get rid of slvery.



Cohens vs Virginia (1821)

          The United States Congress authorized the sellng of lottery tickets in the District of Columbia. The Cohen brothers began to sell lottery tickets in Virginia which violated the state law. The state authorities fined them $100. State courts beleived that Virginia's law prohibiting lotteries could be enforced although congress authorized the selling of lottery tickets. The Cohens appealed to the Supreme Court that their conduct was protected by the Act that Congress had authorize. In the end, the Cohens brothers' charges were upheld because Congress only allowed for the tickets to be sold in the District of Columbia. This case mostly signified that the Supreme Court had jurisdiction in all cases brought to the Supreme Court.

          The main issue in the case was the question of whether or not the Supreme Court had jurisdiction to hear an appeal in a criminal case. Virginia argued that the Constitution did not give the Supreme Court jurisdiction over criminal judgments by the state courts. Virginia also argued that its decision was final and unreviewable by the Supreme Court. They belived that even though the law involved an act of Congress, Virginia had an unreviewable right apply or not apply a federal law as it liked. The Supreme Court used Article III, Section 2 (Supremacy Clause) of the Constitution to prove that they had jurisdiction in this criminal case. This article states, "all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority." This meant that with the Constitution, the Constitution grants Supreme Court jurisdiction for all cases.
          This case strengthened the Supreme Court's jurisdiction as it was determined that the Supreme Court had jurisdiction in every case. This could have been determined in a later on case brought to the Supreme Court because this idea of the Supreme Court's jurisdiction had been established in the Fletcher vs Peck case in 1810. The Supreme Court could have ruled that the Cohens brothers were clear of charges but the act passed by Congress was directly applied to and only the District of Columbia so Virginia's law was still intact for no lottery tickets being sold.

Fletcher vs Peck (1810)

         Georgia took control of a 35-million-acre region  know as the Yazoo lands (present day Alabama and Mississippi). These lands were the Indian Reserve that werewest of Geogia. In 1795, Georgia legislature (old legislature) divided the area into four parts. The government allowed each piece of land to be sold to four different land development companies for about 1.4 cents per acre. The Georgia legislature approved and was called the Yazoo Land Act of 1795. The Yazoo Land Act actually passed because bribes had taken place and so in the next election voters rejected most of the legislature. The next legislature that came into office (new legislature)not only repealed the law but voided any transactions made; they did this because of the public outcry. John Peck purchased land under the act but soon sold this land to Robert Fletcher. Fletcher brought this suit against Peck in 1803, saying that Peck did not have a clear owner title of the land. This was a lose-lose situation because if Supreme Court had ruled for Peck not to have true title over the land, then Fletcher would lose the land as well.
          In a six to one decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the state legislature could not repeal the law because it was considered unconstitutional. This was based of Article I, Section 10, Clause I, also called the Contract Clause, of the Constitution. It said that the Act cannot be invalidated even if the land was illegally obtained. This decision helped create a growing precedent for the sanctity of legal contracts. During this case, the Native Americans did not hold title to any of the lands in the Indian Reserve.
          In this case, the Supreme Court had to decide whether the state repealment of the Yazoo Land Act was costitutional or not. This was the first law that the Supreme Court asserted their power to prove a state law unconstitutional. This case also asserted that the Indians had no claim of the lands that they had been living on before Georgia just claimed it as their own. This case was the beginning of where the Supreme Court would decide whether or not any state law is/was constitutional or not.

George Washington

 

George Washington was the US's first president ever. He was born on Februaru 22, 1732. During his time, Washington was one of the richest men in the US; he owned over 35,000 acres of land in Virginia alone and thousands of acres more around the US. He also owned a great amount of slaves. Washington was also active in banking and lending out money. George Washington served as the US's first president from April 30, 1789 to March 4, 1797. He was also appointed Senior Officer of the Army from July 13, 1798 to December 14, 1799. George Washington participated in the French  and Indian War. As well as in the Revolutionary War. When the Revolution was won, Washington was one of the important figures in writing the Constitution. Washington was so well respected because of his services, that he was elected chairman of the constitution.  Washington contributed so much for his country until his death on December 14, 1799.

