Lesson 2

John Halfhead, Plantation Master: Adapting to Plantation Life in Colonial Maryland is the second in a series of lessons and activities developed by Historic St. Mary's City. John Halfhead, Plantation Master is about one of Maryland's first settlers who observed and participated in the building of the colony from his arrival in 1634 until his death in 1675. We encourage you to use these materials in your study of Maryland's colonial beginnings. The lesson plan below provides educators with a quick guide. To reprint worksheets for distribution to students, you'll get the best results by using the .pdf files provided. These are specially designed to print in an attractive, user-friendly format.

Be sure to visit our web site again where future lessons will appear from time to time.

We welcome your comments and suggestions. Please call the HSMC Education Office at 240-895-4984.

Materials:

• Procedures
• Background for Teachers
• Student reading: John Halfhead, Plantation Master (.pdf)
• Student writing prompt, Your New Life (.pdf)
• List of 17th-century pig earmarks (.pdf)
• Copies of pig ear blanks, one set per student (.pdf)

Please use the .pdf (Portable Document) files provided above to print material for students.  If you do not have Adobe Acrobat you can easily download a free copy from the Adobe web site.

Procedures:

Background Information for Teachers

John Halfhead:

John Halfhead was an actual colonist who sailed on the Ark from England and arrived in Maryland in 1634. Although Halfhead left no written documents in his own hand, he was illiterate, his name appears many times in the public records documenting Maryland's early history. It is known that he was born in England and was Protestant. He was indentured to Leonard Calvert, brother to Cecil Calvert (the second Lord Baltimore and founder of the colony) and he apparently was skilled as a brick mason.

Fortunately for us, John Halfhead was present in the early days and years of Maryland and witnessed some of the most significant events as the colony struggled to become established. In the first lesson in this series, titled Meet John Halfhead, Halfhead was just arriving in the New World as an indentured servant. In this lesson, we now see Halfhead as the owner of a newly established tobacco plantation, facing the struggles of adapting to his new home. Subsequent lessons will follow John Halfhead through the 17th century as he becomes a member of the General Assembly, a successful plantation owner, a husband, and a father.

The student reading, John Halfhead, Plantation Master, should be introduced by way of stating . . . if you could travel back in time to the 17th century and talk to John Halfhead, this is what he might say to you.-

Adaptation

Maryland's earliest colonists had many challenges to face in the New World. As a result, there were many adaptations made to conditions in Maryland. The following are among the most prominent:

• Environment: Maryland colonists were coming to a place with an environment completely different from that of England. The land was, for the most part, covered with virgin forests. The first Englishmen arriving in Maryland were awestruck by the size of the trees, the width of the river, and the sheer beauty of the place. Most of this land was also unclaimed. Those bringing indentured servants to Maryland and the servants, themselves, were entitled to grants of land. Many of these colonists, especially the servants, could never have hoped to own land in England.
  
  A notable challenge this new environment brought was battles with diseases for which these colonists had no immunity. Diseases like typhus, dysentery, influenza, and malaria were all serious problems for new immigrants. During the first year of life in Maryland, one was said to be going through the "seasoning," a sometimes-deadly combination of all of these ailments. As much as one third of new arrivals may not have survived through the seasoning. Ironically, it was probably Europeans who originally brought malaria, the most pervasive of all the diseases, to the New World.
  
  
• Livestock: In 17th-century Maryland, pigs and cows were not kept in pens as they were in England. It was much more cost-effective to let these animals forage in the woods for food, thereby leaving the planter to concentrate on growing tobacco rather than grains for animal feed. In the 17th century, most cows had horns and most pigs had tusks (many modern breeds have these bred out of them). These animals could easily defend themselves against predators in the woods and, therefore, did not require constant attention. To identify his animals from those of his neighbors, a colonist would mark the ears of his pigs and cows in a distinctive pattern. This mark was registered with the clerk of the court and ears were kept when an animal was butchered as proof of ownership.
  
