American Dream
Page 41
buccaneers, freebooters, and sea rovers—other names for pirates Names like buccaneers, freebooters, and sea rovers danced in John’s head.
calloused—being hardened and thickened
Klaus reached out a calloused hand, as if to touch her hair, then snatched it back.
cooper—a person who makes and repairs wooden barrels and tubs “I’ve been working here in Southampton as a cooper, making tubs and casks.”
culprit—someone accused of or guilty of a crime
Loud wails soon showed that the culprit was being punished for the latest of his sins. currant—a type of small, seedless raisin
“Fresh fruit won’t last long,” Mother continued to explain, “so we’re packing dried prunes, raisins, and currants.”
horizon—the line where the earth and sky appear to meet
“This is more like it,” John told Sarah, watching the sun set in a fiery splash on the
ocean horizon.
landlubber—a person who is not familiar with the sea or sailing
“I wish Klaus would stay with us, but he probably wouldn’t make a very good
landlubber.”
lanky—tall and thin
John Robinson lifted his arm, and the lanky boy shot off faster than an arrow from a strong bow.
loom—a frame for weaving thread or yarn into fabric She patted a low stool next to the loom where she sat weaving.
lout—a rough or crude person “Unhand my son, you miserable lout!”
persecute—to cause to suffer, especially because of religious or political beliefs “There are no kings to say we cannot take game from the forest. There are no kings to tax us and persecute us. Mother, we will be free.”
provisions—needed materials and supplies
They found Sarah and Mother going over a stack of labeled provisions.
scowl—a frown that makes a bad-tempered or threatening look on a person’s face Klaus either ignored them or grunted. He continued to scowl.
seize—to take control of suddenly or by force
“If you join that treasonous, despised group, the king’s tax collectors will surely seize your land.”
shallop—a small boat used in shallow waters
A few slept in a small shallop that would be used to explore the rivers of the New World.
talebearing—spreading gossip or rumors
Mother frowned on talebearing. Unless something was absolutely true, their children were not to repeat it.
treason—the betrayal of a trust, especially to a person’s own country
Such talk was treason, and some of the London Strangers loyally followed the king
and the Church of England.
voyage—a long journey, especially by water, air, or in space
Preparations for the voyage went steadily forward, although the number of peoplewho agreed to sail continued to drop.
wharf—a structure built for ships to move alongside to load and unload cargo and passengers
One day, John was returning from the wharf when he came upon a group of people surrounding William Bradford.
IMPORTANT PEOPLE AND THINGS AROUND 1620
William Bradford
William Bradford was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1590. He joined the religious group called the Separatists, now known as the Pilgrims, when he was seventeen years old and fled with them to Leiden, Holland, to escape religious persecution in England. Later he helped lead the Pilgrims’ journey to America on board the Mayflower in 1620, in search of true religious freedom. He survived the journey and helped set up the Plymouth Colony. William served as governor of Plymouth for thirty-five years after the first governor, John Carver, died in 1621. In the fall of 1621, William declared a celebration to honor the Pilgrim’s first harvest in the New World of America. Their first winter had been hard, and they would not have survived if the Native American Wampanoags had not helped them. William invited the chief of the Wampanoags, Chief Massasoit, and his people to join the pilgrims in their feast, and this event is known as the first Thanksgiving Day celebration. Bradford died in 1657.
John Smith
John Smith, born around 1579, was an English colonizer who helped found the permanent English settlement in America at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607. John was born in Willoughby, Lincolnshire, and worked there on his father’s farm until he left home as a teenager to become a soldier. He traveled Europe and fought in Hungary against the Turks, who captured him and sold him into slavery until he later escaped. By 1604, he had returned to England and become a member of the London Colony Council, and by 1606, he set sail with a colonial expedition to America. The expedition founded the settlement of Jamestown, Virginia, in May 1607 and chose John as president in 1608. He organized trade with the Native Americans, helped build houses, and made river voyages that allowed him to make the first accurate maps of Virginia. On one of these voyages, Native Americans captured him and according to legend nearly put him to death, but he was saved by the chief’s daughter, Pocahontas.
Sir Walter Raleigh and the Lost Colony
Sir Walter Raleigh, born in the early 1550s, was an English adventurer, writer, and explorer of the Americas. He became interested in the New World when he sailed to America in 1578. In 1585 and again in 1587, Raleigh tried to found the first English settlement in America on Roanoke Island, but the settlement failed. One colonist left Roanoke to get supplies in Europe, and when he returned, the colonists were gone and so were their houses. All he found were the letters CRO carved in a tree by the beach and the word Croatan carved on a post. No one knows exactly what happened to the “Lost Colony” at Roanoke Island—some say disease, Native Americans, or a hurricane killed the colonists, but no evidence that they actually died has ever been found. Many believe they left the colony with friendly Croatan Native Americans. Another theory is that the colonists suffered from severe food shortages because the study of growth rings from nearby cypress trees suggests that the colonists disappeared during one of the worst droughts in the last eight hundred years.