Great Awakening

The Great Awakening occured during the time period of the 1730’s to the 1740’s. The main idea of Great Awakening was the colonist's individuality in religion. It started off when King Henry forced the people to follow his preferred religion. The Great Awakening took the idea that religion should be directly from an individual person to God.  Quakers, Anglicans, Baptists, and Presbyterians, the greatest denomonaions, established their own churches. The Great Awakening caused for religious people to break away from the established churches.

Atlantic Slave Trade -----> Best Presentation ;D

 

Thesis: Between 1607 and 1775, Slavery in the southern colonies grew resulting from the “necessity” of profit. Blacks were removed from Africa and inhumanely treated in the colonies, leading to American dependence on profitable plantation systems that were reliant on slavery; thus, creating a new social system based on race.

The American colonies and England during the 17th and early 18th century were all about making profit. The Atlantic Slave Trade brought the Colonies great profit. The slave trade begins in the colonies where rum is filled into barrels and then transferred to the Gold Coast of Africa. There the rum was traded for slaves who were literally jammed by force into the colonists ships. From Africa they headed to the West Indies where the slaves were exchanged for molasses and sugar which were taking back to the colonies. In the colonies, the cycle started all over again by processing molasses and turnig it into rum. The West Indies were dependant on sugar plantations and since they did not have to pay the slaves to do the work, the plantations saved alot more money with the slaves. England passed acts such as the Molasses Act of 1733 and the Sugar Act of 1764 to try and limit colonists trading. However, these acts did not work as they led to bribery and smuggling of products across the seas and English borders.

The Glorious Revolution

 

After the death of Queen Elizabeth I England had to find a new king/queen because she had no children; therefore, King James I was made King. The Glorious Revolution started off in England when King James II was overthrown and William III  and Mary II were replaced. The Revolution allowed colonists to recieve their rights, but Parliament decided that every person under the rule of England was to be virtually represented. The acts (Stamp Act, Currency Act, and Sugar Act) passed by England kindled the colonists resistance from English rule. The English Bill of Rights presented some rights of the English which inlcuded freedom of speech and freedom to petition. However their rights were not fully granted by Parliament.

The Enlightenment

John Locke and Baron de Montesquieu

This was a period of revolution in the history of England. This was when people began to accept the inherent rights of man. The Enlightenment started off in England and it soon was affecting the colonists in the New England colonies. John Lockebelieved in the natural rights of man which were the right to life, liberty and property. Locke’s natural rights, were used in he American Declaration of Independence from 1776. Baron de Montesquieu, believed in the separation of powers, specifically 3 branches which included the legislative, executive, and judicial branch. Thid separation of powers would lower the chances of corruption addecting the government. This type of government gave the people of the government to overthrow the president/leader if he/she was being unfair or unjust with the people.

French and Indian War (7 Year War)

The French and Idian War, also known as the 7 Year War, is thought of as the first World War. This war involved the Spanish, French, and British. This war began because of disagreements between the French and the British about land in the Americas. The war was started when the governor of Virginia ordered George Washington to lead troops into the Ohio area, which was French territory. However, George Washington was forced to surrender as France joined forces with Spain. England many acts which included the Stamp Act, the Sugar Act, the Quartering Act, and the Proclamation of 1763. The colonists did not like these taxes. In 1768, two British regiments killed /or wounded eleven citizens. In 1775, colonists dressed as Native Americans dumped all of the tea from a British cargo ship full of tea, at Boston Portinto, into the Harbor. This is know as and called the Boston Tea Party.  The British parliament was much more than angery; therefore, they passed the Quebec Act and closed Boston’s port for a good while.

