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  • August '24 Trivia!

    August '24 Trivia!
    2024/08/30
    I hope you’ve already read my last newsletter about Illinois’ Little Egypt, because this one builds upon it. We’re going to explore the region’s history with legalized slavery. As a reminder, Illinois and Indiana were once called the Illinois Country when first settled by the French, and it was the French who brought the first enslaved African workers there in 1720. The Illinois Country became part of the Northwest Territory in 1787, which meant it was bound by Article VI of the Northwest Ordinance: There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory otherwise than in the punishment of crimes whereof the party shall have been duly convicted. But slaveholders in the old Illinois Country (Illinois and Indiana) were exempted from the new law. Grandfathered, if you will.Through the next ten questions, we’ll explore the history of slavery north of the Ohio River in what’s now Illinois and Indiana. Note to my fabulous new subscribers:It’s the rare person who can answer all ten trivia questions without any prep. I couldn’t answer them without a significant amount of research, either! Do your best and enjoy learning something new. Answers in the footnotes.QUESTIONS* The French brought the first enslaved Africans to the Midwest around 1720 to work the mines along the Mississippi. The Illinois Country east of the Mississippi River became part of the Northwest Territory sixty-seven years later. Why didn’t Article VI end the practice of human bondage in the Illinois Country? In other words, on what grounds were the French enslavers granted an exemption from Article VI? More than one may apply. * Slavery was never defined in Article VI. * Article VI didn’t contain an enforcement clause.* Article VI didn’t specify how to unwind slavery in places where it had taken root before the Northwest Ordinance of 1787.* The French enslavers cut a deal with Congress that they would phase out slavery within two generations using a plan modeled after Pennsylvania’s 1780 Act for the Gradual Abolition of Slavery.* In 1800, the Indiana Territory (which included Illinois) received its second territorial governor, William Henry Harrison. He had served as secretary of the Northwest Territory and was elected a territorial delegate to Congress, which means he knew that Article VI banned slavery. What action(s) did Harrison take in contradiction of Article VI? More than one may apply.* He brought seven of his enslaved workers with him from Virginia to build his residence and gubernatorial office in Vincennes.* He enslaved Shawnee women to help run his household.* He purchased enslaved workers from French owners who had been in the territory. They built his residence and gubernatorial office in Vincennes.* After the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 (which involved land west of the Mississippi River), French slaveholders living in Illinois asked Congress to separate Illinois from the Indiana Territory and attach it to Louisiana, where they would have greater protection for their practice of human bondage. The French did not prevail. That same year, the Indiana Territory invented the loophole for prospective enslavers to bring their human property into the state using a practice known as chattel servitude. Instead of calling their human property “slaves” they called them “indentured workers.” Which of these is true about the “indentured servitude”contracts used in the Indiana Territory? More than one may apply.* Indentured contracts could last for 90 years.* Holders of indenture contracts could sell the service contract, along with the worker, to another holder.* Children of indentured mothers were also considered indentured.* Enslaved workers who didn’t sign an indenture contract would be sold into bondage in slave states. * In 1803, “A Law concerning Servants,” in the Northwest Territory established some minimal requirements of masters toward their servants and formed the basis for regulating all slavery and involuntary servitude in the territory. Territorial Governor Harrison and the other white settlers conveniently assumed that all Black people entering the territory were voluntarily indentured before they arrived. This means they assumed that the states from whence the Black workers came had properly supervised these indenture contracts. Ha. How did Harrison et al justify the institution of slavery when appealing to Congress to override Article VI and allow outright slavery in the Territory? More than one may apply.* Slavery would benefit the territory’s economy by stimulating settlement and increasing land values.* Allowing slavery in the Indiana Territory would keep slaveowners living in the Territory from moving west of the Mississippi River, where slavery was permitted by the French and Spanish. * Spreading the practice of enslaved labor throughout the West would benefit the captives themselves as well as the nation's white population, a belief known as diffusion.* A ...
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    36 分
  • Where's "Little Egypt," Illinois?

    Where's "Little Egypt," Illinois?
