1.
United States
–
Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
2.
Newport, Rhode Island
–
Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The City of Newport is located approximately 37 miles southeast of Providence,21 miles south of Fall River and it is known as a New England summer resort and famous for its mansions. It was a major 18th-century port city and also contains a number of surviving buildings from the colonial era of the United States. The city is the county seat of Newport County and it was known for being the city of some of the Summer White Houses during the administrations of Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy. The population was 24,027 as of 2013 and its eight founders and first officers were Nicholas Easton, William Coddington, John Clarke, John Coggeshall, William Brenton, Jeremy Clark, Thomas Hazard, and Henry Bull. They left Portsmouth, Rhode Island after a fallout with Anne Hutchinson. As part of the agreement, Coddington and his followers took control of the side of the island. They were soon joined by Nicholas Easton, who had recently expelled from Massachusetts Bay Colony for holding heretical beliefs. The settlement grew to be the largest of the four settlements of Rhode Island. Many of the first colonists in Newport became Baptists, and the second Baptist congregation in Rhode Island was formed in 1640 under the leadership of John Clarke, peace did not last long in Newport, as many did not like Coddingtons autocratic style. As a result, a counter-faction was formed by 1650, led by Nicholas Easton, Newport became the most important port in colonial Rhode Island, and a public school was established in 1640. In 1658, a group of Jews were allowed to settle in Newport who were fleeing the Inquisition in Spain, the Newport congregation is now referred to as Congregation Jeshuat Israel and is the second-oldest Jewish congregation in the United States. It meets in Touro Synagogue, the oldest standing synagogue in the United States, in 1663, the colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations received its Royal Charter, and Benedict Arnold was elected its first Governor at Newport. The commercial activity which raised Newport to its fame as a port was begun by a second wave of Portuguese Jews who settled there about the middle of the 18th century. They brought with them experience and connections, capital. Most prominent among those were Jacob Rodrigues Rivera who arrived in 1745, Rivera introduced into America the manufacture of sperm oil, which became one of the leading industries and made Newport rich. Newports inhabitants who were engaged in whaling developed 17 manufactories of oil and candles, Aaron Lopez fled to Newport from Lisbon in 1752 and is credited with making Newport an important center of trade. To him in a degree than to any one else was due the rapid commercial development which made Newport for a quarter of a century afterward the most formidable rival of New York
3.
French Open
–
The French Open, often referred to as Roland Garros, is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam event held on clay, French spelling rules dictate that in the name of a place or event named after a person, the elements of the name are joined together with a hyphen. Therefore, the names of the stadium and the tournament are hyphenated as Roland-Garros, in 1891 the Championnat de France, which is commonly referred to in English as the French Championships, was begun. It was only open to players who were members of French clubs. The first winner was a Briton—H, the first womens singles tournament, with four entries, was held in 1897. The mixed doubles event was added in 1902 and the doubles in 1907. This French club members only tournament was played until 1924, using four different venues during that period, Île de Puteaux, in Puteaux, the Racing Club de France, played on clay. For one year,1909, it was played at the Société Athlétique de la Villa Primrose in Bordeaux, Tennis Club de Paris, at Auteuil, Paris, played on clay. Another tournament, the World Hard Court Championships, is considered the precursor to the French Open as it was open to international competitors. Winners of this tournament included world no, 1s such as Tony Wilding from New Zealand and Bill Tilden from the US. In 1924 there was no World Hard Court Championships due to tennis being played at the Paris Olympic Games, in 1925, the French Championships became open to all amateurs internationally and was designated a major championship by the ILTF. It was held at the Stade Français in Saint-Cloud in 1925 and 1927, in 1926 the Racing Club de France hosted the event in Paris, site of the previous French club members only Championship, also on clay. In 1928, the Roland Garros stadium was opened and the event has held there ever since. After the Mousquetaires or Philadelphia Four won the Davis Cup on American soil in 1927, the Stade de France had offered the tennis authorities three hectares of land with the condition that the new stadium must be named after the World War I pilot, Roland Garros. The new Stade de Roland Garros, and its Center Court hosted that Davis Cup challenge, during World War II the tournament was held from 1941 through 1945 on the same grounds but these editions are not recognized by the French governing body, Fédération Française de Tennis. From 1946 through 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon, in 1968, the French Championships became the first Grand Slam tournament to go open, allowing both amateurs and professionals to compete. Since 1981, new prizes have been presented, the Prix Orange, the Prix Citron, in another novelty, since 2006 the tournament has begun on a Sunday, featuring 12 singles matches played on the three main courts. Additionally, on the eve of the opening, the traditional Benny Berthet exhibition day takes place
4.
