5th Grade Biographies
Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906) Susan B. Anthony was a leading
force in the women's suffrage movement for 50 years. Born in
Massachusetts to a Quaker family, she taught school and became
convinced that society needed to be reformed and freed from slavery
and alcoholism. She met Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1851 at an
antislavery rally. They organized the Women's State Temperance
Society of New York. Anthony supported the cause of women's
suffrage and equal rights. She remained committed to the cause for
the remainder of her life, contributing to the effort to gain equal rights
for women.
John Adams (1735-1826) John Adams was the second president of
the United States, was born in Massachusetts, and was educated at
Harvard. He was a representative to the First and Second
Continental Congresses. He led the debate which ratified the
Declaration of Independence, served as ambassador to England,
and served eight years as vice president to Washington before his
election as president. He managed to make more enemies than
friends, promoting legislation which was not favored by either
political party. His support of the Alien and Sedition Acts angered
many citizens. He was defeated by Thomas Jefferson in 1800 and
retired from public life. Both he and Jefferson died on July 4, 1826,
the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of
Independence.
Samuel Adams (1722-1803) Samuel Adams was opposed to British
taxation in the colonies and believed that the colonial government
was capable of self-rule without intrusion by the British monarchy.
Adams encouraged cooperation among the colonies. Adams played
a role in many of the events which contributed to the Revolution,
including the organization of the opposition to the Stamp Act,
protests waged by the Sons of Liberty, and the Boston Massacre. He
participated in the Continental Congress and supported the
Constitution if there would be the addition of the Bill of Rights.
Jane Addams (1860-1935) Jane Addams was the first woman to
win the Nobel Peace Prize. She is widely known for her role in the
establishment of Hull House in Chicago and the Settlement House
movement in the United States. The Hull House offered medical
care, legal aid, language classes, music, and drama to more than
two thousand needy people each week. Addams’ support of the
poor, immigrants, and women involved her in politics. She became
the first vice president of the National American Woman Suffrage
Association in 1911. She campaigned for Theodore Roosevelt and
the Progressive Party in 1912. To ensure peace and freedom, she
helped found the American Civil Liberties Union in 1920 and served
as the first president of the Women's International League for Peace
and Freedom.
Neil Armstrong (1930- ) Neil Armstrong earned degrees from
Purdue University and the University of Southern California, served
in the United States Navy as a fighter pilot during the Korean War,
and worked in aeronautical research before joining NASA (National
Aeronautics and Space Administration) in 1962. He was the first
civilian astronaut accepted. He commanded the Apollo 11,
completed the first manned lunar landing in history, and was the first
man to walk on the moon on July 20, 1969. He worked with NASA,
taught engineering at the University of Cincinnati, served on the
boards of major corporations, and was active in the commission
which explored the Challenger disaster in 1986.
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) Alexander Graham Bell
invented the telephone. Bell sought a greater understanding of
deafness by studying sound and the mechanics of speech. Bell
understood the concept of the telephone but was not successful in
transmitting a voice message until March 10, 1876. He and his
partners formed Bell Telephone Company in 1877. He assisted in
founding the National Geographic Society and supported
experiments in aviation.
William Bradford (1590-1657) William Bradford came to New
England on the Mayflower in 1620. In 1621, he was chosen leader of
the Pilgrims. He remained governor for most of his life, being reelected 30 times. Although Bradford was firm, there were few
complaints about his leadership. He maintained friendly relations
with the American Indians and struggled hard to establish fishing,
trade, and agriculture. He stressed the obligations of the colonists to
their London backers. Bradford was more tolerant of other religious
beliefs than were the Puritan leaders of Boston. He was largely
responsible for keeping Plymouth independent of the Massachusetts
Bay Colony.
George Washington Carver (1864-1943) George Washington
Carver was a slave who pursued an education. He earned an M.S. in
botany at Iowa Agricultural College. Booker T. Washington recruited
the talented Carver to teach at Tuskegee Institute, a school where
African-American students could learn about agriculture and
industry. Carver expanded his offerings beyond the classroom. He
outfitted trucks as movable schools and took them out to the farms to
reach the farmers with his ideas about planting vegetables,
soybeans, and peanuts instead of concentrating on cotton. Carver is
noted for his work with agricultural chemistry, his teaching, and
research.
