Brigham Young was born in Whitingham, Vermont on June 1, 1801, and died in Salt Lake City (in the Utah Territory) on August 29, 1877 at the age of 76. (An interesting personal note was that he was perhaps the most famous polygamist of the early church – he officially married over 50 women). He was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement, and was the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints from 1847 until his death. Young was nicknamed by some the “American Moses” because he, like the Biblical character, led his followers (the Mormon pioneers) in an exodus through a desert, to the “promised land.” His legacy, however, is controversial. Although he did help to organize a large religion, and he did play a role in the United States’ acquisition of the Utah Territory, concerns remain over his role in the Utah War against the United States government and his attitudes toward racial minorities.
Although Young had been converted to Methodist faith in 1823 (age 22), he was drawn to Mormonism after reading the Book of Mormon soon after its publication in 1830. He officially joined the church in 1832 (age 31) and traveled to Canada as a missionary. Following the death of Joseph Smith, he was later chosen to lead the church. Following repeated conflicts, Young decided to relocate his group of Latter-day Saints to a territory in what is now Utah (then part of Mexico). They arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, a date now recognized as “Pioneer Day” in Utah.
Although he had many achievements in his life, he considered these “means,” not “ends.” Examples of these achievements include instituting patterns of Church government still present today, issuing detailed instructions on how to get to the Salt Lake Valley (instructions that would be followed by hundreds of companies), directing the organization of several hundred Latter-day Saint settlements, setting up several hundred business enterprises, and initiating the construction of meetinghouses, tabernacles, and temples. “His overriding concern was to build on the foundation begun by Joseph Smith to establish a commonwealth in the desert where his people could live the gospel of Jesus Christ in peace, thereby improving their prospects in this life and in the next.”
Saturday, March 29, 2008
USH - Utopian Communities - Church
Utopian Communities (also known as “intentional communities”) are “planned residential communities designed to promote a much higher degree of social interaction than other communities.” These utopian communities were attempting to create an ideal society.
Although utopian communities date to the earliest days of American history, they had become institutionalized in American thought by the 1840s. Many groups challenged the traditional standards and social conventions of the time, their desire for a perfect world often in sharp contradiction to the actual world they lived in, one in which such concepts as capitalism, the Industrial Revolution, immigration, and tension between the individual and the community, ideals that contradicted older forms of living.
The first of the American Utopias was evident in Robert Owen’s creation of the New Harmony Community in western Indiana in 1825. There, the residents established a socialist community in which everyone shared equally in labor and profit. The peace and contentment, however, would not last. Just months after the creation of a constitution in January 1826, the residents (numbered just over a thousand) divided into sub-communities. This division then disintegrated into chaos.
Another community started at this time was a community started by Francis Wright at Nashoba in Tennessee. Wright hoped to show that free labor was more economical than slavery, but the community did not attract settlers and it closed down within a year.
Transcendentalists [see Ralph Waldo Emerson, page 6] believed that an understanding of truth and eternity could only result when humankind abandoned the concrete world of the senses in favor of a more spiritual characterization of nature. They thus, in order to escape the modern world, created many utopian communities in the 1840s. The most important of these was Brook Farm, established in West Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1841. Residents hoped to free themselves from the competition of the capitalist world so as to work as little as possible, all the while enjoying the fruits of high culture.
Although none of these communities would remain a long-lasting settlement, they reflected the personal, social, and religious views of some of the American people at the time, a desire for an equal world free from competition and injustice rampant in the modern world.
Although utopian communities date to the earliest days of American history, they had become institutionalized in American thought by the 1840s. Many groups challenged the traditional standards and social conventions of the time, their desire for a perfect world often in sharp contradiction to the actual world they lived in, one in which such concepts as capitalism, the Industrial Revolution, immigration, and tension between the individual and the community, ideals that contradicted older forms of living.
The first of the American Utopias was evident in Robert Owen’s creation of the New Harmony Community in western Indiana in 1825. There, the residents established a socialist community in which everyone shared equally in labor and profit. The peace and contentment, however, would not last. Just months after the creation of a constitution in January 1826, the residents (numbered just over a thousand) divided into sub-communities. This division then disintegrated into chaos.
Another community started at this time was a community started by Francis Wright at Nashoba in Tennessee. Wright hoped to show that free labor was more economical than slavery, but the community did not attract settlers and it closed down within a year.
Transcendentalists [see Ralph Waldo Emerson, page 6] believed that an understanding of truth and eternity could only result when humankind abandoned the concrete world of the senses in favor of a more spiritual characterization of nature. They thus, in order to escape the modern world, created many utopian communities in the 1840s. The most important of these was Brook Farm, established in West Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1841. Residents hoped to free themselves from the competition of the capitalist world so as to work as little as possible, all the while enjoying the fruits of high culture.
Although none of these communities would remain a long-lasting settlement, they reflected the personal, social, and religious views of some of the American people at the time, a desire for an equal world free from competition and injustice rampant in the modern world.
USH - Mark Twain - Church
Mark Twain (his pen name) was born in Florida, Missouri on November 30, 1835 with the birth name Samuel Clemens. He died on April 21, 1910. He worked as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River from when he was licensed in 1859 (after two years of studying the river) until traffic along the Mississippi was reduced in 1861 when the American Civil War broke out.
Well known for his quotations as well, Mark Twain was an American humanist, humorist, satirist, lecturer, and writer. He enjoyed immense public popularity, and “his keen wit and incisive satire earned him praise from both critics and peers.” American author William Faulkner even referred to Twain as “the father of American literature.” Twain is most noted for his novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (has been since called the “first Great American Novel”). Adventures of Huckleberry Finn “solidified him as a noteworthy American writer.” This book was an offshoot of Tom Sawyer that had a more serious tone. The main idea of the book is “the young boy’s belief in the right thing to do even though the majority of society believes that it was wrong.” Another of his books, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, was his first big pronouncement of disappointment with politics. “The tone becomes cynical to the point of almost being a rant against the established political system of the day (which would have been in King Arthur’s time), and eventually devolved into madness for the main character.”
He began his writing career with light, humorous verse, but his writing eventually “evolved into a grim, almost profane chronicle of the vanities, hypocrisies and murderous acts of mankind.” Twain was a master at providing colloquial speech in his works, and thus helped to create and popularize a distinctive style of American literature built on American themes and language.
His reputation as a popular author still overshadows his contributions as a social critic, his radicalism neutralized by history. Although he remained neutral during the Civil War, he acknowledged that his view became more radical as he got older. Twain was, among other things, an adamant supporter of abolition and emancipation, in favor of labor unions, and critical of organized religion and certain elements of Christianity.
Well known for his quotations as well, Mark Twain was an American humanist, humorist, satirist, lecturer, and writer. He enjoyed immense public popularity, and “his keen wit and incisive satire earned him praise from both critics and peers.” American author William Faulkner even referred to Twain as “the father of American literature.” Twain is most noted for his novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (has been since called the “first Great American Novel”). Adventures of Huckleberry Finn “solidified him as a noteworthy American writer.” This book was an offshoot of Tom Sawyer that had a more serious tone. The main idea of the book is “the young boy’s belief in the right thing to do even though the majority of society believes that it was wrong.” Another of his books, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, was his first big pronouncement of disappointment with politics. “The tone becomes cynical to the point of almost being a rant against the established political system of the day (which would have been in King Arthur’s time), and eventually devolved into madness for the main character.”
He began his writing career with light, humorous verse, but his writing eventually “evolved into a grim, almost profane chronicle of the vanities, hypocrisies and murderous acts of mankind.” Twain was a master at providing colloquial speech in his works, and thus helped to create and popularize a distinctive style of American literature built on American themes and language.
His reputation as a popular author still overshadows his contributions as a social critic, his radicalism neutralized by history. Although he remained neutral during the Civil War, he acknowledged that his view became more radical as he got older. Twain was, among other things, an adamant supporter of abolition and emancipation, in favor of labor unions, and critical of organized religion and certain elements of Christianity.
USH - Harriet Tubman - Church
Harriet Tubman (birth name: Araminta Ross) was born around 1820 (exact date unknown) to slave parents in Dorchester County, Maryland. As a child, Tubman took care of a younger brother and a baby, as her mother was usually busy with her work at “the big house.”
On September 17, 1849, Tubman escaped slavery with her brothers, Ben and Henry. Once they had left, however, her brothers began experiencing second thoughts, and, fearful of the dangers ahead, went back, forcing Tubman to return with them. Soon afterwards, however, she escaped again, this time without her brothers. While no one knows exactly what route Tubman took to go north, it is known that she made use of the extensive network known as the Underground Railroad, an “informal but well-organized system was composed of free blacks, white abolitionists, and Christian activists.”