The Championships, Wimbledon
–
The Championships, Wimbledon, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, and is widely considered the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the others being the Australian Open, the French Open and the US Open. Since the Australian Open shifted to hardcourt in 1988, Wimbledon is the only major still played on grass. The tournament takes place two weeks in late June and early July, culminating with the Ladies and Gentlemens Singles Final. Five major, junior, and invitational events are each year. Wimbledon traditions include a dress code for competitors and Royal patronage. The tournament is notable for the absence of sponsor advertising around the courts. In 2009, Wimbledons Centre Court was fitted with a roof to lessen the loss of playing time due to rain. The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club is a club founded on 23 July 1868. Its first ground was off Worple Road, Wimbledon, in 1876, lawn tennis, a game devised by Major Walter Clopton Wingfield a year or so earlier and originally given the name Sphairistikè, was added to the activities of the club. In spring 1877, the club was renamed The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club, a new code of laws, replacing the code administered by the Marylebone Cricket Club, was drawn up for the event. Todays rules are similar except for such as the height of the net and posts. The inaugural 1877 Wimbledon Championship started on 9 July 1877 and the Gentlemens Singles was the event held. It was won by Spencer Gore, an old Harrovian rackets player, about 200 spectators paid one shilling each to watch the final. The lawns at the ground were arranged so that the court was in the middle with the others arranged around it. The name was retained when the Club moved in 1922 to the present site in Church Road, however, in 1980 four new courts were brought into commission on the north side of the ground, which meant the Centre Court was once more correctly defined. The opening of the new No.1 Court in 1997 emphasised the description, by 1882, activity at the club was almost exclusively confined to lawn tennis and that year the word croquet was dropped from the title. However, for reasons it was restored in 1899
5.
US Open (tennis)
–
The United States Open Tennis Championships is a hardcourt tennis tournament. The tournament is the version of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world. The US Open is held annually, starting on the last Monday in August, the main tournament consists of five event championships, mens and womens singles, mens and womens doubles, and mixed doubles, with additional tournaments for senior, junior, and wheelchair players. Since 1978, the tournament has played on acrylic hard courts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens. The US Open is owned and organized by the United States Tennis Association, net proceeds from ticket sales, sponsorships, and television deals are used to promote the development of tennis in the United States. The US Open is the only Grand Slam that employs tiebreakers in every set of a match, the first edition was won by Richard Sears, who went on to win seven consecutive singles titles. In the first years of the U. S. National Championship only men competed and this was followed by the introduction of the U. S. Womens National Doubles Championship in 1899 and the U. S. The womens tournament used a system from 1888 through 1918. This view was opposed by another group of players which included eight former national singles champions, the contentious issue was brought to a vote at the annual USNLTA meeting on February 5,1915 and with 128 votes in favor and 119 against it was decided to relocate. From 1921 through 1923, the tournament was played at the Germantown Cricket Club in Philadelphia and it returned to Forest Hills in 1924 following the completion of the newly constructed 14,000 seat concrete Forest Hills Stadium. Though regarded unofficially by many as a major championship beforehand, the tournament was officially designated as one of the tournaments by the ILTF commencing in 1924. At the 1922 U. S. National Championships the draw for the first time included seeded players in order to avoid leading players drawing against each other in the early rounds. Open era The open era began in 1968 when all five events were merged into the US Open, the 1968 combined tournament was open to professionals for the first time. That year,96 men and 63 women entered the event, from 1970 to 1974 the US Open used a best-of-nine point, sudden death tiebreaker before moving to the ITF best-of-twelve point system. In 1973 the US Open became the first Grand Slam tournament to award equal prize money to men and women with that years singles champions John Newcombe, another US Open innovation came in 1975 when floodlights enabled night play for the first time. In 1978 the tournament moved from the West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills, Queens to the larger USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens, three miles to the north. In the process, the tournament switched the court surface from clay, jimmy Connors is the only individual to have won US Open singles titles on all three surfaces, while Chris Evert is the only woman to win on two surfaces. The US Open is the only Grand Slam tournament that has played every year since its inception
6.
