Free Republic

For there to be slavery in any colony, laws had to be written making the practice legal. Prior to the slave laws, indentured servants were given the same contracts regardless of where they were from. Once the contracts were fulfilled, servants were free regardless of where they came from. There is a stubborn myth in American history that claims Virginia was the first colony to legalize slavery. If not Virginia, then some other southern colony. It was as if the northern colonies were completely untouched by the horrors of owning a person. The first colony to legalize slavery was not...

Today's Quotefall Puzzle features a quote by John Winthrop. Click puzzle (or click here) for full size rendition, then use your browser's print command to print puzzle. John Winthrop was the first governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 17th Century, and was the chief figure among the Puritan founders of New England. All hints, along with the answer, are provided in the first reply comment below, using filtered font to prevent accidental spoilers. Please refrain from disclosing the full answer in comments to prevent spoilers.To solve the puzzle: Enter the letters in the top half (letter columns) of the puzzle into...

The term “City upon a hill” was first used by John Winthorp, one of the key founders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, who said, “We will be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us, so that if we deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a byword throughout the world.” Yet, it was Ronald Reagan who made the term famous, in his frequent referral to the United States as the “Shining...

Now the onely way to avoyde this shipwracke and to provide for our posterity is to followe the Counsell of Micah, to doe Justly, to love mercy, to walke humbly with our God, for this end, wee must be knitt together in this worke as one man, wee must entertaine each other in brotherly Affeccion, wee must be willing to abridge our selves of our superfluities, for the supply of others necessities, wee must uphold a familiar Commerce together in all meekenes, gentlenes, patience and liberallity, wee must delight in eache other, make others Condicions our owne rejoyce together, mourne...