Pocahontas of the Powhatan

 

Pocahontas was a Powhatan Indian girl, born around 1595. She is known for her involvement with English colonial settlement of Jamestown, Virginia. While exploring on the Chickahominy River, John Smith was captured by a hunting party led by one of Powhatan's close relative’s Opechancanough, and brought to the Powhatan's home of Werowocomoco. It is said that she “saved” the life of the Englishman John Smith. As he was about to be beat to death by her father and some of the Powhatan Indians, Pocahontas placed herself in front of Smith so he would not be killed. This was considered a spiritual practice, and since she protected Smith, it was the beggining of a peace between the Powhatan’s and the colonists of Jamestown. Pocahontas was a sign of peace between the Powhatan and the colonists. She “fell in love” with a colonist by the name of John Rolfe later on in time. Pocahontas later married the colonist John Rolfe in 1614, changed her name to Rebecca Rolfe, and visited England on “her own accord. The love between John Rolfe and was all a fake and forced love by John Rolfe. Just before returning to the America’s, Pocahontas was struck with disease and died in 1617 before getting back on board to go home. Rolfe made it back to the America’s only to be killed in 1622 by one of the series of attacks by the Indians that left 347 settlers dead.

 

Samuel de Champlain

            Samuel de Champlain was a French explorer and navigator who mapped most of the northeastern part of the America's. Champlain discovered the lake named after him, Lake Champlain, which is located on the border of New York and Vermond. In 1603, Champlain rode with Francois Grave Du Pont's on his boat to the America's. They sailed up the St. Lawrence River, the Saguenay River and they also explored the Gaspe Peninsula. In 1603 he returned to France only to return to Canada in 1604 on Pierre de Mont's ship. From 1604-1607, he sailed around and mapped most of the coast from Nova Scotia down the coast to Cape Cod. He also mapped Massachusettes and Rhosde Island. In 1608, alongside 32 colonists, Champlain tried to colonized Quebec in order to establish it as a fur trading center; however, only nine colonists survived the winter in Quebec. Champlain was able to befriend the Huron Indians and help them fight the Iroquois. During that time was when he discovered, Lake Champlain. Champlain then returned to France again and after a French-British peace treaty in 1632, Champlain returned to Quebec as its governor in 1633. Champlain died from a stroke on Dec. 25, 1635.

 

The Apalachees

                                                
          The Apalachees have been around since around A.D 1000. They were know to have been fierce warriors and were greatly respected by other tribes. Not only because of their fierceness but because they were well organized, had an advanced Indian civilization, and they were wealthy with abundant mounts of gold. The men, like most Indian tribes of the time, were in charge of setting the fields for crops and for hunting. On the other hand, women were in charge of tending the crops and picking nuts and berries. The men dressed in deersking loincloths while the women wore moss skirts. When men went to battle, they painted their bodies with red ochre and put feathers in their hair.
         The Apalachees also participated in games against challenging tribes. It was a religous excecise as well as a sport. It is amazing how there were about 100 players on each tribe's team. With a clay ball covered in buckskin the size of a golf ball, the players kicked the ball around trying to get it into a nest with a stuffed eagle on a pole. This game was played dedicated to the gods of rain and thunder to ask for rain for their crops.
         Lake Jackson was the capital of the Apalachee civilization. Ceremonial mounds were used for worshipping their gods. It was not until 1528 that the Apalachee made contact with the Europeans. Unlike the Tainos, the Apalachee fought the Spaniards and kept the explorers under constant attacks. The deadly diseases of the Europeans weakened the Apalachees and in between 1633 and 1635, 5,000 Apalachees converted to Catholicism because of the epidemics and the threat of foreign attackes. Most of the Apalachee moved westward while others traveled to present day Louisiana. To this day, there are about 250 to 300 Apalachee descendants in Florida.

http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/lessons/apalach/apalach1.htm

Ch. 2 Learning Objective: Desctibe the development of the Jamestown colony from its disastrous beginnings to its later prosperity

In 1606 the Virginia Company received a charter from the King James I that guranteed settlers the same rights as Englishman in Britain. On May 24, 1607, 100 English settleres set out on a ship and founded Jamestown, however, only 40 voyagers made it. The problems they faced almost immediately included poor drinking water and diseases like malaria and yellow fever. The settlers also spent most of their time looking for gold rather than doing something productive to help them survive; additionally, there were no women on the first voyage to reach Jamestown. It was not until 1608 with Captain John Smith in control that Jamestown was being more productive. The first colonists had to eat dogs, cats, rats, and even humans to survive until the releif party in 1610 arrived.

