RPTM Podcast Episode Seven: Women, Booze, Slaves, and Pocahontas

History, you are a cruel mistress. Some days you are a fun romp that looks at our past; other days, you are a somber reminder of our shortcomings and failures. Sometimes you are a well-documented account, with 1000s of books written on your behalf.  Other times you are a convoluted mess, an untidy murder scene riddled with more questions than answers. Either way, rule number 6 of history: No cherry-picking. For those unfamiliar with the concept, cherry-picking is the act of pointing to individual cases or data that seem to confirm a position while ignoring a significant portion of related and similar topics or data that may contradict that position. Cherry-picking may be committed intentionally or unintentionally but still births the same results. History is not entirely exceptional, and nor is it wholly evil. And to not attempt to remain a centrist in these matters does a disservice to the historical community.

A prime example is our first subject: Booze. Drinking has its benefits and drawbacks, and they bleed through our history. To only look at the benefits of drinking alcohol (i.e., fun at parties, making me look more handsome) and not the drawbacks (hangovers, the poor girl that thought I was handsome) would be folly.

In short, there is a current trend to politize American history as either American exceptionalism or a country founded solely on oppression. The truth is, both are right.

HIGHLIGHTS

• As the Pilgrims set out for America, they brought a considerable amount of alcohol to the voyage (more than 7,560 gallons). Once settled, they served alcohol at "virtually all functions, including ordinations, funerals, and regular Sabbath meals.
• The headright system began in Jamestown, Virginia in 1618 to solve labor shortages due to the advent of the tobacco economy, which required large plots of land with many workers. The disproportion between the amount of land available and the population led to a situation with a low supply of labor, resulting in the growth of indentured servitude and slavery. 
• Tobacco brides were often sent to America against their will and often sent at very young ages. They usually had the right to refuse the highest bidder. Many tobacco brides came to America fleeing hardship, but many also suffered once in America. 
• On August 20, 1619, roughly 20 Angolans, kidnapped by the Portuguese, arrive in the British colony of Virginia and are then bought by English colonists. As cash crops like tobacco, cotton, and sugar became pillars of the colonial economy, slavery became its engine. 
• The story that Pocahontas was head over heels in love with John Smith has lasted for many generations. The story disappeared but was born again after the revolution in the early 1800s when we were really looking for nationalist stories. 
• Cecily Jordan v. Greville Pooley dispute was the first known prosecution for breach of promise in colonial America and the first in which the defendant was a woman. 

 
CHAPTERS
0:00 Start
0:37 Introduction
2:28 Alcohol
7:19 Headright System
14:10 Tobacco Brides
18:42 1619- African Slavery
23:31 Pocahantas
28:46 Cecily Jordan Farrar
33:04 Outro

RESOURCES
History of alcoholic drinks
Col. James Taylor, of King & Queen
Headright
Women Needed
On This Day: First Enslaved Africans Arrive in Jamestown Colony
The True Story of Pocahontas
Pocahontas
Cecily Jordan v. Greville Pooley dispute

Episode 6

RPTM Podcast

Episode 8