Innholdsfortegnelse for September 2018 i Cobblestone American History and Current Events for Kids and Children

Quick! Name the three best-known Americans during the Revolutionary War-era. We’ll get the list started for you. The first two people are George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. And number three is? Does Dr. Benjamin Rush sound familiar? If not, get ready to meet this interesting but less well-known Founding Father. Rush was among the many great thinkers who participated in the founding of the nation. He lived in Philadelphia. Philadelphia was the fastest-growing city in the Colonies. It was where many of the meetings in which decisions about the future of the country took place. Rush participated in some of those nation-forming organizations and conventions. Those experiences introduced him to other Americans who were ready to fight for freedom from British tyranny. Strong friendships grew during that dangerous time. Men…

In the 1700s, some people noticed that yellow fever outbreaks seemed to happen during the hot, rainy season when mosquitoes were plentiful. People also noticed that cases of the disease decreased as winter approached. Some doctors observed that infected people did not make others sick. But it wasn’t until the early 1880s that scientists determined that infected mosquitoes spread the disease when they bit people. In the 1940s, a vaccine was developed. It is quite effective for people who have access to it. But not all people have access. Today, yellow fever is still found in hot, wet climates, especially during rainy seasons. And as more people travel internationally, the possibility of an outbreak of yellow fever spreading is a concern. People traveling to areas where the disease is known…

Richard Stockton was the only signer of the Declaration of Independence to be jailed by the British. He was on an information-gathering trip when the British moved through New Jersey. Stockton hurried home to help his family get out of harm’s way. Citizens loyal to the British learned that he was nearby. They seized him and turned him over to the British army. He was kept in a cold cell and starved. When the British government offered Stockton a pardon if he swore allegiance to the king, he took the oath. He was released in early 1777, after about five weeks of imprisonment . Upon his return home, he discovered that British forces had destroyed his family estate. He tried to rebuild his law practice, but he became ill and…

We have come a long way in the treatment of people with mental illness. In the past, people suffering from a mental health disorder endured therapies designed to shock their system. They were forced to take ice baths. They were sprayed with powerful jets of water. For a while in the mid-1900s, lobotomies—a surgery that cut nerve tracts in the front of the brain—were common. Doctors also tried drilling holes in patients’ heads to relieve pressure. Some patients had their movements restricted, too. They were chained to a wall. They were forced to wear a straitjacket. That piece of clothing had long sleeves, which wrapped around the patient’s body and then tied securely in the back. Some patients were confined to a lunatic box (LEFT). It was a narrow,…

This month’s mystery hero had a major disagreement with Dr. Benjamin Rush. Yet their friendship and admiration for each other remained strong. How do we know that? Despite their differences, Rush named a college in honor of this friend. That college continues as a leading higher education institution today. This month’s hero was born into a wealthy Quaker family. When he was eight years old, the family moved from Maryland to their plantation in Delaware. Our hero was educated at home by his parents and tutors. He was a good student. He also was a young man of energy. Although the plantation was a busy place, our hero wanted to be where the action was in the growing city of Philadelphia. He left home when he was 18 years old…

Studies have shown that people who own pets are happier—and healthier. Children who grow up in homes with furry pets are less likely to develop asthma or allergies later in life. Pets also provide companionship. They offer unconditional love. They soothe feelings of stress. Dogs and cats are at the top of pet lists in promoting good overall health. Think about it. How does the sight of a dog wagging its tail make you feel? What about the sound of a purring cat? Studies have indicated that people who own dogs on average live longer and have fewer risks of heart disease than nonpet owners. Some experts point out that dogs may keep owners active and healthy because they have to be walked. Other experts argue that people who are…

Benjamin Rush’s childhood had moments of tragedy and of opportunity. His father, John Rush, was a farmer and a gunsmith. John and his wife, Susanna, settled in Byberry Township, about 12 miles outside Philadelphia. Benjamin was born on January 4, 1746. When he was about six years old, his father died. Susanna was left to care for their seven children on her own. She moved the family to Philadelphia and opened a general store. Philadelphia was the largest city in the American Colonies. Susanna’s shop was so successful that she opened a second store selling china. Benjamin might have lived out his days as a farmer or a shopkeeper. But his mother sent him and his brother Jacob to live with an uncle. The Rev. Dr. Samuel Finley was the…

