Women of the Past

             We are going to travel through the lives of women in the 1800s. We will see, through these images, just a few the many jobs they could have. We will take a look at jobs in their homes, and also look at jobs they could have had outside of their houses.

                                                         Domestic Work

                  The website stated that “domestic jobs were done out of necessity rather than by choice” (AAS) .Sewing, weaving, knitting, and spinning would probably be some of the more popular jobs that also were very helpful. Jobs such as these could be used to provide clothing for the family, or they could also sell the things they would make to help raise money for their family. Sometimes women would not have a shop nearby so if they knew how to make their own clothing they would still be warm during the long winter months! Without proper clothing the men, especially up north, would not be able to stay out hunting long, without getting sick. So these simple jobs could do more than just make them look fancy it could also, help the provide food for the family. 

             "Sewing and spinning were often the primary responsibility of the daughters or other girls in the house"(AAS) however they were not the only ones to help with these tasks. One image shows, an older women spinning thread as the younger woman assists her. Women of all ages could help, both the older women and the younger are working together to spin thread. This was a great way to become closer to your family. Women could work together to make many things, as the older women, would probably share stories from their past lives. This was great for the older women who had a hard time walking because this is a way they could still contribute to the family and not just feel like they were being cared for. This 1856 lithograph of an old woman making thread is by L. H. Bradford. (AAS)

                                                         

                                               Teaching and Education

“In the years following the American Revolution, opportunities for schooling and education began to increase, resulting in a rise in literacy rates.” (AAS) Teaching was a job that appealed to many women.  It played an important role in the lives of women in the 1800s. Although many of the female teachers in the 1800s were unpaid, it was still an important job. They could educate a large number of children. An image on the website of “the first Infant Sabbath School” shows a woman standing in the middle of a small classroom reading a book to the children, who were crowed together on benches. A woman could stand in the classroom teaching children of many different ages, reading, writing, math and many other necessary skills.             

 Schools in the 1800s differ greatly from the schools of today! In the 1800s children of all ages were in a single room with a single teacher. The teacher would not teach individual grades but she would teach all the children at once.  The teacher would seat the children, not by age but rather by what book they were working in. The teacher would not begin their classes until sometime in November, so both the teacher and the students could collect their harvest. http://library.thinkquest.org

            Learning, could greatly improve the lives of children, as they got older.  They may not have enjoyed the crowded seating. However they would certainly be grateful for the knowledge they acquired, when it helped them get jobs, or simply helped them with their jobs at home. The impact was not only on the children in the classroom their knowledge would impact generations to come. They could use their knowledge to teach their children and so on.  

                                                                 Writing

                Writing served many purposes for women in the 1800s. They could betray their thoughts and believes in a diary. Writing could have a major impact on the way things were done and the way things were viewed. They could write books to teach other. Also you could simply have books for entertainment. 

            One famous women writer of the 1800s was Harriet Beecher Stowe. “Stowe began her career as a published author in 1843” (AAS). This picture is of Mrs Hariet Beecher Stowe at home. It shows Mis Hariet Beecher sitting at her desk, and starring at her flowers as she is writing a book. Mrs Stowe was a revolutionary writer of her time. She had a passion and just a love for all people. She used writing to help others feel the pain on the people in slavery. Even though she had never been a slave, her love for people led her to one of her famous books of the mid-1800s 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'. Her passion was great! She would sit at her house writing, at her little desk. Her dogs probably running around her feet, but still deep in thought. Yet her focus was not on gaining fame for herself, rather her goal was to put a burden in the hearts of people. Through writing she had achieved this goal. She, through writing, brought people to a greater love for each other, causing others to feel the pain she felt for the people in slavery. Uncle Tom's Cabin could have even been a part of the reason for the Civil War. This is just one examples of what great impact writing can have on people’s lives.

            Now this should give you just a glance into the lives of women, and help you understand the important role they played in the past. Some of the roles they played included Domestic work, teaching and writing. However these are only a few of the many jobs they could have done.  http://www.americanantiquarian.org/Exhibitions/Womanswork/intro.htm

                              

          

Welcome

Welcome to History past to present. I am, excited, to begin this blog as a way to help students of Cleverville Middle School, learn more about the history of America. We are going to have a great time as we look into the past of America.  

This blog will help lean about the past. The past is a great gateway of knowledge for the future, so through this we are going to be learning how to prepare ourselves.  When people look back as us in history, they can be amazed. PTPH is all about looking into the past, but not leaving it there.  We are going to learn how to use history to prepare ourselves for the future. We are going to take a step back in time, and look at America from others views. Come with me as we explore the past.

Every week, there will be a new post, or something to take you back to that time. There will be posts, websites, and all kinds of stuff to explore. Look every Monday for new exciting stories.  

