Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Caroline Cowles Richards - Life in a Puritan Home
Caroline Cowles was born in 1842. Caroline grew up living with her grandparents. Her grandmother held true to her Puritan family traditions. She was a very religious woman. She believed in following the word of the Bible. Caroline and her sister, Anna, were expected to lead the traditional life of their Puritan ancestors.
Anna and Caroline were intelligent girls. They loved to read. They loved to play. They loved to laugh. But they were expected to be polite and well-behaved as well. We know much about Caroline's childhood because she also loved to write. She kept a diary. In this diary, she gave detailed accounts of her daily life. She began writing in her diary when she was just ten years old.
Caroline's diary tells us about the lives led by many young girls during this time. She tells of snowy days when no one could leave the house. She watched the snowplow clear the street in front of her house. Caroline's snowplow was pulled by two horses. She could watch as the horses pulled the wooden plow up one side of the street and down the other side. She told of wearing long stockings over her shoes to keep her feet warm and dry. Her grandfather had to put on a long cloak with a cape on it to brave the cold and snow.