Although she was an illiterate child, her mother had told her Bible stories, helping her to become deeply religious. The particular variety of her faith is unclear, but it is definite that she “acquired a passionate faith in God.” This religious faith was an important resource to her as she ventured again and again into Maryland. Not only did it give her strength for the journeys she was on, but Tubman also used spirituals as coded messages, warning fellow travelers that there was danger or signaling that the path was clear for travel.
For eleven years, Tubman repeatedly returned to this area of slavery, eventually rescuing about 70 slaves in thirteen different expeditions. She also gave specific instructions on how to escape to about 50 or 60 other fugitives. (Some historians say that she rescued over three hundred slaves both on her journeys and from her support of the Underground Railroad). Her trips back into the land of slavery put her at significant risk. Not only had she illegally escaped from slavery, but she was helping other slaves to do the same. She thus made us of various disguises and ploys to avoid detection.
She also later helped John Brown to recruit men for his (unfortunately unsuccessful) raid on Harpers Ferry, and she struggled in the post-war era for women’s suffrage.
On September 17, 1849, Tubman escaped slavery with her brothers, Ben and Henry. Once they had left, however, her brothers began experiencing second thoughts, and, fearful of the dangers ahead, went back, forcing Tubman to return with them. Soon afterwards, however, she escaped again, this time without her brothers. While no one knows exactly what route Tubman took to go north, it is known that she made use of the extensive network known as the Underground Railroad, an “informal but well-organized system was composed of free blacks, white abolitionists, and Christian activists.”
Although she was an illiterate child, her mother had told her Bible stories, helping her to become deeply religious. The particular variety of her faith is unclear, but it is definite that she “acquired a passionate faith in God.” This religious faith was an important resource to her as she ventured again and again into Maryland. Not only did it give her strength for the journeys she was on, but Tubman also used spirituals as coded messages, warning fellow travelers that there was danger or signaling that the path was clear for travel.
For eleven years, Tubman repeatedly returned to this area of slavery, eventually rescuing about 70 slaves in thirteen different expeditions. She also gave specific instructions on how to escape to about 50 or 60 other fugitives. (Some historians say that she rescued over three hundred slaves both on her journeys and from her support of the Underground Railroad). Her trips back into the land of slavery put her at significant risk. Not only had she illegally escaped from slavery, but she was helping other slaves to do the same. She thus made us of various disguises and ploys to avoid detection.
She also later helped John Brown to recruit men for his (unfortunately unsuccessful) raid on Harpers Ferry, and she struggled in the post-war era for women’s suffrage.
USH - Sojourner Truth - Church
Sojourner Truth was born into slavery in Swartekill, New York around 1797 (exact date unknown) as Isabella Baumfree. (She gave herself the name “Sojourner Truth” in 1843). She died on November 26, 1883 in Battle Creek, Michigan. Although the state of New York began to legislate the abolition of slavery in 1799, but the process wasn’t complete until July 4, 1827. She escaped her master late in 1826 with her infant daughter, Sophia, but she was forced to leave her other four children behind because they were not legally freed in the emancipation order until they had served as bound servants into their twenties.
On June 1, 1843 she changed her name to Sojourner Truth and then left to make her way traveling and preaching about abolition. In 1844, she joined the Northampton Association of education and Industry in Massachusetts, an organization that “supported women’s rights and religious tolerance as well as pacifism.”
In May of 1851, “she attended the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio where she delivered her famous speech Ain’t I a Woman, a slogan she adopted from one of the most famous abolitionist images, that of a kneeling female slave with the caption ‘Am I Not a Woman and a Sister?’” By frequently asking the question “Ain’t I a Woman?”, she placed brought attention that there were U.S. citizens who suffered dual persecutions, both for being black and for being a woman. This speech was also a landmark achievement for a woman who could not read or write. (She had previously secured help from Olive Gilbert to help her write her own autobiography).
Over the next decade, she spoke before dozens, perhaps hundreds, of audiences. She spoke about abolition, women’s rights, prison reform, and preached against capital punishment. “During the Civil war, she spoke on the Union’s behalf, as well as for enlisting black troops for the cause and freeing slaves.” She used humor, biblical references, and controversy to reach the audience and really emphasize her points.
On June 1, 1843 she changed her name to Sojourner Truth and then left to make her way traveling and preaching about abolition. In 1844, she joined the Northampton Association of education and Industry in Massachusetts, an organization that “supported women’s rights and religious tolerance as well as pacifism.”
In May of 1851, “she attended the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio where she delivered her famous speech Ain’t I a Woman, a slogan she adopted from one of the most famous abolitionist images, that of a kneeling female slave with the caption ‘Am I Not a Woman and a Sister?’” By frequently asking the question “Ain’t I a Woman?”, she placed brought attention that there were U.S. citizens who suffered dual persecutions, both for being black and for being a woman. This speech was also a landmark achievement for a woman who could not read or write. (She had previously secured help from Olive Gilbert to help her write her own autobiography).
Over the next decade, she spoke before dozens, perhaps hundreds, of audiences. She spoke about abolition, women’s rights, prison reform, and preached against capital punishment. “During the Civil war, she spoke on the Union’s behalf, as well as for enlisting black troops for the cause and freeing slaves.” She used humor, biblical references, and controversy to reach the audience and really emphasize her points.
USH - Henry David Thoreau - Church
Henry David Thoreau (birth name: David Henry Thoreau) was born on July 12, 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts. He died on May 6, 1862. Thoreau studied at Harvard University, but he never technically graduated, allegedly having refused to pay the five-dollar fee for a Harvard diploma. During a leave of absence from Harvard in 1835, Thoreau taught school in Canton, Massachusetts, joining the faculty of Concord Academy following his graduation in 1837. He was soon dismissed, however, for refusing to administer corporal punishment.
He then opened a grammar school with his brother John in Concord in 1838 (age 21). They introduced several progressive concepts, such as nature walks and visits to local shops and businesses. The school ended, however, when John became fatally ill from tetanus in 1842.
Thoreau was “a philosopher of nature and its relation to the human condition.” In his early years, he followed transcendentalism [see Ralph Waldo Emerson, page 6]. Only July 4, 1845 (age 28), he set out on a two-year experiment in simple living. He moved to a small self-built house on land owned by Emerson (Walden Pond). In 1854, he published Walden (also called Life in the Woods), which was the story of the two years, two months, and two days he spend there. Although it was not popular at the time, it is now regarded as “a classic American book that explores natural simplicity, harmony, and beauty as models for just social and cultural conditions.”
Thoreau also played a large part in persuading the abolitionist movement to accept John Brown as a martyr after his raid at Harpers Ferry. Many prominent voices had distanced themselves from Brown (or even damned him). This disgusted Thoreau, and he thus composed a speech (A Plea for Captain John Brown), “uncompromising in its defense of Brown and his actions.”
An early advocate of recreational hiking and canoeing, of conserving natural resources, and of preserving wilderness, Thoreau was also one of the first American supporters of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. However, he neither rejected civilization nor fully embraced wilderness, instead seeking a middle ground between the two.
He then opened a grammar school with his brother John in Concord in 1838 (age 21). They introduced several progressive concepts, such as nature walks and visits to local shops and businesses. The school ended, however, when John became fatally ill from tetanus in 1842.
Thoreau was “a philosopher of nature and its relation to the human condition.” In his early years, he followed transcendentalism [see Ralph Waldo Emerson, page 6]. Only July 4, 1845 (age 28), he set out on a two-year experiment in simple living. He moved to a small self-built house on land owned by Emerson (Walden Pond). In 1854, he published Walden (also called Life in the Woods), which was the story of the two years, two months, and two days he spend there. Although it was not popular at the time, it is now regarded as “a classic American book that explores natural simplicity, harmony, and beauty as models for just social and cultural conditions.”
Thoreau also played a large part in persuading the abolitionist movement to accept John Brown as a martyr after his raid at Harpers Ferry. Many prominent voices had distanced themselves from Brown (or even damned him). This disgusted Thoreau, and he thus composed a speech (A Plea for Captain John Brown), “uncompromising in its defense of Brown and his actions.”
An early advocate of recreational hiking and canoeing, of conserving natural resources, and of preserving wilderness, Thoreau was also one of the first American supporters of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. However, he neither rejected civilization nor fully embraced wilderness, instead seeking a middle ground between the two.