    2024/08/15
    Southern Illinois is where we find Egyptian city names like Carmi, Cairo, Thebes, Karnak, Goshen, and Dongola. Why? Because llinoisans call the lower 16-17 counties “Little Egypt” (see map below). Americans have been very creative in naming places, but I’m certain that no one who claimed Southern Illinois resembled Egypt had ever been to North Africa beforehand. I went in search of plausible answers for how the region got this unusual name and what made it stick.Checking with official sources in Illinois, including Southern Illinois University Carbondale and Southeastern Illinois College, there seems to be a consensus that the Mississippi River called to mind the Nile, while the expansive Native American mounds at Cahokia were (kinda) like some of Egypt’s (lesser) pyramids. I can accept that today, but how would settlers scratching out a living in the old Illinois Country have known to compare the Mississippi to the Nile, and the Cahokia mounds to the pyramids? We can probably thank Napoleon Bonaparte, whose invasion of Egypt in 1798 spurred news coverage all the way to North America. According to the Illinois Periodicals Online (IPO) Project: Although newspapers were scarce in the Illinois Country, the Kentucky papers covered the leading events of the day, including Napoleon's invasion of old Egypt the previous year…Even at that early day many Americans would have noted the two best-known features of Egypt, the Nile River and the pyramids, particularly those at Giza. The IPO Project claims that a Baptist missionary, John Badgley, dubbed the area Little Egypt while riding along the bluffs that overlooked the American Bottoms. From there, he would have easily seen the Mississippi River and Cahokia Mounds, maybe recalled a newspaper picture of Napoleon in Egypt, and thought, “Aha!” This gets even more interesting when you compare Southern Illinois to the Nile Delta in agricultural legacy, which brings us to a Bible story we know today as Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. As a refresher, it tells us how Joseph’s brothers sold him into Egyptian slavery. After many years, Joseph rose from enslavement to becoming Egypt’s governor and, foreseeing a famine, wisely rationed the country's produce for seven years in preparation. When the famine took hold, Joseph’s estranged family came to Egypt desperate for food. In time, all was forgiven and they were united in that land. (Longer version in Genesis 37, 39-45). To bring it all home, residents in Northern Illinois traveled south to buy grain after a series of dreadful winters and droughts. In light of that, doesn’t “Little Egypt” make sense now? Baptist missionary Badgley would have known the story of Joseph and the famine, so I can see why he chose the name Little Egypt from high atop the bluffs of the American Bottoms.Enslavement in Little EgyptAs longtime readers are aware, I’m writing a book on the racial legacy of the Ohio River as the country’s longest slavery border. Of the six states along the Ohio River, Illinois has the most complicated history with legal slavery, and Little Egypt was where most of it took place. You might be thinking, “What? Slavery in the Land of Lincoln?” Yep. If you’re the product of Illinois public schools, please tell me if this was part of your history curriculum. Heads up: if you want to get a leg up on this month’s trivia quiz, here’s the book that opened my eyes (and made me want to pour bleach into them). Bondage in Egypt: Slavery in Southern Illinois may only be available in your area via ebook. Next time I travel to Little Egypt I’m going to try to find a physical copy. Author Darrel Dexter has a new book out about the KKK in Southern Illinois, too.I look forward to August Trivia in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, would you share this with someone who might enjoy it? Bonus video: The Cahokia MoundsI was in Cahokia this year with the Filson Society. Cahokia was the largest city north of Mexico in its heyday.Bonus video: Napoleon in EgyptHere’s an engaging presentation on Napoleon’s Egyptian campaign from Dr. William B. Ashworth, Jr., Associate Professor of History at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. See you next time for August Trivia! Get full access to The 981 Project at the981project.com/subscribe
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    8 分
  • July '24 Trivia Time

    July '24 Trivia Time
    2024/07/25