Plymouth Colony
The Pilgrims set sail on the Mayflower September 16, 1620, from the English port of Plymouth—for which they would later name their new settlement in America. Two months later, they made it to the coast of America, but farther north than they had hoped to land. The Pilgrims arrived at Cape Cod, where a small group of them landed to search for a good site for their settlement. They found the Plymouth area on December 21, and the rest of the Pilgrims who had stayed onboard the Mayflower came ashore at Plymouth Rock on December 26, 1620. Before they went ashore, the Pilgrims created the Mayflower Compact, a document in which they promised loyalty to each other and pledged to work together in the new colony. As the Pilgrims began to settle their new colony, they depended on the Native American Wampanoags, who showed them how to grow corn and hunt for food. After their first successful harvest in the Plymouth Colony, the Pilgrims’ governor, William Bradford,
organized the first Thanksgiving Day celebration and invited the Wampanoags to join them in thanking God for their success. The success of the Plymouth Colony encouraged more settlement in America, and in 1691, it united with other New England colonies to form the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
HISTORY IN PERSPECTIVE TIMELINE
May 14, 1607—Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement, is founded.
1608—Dutch scientist Hans Lippershey is said to invent the first telescope. 1610—Henry Hudson discovers Hudson Bay.
September 16, 1620—The Mayflower sets sail from Plymouth, England. December 26, 1620—The Pilgrims come ashore in America at Plymouth
Rock.
Fall 1621—The Pilgrims and Native Americans celebrate the first Thanksgiving Day together.
1626—City of New Amsterdam, now New York City, is founded.
1636—Harvard College is founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
1638—The log cabin is introduced to America by Swedish colonists of Delaware.
16
42—French inventor Blaise Pascal invents the first mechanical adding machine.
REBEKAH IN DANGER: PERIL AT PLYMOUTH COLONY
VOCABULARY WORDS
ambassador—an official representative of one government to another government
In desperation, two ambassadors were chosen to go see Massasoit and ask him to call a halt to the frequent visits.
boatswain (pronounced BO-zun)—an officer on a boat who is in charge of hull maintenance
“Remember the boatswain who never missed a chance to curse us and tell us how worthless we are?”
cloak—a loose-fitting outer garment, similar to a cape
Then she snuggled her wool cloak more tightly around her shoulders and wrapped her arms around her knees.
cooper—someone who makes wooden casks or barrels John Alden continued his cooper business.
foreboding—a feeling that something bad is about to happen
She disappeared up the ladder to the upper deck. Rebekah waited, her blanket clutched
around her against the morning chill, her heart pounding with a terrible foreboding.
habitation—the act of living in a particular place “We saw no signs of habitation.”
heathen—someone who does not acknowledge God of the Bible “You sound like a heathen.”
maize—another name for corn, especially that grown by Native Americans “I asked Squanto how he knew the very best time to plant maize and the seed we brought with us,” Will explained.
musket—an early, large caliber, muzzle-loading gun
“I know you’re almost a man, but you don’t know how to fire a musket.”
pagan—something or someone with no religious basis
The Pilgrims considered Christmas a pagan holiday and did not celebrate it, but the others on ship had a small feast which they invited the Pilgrims to share.
pallet—a small, hard bed
Will, who had wearily dropped to a pallet on the floor, sat up straight.
plague—a bacterial disease, often spread by rats, that causes severe illness and sometimes death
“Plague took him, as it has taken many others and will take more.”
scurvy—a nutritional disease caused by a lack of vitamin C, characterized by loose teeth and spongy gums
“When Mother and I aren’t cooking and washing and mending clothing for our own family, we help those who are too sick from scurvy and pneumonia to take care of their families.”
sentry—a soldier who stands guard over something With hurried steps, she headed toward the sentry.
Separatists—a group of people who broke away from the Church of England rather than attempt to change it
Her parents and the other Separatists had come to Holland so they could worship God the way they wanted, without the king forcing them to meet secretly.
shallop—a small, open rowboat that is used mostly in shallow water Meanwhile, carpenters examined pieces of the damaged shallop.
stockade—an enclosure made with posts and stakes A sturdy stockade surrounded it.
succotash—a dish made of beans and corn
“If I never see a dish of succotash again it will be all right with me.”
treaty—an agreement, usually in writing, that ends a conflict At last, they made a treaty.
tuberculosis—a serious lung disease
“We don’t intend to get your tuberculosis and pneumonia.”
whelp—a young dog, sometimes used as a term of disrespect for a human child “Quiet, whelp!” Standish roared.
woebegone—expressing sorrow or misery
“Here.” Rebekah scrambled out from between the chicken coops and lifted her woebegone face to her brother.
