The Province of Georgia

It’s 1732 and you live in the British colonies in North America. You just found out that a new colony has been established called Georgia, and it’s apparently supposed to be a safe haven for debtors. That is really good news for you since you are in huge debt. So you decide to pack up and head south.

In this paper I will be talking about the Province of Georgia and its development.

In April of 1732 General James Oglethorpe received a charter from King George II to start a new colony. Then in June, Oglethorpe established a colony and he called it Georgia. He got the name for the colony from his King’s name which is George. Oglethorpe originally started the colony as a safe haven for debtors.

When he was still in England, Oglethorpe’s best friend was put in jail because he couldn’t pay his debts. Oglethorpe’s friend was put in a jail cell with someone who had smallpox and he eventually died from that disease. This angered Oglethorpe and he was determined to change the English jails. He became known nation wide and eventually, with the help of his friends, went to King George II to ask to start a new colony with a lot of the debtors that were in jail, they received a charter for this new colony in 1732. Thus the story of how Georgia came to be. 

Oglethorpe and his friends decided that their new colony needed to have strict laws to keep everyone from being crazy. Oglethorpe’s colony started to grow but very slowly. The strict laws that he put in place didn’t settle well with the  people. These were some of his laws: No alcohol, no slaves, and Oglethorpe also didn’t want people to have big plantations like the colonies farther north did. When he realized that his strict laws were hindering the growth of his colony, Oglethorpe lifted those laws and his colony started to grow.

Another reason Georgia was established is because King George II wanted a barrier between the Spanish colonized Florida and the French colonized Louisiana and the rest of the British colonies. So Georgia was like the defender of the colonies from the Spanish or French trying to invade the colonies.

This came in handy because in 1739 Spain and England started a conflict called the War of Jenkins Ear. This led Oglethorpe to invade Florida. After he didn’t succeed in defeating the Spanish, the Spanish leader in Florida drew up plans to invade Georgia. It was the perfect time to invade because after Oglethorpe’s defeat he was going to need reinforcements. But there was no way he could get reinforcements before Spain would invade. So it was a perfect plan. In the first battle or skirmish the Spanish were routed and had to retreat. In the next battle the Brits took the Spanish by complete surprise and won that battle as well. Eventually Spain withdrew and went home to Florida.  When the War of Jenkins Ear ended in 1748, James Oglethorpe had left never to return and William Stevens became Governor or President.

Georgia was a very strong Royalist colony. Meaning they were strong followers of the King. But during the Revolutionary War era they turned on England and the King and joined the other 12 colonies to form the U.S.A.                               

                                                                                                                           Georgia in 1732

                                          

                                                 Georgia in 1764.                      

                                             

                                                                                                                                                                               

                                                Georgia when it became a state in 1788

                                                                    

                          

                                                                                                                 

A Merry Adventure of Robin Hood

It all started a long time ago in a land not so far away, a place that is now called "Schoenemann Forest." Robin Hood is the name to know. He always started his days with a trip to the "Ye Olde Sweet Shoppe" to buy sweets and such stuff for all his lads in the forest. That morning was different than all other mornings. Instead of going to the "Ye Olde Sweet Shoppe" he wanted to go hunting with his bow and arrow. Then what happened was outlandish. Robin saw something moving in the bushes, naturally he thought it was a deer. He shot an arrow and ZAP!! he got sucked into a machine that takes you to the future! In other words a TIME MACHINE! He went into the year 2015! 

Once he arrived in the future he noticed that it was a lot brighter and different than where he had been just 5 minutes before. He had landed in the middle of Times Square! What he didn't know was that he only had 12 hours in the future before he would leave forever!

 “Where art thy my good lady?” quoth Robin to a passerby.

“You're in Times Square weird-o, and don't talk like that it's so annoying and sooo a thousand years ago” quoth the lady. 

“What is Times Square?” quoth Robin to the lady

“This is Times Square, what your looking at dumbo.” quoth the lady. 

“Okay let me re-phrase that, where is Times Square?” quoth Robin. 

“Here, RIGHT HERE! DOOFUS!” 

“Where in the world is Times Square?” 

“Oh, in New York City.” quoth the lady. 

“Thank you” gasped Robin. “What is New York City?” asked Robin. 

“Only the biggest city in the world! Why do you ask so many questions?” 

“Because I am new in this place. What year is this?” 

“2015! GEEZ you don't even know what year it is!?” quoth the lady. 

“2015! I must have gone into the future!”

 “What year did you travel from!?” quoth the lady. 

“1345” replied Robin. 

“Oh my gosh!! no wonder you were asking so many questions! What is your name?” quoth the lady.

 “My name is Robin Hood the finest archer in all of...” 

“Sherwood Forest!” interupted the lady. 

“No, Schoenemann Forest!” quoth Robin. 

“Huh?” quoth the puzzled lady. 