A Solders Life

                                                            

No madder what side of the war they were on, the life of a soldier, during the Civil War, was not easy. The soldiers had many hard times. They also were away from their families for long periods of times. They had to suffer through the fiscal pain of war as well as needing to bare the emotional pain of missing their families, and deaths. Some soldiers were even stuck in prison camp for long times.

            Some of the soldiers were neglected as stated in newspaper “large numbers of them were barefooted, in rags, and covered with vermin; and that those in the hospitals at Winchester were the victims of the most cruel neglect.”(VOS newspaper The Spectator, October 28, 1862, p. 1, c. 6: "Conditions of the Army.") The families of many soldiers were frequently asked for either close or food in this letter from  Franklin Carroll to Virginia Miller,  franklin is telling Virginia What he is n need of he tells her “I needed the worst I stand in need of a suit of cloths shoes ,Hat pants & coat and also some under clothing” (VOS  Franklin Carroll to Virginia Miller, July 30, 1864)There were also many soldiers needing things such as food still they fight proudly for their country one soldier writes “We are in a very fine country, only we can't get much to eat.”(VOS letters Jedediah Hotchkiss to Nelson H. Hotchkiss, July 27, 1862) he continues on to ask for them to send him food at whatever cost to prevent starvation. He asks his family to get a  “ barrel and fill it with potatoes and onions” (VOS letters Jedediah Hotchkiss to Nelson H. Hotchkiss, July 27, 1862) , to send to him.

            Solders missed their families as they were gone for long periods of time. The soldiers would anxiously await letters from their families. One soldier writes,” the heart has indeed become sick with a long deferred hope ”(VOS letters P. H. Powers to Mrs. Powers, March 17, 1863) as he waited for a letter from his wife. It was a lonely time for them as they were not use to being separated from their family’s for so long. Even some solders did not even get to know their children, as was the case with Isaac N. He was worried about their condition. “The condition of my wife & child I know nothing of & am in great anxiety” (VOS letters Isaac N. Smith to C. Q. Tompkins, May 5, 1862). The loneliness was probably harder to bear then even the rough conditions they were forced to endure. The shoulders were constantly worried about raising support for their families however the government was trying to raise more money to support the families of the solders in the war. As stated in the newspaper. “We are pleased that they are also raising a fund for the support of the families of the soldiers who are fighting the battles of their country” (VOS newspaper The Spectator, April 15, 1862, p. 1, c. 4: "The Confederate Prisoners.")

            The soldiers would have troubles keeping their families informed of where they were at all times because, the frequently needed to move camp with little notice. D. C. Snyder writes his wife telling her “On the 1st day of the month we were ordered away from our former camp at Swope's Depot (very hurriedly too I assure you)” (VOS letters D. C. Snyder to Rachel Snyder, March 15, 1865). This was not unusual for the solders. Many of the solders had troubles when sending letters back and forth to their families because they never knew when they would move again, or even where they would move when they needed to. Still they did their best in keeping connected with their families.

            Soldiers who were captured might have been treated well however some were starved in prison camps. Some of the soldiers were sometimes persuaded to join the other army “Every week the rebel enrolling officers would visit the quarter and promise plenty of ration and clothing to the famishing men if they would enlist in their service.”(VOS letter Samuel Reinhart to the Pennsylvania Daily Telegraph, March 24, 1865) Some soldiers, who were in the camps that were not quite so harsh, would make crafts and things in prison camp, to try to raise money to send home to their families. However, they were not able to make much. Charles B. Carter writes his wife “I dont have mutch time to make meney for my self I make from 8 to 9 per weake and I wish I Could send you the money for I know that you neade it bute” (VOS letters Charles B. Carter to Eliza Carter, April 26, 1862)

            The solders would see other solders die from in battle but not only in battle there would be many people who did not die in war but rather because, of sickness that could not be cured. James R. McCutchan wrote his cousin telling her about someone he saw die. He says “One poor soldier died yesterday evening. I saw him but an hour or two before he died; he suffered dreadfully, he was not sick more than 24 hours I believe. When I saw him he was almost black” (VOS letter James R. McCutchan to Rachel Ann McCutchan, [no date]) I can imagine the pain of seeing someone you knew die right before your eyes must have been hard to bear. The solders would often wait for their friends who were sick, to get well. However the medicine was very poor, and often the sick men were not able to be treated and, their friends died.

            The life of a solder was not an easy life. It was hard in every aspect. They had to worry about, food, clothes, and their family. They needed to endure the sorrow of death. They also missed their children growing up, as they were in this war. They couldn’t spend the time with their wife, and instead many times fought cold and hungry in this war.  http://valley.lib.virginia.edu/VoS/choosepart.html