Coming Together and Pulling Apart
"I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." These were the final words spoken by Nathan Hale before he was hanged for espionage. The history of the United States from when it was just thirteen colonies under British command, to the civil war that threatened to destroy a great nation has always been an interesting one. Whether it was issues with a tyrant a thousand miles away, or issues within our own government, change has and will always take place. I want to shed light on the diversity between the colonies, what prompted them to unite and form one of the greatest countries on earth. I will also focus on what ideals sparked the American civil war.
The thirteen colonies consisted of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The colonist who inhabited the colonies came from different backgrounds, which made each colony different from the other. For example Pennsylvania was known as the colony of the Quakers. Every colony had a different view on religion, politics, economics and social lifestyle. But even though they were different they did have some common ground. For example, Benjamin Franklin stated “A good conscience is a continual Christmas.” And with that most colonies adopted many characteristics of Christmas by having a Christmas tree. “Yet, in spite of their differences, they did share many interests, beliefs, experiences, and hopes unique to America.” (PATTERSON LECTURE NOTES, UNIT 3). Another contributing factor that unified the colonies was debt. When the colonies first started out they were economy was thriving and colonist would be able to borrow money from Britain fairly easy, but as time went by the debt would grow. It would often be passed down and many families would often end up paying off their parents debts to the crown.
The American...