    This month, at the half-year mark, I’m re-asking quiz questions you’ve already seen. You should nail these! If you’re one of my new subscribers, I welcome you, and don’t be hard on yourself if you don’t get a perfect score. We’re here to have fun!Ready? Answers are in the footnotes.QUESTIONS* On February 13, 1861, delegates representing all counties in Virginia met to decide how the state would respond to South Carolina's secession and other events. They voted to remain in the Union and hoped that they could reach a compromise to defuse the situation. Two months later, the same men passed The Virginia Ordinance of Secession, dated April 17, 1861, which declared that “…the bond between Virginia and the United States of America, under the U.S. Constitution, is dissolved.” Delegates at the Virginia Convention of 1861 voted 88–55 to approve the ordinance on April 17 and a statewide referendum confirmed secession on May 23. This meant the northwestern counties needed to act quickly in order to remain part of the Union. What percentage of white men in the northwestern counties voted to stay in the Union?* 52%* 67%* 75%* Within three days of the vote to remain in the Union, General George B. McClellan’s army occupied the region, notably Wheeling, Morgantown, Parkersburg, and Clarksburg. Pouring oil on troubled waters, McClellan said, “I have ordered troops to cross the river. They come as your friends and brothers (and) as enemies only to the armed rebels who are preying upon you. Your homes, your families, and your property are safe under our protection. All your rights shall be religiously respected,” (which included the right to own slaves). The capital had to be moved from Richmond. Where was the first capital in (what would eventually become) West Virginia?* Charleston* Morgantown* Parkersburg* Wheeling* Napoleon Bonaparte sold the Louisiana Territory to fund:* A wedding dowry for his step-daughter Hortense Eugénie Cécile Bonaparte so she could become Queen of Holland by marrying Napoléon’s brother, Louis Bonaparte* A war with the British* Both* Louisville, Kentucky took its name from King Louis XVI of France in appreciation for his help during the Revolutionary War. The city was founded by the brother of either Meriweather Lewis or William Clark, leaders of the Lewis & Clark Expedition of 1804–1806. Was the founder of Louisville a Lewis or a Clark?* This Pittsburgh native graduated from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in 1962 and attended Pitt’s Graduate School of Child Development before going on to be a broadcaster in children's television. This TV personality is recognized by more than forty honorary degrees and several awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Emmy in 1997 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002. Who is this native Pittsburgher?* This Indiana college was established in 1801 by William Henry Harrison (the ninth U.S. President) while he served as governor of the Indiana Territory. It is now a university. Name that university.* DePauw University* Valparaiso University* Vincennes University* In 2004, four college students set out to steal several volumes of some of the world’s rarest books from the first educational institution west of the Alleghenies. This institution was established in 1780 by the Commonwealth of Virginia, and its rare books were valued at more than $5.7 million. Name the university.* Spalding University* Transylvania University* Tusculum University* We talk a lot about the Northwest Territory. What is the importance of the Southwest Territory? Choose as many as apply.* It’s formal name is the Territory South of the River Ohio, and was created from lands of the Washington District that had been ceded to the U.S. federal government by North Carolina.* The new territory was essentially governed under the same provisions as the Northwest Ordinance, but the Article outlawing slavery was not applied to the Southwest Territory.* Kentucky and Tennessee were carved out of this Territory.* There is a small district of land in the central part of Ohio known as the French Grant because it was settled by French fleeing the Revolution in their home country. Why were French entitled to American land? More than one may apply* They were descendants of French families who had aided the American Revolution, including the extended family of America’s favorite Frenchman, Lafayette (Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette).* They had been defrauded by The Scioto Company which had collected some monies from the French without first purchasing the land from the Ohio Company. When the settlers arrived their deeds were worthless. It was five more years before Pres. Washington stepped in and granted them free land in the French Grant, but they had to live on the land for five years in order to own it.* There was a dispute between Michigan and Ohio over who owned the land in the farthest northwest corner of...
