Albigence Waldo Essay

When a person is in a stressful situation on instinct they have two options, fight or flight. In war the same is true. War is not always bayonets and bullets, it’s the decisions you make during times of hardship. A soldier has to make the decision whether to keep fighting for what they believe in no matter what the stakes or to flee. In December of 1777, George Washington and his troops arrived at Valley Forge. Since the summer of 1775, all has gone well for the Continental Army. More recently Washington was presumably unable to stop General Howe and his British soldiers from claiming the national capital of Philadelphia. With Howe and his army of approximately 18,000 comfortably quartered in Philadelphia,

Valley Forge is where George Washington and his troops sent camp for the winter. During camp the colonists trained hard and gained the confidence they needed to win the war. Unfortunately the lack of food and spread of disease caused many deaths during this harsh winter. If I had the choice to leave or stay at Valley Forge I would leave. I would not want to risk my life or have to suffer through the cold and sickness. According to Estimates of Illness and Deaths at Valley Forge (Doc A), during the encampment about 2,500 soldiers died. That is about ⅓ of the colonists fighting in the war. About 49% of the soldiers get sick. “I am sick-discontented-and out of humour. Poor food - hard lodging - Cold Weather - fatigue - Nasty Clothes - nasty

In Document C, it says “I am Sick - discontented - and out of humour. Poor food - hard lodging - Cold Weather - fatigue - Nasty Clothes - nasty Cookery - Vomit half my time - Smok'd out my senses…” and much more. Essentially, everything about Valley Forge is terrible, such as the food, ventilation, clothes, and hard lodging. Even though the conditions were terrible, “Dr. Waldo suffered during his winter at Valley Forge but stayed loyal to the Continental Army as he helped other surgeons care for sick soldiers.” As well as “... spirit of Alacrity…” shown by the soldiers. This evidence is meaning even though the conditions were very bad, a lot of the other soldiers showed spirit and willingness, so I would have too.

I am a Colonist and I can’t stand it here anymore so I have decided I am going to leave Valley Forge. In Estimates of Illness and Deaths at Valley Forge (DocA). Not all of the soldiers were able to survive. A lot of the soldiers got very ill at Valley Forge because of the weather. In the Diary of Dr. Waldo (Doc C). The army starts to get sick. There is very poor food for us at Valley Forge. The American Crisis by Thomas Paine (Doc D). It is a very difficult time for us to be there. It gets very cold at Valley Forge that is why it is a difficult time to be there. There is illness, poor food, and it is a difficult time that is why I would leave.

Valley Forge was a winter camp full of sickness, death, and misery. There is no reason why anyone should’ve stayed. Estimate of Illness and Death (Document A) shows how Over a period of two months the total number of soldiers went from 12,000 to 8,000. Four thousand soldiers died in two months. Imagine how many people died during the whole camp! Also, 50% of soldiers were sick and were unable to train and fight. In the Diary of Dr. Waldo (Document C) he states, “Poor food-hard lodging-cold weather-fatigue-Nasty clothes-nasty Cookery-vomit half my time-smok'd out of my senses.” A man who participated in Valley Forge was miserable and sick which proves how bad this was. They had no food and freezing weather. The Committee of Congress Engraving

Under the leadership of General Washington, one-hundred and fifty-two soldiers were killed and five-hundred and twenty-one wounded. General Washington led his starving and freezing soldiers to valley forge for the winter and led some of his soldiers to dislike his leadership and leave the camp at Valley Forge. Valley Forge was a cold place, and the Continental Army was forced to live in damp and crowded living quarters causing disease to be all over the place. Conditions in the camp were horrible. General Washington's army of approximately twelve thousand had problems getting clothes or food to help them. Diseases such as typhoid, dysentery, typhus, and pneumonia ran rampant. An estimate of two thousand soldiers died in Valley Forge just from disease or lack of food. Morale plummeted and some of General Washington’s men decided to leave the

The time has come to decide if I will re-enlist in the Continental Army or if I will decide to be known as a summer soldier. In December 1777, General George Washington’s army set up camp at Valley Forge, about 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia. The army fought for nine months, but then most of the soldier’s enlistments were up and it was time for them to make their decision of staying or not. Personally, I had been in the army for one enlistment, and even that was too much for me, seeing my friends die before me, and having the feeling of death come upon me myself. Would I re-enlist in the army?