Rhode Island
–
Rhode Island, officially the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. Rhode Island is the smallest in area, the eighth least populous, and its official name is also the longest of any state in the Union. Rhode Island is bordered by Connecticut to the west, Massachusetts to the north and east, the state also shares a short maritime border with New York. It boycotted the 1787 convention that drew up the United States Constitution, on May 29,1790, Rhode Island became the 13th and last state to ratify the Constitution. Rhode Islands official nickname is The Ocean State, a reference to the fact that the state has several large bays, Rhode Island covers 1,214 square miles, of which 1,045 square miles are land. Despite its name, most of Rhode Island is located on the mainland of the United States, the official name of the state is State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, which is derived from the merger of four settlements. Rhode Island is now commonly called Aquidneck Island, the largest of several islands in Narragansett Bay, Providence Plantation was the name of the colony founded by Roger Williams in the area now known as the city of Providence. This was adjoined by the settlement of Warwick, hence the plural Providence Plantations and it is unclear how Aquidneck Island came to be known as Rhode Island, although there are two popular theories. Explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano noted the presence of an island near the mouth of Narragansett Bay in 1524, subsequent European explorers were unable to precisely identify the island that Verrazzano had named, but the Pilgrims who later colonized the area assumed that it was Aquidneck. A second theory concerns the fact that Adriaen Block passed by Aquidneck during his expeditions in the 1610s, historians have theorized that this reddish appearance resulted from either red autumn foliage or red clay on portions of the shore. The earliest documented use of the name Rhode Island for Aquidneck was in 1637 by Roger Williams, the name was officially applied to the island in 1644 with these words, Aquethneck shall be henceforth called the Isle of Rodes or Rhode-Island. The name Isle of Rodes is used in a document as late as 1646. Dutch maps as early as 1659 call the island Red Island, Williams was a theologian forced out of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Seeking religious and political tolerance, he and others founded Providence Plantation as a proprietary colony. Providence referred to the concept of providence, and plantation was an English term for a colony. State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations is the longest official name of any state in the Union, advocates for excising plantation asserted that the word specifically referred to the British colonial practice of establishing settlements which disenfranchised native people. Advocates for retaining the name argued that plantation was simply an archaic English synonym for colony, the referendum election was held on November 2,2010, and the people voted overwhelmingly to retain the entire original name. It shares a maritime border with New York State between Block Island and Long Island
7.
University of Cambridge
–
The University of Cambridge is a collegiate public research university in Cambridge, England, often regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. Founded in 1209 and given royal status by King Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. The university grew out of an association of scholars who left the University of Oxford after a dispute with the townspeople, the two ancient universities share many common features and are often referred to jointly as Oxbridge. Cambridge is formed from a variety of institutions which include 31 constituent colleges, Cambridge University Press, a department of the university, is the worlds oldest publishing house and the second-largest university press in the world. The university also operates eight cultural and scientific museums, including the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridges libraries hold a total of around 15 million books, eight million of which are in Cambridge University Library, a legal deposit library. In the year ended 31 July 2015, the university had an income of £1.64 billion. The central university and colleges have an endowment of around £5.89 billion. The university is linked with the development of the high-tech business cluster known as Silicon Fen. It is a member of associations and forms part of the golden triangle of leading English universities and Cambridge University Health Partners. As of 2017, Cambridge is ranked the fourth best university by three ranking tables and no other institution in the world ranks in the top 10 for as many subjects. Cambridge is consistently ranked as the top university in the United Kingdom, the university has educated many notable alumni, including eminent mathematicians, scientists, politicians, lawyers, philosophers, writers, actors, and foreign Heads of State. Ninety-five Nobel laureates, fifteen British prime ministers and ten Fields medalists have been affiliated with Cambridge as students, faculty, by the late 12th century, the Cambridge region already had a scholarly and ecclesiastical reputation, due to monks from the nearby bishopric church of Ely. The University of Oxford went into suspension in protest, and most scholars moved to such as Paris, Reading. After the University of Oxford reformed several years later, enough remained in Cambridge to form the nucleus of the new university. A bull in 1233 from Pope Gregory IX gave graduates from Cambridge the right to teach everywhere in Christendom, the colleges at the University of Cambridge were originally an incidental feature of the system. No college is as old as the university itself, the colleges were endowed fellowships of scholars. There were also institutions without endowments, called hostels, the hostels were gradually absorbed by the colleges over the centuries, but they have left some indicators of their time, such as the name of Garret Hostel Lane. Hugh Balsham, Bishop of Ely, founded Peterhouse, Cambridges first college, the most recently established college is Robinson, built in the late 1970s
8.