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    24 分
  • I Need a Pair of European White Swans

    I Need a Pair of European White Swans
    2024/07/11
    WELCOME NEW SUBSCRIBERS!Last summer I spent a couple of days in Louisville at the Filson Historical Society doing archival research on Cave Hill Cemetery. I have never done this kind of research before and the Filson staff patiently taught me the ins and outs of choosing boxes from its vast collection that might have artifacts that would shed light on burial regulations from the cemetery’s earliest days (1848-1900). This was of course the heart of the Victorian Era, and those Victorians had, ahem, “interesting” ideas about death. They were obsessed with elaborate mourning rituals, and creepy hair jewelry and hair art, as pictured below. Americans at this time were also very particular about whose mouldering bones could lie in proximity underground. The cemetery’s 1879 rules, regulations and bylaws, which the Filson stored, specified that Cave Hill was established "for the white race exclusively" and provided that "colored persons, when admitted, must be accompanied by a lot-holder, or some member of the family of the lot-holder, or may be admitted by the written permit of a Manager..." Interestingly, women were not allowed to enter the grounds unaccompanied because, hey, when you’ve got your foot on the neck of an entire race of people, why not put the other on women? They probably couched this rule in terms of female safety, or perhaps the feminine propensity to faint at the thought of death, or some other patriarchal subterfuge. I’m happy to report that a lot has changed since then. I have freely perambulated the grounds without an escort, and native son Muhammad Ali is buried there, along people of all ethnicities, religious affiliations, professions, and persuasions. I count this as progress.One thing that hasn’t changed since its founding is the cemetery’s fondness for swans, which was also a Victorian obsession. It still features one in its logo today. This sent me digging around to figure out why. In this Smithsonian article, I learned that beginning in 1482 only English landowners of a certain income could keep them, and any bird found without a “swan mark” on its beak to denote its owner, was automatically the property of the crown. You could think of a swan mark like a cattle brand, but carved into the beak. According to the Smithsonian:The prestige of swan ownership went far beyond their appeal as a delicacy. They were impressive enough as the centerpiece of a feast, but a swan in itself was not particularly expensive. The real desirability came from the right to own swans at all, because purchasing a swan mark was so expensive. To have a “game” of swans elegantly sculling around the lake of your stately pile required funds and status.The rules relating to swans prevented ordinary people from interacting with them at all, beyond being able to see them on the river. If you weren’t an officially recognized swan keeper it was forbidden to sell swans, to drive them away from your land, to mark them or even to hunt with dogs or lay nets and traps on the river at certain times of year in case swans were injured.Side note: here we have an economic lesson in how to drive up the price of something that doesn’t cost much at all. Swan prestige traveled across the Atlantic like Victorian Christmas tree traditions. The Victorian influence on American culture likely can’t be overstated.So, there I was in the Filson’s reading room, perusing a file of correspondence from the 1890s to and from Mr. J. G. A Boyd, who managed cemetery operations and was Secretary-Treasurer of the company. Among invoices and mundane requests for maintenance and landscaping, I continued to see letters from the W.A. Conklin Company of New York City, which, according to its fancy letterhead, traded in wild animals, managed zoological gardens, and supplied private menageries. I’ve since learned that William Conklin of the W.A. Conklin Company was Superintendent of the Central Park Menagerie from the 1860s through the 1880s. Apparently, Boyd had written to Conklin about something befalling the Cave Hill swans, to which Conklin replied in his spidery hand: “Very sorry to hear of your misfortune with the swans. They were certainly a very nice lot. If you care to try again, will have some more while over this month, but am right out of the black…” He then went on to mention his current inventory of a white goose, a Brent goose, and a Rosybill duck, and claimed, “they will breed with any of the ordinary waterfowl.” Other letters discussed which swans would interbreed—it wasn’t often. Before going any further, check out Conklin’s letterhead!Conklin’s swan inventory and sales price updates continued throughout 1893 and into ‘94. I was itching for resolution on this obviously important matter! What had happened to the swans! Were they replaced? If so, did the replacements survive?Then, I came upon correspondence from Littleton Cook, District Attorney for Kentucky for the Louisville ...
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    15 分
  • June '24 Trivia Time!

    June '24 Trivia Time!
