Themes in American History

While exploring the museum, I learned that this was a big place for entertainment in New York during the 19th century. It quickly became one of the most visited places before it was burned down in 1865. This virtual museum allowed us to see what was going on in the 1800s such as the invention of the glass steam engine which was a step towards industrialization.

On the second floor, there was a slideshow showing the events leading up to the American Civil War. One of the slides that caught my eye was this poster:

This poster appeared after the passing of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 that said that runaway slaves must be brought back to their masters. I think that this poster is pretty interesting because while the slave owners are trying to catch the slaves that ran up north, the North is trying to help the runaway slaves remain free. This conflict between the north and the south as well as others such as Bloody Kansas, eventually led to the Civil War.

I think that this site is very informative and tells you clearly how life was like in the 19th century.  However, I did not like it at all. I felt like everything was not that organized. Navigating through everything was pretty anoynig. It was a small window on the screen and you would move left and right. There were these sounds on the second floor that I did not like either.

Tags: American Civil War, Bloody Kansas, Fugitive Slave Act

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