Christ's College, Cambridge
–
Christs College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, the college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as Gods House. The college is renowned for educating some of Cambridges most famous alumni, including Charles Darwin, within Cambridge, Christs has a reputation for strong academic performance and tutorial support. It has averaged 1st place on the Tompkins Table from 1980–2006, as of 2013, it had an endowment of £138 million, making it one of the wealthier colleges in Cambridge. Christs College was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as Gods House, Byngham obtained the first royal licence for Gods House in July 1439. The college was founded to provide for the lack of grammar-school masters in England at the time, the original site of Godshouse was surrendered in 1443 to Kings College, and currently about three quarters of Kings College Chapel stands on the original site of Gods House. After the original royal licence of 1439, three more licenses, two in 1442 and one in 1446, were granted before in 1448 Gods House received the charter upon which the college was in fact founded. In this charter, King Henry VI was named as the founder, in 1505, the college was endowed by Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII, and was given the name Christs College, perhaps at the suggestion of her confessor, the Bishop John Fisher. The expansion in the population of the college in the century led to the building, in the 1640s. The original 15th/16th century college buildings now form part of First Court, including the chapel, Masters Lodge and Great Gate tower. The gate itself is disproportionate, the bottom has been cut off to accommodate a rise in street level, the college hall, originally built at the very start of the 16th century, was restored in 1875–1879 by George Gilbert Scott the younger. The lawn of First Court is famously round, and a wisteria sprawls up the front of the Masters lodge, Second Court is fully built up on only three sides, one of which is formed by the 1640s Fellows Building. The fourth side backs onto the Masters garden, the Stevenson Building in Third Court was designed by J. J. Stevenson in the 1880s and was extended in 1905 as part of the Colleges Quadcentenary. In 1947 Professor Albert Richardson designed a new cupola for the Stevenson building, and a second building, Third Courts Memorial Building, a twin of the Chancellors building, also by Richardson, was completed in 1953 at a cost of £80,000. Third Court is also noted for its display of irises in May and June, the controversial tiered concrete New Court was designed in the Modernist style by Sir Denys Lasdun in 1966–70, and was described as superb in Lasduns obituary in the Guardian. Design critic Hugh Pearman comments Lasdun had big trouble relating to the street at the overhanging rear and it appears very distinctively in aerial photographs, forming part of the northern boundary of the college. An assortment of neighbouring buildings have been absorbed into the college, of which the most notable is The Todd Building, through an arch in the Fellows Building is the Fellows Garden. It includes two mulberry trees, of which the older was planted in 1608, the year as Miltons birth
9.