    2024/06/20
    When people hear the word “reparations” today, it’s usually in a context of compensating African-Americans or Indians for damages they suffered, including forced and unpaid work, or for theft of their land and livelihoods among other harms. As a reminder, Japanese-Americans received reparations after they were deprived of their liberty (internment) and for property that was confiscated from them during WWII. Today, we broaden that lens and look at the instances when Ohio was carved up as a form of reparations to Revolutionary War veterans and other classes of people who Congress wanted to “restore to good condition,” before Ohio became a state.Before we go to this month’s trivia, let’s get clear on the definition of the word reparation(s). I lifted this directly from Dictionary.comReparation: noun* the making of amends for wrong or injury done:In reparation for the injustice, the king made him head of the agricultural department.* something done or given to make amends:The prosecutor has requested a reparation of $32 million to victims of the crime.Synonyms: compensation, satisfaction, atonement, indemnification* Usually reparations.* compensation in money, material, labor, etc., payable by a defeated country to another country or to an individual for loss suffered during or as a result of war:The U.S. government eventually disbursed reparations to Japanese Americans who had been interned during World War II.* monetary or other compensation payable by a country to an individual for a historical wrong:The article is about reparations to Black people for the enslavement of their ancestors.* restoration to good condition.Synonyms: repair, renovate, renewalREMINDER: It’s the rare person who can answer all ten trivia questions without any prep. I couldn’t answer them without a significant amount of research, either! Do your best and enjoy learning something new. Answers in the footnotes.QUESTIONSAll questions refer to this district map. For this quiz, try thinking of Ohio as a clock face. The districts in question start at the 12:00 position with the district labeled “The Fire Lands 1792.” We’ll move clockwise from there. All answers are in the footnotes.* Moving to the 1:00 position on the map, we find The Connecticut Western Reserve 1786. When King Charles II granted Connecticut’s 1662 Charter, he defined it broadly and ambiguously. Settlers in the newly-chartered colony seized upon the ambiguities to make the largest claims possible, which stretched from the East Coast through Ohio all the way to the Pacific (which is also what Virginia did earlier). They refused to concede this little patch in The Ohio Country after a series of concessions to other colonies and countries for their western lands until forced to do so by Congress in 1786. Which of the following is true about the Connecticut Western Reserve? More than one may apply.* Connecticut yielded claims to the region to Congress in 1786 so that Congress could establish the Northwest Territory. * Connecticut drove a hard bargain when yielding its claims in 1786. When the Continental Congress created the Northwest Territory the year after the Connecticut cession, it was assumed that Connecticut, not the territory, was empowered to exercise political jurisdiction over the Reserve. The ambiguity lasted until the Constitutional Congress approved the "Quieting Act" in 1800, whereby Connecticut surrendered all governing authority. * The Fire Lands (at 12:00) were carved out of the Connecticut Western Reserve in 1792, and the rest was sold to the Connecticut Land Company in 1795 to fund public education. If this is true, the only lands from the Connecticut Western Reserve that were given in reparation were The Fire Lands.* How did the Fire Lands 1792 district get its name? More than one may apply.* It’s the shortened version of Fire Suffers’ Lands.* It was set aside for anyone who owned Connecticut property that had been burned by the British during the Revolutionary War.* Working for the British, Benedict Arnold raided and burned 140-plus buildings in New London, Connecticut, along with ships docked in the port. Those who suffered in this attack were eligible for land in Ohio as reparation.* The Seven Ranges (at about 3:00), is sometimes referred to as the Old Seven Ranges, and was established the same year as the Connecticut Western Reserve (1786). The Continental Congress needed a survey system for a systematic expansion into Ohio, so the Seven Ranges was a demonstration project of sorts. The ranges were surveyed in what became the Public Land Survey System, still in use today (discussed in May ‘24 Trivia). After the survey was complete, the Secretary of War was to choose (by lot) one seventh of the land to compensate veterans of the Continental army. The rest of the lots were to be sold at auction in New York. Which of these lands were excepted from the New York auction? More than one may apply.* A wealthy merchant, ...