IMPORTANT PEOPLE AND THINGS AROUND 1621
Wampanoag Indians
The Wampanoags, sometimes called the Pokanokets after their primary village, were a confederation of tribes that stretched from Rhode Island into Massachusetts and up to New York. Two Wampanoags, Squanto and Samoset, were sent by tribal leader Massasoit to help the Pilgrims in Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts. They taught the Pilgrims how to grow the crops that would provide them with the food they would need. Although Massasoit was friendly to the colonists, his son, Metacom (Philip), was the central figure in the deadliest war the Wampanoags would have with the colonists. Conflicts over land sales and the murder of a Christian Native American informant by Wampanoags (of which Metacom was suspected of planning) led to King Philip’s War in 1675. The English won, and the Wampanoags were almost wiped out. In 1990, however, there were more than two thousand Wampanoags in the United States, most living in Massachusetts.
Myles Standish
Myles Standish was born in 1584, but it is unclear exactly where. His family was very well known in England, and Myles began a distinguished career in the military after being disinherited. Standish began his career as a drummer, but he rose through the ranks of Queen Elizabeth I’s army. The Pilgrims hired him to be their military advisor, and he led the first group of men to go ashore when the colonists reached New England. As the military leader, Standish defended Plymouth Colony when there were problems with the Native Americans. Standish served as the colony’s representative in England and was the assistant governor and treasurer of the colony from 1644 until 1649. Myles Standish died October 3, 1656, in Duxbury, Massachusetts, a town he helped to establish.
William Bradford
William Bradford was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1590. Both of his parents died when William was a small child, and he was passed from family member to family member. By the age of seventeen, William was closely associated with the Separatist movement in England. When that group sailed for the Netherlands, William went with them. They stayed for twelve years, and he supported himself in the textile industry. When the Pilgrims made plans to leave the Netherlands and journey to America, William Bradford was instrumental in the organization of the trek. When the Separatists left the Netherlands, first for England and then for America in 1620, William Bradford was one of the 102 people on board the Mayflower. In 1621, he became the governor of the colony. He died at Plymouth Colony on May 9, 1657.
Pilgrims
The Pilgrims were a group of English Separatists who wanted to practice their religion freely and to live under their own laws. They did not want to break away from England, but neither did they want to be a part of the Church of England. When King James I began harassing the Separatists with threats of imprisonment, some of them fled to the Netherlands. They lived there peacefully for twelve years. When the Dutch government, pressured by England, began to make life difficult for the Separatists, about half of them sailed to Southampton, England, where they boarded the Mayflower and set sail for America on September 16, 1620. Their original landing site was in northern Virginia, where they had received the deed to land owned by members of William Bradford’s family, but weather sent them off course and they landed in Cape Cod sixty-five days later. Eventually, the Pilgrims settled in present-day Provincetown, Massachusetts. Because they had no authority to be there, the Pilgrims drew up the Mayflower Compact, in which they agreed to be a self-governing colony. The Pilgrims were not as rigid as one may be led to believe from stories and pictures in modern books. Although they wanted to stamp out sin in their colony, they did allow drinking, although not to the point of drunkenness. Instead of the black and white outfits most pictures show, the Pilgrims often wore brightly colored clothing.
HISTORY IN PERSPECTIVE TIMELINE
October 12, 1609—”Three Blind Mice” is published in London by Thomas Ravenscroft, a teenage songwriter.
April 5, 1614—Native American Pocahontas marries English colonist John Rolfe in Virginia.
January 1, 1622—In the Gregorian calendar, the one used by most of the Western world, January 1 becomes the first day of the year, rather than March 25.
March 22, 1622—Algonquin Indians kill approximately 347 English settlers in the Jamestown Massacre.
1623—Wilhelm Schickard inv
ents the “Counting Clock,” an early mechanical calculator.
September 6, 1628—Puritans settle in Salem, which will become part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
February 22, 1630—The Native American Quadequine introduces popcorn to the English colonists.
September 8, 1636—Harvard College is established in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It is the first colony founded in the Americas.
1639—The first printing press in North America is started in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
1640—The Bay Psalm Book is the first book printed in North America, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It remained in use for more than one hundred years.
MAGGIE’S DARE: THE GREAT AWAKENING VOCABULARY WORDS
alcove—a recess in the wall of a room
They scurried down the long hall into an alcove, which opened into the spacious, sunny nursery.
charlatans—people who falsely claim to be experts at something “They are all charlatans, you see, causing disorder.”
countenance—someone’s face or facial expression
There was no denying the change in this lady’s countenance, and her voice fairly bubbled over with joy and excitement.
decorum—the correctness that is socially expected
But at age twelve, she was expected to use decorum befitting a lady.
fervor—extreme level of emotion or belief
“The fervor for God is there, and we see genuine conversions among common folk of the city.”
grippe—another term for influenza, flu
“I’ve been at the Winthrops’ this evening, and Celia has the grippe.”
heathenistic—an offensive term used to describe someone acting in a manner that does not acknowledge God or a major religion
“I can tell you one thing,” Adelaide said. “You’ll never catch me going near one of their wild, heathenistic meetings.”
high tea—a late afternoon meal consisting of a cooked dish (usually hot) served with bread and butter, cakes, and tea