Ch. 2 Learning Objective: Describe the cultural and social changes that Indian communities underwent in response to English colonization

In the beginning, the Indians considered the colonists to be allies and they tried to be friendly with them. The colonists began to raid Indian food supplies and the relations dissappeared so war broke out. The Indians tried to be friendly but the way they were treated by the colonists angered the Indian. The First Anglo-Powhattann war ended in 1614 because of the marriage between Pocahontas and John Rolfe. The Second Anglo-Powhattan war started in 1644 only to end in 1646 and the Chesapeke Indians being banished from their ancestral lands. The colonization destroyed the lives of Indians as they were stolen of their food, banished from their homes, and were killed.

Ch. 2 Learning Objective: State the factors that led England to colonization

The only territory England was able to claim was Jamestown and was having trouble claiming more North American territory. The English were having internal conflicts such as the English Protestan Formation launched in the 1530's because King Henry VII broke with Roman Catholic Church. England also had to crush the Catholic's in Ireland with their uprising as they tried to look for help in Spain. When Elizabeth I became queen, she gave England the energy they needed to be more proactive. Spain attacked England only to be destroyed in the Spanish Armada and this win gave England the chace to colonize so they swarmed the Americas. The win over Spain also fueld their popularity, power, and economy; additionally, it inspired things such as the Golden Age of Literature and a treaty to be signed between Spain and England.

Ch. 1 Learning Objective: Describe the geological and geographical conditions that set the stage for the North American history

The Ice Age allowed for the people in Asia to walk across to the Americas on the Land Bridge about 35,000 years ago. Without this "bridge", the first population to have been created in the Americas would have been in 1942 when Colombus stumbled upon the Americas. The Ice Age also seperated the once all one giant continent Pangea into the 7 different continents there is now. The Ice Age allowed for Colombus to bring back raw materials like gold and silver to Europe. It left the Americas rich with materials needed for building the future of the continent and making it what it is today.

Ch. 1 Learning Objective: Explain the developements in Europe and Africa that led up to Colombus's voyage to America

During the 1400's, Marco Polo created a spark of interest in Europe for the spices of the East Indies. The only way they had to reach the spices was going through Europe and Asia to get to the Indies which was a difficult task. The Portuguese and other Europeans tried to figure out a way to get to the Spice Island by going around Africa on a boat. The Portuguese had a set route that went around Africa's southern Cape of Good Hope; additionally, Colombus tried to sail west bypassing the Portuguese's route around Africa. Colombus beleived the Earth's size was one third of its actual size. He set out west on his boat calculating to reach the Spice Islands but instead ended up in the Americas without realizing it. He thought the people there were Indians but he was wrong and his accidental discovery of new land led to the slave trade, the gold digging in the Americas, and the creation of market, capital, and technology in Europe.

Ch. 1 Learning Objective: Describe the origin and developement of the major Indian cultures of the Americas

The Indian cultures can be said to have originated from Asian descendants because of the theory of the Land Bridge. The theory of the Land Bridge states that approximately 35,000 years ago, there was land above the water that connected Asia to the Americas. It is said that people did cross this "land bridge" to the Americans and this is where the Indian cultures originated from. The people who crossed to the Americas spread out and different groups/tribes were created with about 2,000 languages. The 3 most notable tribes created were the Incas from Peru, the Mayans from Yucatan Peninsula, and the Aztecs from Mexico.