Valley Forge Dbq Research Paper

One of the reasons I wouldn't quit Valley Forge is because 50% of the people were sick but only 15% died. In document A it says “3989 (about 4000) out of 8000 were sick or unable to report for duty.” By February 1st, about 50% of soldiers were sick. But sickness is common around this time. For example, in our classroom about half of our students were sick. (Doc A) “1800 out of 12000 died”. 1800 out of 12000 soldiers may sound like a lot but it is actually only 15%. That's only 15% of all the soldiers dying. That's pretty good for being the “UnderDogs” in a war. This still gives you an 85% chance of living. So I would stay.

The first reason I will not re-enlist is because the sickness in 1777 to 1778 is a very easy disease to spread. The quote “ Sent here to starve and freeze” (Waldo 151) is harsh, especially for the people that are fighting for their country. As well as for the quote “ However, the most frequent time of re-enlistment was nine months… Others just simply deserted” (Roden 141) shows that they knew how hard the living was and that they needed to leave. In Document A it talks about the average people at Valley Forge in the beginning and the average after the sickness spread. So by looking at the chart I would have a 25% chance of living, and a 75% chance of dying.These reasons are causing me to not re-enlist because I would rather not die of a sickness but of old age. This whole paragraph is talking about how you can catch a sickness and may not survive.

George Washington once said, “To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace.” George Washington had to prepare his soldiers at the winter camp at Valley Forge. The winter of 1777 was great for Washington, because he could keep an eye on the General Howe’s British soldiers. Washington had a major problem. Some men were signing up for one to two year enlistment, but the most common was nine months.The living conditions were a horrid situation. Many had no shoes and little clothing, which is not a good combination for a frigid Pennsylvania winter. The winter was not pleasant, and most soldiers had diseases, like smallpox, and dysentery. Men are dying, running away, or deserting their post. My term is almost up. I am concerned about my family, and my aging mother. I could desert and leave for home, or stay and fight. The question has come down to this; If you were a soldier at Valley Forge, would you have quit. In this situation, to quit is to not re-enlist. I have decided to re-enlist because our great leaders, the doctors and sickness treatment, and respect.

In Document C, Dr. Waldo, a surgeon talks about the fires in the cabin with all the soldiers that were assigned to be in that cabin. One reason that I would not want to enlist again into the army is that the cabins had no chimney for the fire, no windows either to let the smoke out of the cabins. The only place for the smoke to go out of was the door, but if the soldiers opened the door then the soldiers would get cold. The men were almost smoked to death. There were also 12 men that were assigned to each cabin. We would also have to jump into a river just to get a

In late December of 1777, the Continental Army under the command of George Washington set up an encampment called Valley Forge. Valley Forge was a military camp 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia where the Continental Army spent the winter of 1777-78 during the American Revolution. If I were a soldier during that time, I would’ve re-enlisted. I would do this for one reason, courage. First, soldiers had a better chance of surviving than dying. In December when they first arrived, they had 12,000 men. By February 1778, they had 8,000 men, meaning that 4,000 left. Out of the 8,000 that stayed, close to 50% of them got sick with a disease called smallpox (3,989 to be exact). Out of the 3,989 that were sick, only about 2,000 of them died. So I could

In 1777, hope is running out and it looked like America was losing the revolution.You wake up in valley forge ,the same year, to the screams of agony of your fellow soldiers and you too feel the pain of your friends.Your eyes burn because of the smoke and your skin crawls because it is cold.Would you stay for your country in this terrible place or would you end your suffering and leave.I would leave valley forge because of the small,unventilated, huts,illness,and very low supplies.

Albigence Waldo, a surgeon from Connecticut, very detailedly explains the horrid conditions of the Army, “which had been surprisingly healthy hitherto, now begins to grow sickly from the continued fatigues they have suffered this Campaign.” Ranging from the poor/ lack of food, hard lodging, cold weather, fatigue, nasty clouds, nasty cookery, vomit, freezing temperatures, and poor/ lack of clothing , everything seemed almost not endurable. He himself heartily wished himself at home, and he was only the surgeon. The vomit and unhealthy conditions can all lead to diseases and to possible death. I would much rather not have to endure these things and be with my family instead; knowing they're safe and not having to worry whether someone got sick or

In the year of 1777 and 1778, the Continental Army stayed at Valley Forge (Washington’s Winter Camp). Valley Forge was only 18 miles from Philadelphia, and was a difficult place to live since it was during the winter. Some soldiers stayed at Valley Forge. While others were tired of staying at the camp and started to quit. If you were a soldier, would you have quit Washington’s Winter Camp? If I was a soldier, I would not quit because there was not a lot of dying people, Washington is getting help from the Committee, and valuable things like freedom is worth fighting for so I don’t want to be a “ summer soldier.”

