September 24, :43 PM THEMED SCHOOL FIELD TRIPS PIONEER INDIANA

Transcription

1 September 24, :43 PM THEMED SCHOOL FIELD TRIPS PIONEER INDIANA

2 Gallery PIONEER INDIANA Using the galleries and public spaces of the Indiana State Museum, answer the following questions. Q: If pioneer children were lucky enough to go to school, they probably attended a one-room schoolhouse. The entrance to a much larger school is on display in the museum. What is the name of this school and when did it open? Q: Look at the technology and inventions on display in the Crossroads of America gallery. Pick one item that you think would have been most helpful to a pioneer family. Why? Q: Pioneers traveled to Indiana most coming from the south using covered wagons to bring supplies. Find an example of a later wagon built by Studebaker. How does this wagon look different from a covered wagon? Q: Pioneer mothers used home remedies when their families felt sick. For example, spearmint leaves were used to cure stomach aches. What is the product created by Dr. Miles Medical Company that we might use today to ease an upset stomach? Q: Pioneer toys were simple and often made by the children who played with them. What is your favorite modern toy on display in the museum? Q: Pioneers could only take their most important possessions when they came to Indiana to start a new life. Name 3 objects in the museum that you would pack if you were moving to a new home.

3 Pre Visit PIONEER INDIANA Indiana was settled by pioneers from the Upland South, Pennsylvania and Ohio. With this Pioneer Journey game, your students will be able to experience some of the struggles that Indiana pioneers had to face. : Split students into small groups, or complete this activity as an entire class. Students will need markers, dice, and a paper copy of the Indiana map. 1. Roll the die. If you land on an even number, your pioneer journey begins in Kentucky. Circle the words Begin in Kentucky on your map. If you land on an odd number, your pioneer journey begins in Pennsylvania. Circle the words Begin in Pennsylvania on your map. 2. Pioneer families needed fresh water during their travels. Water for livestock. Water for drinking. Water for cooking. Water for washing. Luckily, Indiana has many rivers, lakes, and streams. Using a map of Indiana as a guide, use a blue marker to draw the main rivers in Indiana. Make sure to include and label the White River, the Wabash River, and the Kankakee River. Don t forget that the Ohio River runs along the southern border of the state. Kentucky Pioneers 3. In order to enter the state of Indiana, you must first cross the Ohio River. Roll the die. If you land on an even number, your family has made enough money selling your belongings to pay for a ferry ride across the river. If you land on an odd number, you had to sell your dairy cow in order to afford the trip. 4. Roll the die. If you land on an even number, you travel to Vincennes, Indiana. Draw a line from the Begin in Kentucky box to Vincennes. If you land on an odd number, you travel to Corydon, Indiana. Draw a line from the Begin in Kentucky box to Corydon. Pennsylvania Pioneers 3. Before reaching the state of Indiana, your family had to first travel across the state of Ohio. During this journey, your wagon was damaged and you had to visit a wheelright to repair the broken wheel before continuing on to Indiana. Roll the die. If you land on an even number, you did not have enough money to pay the wheelright and you had to trade away your dairy cow. If you land on an odd number, you had just enough money from selling your belongings to pay for a new wheel. 4. Roll the die. If you land on an even number, you travel to Fort Wayne, Indiana. Draw a line from the Begin In Pennsylvania box to Fort Wayne. If you land on an odd number, you travel to Indianapolis, Indiana. Draw a line from the Begin in Pennsylvania box to Indianapolis.

4 Pre Visit PIONEER INDIANA cont d 5. Most Indiana pioneers became farmers, but some practiced a trade of some sort. Roll the die. If you land on an even number, you are a farmer. Choose an area near your city to established a homestead and draw a small house to represent your pioneer cabin. If you land on an odd number, you practice a trade and will be staying in the city. If you roll a (1) you are a Farrier, a person who takes care of horses hooves and shoes. If you roll a (3) you are a merchant and open a general store in a small town near the city. If you roll a (5) you are a doctor and travel to nearby towns and homesteads to care for patients in their homes. 6. Discuss the following questions as a group. Where did each pioneer family end up? What struggles did your pioneer family face? Did you experience a stroke of luck during your journey? Background Information: Conestoga wagon: Pioneers traveling from the East towards Indiana would often do so by Conestoga wagon. Conestoga wagons were made in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania from They were always painted blue, with red accents. It cost about $250 to build a Conestoga wagon. These wagons were originally built to haul large loads of goods, but some pioneer families used them as well. Conestoga wagons were not usually used by pioneers who traveled past the Great Plains because they were too heavy to be pulled over the Rocky Mountains. Prairie Schooner: Prairie schooners were the more common type of wagon used by pioneer families. They were about half the size of a Conestoga wagon. The bed of the wagon was made watertight by coating it with tar. This way, the schooner could cross deep bodies of water. Vincennes, Indiana: Vincennes is the oldest city in Indiana, and was originally a French fur trading post. When the Indiana territory was formed in 1803, Vincennes became the territorial capitol. William Henry Harrison was the first territorial governor. Corydon, Indiana: Corydon was founded in It became the territorial capitol in When Indiana became a state in 1816, Corydon became the capitol of the state, and remained the capitol until The first state constitution was written in June of 1816 underneath a giant elm tree. That tree became known as the Constitution Elm, although now only the trunk remains. Indianapolis, Indiana: Before Indianapolis became the capitol of Indiana in 1825, it was a mostly swampy area called the Fall Creek Settlement. It was populated by fur traders. The city was designed to emulate Washington, D.C. and originally was only meant to be 1 square mile. Fort Wayne, Indiana: Fort Wayne was the final fort in a series of forts built near the tribal village of Kekionga in The village of Fort Wayne was platted in 1823, and grew quickly after the construction of the Wabash and Erie Canal and the railroad system. In 1840, the town of Fort Wayne became the City of Fort Wayne with a population of over 2,000.

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6 Post Visit PIONEER INDIANA Though a pioneer s life contained many hardships, they did make time for recreation. Often, they would sing around a campfire in the evening after a long day of working. Music was a way for the pioneers to relax, enjoy themselves, and take a break from the harsh realities of leaving the lives they knew and moving to a new place. The instruments they used to accompany their singing were usually small and portable, because pioneers had limited space to store things when they traveled. Some of the instruments they used were guitars, dulcimers, banjos, fiddles, harmonicas, and mandolins. These songs often reflected the hardships a pioneer endures. Some pioneer songs were sentimental, to remind them of friends and family from back home. Other songs were religious or patriotic to help give the pioneers enough endurance to withstand their journey or to remind them why they chose to live there. Many pioneer songs are still sung today. As they get passed down from one generation to the next, the lyrics may slightly change, but essentially the songs are still the same. Would you like to be a pioneer? Imagine you are sitting around a campfire after a long, hard day of work, and sing these songs!

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8 Post Visit PIONEER INDIANA cont d : Are there any parts of these songs that help you to understand what pioneer life was like? What stories do these songs tell? Why do you think music was important to the pioneers? Did you already know these songs? Do you know different lyrics to these songs?