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Previous Page - - Next PageEditorialThrough all of this sometimes questionable leadership, deceit, and battle were formulated a people split by political belief, religion, and class. The English people were taxed beyond their means, to support the wealthy class who fought among themselves to gain greater possessions. This battle and conquest, however, opened the English Empire around the world in the form of colonies. Some of these colonies were formed as companies financed by businessmen. Soon ships were commissioned by groups of who sold everything to pay for passage and privilege to escape English and European feudalism and suppression. The Pool's were farmers and ship carpenters as were the Fellinghams, the Fitzgeralds, and the Estabrooks. A suppressed but devoutly religious people, they began to feel the failings of England and longed for a better land. As word came back from the American explorers and colonists of riches beyond belief (streets paved with gold) and freedom to exercise religion, the urge to relocate overcame all reason. Everything was sacrificed for the promise of the new land and Puritan emigration began. Landing in the colonies was but the beginning of a long march to independence and assertion of the equality of human dignity. It was not without hardship, for half of those that landed did not survive to provide offspring to be counted. But this did not sway the flood. The great number of people crowding the eastern colonies produced great pressures to continue the quest for betterment. Again the colonists sacrificed everything to move west and homestead and carve the Midwest into towns and farmland. The Estabrooks and Pools were among the first to establish themselves in Wisconsin and the Fellinghams took up farming in Illinois. Being of Puritan driven morals, these pioneers did not rise to great wealth, but rather provided the basis for providing food and wood products for those that followed. The gold rushes of the 1800's did not lure them from steadfast devotion to family and purpose. Our ancestors brought with them a heritage of strength and determination that was not to be swayed by crisis, hardship, or the lure of wealth. While some immigrants chose to lead and provide direction, some sought only wealth and power, while others chose to serve the country need. Our heritage was that of the server. Someone had to build that table upon which the declaration of independence was formulated. Someone had to develop methods of feeding the masses and moving that food to the population centers. Someone had to preach to the Methodists for a unified religion. Political office, military leadership, and civil service were not strangers to our ancestors, but these are not the contributions for which they were noted. Without our ancestors, America would not have been able to proceed to its destiny nor be the most desirable place to live in the world. The framework was set by explorers Leif Ericsson (1000) Vineland, Christopher Columbus (1492) New World, John Cabot (1497) North America, Juan Ponce de Leon (1513) Florida, Jacques Carter (1534-42) Canada, De Soto (1539-42) southeast, Coronado (1540-42) southwest, and Juan de Onate (1598) New Mexico. Colonies were begun at Jamestown (1607) Virginia, Champlain (1608) Canada, Henry Hudson (1609) New York, Pilgrims (1620) Massachusetts, New Hampshire (1623), Dutch (1624) Manhattan, Puritans (1630-43) Massachusetts, Maryland (1633), Connecticut (1635), Rodger Williams (1636) Rhode Island, Swedes (1638) Delaware River, and Charleston (1670) Carolina. They drew up the Articles of Confederation to state their alliance in 1643. Bickering over rule precipitated conflict such as King Philip's War (1675-76), King William's War (1689-97), Queen Anne's War (1702-13), and King George's War (1744-48). For more than 150 years after our ancestors established a new beginning, America was ruled by foreign power. They fought in the French and Indian War (1754-1763). Then by drawing on their strength of heritage, Americans asserted themselves and declared independence of foreign rule in 1776. This act was not without sacrifice and certainly did not go unnoticed by those governments that claimed lands in the Americas. After great resistance, American Revolution (1776-1781), a small portion of the east coast was relinquished to the colonists for self rule (1783). The Treaty of Amity and Commerce (1781) with France. The 13 colonies that formed this nucleus of the United States were: Virginia (1607), Massachusetts (1620), New Hampshire (1623), New York (1624), Maryland (1634), Connecticut (1635), Rhode Island (1636), Delaware (1638), New Jersey (1638), Pennsylvania (1682), North Carolina (1653), South Carolina (1670), and Georgia (1733) using a new set of Articles of Confederation in 1781. An excellent collection of the above and many more documents may be found at The Avalon Project at the Yale Law School. U.S. PresidentsThe United States officially began self rule with the Declaration of Independence, but the leadership was in the form of a Continental Congress until the Presidential form of government was established in 1789 under the Constitution and later the Amendments. The Presidents of the United States began with:
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| © Copyright 2000 by Jim Pool | Saturday, December 08, 2001 |