Part 1: Historical Sites

Task

Create a mind map that you will use to show what you have learned about the history of Galveston.

Steps

Use the following guideline to set up your mind map. Use whatever paper fits your style and interest level. (Given that the project is about a city in Texas, go big. Remember… everything is bigger in Texas!)

Use the following list of topic areas in order to create the sections of your mind map:

• 1877 Tall Ship ELISSA
• The Great Storm of 1900
• Gateway to the Gulf, Port of Galveston, or Immigration
• Conservation- reuse, repurpose, and restore
• Offshore Drilling
• Galveston Orphans Home
• Other Assorted Cool Facts/Information
  

Test Your Knowledge

1. Using this image, label the general parts of the ship (using the vocabulary list above).

2. What are the ways you can tell the ship is moving through the water?

3. Use your knowledge about sailing and history to explain what a voyage from England to America would have been like on a ship like this in the 19th century. (You may need to do a bit of research in order to answer this question fully. Materials from the Texas Seaport Museum will be helpful as well.)

4. What was the most important thing that you learned about the ELISSA (either while studying or when you visited the ship)? Please explain why it is important.

Read the Passage

Read the following about the ELISSA’s history, and answer the questions using complete sentences:

The Tall Ship ELISSA was built in the year 1877 towards the end of the ‘Age of Sail’ in order to transport cargo. She is classified as a barque sailing ship, because she has three masts. In the year that she was built, the decline of ships of its kind was due to the invention and production of steamships. The steamships were able to more efficiently transport goods (imported and exported) to countries all over the world in. While the steamships had less room for cargo (because the engine took up so much space), they required fewer sailors and were not at the mercy of the wind and weather.

The ELISSA was commissioned by a wealthy Liverpool businessman named Henry Fowler Watt. The iron-hulled ship itself was built by Alexander Hall and Company out of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was designed to transport cargo to and from ports that were less developed than those that were in Europe at the time. Interestingly, the ELISSA actually delivered cargo to Galveston twice, once in 1883 and again in 1886.

Throughout ELISSA's proud history, she has flown under six different flags and been renamed just as many times. This fully functioning sailing vessel is in an elite group of ships; she is not a replica. She lives on due to the generosity of the Galveston Historical Foundation donors and can be seen today at the Texas Seaport Museum.

Questions

• If steamships were able to transport goods more efficiently, why might Henry Fowler Watt still have commissioned a barque vessel to be built in 1877 (during the decline of such vessels)? What might that say about him?
• Why do you think a ship would be renamed? What might it signify?
• As a way of furthering your research, what were the other names that were associated with this great ship? While you are looking, be sure to record the countries that flew flags upon the ELISSA as well.

Can I Bend Your Ear For a Bit?

Read the following short story, and then answer the reflection questions using complete sentences:

Imagine yourself living in a great big mansion, except it isn’t a mansion. Imagine living in a place surrounded by lots of other children that aren’t your relatives. Now, imagine toys being really scarce. Everybody surrounding you wants what little there is. That’s how I describe my life in the orphanage. I’ve been here since I was three, at least that’s how old I think I was. It’s okay though, the people that run the home are good enough. I have food to eat and clothes to wear. I even have shoes that were handed down only twice.

I’ll tell you a secret, but only if you promise to keep it. I hide whatever toys I find. Don’t look at me like I’m crazy. I have to. I hide them in the walls, under the stairs, or wherever I am when I get a hold of them. It sounds strange, but it’s the best way to make sure things don’t get taken by the older kids. I found some marbles last week, and I added them to my stash in the hallway by the front door. Now, don’t go getting any ideas about finding them. They’re mine.

You want to know another secret? We have a hideout in the orphanage. I’m actually surprised that we haven’t gotten caught yet. We have a sign up and a doorbell. We’re pretty official. The sign says KEEP OUT, but really, it won’t work on the adults. It’s really only to keep the little kids away. They are always following us to the hideout. When we get caught, it’s going to be because one of them ratted us out. Oh, and I’m not telling you where the hideout is, so don’t ask.

I forgot to tell you my name. It’s Timmy. Yeah, I don’t really have a last name. Some mister found me after the big storm hit in September of 1900. I was too young to remember much, and nobody came to get me. So, here I am. Oh, I’m ten now. I guess you’d say we grow up fast here. Everybody my age has chores and work to do. We’ve all had to pitch in since the storm caused so much trouble. It’s okay though. There’s always someone to play with. I guess there’s no shortage of kids to argue with either, because there’s always some kid that thinks he knows everything. Then he finds out he’s wrong. Yeah, I argue a lot, but I’m right most of the time.

Well, like I said before, it’s not bad. It’s a better life than I’ve seen others have. Just the other day, we went for a stroll… that’s what Mrs. Schroeder calls it. It’s really just walking as slowly as she does until we get to the park and are allowed to run around. Well, on the way, I saw a family that was really rough off. They didn’t have shoes. I have shoes, and so do the other orphans. It made me feel bad for them, but I said howdy to them anyway. I’m sure glad I have a home to live in, even if it is with a bunch of other kids.

What was that? I don’t think I heard you right. You came here to get me? Me? Why didn’t you say so before I went on and on. I’m kind of known as a talker. Well, I never thought this would happen to me, to tell you the truth. I’ve seen other kids get picked, but never me. You’re ready to go now? I’ve got to say bye to everyone first. What was that? No, I don’t need to take my toys. I’ll leave ‘em for some lucky kid. He’ll have a heyday when he finds my treasure stash. Wait here, and I’ll be right back. Man! It’s my lucky day!

Reflection Questions

1. Why do you think the young man in the story hides whatever toys he finds? Please explain why you think so.
2. Have you ever imagined what it would have been like to live in an orphanage? What were some of your thoughts, either as you read the story or had imagined it before?
3. Why do you think that children at that time were responsible for doing so many chores, especially those in the orphanage? Explain why you think so.
4. When visiting The Bryan Museum, be sure to check out the hideout that was found during renovations of the building. There is also a display of the toys and other treasures that were found within the walls, in the dirt, and in the attic. How is it meaningful that the museum has chosen to create an exhibit especially for displaying these very special treasures?
5. What if you lived your childhood years in the orphanage and then came back to the building as an adult to visit The Bryan Museum. How do you think you’d feel to see a toy on display that you might have played with as a child?
6. How might it be considered kindness that the young man in the story left his toys for other children to find? How might he have been even more kind? If you had the choice, would you have taken the toys with you or left them behind?

Challenge Questions

1. Before the storm in 1900, there were two fully functioning orphanages for a city of only 37,000. Many historians believe that there were two because Galveston was one of the final stops on America’s ‘orphan trains.’ Use the web, or other resources, to decide what you think the best reason is that would explain why a city of that size would have such a need for orphanages. Just to give you a size comparison, New York City’s population in 1900 was 3,437,200. They had more than 30,000 homeless youths on their streets in 1853; that’s what inspired the beginning of the orphan trains. Record your answers on a separate sheet of paper or on a digital device.
2. The Galveston Orphan Home was in operation from 1894-1984. It served more than 6,000 children during that time. Explain the many ways that such a number is significant. Also, how many of those children do you think came to Galveston on an ‘orphan train’ from 1894-1929? Again, record your findings on a separate piece of paper or in digital form.