Oct. 12, 2022 History Matters
October 12, 2022
I've spent some time in the last few weeks thinking about history - family history. My Mom's parents immigrated from England in the 1920s. She was 1st generation American. But she took a lively interest in U.S. History and encouraged that interest in her children. We visited historic sites, strolled through ancient graveyards, and investigated abandoned farms in the woods of Vermont where I grew up. Mom was especially intrigued by my Dad's family history. His ancestors arrived in Boston in 1630. They settled in Massachusettes. Ezekiel Fletcher, born in 1741, was a farmer in Groton, Mass. As concerns about British rule increased, Ezekiel joined the militia. When the British marched from Boston, Ezekiel and his fellow farmer-soldiers fought them during the Battle of Lexington and Concord. He was, by all accounts, a peaceful farmer who returned home after the battle to work the land and help his wife, Bridget, raise their six children.
So, where does this lead me? I grew up immersed in family and national history. To date, I have written 16 books about Colonial and Revolutionary history (for a full list, click here). Resisting British Rule deals with the early days of revolution and includes a chapter about Lexington and Concord. This book is one of several Capstone's You Choose interactive history books that I have written. Readers make choices, and in Resisting British Rule one of the choices is to fight at Lexington and Concord. Many years before I wrote the book, we took a family vacation to the Minute Man National Park in Concord, where the battle took place. My sons, ages 7 and 9 at the time, were fascinated.
My mother and her love of history certainly influenced me. We can all instill a love of history in our children by sharing family stories, visiting historic sites, and reading both nonfiction and fiction accounts of historical events. As David McCullough once said, "History is who we are and why we are the way we are."
Websites For Kids: Minute Man National Park/History and Culture and American Revolutionary War - Timelines and Maps - Animated US History
Books for Kids: Mine, of course, and I was intrigued by Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen.
Books For Adults: Two of my favorite books about the colonial period are Invisible Ink: Spycraft of the American Revolution by John A. Nagy and The Writer's Guide to Everyday Life in Colonial America from 1607-1783 by Dale Taylor. Of course, my research included many other valuable resources. I'm always eager to read historical fiction, as well. Have you read any winners lately? Please share by replying to this message or sending an email to my contact page.
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