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    39 分
  • In the Heart of Lincoln Country, I toured Lincoln Gardens

    In the Heart of Lincoln Country, I toured Lincoln Gardens
    2024/06/02
    When I visited Evansville, Indiana, on a bright summer day in 2021, its revived waterfront and fabulous murals captivated me. Since then, I delved into Timothy Egan’s book about the Midwestern Klan, where I discovered that Evansville was a hotbed for KKK activity in the 1920s. Unlike the Klan that terrorized the South during Reconstruction, its second wave looked beyond Blacks to hate and harass. It was nativist, focused on driving out Catholics and first-generation immigrants, as well as Jews—together with Blacks they’d always targeted, they manufactured a much wider target for hate. It’s important to note that Blacks had been unwelcome in Indiana since its first Constitution specified, “No negro or mulatto shall come into, or settle in the State, after the adoption of this Constitution.” Intrigued by Indiana’s history of trying to maintain a WASP state (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant), I decided the Evansville African American Museum would be a vital stop. The museum sits in a neighborhood that’s been called Baptisttown since the 1800s, in a building dating back to Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal Era. Constructed in 1938, it narrowly avoided demolition in the 1990s and opened as a cultural institution in 2007. Its story as compelling as those it narrates.Evansville in the New Deal EraBy the turn of the (last) century, 54 percent of Evansville’s Black citizens lived in Baptisstown, and by WWI, the neighborhood became overcrowded to where a third of its residents had no access to sewage systems. Think for one second how miserable that must have been on a hot summer’s day (any day for that matter). Racial segregation in Evansville was of course rooted in Indiana’s Constitutional “Black Laws” but it was later exacerbated by racial restrictive covenants known as “deed restrictions” banning Blacks from living or owning property in most parts of the city. The use of deed restrictions were widespread throughout the country, with more cities adopting them than not. Although the Supreme Court ruled the covenants unenforceable in 1948, it took the Fair Housing Act of 1968 to outlaw them. But Indiana’s segregation predated deed restrictions. By the time the federal Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) analyzed Evansville neighborhoods in 1937, segregation was well-entrenched: 90% of Evansville's Black population lived in one of four neighborhoods. The HOLC outlined those four neighborhoods in red on the maps that they provided to lenders and insurance companies to use in deciding whether to do business in an area. Most companies avoided “redlined” neighborhoods, but if they did business there, it would be at a higher interest rate or insurance premium than offered elsewhere.As I hinted earlier, FDR’s Public Works Administration (PWA) tried to ameliorate the nation’s Depression-induced housing crisis by building 51 projects in 31 cities (seven were in Ohio River cities, including Evansville). The PWA was not focused on desegregation. It followed a “neighborhood composition rule,” meaning PWA housing projects should reflect the previous racial composition of their neighborhoods. Legal scholars note that this violated African Americans’ constitutional rights, but that was a battle for another day. To Evansville’s credit, local leaders resisted efforts to place the housing project outside the city limits, or to use the PWA to clear the neighborhood for white residents, as had happened in PWA communities elsewhere, despite the guidelines.Evansville is in the heart of Lincoln Country, so the community’s name, Lincoln Gardens, resonated. For about $1m, Lincoln Gardens housed roughly 500 residents in 16 buildings of 182 low-cost apartments. It was the second PWA community to be built in the country.First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt brought a touch of celebrity to Lincoln Gardens when she visited Baptisttown in November, 1937. Here’s an excerpt from her “My Day” newspaper column:First we went to lay a wreath on the tomb of Private Gresham, who was the first solider killed overseas during the World War. Then to look at the slum clearance project in the colored section of the City, which is evidently a matter of great pride to the Mayor. He is very happy that this undesirable section from the point of view of housing, has been wiped out. He told me that the new houses would rent at approximately the same amount per room as the old ones which had been extremely high considering what they were. That is one point in any slum clearance project which has to be watched, for there is no use in providing new housing at a cost beyond the incomes of the former residents of the neighborhood.As much as I love Eleanor, her fusty descriptions are cringy.Visiting the MuseumOn a balmy late-April morning, Ms. Janice Hale took me for a personal tour of the museum. She had lived in Lincoln Gardens with her mother and sister in the sixties, so her memories and reflections resonated ...
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    13 分
  • May '24 Trivia Time!

    May '24 Trivia Time!
