American Revolution: 21 Young Patriots And Two Tories Tell Their Stories

Improved Essays
During the American Revolution from 1776 to 1783, people were experiencing hardships with the battles and corruption of the battle between the Patriots and British. Teenagers were the main source of the growing army and were the ones who were drafted into the armies along with the men who were able to volunteer. The book, I was a Teenager in the American Revolution: 21 Young Patriots and Two Tories Tell Their Stories, tells of the teenagers who have lived through the difficult times and situations. Through the analysis of one of the primary source documents presented in the book, students can infer on the living conditions, their encounters and feelings of these teenagers.
Eliza Yonge Wilkinson was a 19 year old female patriot at the time that the British attempted to capture the city of Charleston, South Carolina. Though unsuccessful, the city was recaptured four years later on May 12, 1780. She witnessed all the turmoil that the colonists have been through when being ransacked by the British armies.
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She felt “gratitude affection, and pity for [the] countrymen,” as they passed her by. Students can interpret that the people were ready to fight for their freedom. The citizens were grateful that these men were willing to risk their lives, but pity that only a few of them will survive. The people of the town wept and cried to hear that their loved one has died in battle. It was heard that General Lincoln would come and help the citizens. People were happy and excited for that message. The life of a teenager was hard when war was about.
The British tried to ambush any patriot they could find. The one who informed the British about the Lieutenant was an African-American. They had almost found Lieut. Morton Wilkinson’s home, until a neighboring African-American convinced them that the home they were at was the wrong one. Her family was almost caught in a tough

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