“You don't know about great Schoenemann Forest?” quoth Robin. 

“Of course n... of course I have! All of the great Oak trees! And the famous butcher, I think his name was, hmm, ah! it was Meat Head” 

“No” quoth Robin “ there are no great Oak trees in Schoenemann Forest, only Cedars, and there definetly isn't a butcher by the name of Meat Head!” 

“What ever. Do you need a place to sleep?” quoth the lady. 

“That I do” replied Robin “Now dost thou have a name my good lady?” 

“Why yes, my name is Eliza” quoth the lady. 

“Ah what a beautiful name” replied Robin. 

“Thank you” quoth a blushing Eliza. 

“Now where dost thou have me sleep?” asked Robin. 

“Just follow me.”

And so Robin followed his new friend through the bustling streets of New York City to where Eliza lived. They stopped in front of a tall apartment building and quoth Robin to Eliza, 
“You live in the most peculiar castle thine eyes have ever seen.” 

“This is not all mine” quoth Eliza, “just one room inside of it is mine.” 

So a few minutes later after some questions about the elevator, they walked into Eliza's apartment. 
“How long are you here for?” asked Eliza. 

“I don't really know. It was all so sudden. I was walking through Schoenemann Forest and thought I saw a deer moving in the bushes, so naturally I shot it with my arrow and ZAP I was in the middle of what you call Times Square. And thou art knows the rest.” 

The day went on and Robin and Eliza conversed for the entirety of the whole day. Then quoth Eliza, 
“well we should be off to bed, your room is right here and I will be over there in that room. I guess I'll see you in the morning.” 

“Goodnight” replied Robin. 

But what both Eliza and Robin didn't know was, that would be the last time they saw each other. Robin walked into his room and lied down. Shortly he was asleep and then ZAP Robin found himself in Schoenemann Forest under his Cedar tree with all his Merry lads. They all lay in there beds asleep and Robin realized it had all just been a dream.

The End

Smoking? Why!?

Smoking a cigarette; an addictive drug that causes harm in many ways. Lung Cancer, and many other types of cancer. It can also give you heart disease, increase your chances of a stroke and a lot of other types of chronic diseases. Not only is the smoker harmed but also the people around the smoker can be harmed. This is called second - hand smoking. Most exposure to second - hand smoke occurs in homes and workplaces. Second - hand smoking is as harmful or more harmful than actually smoking the cigarette. The American Cancer Society even reports that smoking cigarettes kills more Americans each year than alcohol, car accidents, suicide, homicide, and illegal drugs combined, while other research has shown that just by smoking one pack of cigarettes:

A smoker's life is cut short by two hours

Men lose a total of 4.4 years of their life

Women lose a total of 2.4 years of their life

To give you an idea of the types of toxic chemicals released into the air and your lungs when you smoke or are around someone who does, here's a list from the American Lung Association of a few chemicals in tobacco smoke, and other places they are found:

Acetone – found in nail polish remover

Acetic Acid – an ingredient in hair dye

Ammonia – a common household cleaner

Arsenic – used in rat poison

Benzene – found in rubber cement

Butane – used in lighter fluid

Cadmium – active component in battery acid

Carbon Monoxide – released in car exhaust fumes

Formaldehyde – embalming fluid

Hexamine – found in barbecue lighter fluid

Lead – used in batteries

Naphthalene – an ingredient in moth balls

Methanol – a main component in rocket fuel

Nicotine – used as insecticide

Tar – material for paving roads

Toluene - used to manufacture paint

As you probably already know, regularly inhaling these chemicals is not a good choice if you want to stay healthy.

The Saxons

Normally when you hear the word England, you think about Queen Elizabeth, or Big Ben. But really you should think about a people called the Saxons.

The Saxons were a group of Germanic tribes who settled in England in the early middle ages. They invaded Great Britain and were eventually allowed to settle there as farmers. After this they sort of started taking over South-Eastern Britain (modern day England) and they split up into four separate realms:

The East Saxons created the Kingdom of Essex.

The Middle Saxons created the Province of Middlesex.

The South Saxons created the Kingdom of Sussex.

Finally the West Saxons created the Kingdom of Wessex.

During the period of the reigns of Egbert to Alfred the Great, the kings of Wessex were basically the ruler of all four realms, unifying the country. They eventually organized it as the Kingdom of England when they were threatened by Viking invasions.

Their first religion was paganism, and they worshiped gods like Woden and Thunor. Eventually they were converted to Christianity under the influence of the neighboring Jutes of Kent in the seventh century.

The main division in Saxon society was between slave and free. Both groups hierarchically structured, with several classes of freemen and many types of slaves. The most prominent ranks within free society were the king, the nobleman or thane, and the ordinary freeman. Women though, were in some ways better off than they would be in later times. A woman could own her own property, she could even take over as a leader for her husband if he died. Also marriage was consensual between the man and the women.  