To begin, I would of left Valley Forge due to the rampant disease. In document B it shows that, “deaths by disease 1800-2500”. The amount of deaths due to disease is very foreboding. The chance of someone dying by disease was chillingly high. Also, document C says, “I am sick- discontented and out of home.” This primary source shows a man who is suffering from the terrible conditions caused by disease. The suffering of those with disease in the camp was absolutely terrifying, and

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?

This page contains two excerpts from the diary of a doctor at Valley Forge named Dr. Albigence Waldo. He was a surgeon from Connecticut and helped out at Valley Forge along with other surgeons to care for the sick soldiers. In the first diary entry from December 14, 1777 he recalls all the horrible things that he hears the soldier cry out. “ I am sick - discontented - and out of humour. Poor food - hard lodging - Cold Weather - fatigue - Nasty Cloaths - nasty Cookery - Vomit half my time - smoak’d out my senses - the Devil’s in’t - I can’t Endure it - Why are we sent here to starve and Freeze…”. The fact that the doctor, that has seen nasty, horrible things in his career, is saying these things about the soldiers is appalling. Think about it, he is a surgeon and operates on people's bodies. He has seen gut wrenching sights but he still describes Valley Forge as a horrible place. He explains more on his thoughts about the winter of 1777 in his diary entry for December 21, 1777. “ Heartily wish myself at home, my Skin and eyes are almost spoil’d with continual smoke.”. He wishes that he was not at Valley Forge but at home because of the wretched living conditions. As for me I would want to leave also. I wouldn't want to live in a place that is so nasty and filled with disease that I don't know if I'll make it out

“There comes a soldier, his bare feet are seen thro’ his worn out shoes, his legs nearly naked from the tatter’d remains of an only pair of stockings…” (Dr. Albigence Waldo, 1777) Dr. Waldo was one of the thousands of soldiers barely scraping themselves through this mess. Sick soldiers, small huts, poor ventilation, and vomiting. These are only some of the poor conditions at the American Revolution winter camp known as Valley Forge. In the winter of 1777, soldiers were living under ruthless predicaments with a 10% probability of death. Smallpox was spreading fast and many would never see their family again. Washington’s position as a general was being doubted by members of congress, instead assuming that his leadership efforts will lead the Americans to retreat. A soldier in the Continental Congress should leave, because of the rapid increase of death and illness, living conditions in camp,

I would stay in the continental Army during the revolution despite the death and sickness. I would stay because of how low the percent of death and sickness was, i am apart of something huge for my country, and we were still winning battles even though many of the soldiers were sick. According to Document A, about 49% of the army were getting sick. Even though this is a large percentage the amount of people that were fine is slightly larger at 51%. In Document B, the engraving shows George Washington talking about a plan. This is another reason I would stay in the continental army this shows he knew what he was doing and could lead us to victory. In Document C, even though Dr. Albigence Waldo says everyone was getting sick they were still

As I walk to my 16 by 14 foot hut that I share with 12 other men, I hear a blood curdling scream and look behind me to see bloody footprints trailing behind me because I ,like many other men here, have no shoes, and farther behind that is a makeshift hospital, where surgeons are inside amputating a man’s leg because he got frostbite in the cold winter weather. One month from now, on March 1, I am going to be asked if I would like to leave this place. The place in question is Valley Forge a place 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia, where the British are comfortably quartered. It is the winter of 1777-1778 and the American Revolutionary War has just begun (Roden 141). So the big question is: will I re-enlist or not? Personally, I have decided not to re-enlist for the three reasons of that there are miserable conditions, other capable men that haven’t served yet, and we aren’t even fighting yet.

I am not going to stay at Valley Forge to fight because I do not like the conditions at camp. “ Poor food … cold water … nasty cookery … starve and freeze,” (Waldo 151). Assuming that Washington wanted us to stay and fight, then we need better circumstances. “ My skin and eyes are almost spoil’d with continual smoke,”