According to Denis Wood, author of “The Power of Maps”, “Maps are the ceaseless reproduction of the culture that brings them into being.”
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He goes on to pose the question. “What do maps
do
when they work?”
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“They make present-they represent-the accumulated thought and labor of the
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past… about the milieu we simultaneously live in and collaborate on bringing
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being. In so doing they enable the past to become part of our living…now… here.
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(This is how maps facilitate the reproduction of the culture that brings them into
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being.)”
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In Wood’s answer lies the reason why I am starting my unit with the Wadsworth Map. The Wadsworth map illustrates the enduring legacy of the town’s original layout. The new colony, settled in 1638, was laid out in an organized grid of nine squares between the East and West Creeks. Each of the squares was about 830 to 860 feet on each side. Eight of the nine squares were divided into smaller lots for homes, shops and barns. Your wealth determined where your lot would be located as well as the size. Settlers who, invested the most money into the colony and had the biggest families lived on the biggest house lots.
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“The colony was a joint stock undertaking. Each person who was admitted as a
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planter in the colony paid in the amount he wished to invest, stated the number in
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his family and received a proportionate amount of land. For every hundred pounds
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of estate which a man invested he was allowed five acres of land and an equal
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quantity for every two persons.”
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For example, a man with a wife and two children gave a hundred pounds of estate; in return he would receive fifteen acres of land. This land would be used for a house with a garden in the town plot and the rest of the land would be in the outlying area.
General James Wadsworth depicted New Haven’s nine squares in a map in 1748 (and included representations of each house with its owner’s name). This version will be blown up and shown to the class I want them to look at this primary document and get the sense that the founding fathers started this settlement with a preconceived notion that New Haven would become a vast and prosperous city. Students will be able to analyze the city of New Haven on a broad scale. They will be able to look closely at the map and be able to record pertinent information. Students will also have the opportunity to look at a current map of New Haven and they will be able to envision the tremendous growth of the city and still see the foundation of the map. They will compare and contrast the Wadsworth map with a current map of New Haven. The students will then look at the mid-18
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century map overlaying a current map and determine the similarities and differences.
The shareholders established a social order of the “haves and the have more.” The families living on and surrounding the Green often were the wealthiest. Laborers and skilled workers who did not pay to help to settle the town but provided services were given lots outside of the Nine Squares which was across the West Creek. This area of land was called the “suburbs.” There were farms, shipping, and more houses beyond the grid. This practice established a social order of the “haves and the have more.” The families living on and surrounding the Green were the wealthiest. The students will be able to determine which families had the most power by looking at the Wadsworth map. The students will pay special attention to the social classes which were quite evident on the map. They will examine the three established social orders. First, they will investigate those families representative of the upper class. The current Yale President, a lawyer, and a merchant will make up this group. Next, a clockmaker, a joiner, and yeoman farmer will make up the middle class. Lastly, day laborers, fishermen and artisans make up the lowest of the classes. “The various strata possessed clearly defined rights and duties, and a man’s position was readily recognizable by the clothes he wore.”
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Maintaining this type of social order was upholding the political tradition of the colony. The fifth graders will be able to see that settlers wanted New Haven to be a prosperous town so they chose to build along the harbor. They thought this would be good for trade and business.
The ninth and center square was reserved for a common area and was known as the market place. In the mid -18th Century, the old market place became known by the more dignified name of “The Green”.
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The most important place in any established city has always been the center of town. “The Green was a public common place and used for all public purposes. It was unfenced, but the eight squares surrounding it were fenced at the cost of the proprietors.”
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New Haven’s Green functioned as a place where goods and services were brought and sold. It was also used as the city’s first burial grounds, and as history records, it is estimated to have over 10, 000 bodies underneath the vast grass surface. Sometimes, cattle were turned out for pasture. Located on the map one can see the schoolhouse behind the existing burial grounds and the first court house which had been built in 1717.
By studying the Wadsworth map, the students will be able to determine that the Green and the Meetinghouse were two very important elements, the main focus in the lives of the colonists. The center of a community can also be considered the heart of the community. If the heart in the body stops working, then the rest of the body can no longer function properly and it will die. Well, the same can be said for the center of town. This is where the people gathered on a daily basis. All the important events in their lives were happening on the Green. The colonists created their community in the center of town. They lived and worked there. They all shared religious sacraments and ceremonies such as worship, weddings, baptisms and burials. Their political interests were addressed through speeches, rallies, and elections. They were also able to fulfill their civic duties by attending town meetings and court proceedings. Every aspect of life was centered on the Green. The men went to Yale College across from the upper Green and the young boys were able to go to the schoolhouse which was on the Green. And, for those who did not obey the laws of the colony, a jail house was built along with a stockade and whipping post. Having this historical preview, students will then begin to imagine what the New Haven Green looked like and how it functioned as a daily resource for the colonists.
As the students look at the map they will be able to compare and contrast the 1750 Green with present-day Green. The students will examine the map to see if they can locate any identifiable landmarks, buildings, or points of interests that still exist today. By looking at the two maps students can begin to make historical as well as cultural connections. The students will also be able to question whether the function of the Green has changed over the last 260 years. Students will then begin to realize how important the Green was to the development and expansion to the city of New Haven.
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“Functionally, New Haven began in effect with two centers. The lower town along
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the creeks and harbor was the center of daily activity and economic energy, while
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in the upper town square reserved as common land became the institutional center.
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Called the Marketplace, it was used for the meetinghouse, town meetings, military
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drill, and other public functions.”
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