• Agriculture: Farmers in England were accustomed to using plows to cultivate land and prepare it for crops. In Maryland, farmers found largely virgin forests which could not be plowed. The large root systems of huge trees would break any plow that tried to get through them. Instead, colonists adopted the native method of field clearance in which trees were girdled (a strip of bark was removed around the trunk of the tree) and then lost their leaves and died. The low brush was cleared with a controlled fire. Once clear, the loose dirt was hoed into hills, and tobacco and/or corn were planted in the hills.
• Foodways: The most noticeable change to the diet of the Maryland colonists was the addition of Indian corn as a replacement for many European grains like wheat, barley, and oats. Corn was seen as a miracle crop that could deliver a return of hundreds of seeds (kernels) for each single seed planted. European grain could deliver as few as five to ten seeds for each one planted. Maryland colonists probably had some form of bread made of corn with virtually every meal3/4either in the form of baked corn bread or fried corn cakes.
  
  
• Economy: The Maryland economy was based almost exclusively on the production of tobacco. There were few goods manufactured in the colony. Almost all finished goods were imported from England or Europe and purchased with tobacco. Colonists would have been accustomed to largely self-sufficient towns and villages in England. In Maryland, they might receive some supplies only once a year.
  
  
• Laws: For the most part, Maryland law was based upon English law, but Lord Baltimore, proprietor of Maryland, did have some leeway when it came to legal matters. There were some laws such as those governing religion, livestock, orphans, and relationships between servant and master that were uniquely colonial. For instance, the theft of livestock was considered a felony in England, but livestock were easily mistaken in the colonies so accidental theft was probably a fairly common occurrence. The crime, therefore, was reduced to a misdemeanor and could be heard in county, rather than, provincial court.
  

Student reading

Good day! 'Tis me, your old friend, John Halfhead. I hope that you have been pleased with your time in the new colony of Maryland. I, myself, see great potential in this place. I learned a great deal in my four years indentured to Master Calvert. Now with my time complete and my debt repaid, I can truly reap the benefits of my new home, I am now owner and master of my own land. I could never have dreamed of it, but ¢tis true.

I will not tell you that it was an easy path, mind you. I, as many others like me, took great pains to accustom myself to this new land. I was stricken with what some call now the seasoning, a dreadful mix of those illnesses that one who never ventures beyond England might never face. They call them malaria, dysentery, influenza, I call them the near death of Halfhead. I thought I might never recover and, in truth, I still fight the symptoms now and again. No matter that, I am certain I will make a full recovery, hopefully sooner rather than later. The work required to start my plantation will surely distract me from my pains.

Not that the sotweed is the only thing that requires attention on my new land, there is much to do beside. I grow, along side my tobacco, a new grain, that which is called Indian corn. It is the most miraculous of plants, as it will return hundreds of seeds for just one put to the ground. I am growing accustomed to eating some manner of bread made of corn with almost every meal. It has been a great long time since I have had wheat or barley in my bread.

I am acquiring cattle, pigs, and other such livestock to be used to feed my family, as well. The manner in which they are cared for is another thing to become accustomed to here in Maryland. At home, animals were kept in pens to be tended and fed by their masters. Here, the land is plentiful, but people to work it, scarce. No man wants to take time away from his tobacco fields to grow feed for his animals. The beasts are left to their own, then, foraging in the woods for what food they happen to find. There is but one difficulty with this arrangement, all manner of beasts in the wood look alike. That is, my pigs differ little from yours, and yours, likewise, from your neighbor's. A clever solution is at hand, the beasts are to be marked by cuts and notches upon their ears. My mark is the left ear swallow forked and the right ear whole. This mark has been duly registered with the clerk of the court and no other may have a similar mark. When I wish to butcher a hog, I must find one marked thus and keep the ears as proof of ownership, at least until the pig is eaten. Aye, there is much to become accustomed to here in this fair colony, but I trust that all will be for the best. Until such time as we should chance to meet again, I remain your humble servant, John Halfhead.