Cesar Chávez (1924-1997) Cesar Chávez was a migrant farm
worker who sought to improve the lives of other migrant workers. He
served as national director of the Community Service Organization
before resigning in 1962 to focus on organizing a union for farm
workers. He called for non-violent struggles for justice and used
strikes and boycotts to improve conditions for migrant workers.
Eventually the strikes and boycotts caused 26 grape growers in
California to recognize the United Farm Workers Union in 1970. The
growers continued to break contracts. Chávez provided leadership
for 30 years, protesting violence and urging cooperation between
growers and workers. The union continues to protect the rights of
migrant laborers from unfair treatment on the part of employers.
John Deere (1804-1886) John Deere was an American blacksmith
and manufacturer who founded Deere and Co., one of the largest
agricultural equipment manufacturers in the world. Deere settled in
Illinois. Since there were no other blacksmiths in the area, he had
plenty of work. As a young boy, Deere worked in his father’s tailor
shop. He polished and sharpened needles by running them through
water. This helped the needles sew through soft leather. When
Deere realized that cast-iron plows were not working well in the
tough prairie soil, he remembered the needles. He came to the
conclusion that a plow made out of highly polished steel and a
correctly shaped moldboard would be better for handling the soil
conditions of the prairie. In 1837, Deere developed and
manufactured the first commercially successful cast-steel plow.
Thomas Edison (1847-1931) Thomas Edison, one of the greatest
inventors of all time, received more than 1,300 patents. He invented
the automatic telegraph machine, the phonograph, improvements to
the light bulb, a modernized telephone, and motion picture
equipment. He concentrated on electrical inventions. He opened his
lab in Menlo Park where his workers developed and he patented the
incandescent light bulb, a transmitter for the telephone, and the
phonograph. The phonograph was his favorite invention.
Dwight Eisenhower (1890-1969) Dwight D. Eisenhower served his
country as a military leader and as president. He was born in Texas
but grew up in Abilene, Kansas. He graduated from West Point.
Eisenhower served as General Douglas MacArthur's senior
assistant. MacArthur considered him the most capable officer in the
army. General Eisenhower commanded Allied forces in Europe
during World War II. He commanded the Allied forces on D-Day. He
was appointed president of Columbia University and served there
until he was recalled to active military duty in 1950 to lead the forces
of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). He retired from the
army in 1952 to run for president. He served two terms. The Cold
War throughout his administration. He ordered troops into Little
Rock, Arkansas, to keep peace over integration issues at Central
High School. He signed the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1960.
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) Benjamin Franklin was born in
Boston but became a well-known printer in Philadelphia and an
active leader in the city. He published Poor Richard's Almanack. In
the Almanack he shared bits of wisdom and sayings which helped
shape the American character. He founded the first circulating library
in America. Franklin was a member of the committee which wrote the
Declaration of Independence. He spent most of the period of the
American Revolution in France negotiating the alliance with France
and then the Treaty of Paris which ended the war. He also
participated in the U.S. Constitutional Convention in 1787, and
earned the distinction as the oldest delegate in attendance.
Franklin's many talents earned him a reputation as "the first civilized
American." In addition to his political activities, he supported
education and was considered a gifted scientist. He proved that
lightning was a form of electricity. He also invented bifocal glasses,
lightning rods, and the Franklin stove.
Nathan Hale (1755-1776) Nathan Hale was an American soldier in
the Revolutionary War. Nathan Hale volunteered to spy on the British
on Long Island. He was captured and hanged on September 22,
1776. His last words were, "I only regret that I have but one life to
lose for my country." These words quickly became an inspiration for
Patriots during the Revolution and remain part of the story of
American independence.