The occupations of the Saxons consisted of mainly farming, but metal working and sculpting were also popular jobs. 

Genghis Khan: Creator of the Mongol Empire

Genghis Khan who was born in 1162, to a Mongol chieftain, Yesugei, and his wife. His birth name is really Temujin, which means “iron worker.” When Temujin was born he was clinching his fist  around a blood clot which was declared an omen that he was destined to become a heroic warrior. Temujin ended up the founder and Great Khan (emperor) of, the Great Mongol Empire which became the largest empire ever.

Temüjin began his aim at power by offering himself as an ally to his father's "Blood brother," Toghrul, who was Khan of the Khereids, and is better known by the Chinese title "Wang Khan”. This was first reinforced when Temujin’s wife, Borte, was captured by the Merkits. Temüjin turned to Toghrul for support. He finally came to power when he united the nomadic tribes of Northeast Asia. After this he founded the Mongol Empire and was proclaimed "Genghis Khan," Emperor of Mongolia! Genghis Khan means “Universal Ruler.” The reason the people gave him this name is because they thought he was supposed to be the ruler of the universe.  After being named Khan of Mongolia, he conquered huge chunks of central Asia and China.

By the end of his life, in 1227, the Mongol Empire occupied a substantial portion of Central Asia and China. His descendants expanded the empire even further, advancing to such far-off places as Poland, Vietnam, Syria and Korea. At their peak, the Mongols controlled between 11 and 12 million square miles! An area about the size of Africa! Kublai Khan, Genghis’s grandson, even defeated all of China and united China with the Mongol empire. 

Alaric the Visigoth

Alaric was king of the Visigoths from 395-410 A.D. Although his reign was fairly short he made those 15 years count. 

He started off his reign by having a dream that he was driving through the Roman streets in a golden chariot. Alaric thought and thought about this dream and came to the conclusion of wanting to capture Rome and become Emperor. He gathered all his chiefs and told them what he was going to do. They were delighted at what he said. 

First he sieged Constantinople but decided to pull out and captured the city of Athens instead.  Not only did he capture Athens he also annihilated, Sparta, Corinth, Megara, and Argos. Then in 401 Alaric raided Italy but he was defeated by Stilicho. He raided Italy one more time but he was defeated again at the Battle of Verona. Although Alaric did force the Roman Senate to pay a large payment to the Visigoths. In 408 Alaric sieged Rome and he sacked the city and caused the Rome to, eventually, grant him a substantial payment. In addition, Alaric forced the Senate to liberate all 40,000 Gothic slaves in Rome, but the Senate did not grant him Emperor. As an answer he sacked the city for three whole days. After the Visigoths were done with Rome they started marching home in 410, and during that march Alaric died. No one really knows for sure how he died, but most people think it was a fever. 

So Alaric’s reign might not have been the longest but he did do a lot of great things for the Visigoths. He set free 40,000 slaves, and he defeated Rome.  Although he never really captured Rome, or became Emperor, he did defeat one of the greatest armies ever. 

Leif Erikson: The Second European to Set Foot on North America?

When you hear the word Viking you think of two things, the Minnesota Vikings and Leif Erikson.  Who is Leif Erikson, and why do we think of Him when we hear the word Viking?  Well two reasons; 

One: He's said to have been the first European to set foot on North America,  

Two: The U.S passed a bill for "Leif Erikson day" (happens every October 9th). But is he really the first one to set foot on North America?

Erikson was most likely born in Iceland around 970 A.D.  His father was Erik the Red also a well known Viking.  After Erikson was converted to Christianity in Norway, he was ordained to bring the good news to Greenland.  But when his ship was blown off course he encountered a new land.  He had landed in North America.  He explored the area and found a lot of grape vines and called the newly discovered place, Vinland.  After he had finished exploring he stumbled upon two shipwrecked Icelandic people.
So the people who Erikson saved were the first Europeans to set foot on North America.  But Erikson was the first to explore and settle in North America. In 1960 Helge and Anne Ingstad were searching for archaeological evidence of Vikings in Newfoundland. In the small village of L'Anse aux Meadows on the northern tip of Newfoundland they met a fisherman who showed them sod foundations that had the shape of Viking longhouses. More than a decade of archaeological investigation at this site has proved conclusively that Vikings had built a settlement in North America 500 years before Columbus.  After excavations they uncovered Viking artifacts including a ringed pin, a soapstone spindle whorl, a bone pin, a whetstone, iron boat rivets, worked wood and other objects. There was evidence of iron-smelting and forging, and hearth charcoal is dated to A.D. 1000.

Erikson did make his way back to Greenland and spread Christianity.  He even built a church in Vinland.  His father was a pagan and did not support Leif at all.  And when Erik's wife converted, I can only imagine how angry he was.

So Leif Erikson might not have been the first, but he did have an influence on modern day North America.  He has statues all over North America.  And he has a holiday named after him!