USH - Harriet Beecher Stowe - Church
Harriet Beecher Stowe was born on June 14, 1811 in Litchfield, Connecticut, the seventh child of a Protestant preacher. She died on July 1, 1896 in Johnstown, Ohio at the age of 85. She worked as a teacher with her older sister, Catharine, for a time. She helped to support her family financially by writing for local and religious periodicals. During her life, she wrote many poems, travel books, biographical sketches, and children’s books, as well as adult novels. She also “met and corresponded with people as varied as Lady Byron and George Eliot”.
Although she wrote at least ten adult novels, she is predominantly known for her first, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, published in 1852. It began as a serial for the Washington anti-slavery Weekly (the National Era), and it focused public interest on the issue of slavery, while being deeply controversial. Attacking the cruelty of slavery, it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential, even overseas in Britain. The book had an amazing effect in the North, attracting thousands of people to the abolitionist movement. The south, however, found that the book was a false account of southern life, “a slanderous accusation.” Banned in many southern states, anyone found possessing the book could be arrested. It made the political issue of slavery concrete to millions of people, and animated anti-slavery forces in the North. In fact, when Abraham Lincoln met Stowe, it’s claimed that he said, “So you’re the little woman that started this great war!” After this book was published, she became a kind of celebrity, speaking against slavery not only in America, but in Europe as well.
However, “the historical significance of Stowe’s antislavery writing has tended to draw attention away from her other work, and from her work’s literary significance.” Admittedly, her work is irregular, sometimes indulging in a “romanticized Christian sensibility” that was popular at the time, but seems to lack credibility with modern readers. At times, though, she was an “early and effective realist,” describing the setting of her works accurately and with great detail. She shows an understanding of the complex social culture of her time through her portraits of local social life, and she had a great ability to portray that culture to others.
Although she wrote at least ten adult novels, she is predominantly known for her first, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, published in 1852. It began as a serial for the Washington anti-slavery Weekly (the National Era), and it focused public interest on the issue of slavery, while being deeply controversial. Attacking the cruelty of slavery, it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential, even overseas in Britain. The book had an amazing effect in the North, attracting thousands of people to the abolitionist movement. The south, however, found that the book was a false account of southern life, “a slanderous accusation.” Banned in many southern states, anyone found possessing the book could be arrested. It made the political issue of slavery concrete to millions of people, and animated anti-slavery forces in the North. In fact, when Abraham Lincoln met Stowe, it’s claimed that he said, “So you’re the little woman that started this great war!” After this book was published, she became a kind of celebrity, speaking against slavery not only in America, but in Europe as well.
However, “the historical significance of Stowe’s antislavery writing has tended to draw attention away from her other work, and from her work’s literary significance.” Admittedly, her work is irregular, sometimes indulging in a “romanticized Christian sensibility” that was popular at the time, but seems to lack credibility with modern readers. At times, though, she was an “early and effective realist,” describing the setting of her works accurately and with great detail. She shows an understanding of the complex social culture of her time through her portraits of local social life, and she had a great ability to portray that culture to others.
USH - Joseph Smith - Church
Joseph Smith (true name: Joseph Smith, Jr.) was born in Sharon, Vermont on December 23, 1805, and died in Carthage, Illinois on June 27, 1844, at the age of 39. He was the American religious figure who founded the Latter Day Saint movement (also known as Mormonism). His followers declared him to be the first latter-day prophet, whose mission was supposedly to restore the original Christian church that was “said to have been lost soon after the death of Apostles because of an apostasy [“total desertion of or departure from one's religion, principles, party, cause, etc.”].”
His family was a farming family that lived in western New York for much of Smith’s young life. This region was an area of intense revivalism and religious diversity during the Second Great Awakening. Smith, during is youth, had little interaction with organized religion, but he still studied the Bible, had religious opinions, and was influenced by the common folk religion of the area. He reported that in 1820 (aged 14) he experienced a theopany [“an appearance of God to man, or a divine disclosure”], commonly referred to as the First Vision (several accounts of this would be recorded later in his life).
He was said to have been concerned as to which church was “correct” for him to join. Supposedly, God and Jesus came to him as “two separate, glorious, resurrected beings” to tell him that “none of the churches established at the time were correct, and so he should join none of them.” Smith purportedly had several additional revelations while the Book of Mormon (translation of ancient Egyptian plates) was published, and he had supposedly begun the work of organizing a new Christian church.
Once established with a congregation of followers, the church was moved to Ohio to avoid the conflict encountered in New York and Pennsylvania. He was eventually killed (over thirteen years later) when a mob broke into the jail where he was being held (under promise of “protection and a fair trial” following an accusation of him violating the freedom of the press) and was killed. (Mormons view his death as martyrdom).
Currently there are between thirteen and fourteen million people that are part of a denomination originating from his teachings. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the largest, with approximately 13 million members. The second largest is the Community of Christ, with about 250,000 members.
His family was a farming family that lived in western New York for much of Smith’s young life. This region was an area of intense revivalism and religious diversity during the Second Great Awakening. Smith, during is youth, had little interaction with organized religion, but he still studied the Bible, had religious opinions, and was influenced by the common folk religion of the area. He reported that in 1820 (aged 14) he experienced a theopany [“an appearance of God to man, or a divine disclosure”], commonly referred to as the First Vision (several accounts of this would be recorded later in his life).
He was said to have been concerned as to which church was “correct” for him to join. Supposedly, God and Jesus came to him as “two separate, glorious, resurrected beings” to tell him that “none of the churches established at the time were correct, and so he should join none of them.” Smith purportedly had several additional revelations while the Book of Mormon (translation of ancient Egyptian plates) was published, and he had supposedly begun the work of organizing a new Christian church.
Once established with a congregation of followers, the church was moved to Ohio to avoid the conflict encountered in New York and Pennsylvania. He was eventually killed (over thirteen years later) when a mob broke into the jail where he was being held (under promise of “protection and a fair trial” following an accusation of him violating the freedom of the press) and was killed. (Mormons view his death as martyrdom).
Currently there are between thirteen and fourteen million people that are part of a denomination originating from his teachings. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the largest, with approximately 13 million members. The second largest is the Community of Christ, with about 250,000 members.
USH - Seneca Falls Convention - Church
The Seneca Falls Convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York on July 19 and 20, 1848. The first women’s rights convention held in the United States, it is often labeled the birthplace of feminism. A group of American women and men met here to discuss the legal limitations imposed on women during this period. These discussions were influenced by the contributors’ participation in the abolitionist movement, and they eventually used (as many different groups throughout history have) language and structure from the United States Declaration of Independence to formally state their belief that women should be entitled to the rights granted to American citizens in a document known as the Declaration of Sentiments.
At this time in American history, the country was in the middle of cultural and economic change. Since the American Revolution and the Constitutional Convention, the geographical boundaries and the population had both more than doubled, the population had begun to shift westward, and the economy was moving from a system of independent farmers to a world built around distant, unknown markets (known as the Market Revolution).
Prior to this convention, there had been no public meeting of such a large scale to discuss this topic, despite the questions raised by such women of the Revolutionary era as Abigail Adams. However, when the men were preoccupied with the war effort, women had to take over many of their responsibilities, thus leading the creation of many new social roles following the end of the war, and women were able to establish a place for themselves in society. Many women began organizing in reform organizations aiming to improve the lives of others and fight for the rights of those who could not speak out for themselves (ex.: schoolchildren, the mentally ill).
As part of their declaration, they listed the grievances that reflected the severe limitation on women’s legal rights (they could not vote, couldn’t participate in the creation of laws they were expected to follow, their property was taxed, rarely got custody of children in a divorce, often couldn’t get higher education, etc.). They proclaimed that “all men and women were created equal.” This helped to open the public’s eyes to ideas like women’s rights and they were, for the first time, willing to question convention.
At this time in American history, the country was in the middle of cultural and economic change. Since the American Revolution and the Constitutional Convention, the geographical boundaries and the population had both more than doubled, the population had begun to shift westward, and the economy was moving from a system of independent farmers to a world built around distant, unknown markets (known as the Market Revolution).
Prior to this convention, there had been no public meeting of such a large scale to discuss this topic, despite the questions raised by such women of the Revolutionary era as Abigail Adams. However, when the men were preoccupied with the war effort, women had to take over many of their responsibilities, thus leading the creation of many new social roles following the end of the war, and women were able to establish a place for themselves in society. Many women began organizing in reform organizations aiming to improve the lives of others and fight for the rights of those who could not speak out for themselves (ex.: schoolchildren, the mentally ill).