In 1736, four-year-old Franky developed a fever and aches. Then spots appeared all over his body—even in his mouth. Within a few days, the boy was dead. Franky was the son of famous inventor and patriot Benjamin Franklin. Like so many others in the 1700s, he died of smallpox. Around the same time that Franky became ill in Philadelphia, hundreds of people in New England died of “throat distemper.” The victims were mostly children. They experienced fevers and sore throats. Their tonsils became inflamed. Historians think the epidemic was caused by one of two diseases: scarlet fever, which brings a red rash, or diphtheria, which causes a suffocating film to grow in victims’ throats. In 1760, George Washington’s wife, Martha, contracted measles in Virginia. Measles is marked by a high…

French officer Thomas Conway wanted a promotion. While serving under General George Washington during the Revolutionary War (1775–1783), Conway had fought at Brandywine and Germantown in the fall of 1777. Both those battles in Pennsylvania were American losses, but Conway had distinguished himself on the battlefield. Dr. Benjamin Rush, serving as the physician in charge of the Continental Army’s Middle Department, reported that Conway was “the idol of the whole army.” Despite Conway’s success, Washington did not heap praise on him. Conway did not praise his commander in chief either. Instead, he wrote directly to the Congress. He asked for a promotion over more senior American officers. He also publicly wondered if the Continental Army would be better with someone else in charge. Some delegates were starting to wonder about…

Dr. Benjamin Rush was one of the founders of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia in 1787. He suggested that its members start a medicinal garden. He thought physicians could grow the plants they needed for their medical practices. Rush’s idea for a medicinal herb garden did not “take root” until 1937. That’s when an enclosed courtyard at the college was transformed to include herbs. Today, visitors to the college’s Mutter Museum can stroll through the Benjamin Rush Medicinal Plant Garden. The Colonel liked trying to identify some of the more than 60 different types of plants. I enjoyed reading about the uses of each plant. The squirrels loved scampering on the paths. For more information about the garden, visit muttermuseum.org/exhibitions/the-benjaminrush-medicinal-plant-garden . You also can visit the…

[Cough] may be cured in the Beginning with riding moderately on Horseback every Day, and only taking a little Ground Ivy Tea sweeten’d with Syrup of Horehound at Night when you go to Bed. But in case it be violent, it will be proper to bleed Eight Ounces and be constant in the Use of the other Remedies. In the mean while, you must use a spare and cooling Diet, without either Flesh or strong Drink. Nor should you stove yourself up in a warm Room, but breathe as much as possible in the open Air. And to prevent this Mischief, don’t make yourself tender [“soft”], but wash every Day in cold Water, and very often your Feet.…

In the mid-1700s, the American colonists faced a big decision. Not all of them supported independence from Great Britain. But they all understood the importance of communication among the 13 Colonies. Dr. Benjamin Rush was a well-known figure in Philadelphia. The Congresses met there. Rush came into contact with many of the movers and shakers of that era. Take a look. The College of New Jersey (present-day Princeton University) provided the link between Rush and two Founding Fathers. Richard Stockton attended the college about a dozen years ahead of Rush. After graduating, he set up a law practice in New Jersey. While on a trip to Europe in the 1760s, Stockton paid a visit to Scottish minister Dr. John Witherspoon. The college wanted Witherspoon to become its president. Witherspoon had…

Dr. Benjamin Rush saved one of U.S. history’s famous friendships. It spanned 51 years. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson met in 1775 at the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. The two men seemed quite different. Adams was a New England lawyer from the city of Boston, Massachusetts. Jefferson was a southern plantation owner and slaveholder from rural Virginia. Yet, the two men had one important thing in common. They both believed that independence from Britain was the American Colonies’ only option. Adams and Jefferson worked together to draft the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Jefferson admired Adams’s impassioned speeches. He called Adams the “Colossus of Independence.” Adams valued Jefferson’s ability to stir men to action through written words. The two men were frequently separated by the offices they held in…

Dr. Benjamin Rush is remembered as the “Father of American Psychiatry.” Psychiatry derives from two Greek words—psyche (“spirit” or “soul”) and iatreia (“healing”). A psychiatrist is “a physician who focuses on the treatment and prevention of mental and emotional disorders.” Psychology also is related. It is from the Greek words psyche and logia (“study of”). It once meant “the study of the soul.” Today, it refers to the science that deals with mental processes and behaviors. A person who works in that field is a psychologist. Psyche by itself can mean “the mind functioning as the center of thought, emotion, and…