You are about to go back in time and embark on a fascinating journey. You will assume the role of a fictional historical character that was living during the time period when European nations were beginning to colonize the new world. You will be given background information and then you will have decisions to make. Of course before you make your decisions you will have to access resources on the web to help you in making these important decisions and solving these problems.
"Hi Taylor," called your best friend John, "Happy new year." You couldn't believe that it was the year 1625 and you were 23 years old. As John approached you asked, "Did you find a job today?" Unfortunately his answer was "no." Both you and John had been out of work since you moved to London 3 years ago. Before that you had been living as a tenant farmer in the English countryside. Mr. Bottoms owned the land you farmed. Once you sold your crops you would then give him a share of your profits as rent. Unfortunately Mr. Bottoms found a better way to make money. He converted all of his farmland into sheep pastures. He could make more money raising sheep for their wool than he could by renting his land to you. This new found wealth for Mr. Bottoms left you homeless and unemployed. It was at this point that you and John decided to come to London to try your luck. However, you were not the only tenant farmers with this idea. As more and more land owners turned to the raising of sheep, more and more tenant farmers fled to the cities. This meant that there were more men than there were jobs available. People, including you and John, were also forced to live on the streets. As you stepped over some trash in the street you started to remember your previous life. You came to the city to have a better life; however, life in the city was as bad, if not worse, than your life as a tenant farmer. You started to get very depressed when John said something that started to raise your hopes. "Look what I found, " he said. He held up a piece of paper that looked like an advertisement. "What does it say?" I asked. He began to read. "Are you tired of your life here in England? Do you feel like you will never get ahead? If your answer is yes, then come to the English colonies in the new world where you can start a new life." I lifted my head and looked at John. We both had a big smile on our face. We were thinking the same thing. It was that day that we decided to head to the new world to start a new life.
After you and John raised the money for the trip to the new world you were ready to head out. However, after doing some research you learned that England had two settlements in the new world, Jamestown and Plymouth. You realized that you did not want to make the same mistake that you did when you came to London. You wanted to choose the settlement where you could prosper. You decided that you better do some research about Jamestown and Plymouth. You and John compiled a list of facts that you wanted to find out about each settlement. You are then going to compare the settlements to decide where you want to go. You pulled out your computer (this is fictional remember) to do research on the settlements. As you are researching you are to complete the research guide entitled "Jamestown or Plymouth." HINT--After you get finished researching a link all you need to do is click the box at the top to get rid of that page and come back to this page.
JAMESTOWN
Jamestown Fort: Rediscovered
http://www.apva.org/ngex/index.htmlThe Jamestown Online Adventure
http://www.historyglobe.com/jamestown/A Brief History of Jamestown, Virginia
http://www.tobacco.org/History/Jamestown.html#aa2World Book Online: House of Burgesses
http://worldbook.bigchalk.com/264440.htmHouse of Burgesses Comic
http://www.dailypress.com/extras/solutions/sol110101.htm
PLYMOUTH
Plymouth: It's History and People
http://pilgrims.net/plymouth/history/index.htmNew Plymouth Colony
http://www.times1190.freeserve.co.uk/colony.htmWorld Book Online: Plymouth Company
http://worldbook.bigchalk.com/435640.htmPictures of the Mayflower
http://www.trevor.org/Academics/History/Mark/Pictures_of_the_Mayflower.htmlMayflower Compact
http://members.aol.com/calebj/compact.htmlWorld Book Online: Mayflower Compact
http://worldbook.bigchalk.com/350260.htmSigning of the Mayflower Compact
http://www.pilgrimhall.org/compact.htm
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