As part of their declaration, they listed the grievances that reflected the severe limitation on women’s legal rights (they could not vote, couldn’t participate in the creation of laws they were expected to follow, their property was taxed, rarely got custody of children in a divorce, often couldn’t get higher education, etc.). They proclaimed that “all men and women were created equal.” This helped to open the public’s eyes to ideas like women’s rights and they were, for the first time, willing to question convention.
USH - Edgar Allan Poe - Church
Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809 and died on October 7, 1849, 40 years old. A poet, short-story writer, editor, and literary critic, Poe was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing along, something that resulted in a financially difficult life and career. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts under the name “Edgar Poe.” His parents died when he was young, and he was taken in (but never formally adopted) by John and Frances Allan (hence the name). After Poe spent a short period at the University of Virginia and briefly attempted a military career, he parted ways with the Allans.
His publishing career began modestly, his first published work being an anonymous collection of poems. Poe then switched his focus to prose and spent the next several years working for various literary journals and periodicals, becoming known for his distinctive style of literary criticism. His work wasn’t steady, though, and he was forced to move between several cities, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York City. In Baltimore in 1835 (aged 26), he married Virginia Clemm (his 13-year-old cousin), but she died of tuberculosis ten years later.
Poe’s best known fiction works deal with questions of death (including its physical signs, the effects of decomposition, concerns of premature burial, the reanimation of the dead, and mourning) and many are generally considered to be part of the dark romanticism genre. Although he is best known for his work in the horror genre, he also wrote satires, humor tales, and hoaxes, using irony and ludicrous extravagance for comic effect. Much of his work was written using themes specifically catered for mass market tastes.
One of his more well-known works, the poem “The Raven” was published in January 1845 (when he was 36 years old), to instant success. Other famous works include “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” “Annabel Lee,” “Lenore,” and “The Tell-Tale Heart.”
His works influenced literature in the United States and around the world. His work appears throughout popular culture in literature, music, films, and television. A number of his previous homes are dedicated museums today.
His publishing career began modestly, his first published work being an anonymous collection of poems. Poe then switched his focus to prose and spent the next several years working for various literary journals and periodicals, becoming known for his distinctive style of literary criticism. His work wasn’t steady, though, and he was forced to move between several cities, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York City. In Baltimore in 1835 (aged 26), he married Virginia Clemm (his 13-year-old cousin), but she died of tuberculosis ten years later.
Poe’s best known fiction works deal with questions of death (including its physical signs, the effects of decomposition, concerns of premature burial, the reanimation of the dead, and mourning) and many are generally considered to be part of the dark romanticism genre. Although he is best known for his work in the horror genre, he also wrote satires, humor tales, and hoaxes, using irony and ludicrous extravagance for comic effect. Much of his work was written using themes specifically catered for mass market tastes.
One of his more well-known works, the poem “The Raven” was published in January 1845 (when he was 36 years old), to instant success. Other famous works include “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” “Annabel Lee,” “Lenore,” and “The Tell-Tale Heart.”
His works influenced literature in the United States and around the world. His work appears throughout popular culture in literature, music, films, and television. A number of his previous homes are dedicated museums today.
USH - Horace Mann - Church
Horace Mann was born in Franklin, Massachusetts on May 4, 1796 and died on August 2, 1859 at the age of 63. He was an American education reformer and abolitionist (he was also a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives). His childhood and youth were spent in poverty, and he was never fully healthy, the early hard, manual labor taking a toll on his small body. The only way he was able to read as he so avidly loved to do, was to borrow books from the small library in his town that consisted primarily of histories and essays on theology. He did attend Brown University at the age of 20, graduating as the valedictorian of his class after only three years. Following this, he spent time as a tutor (Latin and Greek), a librarian, and a law student.
When he was appointed the head of the newly created board of education of Massachusetts in 1837 (age 41), he then began the work that would soon “place him in the foremost rank of American educationists.” He held teachers’ conventions, delivered lectures and addresses, carried on widespread communication, and introduced numerous reforms. Mann was basically responsible for the normal school system in Massachusetts (created to train high school graduates to be teachers; most now called teachers colleges).
Mann’s reforms included establishing a single school system throughout the state, rather than many separate local school districts. He encouraged the idea of having separate classrooms depending on education level, and discouraged the use of simple memorization (rather than true learning) as a form of learning. More importantly, he “worked effectively for more and better equipped school houses, longer school years (until 16 years old), higher pay for teachers, and a wider curriculum.”
The practical result of his work was a revolution in the approach used in the public school system of Massachusetts. This change then influenced the school system of other states. Although he was met with bitter opposition by those who disagreed with his theories on learning or those who “contended against the exclusion of all sectarian instruction from the schools,” he is often considered “the father of American public education.”
When he was appointed the head of the newly created board of education of Massachusetts in 1837 (age 41), he then began the work that would soon “place him in the foremost rank of American educationists.” He held teachers’ conventions, delivered lectures and addresses, carried on widespread communication, and introduced numerous reforms. Mann was basically responsible for the normal school system in Massachusetts (created to train high school graduates to be teachers; most now called teachers colleges).
Mann’s reforms included establishing a single school system throughout the state, rather than many separate local school districts. He encouraged the idea of having separate classrooms depending on education level, and discouraged the use of simple memorization (rather than true learning) as a form of learning. More importantly, he “worked effectively for more and better equipped school houses, longer school years (until 16 years old), higher pay for teachers, and a wider curriculum.”
The practical result of his work was a revolution in the approach used in the public school system of Massachusetts. This change then influenced the school system of other states. Although he was met with bitter opposition by those who disagreed with his theories on learning or those who “contended against the exclusion of all sectarian instruction from the schools,” he is often considered “the father of American public education.”
USH - Hudson River School - Church
The Hudson River School was a group of American landscape painters in the mid-nineteenth century. (In this sense, “school” refers to “a group of people whose outlook, inspiration, output, or style demonstrates a common thread, rather than a learning institution.”) These painters took a Romantic approach (emphasizing emotions painted in a bold, dramatic manner; more emotional, usually melancholic, even melodramatically tragic, than classic painters) to illustrate the nature of the Hudson River Valley, the Catskill Mountains, the Berkshire Mountains, the White Mountains, and lands further west. As the American frontier expanded westward, their views (often brashly theatrical, embracing moral or literary associations) of the expanding territory found a passionate audience.
Although it is not entirely sure where the term Hudson River School came from, nor when it’s use was first published, a man named Thomas Cole is generally acknowledged as the founder of the Hudson River School. This artist had taken a steamship up the Hudson River in the autumn of 1825, stopping at places along the way to observe the environment of the area. Cole found the brilliant autumn hues of the area unusual (used to monochromatic green landscapes), and thus had inspiration for his paintings.
These paintings reflected the three major themes of America during the 19th century: discovery, exploration, and settlement. This time period was when America’s border greatly expanded and the nation increased in size. The paintings also tended to illustrate the American scenery as a pastoral setting, where humans and nature coexist peacefully. These landscapes are also characterized by their realistic and detailed (sometimes even idealized) portrayal of nature juxtaposed with colonialism and wilderness. In general, these painters believed that the landscape of the country was an indescribable expression of God, though not all artists had the same level of religious conviction.
Although the elements of the paintings themselves are shown very realistically, many of the actual scenes of the paintings are mixtures of various different outlooks and natural images observed by the artists. They would travel to many places in the process of gathering visual information and ideas for their paintings, going to rather unusual and severe places, many of which were too hostile to allow for the painter to stay there in the nature while completing his painting. Instead, the painters would sketch ideas and rely on memory in order to record ideas for the paintings which would then be created after the artists safely returned home.
Although it is not entirely sure where the term Hudson River School came from, nor when it’s use was first published, a man named Thomas Cole is generally acknowledged as the founder of the Hudson River School. This artist had taken a steamship up the Hudson River in the autumn of 1825, stopping at places along the way to observe the environment of the area. Cole found the brilliant autumn hues of the area unusual (used to monochromatic green landscapes), and thus had inspiration for his paintings.
These paintings reflected the three major themes of America during the 19th century: discovery, exploration, and settlement. This time period was when America’s border greatly expanded and the nation increased in size. The paintings also tended to illustrate the American scenery as a pastoral setting, where humans and nature coexist peacefully. These landscapes are also characterized by their realistic and detailed (sometimes even idealized) portrayal of nature juxtaposed with colonialism and wilderness. In general, these painters believed that the landscape of the country was an indescribable expression of God, though not all artists had the same level of religious conviction.
