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AP US History Historical Figures Flashcards

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10532257472John SmithA leader at the Jamestown settlement on September 10, 1608. Mapped the coast from Penobscot Bay to Cape Cod. Wrote "A Description of New England" (1616), a counterpart to his "Map of Virginia with a Description of the Country" (1612); "The Generall Historie of Virginia, New England, and the Summer Isles" (1624); and "The True Travels, Adventures, and Observations of Captain John Smith in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America" (1630). BRITISH EXPLORER0
10532278840John RolfeThe husband of Pocahontas, daughter of the Indian chief Powhatan. About 1612 he began to experiment with growing tobacco: imported to the English and it was a success BRITISH COLONIAL OFFICIAL1
10532284793William BradfordPLYMOUTH COLONY GOVERNOR (30 years) Helped shape and stabilize the political institutions of the first permanent colony in New England. Contribution in nurturing the fledgling colony's democratic institutions (at least for fellow believers), such as the franchise and town meeting, thus helping establish those traditions of self-government that would set the pattern for national political development in years to come.2
10532317108John WinthropAMERICAN COLONIAL GOVERNOR First governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the chief figure among the Puritan founders of New England. In the early 1630s, he did his most creative work, guiding the colonists as they laid out a network of tightly organized towns, each with its church of self-professed saints3
10532325453Roger WilliamsAMERICAN RELIGIOUS LEADER Founder of the colony of Rhode Island and pioneer of religious liberty. Williams' notion of a "wall of separation" between church and state inspired the founders of the United States, who incorporated it into the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. He and his fellow Rhode Islanders framed a colony government devoted to protecting individual "liberty of conscience." Roger Williams founded the first Baptist church in America and edited the first dictionary of Native American languages.4
10532325454Anne HutchsinsonA dissenter in the Massachusetts Bay Colony who caused a schism in the Puritan community. Eventually, Hutchinson's faction lost out in a power struggle for the governorship. She was expelled from the colony in 1673 and traveled southward with a number of her followers, establishing the settlement of Portsmouth, Rhode Island5
10532325455William PennFounded Pennsylvania in 1682, after receiving a charter from King Charles II the year before. He launched the colony as a "holy experiment" based on religious tolerance.6
10532325761Samuel AdamsA key role in the defense of colonial rights. He had been a leader of the Sons of Liberty and suggested the formation of the Committees of Correspondence. Adams was crucial in spreading the principle of colonial rights throughout New England and is credited with provoking the Boston Tea Party..7
10532325762Thomas PaineA passionate and persuasive writer who published the bestseller, Common Sense in 1776. Paine had the radical idea that the colonies should set up America as an independent, democratic, republic away from England. Over 120,000 copies of his book were sold and this helped spark the colonists rebellion later that year.8
10532326205Alexander HamiltonHamilton emerged as a major political figure during the debate over the Constitution, as the outspoken leader of the Federalists and one of the authors of the Federalist Papers. Later, as secretary of treasury under Washington, Alexander Hamilton spearheaded the government's Federalist initiatives, most notably through the creation of the Bank of the United States.9
10532326206John RayHe helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris w/ Great Britain, ending the American Revolution. Appointed by Washington, Jay negotiated a settlement when was w/ Britain threatened due to controversies over the Treaty of Paris: it became known as Jay's Treaty.10
10532332492James MadisonThe author of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, Madison was also the father of the Federalist party and the fourth President of the United States. He was President during the war of 1812 and was also Vice-President under Jefferson. He was a great statesman but was not a strong president.11

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