Real tennis
–
Real tennis – one of several games sometimes called the sport of kings – is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis is derived. It is also known as tennis in the United States, formerly royal tennis in England and Australia. The term real was first used by journalists in the early 20th century as a retronym to distinguish the ancient game from modern lawn tennis, Real tennis is still played on about 43 surviving courts in the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States and France. Despite a documented history of courts existing in the German states from the 17th century, the sport is supported and governed by various organizations around the world. The rules and scoring are similar to those of tennis, which derives from real tennis. A match is typically best of three sets, except for the open tournaments, in which matches are best of five sets for men. Unlike the latex-based technology underlying the modern lawn-tennis ball, the game uses a cork-based ball very close in design to the original balls used in the game. The balls are white, but around the end of the 20th century optic yellow was introduced for improved visibility. The balls are much less bouncy than lawn tennis balls, the 27-inch short, asymmetrical racquets are made of wood and use very tight nylon strings to cope with the heavy balls. The racquet head is shaped to make it easier to strike close to the floor or in corners. There are two companies in the world hand-crafting these racquets, Grays of Cambridge and Gold Leaf Athletics, there are two basic designs in existence today - jeu quarré which is an older design and jeu à dedans. The court at Falkland Palace is a jeu quarré design which unlike jeu à dedans court lacks a tambour, the more common real tennis court is a very substantial building. There are no dimensions for courts. Most are about 110 by 39 feet above the penthouses, and about 96 by 32 feet on the playing floor and they are doubly asymmetric, each end of the court differs in shape from the other, and the left and right sides of the court are also different. There are numerous and widely varying styles of service and these are given descriptive names to distinguish them – examples are railroad, bobble, poop, piqué, boomerang, and giraffe. The game has many other complexities, for instance, when the ball bounces twice on the floor at the service end, the serving player does not generally lose the point. A chase can also be called at the end, but only on the half of that end nearest the net. Additionally, a player can gain the advantage of serving only through skillful play and this is in stark contrast to lawn tennis, where players alternately serve and receive entire games
10.
Newport Casino
–
The Newport Casino is an athletic complex and recreation center located at 186–202 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, Rhode Island, United States. The complex now houses the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and was the site of the earliest US Opens, the complex was commissioned in 1880 by James Gordon Bennett, Jr. Candy won the bet, but the Governors of the Reading Room were not amused, Bennett and his infamous short temper did not take this kindly, and soon set about creating his own retreat, what would eventually become The Newport Casino. Soon after deciding to create his own club, Bennett purchased the Sidney Brooks estate. Directly across the street was a vacant lot, suitable for construction of the Casino, Bennett hired Charles McKim to design the Casino. By January 1880, Nathan Barker of Newport was contracted to begin construction, the interior of the Casino, while generally outlined by McKim, was entrusted to Stanford White. Taking many elements and cues from the Japanese Pavilion at the 1876 Centennial International Exhibition in Philadelphia, the Newport Casino opened to its first patrons in July 1880, and the general public got their first view in August 1880. The first half of the 20th century was unkind to the Newport Casino, the Gilded age drew to a close with the onset of the Depression, and the Newport fell by the wayside as a summer resort for the wealthy and powerful. The Casino struggled financially as a social club right from the start, like many of the mansions, there was the very real possibility that it would be demolished to make way for more modern retail space. The United States Lawn Tennis Association held their first championships at the Casino in 1881, by this time, tennis was firmly entrenched as the key attraction at the Casino. Candy and Jimmy Van Alen took over operating the club, the combination of prominent headliners at the tennis matches and the museum allowed the building to be saved. It stands today as one of the finest examples of Victorian Shingle Style architecture in the world, the buildings are generally well preserved, and the Casino Theatre which was in a state of disrepair was recently restored and is currently leased to Salve Regina University. The theater occasionally still shows films, mostly during the Newport International Film Festival or charity events, the landscaping in the center, new bushes were recently put in the entrance way with the old overgrown bushes removed. Originally, casino meant a small villa built for pleasure, during the 19th century, the term casino came to include other buildings where social activities took place. It was best known as the home of American lawn tennis, between 1915 and 1967 it hosted the Newport Casino Invitational mens tennis tournament. Today, there is still an active tennis club, as well as an indoor tennis club. The Newport Casino Croquet Club offers championship croquet play on Newports grass courts, the Court Tennis Building is part of the original complex, built in 1880. It burned down in 1945, but was rebuilt in 1980 and it is home to the National Tennis Club
11.