Anne Hutchinson (1591-1643) Anne Hutchinson believed that inner
faith was more important than the way one acted. Hutchinson's
knowledge of church doctrine and her behavior earned her quite a
following of women and men in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The
clergy viewed this as a threat to their Puritan faith and a challenge to
their authority. They brought her to trial before the colony's court and
banished her, or sent her away from the colony. She moved with her
family to Rhode Island and then to the New Netherlands colony after
her husband's death in 1642. She and most of her children were
killed by Algonquians in 1643.
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) Thomas Jefferson was a Founding
Father and the principal author of the Declaration of Independence.
He was the third President of the United States. He also approved
the Louisiana Purchase which nearly doubled the area controlled by
the United States. He became an effective leader in the American
Revolution. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress in
Philadelphia and in 1776 he was a member of the committee which
wrote the Declaration of Independence. His plan to bar slavery from
the territories was incorporated into the Northwest Ordinance of
1787, but Jefferson owned slaves until he died. In 1785 he replaced
Benjamin Franklin as minister to France and was in France when the
U.S. Constitution was drafted. Jefferson served as secretary of state
under President George Washington. In 1800 Jefferson was elected
president and served two terms. He maintained peace and
encouraged westward expansion during his first term. Jefferson and
John Adams both died on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the
Declaration of Independence.
Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968) Martin Luther King was an
African-American concerned with gaining equal rights for all people.
He was called to minister at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in
Montgomery, Alabama. Despite opposition from his father, King
moved to Montgomery in 1955. This was just before Rosa Parks
refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. King
assisted in coordinating the bus boycott which gained national and
international attention. He gained visibility as a black leader. He was
instrumental in organizing the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference (SCLC). The SCLC supported sit-ins, boycotts, and
protest marches in Birmingham, Alabama.. In August, during the
March on Washington in support of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, King
gave his "I Have a Dream" speech. He was assassinated on April 4,
1968, in Memphis, Tennessee.
James Madison (1751-1836) James Madison played a role in most
of the significant political events over a 40-year period. He was the
fourth president of the United States. He participated in the
Continental Congress. He is considered the "Father of the
Constitution” because of his leadership role in writing and ratifying
the U.S. Constitution. He supported a strong central government. He
wrote the first 12 amendments to the Constitution. Ten of these were
ratified as the Bill of Rights. One of the other two, regarding
congressional pay raises, was later ratified as the 27th Amendment
in May 1992. He presided through the War of 1812 and fled
Washington, D.C. in August 1814, when the British invaded and set
the public buildings, the Capitol, and the White House on fire.
George Mason (1725-1792) George Mason did not seek glory in
public service, but his writings influenced those working to develop a
new government. He believed in the need to restrict governmental
power and supported protection of human rights. His Virginia
Declaration of Rights was a model for other Bills of Rights in the
United States and in France. Mason concentrated his political
activities to the state of Virginia until 1787. Then he served as a
delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention. He
delivered 139 important speeches at the convention, making him one
of the most influential of the Founding Fathers. He became disgusted
as delegates chose to exclude a Bill of Rights from the document. He
refused to sign the Constitution at the end of the convention and he
did not support its ratification. The passage of the Bill of Rights and
the adoption of the 10th Amendment, which supported the powers of
the states, relieved most of his concerns.
Rosa Parks (1913-2005) Rosa Parks grew up on her grandparents'
farm near Montgomery, Alabama and attended high school and
college in the city. She and her husband were both active members
of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP). During a time when public transportation was legally
segregated, she was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a
bus to a white man. Her actions prompted black church and business
leaders to conduct a boycott of the Montgomery Bus Company. The
U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregation on city buses was
unconstitutional.
William Penn (1644-1718) William Penn established a colony in
Pennsylvania as a refuge for Quakers and a place where they could
create a government based on their own standards. Penn joined the
Quakers, also known as the Religious Society of Friends. The
Friends believed in direct guidance from the Holy Spirit, did not
recognize the authority of an ordained ministry, believed in simple
dress, and opposed war. Penn secured a land grant from the King of
England. The King called the area Pennsylvania or “Penn's
Woodland.” Penn attempted to treat American Indians and squatters
from other colonies residing on the land fairly. He rarely visited the
colony and lived there only a few years which caused residents of
the colony to under appreciate his role in the colony's development.