Dr. Waldo a Connecticut surgeon in 1777, wrote down notes of how the army disease processed during December 14, 1777. Dr. Waldo got sick too but he was loyal enough to stay with the army and continued helping the army by removing their disease. Another Reason why I would quit the Valley Forge is If I be Dr. Waldo I would pity the army but , it is just not worth getting myself sick ! In Dr. Waldo notes he complains about how bad food there is and how freezing cold it is at the Valley Forge, I can prove this because in Document C it says “I am sick, discontented and out of humor, Poor food,hard lodging,Cold Weather,Nasty Clothes and nasty cookery.”

Conditions were terrible but there were still loyal soldiers who stayed with. In doc c Dr. Waldo states “ I am sick, discontented, and out of humor, poor food, hard lodging, cold weather, fatigue, nasty cloths, nasty cookery, vomit half my time, smoked out of my senses, I can’t endure it.”

Imagine the year is 1777, and you are a soldier in the continental army. You are serving time at Valley Forge. The conditions of the camp where you live are horrible. There is very little food and disease. Your family is at home and you have an aging mother that needs assistance. Would you abandon your duty as a soldier and return home to help? “Victory seemed a long way off ; in fact for many it seemed unlikely.” Would such a long shot at victory and survival change your mind and send you home? I would not have stayed at Valley Forge because the death rate was high, there was a lack of basic provisions and the living conditions of the camp were in shambles.

In September of 1777, British Major General William Howe marched on Philadelphia with fifteen-thousand troops. General Washington and his untrained continental army attempted to cut them off but were outnumbered and outmaneuvered. After several more failed attempts to stop the British Army, Philadelphia was taken and Washington retreated. With winter fast approaching, Washington began to look for a winter encampment for his army, as was normal for armies in the 18th century. Washington was looking for a place for his army to stay at that would “afford supplies of provisions, wood, water, and forage, be secure from surprise and best calculated for covering the country from the ravages of the enemy” (Avery, 2011). The best location he could find was Valley Forge. Valley Forge was 25 miles from Philadelphia and was a high plateau. Creeks and rivers provided natural barriers that would force any approaching enemy to cross, as well as fight uphill. The continental army arrived at Valley Forge on December 19th, 1777 and would stay for six months (Hickman, 2015). Those months would be full of brutal cold, sickness, and a stark lack of supplies. The army that would emerge from the horrible conditions would be stronger, more organized, and ready to fight like soldiers. They were ready to fight the British. The ordeal at Valley Forge was a

Tonight is our last night in Valley Forge. General Washington says we’re moving out sometime tomorrow. The British had left Philadelphia and there are plans for us to zone in. After being stationed here for six months, I can’t say that I’ll miss it. If the British army had seen us during the first few winter months, they would have assumed that their work was all but done. They would only have to wait until all fourteen-hundred of us all died off or packed up and went home. The winter in Valley Forge was tough; there was a limited amount supplies and illness was common, but General Washington kept us together and Baron von Steuben helped turn us into an army to look out for.

In the Winter of 1777-1778 in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania General George Washington set up tents in high, frigid, and risky temperatures. Beforehand, the Continental Army lost major battles against the British. The continental army endured one of the most noticeably worst winter on record. 12,000 troops had scarcely any food, attire or supplies to keep them salubrious. In spite of the fact that they gave small portions of food does not mean it was nutritious to eat. The poor conditions that the soldiers lived in eventually led them to desert because of harsh conditions, such as absence of resources and an untrusted general. I am choosing not to re-enlist because of brutal conditions and death.

Additionally, re-enlisting into the Continental Army can be compared to diving into your own death. As of February 1, 1778, the total number of the soldiers are estimated to 8,000 men, including about 3,989 sick men during this encampment. (Doc. A) This reveals that about 50% of the soldiers are sick from excessive fighting, smoke from the huts, and intense weather. (Background) Throughout the months of December to June, the death estimates due to the illnesses will be 1,800 to 2,500. (Doc. A) While some people realize that there are more people alive than dead, others such as myself see that with a high death count, re-enlisting is a frightening choice. Also, getting sickness from fighting most likely didn’t have a cure except to take rest,

If ATC does not make this equipment investment, it has no other real asset investment projects which it is considering. Therefore, an alternative use of the money in the capital budget would be a purely financial investment, such as stock, bonds, short-term CD’s, and so forth.