Although the elements of the paintings themselves are shown very realistically, many of the actual scenes of the paintings are mixtures of various different outlooks and natural images observed by the artists. They would travel to many places in the process of gathering visual information and ideas for their paintings, going to rather unusual and severe places, many of which were too hostile to allow for the painter to stay there in the nature while completing his painting. Instead, the painters would sketch ideas and rely on memory in order to record ideas for the paintings which would then be created after the artists safely returned home.
USH - The Grimké Sisters - Church
The Grimké sisters were 19th-century American Quakers, educators, and writers. They were early advocates of abolitionism and women’s writers. Sarah Grimké was born in South Carolina on November 26, 1792 and died on December 23, 1873 at the age of 81. Her sister, Angelina Grimké was born in 1805 (also in South Carolina) and died in 1879 at the age of 74. Throughout their lives, the two sisters traveled throughout the North, sharing their stories from the first-hand experiences they had with slavery from their family’s plantation. They were among the first women to actually publicly act in social reform movements, and subsequently received abuse and ridicule for their abolitionist activity. They thus realized that women would need to create a safe place for themselves in the public arena in order to be effective reformers that were actually respected for what they believed. They thus became early activists in the women’s rights movement.
These beliefs went directly against what they had been raised to believe. Their father was a strong advocate of slavery and also strongly believed in the subordination of women. He was a wealthy planter who had hundreds of slaves and fathered at least 14 children. During his life, he also served as the chief judge of the Supreme Court of South Carolina. Sarah, being 13 years older than her sister, was the 6th child, while Angelina was her youngest sibling. Sarah was always against slavery, having even tried to board a steam boat at the age of five in order to go to a place without slavery after she had seen a slave being whipped. Later, she even taught her personal slave how to read. Sarah wanted to become an attorney, following in her father’s footsteps. She studied constantly, but her parents forbade her to study her brother’s books or any language. After her studies ended, she became part mother and part sister to Angelina.
After her father’s death, Sarah became involved in the Quaker movement, and did convert Angelina as well. Later in their lives, after they had become more involved in the abolitionist movement, a letter from Angelina was posted in The Liberator, something that angered the Quaker community. Given the option of either recanting the statement and thus gaining standing with the Quakers or more actively opposing slavery, they chose the second option. Neither of the sisters initially sought to become feminists, but they felt role was more forced upon them. Devoutly religious, their works are predominately religious in nature with strong biblical arguments. Both were powerful writers who neatly summarized the abolitionist arguments which would eventually lead to the Civil War. Indeed, Sarah’s work was much ahead of it’s time, but it addressed many issues familiar to the modern feminist movement. (Sarah emphasized feminism over abolitionism, where Angelina remained primarily interested in the abolitionist movement).
These beliefs went directly against what they had been raised to believe. Their father was a strong advocate of slavery and also strongly believed in the subordination of women. He was a wealthy planter who had hundreds of slaves and fathered at least 14 children. During his life, he also served as the chief judge of the Supreme Court of South Carolina. Sarah, being 13 years older than her sister, was the 6th child, while Angelina was her youngest sibling. Sarah was always against slavery, having even tried to board a steam boat at the age of five in order to go to a place without slavery after she had seen a slave being whipped. Later, she even taught her personal slave how to read. Sarah wanted to become an attorney, following in her father’s footsteps. She studied constantly, but her parents forbade her to study her brother’s books or any language. After her studies ended, she became part mother and part sister to Angelina.
After her father’s death, Sarah became involved in the Quaker movement, and did convert Angelina as well. Later in their lives, after they had become more involved in the abolitionist movement, a letter from Angelina was posted in The Liberator, something that angered the Quaker community. Given the option of either recanting the statement and thus gaining standing with the Quakers or more actively opposing slavery, they chose the second option. Neither of the sisters initially sought to become feminists, but they felt role was more forced upon them. Devoutly religious, their works are predominately religious in nature with strong biblical arguments. Both were powerful writers who neatly summarized the abolitionist arguments which would eventually lead to the Civil War. Indeed, Sarah’s work was much ahead of it’s time, but it addressed many issues familiar to the modern feminist movement. (Sarah emphasized feminism over abolitionism, where Angelina remained primarily interested in the abolitionist movement).
USH - William Lloyd Garrison - Church
William Lloyd Garrison was born on December 12, 1805 in Newburyport, Massachusetts, and died on May 24, 1879 at the age of 74. He was a prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. His father, being a merchant sailing master, was greatly affected by the Embargo Act passed in 1807, banning the United States from trading with any other foreign country. The family thus fell on hard times, the situation worsening when Garrison’s father abandoned the family in 1808. This forced them to beg for food, and also caused young William to have to work – although he was only three years old – by selling homemade molasses candy and delivering wood.
In 1818 (aged 13), he had already endured several difficult apprenticeships. He then began to work for the Newburyport Herald as a writer and an editor. This job, and subsequent jobs in the newspaper industry, gave him the talents that he would so skillfully employ when he later published his own paper.
At the age of 25, he officially joined the Abolition movement by joining the American Colonization Society, an organization that allegedly believed that free blacks should emigrate to a territory on the west coast of Africa, ostensibly to promote their freedom and happiness. However, the fact later emerged that few members supported this idea. Most people in the society merely wished to reduce the number of free blacks in the country in order to help preserve the institution of slavery.
Disgusted by this, Garrison rejected their programs and, on January 1, 1831, he published the first issue of his own anti-slavery newspaper, the Liberator. Through his work in this newspaper, and in other publications, he advocated the immediate emancipation of all slaves. At this time in the 1830s, this view was extremely unpopular. Even northerners who were against slavery found this a preposterous idea. What would they do with all the newly freed slaves? It wasn’t believed that they could actually peacefully and quietly enter American society. However, Garrison believed that they could assimilate. He believed that, in time, all blacks would be equal in every way to the country’s white citizens. After all, he believed, they, too, were Americans and entitled to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Although the Liberator had a very small circulation his approach to emancipation stressed nonviolence and passive resistance, something that did attract him a following. Known as a radical abolitionist, Garrison nonetheless is known as one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society, one of the first organizations dedicated to promoting immediate emancipation.
In 1818 (aged 13), he had already endured several difficult apprenticeships. He then began to work for the Newburyport Herald as a writer and an editor. This job, and subsequent jobs in the newspaper industry, gave him the talents that he would so skillfully employ when he later published his own paper.
At the age of 25, he officially joined the Abolition movement by joining the American Colonization Society, an organization that allegedly believed that free blacks should emigrate to a territory on the west coast of Africa, ostensibly to promote their freedom and happiness. However, the fact later emerged that few members supported this idea. Most people in the society merely wished to reduce the number of free blacks in the country in order to help preserve the institution of slavery.
Disgusted by this, Garrison rejected their programs and, on January 1, 1831, he published the first issue of his own anti-slavery newspaper, the Liberator. Through his work in this newspaper, and in other publications, he advocated the immediate emancipation of all slaves. At this time in the 1830s, this view was extremely unpopular. Even northerners who were against slavery found this a preposterous idea. What would they do with all the newly freed slaves? It wasn’t believed that they could actually peacefully and quietly enter American society. However, Garrison believed that they could assimilate. He believed that, in time, all blacks would be equal in every way to the country’s white citizens. After all, he believed, they, too, were Americans and entitled to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Although the Liberator had a very small circulation his approach to emancipation stressed nonviolence and passive resistance, something that did attract him a following. Known as a radical abolitionist, Garrison nonetheless is known as one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society, one of the first organizations dedicated to promoting immediate emancipation.
USH - Charles Finney - Church
Charles Finney was born in Litchfield County, Connecticut on August 27, 1792 and died on August 16, 1875 at the age of 42. The youngest of seven children, his parents were farmers. Although Finney himself never attended college, his stature (he was 6’3” tall), leadership abilities, and his piercing eyes helped him to gain a status in his community. He studied law from 1818 to 1821, until he had a “sudden conversion experience” in Adams, New York at the age of 29.
After this experience, he began to preach, becoming a licensed minister in the Presbyterian Church. His logical and clear presentation of the Gospel message reached thousands of people, promising renewing power and the love of Jesus. Although historians are not sure, some estimate that his preaching may have supposedly led to the conversion of over 500,000 people.
Finney was both renowned and criticized for his unique techniques and innovations in preaching and conducting religious meetings. For example, he allowed women to pray in public, something that was almost unheard of at that time. He also was known for the development of the “anxious bench,” a place for people who were not Christians, but were considering converting to Christianity, could come to receive prayer. His preaching was intended to evoke a highly emotional response in those to whom he was preaching.