He supported freedom of worship, welcomed immigrants, and did not
require residents to serve in the militia.
Charles Pinckney (1757-1824) Charles Pinckney was an American
politician who was a signer of the U.S. Constitution, Governor of
South Carolina, a senator and a member of the House of
Representatives. He worked hard in Congress to ensure the U.S.
would receive navigation rights to the Mississippi River. President
Thomas Jefferson appointed him as Minister of Spain.
Colin Powell (1937- ) General Colin Powell became the first AfricanAmerican Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the first AfricanAmerican Secretary of State in U.S. history. He commanded the 2nd
Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division from 1976 to 1977 and was
the senior military assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Defense. He
served as a deputy assistant and then as an assistant to President
Ronald Reagan, advising him on National Security Affairs. His
autobiography, My American Journey, tells about his experiences as
a ranking military official and political advisor.
Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) Ronald Reagan was the 40th President
of the United States. He was regarded as a key figure in the collapse
of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. Reagan presided
over a period of economic growth in the 1980s and over the
beginning of the end of the Soviet Union. In his final year in office,
however, he visited Moscow for a summit meeting with the Soviet
leader, Mikhail Gorbachev. Prior to being president, Reagan was a
Hollywood movie star and governor of California.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) Franklin Roosevelt entered
politics by winning a seat to the U.S. Senate. In 1921 he contracted
polio but struggled to overcome the physical limitations and maintain
a public and political career. In 1932 he was elected President of the
United States. He began the New Deal in his first 100 days to
counteract the effects of the Great Depression. Some people worried
that his growing executive authority might undermine the checks and
balances of the three branches of government. American support for
Roosevelt was high, and he dominated the political scene for four
terms, the most of any U.S. president. The 22nd Amendment,
adopted in 1951 limited presidents to two terms.
Roger Sherman (1721-1793) Roger Sherman participated in most
activities related to the early governance of the United States. He
was elected as a delegate to the Connecticut General Assembly in
1755 and remained involved in colonial and national politics until his
death. He was one of the Founding Fathers, serving in both the First
and the Second Continental Congresses. He was a member of the
committee which drafted the Declaration of Independence and
helped draft the Articles of Confederation. He participated in the
Constitutional Convention and signed the U.S. Constitution, and the
Treaty of Paris which ended the American Revolution. He favored
states' rights. He suggested the establishment of two houses of
Congress, one based on population and the other on equal
representation. He also supported election of a president by an
electoral college.
John Smith (1580-1631) John Smith was born to a farm family in
England. In 1606 he enlisted in the colonization effort of the Virginia
Company to establish a colony in North America. Smith was one of
the seven men appointed to rule the colony. He ensured the survival
of Jamestown by forcing discipline into the colonists and providing
leadership. He led expeditions along the coast and befriended
Pocahontas, the daughter of the chief of the American Indians along
the Virginia tidewater. In later life he wrote promotional literature
encouraging colonization.
Sons of Liberty The Sons of Liberty was an organization that
American colonists formed in 1765 to oppose the Stamp Act. The
name was taken from a speech made in the British Parliament that
referred to American colonials who opposed unjust British measures
as “sons of liberty.” The group helped prevent enforcement of the
Stamp Act. After the act’s repeal, the organization continued to
oppose British measures against the colonists.
Tuskegee Airmen The Tuskegee Airmen were dedicated and
determined young men who enlisted to become America's first black
military airmen. This was at a time when many people thought that
black men lacked intelligence, skill, courage and patriotism. The
black airmen who became single-engine or multi-engine pilots were
trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field (TAAF) in Tuskegee, Alabama.
The first aviation cadet class began in July 1941 and completed
training nine months later. The Airmen's success in escorting
bombers during World War II is a record unmatched by any other
fighter group. They lost only a small number of bombers to enemy
fire in more than 200 combat missions.