    2024/05/22
    The more I learn about the Ohio River’s regional history and culture, the more I feel like I’m taking a Virginia history class. You’ll see why when you take this month’s trivia quiz! If you want a leg up, check out this prior newsletter concerning Virginia’s land claims.Note to my fabulous new subscribers: It’s the rare person who can answer all ten trivia questions without any prep. I couldn’t answer them without a significant amount of research, either! Do your best and enjoy learning something new. Answers in the footnotes.QUESTIONSAll answers are in the footnotes.The first two questions refer to this map. * How did this huge swath of land (above in green) come to be named Virginia? Check all that apply.* When Sir Walter Raleigh’s self-funded settlement on Roanoke Island failed, he needed to curry favor with Elizabeth (the Virgin Queen) to finance another attempt. Part of his pitch was that the new country would be called “Virginia.”* One word: hubris. * Four words: The Doctrine of Discovery.* In what order was Virginia subdivided into colonies? I have alphabetized the answers, so put them in order.* Colony of Carolina.* Colony of Maryland.* Colony of Pennsylvania.* Colony of Plymouth (Plymouth Colony).* Refer to the map below. Virginia was still a huge state in 1783, even after it had been subdivided into the colonies in Q2. Which Virginia founding father, himself trained as a surveyor, authored a plan for ceding Virginia’s northwestern lands to the Confederation Congress in 1784?* Let’s talk about the Virginia Military District in Ohio. In return for ceding its land claims to the Confederation Congress in 1784, Congress granted Virginia roughly 4.2 million acres to provide military bounty land grants as payment (in lieu of cash) for its veterans of the American Revolutionary War. When was the remaining land no longer eligible to be granted to these Virginia veterans? Only one of these is correct:* When the Northwest Territory was established in 1787.* When Ohio became a state in 1803.* On February 18, 1871, when any unsurveyed and unsold District land was ceded to the state of Ohio.* In 1872, when the Ohio legislature gave this land to the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College (now The Ohio State University).* The Northwest Territory was established in 1787 by the Confederation Congress. When did the Territory cease to exist?* When Ohio became a state in 1803.* When the Indiana Territory was finally settled into the states of Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois (1809).* The Northwest Ordinance that established the Territory specifically prohibited slavery. I wrote about that here. Which of these is true of the history of slavery in this region? More than one may apply.* Slavery was introduced to Illinois in 1719 by Philip Francois Renault who brought 500 slaves with him from San Domingo via the Mississippi River. * While the Northwest Ordinance prohibited slavery, this did not apply to any slaves already in the Territory when it was established (1787).* Enslavers continued the practice by using contracts of indenture that allowed indentured workers to be bought, sold, and inherited.* What is the importance of the Southwest Territory? Choose as many as apply.* It’s formal name is the Territory South of the River Ohio, and was created from lands of the Washington District that had been ceded to the U.S. federal government by North Carolina (which had once been Virginia).* The new territory was essentially governed under the same provisions as the Northwest Ordinance, but the Article outlawing slavery was not applied to the Southwest Territory. * Kentucky and Tennessee were carved out of this Territory.* Virginia produced a lot of presidents and governors. Which Virginia-born governors in the six Ohio River states were slaveholders? More than one choice may apply.* Ohio Governors Thomas Worthington and Allen Trimble* Indiana Governors William Henry Harrison and Thomas Posey* Illinois Governor Edward Coles* Kentucky Governors George Madison and Christopher Greenup* In a departure from the “Virginia Method” of surveying land, The Northwest Territory used the Rectangular Survey System (RSS). This system can be thought of as a grid that covers the U.S. What was the difference between it and the Virginia Method? More than one may be correct:* The Virginia Method used chains and compasses to mark lines from a starting point, typically a natural feature such as a large white oak tree. * Surveying in Virginia was not based on the metric system.* Virginian surveyors were directed to define polygons that enclosed high-quality land for farming and to exclude areas with poor soil.* Beginning with the Seven Ranges in present-day Ohio, the Rectangular Survey System has been used as the primary survey method in the United States. Which states do NOT use this method exclusively?* Ohio* California* Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Wyoming* WisconsinAnd that’s a wrap ...