Not only was Finney a highly successful Christian evangelist, he was also involved with abolitionist movement, frequently denouncing slavery from his pulpit. In fact, beginning in the 1830s, he would deny communion in his churches to any slaveholders, clearly demonstrating his loathing of the practice of slavery.
During this time, the United States was undergoing massive social change, being a new nation still attempting to discover it’s identity. Finney managed to be the “most successful religious revivalist during this period, and in this particular area.” Although other Christian revival groups were successful at this time (for example, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and Seventh-day Adventists), they became closed and exclusivist, while Finney was “widely admired and influential amongst more mainstream Christians.”
He was thus a major leader of the Second Great Awakening in the United States, a great religious revival consisting of renewed personal salvation experienced in revival meetings.
After this experience, he began to preach, becoming a licensed minister in the Presbyterian Church. His logical and clear presentation of the Gospel message reached thousands of people, promising renewing power and the love of Jesus. Although historians are not sure, some estimate that his preaching may have supposedly led to the conversion of over 500,000 people.
Finney was both renowned and criticized for his unique techniques and innovations in preaching and conducting religious meetings. For example, he allowed women to pray in public, something that was almost unheard of at that time. He also was known for the development of the “anxious bench,” a place for people who were not Christians, but were considering converting to Christianity, could come to receive prayer. His preaching was intended to evoke a highly emotional response in those to whom he was preaching.
Not only was Finney a highly successful Christian evangelist, he was also involved with abolitionist movement, frequently denouncing slavery from his pulpit. In fact, beginning in the 1830s, he would deny communion in his churches to any slaveholders, clearly demonstrating his loathing of the practice of slavery.
During this time, the United States was undergoing massive social change, being a new nation still attempting to discover it’s identity. Finney managed to be the “most successful religious revivalist during this period, and in this particular area.” Although other Christian revival groups were successful at this time (for example, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and Seventh-day Adventists), they became closed and exclusivist, while Finney was “widely admired and influential amongst more mainstream Christians.”
He was thus a major leader of the Second Great Awakening in the United States, a great religious revival consisting of renewed personal salvation experienced in revival meetings.
USH - Frederick Douglass - Church
Frederick Douglass was born in February of 1818 (the exact day is unknown), near Easton, Maryland. His mother was a slave and a man named Aaron Anthony claimed ownership of the young boy. He spent his early childhood living with his grandmother in a cabin, as his mother was hired out and he only saw her on rare visits. He was separated from his grandmother at the age of 6 to live on a large plantation where Captain Anthony worked, before being sent to live with in-laws of the captain’s daughter two years later.
While there (Baltimore) from the ages of 8 to 15, he had his first job, looking after the Aulds’ son, Tommy. Also there, he learned to read and write until Sophia Auld’s husband forbade her to teach him. After that, Douglass taught himself in secret. (He also taught himself the art of public speaking). Once he knew how to read, Douglass would read newspapers and thus learned about the debate over slavery.
In 1833 (age 15), Douglass was brought to St. Michael’s, Maryland by this master. While there, he organized secret schools for slaves and refused to submit to whipping. Although one of these schools was broken up by a mob and he was hired out to “slave breakers” (farmers who sought to control the rebellious activities of slaves), he continued to defy his master and his slave status. Three years later, he planned to escape, but was caught, imprisoned, and sent back to Thomas Auld (his master).
He finally successfully escaped from slavery in September 1838, when he was 20 years old. He settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he attended anti-slavery meetings held in African-American churches. He sometimes even told these groups of his experiences.
Throughout his life, Frederick Douglass was “first and foremost an abolitionist and civil rights activist.” By the time of the Civil War, “he was one of the most famous black men in the country, known for his orations on the condition of the black race, and other issues such as women’s rights.” During the Civil War, he and other abolitionists argued that the war was aimed to end slavery, so African-Americans should thus be allowed to fight in the war, be allowed to fight for their own freedom. After the war was over, and after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves of the Confederacy, he began to fight for equality of his people. He was a firm believer in the equality of all people, having been quoted as saying “I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong.”
While there (Baltimore) from the ages of 8 to 15, he had his first job, looking after the Aulds’ son, Tommy. Also there, he learned to read and write until Sophia Auld’s husband forbade her to teach him. After that, Douglass taught himself in secret. (He also taught himself the art of public speaking). Once he knew how to read, Douglass would read newspapers and thus learned about the debate over slavery.
In 1833 (age 15), Douglass was brought to St. Michael’s, Maryland by this master. While there, he organized secret schools for slaves and refused to submit to whipping. Although one of these schools was broken up by a mob and he was hired out to “slave breakers” (farmers who sought to control the rebellious activities of slaves), he continued to defy his master and his slave status. Three years later, he planned to escape, but was caught, imprisoned, and sent back to Thomas Auld (his master).
He finally successfully escaped from slavery in September 1838, when he was 20 years old. He settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he attended anti-slavery meetings held in African-American churches. He sometimes even told these groups of his experiences.
Throughout his life, Frederick Douglass was “first and foremost an abolitionist and civil rights activist.” By the time of the Civil War, “he was one of the most famous black men in the country, known for his orations on the condition of the black race, and other issues such as women’s rights.” During the Civil War, he and other abolitionists argued that the war was aimed to end slavery, so African-Americans should thus be allowed to fight in the war, be allowed to fight for their own freedom. After the war was over, and after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves of the Confederacy, he began to fight for equality of his people. He was a firm believer in the equality of all people, having been quoted as saying “I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong.”
USH - Dorothea Dix - Church
Dorothea Dix was born in Hampden, Maine, on April 4, 1802. Her family life was nonexistent at best, even abusive, as her mother had poor mental health and her father was an abusive alcoholic. Almost as soon as her two younger brothers (Joseph and Charles) were born, she cared for them, taking over the role of raising them. When the fighting at home got to be too much for her, she would often find refuge at her paternal grandmother’s house in Boston.
Even though her family situation left much to be desired, her father did teach Dix many things that would eventually influence her choices in life. For one, he taught her to read and write at a young age, giving her an advantage over the other students when she entered school. This knowledge led to a passion for teaching and reading, evident in the fact that she also taught her brothers to read when they were young. Her parents were later declared incapable of caring for their children, and the Dorothea and her brothers moved into her grandmother’s house, the Dix Mansion in Boston. Her grandmother was very wealthy and thus demanded that Dorothea act as a young wealthy girl should, with proper manners and such.
Dorothea, with help from her second cousin, Edward Bangs (to whom she was engaged for a time), opened a little school to teach young girls. Although she closed it after about three years, she did go on to open a school at Dix Mansion with two different classes: one as a charity for poor girls and one catering to wealthy girls. However, her health took a turn for the worse and she had to give up her career as a teacher.
After a vacation to England to recuperate, she returned to Boston and began her second career, and advocate for the reform of treatment for the mentally ill. Her achievements would spark immediate response, and her changes and beliefs are still felt today in how mental patients are treated. Upon her return to Boston, she discovered that the mentally ill were housed in an “unheated, unfurnished, and foul-smelling” jail, along with prostitutes, drunks, and criminals.
She immediately went to court upon discovering this, and eventually won, beginning to investigate treatment of mentally ill patients. Her work helped to pass legislation in Massachusetts (and later in the United States as a whole) funding hospitals and mandating better treatment of the mentally ill, something that was seen as radical at the time. (The popular belief was that “the insane would never be cured and that living within their dreadful conditions was enough for them.”) Showing that through kind care and treatment, these mentally ill patients could actually recover, she was perhaps the “most effective advocate of humanitarian reform in American mental institutions during the nineteenth century.”
Even though her family situation left much to be desired, her father did teach Dix many things that would eventually influence her choices in life. For one, he taught her to read and write at a young age, giving her an advantage over the other students when she entered school. This knowledge led to a passion for teaching and reading, evident in the fact that she also taught her brothers to read when they were young. Her parents were later declared incapable of caring for their children, and the Dorothea and her brothers moved into her grandmother’s house, the Dix Mansion in Boston. Her grandmother was very wealthy and thus demanded that Dorothea act as a young wealthy girl should, with proper manners and such.
Dorothea, with help from her second cousin, Edward Bangs (to whom she was engaged for a time), opened a little school to teach young girls. Although she closed it after about three years, she did go on to open a school at Dix Mansion with two different classes: one as a charity for poor girls and one catering to wealthy girls. However, her health took a turn for the worse and she had to give up her career as a teacher.