Clement Clarke Moore
–
The seminary was developed on land donated by Moore and it continues on this site at Ninth Avenue between 20th and 21st streets, in an area known as Chelsea Square. Moores connection with the seminary continued for more than 25 years, Moore gained considerable wealth by subdividing and developing other parts of his large inherited estate in what became known as the residential neighborhood of Chelsea. Before this, the part of the city ended at Houston Street on Manhattan island. For 10 years, Moore also served as a member of the New York Institution for the Blind. He is credited and is most widely known as the author of the Christmas poem A Visit from St. Nicholas and it later became widely known as Twas the Night Before Christmas and has been published in numerous illustrated versions in various languages. Scholars debate the identity of the author, calling on textual, Moore was born on July 15,1779 in New York City to Bishop Benjamin Moore and Charity Clarke. His father headed the Episcopal Diocese of New York, which covered the state. It was organized after the American Revolutionary War when the church independent of the Church of England. During the uncertain years of the war, when Loyalists associated with what was known as Kings College left for Canada and he served twice in this position. Moores mother was a daughter of Major Thomas Clarke, an English officer who stayed in the colony after fighting in the French and he owned the large Manhattan estate Chelsea, then in the country north of the developed areas of the city. As a girl, Moores mother Charity Clarke wrote letters to her English cousins, preserved at Columbia University, these show her disdain for the policies of the British monarchy and her growing sense of patriotism in pre-Revolutionary days. Moore was born at Chelsea, at his mothers family estate, the Moores established their own residence in Elmhurst, Queens. After his grandfather Clarkes and mothers deaths, Moore inherited the Chelsea estate and he earned great wealth by subdividing and developing it in the 19th century. Moore graduated from Columbia College, where he earned both his B. A. and his M. A, one of Moores earliest known works was an anonymous pro-Federalist pamphlet published prior to the 1804 presidential election, attacking the religious views of Thomas Jefferson. Moore concluded this work was an instrument of infidelity, in 1820, Moore helped Trinity Church organize a new parish church, St. Luke in the Fields, on Hudson Street. He later gave 66 tracts of land – the apple orchard from his inherited Chelsea estate– to the Episcopal Diocese of New York to be the site of the General Theological Seminary. Based likely on this donation, and on the publication of his Hebrew and English Lexicon in 1809 and he held this post until 1850. Moore owned several slaves during his lifetime, as was customary of many in his class and he opposed the abolition of slavery
12.
A Visit from St. Nicholas
–
Some commentators now believe the poem was written by Henry Livingston, Jr. The poem has been called arguably the best-known verses ever written by an American and is responsible for some of the conceptions of Santa Claus from the mid-nineteenth century to today. It has had a impact on the history of Christmas gift-giving. Before the poem gained wide popularity, American ideas had varied considerably about Saint Nicholas, a Visit from St. Nicholas eventually was set to music and has been recorded by many artists. On Christmas Eve night, while his wife and children sleep, looking out the window, he sees Santa Claus in an air-borne sleigh pulled by eight reindeer. After landing his sleigh on the roof, the saint enters the house through the chimney, the father watches Santa filling the childrens Christmas stockings hanging by the fire, and laughs to himself. They share a moment before the saint bounds up the chimney again. As he flies away, Santa wishes everyone a Happy Christmas to all, the poems meter is anapestic tetrameter. The anapest is the foot used to construct limericks. For example, while the first two lines each use full anapests, lines 3 and 4 each drop the first unstressed syllable, likewise, lines 9 and 10 drop the first unstressed syllable, they also add an extra unstressed syllable to the end. According to legend, A Visit was composed by Clement Clarke Moore on a winters day during a shopping trip on a sleigh. His inspiration for the character of Saint Nicholas was a local Dutch handyman as well as the historical Saint Nicholas, Moore originated many of the features that are still associated with Santa Claus today while borrowing other aspects, such as the use of reindeer. It was first attributed in print to Moore in 1837, Moore himself acknowledged authorship when he included it in his own book of poems in 1844. By then, the publisher and at least seven others had already acknowledged his authorship. Moore had a reputation as a professor and had not wished at first to be connected with the unscholarly verse. He included it in the anthology at the insistence of his children, Moores conception of Saint Nicholas was borrowed from his friend Washington Irving, but Moore portrayed his jolly old elf as arriving on Christmas Eve rather than Christmas Day. By having Saint Nicholas arrive the night before, Moore deftly shifted the focus away from Christmas Day with its religious associations. As a result, New Yorkers embraced Moores child-centered version of Christmas as if they had doing it all their lives
United States