George Washington (1732-1799) George Washington was the first
President of the United States and served two terms. He lived in
Virginia and was a surveyor, a planter, a soldier in the French and
Indian War, a delegate to the First and Second Continental
Congresses, commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the
American Revolution, and the chairman of the Constitutional
Convention in 1787. During his two terms, he started regular
meetings of his cabinet and supported Alexander Hamilton's plans to
deal with war debts and create a currency system for the new nation.
Washington was a Federalist who believed in a strong central
government and the responsibility of the wealthy to ensure the
wellbeing of all people. He remained open to the opinions of others,
especially fellow Virginian Thomas Jefferson. His plantation home
was Mount Vernon. He is known as the "Father of Our Country" and
his likeness is one of four presidents carved into the monument at
Mount Rushmore. Presidents' Day, a federal holiday, occurs on the
third Monday in February, near his birthday, February 22.
Eli Whitney (1765-1825) Eli Whitney was an American inventor best
known for inventing the cotton gin and a pioneer in the mass
production of cotton. By April 1793, Whitney had designed and
constructed the cotton gin, a machine that separated the cottonseed
from the short-staple cotton fiber. This was one of the key inventions
of the Industrial Revolution and shaped the economy of the South.
Whitney's invention made short staple cotton into a profitable crop,
which strengthened the economic. Despite the social and economic
impact of his invention, Whitney lost his profits in legal battles over
patent infringement.
Roger Williams (ca. 1603-1683) Roger Williams became a religious
dissenter and founded the colony of Rhode Island. He sailed to New
England in 1630 to escape persecution by the Puritans in England.
He believed a true church could not exist on earth until Christ
returned and founded it. Thus his beliefs also conflicted with the
Puritan teachings in Massachusetts. They eventually banished him,
or sent him away, from the colony in 1636. Williams sought a colonial
charter in 1643 to establish Rhode Island. Three of his ideas were
significant for the development of American culture. He argued for
separation of church and state in the North American colonies. He
believed in freedom of thought and opinion, and he supported
freedom of religion.
John Wise (1652-1725) John Wise was an American
Congregational minister. He was a political leader during the
American colonial period. He was once jailed because he protested
against British taxation. Years later, President Calvin Coolidge
recognized him as one of the inspirations for the Declaration of
Independence.
The Wright Brothers (Orville: 1871-1948 & Wilbur: 1867-1912)
The Wright Brothers were two Americans who are credited with
inventing and building the world's first successful airplane. They
made the first controlled, powered and heavier-than-air human flight
in 1903. Two years later, the brothers developed their flying machine
into the first practical fixed-wing aircraft. Although not the first to
build and fly experimental aircraft, the Wright Brothers were the first
to invent aircraft controls that made fixed-wing powered flight
possible.They invented a three-axis control which allows the pilot to
steer the aircraft effectively. This method became standard on fixedwing aircraft of all kinds. From the beginning of their work, the Wright
Brothers focused on unlocking the secrets of control to conquer "the
flying problem", rather than developing more powerful engines as
some other experimenters did. Their careful wind tunnel tests
produced better data than any before. This helped them to design
and build wings and propellers more effective than before.
442nd Regimental Combat Team The 442nd Infantry, formerly the
442nd Regimental Combat Team of the United States Army, was an
Asian-American unit composed of mostly Japanese-Americans who
fought in Europe during World War II. The families of many of its
soldiers were subject to internment. The 442nd was a self-sufficient
fighting force and fought with uncommon distinction in Italy, Southern
France, and Germany. The unit became the most highly decorated
regiment in the history of theUnited Stated Armed Forces. This
included 21 Medal of Honor recipients. The motto of the 442nd
Regimental Combat Team was “Go for Broke.” This meant they
would risk everything on one big effort to win. The soldiers of the
442nd needed to win big. They were American-born sons of
Japanese immigrants. They fought two wars: the Germans in Europe
and the prejudice in America.