After a vacation to England to recuperate, she returned to Boston and began her second career, and advocate for the reform of treatment for the mentally ill. Her achievements would spark immediate response, and her changes and beliefs are still felt today in how mental patients are treated. Upon her return to Boston, she discovered that the mentally ill were housed in an “unheated, unfurnished, and foul-smelling” jail, along with prostitutes, drunks, and criminals.
She immediately went to court upon discovering this, and eventually won, beginning to investigate treatment of mentally ill patients. Her work helped to pass legislation in Massachusetts (and later in the United States as a whole) funding hospitals and mandating better treatment of the mentally ill, something that was seen as radical at the time. (The popular belief was that “the insane would never be cured and that living within their dreadful conditions was enough for them.”) Showing that through kind care and treatment, these mentally ill patients could actually recover, she was perhaps the “most effective advocate of humanitarian reform in American mental institutions during the nineteenth century.”
USH - Ralph Waldo Emerson - Church
Ralph Waldo Emerson was born in Boston, Massachusetts on May 25, 1803, and died in Concord, Massachusetts on April 27, 1882, at the age of 78. Through his essays, poems, and lectures, he was a leading spokesman of transcendentalism (movement which held that “every individual can reach ultimate truths through spiritual intuition, which transcends reason and sensory experience”) and also a major influence on American literature.
Emerson’s father was a minister of the First Unitarian Church in Boston and thus his early years were “filled with books and a daily routine of studious and frugal home life”. When his father died (Emerson was 8 years old), he lived with his aunt, an eccentric but brilliant woman who stimulated his independent thinking.
He did attend Harvard for four years, where he began to record his thoughts in the famous Journal. Although he did begin to study at the Harvard divinity school, he had to leave his studies and move south due to his poor health and developing tuberculosis. He became a pastor of the Old North Church in Boston, where he preached for three years before retiring due to differences in religious opinion with his congregation.
After leaving his pastorate, he took a trip to Europe where he met several notable English writers (including Coleridge and Wordsworth). Through them, his interest in transcendental thought began to grow. The three basic tenets of transcendentalism were “a belief that God is present in every aspect of nature, including every human being,” “the conviction that everyone is capable of apprehending God through the use of intuition,” and “the belief that all of nature is symbolic of the spirit.”
It has been said that “probably no writer has so profoundly influenced American thought as Emerson.” During the early 1830s (his early 30s), he began his active career as a writer and a lecturer. He was noted as being “a very abstract and difficult writer who nevertheless drew large crowds for his speeches.” He was a great orator, a man who could captivate crowds with his “deep voice, his enthusiasm, and his egalitarian [democratic] respect for his audience.” Later in his life, he was very outspoken in his support for abolitionism, despite the protest and jeers that this produced from the crowds to which he spoke. His work expressing transcendentalism did lead to a speech entitled The American Scholar, considered to be America’s “Intellectual Declaration of Independence.” He once said that his central doctrine was “the infinitude of the private man.”
Emerson’s father was a minister of the First Unitarian Church in Boston and thus his early years were “filled with books and a daily routine of studious and frugal home life”. When his father died (Emerson was 8 years old), he lived with his aunt, an eccentric but brilliant woman who stimulated his independent thinking.
He did attend Harvard for four years, where he began to record his thoughts in the famous Journal. Although he did begin to study at the Harvard divinity school, he had to leave his studies and move south due to his poor health and developing tuberculosis. He became a pastor of the Old North Church in Boston, where he preached for three years before retiring due to differences in religious opinion with his congregation.
After leaving his pastorate, he took a trip to Europe where he met several notable English writers (including Coleridge and Wordsworth). Through them, his interest in transcendental thought began to grow. The three basic tenets of transcendentalism were “a belief that God is present in every aspect of nature, including every human being,” “the conviction that everyone is capable of apprehending God through the use of intuition,” and “the belief that all of nature is symbolic of the spirit.”
It has been said that “probably no writer has so profoundly influenced American thought as Emerson.” During the early 1830s (his early 30s), he began his active career as a writer and a lecturer. He was noted as being “a very abstract and difficult writer who nevertheless drew large crowds for his speeches.” He was a great orator, a man who could captivate crowds with his “deep voice, his enthusiasm, and his egalitarian [democratic] respect for his audience.” Later in his life, he was very outspoken in his support for abolitionism, despite the protest and jeers that this produced from the crowds to which he spoke. His work expressing transcendentalism did lead to a speech entitled The American Scholar, considered to be America’s “Intellectual Declaration of Independence.” He once said that his central doctrine was “the infinitude of the private man.”
USH - Emily Dickinson - Church
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 and died on May 15, 1886 at the age of 56. She was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, the second of three children. She was very close to her brother, Austin, and her sister, Lavinia. Neither Emily nor Lavinia ever married, both living at home their entire lives, and, while Austin did get married, he and his wife chose to live in a house that was next door to his childhood home. Her family was in moderate privilege with strong local and religious attachments, with loving but strict parents. As a child, she was thought of as frail (both by her parents and others), and was thus often kept home from school. She did, despite this, excel at school. Ms. Dickinson did very well in many subjects, including Latin and science, as well as composition (She was recognized for her “prodigious abilities in composition.”). Although she did attend a college (Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, now Mount Holyoke College), she found it too strict and religious-based, remaining there for only one year.
Nearly 1,800 of Dickinson’s poems have been published, but only 10 were known to have been published during her lifetime. These poems were often altered significantly by publishers, as was common in that time, in order to ensure that they fit the conventional poetic rules of that time (such rules include short lines, no titles, or unconventional punctuation and capitalization). The rest of her poems were discovered by Lavinia following Emily’s death, finally showing the extent of the poet’s work. Although much of her work was reviewed unfavorably at the time, she is now considered to be “major American poet.”
It is easy to see that Emily Dickinson has had a considerable impact on American literature. Her poetry is taught in literature and poetry classes from middle school through college. Her work is frequently anthologized and has been used as inspiration for many songs. Her poetry tackles the standard themes of love, death, and nature. Critics have said that the strength of her poetry is in the fact that she has such personal honesty in her work and such a strong control on powerful emotion. As Michael Myers once said, “Dickinson’s poetry is challenging because it is radical and original in it’s rejection of most traditional nineteenth-century themes and techniques. Her poems require active engagement from the reader, because she seems to leave out so much with her elliptical style and remarkable contracting metaphors.”
Nearly 1,800 of Dickinson’s poems have been published, but only 10 were known to have been published during her lifetime. These poems were often altered significantly by publishers, as was common in that time, in order to ensure that they fit the conventional poetic rules of that time (such rules include short lines, no titles, or unconventional punctuation and capitalization). The rest of her poems were discovered by Lavinia following Emily’s death, finally showing the extent of the poet’s work. Although much of her work was reviewed unfavorably at the time, she is now considered to be “major American poet.”
It is easy to see that Emily Dickinson has had a considerable impact on American literature. Her poetry is taught in literature and poetry classes from middle school through college. Her work is frequently anthologized and has been used as inspiration for many songs. Her poetry tackles the standard themes of love, death, and nature. Critics have said that the strength of her poetry is in the fact that she has such personal honesty in her work and such a strong control on powerful emotion. As Michael Myers once said, “Dickinson’s poetry is challenging because it is radical and original in it’s rejection of most traditional nineteenth-century themes and techniques. Her poems require active engagement from the reader, because she seems to leave out so much with her elliptical style and remarkable contracting metaphors.”
