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1840s: Mary Maddox, a Whole Estate, and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793
In the 1830s and 1840s, tensions in Gettysburg ran high because of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793. In 1837, the death in Virginia of a moderately wealthy planter, Samuel Maddox, would touch off a constitutional crisis that involved kidnapping, imprisonments in both Virginia and Pennsylvania, and three different complex court cases. While simple on…
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1840s Jennie Wade: The Skellys and the Almshouse
The best-remembered of the family, Jennie Wade, was the third child born to Captain James Wade and his wife Mary Ann. The couple’s first child died in infancy; in 1841, Georgeanna was born, followed by Jennie in 1843. Captain Wade was a native Virginian with connections to a prominent family there and ancestry that had…
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1840s: The Crimes of Captain James Wade
One of Gettysburg’s most prominent ghosts, supposedly, is Captain James Wade who, according to legend, is frustrated that he was not on hand when his daughter Jennie was killed during the battle. If you take a ghost tour, you will learn that Captain Wade was in the Adams County Almshouse during the battle. Captain Wade’s…
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New Web Site Focus and Posts
In order to keep the site fresh, I am changing how I manage it. Hereafter, I will post short articles as blog posts that give lesser known history of Gettysburg in the two decades leading up to the battle. These posts will automatically display on the home page. They will be concise enough to read…
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Chapter 9: Sallie Myers and the Beauty of the Earth
Sallie Myers scooped up the grasshopper and held it, one hand cupped over the other. She felt it jump around, smacking against her top palm. When it stopped at last, she carefully moved her top hand and peered down at the grass-green two-inch long insect. Its eyes were large for its body and seemed almost…
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New Learning Activities Posted
I have now created five chapters of learning activities. These range from simple math exercises to a map-based hotspot game to matching cards. The design isn’t for grading or to test knowledge but to learn by activity, so it’s no big deal if people get something “wrong.” Give these a spin and feel free to…
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Updates to American Civil War Historical Context and Activities for Parents and Teachers
I use fiction to dramatize the real-life stories of people in the American Civil War historical context. I am purposely targeting a young audience in doing so, and hence I am have also been including historical context and learning resources. I’m pleased to say that I have created my first simple interactive exercises to help…
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Chapter 8: Old Enough to Drive a Plow
Content Warning: While nothing is portrayed graphically in the following, this chapter deals with some of the worst aspects of slavery in the antebellum South and the resulting trauma. The learning resources give additional background that parents and teachers can use to modify the discussion to the appropriate level for young readers. Jim used to…
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Chapter 5.2: You Were Holding Them in Bondage
Mary found a spot in the orchard about two rows over where she could keep eyes and ears on the men as Mr. Wright walked slowly up to see them. He, too, had taken his time after Mary had found him, and now, he sauntered slowly into the orchard from the field he had been…
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Chapter 5.1: Internal Silence
As noted in previous posts, the Catherine Payne storyline happened about eight years before Captain James Wade was committed to the Almshouse, and so I placed it in an Introduction and a Chapter 0. The real events featured in this post actually occurred about two years before Captain Wade’s commitment, but I have made them…