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    20 分
  • Did you know the Revolutionary War had a Northwestern Front?

    Did you know the Revolutionary War had a Northwestern Front?
    2024/05/10
    Every class I took on the American Revolution focused on the thirteen colonies. In my limited knowledge of the war, the French and Spanish were doing their own things west of the Mississippi, leaving the British-owned but lightly settled Illinois Country in between that saw no real action. I had no idea that the southern part of the old Northwest Territory had been a theater of war until I got a postcard advertising the Filson Historical Society’s Northwest & Indigenous Revolution Tour. It was time to expand my world view from where I’d left it in high school. Our main tour stops were Fort de Chartres, St. Genevieve, The St. Charles Heritage Museum, The Lewis & Clark Boat House Museum, Cahokia Mounds, George Rogers Clark National Historical Park, and its neighboring site Grouseland on the campus of Vincennes University.France and Spain in the RevolutionThe Bourbon kings of France and Spain were cousins. I would have had to know this to say that I forgot it. The two kingdoms were allied against the British during the Seven Years War, 1756–1763, (we call it the French and Indian War). France was badly beaten by the British during that war, and longed for vengeance. From the Seven Years War to the Revolution, the land west of the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains, called Louisiana, went back and forth between France and Spain and involved a secret treaty. Here’s a video to explain how and when it happened. You might have to watch it a couple of times—I did! The way these monarchs played with colonies reminds me of third-graders learning chess moves.Anyhow, the upshot of all this is that through 1777, France covertly supported the Revolution with guns, weapons, and cash through a shell company (thanks, Ben Franklin!). French volunteers poured into the continent, chief among them Lafayette. After a decisive American win at Saratoga, France formally declared war on England in 1778. Spain joined France as an ally in 1779 without declaring war on England itself. As had happened in the Seven Years War, the clash of empires began spreading across the globe, heavily in the Caribbean, and the British cut their losses in North America.Speaking of Franklin, I’m enjoying the AppleTV series of that name starring Michael Douglas in the title role. George Rogers Clark Takes Center StageBorn near Charlottesville, Virginia, the founder of Louisville, Kentucky, George Rogers Clark played a key role in this story. We talked about him at nearly every stop on our Filson Society tour. To set the stage for the Illinois theater of war, remember that the Seven Years War included the France relinquishing its Illinois territorial claims to England. At the start of the Revolution, the British relied heavily on native tribes to attack backcountry farms and settlements using guns and ammunition they provided. These attacks had the greatest threats to Virginians in Kentucky County (south of the Ohio River), which the Virginia General Assembly had created 1776. Yes, Kentucky was a Virginia county before it became a state.At the age of 26, Clark requested and was granted public orders from the governor of Virginia to proceed against the British in the Illinois frontier. He also got a secret commission to launch an attack west into British-held territory. His goal was to seize Detroit, but he started easier targets (see the map above) which had few British forces to defend them.In his most successful moments he (Clark) crossed over and acted as an Indian war chief: he used their tactics, employed their methods to create group cohesion, shared their sense of honor and justice, terrorized his opponents into believing in his savagery, and even committed what Europeans regarded as atrocities. At the same time, he could put on a uniform and transform himself into a Virginia gentleman. ~National Park ServiceWith Clark’s victories in hand, after France’s recognition of the new American Republic, the Virginia legislature created the county of Illinois in 1778, comprising all the lands lying west of the Ohio River to which Virginia had any claim. Clark’s Legacy: In 1783, the Revolutionary War officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, and Clark returned to private life. Of importance to The 981 Project was Clark’s role in allotting lands across the Ohio River from Louisville to men who had taken part in his campaigns. He also was appointed a commissioner to make treaties with tribes north of the Ohio River who were continuing their raids into Kentucky. Fast forward to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s dedication of the Clark memorial June 14, 1936. Here’s part of his address:George Rogers Clark did battle against the tomahawk and the rifle. He saved for us the fair land that lay between the mountains and the Father of Waters. His task is not done. Though we fight with weapons unknown to him, it is still our duty to continue the saving of this fair land. Now, let’s look at Clark in the present moment. ...
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