USH - The Road to Texas Annexation - Church
• annex – to bring in (i.e.: territory)
• we (U.S.) were annexing land from the West to increase the size of our country
• Mexican Independence
o they gained it from Spain
o 1821
• modern-day Texas belonged to Mexico at that time
• Mexico offers land grants to Americans in the early 1820s
• Stephen Austin
o 1823
o takes about 300 American families to Texas
o Mexican government says… to live on their land grants, you must:
-- practice Catholicism
-- eventually become a Mexican citizen
-- not own slaves
o by 1830… about 20,000 people
-- they now had slave labor (land very good for growing cotton)
• friction begins to mount between Santa Anna (Mexican president) and the Texans
• the Texans declare their independence from Mexico
o 1836
o want to be known as the “Lone Star Republic”
o Jackson was still the U.S. president (about to give power to Martin van Buren)
• Texas wants to be part of the U.S.
o they petition Congress for statehood
o Congress doesn’t grant them statehood…
if they became a state, it could cause a war with Mexico
they would want to be a slave state (it would throw off the balance in Congress)
• Texas War for Independence
o Santa Anna and his forces wage war against Texas
o The Battle of the Alamo
-- 1836
-- 200 Texans holed up in a mission in modern-day San Antonio
-- surrounded by Santa Anna and his men
-- all Texans killed
-- including Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie
-- gives Texas the motivation to fight
-- inspired a battle cry: “Remember the Alamo!”
o Texans get a leader: Sam Houston
o The Battle of San Jancito
last battle
decisive battle
San Jancito = modern-day Southeast Texas
Santa Anna surrenders
o treaty signed
Santa Anna gets his troops out of the territory
Rio Grande = border between Texas and Mexico
(will come up later, but the Necuse River was just north of the Rio Grande)
• 1836 – 1846: relations between Mexico and the U.S. very tense
o Texas a separate country at this time
o Santa Anna said he had signed the treaty “under duress” (and therefore wasn’t completely valid)
o Texas still petitioning for independence
• we (U.S.) were annexing land from the West to increase the size of our country
• Mexican Independence
o they gained it from Spain
o 1821
• modern-day Texas belonged to Mexico at that time
• Mexico offers land grants to Americans in the early 1820s
• Stephen Austin
o 1823
o takes about 300 American families to Texas
o Mexican government says… to live on their land grants, you must:
-- practice Catholicism
-- eventually become a Mexican citizen
-- not own slaves
o by 1830… about 20,000 people
-- they now had slave labor (land very good for growing cotton)
• friction begins to mount between Santa Anna (Mexican president) and the Texans
• the Texans declare their independence from Mexico
o 1836
o want to be known as the “Lone Star Republic”
o Jackson was still the U.S. president (about to give power to Martin van Buren)
• Texas wants to be part of the U.S.
o they petition Congress for statehood
o Congress doesn’t grant them statehood…
if they became a state, it could cause a war with Mexico
they would want to be a slave state (it would throw off the balance in Congress)
• Texas War for Independence
o Santa Anna and his forces wage war against Texas
o The Battle of the Alamo
-- 1836
-- 200 Texans holed up in a mission in modern-day San Antonio
-- surrounded by Santa Anna and his men
-- all Texans killed
-- including Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie
-- gives Texas the motivation to fight
-- inspired a battle cry: “Remember the Alamo!”
o Texans get a leader: Sam Houston
o The Battle of San Jancito
last battle
decisive battle
San Jancito = modern-day Southeast Texas
Santa Anna surrenders
o treaty signed
Santa Anna gets his troops out of the territory
Rio Grande = border between Texas and Mexico
(will come up later, but the Necuse River was just north of the Rio Grande)
• 1836 – 1846: relations between Mexico and the U.S. very tense
o Texas a separate country at this time
o Santa Anna said he had signed the treaty “under duress” (and therefore wasn’t completely valid)
o Texas still petitioning for independence
USH - Manifest Destiny - Church
• same time period as the development of art and literature
• belief that God had given us (Americans) the right to own all the land between the two oceans
• starts right after the war
• took off in the middle of the century
• John L. O’Sullivan
o coined the phrase “Manifest Destiny”
o 1845
• U.S. doesn’t technically own all this land
• painting: “Manifest Destiny”
o star on forehead… new states
o bringing education & learning (books)
o bringing technology (telegraph wire)
o lighter colors in east because that was what was known (the familiar)
• who went west?
o farmers
o miners
o woodsmen
o hunters
o trappers
o typical families (covered wagons)
o outlaws (no law out there yet)
• railroads moving west
• Native Americans and buffalo herds being pushed farther away
• belief that God had given us (Americans) the right to own all the land between the two oceans
• starts right after the war
• took off in the middle of the century
• John L. O’Sullivan
o coined the phrase “Manifest Destiny”
o 1845
• U.S. doesn’t technically own all this land
• painting: “Manifest Destiny”
o star on forehead… new states
o bringing education & learning (books)
o bringing technology (telegraph wire)
o lighter colors in east because that was what was known (the familiar)
• who went west?
o farmers
o miners
o woodsmen
o hunters
o trappers
o typical families (covered wagons)
o outlaws (no law out there yet)
• railroads moving west
• Native Americans and buffalo herds being pushed farther away
USH - Development of American Art and Literature - Church
Background
• 1815… had just finished fighting the War of 1812
• strong sense of nationalism
• America’s strong sense of identity begins to develop
o not just through politics, but also through art and literature
• artists were creating national heroes and national history
• most portraits created while the person was still alive
• reasons for the increase in art and literature
o more leisure time
o advent of public education (Horace Mann… see ID sheet)
o lighting added to more houses (more time to read, draw, write, etc.) [gas lamps]
• mostly in the North and the Northeast
American Art Developed
• several artists of importance developed their style during this period: 1815 – 1860
Gilbert Stuart
• famous for portraits/paintings
• the most famous of his portraits are of George Washington
o one of these was the portrait that Dolly Madison saved
• also painted… Adams, Marshall, etc.
• painted them as regal, royal, etc.
John Trumbull
• pictures of the Revolutionary War
• battle scenes: action
• show what war was really like (dead, dying)
• picture of the signing of the Declaration of Independence
• picture of the surrender at Yorktown
Emanuel Leutze
• painting of George Washington the Delaware River
o (the one with the ice on the river)
o portrays Washington as almost god-like
Hudson River School
• in the Hudson River Valley, New York
• art school
• American artists started to paint and draw in an “American” style
• famous for landscape portraits (many were of the river valley)
George Caitlin
• western landscapes
• Native Americans
o portrayed them as proud, powerful, etc.
John James Audobon
• American naturalist (one of the first)
• drawings of birds (catalogued thousands of species of birds)
Development of American Literature
• distinctive American literature develops at this time
James Fennimore Cooper
• stories dealing with the frontier and Native Americans
• “The Last of the Mohicans”
Nathaniel Hawthorne
• “The Scarlet Letter”
• Puritanism
• New England setting
• “The House of the Seven Gables”
Washington Irving
• “Rip Van Winkle”
• “Legend of Sleepy Hollow”
Herman Melville
• “Moby Dick”
Edgar Allen Poe
• “The Raven”
• (and so much more!)
Ralph Waldo Emerson
• transcendentalist
o get in touch with the inner self
o get back to nature
o focus on basic needs
Henry David Thoreau
• transcendentalist
o get in touch with the inner self
o get back to nature
o focus on basic needs
Noah Webster
• dictionary
• 1815… had just finished fighting the War of 1812
• strong sense of nationalism
• America’s strong sense of identity begins to develop
o not just through politics, but also through art and literature
• artists were creating national heroes and national history
• most portraits created while the person was still alive
• reasons for the increase in art and literature
o more leisure time
o advent of public education (Horace Mann… see ID sheet)
o lighting added to more houses (more time to read, draw, write, etc.) [gas lamps]
• mostly in the North and the Northeast
American Art Developed
• several artists of importance developed their style during this period: 1815 – 1860
Gilbert Stuart
• famous for portraits/paintings
• the most famous of his portraits are of George Washington
o one of these was the portrait that Dolly Madison saved
• also painted… Adams, Marshall, etc.
• painted them as regal, royal, etc.
John Trumbull
• pictures of the Revolutionary War
• battle scenes: action
• show what war was really like (dead, dying)
• picture of the signing of the Declaration of Independence
• picture of the surrender at Yorktown
Emanuel Leutze
• painting of George Washington the Delaware River
o (the one with the ice on the river)
o portrays Washington as almost god-like
Hudson River School
• in the Hudson River Valley, New York
• art school
• American artists started to paint and draw in an “American” style
• famous for landscape portraits (many were of the river valley)
George Caitlin
• western landscapes
• Native Americans
o portrayed them as proud, powerful, etc.
John James Audobon
• American naturalist (one of the first)
• drawings of birds (catalogued thousands of species of birds)
Development of American Literature
• distinctive American literature develops at this time
James Fennimore Cooper
• stories dealing with the frontier and Native Americans
• “The Last of the Mohicans”
Nathaniel Hawthorne
• “The Scarlet Letter”
• Puritanism
• New England setting
• “The House of the Seven Gables”
Washington Irving
• “Rip Van Winkle”
• “Legend of Sleepy Hollow”
Herman Melville
• “Moby Dick”
Edgar Allen Poe
• “The Raven”
• (and so much more!)
Ralph Waldo Emerson
• transcendentalist
o get in touch with the inner self
o get back to nature
o focus on basic needs
Henry David Thoreau
• transcendentalist
o get in touch with the inner self
o get back to nature
o focus on basic needs
Noah Webster
• dictionary
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