Pennsylvania Gazette July 22, 1742

                I read through a few editions of the Pennsylvania Gazette. The majority of the main articles were about wars, exploring and political affairs. I am quick to admit I am nothing close to a historian. Most of the main articles I had difficulty following because of my lack of understanding all the happenings of the time. Also I found the lowercase s to be slightly annoying. It looks like an f. Obviously I could read it and I know it was an s but, it just increased my frustration while reading the article. The edition of the Pennsylvania  Gazette which I will be referring to is from July 22, 1742. I did find the advertisements interesting and thought provoking. Yes, I know you can learn a lot from the historical information and political affairs but,  I believe that the ads contain a history about how people lived. Look at the ads in our newspapers today. Even more relevant look at the ads in TV commercials and on the internet. When I don't fast forward through the commercials I see mostly ads for phones, phone companies,  cars, medicines, military, and politics. In the future people could look at our ads and see we love technology. They could see we depend on technology. I enjoy reading the ads in the Gazette because it describes who they are and how they lived their daily lives.

                 "TO BE SOLD, A Negro Girl, about 17 years of age, fit for either Town or Country. Enquire of printer hereof." A majority of the ads seem to deal in some way with slavery. A little ironic America was labeled a place to go and be free and most of their ads are about slavery. Slavery in every form is wrong. The thought that this 17 year old girl was forced to be a slave from childhood is horrifying. Another ad " TO BE SOLD, A Likely Negro Man, about 25 years old, bread to the sea: Also a Negro Woman, about 30 years of age , that can do all manner of household Work." About 25 and about 30. Could they not ask the slaves how old are you? Maybe it is just a selling tactic to avoid their true age. Either way they did a good job at trying to dehumanize the slaves.  They sold slaves like we sell cars. My car is only about ten years old and it still runs great! I just can't imagine browsing the paper looking for a good deal on a couple of slaves. There are plenty of political fights today over what rights and freedoms we should or shouldn't have.  Thankfully we don't have to be enslaved to anyone.

                Another common ad is for Bohea Tea. Tea seems to be a popular item. This ad published many years before the Boston Tea party. The frequent ads for Tea portray how much they enjoyed it. I couldn't help to notice the lack of food ads. No McDonalds. What? I'm not sure there was really much of anywhere to eat out. Even if there was I doubt it was somewhere you would take a family. It was surprising to see almost no ads for things like flour, wheat, beans or other staples. Was it because they grew their own? Maybe there were no advertisements needed for food because of the necessity for it.

                Lastly, I found the ads about crime interesting. Sometimes it's easy to picture a newly established America where everyone enjoys their freedom and gets along. One ad really caught my eye. Someone broke into the church and broke open a chest. They stole a bible and other religious items. I'm sure bibles were a lot harder and more expensive to come by because of limited printing capabilities.  I still consider it pretty low to steal a bible or any other religious item from any type of church. Another ad described a horse that was thought to be stolen. This just proves that no group of people is perfect.

                How is this edition of the Pennsylvania Gazette relevant to me? At first glance it has nothing to do with me. With a deeper examination I found meaning. We claim our lives are so busy because of technology. Are we really busier? Are we slaves to our employers? Do we depend on our own gardening to survive? Do we even cook our own food? The first settlers of this country suffered all kinds of afflictions. Do we have it easy? All generations have their own challenges. Hopefully we can do as those before us and contribute to the future of our country.