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Letters from Trenton, 1776: Teaching with Primary Sources

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Letters from Trenton, 1776: Teaching with Primary Sources Social Studies and the Young Learner 17(2), pp. 5-12 ©2004 National Council for the Social Studies General George Washington standing with a group of soldiers looking at the fl ags captured from the British during the battle of Trenton. Artist Percy Moran painted this scene in 1914. Library of Congress Letters from Trenton, 1776: Teaching with Primary Sources Theresa M. McCormick December 27, 1776 Do these sound like the words from a faded letter written Dear Mother, by a Continental soldier during the American Revolution? Can you Yesterday we were in the town of Trenton. We were attack- picture a tired, young Patriot writing to his mother in the aftermath ing the Hessians. We had to cross the Delaware River. It was of the Continental Army’s surprise attack on the mighty Hessians? cold and very late..... Colonel Glover had problems getting Possibly, but while the letter is based on the historical event of the all of us in the boats. Battle of Trenton during the American Revolution, the words are When we fi nally were in battle, I killed several Hessians. from one of my fi fth-graders who became fascinated in the people General Washington was very brave during this battle ... I did and events involved in this pivotal victory for the young nation. not get a chance to ask him if I would be returning home after In the fi fth grade, our social studies curriculum is based on Ameri- this battle, but soon found out that I wouldn’t. can history. Often, at the beginning of the year, I hear questions such Remember, no matter what happens, I will always love as, “Why do we need to know about what happened to people who you. Write me soon and pray for me always. are dead?” It became my goal to fi nd a way to make the people who Love, lived in the past come to life. I wanted to ignite a spark in my students Your son, Nathan to motivate them to discover the exciting stories embedded in our country’s history from a variety of perspectives. November/December 2004 5 Sidebar A The Battles of Trenton and Princeton, 1776-77 In 1775 the Second Continental Congress voted unanimously to appoint George Washington commander-in-chief of the Con- tinental Army. Its decision was based in part on his experience in the French and Indian War, but even more on an assessment of his character. Unlike the Continental Congress, the King of England had at his command both seasoned troops and unlimited resources. It is not surprising then that the early stages of the war comprised a series of American defeats and embarrassments. The first break in this pattern began on Christmas night in 1776, when Washington led his army of cold, tired and hungry soldiers, many of them teenagers, across the Delaware River from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, where they surprised and defeated a professional army of Hessian mercenaries at the Battle of Trenton on December 26. Eight days later, on January 3, 1777, the Continental Army came unexpectedly upon two British regiments outside Princeton, New Jersey. While the experienced British soldiers formed into lines, Washington’s men fell into perilous disarray until their commander rode to the front on his tall white horse. “Parade with me my brave fellows,” he called to them, before personally leading the assault on the British lines. Observers remarked with wonder not only that the mounted general survived the subse- quent barrage of enemy gunfire, but that he did so in high good spirits: “It’s a fine fox chase, my boys,” Washington is reported to have called out when the British broke and ran. A third British regiment inside Princeton surrendered without a fight. Along with Trenton, news of the Battle of Princeton boosted American spirits regarding the war effort. Source: PBS, Rediscovering George Washington, www.pbs.org/georgewashington/milestones/trenton_about.html; see lesson plans accompanying Liberty: The American Revolution, www.pbs.org/ktca/ liberty/tguide_3.html. “The social studies program should be designed to increase the that helps students construct the meaning of an historical event. In students’ ability to conceptualize unfamiliar categories of informa- the example discussed here, a lesson about the Battle of Trenton, I tion, establish cause/effect relationships, determine the validity of included in the packet a line drawn map of the battleground and information and arguments, and develop a new story, model, narra- troop movements, a textbook description of the battles, a “cast of tive, picture, or chart that adds to the student’s understanding of an characters” listing the names of some of the major historical figures event, idea, or persons while meeting criteria of valid social studies involved, and a paragraph from the Library of Congress about using research.”1 Critically reading eyewitness accounts of historical events primary sources (see Sidebar B, page 11). from varying perspectives develops my students’ ability to think critically, to read a historical text and construct their own meaning of Reading from a Replica historical events. I have two main goals for such a lesson: students will Deciphering copies of original historical documents can be very (i) comprehend historical events accurately and in a way meaningful challenging for fifth graders. I gradually introduce my students to to them, and (ii) develop their critical thinking skills. the challenge of reading from primary documents from the first This article describes one of many inquiry investigations I week of school. designed for my fifth grade students in order to provide real and An image of a historical document (a photograph of the actual meaningful reading experiences through primary documents. Groups thing) may be available from a museum, government archive, or of students examined historical eyewitness accounts (in newspa- historical society website, often in the form of a PDF file. Some per articles, diaries, and letters) of the Battle of Trenton during the of these image files are of good enough quality to print out and American Revolution (Sidebar A). Through their investigations and distribute in the classroom. In cooperative groups of four or five reconstructions of the past, my students not only became excited children each, students silently read a text, highlighting specific about history, but also discovered that multiple perspectives on words, phrases, or sentences that are unfamiliar to them. Most often, events exist, and that personal accounts can provide us with insights they highlight unfamiliar words and misspelled words. into the struggles and challenges faced by our predecessors.2 I avoid using texts that are dense with antiquated language (long, flowery sentences, for example) in favor of more personal works Providing Background Knowledge (letters, diaries, etc.) that tend to be plainer in their message. If I I have seen how elementary students can walk away from a class with pass out a copy of a letter in its original handwriting, then reading misconceptions about historical events if those events are simply the penmanship becomes part of the learning challenge. I will ask presented by various media, such as slide shows and videos, without students to write words in block letters above cursive writing that any explanation from the teacher. In order for my students to fully confuses them (which happens, for example, with the old-fashioned benefit from the reading of historical letters, diaries, and newspaper “s” that looks like an “f”). A website I have found useful for this articles, they must first have some foundational knowledge of the process is “How to Read 18th Century British-American Writing” time in which the documents were written. Therefore, I construct at the DoHistory website (cited below, in Resources). It provides historical resource packets and challenge students to delve into them an overview of some of the characteristics of 18th-century colonial prior to the lesson. These packets provide background information handwriting and steps for deciphering handwritten documents. Continued on page 11 6 social studies and the young learner Handout 1 An Account of Battle and Troop Movements In the Connecticut Journal of January 22, 1777, this Another account, below, discusses the memorable fight description was published less than three weeks after the at the Assunpink bridge. It was written by an eye-witness engagement. “Had the forces of Lord Cornwallis been and printed in the Princeton Whig of November 4, 1842. successful in their attempts to storm the bridge, Wash- This passage describes the movement of the American ington might have found his army split asunder and the soldiers before that battle in the cold of winter. struggle for national independence brought to a sudden, unfavorable end.” When the army under Washington, in the year ‘76, retreated over the Delaware, I was with them. At that Immediately after the taking of the Hessians at Trenton, on time there remained in Jersey only a small company of the 26th ult., our army retreated over the Delaware, and riflemen, hiding themselves between New Brunswick remained there for several days, and then returned and and Princeton. Doubtless, when Washington reached took possession of Trenton, where they remained quiet the Pennsylvania side of the river, he expected to be so until Thursday, the 2nd inst., at which time, the enemy hav- reinforced as to enable him effectually to prevent the Brit- ing collected a large force at Princeton, marched down in ish from reaching Philadelphia. But in this he was disap- a body of 4,000 or 5,000, to attack our people at Trenton. pointed. Finding that he must achieve victory with what Through Trenton there runs a small river, over which there men he had, and so restore confidence to his countrymen, is a small bridge.
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